Ngondro Retreat

Dates:Dec 28, 2023 – Jan 3, 2024|

Location: Pema Osel|

Teachers: Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche and Dungse Jampal Norbu

In our Longchen Nyingtik lineage, we study the ngondro practice from Patrul Rinpoche’s nineteenth-century text, The Words of My Perfect Teacher.  Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche and Dungse Jampal Norbu will lead the Ngondro Retreat in which a full reading of this text and a detailed commentary are given. The transmission for the Longchen Nyingtik Ngondro liturgy, a terma revealed by Jigme Lingpa, will also be bestowed.

The retreat includes two talks a day by either Rinpoche and Dungse-la, as well as daily practice review sessions led by senior students designed to help practitioners understand and become more familiar with the practice. In addition, a three-hour guided practice session will be held each morning.

Patrul Rinpoche wrote The Words of My Perfect Teacher in a retreat cave high in the mountains of Tibet. His observations about the human condition and his steadfast encouragement to spiritual practice in the Longchen Nyingtik tradition are so direct that even today it feels as if he is speaking straight to us. All attendees are encouraged to have a copy of The Words of My Perfect Teacher.

 
PrerequisitesThis retreat is intended for MSB members who have attended sessions and are practicing ngondro or who would like to begin the practice. Rinpoche also encourages disciples who have completed their ngondro accumulations to attend this retreat since ngondro is a lifelong practice.
 

 Full attendance is required to formally begin the ngondro practice. Please check with your lineage instructor or SPR for more information. 

Daily Schedule 

Thursday, December 28 – Wednesday, January 3

Times are listed in Eastern Standard Time.

7:00-10:00am  Guided practice session 

10:00-11:00am Breakfast
11:00am-12:30pm  Practice review with senior students

12:30-2:15pm  Lunch
2:15-4:15pm  Transmission & commentary 

4:15-5:00pm  Break
5:00-7:00pm  Transmission & commentary

 

Liturgies and Visualization Photos

If you are just starting the ngondro practice, please order the ngondro liturgy and visualization photos right away so that you will receive them through the mail before the retreat begins. You must first sign into the Member’s site on the MSB website, then click this link to take you to the product.
 
To purchase a digital liturgy: MSB members must login to the member’s site first and then go to this link. For non-members, contact an event coordinator at pemaosel@mangalashribhuti.org.
 
Financial Aid
The retreat price covers all expenses as well as support for our teachers and Pema Osel, our center in Vermont. We hope that most people are able to pay the full amount. However, no one will be turned away for financial reasons. If you can’t pay in full, don’t let that be an obstacle.  When registration opens on October 31st, financial aid will also open.
 

Link for Guided Practice and Practice Review Sessions
The two morning sessions will be run as Zoom meetings. This format provides us with the opportunity to have face-to-face contact with other participants as well as the ability to have discussions during the practice review session. The link will be the same for both sessions, and will be provided in the Welcome email registrants will receive prior to the beginning of the program.

Resources

If you are currently practicing ngondro, we highly recommend the Ngondro Compilation, a remarkable collection of teachings, carefully selected and compiled from over twenty years of Rinpoche’s commentary on The Words of My Perfect Teacher.

If you have further questions, please email Pema Osel’s Event Coordinator.

“When we practice ngondro, we truly step into
and connect with the Longchen Nyingtik lineage.
It is with this practice that we will put down the roots
of Dharma in our mind, and in the West.”
~ Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche
 

In-Person and Live Streaming Registration Opens October 31st

In-Person Registration $385

Includes live stream access and the Study Set, which contains an audio download and 1 year access to the hi-resolution video recordings, along with lunches during the retreat.

In-Person Registration

Financial Aid
If you are experiencing financial hardship and unable to attend the program as a consequence, click here for the Financial Aid application. Please note, you must be logged in to the Wisdom Productions website in order to access the form.

Live Stream Registration Options

$325 for Live Stream Plus  Includes the Study Set which contains an audio download and 1 year access to the hi-resolution video recordings.

$299 for Live Stream  Includes access to recordings for 2 weeks.

$299 for Study Set  Includes audio download and 1 year access to video recordings.

$55 for Digital Download (audio only)

The Live Stream takes place on the Wisdom Productions website.

Live Stream Registration