The group sharing of benefit at the end of the Autumn virtual retreat was a hurricane of love and inspiration. Please savour it at your pleasure!
19:42:44 From John McFarlane to Alistair Appleton (Privately) : A great awakening of compassion
19:43:45 From Jennifer Lewis : I‚’ve been struck by the vital importance of this practice at this time – thank you so much
19:44:18 From Jo Mesney : Space in my heart, and all of our hearts just to be …
19:44:55 From AngelaHappy : getting a glimpse of the back space
19:44:55 From Andy Robinson : I have been moved by the lovely people I have met in the breakout rooms and how instantly I felt so connected with you all x
19:44:55 From Marian Dwyer : Starting to heal the traumatic wounds
19:44:58 From Sandra Kirkwood : Heart connection xx
19:45:01 From Alina : I am not scared. I want to travel and explore the world again
19:45:09 From Melanie : the magical liberation of tonglen practice
19:45:13 From Henry-Emmanuel Hublet : the joy of giving out
19:45:17 From Francesca Cooper : gentle ripples along the shores of the heart
19:45:20 From Sky .. : Trust in the love and support of the universe
19:45:32 From Anna Woollacott : intensity of emotions sometimes overwhelming and deep peacefulness also .Namaste to all xxx
19:45:36 From Jane_NY : Became aware that the only ‘problem’ with doing Tonglen is over-analyzing it with one’s mind spinning out into useless -narratives of ‘what if,’, ‘should I’, ‘am I getting it wrong’ instead of taking a NBD approach. Hence, no problem
19:45:37 From Jessica Hart : I’ found and now know how my heart space actually feels.
19:45:40 From Dorine Tans to Alistair Appleton (Privately) : Discovering how my ‘chalice’ is the source and exchange point of negative energy and positive energy. Will be using it, thank you for pointing the direction. Dolphins, to whom it concerns 🙂 !!!
19:45:44 From Alina : Courage and fearlessness to face the suffering of others
19:45:51 From Sally Roach : Treasuring the spaciousness of the back space. Thank you
19:45:52 From Pamela Gilmore : how strong emotions can dissolve
19:45:52 From Jackie Payne to Alistair Appleton (Privately) : Thank you
19:45:53 From Christine Carson : Process the world through our heart centre.
19:45:54 From Marian Dwyer : Jenny’s help with my shoulders and neck are going to seriously improve my quality of life – thank you
19:45:56 From Cath Ashby : Compassion as a brave path
19:45:57 From Yana : Thank you everyone for sharing this wonderful weekend, the internet made it possible to have so many of us practicing together. Thank you Alistair, Jenny and Daniel for your gentle and superb guidance and inspiration. New experiences and spaces felt in the heart, a great potential. A shared love of dolphins (!) in our group chat.
19:45:57 From wendy alexander : freedom in letting go
19:46:01 From Chloe Homewood : connecting to the purity and freedom that is the body
19:46:04 From Sky .. : Acceptance
19:46:13 From Julie Larner : Practicing with what ever is coming up
19:46:21 From Helen Neville : I found it challenging to come out of thinking mode but the heart space made it all feel sense and be different .
19:46:25 From Karen Barr : Connecting to my heart
19:46:35 From Melanie : connecting with the unlimited well of the heart space
19:46:38 From Mary Meadows to Alistair Appleton (Privately) : Starting to understand the value of tonglen
19:46:38 From Christine Carson : I can ask my heart for its wisdom and begin the path of trust
19:46:41 From jane bell : Softening of the heart to greet the world And thank you everyone.
19:46:44 From Francesca Cooper : fearless with the negative, generous with the positive
19:46:46 From Cath Ashby : light shines through us
19:46:47 From Sonya Pawaroo : Coming out of my head and into the spaciousness of the heart
19:46:50 From suzanne clarke to Alistair Appleton (Privately) : Truly a confetti cannon!
19:46:58 From Jeremy Dunn : The power of Tonglen as we extended our open hearts to the world and the universe. Wow!
19:47:00 From Marian Dwyer : My word of the day has been ‘fearless’
19:47:01 From ‚ú®-Darika -‚ú® : I love massage and asana but I use it to push away my pain and tightness …most of the time. Jenny reminded us to notice the intention when we touch to give a pressure on out Body. In stead of trying change it we can just give the tightness some space and say hello to it. Thank you J! That was very powerful! ‚
19:47:08 From Yana : lovely to see old faces and meet new ‘virtual’ ones 🙂
19:47:10 From Fiona Ross : spacious heart….
19:47:10 From Gillian Agnew : my heart is so tender.. it all makes so much more sense to me. I will take away the tonglen in action and regular visits to the back space so beautiful thank you all.
19:47:23 From harri : My heart tells me that actually it doesn’t want to hold on to these negative feelings. My mind does – but the heart wants love and connection and freedom ‚Ķ.
19:47:29 From Francesca Cooper : the love and kindness and honesty of people in practice groups
19:47:34 From Mary Mckelvey : the heart’s opnning
19:47:37 From Helen Neville : I found it very helpful to be with the space around the person I was thinking about and breathing in the projections I had created was liberating
19:47:38 From Barbara : The beauty of the heart’s ability for compassion and action…Tara’s precious Presence in the heart space…
19:47:44 From Wendy Simpson : I loved the immediacy of tonglen practice and found it surprisingly quick at transforming difficult emotions.
19:47:47 From Sarah Gerrish : As I am new to tonglen, I have realised what a useful tool it will be in moving forward. I am looking forward to more practice. I enjoyed meeting all those in the breakout groups and will remember the analogy of a small boat bobbing on the ocean and the heart space being like an anchor sunk onto the expansive ocean bed. I appreciate the work of Daniel and Jenny to get our bodies ready to open our hearts. Thank you Alistair, Daniel & Jenny
19:47:48 From Caz Comerford : My spacious, aching heart.
19:47:48 From Honor 10 Lite : Beautiful experience
19:47:54 From John McFarlane : Acceptance of what is. Feeling the the space of the heart. Infinite
19:47:54 From Marja Schutz : Reconnecting with my body through shiatsu and yoga
19:47:55 From iPad to Alistair Appleton (Privately) : turning to the left. leaned on my glasses. love to everyone.
19:47:58 From Claire Lloyd : that the heart is spacious and can take in everything without being overwhelmed
19:48:01 From Sally Roach : Feeling tenderised and grateful
19:48:05 From Sky .. : unboundedness
19:48:06 From harri : Whoosh! So THERE is the backspace!
19:48:08 From Elaine Gray : Feeling my heart centre and the back space. Great teaching from Alistair and I loved the morning yoga with Damiel as the sun came up xx
19:48:08 From Dougie McPhail : To most rational people, taking in the bad and giving out the good is complete bonkers, but paradoxically it makes perfect sense when we our normal instinct is to grasp onto the good stuff and push away the bad stuff. I‚’m looking forward to nurturing new neuronal pathways to the benefit of myself and others. Heartfelt thanks to Alistair & co.
19:48:18 From sheila : Entrance to the heart space.. What it feels like.
19:48:29 From Cath Ashby : the use of gentle yoga and self-shiatsu to create space and physical comfort for practice – what a wonderful combination – opening, opening, softening
19:48:32 From Christine Carson : Knowing Tonglen, but allowing it to remain alive and immediate by being playful and responsive to the present experience.
19:48:40 From Sally Roach : Loved the somatic approach and all the body work. Thank you Alistair, Jenny and Daniel.
19:48:41 From Caz Comerford : Meeting myself in everything.
19:48:46 From Alina : finding different strength, not from walls and barriers but the strength within
19:48:47 From Barbara Sands to Alistair Appleton (Privately) : experiencing the beauty , simplicity and life affirming power of tonglen has been a blessing. Thank you all.
19:48:48 From Marion Tweed-Rycroft : A practice I feel I have been waiting for. Experience of spaciousness that can help me let go, and with courage can be of benefit to me and so many people. Thank you Alistair, Daniel and Jenny for holding the space so beautifully or us, and guiding us with gentleness and warmth
19:48:54 From Francesca Cooper : releasing positive thoughts and sending love to someone I find challenging , has made me feel lighter and more expansive
19:48:58 From harri : Hope
19:49:01 From Lesley Gibson : Such a great and powerful practise. Lovely to share this with everybody. Thanks to Jenny, Daniel and Alistair for providing us with a wonderful weekend retreat
19:49:04 From suzanne mulqueen : Feeling the tenderness of the heart-just remember to ride the breath .
19:49:06 From Sue : Love and gratitude for the dharma from an open and spacious heart
19:49:08 From celia : Spaciousness in my heart.
19:49:09 From Christina Towers : struggling with the ‘internet, zoom‚’ experience and accepting that that‚’s ok too.
19:49:13 From Wendy Simpson : I loved the imagery of the bee in the jar and letting it go into the wide sky.
19:49:13 From Marian Dwyer : Yes – hope
19:49:14 From ‚ú®-Darika -‚ú® : A said that what we‚’re giving away is not important, the importance is what our mind has become afterwards.
19:49:28 From Cath Ashby : breaking down barriers between us – something this world really needs
19:49:34 From Marja Schutz : For the first time in my life connecting with my hart to the infinite backspace
19:49:34 From Jodhi D : Discovering the larger heart space behind my heart space at the front. Being with what comes up and give space to it where I would normally close down.
19:49:35 From Dameon Loukas : How much the heart can expand, and the ability for it to give out love, and its ability to transform.
19:49:37 From Christine Carson : A sense of being part of a community and a powerful community‚. not on our own.
19:49:38 From Anna : I came having set the intention to foster resilience, but realise that by cultivating an expansive, loving heart – being open to the darker stuff, and giving the loving stuff – to foster the heart‚’s capacity – then resilience will follow.
19:49:38 From sheila : Yoga and shiatsu helping us to enter and feel our heart space.
19:49:40 From Francesca Cooper : daniel‚’s calm voice, beautiful yoga practice and beanie hat
19:49:40 From Michael Gaffney to Alistair Appleton (Privately) : recapping the three false guardians. learning the four stages of tonglen practice and practicing them. early morning stretching to come into the body, OM chanting. opening the heart using shiatsu practice and using shiatsu to come into the body. sending you and the sangha a warm heart bow, bigger hugs and my biggest love.
19:49:53 From Karen : Welcoming the unwanted actually brings relief. We just have to be brave enough to do something different. The amazing energy of the group made me feel brave enough. This is just the beginning of my journey! Feeling very grateful to Alistair, Daniel and Jenny and to the wonderful group.
19:49:55 From Chloe Homewood : Thank you for this island of peace and connection this weekend Alistair Daniel and Jenny, and thank you to the group for your beautiful heartfelt presence
19:49:58 From Andy Robinson : No longer fretting about how this fits in with my practice but rather letting go and letting be!
19:49:59 From Marian Dwyer : Daniel is something else!
19:50:02 From Laurence Quirk : You can tonglen anything
19:50:02 From Karen Barr : To share a beautiful weekend with you all xxx
19:50:09 From ‚ú®-Darika -‚ú® : Daniel‚’s hat and smile ….. cheered me up. Ben‚’s barking and present spiced up the retreat.
19:50:09 From Barbara : ‘What fires together wires together’ – the aspiration to rewire the old subconscious trauma-based patterns…
19:50:10 From Zana Lamont : Being held in and by the group. The slowness of it all – connecting with the body in the ways that we did. A better understanding of Tonglen, dispelling some bits I had misunderstood. Wonderful explanations from you Alistair, such wonderful holding of space and silence and chanting Danie and what compassion and encouragement with our hearts and bodies Jenny.. What a wonderful tapestry you weave. Thank you xxx
19:50:10 From wendy alexander : loved the morning yoga. creating a sense of spaciousness in the body to start the day. thank you
19:50:15 From Christina Towers : the beauty of the autumn with my heart more open
19:50:19 From Francesca Cooper : exploring and delighting in my body with Jenny‚’s fabulous practice
19:50:21 From anne dublin : Alistair said: “what happens after regular Tonglen practice that we grow in confidence, fearlessness, generosity and more importantly we learn to feel I can handle all this, I am not afraid, I am courageous, I am resilient, I can cope with whatever arises‚” So I (Anne) breathe out and give everyone here who gave of their time and hearts, much courage, love and light‚Ķthank you Daniel, Jenny and Alistair AND EVERYONE, much love
19:50:26 From Marja Schutz : Having had inspiring and lovely conversations with our beautiful group ! Thank you all!
19:50:29 From Jessica Hart : Thank you for this amazing weekend of sharing and learning x.
19:50:33 From Marian Dwyer : Thank you for your eloquence Alistair – very clear explanations
19:50:37 From rose m : A wonderful weekend of all practices, thank you so much. so lovely to experience the power of Tonglen with you all. thank you x
19:50:40 From sheila : Thank you all for sharing this retreat .x
19:50:41 From Debbie Chazan : A way to clean the space between myself & another -an air purifier.. and what I am feeling in my nervous system is different from the other …yet we all have so much in common in our hearts ‚ and feelings . Thankyou
19:50:42 From John w : I feared I wouldn`t be able to practice Tonglen. I was unsuccessful in Scarborough in spring 2019 & believed I couldn`t master it ever since. So grateful to have experienced my heart and the backspace so strongly this weekend. Thank you
19:50:43 From Sylvia Clarke : heartfelt thanks Alistair Daniel and Jenny Amazing Silent Retreat Namaste Sylvia
19:50:47 From Sky .. : Deep Gratitude to Alistair, Daniel,Jenny and everyone for this Magical transformative time together
19:50:48 From Josh Sapey : The heart is far more wise and compassionate than my thinking mind which is a hurricane. Experiencing things through the heart space can give us a whole new outlook on feelings or situations. Thank you to everyone!
19:50:48 From Jennifer Lewis : The preciousness of this incarnation – deeply moved by these comments – the skill of combining these approaches to optimise our experience – gratitude to be able to practice tonglen in company through a challenging weekend. tank you to all x x
19:50:48 From Marja Schutz : No longer being fearful of emotions!
19:50:51 From harri : how the wonderful physical practices support this work .. finding, opening, being with my heart. Gratitude to you all x
19:50:54 From Zana Lamont : Thankk you everyone xxx
19:50:57 From Michael Gaffney : Sending you all a warm heart bow, bigger hugs and my biggest love.
19:50:59 From Christina Towers : seeing familiar faces and feeling that warmth of connection
19:51:03 From Caz Comerford : thank you for being here
19:51:05 From Andy Robinson : “its a great interpersonal air freshener” – quote of the retreat
19:51:10 From Alison Randle : Revisiting Tonglen and connecting with the practice in a completely different way. The way animals have been responding to me over the weekend. Understanding the power of Giving without grasping. Getting a glimpse of just how much clinging and aversion I am doing in so many little ways. This has been so timely. It’s been wonderful to sit in our huge circle. Thank you everyone
19:51:11 From Alina : Mindsprings is the best
19:51:28 From Marian Dwyer : Yes it is!
19:51:32 From Sabine and Chris to Alistair Appleton (Privately) : Still roaming and resting in the vastness of my heart ‚ and in the connection with so many others‚
19:51:32 From Christine Carson : Thank you to three special human beings for their generosity in teaching of the heart.
19:51:33 From Helen Neville : thanks to all three of you , so many gifts given and received
19:51:34 From Ellen van de Graaf : My heart feels so spacious. Plenty of room for all the stuff, and more!
19:51:37 From Francesca Cooper : Alistair‚’s brilliant wisdom, compassion and teaching – such a joy and true Tonglen in essence
19:51:39 From iPad to Alistair Appleton (Privately) : namaste. got a long journey. looking forward
19:51:39 From Marja Schutz : Thanks Alistair , Daniel & Jenny for making this happen ! Loves
19:51:57 From Ellen van de Graaf : Thanks so much everyone, what an amazing community xx
19:52:00 From Emma Mackenzie : Thankyou so much such a wonderful held space. My heart scar feels physically softer!! I now have a deeper understanding of the nature of Tonglen and love that I will change the nature of my relationships with all beings through the practice of breathing it in and sending it out. Big Heart Hug to all. Thank you.
19:52:18 From Julie Larner : Thank you for a wonderful and life affirming weekend.
19:52:20 From Barbara : Much gratitude… go well everyone xxx
19:52:24 From Jeremy Dunn : Thanks to you all, and to Alistair, Daniel and Jenny
19:52:34 From Jane_NY : Ben’s cameo appearances were great as always. A happy presence
19:52:38 From jay dhillon : gratitude for the precious practice of tong len. Thank you so much to everyone for sharing the space, May we all go in courage.
19:52:56 From Francesca Cooper : the joy of expansive love and generous sharing… enjoying discovering the shores of my backspace 19:53:13 From Josh Sapey : Thanks to the 3 musketeers and the wisest people I know Alistair, Jenny Daniel!
19:53:29 From harri : Cour-age!
19:55:26 From anne dublin : It would lovely to meet up in some way near Christmas in a kind of solstice tonglen…
19:55:39 From Mary Mckelvey : wonderfully held space by Alistair, Daniel and Jenni -, gentle, encouraging and challenging in all the right ways x
19:56:02 From Jane_NY : Thank you to Alistair, Daniel and Jenny….important spiritually-enriching work
20:00:37 From Alistair Appleton : https://mindsprings-practicespace.org
20:04:10 From Zana Lamont : So……., if Tonglen takes courage and is liberating, then, as a Scot and, borrowing from Mel Gibson….it has to be…….BraveHeart……..Freeeeeedom!!!
20:04:30 From Melanie : Thank you so much Alistair Daniel and Jenny xx
20:08:20 From Perchance 27 : I am the Universe – the doorway is my heart. Thank you for guiding me there. Blessings to everyone. x
20:08:23 From Cath Ashby : so much joy thankyou
20:08:25 From AngelaHappy : Thank you for a wonderful retreat
20:09:38 From Sonya Pawaroo : Thank you so much Alistair, Jenny and Daniel Xxx