£5 suggested donation for Child | £5 for family group
Open to families with children.
Join us for simple meditation, relaxation and yoga movement.
Family Day: Mindful Moments for Little and Big Hearts
Join us for a gentle, joyful Family Day designed to help children and their grown-ups slow down, connect, and simply be together. This relaxed event invites families to explore simple meditation, playful yoga-inspired movements, and calming creative crafts in a supportive, relaxed environment.
Through mindfulness activities, children will learn easy ways to notice their breath, their bodies, and their feelings, all while having fun. Parents and caregivers are encouraged to participate alongside their children, making this a shared experience of presence, curiosity, and connection.
We’ll move softly, stretch gently, and create with our hands, offering moments of calm balanced with light-hearted play. No prior experience with yoga or meditation is needed, just comfortable clothes and an open mind.
After the activities, families are welcome to stay, relax, and enjoy some snacks together. This is a chance to mingle, chat, and build community with other families in a warm, welcoming space.
Come as you are, take a pause from the busyness of everyday life, and enjoy a nourishing afternoon of mindfulness, creativity, and togetherness. 🌱
Pleass bring food/snacks to share so we can lunch together after the morning session.
How to participate
This event will be held in person.
Suggested donation l
Per Child l£5
Family group l £10
Financial hardship l Donate what you can
Contact [email protected] if you are unable to make a donation of any amount at this time and we will register you.
*Dharma teachings are always offered free of charge. We do not turn anyone away on financial grounds. Your financial contribution is used towards centre running costs, staff salaries, equipment etc. Thank you for your support.
Introduction: Working with Stress & Anxiety using Buddhist wisdom tools
Life is stressful.
Money, family, children, work, the environment. No matter where we turn, we find another reason to stress out.
We can choose so many different ways to cope with stress: taking time off, going on vacation, exercising, getting a massage, or just being distracted.
Many of these methods, while wonderful and useful, tend to deal with the outermost manifestations of stress and may not offer a lasting solution.
At bodhi, we explore a different way of dealing with stress; one that can have a more lasting and transformative effect on your life. We start by asking ourselves: what really is the root of our stress? What role does our own mind play in the stress we are experiencing?
FREE to join
Teachers
Dragana Alvarez
Dragana Alvarez has been practising and studying Buddhist Teachings since the early 90s. She taught in higher and further education and also worked as a translator. Her work experience has provided her with an invaluable understanding of the importance of creating a warm environment for clear communication and exchange. She has been an instructor on a range of courses in the London Rigpa Centre for over fifteen years.
Will Mansfield
Will Mansfield has been practising Buddhism for over 25 years and has been instructing on courses in the London Rigpa Centre for over 15 years. He finds it rewarding to see the benefits that meditation and Buddhist teachings can bring to people’s lives and how these two work together to help them deepen their sense of self-discovery.
Vinciane Rycroft
Vinciane Rycroft is passionate about social connection, sustainability and how we can live together well on the earth. She has undertaken a number of projects over the years, including award-winning environmental education programmes, a charity to introduce mindfulness and compassion into schools, as well as conferences on compassion in society. She is a first generation Western Buddhist, who started meditating when she was 18.
Rosey Hastings
Rosey Hastings has been studying and practising Buddhism since the 1980s. She was a schoolteacher for 30 years, teaching children and young adults with learning difficulties and in particular dyslexia. She is passionate about making Buddhism accessible and meaningful to anyone who has the interest and curiosity whatever their background, education, and preferred style of learning. Rosey supports and teaches on the public and sangha programme in the UK.
David Rycroft
David Rycroft is an educator, fine artist and co-founder of Mind With Heart, an international charity training teachers and students in sustainable wellbeing, emotional health and social connection. Since 1994 he has studied and practiced consistently within the Rigpa sangha, receiving extensive teachings on mindfulness and mind from a host of illustrious teachers. During this time he raised a family, and taught art in a north London secondary school for ten years. David recently set up and continues to direct Teach-Peace, a secular education project of the European Buddhist Union.
Educated at Eton College and Edinburgh University, David also has an MA (distinction) in Buddhist Studies from Sunderland University. David specialises in teaching meditation in both Buddhist and secular settings. He brings a spirit of experiential enquiry and playful creativity to his role as a teacher. His paintings, celebrating natural vitality and inviting us to appreciate the wonders of nature, are exhibited internationally, including an exhibition at UNESCO, Paris
Carol
Carol has been studying the Buddhist teachings for over 30 years and an instructor at the London Centre for 25 years, specialising in the meditation courses. Previously she worked in I.T . and as a project manager for a major corporation, leading multi cultural teams and enjoying the interaction with others. Having experienced the remarkable benefits of these teachings and practices, it’s her greatest wish to share these with others and enable everyone to integrate them into their own lives.
Introduction: Working with Stress & Anxiety using Buddhist wisdom tools
Life is stressful.
Money, family, children, work, the environment. No matter where we turn, we find another reason to stress out.
We can choose so many different ways to cope with stress: taking time off, going on vacation, exercising, getting a massage, or just being distracted.
Many of these methods, while wonderful and useful, tend to deal with the outermost manifestations of stress and may not offer a lasting solution.
At bodhi, we explore a different way of dealing with stress; one that can have a more lasting and transformative effect on your life. We start by asking ourselves: what really is the root of our stress? What role does our own mind play in the stress we are experiencing?
FREE to join
Teachers
Dragana Alvarez
Dragana Alvarez has been practising and studying Buddhist Teachings since the early 90s. She taught in higher and further education and also worked as a translator. Her work experience has provided her with an invaluable understanding of the importance of creating a warm environment for clear communication and exchange. She has been an instructor on a range of courses in the London Rigpa Centre for over fifteen years.
Will Mansfield
Will Mansfield has been practising Buddhism for over 25 years and has been instructing on courses in the London Rigpa Centre for over 15 years. He finds it rewarding to see the benefits that meditation and Buddhist teachings can bring to people’s lives and how these two work together to help them deepen their sense of self-discovery.
Vinciane Rycroft
Vinciane Rycroft is passionate about social connection, sustainability and how we can live together well on the earth. She has undertaken a number of projects over the years, including award-winning environmental education programmes, a charity to introduce mindfulness and compassion into schools, as well as conferences on compassion in society. She is a first generation Western Buddhist, who started meditating when she was 18.
Rosey Hastings
Rosey Hastings has been studying and practising Buddhism since the 1980s. She was a schoolteacher for 30 years, teaching children and young adults with learning difficulties and in particular dyslexia. She is passionate about making Buddhism accessible and meaningful to anyone who has the interest and curiosity whatever their background, education, and preferred style of learning. Rosey supports and teaches on the public and sangha programme in the UK.
David Rycroft
David Rycroft is an educator, fine artist and co-founder of Mind With Heart, an international charity training teachers and students in sustainable wellbeing, emotional health and social connection. Since 1994 he has studied and practiced consistently within the Rigpa sangha, receiving extensive teachings on mindfulness and mind from a host of illustrious teachers. During this time he raised a family, and taught art in a north London secondary school for ten years. David recently set up and continues to direct Teach-Peace, a secular education project of the European Buddhist Union.
Educated at Eton College and Edinburgh University, David also has an MA (distinction) in Buddhist Studies from Sunderland University. David specialises in teaching meditation in both Buddhist and secular settings. He brings a spirit of experiential enquiry and playful creativity to his role as a teacher. His paintings, celebrating natural vitality and inviting us to appreciate the wonders of nature, are exhibited internationally, including an exhibition at UNESCO, Paris
Carol
Carol has been studying the Buddhist teachings for over 30 years and an instructor at the London Centre for 25 years, specialising in the meditation courses. Previously she worked in I.T . and as a project manager for a major corporation, leading multi cultural teams and enjoying the interaction with others. Having experienced the remarkable benefits of these teachings and practices, it’s her greatest wish to share these with others and enable everyone to integrate them into their own lives.
We might search for ways to bring ourselves to a clear and peaceful mind, but often, our thoughts and emotions feel just too busy to be ignored!
The busier we get, the more thinking we do. Perhaps our emotions go wild, or we are left in a state of stress and overwhelm.
Journey with us as we explore how the ancient art of meditation can help us become more calm, clear, confident, and connected with ourselves and with others.Learn how to meditate and establish your own meditation practice during this six-week course, alongside our team of friendly and experienced meditation teachers.What you’ll receive:
// Weekly classes with expert teachers
// Access to weekly recordings of guided meditations// A weekly reflection exercise
// Community support through a WhatsApp group// A regular meditation practice schedule made to fit your lifestyle// Weekly in-person and online meditation practise sessions at Rigpa
Event summary
Category : Learn to Meditate six-week course Starts : 19 Feb 2026 Schedule : Thursdays 6.30pm – 8.15pm Format : In-person
Suggested Contribution l £60 (£10/session)
*Dharma teachings are always offered free of charge. We do not turn anyone away on financial grounds. Your financial contribution is used towards centre running costs, staff salaries, laptops etc. Thank you for your support.
**Rigpa UK has a policy of not turning anyone away on financial grounds. Please do contact us at [email protected] if you are unable to make a donation at this time so we can register you.
Teachers
Dragana Alvarez
Dragana Alvarez has been practising and studying Buddhist Teachings since the early 90s. She taught in higher and further education and also worked as a translator. Her work experience has provided her with an invaluable understanding of the importance of creating a warm environment for clear communication and exchange. She has been an instructor on a range of courses in the London Rigpa Centre for over fifteen years.
Will Mansfield
Will Mansfield has been practising Buddhism for over 25 years and has been instructing on courses in the London Rigpa Centre for over 15 years. He finds it rewarding to see the benefits that meditation and Buddhist teachings can bring to people’s lives and how these two work together to help them deepen their sense of self-discovery.
Vinciane Rycroft
Vinciane Rycroft is passionate about social connection, sustainability and how we can live together well on the earth. She has undertaken a number of projects over the years, including award-winning environmental education programmes, a charity to introduce mindfulness and compassion into schools, as well as conferences on compassion in society. She is a first generation Western Buddhist, who started meditating when she was 18.
Rosey Hastings
Rosey Hastings has been studying and practising Buddhism since the 1980s. She was a schoolteacher for 30 years, teaching children and young adults with learning difficulties and in particular dyslexia. She is passionate about making Buddhism accessible and meaningful to anyone who has the interest and curiosity whatever their background, education, and preferred style of learning. Rosey supports and teaches on the public and sangha programme in the UK.
David Rycroft
David Rycroft is an educator, fine artist and co-founder of Mind With Heart, an international charity training teachers and students in sustainable wellbeing, emotional health and social connection. Since 1994 he has studied and practiced consistently within the Rigpa sangha, receiving extensive teachings on mindfulness and mind from a host of illustrious teachers. During this time he raised a family, and taught art in a north London secondary school for ten years. David recently set up and continues to direct Teach-Peace, a secular education project of the European Buddhist Union.
Educated at Eton College and Edinburgh University, David also has an MA (distinction) in Buddhist Studies from Sunderland University. David specialises in teaching meditation in both Buddhist and secular settings. He brings a spirit of experiential enquiry and playful creativity to his role as a teacher. His paintings, celebrating natural vitality and inviting us to appreciate the wonders of nature, are exhibited internationally, including an exhibition at UNESCO, Paris
Carol
Carol has been studying the Buddhist teachings for over 30 years and an instructor at the London Centre for 25 years, specialising in the meditation courses. Previously she worked in I.T . and as a project manager for a major corporation, leading multi cultural teams and enjoying the interaction with others. Having experienced the remarkable benefits of these teachings and practices, it’s her greatest wish to share these with others and enable everyone to integrate them into their own lives.
Finding peace, compassion, and wisdom in the nature of your own mind.
With Senior Teacher Jan van der Breggen.
This weekend retreat will take you to the heart of the still revolutionary insight of Buddhism, that life and death are in the mind, and nowhere else. In Dzogchen—the most direct stream of wisdom within the teachings of Buddhism—the mind is revealed as the universal basis of experience: the creator of happiness and the creator of suffering, the creator of what we call samsara and what we call nirvana.
Through a dynamic process of hearing, reflection, and meditation, guided by the teachings of the Buddha and based on our own direct experience, we will investigate exactly how the mind is the root of our entire reality. This exploration leads to a profound certainty and confidence in our mind’s intrinsic essence: the unchanging, pure awareness that underlies the whole of life and death.
From this foundation of trust in our inherently pure nature, we will cultivate a deep inner conviction that the mind’s appearances—its unending display of thoughts, emotions, and perceptions—are indeed workable. It is truly possible to ‘tame this mind of ours’, and through this find the peace, compassion, and wisdom that are at the heart of who we really are.
The retreat will allow for reflection and meditation on the teachings that are shared tailored to each participants’ prior experience: from complete beginners to Rigpa meditation, ngondro, and dzogchen mandala students.
Teacher
Jan began his path of meditation at 17 years old, touched by the tenderness of the human experience and filled with questions about what reality was all about. Forty years later, Jan continues to be moved by the vast profundity of the Buddhist path and its vision of the inherent wisdom, loving kindness and strength that lies in the minds of each and every one of us.
Jan completed Rigpa’s three-year retreat under the guidance of Sogyal Rinpoche. He was entrusted as one of Rigpa’s Senior teachers by Khenchen Namdrol Rinpoche and Mindroling Jetsun Khandro in 2022. Jan has been a participant in the Milinda program since 2017. Milinda is a 10-year, international Buddhist teacher training program under the guidance of Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, with a three month per year intensive and immersive in-person learning and reflection program.
Jan grew up in the Netherlands where he obtained a Masters Degree in Social and Historical Anthropology. He has lived in Brisbane, Australia, since 1998, and was instrumental in founding Rigpa Brisbane in 1999, where he has served as a Dharma instructor for over 20 years.
How to participate
This event will be held in person and online. * Online Zoom details for online attendees will be in the eventbrite reminder emails 2 days and 2 hours before the event.
Suggested donation l
Per Child l£120
Family group l £60
Financial hardship l Donate what you can
Contact [email protected] if you are unable to make a donation of any amount at this time and we will register you.
*Dharma teachings are always offered free of charge. We do not turn anyone away on financial grounds. Your financial contribution is used towards centre running costs, staff salaries, equipment etc. Thank you for your support.
**You can cancel and receive an automatic refund through Eventbrite up to 24 hours before the event.
Transgender Experience and the Understanding of Identity in Buddhism
How do we relate personally to the idea of gender? In this talk, we will attempt to apply the investigative tools of the Buddhist teachings to our ideas of gender, and how they impact our behaviour.
Teachers
Naomi Gassler is a writer, longtime meditator, and teacher in the Rigpa organisation. She studied physics and mathematics and received her Ph.D. from Northeastern University, Boston, USA. In 1997 she moved to Lerab Ling, Rigpa’s retreat centre in the south of France, and has since then worked to help with the translation and transmission of the ancient Buddhist wisdom to the Western World. She is passionate about finding ways to integrate the wisdom and compassion of the teachings of the Buddha into our everyday activities, and thus dissolving any separation between daily life and one’s own spiritual path. Naomi, a transgender woman, enjoys cooking and baking for her friends and for her family, as well as planning and constructing wooden chalets in Lerab Ling.
How to participate
This event will be held in person.
Suggested donation l
Full rate l £18
Concessions l £9*
Financial hardship l Donate what you can
Contact [email protected] if you are unable to make a donation of any amount at this time and we will register you.
*Dharma teachings are always offered free of charge. We do not turn anyone away on financial grounds. Your financial contribution is used towards centre running costs, staff salaries, equipment etc. Thank you for your support.
We warmly invite you to join our drop-in meditation sessions, open to all, held weekly on Tuesdays from 6.30pm to 8pm with our experienced instructors in our London Centre at 330 Caledonian Road, London N1 1BB.
Should a drop-in session need to be cancelled we’ll let you know via eventbrite booking cancellation and here. Please check on this page before coming each week if you haven’t booked through eventbrite.
Relax and calm your mind with our monthly community yoga sessions. These yoga sessions incorporate yoga practices from Hatha yoga tradition and apply mindfulness to each breath and movement. This brings awareness and presence to the practice and helps to calm down our nervous system. The practice typically begins with breathing meditation to bring us to a calm and relaxed state before going into movement. All abilities welcome.
What to bring: Yoga mat, shawl for breathing meditation if desired.
Dates and time: Thursdays once a month-18:30-19:45
£8 suggested donation, minimum £5 donation please
Please note: if we ever need to cancel a session we will let you know through eventbrite and you will receive a refund. We will also post it on this page.
Every Friday evening from 6.30-7.30pm starting 17th January 2025 at our London centre we will be guided on a “Touch Down” journey to land back in our bodies after a busy week. During this one-hour session, we will experience how Kum Nye can be both a very effective gateway to meditation, and a means to deepen our current practice. Suitable for all ages and fitness levels, Kum Nye’s simple movement and breathing exercises restore the body’s natural rhythms and calm the mind.
BIOGRAPHY Daniel has been practicing meditation for the last 24 years and Kum Nye for four years. He has completed the Nyingma Centrum (check) Kum Nye teacher training course and is a keen advocate of mind-body connection to heal and restore health.
Harmonize the flow of Qi, Balancing Qi, Enhances Circulation, Health & Healing, Longevity & Vitality, Mental Clarity, Spiritual Growth, Breathing Techniques, Flexibility, Meditation, Mindfulness, Pain Management, Self-Cultivation, Stress Reduction,
The Purpose of Qi-Gong
Qi-Gong (or Qigong) is a holistic practice rooted in Chinese tradition that integrates physical postures, breathing techniques, and mental focus to cultivate and balance Qi (life energy). Its purposes are multifaceted, addressing body, mind, and spirit:
Health and Healing
Balancing Qi: Aims to unblock and harmonize the flow of Qi, believed to prevent or alleviate illness in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).
Physical Benefits: Enhances circulation, flexibility, immune function, and pain management. Often used in preventative healthcare and recovery.
Stress Reduction
Combining slow movements, deep breathing, and meditation can induce relaxation, reduce anxiety, and promote emotional stability.
Spiritual Growth
Fosters a connection with the self, nature, or the Dao (Tao), encouraging inner peace and spiritual enlightenment through mindful cultivation of energy.
Martial Arts Enhancement
Develops internal power (neijin) for martial artists, improving strength, stamina, and resilience by harnessing Qi.
Mental Clarity and Focus
Enhances concentration, discipline, and mental discipline through meditative practices and intentional movement.
Longevity and Vitality
Promotes longevity by maintaining energetic balance and physical health, aligning with TCM’s emphasis on preventive care.
Self-Cultivation
Encourages personal growth, patience, and ethical development, fostering harmony within oneself and with others.
