July 2005
Newsletter
Holding the “Living and Dying” retreat in the depth of winter each year is a tangible reminder of the transient nature of life, including our own, in the midst of an ever-changing world. The trees stand bare of leaves, like dark silhouettes at dusk and the yellowed veld grasses droop, waiting for the winter fires. From time to time we meet with periods of “winter” in our own life, when existing patterns or relationships end, and we need to withdraw for a while to recover and find new direction in our life. Going on retreat is a bit like that, giving us the chance to withdraw from the stress of a hectic life, to slow down and connect with those qualities which nurture and bring meaning to our life. The natural beauty of the land at Emoyeni and its simplicity provide an environment that supports this process.At the end of May, the Emoyeni Trust held its AGM in Johannesburg. The past year was a significant one for the retreat centre, with the construction of the meditation hall and then the activity hall, where the talks and workshops now take place. This has brought about a shift of focus at the Centre from the farm house to these two new facilities. This shift has been enhanced by making a removable shade-cloth cover which can be pulled across the metal-pole structure next to the Activity Hall for outdoor retreats like Tai Chi, Chi Kung and Yoga. The old lounge in the farm house has now become our dining room and the library alongside it has benefited from recent donations of books from Dharma friends. These improvements have brought with them a sense of the Dharma becoming more solid and grounded at Emoyeni.
For the third year Emoyeni has run with a small operating surplus of R22 182, compared to R24 376 in 2004 and R22 234 in 2003. Not a lot, but much better than the deficits of the first two years. Looking at the year or two ahead, we identified three areas that need attention. Firstly, we need to address the payment of reasonable stipends to the residents who live and work at Emoyeni. In the early years of establishing the Retreat Centre this has not been financially possible - but as attendance and the workload at Emoyeni continues to grow, this needs to be given priority. Secondly, to improve the main house by renovating the two accommodation rooms on the enclosed back veranda and upgrading the new dining room and the kitchen. Thirdly, to build new accommodation for two or three more retreatants, bringing the number of beds available up to twelve, and to provide ablutions for campers.
At the AGM it was suggested that a Fund-Raising Interest Group be formed to generate ideas to assist Emoyeni to implement these improvements to the Retreat Centre. If you would like to be part of this group please contact Moyra Keane at (011) 486-4208. The first meeting of the Interest Group will take place at her apartment in Killarney on Sunday afternoon 24 July. See the notice below.
Paul Edwards, after a six-month stay, will be leaving Emoyeni later this month. We will miss his cheerful and enthusiastic presence and wish him well when he moves down to the Buddhist Retreat Centre, Ixopo in August. Earlier in the year, Helga Halvorson from Johannesburg, did a three-month work/study retreat at Emoyeni - it was a pleasure to have her help with the running of the Centre. What this means is that Emoyeni is looking for one or two people to come and join the resident community at the Retreat Centre. This is a wonderful opportunity to live and work in a Dharma community, to develop your own practice and to help others to develop theirs. See the notice below for more details.
Another project that we are undertaking, together with Beate and John Walsh, is to produce a book of teachings given by Godwin Samararatne, the meditation teacher from Sri Lanka after whom we have named our meditation hall. With the help of several friends, we are busy transcribing taped talks that Godwin gave in South Africa and hope in a few months time to start putting them together and giving the book some shape. As part of the book we would like to include a number of personal stories or anecdotes about Godwin. If you would like to contribute an anecdote, please write it down and email it to Mervyn at Emoyeni.
Mervyn