Teaching Issue

Volume 9, Number 10 / December 2009

COMING SOON

Live Internet Broadcast With Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
Join us from your computer on Sunday, January 3, for a guided dzogchen practice with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche via live Internet broadcast. Hours: 1 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. Eastern Time U.S. (New York Time). More information/enter the broadcast site >>

Teachings

'A View of Confession: As Myth, as a Meditation, and as a Means of Moving On' — an edited excerpt from oral teachings given by Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, summer 2009

Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche presented teachings from the A-Tri dzogchen tradition of Tibetan Bon Buddhism during Ligmincha Institute’s 2009 Summer Retreat. In this excerpt Rinpoche explains the practice of confession (admitting your misdeeds), one of the practices that comprise the A-Tri Ngondro or preliminary practices.

If you are to engage in the practice of confession in a way that is natural, authentic, and therefore life changing, it must make sense to you personally. In the Tibetan spiritual traditions all forms More>>

Sangha Sharing

Giving Thanks

A letter from senior student Polly Turner to sangha and other friends on Thanksgiving Day, 2009

Dear friends,
Some years ago when Yongdzin (Lopon) Tenzin Namdak Rinpoche was teaching at Serenity Ridge, I arranged an appointment to meet with him. When I entered the shrine room More>>

New Interactive Online Course

Join Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche for a three-week online Tibetan Sound Healing Workshop

We are delighted to announce that a three-week Tibetan Sound Healing course will be offered in a new interactive online format, from Jan. 16 through Feb. 7, 2010. Through instructional videos, Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche will explain, demonstrate and guide the practice of ancient sound healing techniques. Now you can join him out of the comfort and privacy of your own home. As you progress through the practices, Rinpoche will make himself available to provide guidance and answer questions. More>>

Families on Retreat

Please Let Us Know Your Interest

If you have ever thought of bringing your children, grandchildren, nieces or nephews to a Tibetan Bon or Buddhist retreat please help us plan by filling out the survey found at this link: http://www.questionpro.com/akira/gateway/1335683-0-0

There have been several requests from parents for More>>

Past and Future at Serenity Ridge

An End-of-Year Update

As 2009 draws to a close, Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche and Norman Dill inform about recent developments at the retreat center and about plans for the months and years ahead. Your tax-deductible year-end donations are greatly appreciated.

A letter from Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche >>
Business report from Norman Dill, Director of Finance >>

New on YouTube

Dream Yoga Video

The state of your mind as you fall asleep can determine the course of your dreams ... and the course of your life. Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche explains the purpose of the ancient practice of Dream Yoga in a new 9-minute video he recently created for YouTube. View the video at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Gls65GDMGQ

Upcoming Retreats

Ligmincha’s Serenity Ridge Retreat Center

New on the schedule: Ngondro practice retreat Feb. 5-7; Ngondro teachings March 10-14. The retreats described below will take place at Serenity Ridge, Ligmincha Institute’s retreat center in Nelson County, Va. To register or for more information, click on the links below, or contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 434-263-6304.

Dec. 27, 2009 - Jan. 1, 2010
The Experiential Transmission of Zhang Zhung, Part 2
Annual Winter Retreat with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
This retreat is full. To join our waiting list, contact Ligmincha at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Feb. 5 - 7, 2010
Zhiné: The Medicine of Tranquility
With Gabriel Rocco
The annual zhiné practice retreat affords an opportunity to step out of the stress and demands of daily life and come home to yourself. Zhiné is a form of meditation that enhances your ability to maintain focused attention and abide in clear, open awareness. You can relate to zhiné as a medicine, a tonic of tranquility that helps you disengage from the destructive mental patterns that obscure your true nature.
Learn more or register >>

Feb. 5 - 7, 2010
Ngondro Practice Retreat
With Marcy Vaughn
Students who have received ngondro teachings and transmission are warmly invited to attend this practice retreat, which will focus on the practice of ngondro. This retreat will take place concurrently with the Zhine retreat with Gabriel Rocco.
Learn more or register >>

March 10 – 14, 2010
Ngondro: Part 1 of the Experiential Transmission
With Lhari-la Kalsang Nyima
The Ngondro, Part 1 of the Experiential Transmission of Zhang Zhung, is the entrance to a cycle of Bon dzogchen, or “Great Perfection,” teachings, which until the past decade were part of a secret transmission passed one-to-one from master to student. The ngondro teachings, a complete set of practices in themselves, offer instructions for “taming” oneself, for purifying, and for perfecting; and are the prerequisite for further study of the Experiential Transmission of Zhang Zhung.
Learn more or register >>

April 14 - 18, 2010
Sacred Waters: The Healing Practice of Sipe Gyalmo
With Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
Join Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche at Serenity Ridge this spring when he offers a special healing experience for the general public, health care professionals, and anyone who is currently encountering illness.
Learn more or register >>

June 2 - 6, 2010
Introduction to the Nature of Mind: The Experiential Transmission of Zhang Zhung, Part 2
With Menri Lopon Trinley Nyima Rinpoche
This year we are again very fortunate to have Menri Lopon Trinley Nyima Rinpoche, the head teacher of Menri Monastery in Dolanji, India, teaching these beautiful and essential practices to us. The concise and essential practice manual of the Experiential Transmission, the Chag Tri, provides pith instructions for those who aspire to practice dzogchen, the path of self-liberation.
Learn more or register >>

June 20 - 26, 2009
Summer Work Retreat
Free of charge. Whether you join us for one afternoon or the full week, this is a wonderful time to share with sangha and to be of joyful service. Our work retreat includes vigorous work periods, daily meditation practice, and ample time for a swim in the pool or a walk along the Rockfish River. Participants are provided with free tenting and meals, and for those who participate in the entire work retreat there will be a 50 percent discount on one week of the summer retreat.
For more information or to register, please email Ligmincha at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

June 27, 2010 - July 17, 2010
Awakening the Self, Discovering Joy: Self-Realization Through the Three Doors of Body, Speech and Mind
19th Annual Summer Retreat With Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
Our own body, speech and mind can offer direct access to profound inner transformation. The keys to effectively unlocking these three doors are found in the ancient Bon Buddhist tradition of Tibet, whose powerful meditation practices help to remove physical, energetic, and mental blockages that keep us from achieving our highest potential. Join us for a unique, life-changing opportunity to discover your unbounded being, the source of authentic joy. Registration is available for one, two, or all three weeks.
Learn more or register >>

To register for any of the above retreats, or for more information about teachings in the Bon Buddhist tradition of Tibet, please contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 434-263-6304, or go to:

https://www.ligmincha.org/retreats/retreats.html