There are no prerequisites for this retreat.

    "A common misunderstanding is that the meditative state of mind has to be captured and then nursed and cherished.  That is definitely the wrong approach.  If you try to domesticate your mind through meditation--try to possess it by holding on to the meditative state-- the clear result  will be regression on the path, with a loss of freshness and  spontaneity.  If you try to hold on without lapse all the time, then maintaining your awareness will begin to become a domestic hassle  It will  become like painfully going through housework.  There will be an underlying sense of resentment, and the practice of meditation will become confusing.  You will begin to develop a love-hate relationship toward your practice, in which your concept of it seems good but, at the same time, the demand this rigid concept makes  on you is too painful.

    So the technique is based on touch and go  You focus your attention on the object of awareness then, in the same moment, you disown that awareness and go on. What is needed here is some sense of confidence--confidence that you do not have to securely own your mind, but that you can tune into its process spontaneously." 

    The Quintessential Teachings of Trungpa Rinpoche series are a set of weekend retreats suitable for beginners and advanced students which engage the pith oral instructions of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche.  In this retreat we will engage the fundamental instructions on Dzogchen and Mahamudra practice given by Trungpa Rinpoche to his direct students.  

    As beginners one often comes at practice with a mind conditioned by certain assumptions.  Generally we attempt to sustain a fabricated concentratiion by focusing on a technique.  But in this case one needs to develop a fundamental awareness which knows when you are present directly and then we let go of  any attempt to hold on to a fabricated concentration.  This is both the development and realization of "knowing the one" or "resolving the nature of mind."  It is not about feeling "good" particularly or pushing away thoughts so that we can achieve a "thought-free state."  It is realizing that this moment of knowing when we are present in a way which is not conditioned by our habitual reactions is the ultimate reference point -- the ultimate nature of our awareness.

    The weekend will consist of talks by the resident teacher and the Practice of "mixing mind with space" the essential training of Dzogchen practice.  There will be group discussion and individual meditation interviews.

    Cost  $195.00

    Includes room and Board 

    Event Properties

    Event Date 09-20-2024
    Event End Date 09-22-2024
    Individual Price $195.00

    Three Month Residency

    The three month residency at Dzogchen Meditation Center follows the same two week schedule and training regimen established at the main land centers of Vajradhatu-- Karme Choling and Rocky Mountain Dharma Center-- by the Vidyadhara Trungpa Rinpoche. 

     Every two weeks there is a day and a half off with no set schedule.

    Daily Schedule:

    6:30 Wake up

    7:00 - 8:00 Dawn Dzogchen

    8:00-8:30 Breakfast

    9:00- 12:00 Opening Chants and "Touch and Go" meditation

    12:00 Lunch

    1-5 Work Practice

    5-6 Tea

    6-7 "Touch and Go" meditation and Protector's Chants

    7-8 Dinner

    8-9 "Touch and Go"

    10  Lights Out

    Cost:  This is a work/study position.  There is no financial cost but participants are expected to engage in all practice and training periods offered without any exceptions.

    The Three Month Residency provides the correct basis for students to enter training in the Surmang Kagyu Order.

    Event Date 11-01-2024
    Event End Date 02-01-2025

    Winter Dathun: Month-long Sesshin

    This retreat was created by Trungpa Rinpoche in the 1970's.  Since Tibetan Buddhism does not have a format for Group Shamatha Vipashyana training, Trungpa Rinpoch in consultation with Kobun Chino Roshi developed what we call "Vajradhatu Zen."  

    We sit 8-10 hours per day with oryoki meals and our "Vajradhatu Zen" Liturgy practice.  This format is completely unique to our lineage and doesn't exist anywhere else!

    Event Date 01-03-2025
    Event End Date 01-31-2025
    Individual Price $1,500.00

    Kagyu Ngondro and the Preliminary Transmission of Trungpa Rinpoche's Surmang Kagyu Lineage

    Prerequisites:  Refuge and Bodhisattva Vows; Three Month Residency; Dathun and 10 day solitary retreat and permission from the instructor.

    We will be working with the 9th Karmapa's formulation of the ngondro or preliminary practices that we use in the Surmang Kagyu lineage of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche.

    The preliminary practices are foundational in terms of creating the right conditions for us to recognize the nature of mind and to train from that key understanding.  It is often said that the preliminaries are as profound as the main practice and we have found that to be true.

    Cost: $195.00

    Includes room and board.

    Event Date 04-18-2025
    Event End Date 04-20-2025
    Individual Price $195.00

    There are no prerequisites for this retreat.

    "A common misunderstanding is that the meditative state of mind has to be captured and then nursed and cherished.  That is definitely the wrong approach.  If you try to domesticate your mind through meditation--try to possess it by holding on to the meditative state-- the clear result  will be regression on the path, with a loss of freshness and  spontaneity.  If you try to hold on without lapse all the time, then maintaining your awareness will begin to become a domestic hassle  It will  become like painfully going through housework.  There will be an underlying sense of resentment, and the practice of meditation will become confusing.  You will begin to develop a love-hate relationship toward your practice, in which your concept of it seems good but, at the same time, the demand this rigid concept makes  on you is too painful.

    So the technique is based on touch and go  You focus your attention on the object of awareness then, in the same moment, you disown that awareness and go on. What is needed here is some sense of confidence--confidence that you do not have to securely own your mind, but that you can tune into its process spontaneously." 

    The Quintessential Teachings of Trungpa Rinpoche series are a set of weekend retreats suitable for beginners and advanced students which engage the pith oral instructions of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche.  In this retreat we will engage the fundamental instructions on Dzogchen and Mahamudra practice given by Trungpa Rinpoche to his direct students.  

    As beginners one often comes at practice with a mind conditioned by certain assumptions.  Generally we attempt to sustain a fabricated concentratiion by focusing on a technique.  But in this case one needs to develop a fundamental awareness which knows when you are present directly and then we let go of  any attempt to hold on to a fabricated concentration.  This is both the development and realization of "knowing the one" or "resolving the nature of mind."  It is not about feeling "good" particularly or pushing away thoughts so that we can achieve a "thought-free state."  It is realizing that this moment of knowing when we are present in a way which is not conditioned by our habitual reactions is the ultimate reference point -- the ultimate nature of our awareness.

    The weekend will consist of talks by the resident teacher and the Practice of "mixing mind with space" the essential training of Dzogchen practice.  There will be group discussion and individual meditation interviews.

    Cost  $195.00

    Includes room and Board 

    Event Properties

    Event Date 05-23-2025
    Event End Date 05-25-2025
    Individual Price $195.00

    There are no prerequisites for this retreat.

    "A common misunderstanding is that the meditative state of mind has to be captured and then nursed and cherished.  That is definitely the wrong approach.  If you try to domesticate your mind through meditation--try to possess it by holding on to the meditative state-- the clear result  will be regression on the path, with a loss of freshness and  spontaneity.  If you try to hold on without lapse all the time, then maintaining your awareness will begin to become a domestic hassle  It will  become like painfully going through housework.  There will be an underlying sense of resentment, and the practice of meditation will become confusing.  You will begin to develop a love-hate relationship toward your practice, in which your concept of it seems good but, at the same time, the demand this rigid concept makes  on you is too painful.

    So the technique is based on touch and go  You focus your attention on the object of awareness then, in the same moment, you disown that awareness and go on. What is needed here is some sense of confidence--confidence that you do not have to securely own your mind, but that you can tune into its process spontaneously." 

    The Quintessential Teachings of Trungpa Rinpoche series are a set of weekend retreats suitable for beginners and advanced students which engage the pith oral instructions of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche.  In this retreat we will engage the fundamental instructions on Dzogchen and Mahamudra practice given by Trungpa Rinpoche to his direct students.  

    As beginners one often comes at practice with a mind conditioned by certain assumptions.  Generally we attempt to sustain a fabricated concentratiion by focusing on a technique.  But in this case one needs to develop a fundamental awareness which knows when you are present directly and then we let go of  any attempt to hold on to a fabricated concentration.  This is both the development and realization of "knowing the one" or "resolving the nature of mind."  It is not about feeling "good" particularly or pushing away thoughts so that we can achieve a "thought-free state."  It is realizing that this moment of knowing when we are present in a way which is not conditioned by our habitual reactions is the ultimate reference point -- the ultimate nature of our awareness.

    The weekend will consist of talks by the resident teacher and the Practice of "mixing mind with space" the essential training of Dzogchen practice.  There will be group discussion and individual meditation interviews.

    Cost  $195.00

    Includes room and Board 

    Event Properties

    Event Date 08-15-2025
    Event End Date 08-17-2025
    Individual Price $195.00