Upcoming Retreats

 


Online Book Club – Vol 1: Approaching the Buddhist Path

Venerable Gyalten Chimé

August 30 - October 18, 2023
When On Zoom Every Wednesday for 8 weeks (Aug 30 to Oct 18) 6:30 - 8:00pm Pacific Time   ABOUT This weekly online book gathering will feature facilitated conversation, discussion and meditation sessions with Buddhist monastic Venerable Chimé.  The text we will explore over the course of these 8 weekly Zoom gatherings is Wisdom Publications’ Approaching the Buddhist Path by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Venerable Thubten Chödrön. This recently published book is the first in an amazing series containing the traditional Buddhist Sanskrit tradition teachings, together with comparisons from the Buddhist Pali tradition, as well as rich parallels with modern…

Four Views of Reality

Scott Snibbe

October 6 - 8, 2023
In-person Only Indo-Tibetan Buddhism posits four progressively subtler understandings of reality, in particular, exploring what “self” and “objects” may or may not be. Monks, nuns, and serious students of Buddhism study these different views, called “tenets” that were developed 1500-2000 years ago. The topics can be tricky to understand and it’s hard to remember the schools’ specific Sanskrit names of Vaibhashika (Great Exposition), Sautantrika (Sutra), Cittamatra (Mind Only), and Madhyamaka (Middle Way). Simplified, these four views posit the “ultimate” nature of reality progressively from a view that believes in indivisible atoms and moments of consciousness to a reality where living…

Experiential Vajrayogini Retreat

Elaine Jackson

October 19 - 22, 2023
Join us for an experiential Vajrayogini Retreat with FPMT Teacher Elaine Jackson at Vajrapani Institute.   Elaine has said, “How wonderful that we will meet again to explore our relationship with Vajrayogini. I will share my approach to the practice and happily discuss ways to enliven it, soliciting your experiences as well.”   “I have seen over many years of practice that there is an alchemy, a gradual change, that manifests when I embrace the practice from a felt sense and try to bring that sense into my everyday life. This comes, not solely from  the sadhana, but from embracing…

Online Book Club – Vol 2: The Foundation of Buddhist Practice

Venerable Gyalten Chimé

October 25 - December 6, 2023
When On Zoom Every Wednesday for 8 weeks (Oct 25 to Dec 6) 6:30 - 8:00pm Pacific Time   ABOUT This weekly online book gathering will feature facilitated conversation, discussion and meditation sessions with Buddhist monastic Venerable Chimé. The text we will explore over the course of these 8 weekly Zoom gatherings is Wisdom Publications’ The Foundation of Buddhist Practice by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Venerable Thubten Chödrön.  This is the second volume in the Dalai Lama's definitive and comprehensive series on the stages of the Buddhist path, The Library of Wisdom and Compassion. The Foundation of Buddhist Practice describes the…

Intro to Buddhism and Meditation – A Kopan West Lamrim Retreat

Geshe Tenzin Legtsok

October 27 - November 5, 2023
Vajrapani Institute
This Kopan West retreat is an introduction to Tibetan Buddhism. As such it will provide a concise yet complete overview of Tibetan Buddhist philosophy and practice. During this course, Geshe Legtsok will explore the stages of the path to enlightenment, a genre of Buddhist teaching known as the Lamrim, and give practical instruction in order to help you apply this ancient, yet timeless wisdom to increase peace, happiness, and compassion in your daily life.  This retreat will include time for teachings, discussion, and meditation. Meditation practices will include concentration meditation to focus your mind, visualizations, and analytical meditation on Lamrim…

Cultivating the Mind of Enlightenment

Geshe Thubten Sherab

November 30 - December 3, 2023
Bodhicitta is a Sanskrit word meaning “the mind of enlightenment” or “the awakening mind”—the mind that wishes to achieve enlightenment in order to lead all other beings into that same state.   There are two levels of bodhicitta called Ultimate Bodhicitta and conventional bodhicitta. Ultimate Bodhicitta is the realization that the ultimate nature of all phenomena is the emptiness of inherent, or independent existence. To realize this, we need to cultivate two types of conventional bodhicitta called aspiration bodhicitta and application bodhicitta. Aspiration bodhicitta is wishing that all people be free from the causes of suffering and to have the…

New Year’s Vajrasattva Practice Retreat

Elaine Jackson

December 29, 2023 - January 1, 2024
Most of us operate from profound ignorance, a solid mis-knowing. This ignorance – that happiness and unhappiness come from somewhere “out there” – blocks us from seeing our clear light mind. The Vajrasattva practice purifies our mind from grasping so strongly onto the mistaken view. Utilizing time-tested visualization and meditation, deluded states – pain, sorrow, hatred, pride, jealousy, doubt – lose their power. Our mind is purified. We’ll explore why this powerful Vajrasattva practice actually works, and how we can use it in our daily life to grow our happiness.