AABCAP Professional Training Course Retreat 3
Zen Retreat
with Subhana Barzaghi and Jeff Ward
2 - 9 December 2023
DATES Saturday 2nd to Wednesday 9th of December 2023 (7 nights)
TIMES Arrive by 3pm on Saturday 2nd / depart 12 noon or after lunch on the 9th
LOCATION Brahma Kumari Centre - Wilton
AABCAP Retreats
The AABCAP retreats offered as part of our Professional Training Program are meditation retreats taught by experienced Buddhist meditation teachers, who are also skilled therapists in their own right. The focus in these retreats is on your meditative development and incorporating and integrating the Buddhist teachings through your own contemplative experience under the guidance of skilled teachers. As such, these retreats will be less interactive than the main teaching modules and more contemplative in style, with teachings, meditation guidance and Q & A/discussion sessions sprinkled throughout.
Each of the three retreats over the two year training will be taught from the paradigm of one of the three main Buddhist traditions: Theravada, Tibetan (Mahayana/Vajrayana), and Zen (Mahayana). Each teacher and each tradition will have their own style of practice and way of structuring the retreat, so your experience will vary. This creates an opportunity for students to be exposed to, and practice within these different approaches for a more well-rounded understanding of the main Buddhist teachings, expressions, and applications.
Retreat 3: A Retreat in the Zen Buddhist Tradition
This third retreat on the AABCAP course is taught from the framework of the Zen Tradition and your teachers are Subhana Barzaghi and Jeff Ward.
RETREAT 3 PRE-RETREAT READINGS:
Guo Gu (2021). Silent Illumination: A Chan Buddhist Path to Natural Awakening. Shambala.
Optional reading: Beck, C.J.(2007) Everyday Zen: Love and Work. Harper.
Subhana Barzaghi is a Zen Buddhist Roshi and senior Insight Meditation teacher. She is a resident teacher and Spiritual Director of the Sydney Zen Centre. Subhana teaches regular intensive Zen and Insight Meditation retreats throughout Australia & New Zealand. She is a psychotherapist with over 30 years clinical experience, she has a Master’s Degree in Applied Psychotherapy, is a graduate in Hakomi Integrative Psychotherapy, a Clinical Supervisor, and an AABCAP Trainer. She also leads a range of professional workshops, on: Death and Dying, Zen and the Arts retreats, and workshops on Awakening the Boundless Heart of Love, Compassion, Joy and Equanimity. Subhana is the Director of the Insight Meditation Institute which leads the 2 year Mindfulness & Compassion Teacher Training course and the 4 year Insight Dharma Teacher Training & Mentoring Program.
Jeff Ward has been involved in Buddhist practice for nearly 50 years and has practised in the Zen Buddhist tradition in both Japan and Australia. He is currently the teacher of the Black Mountain Zen Group in Canberra. Jeff is also a clinical psychologist and psychoanalytic psychotherapist and has a long history in clinical research, teaching and practice and he currently maintains a private practice in Canberra. Jeff has been on the faculty of AABCAP for the past 14 years and has an interest in the way Buddhist practice contributes to our formation as therapists.
Retreat 3 is in the Zen Buddhist tradition and will consist of sitting and walking meditation, talks from the teachers, and experiential exercises. During the retreat you will be introduced to the main forms of meditation used in Zen practice – awareness of the breath, working with koans and silent illumination. Guided meditations, talks from the teachers and experiential exercises will expand on these approaches and how they relate to our clinical work. Each day there will be one-on-one interviews with the teachers to support and guide you in your practice during the retreat. By the end of the retreat, you will have an introductory knowledge of the Zen practice tradition and will have had an opportunity to begin to experience and think about how this might help in your therapeutic work and in your life more generally.
The retreat will be mainly conducted in ‘noble silence’, however, this will be relaxed during interactive exercises and discussions.
Five Buddhist Precepts
As in the first two retreats, the five Buddhist precepts as ethical guidelines are the usual code of conduct on retreat. These basic ethical observances establish a respectful and safe environment for all beings and a supportive atmosphere for meditative practice and cultivation of the heart.
Retreat Schedule
The schedule and flow of this retreat will be explained by the teachers at the beginning of retreat.