Study Seminar

The Greater Mandala: living from a more expansive, beautiful, appreciative, and non-utilitarian perspective

This event is for people who have completed an introductory course and are familiar with how we practice.

Sunday 4th May | 10am - 1pm led by Kusaladevi

“The bodhisattva creates a mandala out of a response to the world that is aesthetic and appreciative, rather than utilitarian...We usually think of ‘aesthetic appreciation’ as a little separate part of life within a much larger area that is utilitarian and ‘practical’, but really it needs to be the other way around. Our overall attitude, our overall response to life, should be purely aesthetic.... We can think of ourselves as living within a ‘greater mandala’ of aesthetic appreciation, of which all our practical mundane affairs occupy just a tiny corner. The real values are aesthetic, not utilitarian. ” — Sangharakshita, Wisdom Beyond Words

Sangharakshita’s ‘greater mandala’ teaching is a helpful antidote to many of the ways in which we become wilful, driven, pressured and anxious in modern life. It also takes us deep into the mystery of life and an appreciation of beauty.

How can we live with a greater sense of appreciation and more of a non-utilitarian attitude to life? How can we let our life be transformed by beauty, nature, friendship, appreciation and love? How can we learn to live a life that is more spacious and happy and engage our energies with what we value most? Come along to this seminar with Kusaladevi to explore these questions and more as we study the Greater Mandala material together.

Booking: To donate for this event and reserve your place, click the button below. Suggested donation for this event is £31/£21/£13. We run everything at the Nottingham Buddhist Centre on a donation basis so if our recommended donation is more than you can afford please give whatever you feel able to. If that’s too much you can always email us to request a place on the course at info@nottinghambuddhistcentre.org