Retreat Reports: Silent Illumination Retreat

We publish selections from retreat reports written after Western Chan Fellowship retreats, to illustrate the range of experiences people go through as they investigate themselves in silent meditation. These reports are printed anonymously and may be lightly edited.

Chan Brushwork Retreat 2019

Calligraphy for the character Chan

The image that comes to mind when I try to sum up the retreat is of a triple: a three-legged stool, a tripod, a triptych. This represents what were…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 2019 , Chan Retreat Reports , Anon

Reflections on Chan Taster Week, Derbyshire, February 2017

Calligraphy for the character Chan

The first day was just awful really. Sitting there, facing myself. It was like torture. No distraction, no ‘phone a friend’, no reading, no internet,…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 2017 , Anon , Chan Retreat Reports

Working with a Master

John Crook sitting in front of the altar at Maenllwyd

What is it like for a lay practitioner to work with a master over a period of time? A single retreat provides an introductory experience but what if…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1999 , John Crook , For Newcomers , Chan Retreat Reports

Immeasurable Sweetness

Calligraphy for the character Chan

Pale light after dawn
Low clouds scudding over green fields
Weathervane - SSW

Nine cars
In the yard
Tathagatas

Welsh hills in June
Misty rain
Wet…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1998 , Chan Retreat Reports , Anon

What has Happened to the Entity that was Me?

Calligraphy for the character Chan

This was my first retreat of any kind and it was very difficult to start with the rigorous Chan approach. However, I felt very privileged to be…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1998 , Chan Retreat Reports , Anon

No Success, No Failure

Calligraphy for the character Chan

I came to the New York retreat unsure of what to expect. Earlier retreats at Maenllwyd had afforded powerful experiences and insight into dilemmas. In…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1994 , Chan Retreat Reports , Anon

A Nameless Dread

Calligraphy for the character Chan

I arrived at the retreat in poor shape. I was tired and stressed and, although there were no major problems in my life, the general wear and tear…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1994 , Chan Retreat Reports , Anon

Making Friends With The Universe

Calligraphy for the character Chan

I began my second Chan retreat at the Maenllwyd with the method of counting the breath but soon, stimulated by the phrases" Nothing to do. Nowhere…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1993 , Chan Retreat Reports , Anon

So Wonderful

Calligraphy for the character Chan

How different my life would have been had I never attended retreats at Maenllwyd I cannot say, but without a doubt my life has changed phenomenally…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1993 , Chan Retreat Reports , Anon

Wind and Silence

Calligraphy for the character Chan

A Chan Retreat begins for me when leaving home; making the journey as relaxed as possible; taking my time. In the preceding months I'd felt the need…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1993 , Chan Retreat Reports , For Newcomers , Anon

Mind In Flow

Calligraphy for the character Chan

I have just returned home, and it seems sensible to write the report before the memories of the retreat begin to slip away. Yet even by writing…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1992 , Chan Retreat Reports , For Newcomers , Anon

What Can I Say?

Calligraphy for the character Chan

The retreat was an opportunity to practice. But it was also a rare event, for when does a Chan Master such as Master Sheng Yen ever come to a remote…

Western Chan Fellowship CIO

Categories: 1992 , Chan Retreat Reports , Anon

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