Going for Refuge to the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha is ‘the central and definitive act of the Buddhist life’ and ‘the unifying principle, therefore, of Buddhism itself’.

The ordination process involves a progressive deepening of Going for Refuge until it becomes effective in all aspects of our lives; the ceremony of ordination involves the witnessing, by senior Order members, of this effective Going for Refuge.

We will study all aspects of the ‘best of refuges’ on this retreat and explore how we can make them even more central to our lives. In particular, we will be studying Padmavajra's paper 'The Best of Refuges', which you can order from the bookshop here.

Details and Timings

The retreat starts with dinner on the first day at 6:30pm and finishes on the final day at 10.00am.

Health and Hygiene

It is vital that you don't come on retreat if you have any symptoms of Covid-19, including a cough, loss or change of smell or taste, a temperature, or any other cold or flu-like symptoms.

If you have been in contact with somebody who has tested positive for Covid-19 within the past 7 days, please contact us on 01508538112 or email us on info@padmaloka.org.uk; we may ask you to take daily lateral flow tests if it is still appropriate for you to come on retreat.

To come on this retreat it is essential that you have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19.

We ask that you take two Lateral Flow Tests, one 48 hours before arrival and a second within 24 hours of the retreat starting, please also bring a few Lateral Flow Tests with you as everyone will be required to do a test halfway through the retreat.
You can order them free from the UK Government here: Lateral Flow Tests, or from most pharmacies.

For more information on our Covid policies and to see our risk assessment you can visit our Coming on Retreat Page.

Banner and thumbnail image: cropped painting by Aloka © from the Padmaloka Shrine Room