Resources

The reading material we will draw on for this retreat is Part 1 & 2 of What is the Sangha?. This can be found in Complete Works Vol.3: The Three Jewels 2. We won’t be studying directly all that material, but it is important to read to understand what Bhante means by the terms individual, group and spiritual community.

If you prefer to listen to talks, most of Part 1 & 2 of What is the Sangha? are based on two lectures:

The Individual and the Spiritual Community by Sangharakshita | free buddhist audio

The Individual, the Group, and the Community by Sangharakshita | free buddhist audio

The main material we will be studying on this retreat is the handbook entitled 'What is the Order?' produced by Tiratanaloka. Please ensure you read this before the retreat and come prepared with questions and areas for discussion for your study group, as this will help you and others get the most from the retreat.  Please bring the handbook with you.

Please read and take notes on Chapter 1 of A Survey of Buddhism by Sangharakshita. You will need to bring the text with you. At present, this text is in print as part of Volume 1 of Sangharakshita's Complete Works. If you have problems getting hold of the text please let us know as soon as possible.

You can also listen to the Chapter.

Background reading:

Sangharakshita: What Is The Dharma?

Subhuti: Revering and Relying on the Dharma 

You may also want to watch or listen to Vajratara's overview of the first Chapter of 'The Survey'.

Transcendental Principle 2 retreat:

Subhuti's paper Revering and Relying upon the Dharma.

The main text for this retreat is Chapter 11, 'The Nature of Existence', in Sangharakshita's The Three Jewels. This can also be found in The Complete Works of Sangharakshita Vol 2. You will find it helpful to look at the preceding chapters too. We also highly recommend you have a look at the seminar on this material.

The required reading is Subhuti's paper Re-Imagining the Buddha (you might also like to listen to his talk The Five Aspects of Dharma Life - Spiritual Receptivity), and Aloka's The Refuge Tree as Mythic Context.

Background reading:

Required reading:

The main material we will be studying on this retreat is our Eight Guidelines handbook (which is also translated into German).

Please ensure you read this material before the retreat and come prepared with questions and areas for discussion for your study group, as this will help you and others get the most from the retreat. Please bring a paper copy of the handbook with you.

There is also a link to a summary set of questions for you to reflect on.

Required reading:

The main material we will be studying on this retreat is the handbook entitled The Bodhisattva Path produced by Tiratanaloka - there is a link to this below. Please ensure you read this material before the retreat and come prepared with questions and areas for discussion for your study group, as this will help you and others get the most from the retreat. Please bring the handbook with you.

Here's the calendar for Going for Refuge retreats in 2025. Bookings will open on our website on the 1st of September 2024.

The Going for Refuge and Prostration Practice is an important practice that we do together on retreat. To prepare for the retreat, you may want to read about the practice in Kulananda's Teachers of Enlightenment. You can also see a guide to doing physical prostrations during the practice here.

Required reading:

The main material we will be studying on this retreat is the handbook entitled Going for Refuge produced by Tiratanaloka - there is a link to this below. Please ensure you read this material before the retreat and come prepared with questions and areas for discussion for your study group, as this will help you and others get the most from the retreat. Please bring the handbook with you.

Required reading:

Please read our handbook. The retreat is based on Sangharakshita’s The Ten Pillars of Buddhism. This is available as an book from Windhorse Publications (link below) as an individual book or as part of The Complete Works Vol.2. It is also available as a talk from Sangharakshita on Free Buddhist Audio - link below. Please bring a copy with you.

We also ask you to read Chapter Six of Subhadramati's book Not About Being Good. This is also available from Windhorse Publications.

It will also be very helpful to look at Sangharakshita's Know Your Mind and Living Ethically.

Ethics 2 retreat:

Please read Know Your Mind Chapter 8 (Forces of Disintegration), Living Ethically Chapter 5 (The Ethics of Views) and Subhuti's paper Revering and Relying upon the Dharma (see link below).

Required reading:

The main material we will be studying on this retreat is the handbook entitled System of Practice produced by Tiratanaloka - there is a link to this below. Please ensure you read this material before the retreat and come prepared with questions and areas for discussion for your study group, as this will help you and others get the most from the retreat. Please bring the handbook with you.

You can also listen to Sangharakshita's talk A System of Meditation if possible.

On this retreat we will be studying Pali suttas on the topic of skilful communication and also learning some practical skills from Non Violent Communication.  The Pali suttas we'll be studying are in the PDF file below.

Please try and read Shantigarbha's book "I'll Meet You There" before coming on the retreat - it is available in both paperback and e-book formats - see links below.