We need to see this world as it truly is and the Parable of the Burning House shows us this with unflinching honesty. We can often treat life like a well-furnished apartment. Things sometimes go wrong, and appliances can break, but all in all, we needn’t worry about making real changes or questioning the superficial comfort of our situation. Yet the Buddhist tradition is crystal clear, our life is not a well-furnished apartment. We live in a vast, decaying house ablaze with greed, hatred, and delusion – and we need to find the way out. Here we play our games, not realising that the house is on fire. Can we hear the Buddha calling us to leave?

This weekend will help us look at how we can begin to break out of the burning house – evoking the urgency of the Buddha’s call for us to escape this perilous situation, not just for our benefit, but for the benefit of all life.

Banner and thumbnail image: cropped painting by Aloka ©

Details and Timings

The retreat starts with dinner on the first day at 6:30pm and finishes on the final day at around 2:30pm.

This retreat follows on from the Awakening the Imagination. Consider making the most of your journey to Padmaloka by booking onto both retreats