Shakuhachi

Course leader: Michael Schwammberger

Michael has been practising mindfulness and Buddhist teachings since 1992. He was ordained as a monk by Thich Nhat Hanh into the Order of lnterbeing (Tiep Hien) and has travelled extensively supporting Thich Nhat Hanh on his global teaching tours and retreats. Michael re-joined secular life in 2012 and continues as as a Buddhist and mindfulness teacher. He has developed and led numerous courses and retreats across Europe. He  aspires to promote mindfulness in everyday life. Generosity The fee you pay for these events covers only our overheads and the teacher’s basic expenses. The teacher offers teachings freely. You are warmly invited to make a voluntary contribution to his livelihood on the day. Email enquiries: coursesbycoi@gmail.com More testimonials “This was my first time learning mindful walking in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh. I enjoyed it immensely. I found Michael to be a wonderful teacher; showing us not only how to print peace and serenity on the Earth… but also in ourlives.” Miracle of Mindfulness course participant “The course invited me to explore and discuss various aspects of the practice. This, in turn, helped me to broaden and deepen my own practice, and integrate it more into my life. For example, during walking meditation, the invitation to experiment with shifting awareness from internal to external experience has enabled me to move more fluidly from a focused, concentrated practice, to a more expansive one. Also, practising walking at a more everyday speed in the class, supported me in bringing the walking practice more into my everyday life. Exploring the sharing and listening practice in small groups, has made me more mindful of my tendency to ‘jump in’ while another is speaking and ‘wonder off’ into my own thoughts. This awareness has facilitated my becoming more aware of my habit tendencies and enabled me to more quickly return my attention to the speaker, and to be more fully present with them. Michael’s depth of practice provided anexperiential, felt sense of mindfulness. I was able to integrate this as a body memory of what it feels like to be more truly present … this has helped me to access the deep calm within me, and to return to it more readily when I find myself losing my centre, or getting lost in an emotional storm. The course provided the opportunity to go deeper into some of the concepts within the tradition. For example, exploring the five aggregates has brought new insight into how often my perceptions are wrong. This has helped me to loosen my reactions, and with this has come more freedom, understanding and compassion.” – Living Mindfully, Living Joyfully course participant “I attended the Living Mindfully, Living Joyfully course in March. I was very grateful for the Thursday evening space we all created to practice mindfulness through relaxation exercises, walking, listening, talking and in many other different ways. Michael’s spot on explanations and clear guidance made the evenings enjoyable andeasy to follow. The course made me more attentive to how I perceive every day life events and what’s going on in my mind, how I always have a choice to be more content and at peace despite very busy environment around me and how I can easily use mindful breathing to anchor myself in the present moment. I recommended this course to many friends. In fact one of my ex client has attended the Tuesday class and one of my colleagues came to the Thursday evening sessions. I think two other clients is looking to sign up for Tuesdays in June :-)” – Living Mindfully, Living Joyfully course participant