Upcoming Retreats

  • Zoom Only – $108.00
  • Commuting – $190.00
  • Camping – $236.00
  • RV/Camper Van – $265.00
  • Women's Dorm – $290.00
  • Men's Dorm – $290.00
  • Women's Quad – $398.00
  • Men's Quad – $398.00
  • Private Room- Twin Bed – $514.00
  • Private Room- Double bed – $514.00
  • Private Cabin #1 - "Vajrapani" – $568.00
  • Private Cabin #2 - "Chenrezig" – $568.00
  • Private Cabin #3 - "Vajrayogini" – $568.00
  • Private Cabin #4 - "Chakrasamvara" – $568.00
  • Private Cabin #5 - "Tara" – $568.00
  • Private Cabin #6 - "Yamantaka" – $568.00

Hope in the Dharma?

Guy Newland

October 10 - 12, 2025

Join us for a transformative weekend retreat with Guy Newland, a renowned scholar and professor of Tibetan Buddhist philosophy. Guy’s engaging and accessible approach, grounded in his acclaimed work Introduction to Emptiness, will help you unravel complex Buddhist concepts and apply them to your daily life. Whether you’re new to Buddhism or looking to deepen your practice, this retreat offers a rare opportunity to explore profound insights in a welcoming and supportive environment. Don’t miss this chance to deepen your understanding and cultivate inner peace!

 

About the Retreat

Does the Dharma offer hope? Or does it tell us that we should abandon hope? As we confront terrible challenges in the world, is the Dharma escapist or liberating?  Or are these the same thing? The Dharma teaches us to ease away from grasping at future appearances. But this cannot mean abandoning care and commitment.

We will explore the idea of the Dharma as refuge, the teaching that “wishlessness” is a door to liberation, and consider how emptiness shows that hope is ultimately based in reality itself.

 

 

Who is this for?

Students of all levels are welcome and will benefit from this retreat. 

 

 

Registration Closes

October 3rd for In-person attendance and October 10 at 6 pm for Online Attendance

 

Tentative Schedule — All sessions bolded will be online via Zoom (and in person)

Fri, Oct 10

3:00 PM- 5:00 PM  Check-in

5:30 PM – 6:00 PM Dinner

7:00 PM – 8:00 PM Intro to the Course

 

Sat, Oct 11 

7:15 AM – 8:00 AM Session 1 

8:00 AM – 8:30 AM Breakfast

9:30 AM -12:30 PM Session 2  (with break)

12:30 PM- 1:00 PM Lunch

3:30 PM – 6:00 PM Session 3 with (with break)

6:00 PM – 6:30 PM Dinner

7:00 PM – 7:45  Session 4 

 

Sun, Oct 12

7:15 AM – 8:00 AM Session 1

8:00 AM – 8:30 AM Breakfast

9:30 AM – 11:30 AM Session 2 

11:30 AM – 12:30 PM Vajrapani Thank You and Close

12:30 PM – 1:00 PM Lunch

1:00 PM – 2:00 PM Departure

 

Additional Information for in-person guests

  • Please plan on arriving between 3:00 and 5:00 PM on the first day of the retreat
  • Please plan on departing at approximately 2:00 PM on the last day of the retreat
  • You can see information about our accommodations in the registration process

 

About Retreat Fees (includes accommodation, 3 meals a day, and facility costs)

The collected registration fees include all accommodations, 3 nutritious vegetarian meals a day, and general facility/operating costs.  Retreat registrations help support the center to keep everything operating, allowing us to invite so many precious teachers, and to hold this precious space of 70+ acres of secluded redwood forest to allow guests to have the quiet, contemplative space to continue spiritual growth.

 

Important Note

Vajrapani Institute may publish recorded sessions in the public domain (e.g., on YouTube). By registering for this event, you are agreeing to give your consent to this process. To protect your privacy, we recommend being conscious about any personal information you share during the sessions. To further enhance anonymity, you may want to consider turning off video or naming yourself using abbreviations.

 

About Vajrapani Institute

Vajrapani Institute for Wisdom Culture was one of the first Tibetan Buddhist Retreat Centers in America.  Vajrapani aims to provide a friendly and conducive environment for people of all nationalities to learn, put into practice the teachings of the Buddha, and connect with other Dharma practitioners.  Located on 70 acres of secluded land within the redwood forests of the Santa Cruz mountains, Vajrapani Institute has been an immersive space for people of all backgrounds to find and deepen their spiritual practices, with the main goal of bridging the gap between the head and heart of the practice.

 

Teacher’s Fees

Traditionally, spiritual teachings are considered priceless; offerings to our teachers are not included in the fee information detailed on this page. Instead, we invite you to consider bringing a cash donation with you to express your gratitude for the teachings. 

 

The Buddha encouraged the practice of generosity as it develops non-attachment, loving-kindness, and compassion and deepens the awareness of our interconnectedness. Offering Dana to our teachers, a Pali word for “generosity,” is said to benefit both the giver and the receiver, helping the giver to practice generosity and the receiver to practice acceptance. Your offering of Dana can be whatever feels generous to you in your heart and your particular financial situation. If you can’t afford to give a cash offering as Dana, a thank you note is perfectly generous.

 

Participants will get a chance to present a cash offering to the teachers on the last day of the retreat and this is supplemented by a donation from Vajrapani Institute. Please note that we don’t offer a credit card option for Dana

 

Financial Aid/ Scholarships

We want to make retreats available to everyone. With this in mind, we will gladly work out a payment plan with you if needed. If more assistance is necessary, we offer several scholarships. Please note that the scholarship deadline is one month before the retreat begins.

 

 

Teacher

Guy Newland
Guy Newland, Ph.D., is a scholar of Tibetan Madhyamaka whose teachers include Jeffrey Hopkins and Loling Geshe Palden Drakpa. He is a translator and editor of Tsongkhapa’s Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment and of His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s teachings on that text, From Here to Enlightenment. Guy is the author of Introduction to Emptiness, Appearance and Reality, The Two Truths, and A Buddhist Grief Observed.
Learn more about Guy Newland