Weekend Retreat with Burt Harding

  Weekend Retreat with Burt Harding “The Secret of the Heart” March 27 – 29, 2015         Twenty participants (including the facilitators) took part in this weekend retreat with Burt Harding, a spiritual teacher from Vancouver.  Burt has been a physiotherapist and hypnotherapist and has had a long experience with the teachings of Ramana Maharshi in particular.  He has a great depth of understanding of human psychology and the nature of consciousness and awareness.  He also expresses a great love for the teachings of J. Krishnamurti and in this weekend retreat he made a quote from one of K’s books the central focus for contemplation and inquiry.  The quote expressed the idea that if we understand what we are, without trying to change it, then what we are goes through a transformation.     The Friday evening session concentrated largely on the first part of the quote, understanding what we are.  Burt emphasized that he was inviting a direct experience and was not wishing to remain on the intellectual level only, for there is no way the thinking mind can understand truth.  He spoke of the difference between consciousness and awareness, the significance of being with feelings, looking rather than thinking, and self-acceptance.  He guided the group into a few simple but powerful exercises to open the “heart”.  There was plenty of time for questions from the group throughout the workshop.