Sangha Practice Groups
Sangha Care
Coming together in supportive practice communities gives rise to places of immeasurable beauty. Practice communities can create the conditions that open beautiful capacities within us - trust, intimacy, vulnerability, open heartedness. We can bring consciousness to the importance of creating the conditions that will support these capacities - so that sanghas are places of refuge rather than harm.
To foster these conditions HAF Relational Supporters freely offer sessions called 'Practising Sangha' that support sanghas to flourish and thrive. See here for upcoming sessions.
If you would like personal support or to talk about any sangha related issue please email us at hafrelate@gmail.com
In addition, HAF Sangha Protection and Ethical Care (SPEC) exists to safeguard HAF sanghas from harm. If you have any concerns you are welcome to be in touch (this will be entirely confidential). Please click here for more information and contact details.
Foundational Agreements for Practice Groups
All practice groups (online and in-person) who wish to be listed on the HAF website are asked to commit to the following Foundational Agreements:
- That practice groups are aligned with Rob Burbea’s teachings
- That practice groups are conscious of and acknowledge when materials/practices used in groups are not Rob Burbea’s teachings
- That the role of a practice group ‘facilitator’ is clearly distinguished from that of ‘Dharma teacher’
- That practice groups incorporate ethical standards appropriate to the group, the sangha and the teachings
- That practice groups are appropriately ‘held’ sangha spaces
- That all associated social media forums are appropriately held and moderated
- That practice groups / facilitators work with SPEC and HAF Relational Supporters as needed in service of the care and protection of sangha members and HAF.
If you would like to list your online or in person practice group on the HAF website, please click here for submission details and guidelines to support you in establishing and running a group.
Online Practice Groups
Soul and Sangha Making
We wholeheartedly invite and welcome you to join us in our online shared practice, reflection and discussion spaces. These sessions nourish Soulmaking practice for those who have already attended Soulmaking retreats or courses, and support the Soulmaking sangha to flourish. We host a monthly Soulmaking Dharma drop-in session which includes discussion, reflection and the beauty of shared practice. Periodically we offer a more intimate series of structured, online, closed-group practice sessions. These run for 6 weeks, and focus on deepening in familiarity and confidence with the treasures that come from sharing our Soulmaking practice.
Please find all the information you need about us here
Relational Samadhi
Join our online meditation practice to explore the richness of our inner experience - fostering samadhi through sharing aloud, leaning into pleasantness, well-being, and connection. Themes may include the breath, the energy body, metta, insight practices, or the jhanas, and are collaboratively chosen by those in attendance (as is session duration).
Familiarity with concepts such as energy body awareness is helpful, but not required, and those interested in working with samadhi base practices will find a welcoming environment.
Find more details about us and how to join here
Gladdening the Heart
The ‘Gladdening the Heart on the path of Jhana’ sangha is a community dedicated to deepening samadhi and jhana practice as taught by Rob Burbea. The group holds weekly online discussion meetings, regular sangha-led retreats and other collaborative practices. Experienced meditators familiar with Rob's samadhi teaching who wish to deepen their jhana journey and become part of our sangha are warmly invited to join.
To learn more about what is offered, please read our ‘Public Document’.
Emptiness Group (in German)
This group is open to anyone who is interested in emptiness practice as described in the book Seeing That Frees and would like to share, reflect and discuss it with others in German. We meet on the second and fourth Monday evening of each month. After meditating together, we usually talk about a specific chapter from Seeing That Frees that everyone has read in advance. Everyone is welcome. There are no prerequisites.
Further information about the evening's schedule and how to join the meetings can be found on this website. The calendar shows what the topic/chapter of the next meeting will be.
Practising Sangha
We joyfully invite you to our quarterly, open hearted sangha led sessions organised by HAF Sangha Care. A place where we play with stimulating dharma conceptions and ways of looking at sangha, and explore the terrain of how to care for the well being of our sanghas and ourselves. We harvest, learn and share from the richness of our experiences, Practising Sangha on the path together.
These sessions are for everybody with an interest in starting up, holding, or participating in any HAF related community sangha spaces, whether online or in person.
More information and sign-ups here
Towards Emptiness
The main scope of this online peer-led community is to meet, share, and practice the meditations on emptiness and dependent arising discussed in Rob Burbea’s book Seeing That Frees. We have regular online meetings that involve break-out rooms for silent meditation, general sharing, guided meditations, and longer study topics. We also have several social platforms for reflective discussions, sharing resources, and offering mutual support for practice. Although some experience with insight meditations may be helpful beforehand, meditators at any level are welcomed.
Here is the Google Doc containing all group information.
Local in-person sanghas
Practitioners of Rob Burbea's teachings are forming local sanghas - gathering in their localities, sharing space, sitting, discussing and eating together. This in-person connection fosters sangha-building, spiritual friendship and the deepening of practice. Local groups tend to include the range of Rob's teachings, dependent on what their members are practising with (while online groups can draw together those with more specific interests from a much wider geographical area).
If you are part of a group which practises together locally (anywhere in the world), and you are happy to commit to the Foundational Agreements (above), we'd love to list you here. It will be beautiful and inspiring for us to see the geographical reach of the sangha.
If you wish to list a new, establishing or established local, in-person Practice Group on this page, please contact us at info@hermesamara.org with ‘Local in-person Sangha listing’ as the subject and a short description of the group. Someone will be in touch with you to talk about the listing.
London Burbea Sangha
London, UK
We meet in person in different London locations to share our practice, our reflections and our friendship. We explore the breadth of Rob's work in a way that is inclusive to both the newer and experienced. Do come along!
Between Avon and the Abyss
Bristol, UK
We are a Bristol-based sangha open to anyone wanting to explore Rob Burbea's teachings, no matter how experienced. We're a drop-in group, meeting twice a month for some silent practice, relational practice, discussion and hanging out. Do come and join!
Liverpool Rob Sangha
Liverpool, UK
I'm hoping to create a sangha in Liverpool of people who love the dharma and Rob Burbea’s framework of practice. I'm planning to create a weekly practice group to share friendship, meditation and reflections on the path. New and experienced welcome!
Dharmacene
Brighton & South East, UK
Our intention is to connect people in Brighton and the South East who would like to organise or participate in in-person practice spaces which explore the many avenues of Rob Burbea’s body of work that intrigue and call to us.
Please find out more and join here
Bay Area Burbea Sangha
San Francisco Bay Area
Our hope for this (newly formed) sangha is to offer a fertile ground for those exploring Rob Burbea's teachings including emptiness, soulmaking, samadhi (and more). We exist to nourish each other in community, and connect those exploring similar territories. You would be very welcome!
Upcoming, May 7th:
We are hosting an in-person memorial event in which we'll celebrate the life of Rob Burbea, renowned British Dharma Teacher, jazz musician, and activist. In community we will meditate together and share how we have been touched by Rob's life and teachings. This event takes place on the 5th anniversary of Rob's passing.
Mirrored Mates
Devon, UK
A group of practitioners in South Devon meeting roughly fortnightly, to practise together, listen to Rob's talks and discuss a range of his teachings. New members living in the area who are practising with any aspect of Rob's teachings are welcome.
