General Spiritual Director
Work Day with Resident Teachers preparing for International Summer Festival
Jul 21, 2026
JUL 25 - AUG 9, 2025
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International Summer Festival 2025 diaries
In this video people discuss what solitude means to them and how it has helped them in their life.
Day 13 ~ SOLITUDE IN MODERN LIFE
This calm period of retreat lends itself to quiet moments in the Temple, peaceful walks under the green canopy of the trees in the woodland areas, or enjoying the vast spacious views of Morecambe Bay at the beach. Although many people continue to work joyfully together to run the Festival, there is stillness in the midst of busyness. Such is the magic of retreat!
In the Temple it's time to once again enjoy the solitude that comes from concentration and peace during our second period of retreat at the Summer Festival. Thousands of people all together are gathering their minds inwards and focusing on meaningful inner determinations and states of mind. Each moment of meditation creates powerful causes that have the potential to rewrite our collective future.
"Since our human life is wasted by indulging in distractions now is the time to practice concentration."
Solitude is often misunderstood to be a lonely experience, or that we have to be in an isolated place to experience it, but meditation helps us to isolate our minds from distractions and to enjoy the quiet of our own mind.
Gen Rabten helps us to take
the very essence of the teachings to heart
Gen Rabten helps us to take the very essence of the teachings to heart, reinforcing again and again our wish to bring all our daily appearances into the path of Lamrim.
Having received so many teachings, now we take time to reflect, and to set our intentions to practice them so that we leave the Festival with an understanding of how to change our life for the better.
Retreat session with Gen Rabten
Here we have the space to reflect
