The Wheel of Life is an ancient Buddhist teaching device that shows the twelve stages of existence, the cycle of birth and death that we call samsara. The cause, conditions, and mechanisms of samsara, as well as nirvana, are explained by this device.
It is said to have been created by Maudgalyana, one of the main disciples of the Buddha, according to the Tathagata’s direct instructions. Traditionally, the painting of the wheel of life is displayed outside Buddhist temples as a reminder of the suffering of samsara.
In Tibet, the Wheel of Life was used to explain and analyse each of the twelve stages of Samsara. Rob will follow this historical method and will explore the instructions to help students understand how suffering arises, as well as how we can be liberated from the cycle of existence. Rob is well known for his ability to explain Eastern concepts in a way that is accessible to the Western mind. The course will consist of 6 sessions, as well as a day retreat.
When:
Dates: Tuesday Evenings 25 Feb, 3, 10, 17, 24, 31 March.
Time: 7:30 to 9:00 pm
Retreat: Sat 4 April (Please bring a plate of vegetarian food for lunch to share)
Time: 10:30 am to 4:00 pm
Cost:
The cost of the full course and the day retreat is R1000 (R130 per session plus R250 for the day retreat).
Members pay R800 for the full course (R100 per session plus R200 for the day retreat).
Pensioners and students R500.
If you pay in full on or before the 25th of Feb there is a discounted price of R750.
Please don’t let an inability to pay prevent you from attending – please speak to us about options. We always welcome help at the centre. Email johannesburg@kagyu.org.za
Dana: Teachers do not get paid at our Dharma centres. The course fees will be used for the running of the centre. Dana, an offering for the teacher, will be gratefully accepted.
To book:
Please email johannesburg@kagyu.org.za to reserve your spot – there will be a limited number of places on this course.
Payments:
Rob Nairn is a well-known and greatly appreciated teacher of meditation, mindfulness and Tibetan Buddhism in Southern Africa and internationally in the UK, USA and Europe. He is a successful author with several books on these subjects including Tranquil Mind, Diamond Mind and Living, Dreaming, Dying and From Mindfulness to Insight. He established the Kagyu Samye Dzong Centres in Southern Africa with Akong Tulku Rinpoche and was instrumental in setting up Mindfulness UK and the first Mindfulness MA course at Aberdeen University.
He left a successful legal career as Professor of Law and Criminology at the University of Cape Town in 1980 to follow his spiritual path and entered a four-year cloistered retreat at Samye Ling Tibetan Centre in Scotland, training in meditation and compassion practices.
His combination of incisive analysis drawn from his legal background, his intense study, respect for Buddhist teachings and awareness of Western psychology makes him a unique teacher of meditation practice in the West, with a practical and down-to-earth approach.
Buddhism teaches that the mind is the source of all unhappiness and Rob Nairn has spent a lifetime bringing the insights of Tibetan Buddhism to show how the mind works and how it is possible to tame it, allowing the discovery that happiness, wisdom, compassion and clarity are inherent qualities in all of us.