COURSES & RETREATS
Special Retreats
These retreats are special annual retreats, usually involving pujas or chanted prayers, that celebrate special times of the year or are traditional practices.
April 13-15
Nyungnay Purifying Ritual Practice
with Gen Samten Kelsang
Come celebrate Buddha’s enlightenment day! Nyungnay is a beloved practice engaged in every year to honor and remember Buddha’s enlightenment.
This special purification and fasting practice is performed together with prayers and prostrations to the Thousand-armed Avalokiteshvara, the Buddha of Compassion. It is very powerful for purifying negativity and strong delusions such as desirous attachment and anger. It is also a special method for receiving blessings and improving our experience of love, compassion, and bodhichitta. Each morning, we take Precepts and then engage in Drop of Essential Nectar practice in each session.
Monday
Introduction with Gen Samten: 7 – 8:30pm
Tuesday
Precepts: 6:30 - 7am
Session 1: 7:30 – 8:45am
Session 2: 11am – 12:15pm
Session 3: 4:30 – 6pm
Wishfulfilling Jewel Puja: 7:30 – 8:30pm
Wednesday
Precepts: 6:30 - 7am
Session 1: 7:30 – 8:45am
Session 2: 11am – 12:15pm
Session 3: 4:30 – 6pm
Offering to the Spiritual Guide Puja: 7:30 – 9:15pm
May 7-8
24-Hour Tara Retreat
The female Buddha of active compassion who, as the manifestation of the ultimate wisdom of all the Buddhas, is known as the “Mother of the Conquerors.” In this each session of this retreat, we engage in Liberation from Sorrow prayers, which are requests to receive Tara's blessings. Through this, we can draw closer to Green Tara and receive her care and protection.
June 3-4
Offering of Our Faith Retreat
Every day we remember the extraordinary kindness of Venerable Geshe-la, our Root Guru and Founder of the New Kadampa Tradition, but on this auspicious day, with minds of rejoicing and gratitude, we will offer him our faith through using the special prayer Request to the Holy Spiritual Guide, Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso from his Faithful Disciples and collecting our Guru’s name mantra in a one-day retreat.
There will be three sessions of self-guided retreat using the sadhana, The Hundreds of Deities of the Joyful Land According to Highest Yoga Tantra and Request to the Holy Spiritual Guide Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche from his Faithful Disciples. In the evening, the retreat will conclude with Offering to the Spiritual Guide.