Love in the Time of Crisis

Saturday 7th June 2025, 10.00am - 5.00pm UK time, in person and online

Yanai Postelnik will lead this one day retreat. Yanai's theme is 'Love in the Time of Crisis – practicing with an open heart as we face the challenges of our time". Yanai says "The Buddha’s teachings invite us to turn towards those elements of life we find challenging, as multiple intersecting crises of climate, ecology, social justice, violent conflict and more, call for our attention and wise responses. How do we find our ground, while opening and responding to circumstances that concern us, in our lives and our world? This day will explore engaging with the noble heart qualities of loving kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity, in relation to our inner and outer spiritual practice, as meditators in a time of intersecting crises."

The day will include periods of sitting and walking meditation, meditation instructions and dharma teachings. The day will be primarily in silence, but will include time for sharing our experience. The retreat is suitable for those who have some prior experience of meditation courses or retreats, or a regular meditation practice. We ask that you commit to staying for the full day.

Yanai Postelnik first encountered the teachings of the Buddha while travelling in Asia in his early 20's, and has been teaching Insight Meditation and Buddhist practice internationally for most of his adult life. He is much inspired by the Thai forest tradition, and the transformative power of the natural world. Yanai is a member of the Gaia House Teacher Council, and a Core Faculty member of Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts. Since 2018 he has devoted a significant amount of his time to activism and peaceful non-violent civil disobedience, calling for an appropriate response by government, to the climate, ecological and social justice crises of our time. Having grown up in New Zealand, with parents of European and Asian heritage, Yanai lives with his wife Catherine McGee in Devon, England.

Listen to talks by Yanai on Dharmaseed

Dana: In the spirit of generosity, our teachers offer their teaching freely. We invite you to make a 'dana' donation to support Yanai in continuing to offer the teachings in this way. There will be an opportunity to offer dana on the day if you are participating in person. You can also make donations to Yanai via this Paypal link: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/yanaipostelnik

Please note we are unable to process donations for our teachers through Eventbrite.

Booking fee: The fee for online participation is £5/£3/£0 (freely given) and for in person participation £15/£5/£0 (freely given). The fee covers general running costs of the online and in person retreats, including Zoom costs, Eventbrite fees, hall hire and teachers’ travel + accommodation expenses. Our teachers receive no payment from the booking fee, instead you will be invited to offer a donation to our teachers in the ancient tradition of dana.

We invite you to pay the full rate if you are reasonably able to do so, as this supports the continuation of our retreats. We also offer lower rate tickets to those who are unemployed, full-time students, on a low income, or are otherwise finding it difficult to meet the full cost. To ensure that these days are accessible to everyone. we also offer freely given tickets for which there is no fee.

Cancellation and refunds: Please let us know as soon as possible if you need to cancel your place on a retreat – otherwise, someone else may be turned away unnecessarily. Please contact oxfordinsightmeditation@gmail.com to let us know that you can't be there. We offer refunds up to 24 hours before the retreat. Please see instructions here for how to claim a refund.

For those participating online:

Zoom link: This will be emailed to those who have registered one week before the retreat, 24hrs before the retreat and again 1 hour before the retreat begins. Please check your junk mail if you have not received the email.

For those participating in person:

Please arrive for registration between 9.15 and 9.45am.

Venue: St Margarets Institute, 30 Polstead Rd, Oxford OX2 6TN

The hall is wheelchair accessible and has an accessible toilet. There are two disabled parking bays directly outside the venue. Please contact us if you need any support on the day to enable you to attend.

See here for a map of the location and for public transport travel information. Please allow plenty of time to travel so that you can arrive at the hall between 9.15 and 9.45 for registration.

Parking: there is no street parking in the area without a permit, except for two disabled parking bays, which are immediately outside the venue. We have made an arrangement for use of the car park at Makespace, a short walk from the venue. Makespace is at 1 Aristotle Lane, Oxford OX2 6TP. There will be space for 4 cars. Please note: the Makespace car park can only be accessed via Frenchay Road and Hayfield Road, and not via Polstead Road. If you park at Makespace, we ask that you make a donation equivalent to the cost of parking for a day in Oxford, which we will pass on to Makespace.

What to bring: The hall is heated, but uncarpeted, and some windows will be open for ventilation, so please bring warm clothing and blankets, and a mat or rug, plus meditation stool or cushions if you wish to sit on the floor. We will ask you to remove your outdoor shoes when in the hall, so you may also wish to bring slippers or warm socks. There are chairs available, you may wish to bring a cushion or two for padding.

Lunch: will be held in silence. We invite you to bring your own vegan or vegetarian packed lunch. A selection of teas, herbal drinks and plant milk will be provided. There is also a fridge where you can store your lunch.

All are welcome: We are committed to creating an inclusive retreat space. We welcome people irrespective of religious or political beliefs, ethnicity, class, sexuality, gender, age, ability and culture.

Contact: Please get in touch if you have any questions or need to cancel, or change your booking at oxfordinsightmeditation@gmail.com