Mindfulness for Life Retreat
Tutors– Vin Harris, Kristine Mackenzie-Janson and Ian Rigg
Dates– Tuesday 29th July- Monday 4th August 2025
Location– Holy Isle
Cost- The retreat is £385.00 payable in five monthly instalments of £77.00 Please contact info@mindfulnessassociation.net for the booking link.
We will notify participant’s once accommodation and ferry crossings are available to be booked.
When notified please book your accommodation (29th July- 4th August 2025) via the Holy Isle website by clicking here.
Please check the Find Us section on the Holy Isle website for travel connections.
Lamlash Cruises – a separate company from us – operates from Lamlash Pier. They will make dedicated crossings for your course depending on the timing of low tide in Lamlash Bay and you need to arrange your travel accordingly:
In order to secure your crossing, you need to book your ticket directly with Lamlash Cruises by clicking here, who will also answer any queries about your travel across from Lamlash.
There is no need to book your return trip with the Holy Isle Ferry, we will liaise to organise the course departure.
The Mindfulness for Life Summer Retreat is an annual retreat and part of the Mindfulness for Life programme. It is open to people who have completed our mindfulness, compassion and insight trainings either as one year courses at Samye Ling and related centres, or as part of the University of Aberdeen’s MSc in Mindfulness Studies, run in partnership with the Mindfulness Association.
The Mindfulness for Life retreats and gatherings provide participants with a space in which to come together and explore their practice in more depth and to continue the path of personal discovery in whatever form that may be for each participant. All participants speak a common language, which comes from a shared understanding of the variety of practices they have been introduced to over the course of the mindfulness, compassion, and insight modules with the Mindfulness Association. During our sessions together at the summer retreat, supported by Ian, Kristine and Vin, we may explore these practices in more depth or allow for more time and space to engage fully in the exercises that currently work for us. We will also explore new practices and different teaching methods and theories that may support our understanding further.
In addition to the annual retreat, participants are also offered the opportunity to participate in two additional practice days. The Mindfulness for Life Spring and Autumn Gatherings are informal practice days where we connect with fellow practitioners. The spring gathering will be held on the 18th of May 2024, the dates of the autumn one are to be confirmed.
Previous participants from the said:
- I loved the variety of practises, how they were put together, in particular the different approaches to resting… And the emphasis on simplicity and what personally works was liberating… I value the connection with others too…
- I found this retreat incredibly beneficial to my inner self. The practices and talks by Vin, Ian and Kristine were so incredibly relevant and nourishing, and the safe place was held beautifully for deep and honest sharing… I have remained so thankful in the time following the retreat for the deeply grounded and nourished place I find myself!
- I enjoyed that any concepts presented were just enough to go about the practices and not too much that we entered too much conceptual thinking. The fact that everything presented was really applicable to how we can approach our lives differently to the benefit of ourselves and others. I really felt the dynamic of Vin, Ian and Kristine worked exceptionally well as there are different styles of teaching but they all complemented each other perfectly.
Pre-requisites
This course is open to those who have completed Levels 1, 2, 3 or the first two years of the MSc program. Long term practitioners who have completed appropriate equivalent trainings are also welcomed to apply by sending details of their experience to the Mindfulness Association.
