The Garden
The House
Peace in the Park
Covid-19: Activities Update
We have suspended our public activity including the Sanctary meditations in the interests of Public Health and are closely following the unfolding advice on the Corona virus from the UK Government and Public Health England. Please do continue to take time for self reflection and meditation, as a calm mind is very helpful at such times. Thank you for your continued support.
Take a look at the glorious grounds! Come and experience for yourself – current covid guidelines permitting of course.
At the moment we are closed and beavering away behind the scenes on essential renovations so you can enjoy this magnificent place again as soon as possible.
Click here to be informed of re-opening.
Welcome
Since 1993, the Global Retreat Centre near Oxford has welcomed thousands of people from across the world. The Centre offers residential and one-day retreats, as well as lectures, seminars and courses on meditation, personal growth and spiritual development.
It is administered by the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University UK – a registered charity since 1975. Around the world the Brahma Kumaris work in local communities in more than 120 countries, teaching Raja Yoga Meditation as a way of life to experience peace of mind and a positive approach to life. Locally, our services are offered via an extensive network of professional trained volunteers, right in the heart of communities.
Covid-19: Activities Update
We have suspended our public activity including the Sanctary meditations in the interests of Public Health and are closely following the unfolding advice on the Corona virus from the UK Government and Public Health England. Please do continue to take time for self reflection and meditation, as a calm mind is very helpful at such times. Thank you for your continued support.
Take a look at the glorious grounds! Come and experience for yourself – current covid guidelines permitting of course.
At the moment we are closed and beavering away behind the scenes on essential renovations so you can enjoy this magnificent place again as soon as possible.
Click here to be informed of re-opening.
Welcome
Since 1993, the Global Retreat Centre near Oxford has welcomed thousands of people from across the world. The Centre offers residential and one-day retreats, as well as lectures, seminars and courses on meditation, personal growth and spiritual development.
It is administered by the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University UK – a registered charity since 1975. Around the world the Brahma Kumaris work in local communities in more than 120 countries, teaching Raja Yoga Meditation as a way of life to experience peace of mind and a positive approach to life. Locally, our services are offered via an extensive network of professional trained volunteers, right in the heart of communities.
Forthcoming Events
Everything's Fine
To a truly contented and enlightened soul everything in the world, which means the way the world is right now, is just fine. To the unenlightened and discontented soul this will sound like a massive avoidance. But think about it. Does the masterful actor go to the theatre for their evening performance, and on entering the stage start shifting the backdrop, altering the scenery and moving the props around? Of course not, they are totally concentrated on the role they need to create and play to the best of their ability. And so it is with the world. The backdrop to our life is the way things are at this moment in time. The props are exactly where they are meant to be at this moment in time.
Many people spend their whole lives trying to change the backdrop and move the props around, little realising the futility of the exercise. Yes they may succeed in altering an angle here, a minute part of the picture there. But all at the cost of the focus and the energy needed to put on their best performance. Little did they realise that if they had fully focused on their performance and achieved their own highest standards of excellence, not only would those around them be immensely enriched, but the backdrop and the props of their life would have changed automatically, as the invitations roll in to perform their life elsewhere.
Excellence is a much more powerful influence in the world than discontent. So everything is fine out there. No one said it's perfect. But it is exactly the way it should be ...at this moment. So here is the paradox of effective change - if you want to influence change for the better, then the most effective way to begin is with contentment with the way things are. The way things are, are the way things are meant to be!