LATE SPRING COURSES (April 18 – June 11 , 2022) 

Buddhist Studies (DHS)

Sutra Study: The Samadhi of Heroic Progression (DHS101) 

Wednesdays, 7:00 – 8:30 pm, PT (April 20 – June 8, 2022)

The Buddha’s dialogues with bodhisattvas and ordinary people of his time illuminate immutable truths of the human condition and the possibility of embodying a path of awakening. Sutra Study is an ongoing course that examines essential sutras within the Mahayana tradition. We read the sutras not as remote historical texts but as a transformative encounter with the Buddhavacana. Through careful reading and focused discussion, we seek to better appreciate the breadth and depth of the sutra tradition and contemplate how these teachings speak directly to our present experience. 

This term we read the Śūraṃgamasamādhisūtra, translated into English as the Concentration of Heroic Progress. It was one of the earliest Mahayana sutras translated into Chinese and it has long been compared with the Vimalakīrtinirdeśa sutra, which it resembles in its content and ideas. It differs from the Vimalakirti in presenting the heroic path of the bodhisattva in progressing toward perfect awakening through the stages of meditation. The great themes of the Mahayana are contrasted with the attainments of the advanced disciples, and like in the story of Vimalakirti, the concentrations of the bodhisattvas produce magical manifestations that astound members of the gathered assembly to generate bodhicitta, the mind of enlightenment. The Śūraṃgamasamādhisūtra presents the heroic path of the bodhisattva through the powers of meditative concentration, and provides another light for students interested in the Mahayana.

Instructors: Pema Gellek and Hugh Joswick. Cost: $144. Prerequisites: Sincere interest in the Buddha’s teachings. 

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2120056 

Path of Liberation: Gateway to Knowledge (DHS207)

Thursdays, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm, PT (April 19 – June 7, 2022)

We deepen our search for awakened mind through in-depth study of topics from the Gateway to Knowledge (mKhas-‘Jug) by the great Tibetan master Lama Mipham. From this traditional text, we learn how deeper knowledge is transmitted in Tibetan writings. We apply its analytic teachings in contemplating inner and outer phenomena, explore teachings on correct and incorrect understanding, and examine the nature of karma and kleśas as well as ‘what is possible and what is impossible,’ along with teachings on time, the arising of suffering, the cessation of suffering and the five paths. 

Instructors:  Mark Henderson and Hugh Joswick. Cost: $164. Prerequisites: Part Six of the Path of Liberation Program. Includes two Workshops.  

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2120060 

​​Guide to Chanting Tibetan Prayers (DHS114)

Wednesdays, 9:30 – 11:00 am, PT (April 20 – June 8, 2022)

Learn how to chant traditional prayers in the Tibetan language. Practice materials will be provided showing the Tibetan text, phonetic pronunciation, and English translation. In addition to providing background teachings, students will be guided in the pronunciation, melody, and rhythm of selected traditional Buddhist prayers.

Instructors: Lama Palzang and Mark Henderson. Cost: $144. Prerequisites: Sincere interest in the Buddha’s teachings.

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2121754 

Meditation (MED)

Advanced Meditation: The Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa (MED323) 

Mondays, 7:00 – 8:30 pm, PT (April 18  – June 6, 2022) 

This term, we focus on Milarepa, beloved saint of Tibet, who fully repented his early career as a black sorcerer and took up the white cotton robes and unrelenting practice of a yogi in the wilderness. His life comes to us through the Hundred Thousand Songs, which are filled with enough faith, renunciation, and clarity to shake us from complacency and awaken our hearts. 

As Milarepa, or Mila, sings:  

The snow, the rocks, and the clay mountains — 

These three are where Mila meditates; 

If you they satisfy,  

You may come with me. 

. . . 

Bliss, Illumination, and Non-thought — 

These three are my companions; 

If you they satisfy, 

You may come with me. 

p.280, 281 of The Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa

Instructors: Lama Palzang and Pema Gellek. Cost: $144. Prerequisites:  Permission of instructors. 

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2120153 

Intermediate Meditation:  Teachings from the Heart (MED222)

Thursdays, 7:00 – 8:30 pm, PT (April 21 – June 9, 2022) 

“The mind remains an untapped treasury of boundless knowledge. Now, as the world draws closer together, it is time to look within, to understand the workings of mind and use mind to enrich not only our own lives, but the lives of all future humanity.” — Tarthang Tulku, Teachings from the Heart

Tarthang Tulku has published numerous books that ask us to explore the dimensions of mind and encourage efforts to bring more beauty and joy into our lives. This term we will read, practice, and discuss essays on meditation from Teachings from the Heart, a collection of articles, interviews, and prefaces to books that he has written over the years. This rich volume offers intriguing insights and instructions for developing meditation and will be appreciated by all those inspired by Rinpoche’s work. Teachings from the Heart can be purchased from Dharma Publishing.

Instructor:  Hugh Joswick. Cost: $144. Designed for students with some meditation experience who wish to deepen their understanding of Rinpoche’s approaches to meditation and mind. 

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2120271 

Beginning Meditation:  Meditation for Healing (MED105)

Wednesdays, 6:00 – 7:15 pm, PT (April 20 – May 11, 2022) 

This 4-week course will introduce you to the healing benefits of meditation. We will work with sitting and walking meditation, breath and mantra practice, and gentle Tibetan yoga. The goal is for you to develop and sustain a daily, ongoing meditation practice that will increase both your physical vitality and your emotional balance over time. Readings are from Gesture of Balance. 

Instructor: Pauline Yu. Cost: $72. For beginners and those wishing to refresh their practice.

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2120298 

Meditation Practice Group:  Cosmic Contemplations (MED220) 

Fridays, 4:00 – 5:00 pm, PT (April 22 – June 10, 2022) 

What might it be like to appreciate the vastness of our being? This term, we will take an experimental approach with guided contemplations that take us on journeys into our origins, deep interconnectedness, and the inner spaces of our miraculous embodiment. Practices are selected from a variety of Tarthang Tulku’s writings, including Time, Space, and Knowledge. As we explore these themes together, the sharing of reflections and insights is warmly encouraged. 

This is a weekly 1-hour community practice group, meant to provide space for coming together and practicing. We often start off with Kum Nye Tibetan Yoga to help settle body, mind, and senses before setting into a guided practice, followed by silent sitting. 

Instructor: Pauline Yu. Cost: $96. Please note that 100% of the fees support Nyingma Institute’s mission to offer programs for healing and inquiry, and/or humanitarian projects protecting the continuity of Buddhist traditions in Asia.

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2120290  

Kum Nye (KNR)

Anatomy of a Kum Nye Exercise: #57 Opening the Heart and #58 Coordinating the Wholeness of Energy (KNR133)

Wednesdays, 8:30 – 9:30 AM, PT (April 20 – June 8, 2022)

In this 8-week class we will work intimately with body, breath, senses, and awareness as we explore two Kum Nye practices in depth and detail. This term we work with two exercises from Balancing and Integrating Body, Mind, and Senses: Stage Three. #57 ‘opens the heart, improves breathing and circulation, and massages internal muscles’, while #58 ‘increases coordination, develops muscles of the legs and stimulates the flow of energy from the legs through the back and to the head.’ In the class series we include additional Kum Nye exercises that support our exploration. Commitment to daily practice between classes is required to get the full benefit of this course.

Instructor: Donna Morton. Cost: $96. Prerequisites: completed at least one Kum Nye course or workshop, or with permission of the instructor. 

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2120304 

Beginning Kum Nye: Entering a Path of Relaxation (KNR122) 

Tuesdays, 8:00 – 9:00 am, PT (April 19 – May 10, 2022)

This 4 week class will cover the foundation of how to practice Kum Nye. Sitting, movement, postures and breathing exercises will be utilized to explore this profound path of relaxation. 

Appropriate for all; even if you have done Kum Nye before, you may benefit from this class as one way to understand what makes Kum Nye a unique body/mind practice. Kum Nye Tibetan Yoga will be the source text.

Instructor: Anita McNulty. Cost: $48. Drop-in: $15/class.

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2120308

All-Levels Kum Nye: The Healing Art of Kum Nye Practice (KNR121)

Tuesdays, 8:00 – 9:00 am, PT (May 17 – June 7, 2022) 

“Kum Nye heals both our bodies and minds, bringing their energies together to function calmly and smoothly.” — Tarthang Tulku, Kum Nye Tibetan Yoga

This Kum Nye class will focus on the first Kum Nye Book, Kum Nye Tibetan Yoga: feelings and sensations, inner and outer massage of feeling, breath, sitting, working with the senses, and the energy centers are some of the themes we will explore; each class will have a theme. The emphasis is on how to do Kum Nye and will be oriented toward practice. Readings and resources will be suggested for those who wish to explore KN themes and theory more deeply.

This course may be attended as an introduction series to Kum Nye practice or may be taken as a drop in class; basic instructions will be included each class for anyone new to Kum Nye. It is appropriate for all levels and abilities; adaptations to exercises will be included for those with physical limitations. Experienced and beginning students welcome, and may join at any time.

Instructor: Anita McNulty. Cost: $48. Drop-in: $15/class. 

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2120312

Joy of Being: Relaxing and Healing the Gates of the Senses (KNR223)

Thursdays, 6:00 – 7:30 pm, PT (April 21 – June 9, 2022) 

“Day and night, in crowds or alone, we can use our senses to practice distilling the pure juice of all perceptions and experiences, and allowing all the dross to drop away.” –Joy of Being, p.60

This semester continues the in-depth exploration of Part 3 of Joy of Being, Senses and Perception. Practices for relaxing and healing the various sense organs—this semester working especially with feeling/ body, taste/ tongue, and nose/smell  -each with its own faculty, character and field of operation. Exercises and reading  for developing the full potential of each of our senses, transmitting a full richness of experience and bringing more joy and pleasure into our lives. 

While this unit is part of the 9 month Joy of Being program, this semester can be done on its own. In addition, it is possible to ‘drop-in’ with permission of instructor. This course is also intended as groundwork for those interested in eventually teaching Joy of Being.

Instructor: Abbe Blum. Cost: $144. Drop-in: $20/class. Part of the 9-Month Joy of Being Program. 

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2120314 

Advanced Kum Nye: Patience and Stillness (KNR317) 

Tuesdays, 7:00 – 8:30 pm, PT (April 19 – June 7, 2022)

“Focus on the feeling, just allowing the sensations to be whatever they are, without trying to encourage or suppress them. Let go of the words …” Joy of Being, p.129 

Can we find stillness in movement? Can we savor the quality of patience, relaxing into deep acceptance of everything that arises in our experience? 

In this year-long series for experienced Kum Nye practitioners, we will approach each of the six perfections through Kum Nye Tibetan Yoga as embodied forms, feelings, and movements. 

The six perfections are the practices of a bodhisattva, one who has oriented their entire being to pure altruism and awakening. This term’s class is inspired by and will playfully explore the paramita of patience. 

Instructor: Santosh Philip. Cost: $144. Drop-in: $20/class. 

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2120998 

Nyingma Psychology (NPS)

Knowledge of Freedom 9 Month Program (NPS509) 

Section 1 on Mondays, 10:00 – 11:30 am, PT / Section 2 on Mondays, 7:00 – 8:30 pm, PT 

We can cultivate the innate capacity of our hearts and minds for a realization that is not constrained by self-imposed limitations. This 9-month program consists of 31 weekly classes, weekly self-observations and reading assignments, and 2 webinar-based weekend retreats.

Section 1 Instructors:  Elske van de Hulst, Abbe Blum. / Section 2 Instructors:  Abbe Blum, Pauline Yu. 

Students must be enrolled in the full program. If you are interested in joining for the next cycle, please contact us to join the waiting list. Learn more.

Tibetan Language (TIB)

Advanced Tibetan Tutorial (TIB302)

Fridays, 3:30 – 4:45 pm, PT ( April 22 – June 10, 2022)

This advanced Tibetan course consists of continuing reading and translation in the classical Tibetan language. It is for those who already have a good grasp of grammar, vocabulary, and working with Tibetan texts.

Instructor: Barr Rosenberg. Cost: $144. Prerequisite: Consent of the instructor. 

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2120317

Intermediate Tibetan Level V (TIB205) 

Thursdays, 6:15 -7:45 pm, PT (April 21 – June 9, 2022) 

Continued reading and translation of traditional texts and prayers in the classical Tibetan language.

Instructor: Mark Henderson. Cost: $144. Prerequisite: TIB204 or consent of the instructor. 

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2120318 

Beginning Tibetan Level IV (TIB104)

Mondays, 6:15 – 7:45 PM, PT (April 18  – June 6, 2022)

In this beginning first level language class, students study vocabulary and grammar while working with selections from classical Tibetan texts. No prerequisites.

Instructor: Mark Henderson. Cost: $144. Prerequisite: TIB103 or consent of the instructor.

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2120321

Time, Space and Knowledge (TSK)

Time, Space and Knowledge: Perspectives and Practices (TSK108)

Wednesdays, 6:00 – 7:30 pm, PT (April 20 – June 8, 2022) 

A continuing exploration of Tarthang Tulku’s Time, Space and Knowledge vision. We inquire into our presence as expressions of time, space, and knowledge. In a sense, we are activating and realizing our human potential as visionary beings. Our practice can inform our living and our living informs our practice. The primary text is Time, Space and Knowledge, although we may also engage other works by Tarthang Tulku in the TSK series. Anyone with an interest in exploring experience on a fundamental level is welcome.

Instructor: Ken McKeon. Cost: $144. Open to all. 

Register: https://go.asapconnected.com/?org=4698#EventID=2120328