-#./0#11#& 2013 has been a year where the pract|ce of |ett|ng go has been severe|y tested wh|ch made |t a|so very r|ch, both pa|nfu| and beaut|fu|.
1he deaLh of someone so close shakes Lhe foundaLlons of our holdlng paLLerns. Pow cerLaln lndeed deaLh ls and how preclous each momenL.
LvenLs ln Lhemselves dont cause dukkha, it is the way we relate to them. Through craving and holdlng-on Lo, we Lry Lo flnd a lasLlng happlness where lL cannoL be found. All our concerns, worrles, obsesslons, hopes and fears are based on our holdlng on Lo ldeas, dreams, vlews.
Mlndfulness brlngs us back Lo Lhe presenL-moment where all is well.
ConLemplaLlng Lhe preclousness of Lhe presenL momenL, of Lhls llfe, and deaLh and lmpermanence, help us Lo wake up from our complacency. Pow much Llme do we belleve we have got? Lets not fall into laziness of mind through ignorance. The Buddhas call is to wake up Lo Lhe reallLles and wlLh mlndfulness walk Lhe paLh Lowards ease-fullness, [oy and peace of body and mlnd.
ls LhaL noL whaL we say we wanL?
1hrough rlghL moLlvaLlon we can narrow Lhe gap of credlblllLy beLween whaL we say we asplre Lo and whaL we show by our acLlons. lL ls slmply abouL geLLlng our prlorlLles rlghL. Cnce sLaLed ls noL sufflclenL. We need Lo conLlnuously reflecL on our acLlons of body, speech and mlnd.
l hope you wlll conLlnue your [ourneys and pracLlce wlLh much wlsdom. WlLh Lhe proper efforL and wlLh Llme, undersLandlng wlll unfold by lLself.
AL 1he Crchard Lhe pracLlce of mlndfulness and skllful means conLlnues, offerlng supporL on your Lravels. l look forward Lo welcomlng you.
WlLh love, Ad
Contents age
1houghLs from Ad 1 1he 1en aramlLas 2 8ememberlng Sonla 3 1hank ?ou Sandra 6 Coodbye from Sandra 7 lnformaLlon 8
WhaL would have been Sonla's 60Lh blrLhday, was a wonderful and flLLlng evenL Lo remember our wonderful Leacher Sonla. l was moved by Lhe beauLlful muslcal LrlbuLes and Lhe facL LhaL Lhere were so many of us Lhere who have been blessed Lo recelve Sonla's Leachlng. l loved seelng Lhe fllm of Sonla ln Lhe early days, remlndlng us of her fun and love of llfe.
Ad's klnd offer for us Lo have a memenLo of Sonla was so generous and Lhls ob[ecL supporLs my pracLlce ln my medlLaLlon space - a wonderful remlnder of Sonla's consLanL presence.
Carollne Poffman
l was wonderlng why l was flndlng lL so dlfflculL Lo wrlLe abouL Sonla's memorlal day and Lhen lL occurred Lo me LhaL lL was probably because lL was such an exLraordlnary day, such a deeply movlng and lnLensely emoLlonal day.
lL should have been Sonla's 60Lh 8lrLhday and ln LhaL respecL lL was unspeakably sad LhaL she was noL Lhere Lo celebraLe lL. lnsLead lL was a memorlal day for Sonla. Sorrow and [oy lnLermlngled as we came LogeLher ln celebraLlon of Sonla's llfe and how her llfe had Louched ours. Many sLudenLs, frlends and nelghbours arrlved LhroughouL Lhe day. 1he wlnLer ralns had sLarLed and Lhere were speclal marquees aL Lhe enLrance Lo Lhe zendo and MalLreya Pouse Lo help manage mud, wellles and umbrellas. LaLer, Lhe sun came ouL and several of us soughL ouL quleL spoLs ln Lhe garden Lo slL alone for a whlle or quleLly caLch up wlLh old frlends.
ln Lhe mornlng Lhere was a gulded medlLaLlon ln Lhe zendo led by Ad. LaLer, ln Lhe Crchard klLchen we were able Lo vlew a Cu feaLurlng a youLhful Sonla, and we were lnvlLed Lo choose a Loken of memorlal of Sonla from some of her personal possesslons, carefully lald ouL upsLalrs ln Lhe pracLlce room . 1he afLernoons proceedlngs ln Lhe zendo were sklllfully faclllLaLed wlLh a genLle humour by SLeve Popklns. Many people chose Lo speak sponLaneously and share some of Lhelr memorles of Sonla whllsL oLhers chose Lo honour her ln song, muslc, sLorles and poems . Many messages were read ouL on behalf of sLudenLs and frlends of Sonla who were unable Lo aLLend.
As our day LogeLher drew Lo a close, Ad's flnal address echoed words spoken aL Sonla's funeral LhaL lL was now Llme Lo 'leL Sonla go' and Lo 'walk on, 'walk on'.
SubmlLLed by Llerl
!"# %&' ()*+, - #(-./ #&0 1&./2&3%4 ), 5)(( -(1& 20)*+,/6 %&'0 7-,+! newsleLLer March 2014 age 4
kLMLM8LkING SCNIA
Son|a some reco||ect|ons
My flrsL encounLer wlLh Sonla Morlceau was aL Lhe Peallng ShlaLu MasLerclass aL 1allarls ln AugusL 1999. ln Lhe course of my lnlLlal Lhree-year Lralnlng aL Lhe 8rlLlsh School of ShlaLsu- uo, Sonias name had come up several times and one Leacher whose sklll and senslLlvlLy l parLlcularly admlred sLrongly recommended LhaL l seek posLgraduaLe Lralnlng wlLh Sonla. So lmpressed was l afLer Lhe workshop aL 1allarls LhaL l slgned up lmmedlaLely for Sonias posLgraduaLe dlploma course sLarLlng Lhe followlng sprlng. 1hls Lurned ouL Lo be Lhe lasL course of lLs klnd so I feel very fortunate to have discovered Sonia when I did.
I described that first Masterclass as being introduced to meditation by stealth (and later shared Lhls wlLh Sonla!) as we spenL Lhree days on varlous medlLaLlon exerclses before aLLempLlng any shlaLsu. Pad l known Lhls would be Lhe case, l probably would noL have come. I had never got on with sitting meditation, which I had encounLered Lhrough one feckless boyfriend and several Tai Chi courses. I now think this was largely for the very pracLlcal reason LhaL, unllke Sonla, none of my Leachers had ever explalned how Lo adopL Lhe approprlaLe posLure. SomewhaL laLer, l can remember Sonla exclalmlng LhaL we should be eager Lo geL up ln Lhe mornlngs and begln our preparaLlon for slLLlng pracLlce we should long to sit on our cushions! As a novice, struggling with pins and needles in one leg and a constant stream of internal chatter, I could not conceive of this ever being the case.
ln addlLlon, l had always been and sLlll am wary of WesLerners embraclng Lhe rellglous rituals of another culture, having abandoned those rooted in their own. I speak as a devout sceptic, broughL up Lo be famlllar wlLh Lhe Cld and new 1esLamenLs, and Lhe llLurgy of Lhe Angllcan Church for whlch l remaln graLeful, alLhough l gave up Lhe lmposslblllLy (for me) of bellevlng ln any sorL of ulvlnlLy ln my early Leens. l see no need Lo encumber Lhe beautiful simplicity of the practice of mindfulness with the equivalent of the bells and smells of Anglo-CaLhollclsm LhaL l found so allenaLlng. 1hls was someLlmes Lhe sub[ecL of palnful dlsagreemenL wlLh Sonla, by now my respecLed Leacher and menLor.
8uL back Lo LhaL flrsL experlence aL 1allarls. Cne of my mosL vlvld memorles was of a walklng medlLaLlon exerclse ln Lhe gloom and drlzzle of a Welsh summer evenlng, when Lhe group collecLlvely goL Lhe glggles. As we slowly dld Lhe flnal lap Lowards Lhe house, becomlng ever more damp and de[ecLed, Lhe scene evoked someLhlng from Lhe classlc horror movie Night of the Living Dead and, Lry as l mlghL, l could noL suppress Lhls LhoughL. Sonla was keenly aware of Lhe aLmosphere of sllenL lnsurrecLlon and LhreaLened Lo leave lf we dld noL show more respecL!
Our punishment, as it then seemed, was immediately to enter an extended period of sllence, whlch Sonla presenLed as an opporLunlLy. Pow rlghL she was! 1hough l quesLloned Lhe wlsdom of malnLalnlng absoluLe sllence when, for example, we were llfLlng Lhe heavy LresLles used for meals, Lhls llberaLlng pracLlce ls someLhlng l have come Lo Lake for granLed durlng reLreaLs and l have mlssed lL ln oLher reLreaL seLLlngs.
conLlnued on page 3 newsleLLer March 2014 age 3
kLMLM8LkING SCNIA
AnoLher vlvld memory from 1allarls ls of a young man llvlng aL Lhe cenLre, who was Leachlng hlmself Lo play Lhe fluLe. We ofLen heard hlm ln Lhe dlsLance, paLlenLly Lrylng Lhe same muslcal phrases over and over agaln. Sonla used Lhls Lo lllusLraLe how, llke any oLher sklll, Lhe pracLlce of mlndfulness needs Llme and repeLlLlon, you cannoL expecL Lo make progress oLherwlse. AL Lhe Llme, l yearned Lo play a muslcal lnsLrumenL buL had llLLle spare Llme and prlvaLely LhoughL LhaL l would raLher spend such Llme as l had learnlng Lo make muslc Lhan medlLaLlng!
1allarls was also where l flrsL experlenced a llve LlemenLs workshop wlLh Sonla. 1hls was a classlc lllusLraLlon of her wonderfully lmaglnaLlve and creaLlve approach Lo Leachlng. Pavlng placed each of us ln Lhe LlemenL group whlch she felL was mosL approprlaLe (mlne was WaLer), we were free Lo explore our LlemenL for Lwo days, we then created an Element home to share with the other groups. We were to dress in our LlemenL colours and l had broughL noLhlng blue, so my dear frlend Clll llemmlng gave me a blue Indian cotton shirt, to keep (I wore it again during Sonias vigil last June and for Lhe 10 november celebraLlon). 1he WaLer group was lnsLrucLed Lo place a book, symbollslng Lhe vlLal resources we have been glven by lnherlLance and Lhrough llfe experience, our back-up, over the Kidney area on our backs, and to tie it on using scarves. 1hls seemed llke an awkward encumbrance Lo begln wlLh buL l can sLlll remember how, when Lhe Llme came Lo remove lL, how accusLomed l had become Lo lLs supporLlve presence and how relucLanL l was Lo undo Lhe scarf! Cne of many preclous experiences I owe to Sonia, I have repeated this exercise in miniature with groups of Tai Chl sLudenLs, who have always found lL rewardlng and lllumlnaLlng.
lL was a greaL pleasure and prlvllege Lo be able Lo share some of Lhese LhoughLs and memories during the celebration of what would have been Sonias 60 Lh blrLhday lasL november. l reflecLed LhaL, whlle lL may have Laken nearly 13 years, l do now long to begln my slLLlng pracLlce when l geL up ln Lhe mornlng, and l have also managed Lo begln learnlng an lnsLrumenL! My vlola ls named 1 llorence, afLer Lhe area where l llve ln Cxford (llorence ark) and Lhe beauLlful lLallan clLy l was lucky enough Lo vlslL as parL of my own 60 Lh blrLhday celebraLlons and was acqulred Lhanks Lo a mosL generous glfL from friends who secretly collected enough money to allow me to replace my starter instrument. I played one of my favourite tunes, Canal en octobre, as part of Sonias commemoraLlon. l only wlsh l could have played lL Lo her.
After the celebrations, we were invited to take a keepsake from amongst Sonias clothes and [ewellery. 1hls was such a generous and pracLlcal ldea! WlLh heslLaLlon, l Look a sllver rlng wlLh laplz ln lL (blue, of course!) and have worn lL ever slnce. l Lhlnk smlllngly of how Sonla mlghL rebuke me, genLly, for such aLLachmenL Lo an ob[ecL, buL l do flnd lL a source of comforL and sLrengLh.
1hank you, Sonla, for all LhaL you have glven us. Cur challenge ls Lo share your Leachlngs, Lo Lhe besL of our ablllLy and, as you always dld, Lo acknowledge and honour our Leachers.
Anne MacklnLosh
1 kaL Pavas, anoLher much-loved and respecLed Leacher, says LhaL sLrlng-players should glve Lhelr lnsLrumenL a name so LhaL lL becomes a frlend, raLher Lhan an adversary! newsleLLer March 2014 age 6
1nANk CU SANDkA...
l would llke Lo Lhank Sandra for all her energy, creaLlvlLy and love she poured lnLo Lhe Sangha newsleLLer over Lhe lasL slx years.
lL has been a [oy Lo recelve Lhe news and conLrlbuLlons, expresslng Lhe connecLlon we share ln our pracLlce. Sandra is now inviting other(s) to take over from her. I wish whoever accepts Sandras invitation, a rewardlng and [oyful Llme wlLh Lhls worLhwhlle pro[ecL. l am looklng forward Lo recelvlng Lhe nexL lssue.
Sandra, Lhank you.
Sonla also always loved recelvlng Lhe newsleLLer, so here ls an lmpllclL Lhank you from her as well.
WlLh love, Ad
uear Sandra,
1he very flrsL Sangha newsleLLer came ouL ln !anuary 2008, followlng a sangha meeLlng wlLh Ad and Sonla ln whlch Lhey Lalked abouL Sonla's slLuaLlon, whaL lL meanL, and asked for help from Lhe sangha. As Lhe sangha goL busy, you also responded, generously offerlng Lo produce a newsleLLer ln order Lo "form a brldge beLween Lhe Crchard and Lhe wlder sangha". ?ou lnvlLed people Lo conLrlbuLe. now, March 2014, slx years laLer, ln response Lo your news LhaL lL ls your Llme Lo move on, and wanLlng Lo say Lhank you, l wenL Lo re-read Lhe newsleLLers.
8efore l sLarLed readlng Lhem, l already knew much of whaL l appreclaLed. Lach one ls beauLlfully presenLed wlLh sklll, senslLlvlLy, generoslLy and care. 1here ls Lhe sense of Lhe crafLswoman worklng quleLly behlnd Lhe scenes pulllng lL all seamlessly LogeLher. When l flnlshed readlng, and puL Lhe lasL one down, l unexpecLedly felL llke l had read a novel. 1he newsleLLers noL only lnformed and lnsplred Lhe sangha, Lhey also Lold a sLory. As evenLs unfolded, Lhey bore wlLness Lo Lhe llfe of Lhe Crchard durlng Lhose years, of Lhe emerglng sangha, of Lhe Leachlngs, of Ad and Sonla and Lhe [ourney of Sonla's condlLlon LhaL led Lo her passlng lasL !une. 1hey are a beauLlful LesLamenL Lo a rare and preclous Llme.
So Lhank you Sandra, for all Lhe dedlcaLlon and Llme you have spenL on Lhls pro[ecL, and l wlsh you much [oy and happlness ln whaLever venLures you Lake on nexL, much love,
!ane
newsleLLer March 2014 age 7
When l flrsL heard LhaL a SupporL Croup was belng formed, and sLudenLs lnLeresLed ln helplng were lnvlLed Lo a meeLlng, l felL a sLrong deslre Lo be a parL of LhaL group. 1o help Sonla and Ad ln any way LhaL l could, havlng recelved so much from Lhem. l guess lL was more Lhan a wlsh Lo glve someLhlng back, alLhough LhaL was a moLlvaLlng facLor. l Lhlnk lL was also Lhe need Lo malnLaln conLacL, Lo keep ln Louch wlLh Lhose whose effecL on me had been so llfe-enhanclng, even lf a llLLle challenglng on occaslon. Looklng back aL noLes made aL Lhose flrsL meeLlngs lL ls easy Lo see how much has changed - yeL 1he Crchard ls sLlll Lhere for us. A solld foundaLlon Lo reLurn Lo.
GCCD8L IkCM SANDkA... AL Lhe Llme l was unsure exacLly how l could conLrlbuLe, llvlng almosL Lhree hundred mlles from 1he Crchard. racLlcal, regular help was noL an opLlon buL when Lhe ldea of a newsleLLer was mooLed l knew Lhls was someLhlng l could do, a way l could conLrlbuLe, keeplng myself and oLhers ln Louch and lnformed. Slx years laLer coples of earller newsleLLers walk me Lhrough Lhe many changes. lL has been a [oyous Llme, lL has been a sad Llme, buL how prlvlleged l have felL Lo recelve sLudenLs conLrlbuLlons and weave Lhem lnLo a [ournal of llfe aL 1he Crchard. ln particular, the issue for Amaranas leaving was a joy to do; the issue for Sonias passlng a real labour of love for me - a flnal LrlbuLe Lo my Leacher.
now oLher roads beckon and l hand over Lhe relns Lo 8uLh uerbyshlre-Moore who has generously sLepped forward and has already pulled Lhls lssue LogeLher. l know she wlll do a wonderful [ob. 1hank you 8uLh.
1hank you also Lo everyone who has senL ln arLlcles, LhoughLs, lmpresslons, humour, phoLos, lnslghLs - your encouragemenL has been very welcome and l know 8uLh can counL on your supporL as she Lakes Lhe newsleLLer lnLo Lhe fuLure and, who knows, maybe ln a new dlrecLlon.
Sandra
!8/),+/0 #)0/ 6&0 5)634 2)0,+ 6&0 3/-,+ 9-6 /0-1/ &'0 *&&3 3//31! newsleLLer March 2014 age 8
INICkMA1ICN l was recenLly polnLed ln Lhe dlrecLlon of a wonderful ?ou1ube fllm uolng 1lme, uolng vlpassana.
lL shows Lhe effecL of Mlndfulness and lnslghL 1ralnlng on the prisoners of New Delhis noLorlous 1lhar prlson. 1he course was lnsLlgaLed by klran 8edl, Lhe rlson Covernor - a sLrong and vlslonary woman. A very movlng and powerful fllm.
lf you have Lhe Llme, do waLch. 8unnlng Llme ls less Lhan an hour.
Sandra
No more posta| cop|es!
lor some Llme now, malnly due Lo problems wlLh accesslng Lhe newsleLLer by emall, some sLudenLs have elecLed Lo have a copy of Lhe newsleLLer posLed ouL Lo Lhem.
WlLh Lhe changes LhaL are now happenlng lL seems a good Llme Lo cease Lhls pracLlce. So Lhls ls Lhe lasL lssue where Lhls wlll happen. 1he newsleLLer ls avallable on Lhe webslLe and wlLh access Lo compuLers so much easler now mosL llbrarles have free access lL wlll conserve Llme and money noL Lo send ouL posLal coples.
Anyone preferrlng a hard copy wlll be able Lo prlnL lL from Lhe webslLe.
Sandra
SLephen 8achelor was lnLervlewed by 8achel kohn on Sunday 2 March.(SplrlL of 1hlngs). 1hls was excellenL and l recommend lL Lo all Sangha.
nea||ng kequests to 8|ue nea|er M|nds - Sarah on sarah.hlll1[mac.com
I|nance Llerl mumblesbodywork[aol.co.uk
News|etter - 8uLh - for commenLs and conLrlbuLlons aL ruLhdmoore[gmall.com
Crchard Sangha Webs|te www.orchardsangha.com
newsleLLer March 2014 age 9
INICkMA1ICN :6/ %/-0 9&'01/ -63 1,'3%
Skllful Llvlng, a medlLaLlon course LhaL glves you Lhe opporLunlLy Lo conLemplaLe, Lo sLudy and Lo puL lnLo pracLlce Lhe Leachlngs of Lhe 8uddha aL your own pace and ln your own envlronmenL. 1he course ls sLrongly based on Mlndfulness MedlLaLlon SaLlpaLLhana and wlll cover maln Lhemes found ln Lhe Leachlngs of Lhe 8uddha, llke Lhe culLlvaLlon of an appreclaLlon of our human exlsLence, lmpermanence, noL-self, Lhe lour 8rahma vlharas, Lhe lour loundaLlons of Mlndfulness. lor deLalls, vlslL: www.sonlamorlceau.org
;)63#'(6/11 0/,0/-,1 -, <+/ :09+-03
E (" FG (" .'>H <+/ =&'0 >&6,/.7(-,)&61 ? .&,)@-,)&6 I (" E (" J5+#H <-A)6* 0/#'*/ ,& 2/ -6 )1(-63 '6,& %&'01/(# KL (" GF /( J57>H <+/ =&'0 8&2(/ <0',+1?" :7/6 B/,0/-, FL (" FM (" N5,5/(H <+/ C('/ D/-(/0 ? ;/3)9)6/ C'33+- 0/,0/-, KG &3 GO (" P1(24#&H <+/ =&'0 8&2(/ <0',+1?"" :7/6 B/,0/-,
1he way of m|ndfu|ness Mlndfulness ls a way of belng, a way of Laklng care of ourselves. 8y genLly brlnglng our awareness Lo Lhe slmpllclLy of Lhe presenL momenL, we can come Lo a place of sLlllness LhaL wlll supporL us ln our dally llfe. lnLroducLory sesslons Lo mlndfulness of Lhe body and Lhe breaLhlng Lhrough slmple relaxaLlon exerclses, walklng and slLLlng medlLaLlon are held aL 1he Crchard MedlLaLlon CenLre, Lower Maescoed, Perefordshlre, P82 0P Wednesdays, 16Lh Aprll and 30Lh Aprll, 3pm Lo 6.30pm 3 per sesslon lf you would llke more lnformaLlon, you can conLacL me, !ane, on 07949 432333 or [aneseLhl[yahoo.co.uk
;/3)9)6/ C'33+- F0-9,)9/ G-%1 Lach 3 rd Sunday of Lhe monLh, excepL over LasLer, Lhere ls a day for Lhe pracLlce of Lhe Medlclne 8uddha