Summer 2010 Retreats
Summer 2010 Retreats
This summer the Nyingma Institute presents three unique series of retreats, offering training in Meditation, Tibetan Yoga, Advanced Buddhist Studies, and Nyingma Psychology. Students may attend single weeks of retreat, but the most benefit will be gained from attending an entire series, or the entire summer, of retreats.
Three-Week Series of Meditation/Tibetan Yoga Retreats
Balancing Body and Mind
May 31-June 19
Tibetan yoga and meditation practices restore balance to body and mind, teaching how to access and integrate non-conceptual wisdom. The cost for the entire three-week Meditation/Tibetan Yoga retreat series is $1,000 (nonresidential, which includes vegetarian meals and all instruction) or $1,500 (residentially, which also includes a shared or private room). There are no prerequisites for this series of retreats.
May 31-June 5 Finding Inner Peace (MED502)
Meditation develops a tranquil, harmonious mind. In this retreat, students will receive individual instruction in meditation suitable to their level of development. Group practice will focus on chanting mantra as a doorway to meditation, and will also include silent sitting and walking meditation. The goal is to bring students to new states of inner calm and clarity. Cost for week: $360 (nonresidential); $550 (residential). Begins Monday morning and ends Saturday at 4:45 PM. Instructor: Bob Byrne. Retreat is part of the following Certificate Programs: Beginning Nyingma Meditation Program; Kum Nye (Tibetan Yoga) Program.
June 7-12 Tibetan Yoga for Healing and Energy (KNR505)
Breath and movement exercises awaken an inner vitality that is directly linked to a natural healing process. Meditation and visualization practices deepen this process. Includes the “Revitalizing Inner Energy” workshop on June 12. Cost for week: $360 (nonresidential); $550 (residential). Begins Monday morning and ends Saturday at 4:45 PM. Instructors: Jack van der Meulen, Donna Morton, Robin Caton, and Santosh Philip. Retreat is part of the following Certificate Programs: Beginning Nyingma Meditation Program; Kum Nye (Tibetan Yoga) Program; Nyingma Psychology Program; Two-Year Nyingma Studies Program.
June 14-19 Attuning to the Present Moment (KNR503)
This retreat makes use of the full range of Kum Nye exercises to help each participant integrate a rich array of positive feelings into body, senses, and mind. Includes the “Embodiment of Beauty” workshop on June 19. Cost for week: $360 (nonresidential); $550 (residential). Begins Monday morning and ends Saturday at 4:45 PM. Instructors: Jack van der Meulen, Donna Morton, Robin Caton, and Santosh Philip. Retreat is part of the following Certificate Programs: Beginning Nyingma Meditation Program; Kum Nye (Tibetan Yoga) Program; Nyingma Psychology Program; Two-Year Nyingma Studies Program.
Four-Week Series of Advanced Dharma Studies Retreats
The World as Sacred Space (DHS536-539)
June 21-July 17
Powerful Buddhist symbols point toward a comprehensive vision in which the universe itself arises as a mandala—a sacred space in which the journey to awakening is assured. We explore this vision, studying how every aspect of experience can be transformed. We also look at the sacred symbols that have been created by the Nyingma organizations and how the mandala shapes its inner and outer operations. The cost for the entire four-week Buddhist Studies retreat is $2,100, which includes a shared or private room, vegetarian meals, and all instruction. Individual weeks may be attended with prior consent of the instructor. Instructor: Sylvia Gretchen. Retreats begin Monday morning and end Saturday at 4:45 PM. Prerequisite: DHS531-535 or consent of the instructor. Retreats are part of the following Certificate Programs: Path of Liberation Program; Path and Practices of Liberation Program; Two-Year Nyingma Studies Program.
Week One, June 21-26: The Emerging Mandala (DHS536)
Week Two, June 28-July 3: Lineage of Light (DHS537)
Week Three, July 5-10: Inner and Outer Symbols of Enlightenment (DHS538)
Week Four, July 12-17: Aspiration and Accomplishment (DHS539)
Four-Week Series of Nyingma Psychology Retreats
Open Heart: Luminous Mind (NPS504-507)
July 19-August 14
…we can learn to move through experience like a fish through water, an accomplished dancer, or an eagle soaring through the sky. We can pass from understanding to understanding, deepening and broadening our vision until we reach a freedom from all fixed positions, a transparent clarity based on freedom itself. -Tarthang Tulku, Knowledge of Freedom
Nyingma Psychology utilizes introspective practices and penetrating analysis to examine and transform ordinary consciousness, emotions, and thought. This four-week series focuses on opening the heart and revealing the mind as pliable, luminous, and effortlessly intelligent. The residential cost for the entire four-week series is $2,100. The non-residential cost for the three weeks held at the Nyingma Institute in Berkeley is $1,000. Prerequisite: Familiarity with meditation and openness to exploring consciousness in an experiential manner.
Week One, July 19-24: Touching Wonder and Facing Fear (NPS504)
If we could extend our knowledge, we might be able to open wide the channels between senses and mind, and discover new dimensions of experience that we could evoke whenever we wished. -Tarthang Tulku, Knowledge of Freedom
Moments of deep inspiration teach us that there are wondrous dimensions to our bodies, minds, and the world around us. Yet, we also know that our capacity for the extraordinary is often dimmed by fears and conditioned responses. In this retreat, meditation and movement practices help wake us up to inner spontaneity. At the same time, awareness exercises focus us on a new kind of emotional honesty: one that sees emotions as doorways through which we can pass freely. Fear is the gatekeeper that we must befriend and overcome. Cost for week: $675 (residential only). Held at Ratna Ling. Begins Monday at lunch and ends Saturday with dinner. Instructors: Sylvia Gretchen and the Nyingma Psychology staff. Retreat is part of the following Certificate Programs: Nyingma Psychology Program; Two-Year Nyingma Studies Program.
Week Two, July 26-31: Reclaiming the Heart (NPS505)
Hidden within are not only our fears and confusions, but also our deepest feelings and aspirations. -Tarthang Tulku, Knowledge of Freedom
When the heart is closed, concentration is fragmented and we are easily distracted. Frustration, irritation, and yearning can overwhelm inner peace and satisfaction. In this week of retreat, we listen attentively to the voices of the heart through consciously cultivating compassionate aspirations and awakening unconditioned love and joy. Touching our deeper aspirations, we begin to develop genuine self-respect and separate ourselves from judgment and conditioning. Cost for week: $360 (nonresidential); $550 (residential). Begins Monday morning and ends Saturday at 4:45 PM. Instructors: Sylvia Gretchen and the Nyingma Psychology staff. Retreat is part of the following Certificate Programs: Nyingma Psychology Program; Two-Year Nyingma Studies Program.
Week Three, August 2-7: Self-Image: Observing, Recognizing, Releasing (NPS506)
…we must first see that the self-image is not a genuine part of us, that we do not need it, and that, in fact, the self-image obscures our true being…the self-image imprisons us in blockages and constrictions. Our natural flow of energy is interrupted, and the range of our responsiveness and the depth of our experience are severely limited. -Tarthang Tulku, Openness Mind
We break free from the restrictive force of self-images through developing the ability to observe experience steadily. Then we can recognize how mental and emotional patterns are structured and more easily release what is negative. In this retreat, we master the process of observing, recognizing, and releasing, unlocking the secrets of how mind operates. Cost for week: $360 (nonresidential); $550 (residential). Begins Monday morning and ends Saturday at 4:45 PM. Instructors: Sylvia Gretchen and the Nyingma Psychology staff. Retreat is part of the following Certificate Programs: Nyingma Psychology Program; Two-Year Nyingma Studies Program.
Week Four, August 9-14: Luminous Mind (NPS507)
Our whole being can wake up and merge into a brilliant, unified field of awareness. -Tarthang Tulku, Hidden Mind of Freedom
The fullness of our being, luminous and free, reveals itself through visualization and dream yoga practices. A mirror-like equanimity arises; all things, inner and outer, dance with a new sense of harmony and light. Cost for week: $360 (nonresidential); $550 (residential). Begins Monday morning and ends Saturday at 4:45 PM. Instructors: Sylvia Gretchen and the Nyingma Psychology staff. Retreat is part of the following Certificate Programs: Nyingma Psychology Program; Two-Year Nyingma Studies Program.