Emma Pittaway
Emma Pittaway teaches an open ‘natural awareness’ approach that emphasises meditation as a way of being in the world. Her style is drawn from 25 years experience in the Burmese lineage of Mahāsī Sayādaw, via her primary teacher Patrick Kearney, and her training with Sayādaw U Tejaniya. These two influences combine relaxation and creativity with investigation and clarity. Inspired by the Buddha and his followers, who lived and meditated in the forest, Emma draws on the natural world to support her practice. She is the principal insight teacher at the Kuan Yin Meditation Centre in Lismore, NSW.
Events with Emma Pittaway
Remembering Awareness - Nine-day retreatNovember 6 - 15, 2026
Our practice is based on mindfulness, which emerges from the continuity of awareness. How can we maintain continuous awareness? By remembering that we are already aware. We do not need to generate awareness. When we “try” to be aware, our effort is based on our desire to be someone different, to have something different. But if awareness is already available, then what is there to try for? When we stop trying and allow ourselves to recognise what is already here, the continuity of awareness naturally emerges.
Deepening Practice 28-Day RetreatJanuary 29 - February 26, 2027
This retreat is open to people who have done at least three insight meditation retreats in the Mahasi tradition of nine days longer. This retreat is for experienced practitioners who want to deepen their practice and understanding. The first two weeks, taught with Robyn Gibson, focuses on building the serenity (samatha) necessary to support insight. The second two weeks, taught with Emma Pittaway, focuses on cultivating insight (vipassanā). These two qualities – serenity and insight – together bring the heart/mind to ripening.