2008 Summer Retreat & Padmasambhava Drupchen
Guided by H.E. Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche

To be held at the Dzogchen Retreat Center USA

From Friday, July 4 through Friday, July 25, 2008

Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche

Last updated: October 5, 2008

The Dzogchen Buddha Foundation is pleased to announce that Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche will lead the 6th annual Dzogchen Summer Retreat. This summer's retreat will have a unique format with three distinct one-week phases. The first week will consist of Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche's traditional teachings on the foundational topics of Buddhism. Week two will then transition into the preparation of ritual offerings for Drupchen, as well as teachings specific to Drupchen practice. The third week will be entirely dedicated to the actual Padmasambhava Drupchen practice. The Summer retreatants will practice alongside the six-month interns and help to set an auspicious tone for the historic first ever Dzogchen Lineage Internship.

Retreat Location and Pricing

Options for attendance this year include either a one-week or a three-week stay.

One Week Seniors (65 and up): $325
One Week Adults (18-64): $425
One Week Teens (13-17): $250
One Week Youths (6-12): $200
One Week Children (0-5): Free

Three Weeks Seniors (65 and up): $800
Three Weeks Adults (18-64): $1050
Three Weeks Teens (13-17): $625
Three Weeks Youths (6-12): $495
Three Weeks Children (0-5): Free

The Dzogchen Buddha Foundation never charges for Dharma teachings. All fees will be used to cover the costs of accommodations, meals, utilities, supplies and incidentals. Students who would like to arrive early and help with preparations or stay after the retreat to help with clean-up can stay at the Dzogchen Retreat Center for only $20 dollars per day with meals included.

Registration

Registration is now open until June 27, 2008. However, space is limited so you are encouraged to register as soon as possible to ensure your reservation. After you have completed the online form the Retreat Director will contact you to confirm your registration.

Please carefully read the Summer Retreat Details and Policies page before registering. This page contains more detailed information about what to expect during your stay at the retreat center as well as guidelines for conduct. This page also contains the link for the online registration form. By registering for the Summer Retreat you acknowledge that you have read and understand all the contents of the Summer Retreat Details and Policies page.

Payments

Payment is due in full once your completed registration has been approved. No refunds will be issued after the close of registration on June 27, 2008. You can learn more on the Retreat Payment Options page.

About Padmasambhava Drupchen

The Tibetan word Drupchen translates literally as 'Vast Accomplishment.' This extremely powerful group practice draws upon all the skillful methods of Dharma contained within the Vajrayana teachings to generate great merit and eliminate negativity of all kinds. This type of sadhana, or 'means to accomplishment', focuses on continuous day and night recitation of mantras and includes abundant offerings, visualizations, mudras, chanting, music, and dancing. All of these supports for positive thinking harmonize to help create a pure and sacred environment in the perception of the practitioners. It is said that the positive karma generated by several days of Drupchen practice engaged with the correct intention can equal that of months or even years spent in solitary retreat.

The Padmasambhava Drupchen is called Rigdzin Dupa in Tibetan, which is often translated as the “Gathering of Awareness-Holders.” This practice is one of three root sadhanas within the Longchen Nyingthig (Heart Essence of the Vast Expanse) cycle of teachings. It emphasizes the invocation of, and meditation on, the guru or lama aspect manifesting in the form of Padmasambhava, surrounded by his retinue of Vidyadharas, disciples, deities, dakinis and Dharma protectors . It was revealed by the great terton, or Treasure-Revealer, Jigme Lingpa (1730-1798).

Refuge Tree

Hung! In the northwest land of Sacred Oddiyana,
In the heart of a lotus on Dhana Kosha Lake,
Endowed with the marvelous supreme attainment,
Surrounded by numerous Dakinis and Vidyadharas,
Following you, I shall practice toward enlightenment.
Please come and bless me.
Guru Padma Siddhi Hung

(The Seven-Line Prayer as contained in The Buddha Path)

The Great Merit of Supporting Drupchen

Now, more than ever, the powerfully focused Sangha practice contained within Drupchen is vital for purifying the harmful energy of negative thinking that proliferates as the complex problems that we find in modern societies. It also provides a means for the public to transform impermanent worldly resources into an inexhaustible source of merit. It is the aspiration of the organizers of the Summer Retreat to raise $10,000 for this sacred sadhana to finance the purchase of offerings, ritual implements, sacred clothes, musical instruments, and decorative ornaments to be utilized for the benefit of all beings.

Especially for those who may not be able to attend the Drupchen, a donation made with pure intention to support its success is an extremely beneficial and worthwhile action. Please consider contributing to the Drupchen Fund today by contacting the Retreat Director.

About H.E. Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche

A vibrant and dynamic teacher, Khenpo Choga Rinpoche is a 33rd-generation holder of the Buddhist wisdom lineage of Dzogchen, a lama of Dzogchen Monastery, and a professor of Dzogchen Shri Singha Five Sciences University. Rinpoche has more than seven years of solitary cave meditation experience in high Tibetan holy mountains and embodies the qualities of a realized practitioner and yogi. He is a published author of numerous Tibetan and English books, including The Buddha Path, a practice book that encompasses all of the Buddha's teachings, and which is now available in English, and is soon to be released in Spanish, Chinese and Russian. More »