2013 Dzogchen Lineage Internship
One- or Three-Months of Intensive
Dharma Training
at
the Dzogchen Retreat Center USA
Sun, July 14, 2013 ~ Sun, August 18, 2013 ~ Wed, October 30, 2013
Dzogchen Internship Information and Registration Site
Invitation Letter Request Form
Heartfelt Dharma Aspiration Prayer
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Announcing the 2013 Dzogchen Lineage Internship
The Dzogchen Shri Singha Foundation is pleased to announce the 2013 Dzogchen Lineage Internship. This intensive program of Dharma study and practice will begin on Sunday, July 14, 2013 and conclude on Wednesday, October 30, 2013. There will be a one-month long option ending Sunday, August 18, 2013. Immediately following the one-month retreat will be Rigdzin Dupa Drupchen from Tuesday, August 20 to Monday, September 2, 2013.
H.E. Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche and Dzogchen Geydak Rinpoche
with the staff and 43 graduates of the first Dzogchen Internship, Class of 2008
Overview of the Dzogchen Lineage Internship
The 2013 Buddha Path Retreat & Internship Program is an intensive course of study and training in the view, meditation and conduct of Buddhist Sutras and Tantras.
There are two options this year.
ONE MONTH OPTION
July 14 through August 18, 2013
The first month of the Internship is the One-Month International 3rd Edition Buddha Path Teacher Training, an annual assembly of the International students of Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche. Attendees of the first month are required to have attended at least one seasonal retreat within the Dzogchen Lineage or be tutored by a graduate of a prior Internship who can help you prepare for the retreat.
NOTE: For the retreat fees and other details that are specific to our Chinese speaking Sangha, please contact the Retreat Director for the One-Month International 3rd Edition Buddha Path Teacher Training (for Chinese Speakers), Gina Choi, at ginachoi.hk@gmail.com or visit www.BuddhaPath.net.
THREE MONTH OPTION
July 14 through October 30, 2013
The full three-month program is intended only for internship graduates of prior Dzogchen Lineage Internships. This internship is intended for those who sincerely want to become Dzogchen Lineage teachers, benefit others, and realize wisdom and compassion in this lifetime. It is for students who have faith in the Dzogchen Lineage, and who understand that progress in Dharma, the root of happiness, requires comprehensive training and continuous diligence in the three techniques: learning, contemplation and meditation.
Celebrating Our Sixth Year
Since 2008, the annual Dzogchen Lineage Internship Program has been an intensive course of study and training in the view, meditation, conduct, and result of Buddhist Sutras and Tantras. This program follows the authentic and traditional teachings and techniques of India’s Shri Nalanda University, as inherited and transmitted by Tibet’s Dzogchen Shri Singha Five Sciences University. This great tradition integrates scholastic methods with personal instruction and meditation techniques to allow students to progress infallibly and swiftly from a logical understanding of the Dharma to the unwavering realization of Dzogchen.
For thousands of years, these methods of training have led many Buddhist practitioners to attain the supreme result of enlightenment and become holders of the Dzogchen Lineage. This internship program is a rare and precious opportunity for contemporary students to study and train in the methods of the Dzogchen Lineage.
To learn more about the successful completion of the previous five 2008–2012 Dzogchen Lineage Internships, please visit our News page.
Is the Dzogchen Lineage Internship Right for Me?
This internship is intended for those who sincerely want to benefit others and realize wisdom and compassion in this lifetime. It is for students who have faith in the Dzogchen Lineage, and who understand that progress in Dharma, the root of happiness, requires comprehensive training and continuous diligence in the three techniques: learning, contemplation and meditation.
As Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche teaches us, "Human life is precious. Life is impermanent. If you realize in this life that your top priority is teaching Dharma to others for the sake of world peace, then this Dzogchen Lineage Internship program is for you."
Based on the belief that lasting change must come from within, the Dzogchen Lineage Internship serves to create Dharma teachers with a firm foundation in Buddhist fundamentals. Throughout the course of this internship, students will train in increasing renunciation, compassion, faith, love and wisdom, changing themselves for the better so that they might better serve others.
The intensive and comprehensive approach to the teachings used in this internship are specifically intended to help students to become tutors, guides & teachers of the Dharma, as well as Dzogchen Lineage Holders.
Khenpo Choga Rinpoche teaches all courses in English, drawing upon his knowledge of Sanskrit, Tibetan and Chinese when appropriate. Internship tutors facilitate discussion and understanding of each day’s teachings.
Our Kind Vajra Master and Lead Instructor
His Eminence Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche in 2012. Photo by Wongmo.
We are extremely happy to announce that our kind teacher Dzogchen Lineage Holder Khenpo Choga Rinpoche, a meditation master and professor of Dzogchen Shri Singha University, will lead the internship and provide daily instruction to all students during the entire three-month internship. This program is an extraordinary opportunity to receive profound instructions directly from a living Vajra Master born and trained in Tibet.
Click here for a biography of Khenpo Choga Rinpoche.
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Requirements
The 2013 Dzogchen Lineage Internship will be an intensive course of Buddhist study and practice. It is important that prospective students understand the demands of this internship and be willing to meet certain requirements.
Prior Retreat Experience
Students attending the one-month option are required to have taken Buddhist Refuge, and have completed at least one retreat with H.E. Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche or an authorized Dharma Teacher of The Buddha Path prior to the start of the internship. In addition, students attending the three-month option are required to have graduated from a previous Dzogchen Lineage internship and have taught Dharma, formally and publicly, at least eight times. Applicants who do not meet these requirements must receive training and endorsement from a qualified Dharma teacher. Please contact the Internship director for more information.
Expectations
Minors must be accompanied by parent(s) or legal guardian(s). All students must be of sound mind and body. Students must commit to attend whichever retreat option they select in it's entirety, and plan to forgo other obligations or distractions during that time. Students can expect to have limited contact with the outside world and should prepare their families for this.
Students will live at the secluded and rural Dzogchen Retreat Center USA, where they will study and practice in groups and individually for approximately twelve hours a day on a fixed schedule. Students will be expected to obey all federal, state and local laws as well as the rules of the retreat center and the specific rules and schedule of the internship.
Retreat Preparation
Students must prepare for the internship in advance by completing the specific preparatory exercises and study program outlined in the 2013 Internship Handbook, which will be distributed to all admitted applicants.
Students must commit to attend whichever retreat option they select in it's entirety, and plan to forgo other obligations or distractions during that time.
Admission
Admission to the internship will be through an application process. The Internship Application Committee will review all applications. Registration is limited, so please apply early if you think you may attend.
We welcome applications from all who would like to attend. We encourage all sincere and well-intentioned Buddhist students to learn more about this program by visiting the internship website, contacting us and asking any questions they have.
Application Process
The application process is as follows:
- Applicant fills out the online application form. The Internship Director acknowledges that the applicant has applied and sends more information.
- The Internship Director interviews the applicant over the phone.
- The Internship Director presents the applicant to the Internship Committee for approval.
- If approved, the Internship Director asks the applicant to sign the Internship Agreement and return it with a 25% non-refundable down payment.
Internship Fees
For the benefit of participating students, Internship fees reflect a built-in scholarship with fees being minimized to only cover projected operating expenses. Food and lodging are included. Instruction is provided free of cost. Donations to the teacher are optional, but are encouraged. Students must support themselves financially during the internship and are expected to cover the costs of their health care and any personal necessities. Students are required to purchase in advance the books listed above. Due to the consecutive nature of the instructions, students who leave the internship for any reason will not be allowed to return. No refunds will be made for any reason after the internship has commenced.
Cost of the One-Month Option:
$1,800 USD.
NOTE: For the retreat fees and other details that are specific to our Chinese speaking Sangha, please contact the Retreat Director for the One-Month International 3rd Edition Buddha Path Teacher Training (for Chinese Speakers), Gina Choi, at ginachoi.hk@gmail.com.
Cost of the Three-Month Option:
$3,800 USD for all graduates of at least one Internship, but the following discounts may apply.
Discount Options
Any of the following discount options can be applied to either of the above Internships. The following discount options cannot be combined to obtain a deeper discount:
- Discount of $500 for 3-month or $150 for 1-month for teens 18 and under
- Discount of $500 for 3-month or $150 for 1-month for seniors 65 and over
- Discount of $500 for 3-month or $150 for 1-month for graduates from two prior Internships
- Discount of $1,000 for 3-month or $300 for 1-month for graduates from three prior Internships
- Discount of $1,500 for 3-month or $500 for 1-month for graduates from four or more Internships
All fees must be paid in full by July 1, 2013.
Your early payment allows us to better prepare retreat facilities for the Internship. We appreciate your early commitment.
In order to encourage young people to attend this internship, an additional discount of 10% may be offered to applicants in need who are 25 years of age or younger. To apply for this discount, contact the Internship Director.
If you have a sincere intention to participate, but have time or resource restrictions, you may contact the Internship Director to discuss other possible options.
For each of the previous Dzogchen Lineage Internships, not only have all internship fees been used entirely toward operational expenses, but each internship has been heavily subsidized by the generous sponsorship of sangha members around the world. So even if you cannot attend this year’s program, we sincerely request your support. Please contact the Internship Director if you would like to contribute or volunteer.
The Dzogchen Lineage Internship is Organized by the Dzogchen Shri Singha Foundation USA
The Dzogchen Shri Singha Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit based in Boulder City, NV. Founded in 2002, the foundation was created to support the preservation, practice, and transmission of the ancient and unbroken Dzogchen tradition in the modern world.
Since successfully acquiring the Dzogchen Retreat Center, USA in May 2007, the Foundation has focused its efforts on organizing an ongoing series of educational retreats with the Dzogchen Lineage Internship Program as our premiere program. The Dzogchen Shri Singha Foundation operates under the spiritual guidance of Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche and the direction of our diverse Board of Directors.
Mission Statement of the Dzogchen Shri Singha Foundation USA
The Dzogchen Shri Singha Foundation’s mission is to support the preservation, practice, and transmission of the ancient and unbroken Dzogchen tradition in the modern world. The Dzogchen Wisdom Lineage—Buddha’s entire authentic teaching—is a time-tested tradition of practice with specific techniques to achieve both the immediate goal of individual happiness and the ultimate goal of Vast Awakening.
The Great Merit of Supporting Dharma
Even if you will not be able to attend this internship, you or anyone else you know will earn tremendous merit by supporting those who do. As internship fees do not cover the cost of running the program, your financial contributions provide an invaluable condition for the success of this internship. Your donations are tax deductable to the full extent of the law. Supporting Buddhist education generates great merit for the donor. If you would like to contribute financially or with your time, please contact us immediately. Your assistance is necessary and greatly appreciated.
There are many ways you can help:
- Offer donations
- Sponsor students or other volunteers
- Volunteer at the retreat center before or during the internship
- Recite the Heartfelt Dharma Aspiration Prayer
- Encourage your friends to participate
Request an Invitation Letter for an Extended USA Visa
If you come from a country where you need to apply for a visa to stay in the USA for the duration of your retreat, an invitation letter may help. To request an invitation letter from the Dzogchen Shri Singha Foundation, please first register for your retreat, then fill out the form below for each person in your family who will be attending from overseas. One of our volunteers will respond with your invitation letter as soon as possible.
Click here to submit an Invitation Letter request.
For more information, please contact:
Marc (Zang Shod) Baldwin, Internship Director
Edgar Hartley, Internship Assistant Director
Eddie Gargone, Internship Assistant Director
Email: dzogchenlineageinternship@gmail.com
Phone: 619-817-8255 or 702-343-5833
Mail:
Dzogchen Retreat Center
4325 Commerce St., Suite 111-442
Eugene, OR 97402 USA
