Pricing Policy

The Southern Insight Philosophy

Many of you who have attended Southern Insight retreats over the years are aware the dana is a central concept to the Insight tradition.  Dana – the act of generosity, the act of giving freely, manifests not just at the moment when we ask for contributions for the dharma teacher but throughout the myriad of tasks that go in to setting up and running our retreats.  As an organisation Southern Insight relies on dana – not just money, but the continuous gifts of time and energy that come from the Sangha.  This has been no small gift when you consider how many retreats and events we have run over the last ten years.  

Our commitment in return is to make every effort to enable all who wish to attend our retreats to do so, regardless of their income.  Our purpose as an organisation is to create opportunities for the practice of meditation and the teachings of the dharma to be freely available to all.

 

How much should I pay on a retreat?

The ways in which we try to make our retreats within the reach of everyone’s pocket include using low cost accommodation and budgeting the retreat supplies carefully, based on the number of people registered to attend (hence it is very important for us to be advised in advance whether people are coming or not).  Some people may find the facilities not as “flash” as they would like, but Southern Insight’s philosophy is that making retreats available to as many as possible is more important than providing hotel style facilities.

In addition to running our retreats economically, in more recent years we have introduced a sliding scale of retreat fees – again, to try and ensure that everyone with an interest in attending is not disadvantaged due to having a low income.  The top end price represents the actual cost of attending the retreat for each person, i.e. it covers your food, accommodation, and any travel costs for the teacher.  The sliding scale below this is really only offered for those on a restricted income, where participants can chose to pay an amount as close to the true cost as they feel is within their budget.  We do not ask for any evidence of your capacity to pay; we only ask that you make this decision thoughtfully, and in awareness that the actual cost of the retreat is the top end price.

The Steering Group has noticed that in recent retreats there are fewer people paying the full cost.  As our retreats are budgeted and run on the basis that the majority of participants are able to pay this full cost, there is a concern that our account may start to “run dry” and there won’t be the funds available that are required to pay for up front costs such as teachers’ airfares and food.  On several retreats a loss has actually occurred.

 
For those who are not able to afford the lowest amount on the sliding scale, an assistance fund is also available to cover the cost of the retreat.  The assistance fund is a fund created by yogis – for other yogis.  There are no eligibility criteria, and funds to pay for the cost of the retreat are available to any who request it as long as there is money in the account.  

So when you are deciding what is appropriate to pay for attending one of our retreats it is nice to contemplate that what you pay makes it possible for others to attend, and what others pay is making it possible for you to attend - both now and in the future – and that’s dana in action!

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Photo by Fraser Gunn. To see more of Fraser's work, please visit www.laketekapo.cc and www.astrophotography.co.nz