Four Foundations of Mindfulness Retreat

31 July - 6 August 2026 | Sangsurya Retreat Centre, Byron Bay, N.S.W
With Mary McIntyre and Nadav Avny

This 7 day silent retreat is suitable for anyone wishing to deepen their practice and cultivate further understanding of the wisdom teachings underpinning mindfulness practices. The practices and teachings will provide an opportunity to become familiar and explore the four foundations of mindfulness.

This retreat will offer periods of exploring your embodied experience of the four foundations of mindfulness through alternating sitting and walking meditation as well as mindful movement practices. Whilst this retreat is a silent retreat, there will also be opportunities for group and individual discussions with the teachers in order to explore the personal experience of the practice and cultivate mindful communication.

The emphasis will be on creating together a safe, supportive and connected space for you to cultivate heart qualities such as compassion to self and others, courage, patience, authenticity and trust.

Who is it for?

This retreat welcomes also people who are new to the practice. However as this is a silent meditation retreat with an intensive schedule of practice, it will be particularly beneficial for people who have some experience of mindfulness meditation (e.g. having completed the 8 week Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction or Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy course). Do be in touch if need be to check your suitability before enrolling.

This is a device free retreat

In order for your heart, mind and nervous system can re-find its natural capacity for settling, we invite you to relinquish electronic devices and a constant state of being on and doing. This allows for deepening. We'll ask that you refrain from using electronics, including phones, internet connected smartwatches, tablets, laptops etc during the retreat. Program staff will be happy to hold and safeguard your devices for the duration of the retreat if this is helpful to you. There will be of course an emergency contact number to give to your family should the need arise.

A regular wristwatch to keep time will be useful for the week.
https://www.goodtherapy.com.au/mary-a_mcintyre

Who is this retreat for?

This retreat is for anyone wishing to deepen their practice and cultivate further understanding of the wisdom teachings underpinning mindfulness practices.

What the retreat offers

This traditional insight meditation retreat will offer silent periods of sitting and walking meditation, yoga as well group and individual teacher meetings..

Register Now

Details

Prices excluding teachers fees

Single Room
Price - AU$1695 base fee plus Dana*
Shared Room + All Meals
Price - AU$1195 base fee plus Dana*
Budget Single Room + All Meals
Price - AU$1185 base fee plus Dana*

Date sand Times

Dates
31 July - 6 August 2026
Times
Arrive from 1:30pm Friday for the 2:30pm start and concludes 12:00pm Thursday (after brunch)

Venue and Catering

Sangsurya is an exceptional, secluded retreat centre nestled in the peaceful hinterland of Byron Bay. It was founded as a social enterprise by the late Mona and Tony Kruger, and built on values of love, pure intention and service to others.

Sangsuriya offers a natural, environmentally conscious sanctuary designed for reflection and meditation with beautiful hand built Eastern inspired bungalows and forest and ocean views. The aesthetics are rare and original.

Our retreat will be catered by the wonderful Claude Perey https://claudesfood.com.au/gallery/

What is a Dana Based Retreat?

Teaching on this retreat is offered through "Dana" — a generosity-based approach rooted in the Buddhist tradition.

What you'll pay in advance at registration covers your accommodation and all meals; everything else runs on trust and generosity. So instead of an included teaching fee, you as the participant will choose what you’d like to offer the teachers once the retreat finishes. It’s up to you to decide an amount that suits your circumstances and feels fair to you. It will be placed into a single pot and divided equally between both teachers. You'll be able to pay by cash, bank transfer or pay ID.

How to get there

Sangsurya Retreat Centre
95 Old Bangalow RoadByron Bay NSW 2481Australia

Refund Policy

A 90% refund will be issued if cancellation is received up to two months before the event.

A 50% refund will be issued up to one month before the event.

However, in either of those two circumstances, if a substitute person can be found so that MTI is not impacted financially there will be a full refund less 10% admin fee.

No refunds will be issued after 6 July, 2026 except in extenuating circumstances.

If you are in any doubt about your suitability for the retreat, do be in touch in advance before enrolling to avoid cancellation fees.

Notice of cancellation must be provided to MTI via email and will be confirmed via reply email. MTI cannot accept responsibility for correspondence that is delayed or for failure of delivery.

In the unlikely event the retreat is cancelled by the organisers, registration fees will be fully refunded. No liability will be accepted for travel, accommodation or other costs / expenses incurred by participants.

Teachers

Mary McIntyre

B.A (Bus) Dip. Counselling MACA II , Internal Family Systems 1, Somatic Experiencing (SEP), Cert. Expressive Therapies, Circle of Security Educator

Mary has been practicing meditation since 1988, her first exposure being with Thich Nhat Hanh at Plum Village and later finding interest in the Insight tradition and secular practices. Her teaching approach emphasizes naturalness, freedom, spaciousness and creativity.

“I lived and studied for many years in Europe and later moved to Sri Lanka to deepen my practice and to explore a different way of being. My early career took place in management and design, but navigating periods of stress led me to discover the genuine refuge of meditation. Over time, this reshaped my understanding of healing, resilience and post-traumatic growth.”

Professionally, Mary is a somatic psychotherapist and co-director of the Mindfulness Training Institute (MTI). She teaches eight-week secular meditation programs in Brisbane and joyfully supports emerging mindfulness teachers through supervision and mentoring.

https://www.goodtherapy.com.au/mary-a_mcintyre

Nadav Avny

New Zealand Psychologists Board #90-04410
UK Council for Psychotherapy Registered Psychotherapist (UKCP reg.) #07159199

Nadav Avny

Based in Aotearoa, New Zealand, Nadav's early practice of meditation began in India more than three decades ago with Goenka Vipassana and later in Tibetan Buddhism and the Insight Meditation tradition. His practice is also nourished by Insight Dialogue, an interpersonal meditation process he loves, which can provide profound insights achievable only in the interpersonal space.

“I experience my personal journey on this path, mindfulness teaching, and the therapeutic work with my clients as key missions I have in my life. I find that these aspects of my life deeply inform and influence one another and are very much interconnected”

Professionally, Nadav is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist, Accredited EMDR Practitioner, and Certified IFS Therapist, with in-depth knowledge of several therapeutic modalities, including Psychodynamic and Existential psychotherapies. As the Co-Director of the Mindfulness Training Institute: Australia & New Zealand, Nadav supports emerging mindfulness teachers from both countries in delivering teacher training and providing supervision.

For further information: https://www.safetherapyspace.co.nz

What is a secular retreat?

Secular means "of our age".

We offer retreats that are open to people of any and no faith. Our retreats are informed by both ancient knowledge and contemporary understandings about human flourishing, including scientific findings about health and well-being.

While mindfulness is a natural human capacity, we draw explicitly on the very practical teachings of the Buddha, which describe experiences that are shared by all humans. We bring understandings from Buddhist psychology to inquire into the nature of suffering and how to incline the mind towards freedom. We bring an interest in the the fields of neuroscience and psychology which continue to expand our understandings of how to live a fulfilling life with less struggle, and to make links to practical teachings that have existed for thousands of years.

Our retreats makes the practical learning from Buddhism, as well as modern science, available in an ordinary, secular and accessible way that is applicable in your everyday life.

Awake. Alive. Present.