The 2012 Dzogchen Winter Retreat
and Buddha Path Editing Conference
Retreat Details and Policies
Group Photo from a recent Dzogchen Lineage Winter Retreat
Last updated: December 5, 2011
How to Register
Please read this entire page of Retreat Details and Polices as well as the Retreat Overview before visiting the Online Registration Form.
Arrival
The Winter Retreat will have a formal commencement time of 5:00 PM on Tuesday, January 3. However, all participants should plan their arrival at the DRC no later than 1:00 PM to allow buffer time for flight delays and to settle properly into the retreat environment. Dinner will be served prior to the opening ceremony. Be in your seat in the shrine room by the appointed time.
Anyone missing the opening ceremony or any subsequent sessions will not be able to continue to participate in the retreat without permission. All sessions are mandatory. In other words, attendance at the opening ceremonies and all the editing and practice sessions are mandatory for all participants. If you choose to miss a session, then that choice is the same as choosing to exit the retreat early.
Departure
The Winter Retreat will have a concluding ceremony that will end by 3:00 pm on Wednesday, January 18. All participants should plan their departure from EUG after that time. Please do not book your return flight out of EUG prior to 3:00 PM on January 18. Many participants in our retreats choose to spend some time immediately after the concluding ceremony to volunteer to help with the clean-up, receive additional teachings and take some time to contemplate the profound teachings they’ve just received prior to returning home.
Air Transportation
If you will be traveling by air, please fly into EUG and we'll pick you up at the airport.
We cannot help you with ground transportation if you land at PDX, but you might be able to arrange your own ride from a Sangha member who lives in Portland and will also be attending the retreat.
Ground Transportation
All retreatants are responsible for their own transportation to Eugene. If you are not driving, then once you have booked air, bus, or train transportation into Eugene, you can contact the Retreat Director who will help arrange ground transportation by van from Eugene to the DRC.
Weather
Historically, the month of January at the DRC is cold and foggy with rain and occasionally snow, with a monthly average of 7 inches of rain, average highs of 48°F (9°C) and average lows of 34°F (1°C). The record high for the month of January is 69°F (21°C) and the record low is -1°F (-18°C). To check a ten-day forecast before you travel, visit Weather.com. Pack your clothing accordingly.
Accommodations
You will be able to sleep in the men's or women's dorms (both heated), or in an unheated cabin. The buildings where we will be editing and practicing as a group will also be heated.
Food
The cost of the retreat includes three buffet style meals a day as well as limited snacks. The food will be primarily vegetarian, though not necessarily vegan. Sangha money from retreat fees will not be used for the purchase of meat, but individual Sangha members have the right to donate meat which will be made available to the omnivore members of the Sangha. Tea and water will always be available.
Retreatants with special dietary needs should note that during their retreat registration and also discuss this with the Retreat Director.
Daily Schedule
The Winter Retreat daily schedule will be demanding with nearly all free time spent editing and practicing The Buddha Path. All participants are expect to attend the entirety of all practice and teaching sessions allowing only for quick trips to the bathroom if necessary. Sessions typically last one and a half to three hours with up to five sessions in a day and interspersed with short breaks and mealtimes. Please plan on eight to ten hours per day of scheduled formal sessions.
As part of traditional retreat practice all participants will take a vow of silence and non-activity during the eight hours allotted for sleep. In order to maintain the ability to concentrate and properly receive the daily teachings it is vital that everyone adhere to this vow. This means that during the assigned sleeping hours everyone should be resting quietly in bed and must refrain from walking, sitting, talking, using electronic devices, reading or reciting.
Attendance
If the continuity of an individuals' retreat is broken by failure to attend one of the sessions they will not be allowed to re-enter the retreat. This rule is strictly enforced as missing even one session affects the mandala of positive thinking and wisdom that is generated by each individuals' effort and practice. Given that this retreat is at the DRC, you also will not be able to leave the retreat center property without extenuating circumstances and special permission from the Retreat Director.
Honoring the Shrine Room
The Buddhist shrine room is a holy environment that is created with the sole purpose of providing a powerful support for the arising and increasing of positive thinking and pure intention. Therefore, our treatment of the shrine room—as well as our conduct inside—should be in accordance with this purpose. Please strive to keep your area within the shrine room tidy and clean and be respectful of others’ space and practice tools. In particular, please avoid harsh speech.
During the retreat we will all be taking turns taking care of and arranging offerings on the shrine. This is a type of organized generosity practice which will be accomplished using a team system and provides an excellent opportunity to increase your merit. The details of this duty will be provided once the retreat is underway.
Additionally, everyone has the opportunity to contribute to the funds that will be used to purchase shrine offerings such as fruit, rice, flowers, water and wine. During your stay, please speak with the Retreat Director at an appropriate time regarding donations.
Additional instructions on Shrine Room etiquette may be provided by the retreat director at the beginning of the retreat.
Personal Items to Bring
NOTE: Retreatants will not be able to leave the retreat environs to pick up supplies, so you will want to make sure you have assembled an adequate supply of personal items before you arrive at the DRC.
- The Buddha Path practice text.
- Meditation cushion or equivalent.
- Dharma tools such as bell and dorje, ritual drum, mala, etc.
- A cloth or blanket to cover the knees during sessions (helps with circulation, reduces soreness).
- Musical instruments.
- Notebook(s) and multiple writing utensils.
- Laptop if you prefer for taking notes.
- Any and all needed prescription medications.
- Over-the-counter medicines and supplements (including aspirin, vitamins, etc).
- Rain gear or umbrella.
- Hiking/walking shoes.
- An alarm clock.
- Water bottle with a sealable lid.
- Camera.
- Batteries and rechargers for your electronic devices.
- Dana (offering) for teachers.
- Shrine offerings & decorations.
- Extra money for offerings, incidentals, and possibly Dharma items/tools.
What to Leave Behind
- Pets.
- Weapons and firearms.
- Fireworks.
- Personal supply of alcohol.
- Illegal drugs (This includes intentionally misusing over-the-counter and prescription drugs).
- Cigarettes and Tobacco (Smoking destroys the health and proper functioning of the body as well as a person's ability to increase their merit and wisdom through Dharma practice. For the benefit of all sentient beings, the entire 160 acres of the retreat center property is a non-smoking environment).
Health-Related Issues
If you are taking any kind of pharmaceutical that can influence your mental state (including but not limited to anti-depressants, diabetes and or thyroid medications) you will be required to bring an adequate supply for your entire stay, and required to consistently follow the usage pattern and medical advice prescribed by your physician. Please inform the Retreat Director of your special medical conditions when you register. This information will be kept confidential and is gathered only to provide the retreat staff with the knowledge to appropriately respond in the event of an emergency.
Children
The organizers will not be able to provide child care services during this retreat. If you plan on bringing children under the age of 18 to the retreat, please contact the Retreat Director to discuss.
Meditation Cushions and Chairs
The Retreat Director encourages everyone to bring their own meditation cushion or equivalent unless it is unreasonable for you to pack. This will ensure that you will have the most suitable and comfortable seating arrangement possible. A few cushions may be available on a first-come first-served basis for those unable to bring their own. For those who have a physical condition that makes sitting on a cushion for long periods detrimental simple chairs will be provided by the hotel, but you may want to bring an additional seat or back cushion to augment the chairs.
Dana
Making a traditional offering, or Dana, to our teachers at the beginning and end of a retreat is an auspicious and powerful means to generating merit, the power of positive thinking. Such offerings, of course, are in no way meant as payment for teachings. By giving something that we ourselves value we are thereby strengthening the thinking that Dharma is more desirable than any material object we could ever possess.
Additionally, it important to note that Khenpo Choga Rinpoche never receives any monetary compensation from the public teachings and retreats which he so kindly offers.
Accordingly, if you would like to contribute to the traditional Sangha offering at the start of the retreat please speak with the Retreat Director. At the end of your retreat there will be ample opportunity to make a personal offering.
The Great Merit of Supporting This Retreat
Now, more than ever, the powerfully focused Sangha practice of retreat 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.
The organizers intend to set aside a portion of the money raised to be used for scholarships to enable financially-challenged retreatants to attend.
For those who are not able to attend this retreat, a donation made with pure intention to support it's success is an extremely beneficial and worthwhile action. Please consider contributing to the Retreat Fund today by contacting the Retreat Director or making a pledge when you fill out the application form.
Donations should be made payable to Dzogchen Shri Singha Foundation, an IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Your contributions to the Retreat Fund (but not your fees) are tax-deductable to the full extent of the law.
Cancellations and Refund Policy
Once you register, you may cancel any time prior to December 25, 2011 and receive a refund of 100% of any fees you have paid. There will be no refunds after December 25, 2011.
Contact Information
If you have any questions or concerns about the preceding or the Dzogchen Winter Retreat in general please direct them to:
Hazlitt Krog, Retreat Director
Email: hazlitt@gmail.com
Tel: 619-817-8255
Dzogchen Winter Retreat Information and Registration Site
