2008 Human Development Training Retreat August 30 - December 17 Our premier training program. Cost: $7,600 (residential) $5,200 (non-residential)

 

Description: This retreat provides students with an intense four-month period of study and practice of Nyingma teachings. The retreat curriculum is a program in human development, working both cognitively and experientially with mind, body, and spiritual awareness. Students develop insight into the nature of consciousness, emotion, thought, embodiment, and feeling. Exercises release the hold of negative habitual patterning within body and mind, allowing previously untapped human qualities to emerge. Participants are instructed in how to integrate their new knowledge and way of being within daily life so that what is learned in the retreat continues to unfold and develop.   Objective: Upon completion, students will understand how habitual patterns of thought and emotions arise, how to transform negative energy patterns to allow previously untapped human qualities to emerge, and how to integrate their new knowledge and way of being within daily life so that what is learned in the retreat continues to unfold. Length: 16 weeks

Program Components 5.5 hours of daytime instruction, Mondays-Fridays   A typical schedule might be: 6:30 - 7:45 AM 9:30 - 10:45 AM 2:00 - 3:30 PM 4:00 - 5:30 PM

8 required evening classes: MED305 Advanced Meditation September 1 - 22, 2008 Mondays, 6:15 - 7:45 PM Concentrated and advanced study of a single advanced meditation topic, such as the four energy centers, experience of time, or healing through meditation. MED301 Advanced Meditation September 29 - December 1, 2008 Mondays, 6:15 - 7:45 PM Advanced meditation teachings are based on traditional Tibetan texts. Students are introduced to new techniques that increase mindfulness and insight as they deepen the meditative experience of bliss and openness. The focus this quarter is on introducing new modes of non-conceptual study.

D HS211 Buddhist Studies Tutorial September 30 - December 2, 2008 Tuesdays, 8 - 9:30 PM In this intermediate and advanced tutorial, students closely read primary sources which can include Indian Buddhist works in translation (such as the Bodhicharyavatara) or Tibetan Buddhist works such as the Ngal-gso-skor-gsum . If a text or commentary has not been published in English translation the instructor will provide a translation of the sections of the text relevant to the class. KNR104 Beginning Kum Nye: Kum Nye to Balance Feelings September 3 - 24, 2008 Wednesdays, 6:15 - 7:45 PM Gentle movement practices expand and balance feelings, harmonizing body and mind. A sense of deep fulfillment arises as students connect more fully with their senses.

KNR105 Beginning Kum Nye: Expanding Enjoyment and Ease October 1 - December 3, 2008 Wednesdays, 6:15 - 7:45 PM A series of Kum Nye practices that help to reduce physical and mental tension are combined with practices that expand the enjoyment of each of the senses. MED205 Intermediate Meditation: Knowing Mind Differently September 4 - 25, 2008 Thursdays, 8 - 9:30 PM In this experiential philosophy class, two views of how we know ourselves are juxtaposed: reflections of the European philosopher Rene Descartes and meditations from Tarthang Tulku's Openness Mind.

MED201 Intermediate Meditation: Sustaining Meditation October 2 - December 4, 2008 Thursdays, 8 - 9:30 PM This class is for students who have begun a meditation practice and are ready for further guidance and inspiration. The goal is to sustain effortless meditative concentration. KNR106 Kum Nye Self Massage (5 weeks) November 7 - December 5, 2008 Fridays, 8 - 9:30 PM A 'hands-on' class in Kum Nye self-massage. Students will be led through slow massage routines that promote relaxation and deepen their sense of physical presence.

15 required workshops   KNR405 Tasting Relaxation September 6, 2008 The relaxation that comes through Kum Nye (Tibetan Yoga) practice is like a rich nectar that flows through the body and feelings. This workshop presents practices that allow participants to 'taste' this deep relaxation. KNR406 Joy and Spaciousness September 13, 2008 Gentle Kum Nye movement and breathing practices enhance a sense of spaciousness and develop joyous feelings. Taught mostly outdoors, the beauty of nature will help foster and expand inner joy. MED404 Developing Concentration and Awareness September 20, 2008 Concentration and awareness are necessary for success in any endeavor. We can develop concentration and heighten awareness quickly through analytical meditation. This workshop introduces experiential exercises that focus mind, but also lead us beyond words and labels. MED405 Wheel of Analytic Meditation September 27, 2008 Analytic meditations reveal the key to determining which mental states lead to confusion and pain and which lead to clarity and wellbeing. Teachings from Buddhist Psychology (the Abhidharma) help us recognize the inner structures of experience. MED406 Visualization in the Tibetan Tradition October 4, 2008 Precise instructions for how to develop visualization will be accompanied by an overview of how these practices are used as part of the Tibetan path of mental development. Workshop will include meditation exercises that contact a higher awareness.

MED402 Healing Sound October 11, 2008 There is an art of deep listening that hears all sounds as music and recognizes a vast healing silence at the very heart of all sound. This workshop blends music, mantra, and silence to inspire this realization. NPR401 Dream Lotus Evening October 17, 2008 Friday, 7-9 PM This evening workshop offers instruction in dream yoga practice and in practices that relax tension in the throat area. An additional half hour of instruction in the practices will be given for Program students. NPS406 Activating Joyous Feeling October 18, 2008 Meditation, awareness, and movement practices awaken and expand joyous feelings. Students will learn exercises that distribute deep feelings of joy through both body and mind. DHS412 Dharma Studies Workshop October 23 - 26, 2008 Topics in traditional Buddhist studies are offered with an emphasis on how the teachings are integrated into patterns of behavior. NPS407 Transforming Personal History November 8, 2008 Habits and patterns intertwined with painful past memories often prevent us from enjoying the freedom and beauty that the human body and mind offer. It is possible to skillfully touch these memories in a way that cuts through their power to restrict us. Practices from Knowledge of Freedom can help transform personal history from a source of pain into a wellspring of renewal.

DHS411 Buddhist Studies Tutorial Workshop November 15, 2008 A close study of primary texts and teachings. Prerequisite: concurrent registration in DHS201 or consent of the Instructors. NPR402 Finding Compassionate Love November 28 - 30, 2008       We can learn to love ourselves and others more deeply through actively cultivating compassionate love. This kind of love heals the painful divisions between living beings, allowing us to forgive others and to cleanse ourselves of ill will. The workshop introduces gentle visualization, mantra and meditation practices given by the enlightened Buddha. MED409 Silent Mind, Peaceful Mind November 22, 2008 By letting go of expectations the mind becomes silent, peaceful, and aware. Meditation practices that transform mental experience can lead to this form of perfect equanimity. MED410 Ground of Being December 6, 2008 Advanced meditation contacts states of mind free from desires and conflicting emotions. 'Mind' is directly experienced as a process emerging from the ground of being. Workshop includes Kunzhi practices and a brief introduction to the Yogachara school of Buddhist thought. MED411 Nectar for Refining the Mind December 13, 2008 Advanced meditation techniques combine with discussion of the "great armor" of emptiness, freedom, and openness as it is described in the Prajnaparamita.

Enrollment: The Four-Month retreat typically has from 6-12 people who participate each year. Several people always come from Europe and South America (especially Brazil). Participants in the Four-Month Retreat are welcome to come to the Nyingma Institute up to a week in advance at no extra charge. Retreatants who attend both the Four-Month and Two-Month retreats may also chose to stay at the Nyingma Institute during the break between the two retreats.

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More Questions?
The best way to find out more about the retreats is to visit the Nyingma Institute and speak with teachers and other people who have attended these retreats in past years. You are also welcome to telephone or email further questions to the teachers directly, or to students. Please call or email us and we will supply you with the contact information of retreatants who would be happy to answer questions and give you an idea of what the retreat experience is like.

Phone: (510) 843-6812
e-mail: Nyingma-Institute@Nyingma.org

or write:
Nyingma Institute
1815 Highland Place
Berkeley, CA 94709)

If we can find ways to awaken the full power of awareness,
we can enter a new phase of human evolution
and revitalize ourselves and our world.
–Tarthang Tulku, director of the Nyingma Institute

copyright © 2007 Nyingma Centers