Dhamma Medini

Dhamma Medinī ('Ground of Dhamma') was established in February 1987 on 55 hectares in the Makarau valley north of Kaukapakapa, within an hour's drive north-west of Auckland. Its buildings sit mostly on the southern side of a grassy valley between steep hills of native bush, home to many native birds. Arriving, students see the men's accommodation on the left and the main building straight ahead, with the kitchen and the men's and women's dining rooms upstairs (their decks are used for meals in warmer months) and accommodation, bathrooms and an office downstairs. The women's compound is at the upper end of the valley. The meditation hall, on the hillside behind the main building near the teacher's residence, seats up to 100, and students stay mainly in single rooms in 14-room blocks (dhamma.org counts 68 single rooms). Bush paths through areas of fern lead to small waterfalls for walks in the breaks, and vegetarian meals are cooked by volunteer old students. Besides 10-day courses, the centre holds short courses for old students, and some courses are bilingual, in English and Mandarin or English and French. One-day Anapana courses for children aged 8 to 12 and teenagers aged 13 to 17 are held at the centre and in Auckland a few times a year, and courses are occasionally held at temporary sites elsewhere in New Zealand.

How to apply

Apply online through the centre's page on dhamma.org (in Nepal, start from np.dhamma.org). New students must first complete a 10-day course, and there is no charge.

What is taught here

Donation-funded 10-day courses taught with S. N. Goenka's recorded instructions, in the line of Sayagyi U Ba Khin, at centres in Nepal and worldwide. Read about Goenka (U Ba Khin).