Retreat Aug 11th-13th 2023

Retreat feedback 11-13 aug 23

Dear Everyone, 

Thank you so much for being a part of The Powerful Mind weekend retreat.

Phra Ajahn Mana, the monks and volunteers all hope you had a positive experience and enjoyed your time in the monastery.

We hope you will come back to join us one Sunday for Dhamma talk, guided meditation and lunch, and perhaps another retreat in the future.

I have attached a group photo and we will soon have more photos available on the website.

If anyone would like a copy of the Chanting Book, I can email a soft copy to you, and we would love you to let us know about your experience at the retreat.

We welcome any feedback to help us improve the retreat in any way.

Thank you all for your loving kindness and effort in the garden and other work to make the monastery more beautiful.

I hope you can still smell the flowers and remember to find happiness in every breath.

With metta,

kim

 

 

Thank you Phra Mana, Kim and all the wonderful volunteer for the unforgettable experience.

I was 19 years old when I first visited Sunnataram and 19 years later, it still fills my heart with so much joy the moment I step on Sunnataram Monastery.

 

I leave this time feeling so grateful, and with heart filled with joy and happiness - thank you for all the beautiful teaching and being so patient with us all.

 

I would absolutely love the copy of chanting book if possible. 

 

I will be in touch when we visit with the family for Sunday lunch and thank you again for all the effort and love you have shown us all - it was very much appreciated.

 

With warmest regards

Shania 

 

 

 

Dear Kim,


Thank you so much for the hospitality. I deeply enjoyed and appreciated being in the space of the monastery, delighting the wonderful meals, insightful teachings, and most importantly the beautiful environment. Thank you so much for all of your efforts to keep maintaining this piece of heaven earth for us, now I know we don't have to look for anywhere for a safe place or heaven it can be created from within or I can hop on a train to Bundanoon :).

 

I felt the deep nurturing of the flowers and the nature around me nourishing my soul and would love to keep visiting the place not only for its great vibration, but also to see which flowers will be blooming the next time I come and which ones would be preparing to. Sunataram monastery gave me the inspiration to create my own sanctuary and will hold an important place in my heart. I have nothing else but appreciation and reverence for all of you and would appreciate it if I could have the soft copy of the Chant book until the next time I come visit you.

 

All my blessings and love,

 

Saraa

 

Thank you all for a beautiful weekend  it was perfect 

Sarahj

 

 

Thank you for the photo,

 

I had a really great and meaningful experience over the weekend and enjoyed everything.

 

I really could not fault any part of the retreat at all. The only thing that is my problem, is that now I am accustomed to that level of Thai cooking which in my mind was the best I have ever tasted.!!

 

Everyone was friendly and the teachings really helped me learn how to focus on meditation much better than I have before. I especially enjoyed the understanding of why to meditate and how to find the path to enlightenment.

 

Thanks Again I will be back.

 

P.s, I would like a copy of the chanting book as well if  can.

 

 


Kind Regards,

 

 

Andrew 

 

Hi Kim.

Thank you so much for the photo! :D I already miss everyone although we didn't get to talk to each other much.

It was very nice meeting you again, Prah Mana and the new monks.

I will join the Sunday visit sometime soon with the rest of my family. :)

Also, could I have a copy of the chanting book please?

It will be nice to continue the meditation on my own.

 

Thank you so much!

 

Kind regards

 

Jay

 

Good afternoon Kim, 

I hope this email finds you well, 

Thanks again for the opportunity to go to the retreat. 

I can’t find the bank details, could you send them to me please. 

Kind regards 

Juan

 

Hi Kim, 

 

Thank you for making the retreat a wonderful experience. 

 

I wish to pass on a huge thank you to Phra Ajahn Mana, the monks, volunteers & yourself. Everyone was so generous with their time & effort - I really felt so welcomed. 

 

I learnt so much from Phra Ajahn Mana & feel privileged to be a part of his teachings. 

 

The Sunnatarm Forest Monastery is a very special place & I look forward to coming back. 

 

Thank you once again for coordinating the retreat.

 

Regards, Will 

 

My apologies for the belated reply - it was a rather busy week back and I wanted to allocate time to properly respond to this, so am just getting around to it now! 

 

I would love to visit sometime in future for a Dhamma talk and would be very appreciative if you are please able to send through a copy of the chanting book. 

 

Regarding my stay with you, I have nothing but positive sentiment to offer. Overall, I could not recommend the experience enough and have encouraged a few friends to consider attending. 

 

The amenities were accessible and the food was simply stunning. I usually have a crook tummy and I have to remark that I felt great all weekend, likely due to the freshness of the food. My thanks again to the volunteers. 

 

The gardens are exquisite and I actually really enjoyed tending to them in our Saturday afternoon. It felt lovely to be able to give back to the Monastry in some small way aside from donating. It is very clear how much effort you put in to maintaining them, so thank you - you have created a truly, special place. 

 

Lastly, the teaching sessions were well-structured and the lessons very well communicated. I have not properly understood what people mean by “mindfulness” before however Phra Ajahn Mana contextualised this in an accessible way. The different forms of meditation were equally enlightening and gave good perspective on how one can be mindful in a range of activities. I feel very grateful to have learned more about both practice and the concepts behind it in this particular context and will endeavour to continue my own practice. 

 

My sincerest thank you again to yourself, Phra Ajahn Mana, the monks and the volunteers. It was a very special weekend for me and I am sure all who attended would agree we have been privileged to enjoy your hospitality, welcome and loving kindness. 

 

Have a wonderful week and hopefully I will be able to visit again soon, even just to assist with the gardens one Sunday. My work schedule is often variable but if you do ever have vacancies, I would love to attend again (however I appreciate it would be nice for others to attend and would not want to deprive anyone else of the experience). :)

 

Kind regards, 

 

Isabella