Creston Zendo 

 Creston Zen Centre

UPCOMING RETREATS
Writing Practice Retreat                February 1, 2 and 3         
Sitting Meditation and Walking Meditation ground our writing deep inside the writing mind and in the body. In this silent retreat we will sit, walk, and write together. The topics will be taken from Hakuin's Commentary on the Heart Sutra. Meals are vegetarian.
 
 
Training Term Closing Retreat          April 2 - 7
Longer retreat practice helps stabalize practice for daily life. This is an intensive sitting retreat that will include dharma talks, garden meditation practice, writing practice and study. We will be focusing our study on the Heart Sutra and taking writing practice topics from Hakuin's commentary on the Heart Sutra.
 
Denkoe - June 13 - 18  2013
This is a traditional retreat to honour the linage that transmitted the teachings from 2500 years ago to the present day.  At Creston Zendo we honour the women's lineage in this retreat. Dharma talks will cover the first Buddhist women in India, the women of China and Japan and some modern day North American female teachers. This, like all zendo retreats is a silent retreat.
 
Retreat costs other than for food, are by donation.
Suggested Donations
Monthly donation for locals:  $25.00/mo
Weekend Retreats                     $120.00 (includes food & lodging)
Five-day retreat                          $250.00 (includes food & lodging)
Lodging  (per night)                  $25.00   
Meals:  Breakfast - $7.00; Lunch - $10.00; Dinner - $13.00

Writing Home: Kootenay Lake Annual Summer Writing Retreat August  2013         Dates to be Announced.
Armstrong Farm Boswell, BC and Zen Hermitage
The Kootenay Lake Writing retreat is designed to nourish you -- body mind and soul -- and to take your writing to the next level. Daily writing classes take place at an eighty-acre heritage farm on pristinely beautiful Kootenay Lake. The Armstrong Farm and the Zen Hermitage will deepen, inspire, support, and refine your writing life.

 

Experience the joy of writing in a small and deeply supportive setting.
Nourish your body with sumptuous meals.
Designed for beginners and experienced writers and meditators alike.
Farm fresh food will form a large part of the menu.
Private sandy beach, canoes, swimming, fishing and hiking available.

 

Wednesday evening will be a literary reading with invited guests

 

 

 

 

 

Instructors

 

Luanne Armstrong, MFA, PhD, is an award winning novelist, editor, and teacher. Luanne is the author of eighteen books, including a memoir, novels, and children’s books. She is an adjunct professor of Creative Writing, teaching online for the University of British Columbia low residency MFA Creative Writing program, where she teaches Creative Nonfiction, and Teaching Creative Writing. She mentors many writers on an ongoing basis. Currently Luanne lives on her organic heritage family farm in the Kootenay region of BC.
Kuya Minogue, MA, MEd has been teaching Zen practice since 1989 and writing practice since 2003. She has studied with Natalie Goldberg, founder of Zen Writing Practice and author of the Zen Writing Practice primer, Writing Down the Bones. She is resident teacher at Creston Zendo, an independent Zen Centre in the Soto Zen tradition.
Accommodation: Tenting spaces with picnic tables and fireplaces. Campsites are level, beside the lake and accessible by car. Small trailers are also available. There is a charming motel nearby. Beds available in the farm house and in the Zen Hermitage. High speed Wi Fi is available in the main house. The retreat class is limited to twelve members but individuals who would like guidance from Luanne for their writing, or who would like guidance from Kuya for a private Zen Writing Practice retreat can also be accommodated.
Registration: $400 - $450 depending on lodging choice. (includes instruction, meals, one-on-one sessions) Email luannearmstrong@wynndel.ca or call 250-223-8203.

 

 Please let the organizers know of any dietary issues. Each meal will have a vegetarian option.