Noggs Barn, part meditation space, part meeting room or large garden room, hidden away in the grounds of an old house near Norwich; a place to reflect and perhaps to be inspired, a wayside halt on the spiritual journey.
We built Noggs Barn on the site of an old piggery and range of workshops. It seemed appropriate that the house we had bought in 2002 was once a thriving nursery and market garden with a number of workshops in the grounds housing small businesses. The house has always been a place of nurturing and growing.
The idea for Noggs grew from retreat days and meditation groups which we have held in our home for some years. With this new building, which is essentially part of our home rather than a public building, we can offer a larger and more flexible space for people to meet, to share ideas, books, art, but, perhaps above all, to share silence in an accepting and peaceful environment and to feel at home.
Noggs will never be a business or a conference centre and we have decided never to profit from it financially. It is part of our home and people are invited into it in a spirit of hospitality. We think that this vision is broad enough to embrace a rich diversity of activities that enable spiritual growth. It is in meeting, sharing, accepting and valuing one another that we move into a more peaceful acceptance of ourselves and a warm compassion for others.
Noggs Barn is a place dedicated to friendship. Why Noggs? We discovered that in the 17th and 18th centuries our house was called Noggs Cottage. Perhaps this was originally someone’s name. More likely it has something to do with a local type of beer called nogg! Was the house once a small brewery? Let’s hope it was a place of conviviality and good times – and that it continues to be such a place!