Kopan West: Buddhism 101, A Course on The Gradual Path to Enlightenment
with Yangsi Rinpoche November 19-21
and Ven. Tenzin Chogkyi November 22-28
plus a Lam Rim Meditation Weekend Nov. 26th-28th
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Category: Course
Level: All levels of practitioners
Level of Silence: Partial
Partial Attendance: Allowed
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• Get an introductory overview of the teachings taught by the Buddha
• Receive precise teachings on topics like karma, rebirth, emptiness
• Learn the basics on how to meditate
• Learn how to structure a daily meditation practice to transform your
life
Course Overview
The focus of this course is to help students structure their daily meditation practice when they go back home. Students will receive instructions on how to make every day meaningful through mind transformation in the path to enlightenment. Kopan West is an annual tradition in the U.S. that started in 1999 at Vajrapani Institute. It is a ten-day residential lam-rim course that combines teachings, discussions, and guided meditations.
We are honored to host founder of Maitripa College, Yangsi Rinpoche for the first weekend of this retreat followed by our resident teacher, Ven. Tenzin Chogkyi, who is very skilled in making difficult philisophical concepts easy for the western mind to understand. The last weekend will be a Lam Rim meditation retreat. Those who could not attend the entire retreat may attend this last weekend, but previous knowledge of the Lam Rim is strongly suggested. This weekend will start the evening of Friday Nov. 26th with an open question and answer session which all are welcome to attend
The benefits of this retreat will depend on students’ prior experience with Dharma and particularly with the Lam rim chen mo (Snow Lion Publications, 2002). Although it is not mandatory, attendees are encouraged to read this classic work by Lama Tsongkhapa as preparation and Yangsi Rinpoche’s commentary on it, called Practicing the Path by Yangsi Rinpoche (Wisdom Publications, 2003).
This is an ideal course for both beginners and experienced practitioners because it is a review of all Buddha’s teachings to attain enlightenment. Beginners should arrive on the first day and are encouraged to do the ten-day retreat to have the full picture of the gradual path to enlightenment.
This 10 day course can be also done to fulfill the lam-rim retreat requirement for the FPMT program Discovering Buddhism Module 14 (http://www.fpmt.org/retreat/dbschedule.asp).
Lam-rim is a Tibetan Buddhist text which presents the complete path to enlightenment, as taught by Buddha. In Tibetan Buddhist history there have been many different versions of the lam-rim. However, all the versions of the lam-rim are based on extensions of Atisha's 11th Century root text A Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment. Tsonkhapa (1357-1419) made a famous commentary on Atisha’s text, called Lam rim chen mo. Then, Pabongka Rinpoche (1878-1941) made another famous commentary on Tsonkhapa’s text called Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand.
Yangsi Rinpoche will lead part of the course and Venerable Tenzin Chogkyi will lead the rest of the days.
Teacher Biographies
Yangsi Rinpoche
Yangsi Rinpoche was recognized as the reincarnation of Geshe Ngawang Gendun, a renowned scholar and practitioner from Western Tibet. Rinpoche trained in the traditional monastic system for over twenty-five years, and in 1995 graduated with the highest degree of Geshe Lharampa from Sera Je Monastery. He then completed his studies at Gyume Tantric College, and, in 1998, having the particular wish to benefit Western students of the Buddhadharma, Rinpoche came to the West to teach and travel extensively throughout America and Europe.
Rinpoche is the director of Maitripa College. Rinpoche teaches in English, and is admired wherever he travels for his unique presentation of the Dharma, his interest in and enthusiasm for Western culture, and his evident embodiment of the wisdom and compassion of the Buddhist path.
Ven. Tenzin Chogkyi
Ven. Tenzin Chogkyi became interested in meditation after reading Be Here Now and Autobiography of a Yogi in the early ’70’s. For the next 20 years, her spiritual path was meandering and haphazard, and included several dead ends, until she bought a one-way ticket to India in early 1991 with the intention of meeting His Holiness the Dalai Lama. In late 1991, she became co-director of Vajrapani Institute in California. In 1995, she began working at FPMT International Office, first as co-director and then later as center services coordinator.
In early 2000, she began a long, solitary retreat that lasted 6½ years. Tenzin Chogkyi decided to become ordained in the third year of her long retreat, and then left retreat for a quick trip to India in 2004 for novice ordination with His Holiness. Since 2008, she has been teaching at various centers worldwide. As of August 2009, in addition to touring, she is also based part-time at Vajrapani Institute in Boulder Creek, California.
What to Bring
Any lam-rim text, particularly Tsongkhapa's Lam rim chen mo.
Fees
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Regular Rate |
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Non-Member |
Member |
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10% |
| Camping |
$945.00 |
$850.50 |
| Main Dormitory |
$990.00 |
$891.00 |
| Semi Private Dormitory |
$1,035.00 |
$931.50 |
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| Private Room (single) |
$1,350.00 |
$1,215.00 |
| Private Room (double) |
$1,215.00 |
$1,093.50 |
| Cabin (single) |
$1,530.00 |
$1,377.00 |
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| Scholarship Fund |
$700 |
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| Application deadline |
October 19th |
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"The retreat gave me the tools and conceptual framework
to bring Buddhist practice back home and make it
a part
of my everyday life."
―Student at Kopan West 2008
"The path is much clearer and having a retreat place to foster concentration, ethics, and wisdom is so valuable."
—Student at Kopan West 2009
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