Santa Cruz Mountains: Vajrayana Meditation Retreat
With Pema Khandro
May 29 - June 3, 2018
Retreat into the beautiful redwood forest, unwind with restorative yoga, experience deep meditation, enjoy organic vegetarian meals, converse with fascinating people and best of all, receive Buddhism’s most profound teachings…
This meditation retreat focuses on Buddhism’s esoteric practice for transforming the most difficult experiences into opportunities for awakening. It is a method which harnesses the heroic energy of enlightened intent to change neurotic mind patterns and heal from traumas. It is a practice for opening to intrinsic wholeness, loving compassion, and natural resilience.
The retreat will offer training and immersion in the method known as “Cutting Through” or Chod. Chod is a practice cherished by every lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. It is a dynamic meditation which incorporates, vision, mantra, prayer, music, and ritual to cultivate open-hearted presence in the face of one’s fear. Chod is a Buddhist method for healing and transforming the hidden content within one’s own mind. By giving up grasping and externalized projections, the meditator taps into intrinsic courage.
The retreat will alternate between teachings, training, dynamic meditation practice and silent sitting meditation. It will include instructions on
- How to use the Chod instruments, drum, bell and thighbone trumpet
- Chanting the Laughter of the Dakinis Chod in Tibetan
- The visualization and meaning behind Chod
- The Chod technique for working with emotions and subconscious mind
- The song of the Dakinis of the five directions
- Dzogchen and Chod – Buddhist philosophy on the nature of mind
If you are new to Vajrayana Buddhism, we recommend you take this class first:
Buddhism As a Way of Life
or
Vajrayana Training
What to Bring
This retreat will use Vajrayana instruments, so please bring chod drum and bell with you. If you don’t have one please notify the organizers so that one can be ordered for you.
General Schedule of Events
*This is the approximate daily schedule and is subject to change.
Tuesday, May 29th
4:00pm – Arrival, registration and check-in
5:30pm – Dinner
7:00pm – Opening Empowerment
Every Day Wednesday – Saturday
8:00am – Breakfast
10:00am – Presence as the Path – Meditation
11:00am Chod Teaching and Practice
12:30pm – Lunch
1:30pm – Free time
3:30pm – Classes and Workshops
5:30pm – Dinner
7:00pm – Chod Practice
Saturday Evening Celebration
7:00pm – Celebration
Sunday
8:00am – Breakfast
9:00am – Chod Practice
10:00am – Pack out lodging
11:30am – Final Transmission
12:30pm – Lunch
1:30pm – Closing Ceremony
3:00pm – Group Picture and Departure
Member Discounts
*Membership discounts apply to Tuition Only
**Use your membership discount code at checkout.
10% discount – Supporter Members
20% discount – Mandala Holders
50% discount – Snow Lion Members (with a 6-month commitment)
100% discount – Sustainers and above (with a 3-month commitment)
Click Here to Learn More about Membership
Meals, Lodging and more at Jikoji Zen Center
- Lodging is limited and on first-come-first-serve basis
- All program participants are welcome to enjoy all parts of the land and center, including hiking trails.
- Organic Vegetarian Meals and snacks will be served. Non-gluten and non-dairy options are available at every meal.
- Please, no food, drugs, alcohol, pets, incense, candles or other flammables.
- Please do not wear scented body products, as these cause severe toxic reactions in some people.
Tuition Fee Schedule & Lodging
Tuition
*Member Discounts Apply
Early-bird tuition – $595 before April 13
Regular Tuition – $675 April 10 – May 9
Late Tuition – $725 May 10-20
Accommodations, Lodging, and Meals
*are charged separately based on the choice of accommodation, which are first-come-first-serve.
**Includes 3 meals/day. Meals and snacks are all freshly prepared, organic, and vegetarian.
Single room (1 person) with shared bath – $875
Double room (2 people) with shared bath – $700 per person
Dorm room (4-7 people) with shared bath – $595 per person
Camping (own tent) with shared bath – $445 per person
All sales are final and non-refundable
Leader
Pema Khandro is an internationally renowned teacher and scholar of Buddhist philosophy. Ordained in the Nyingma lineage, enthroned as a tulku, and trained as an academic, her teachings celebrate the dynamic coalescence of tradition and the modern context. She is the founder of Ngakpa International and its three projects: The Buddhist Studies Institute, Dakini Mountain and the Yogic Medicine Institute. In her work as a Buddhist teacher she is an authorized Lama and lineage holder of the Nyingma and Kagyu traditions and was enthroned to carry on the lineage of her predecessor, the first Pema Khandro, an early twentieth century…
Learn more about Pema Khandro