Special Announcements Issue
Volume 10, Number 1 / January 2010
Happy New Year Everyone!
Online Workshop Begins Soon
Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche Describes His Three-Week Interactive Course in a New Video
Starting this Saturday, Jan. 16, 2010, join Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche from the comfort of your home for a three-week online course in Tibetan Sound Healing. During the course Rinpoche will make himself available to provide guidance and answer questions.
• View a brief video in which Rinpoche explains the teachings >
• More information about the online workshop >
New Opportunities for Practice at Serenity Ridge
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Come Join Us for Personal Practice Days, Special Ritual Events, Free Guided Meditations
We warmly invite you to come to Serenity Ridge for a variety of new events. There are opportunities for attending a Tibetan New Year celebration with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, engaging in guided meditations, adding personal practice days to your retreat stay, receiving the blessings of healing rituals, and enjoying the company of sangha in the serene setting of our hilltop retreat center.
* Personal practice days at Serenity Ridge: In response to requests we are now inviting retreat participants to extend their stay for up to three days before or up to three days after retreats with Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche. You can use this time to prepare yourself in body, mind, and spirit for the upcoming retreat and to reinforce the knowledge and experience gained from receiving the teachings, while also making the most of your investment in time and travel. Participants are encouraged to engage in self-directed practice and to join resident lama Lhari-la Kalsang Nyima in guided meditation practice led twice daily after teachings end. Learn more >
* Beginner’s meditation practice: Join us once a month on Sundays for free guided meditation practice with Lhari-La Kalsang 
Nyima, resident lama of Serenity Ridge. Learn more >
* Monthly Ngondro practice: Those who have received the ngondro teachings and transmission are invited to participate in monthly Sunday Ngondro practice guided by Kim Cary. There is no charge to attend. Learn more >
* Rituals events at Serenity Ridge: You are welcome to participate in periodic Bon Buddhist rituals led by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche or our resident lama, Lhari-la Kalsang Nyima. Upcoming events:
- Saturday, Jan. 16: The Healing Practice of Sipe Gyalmo with Lhari-la Kalsang Nyima
- Saturday, Feb. 14: Tibetan New Year Celebration with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche and Lhari-la Kalsang Nyima
- Saturday, March 20: Soul Retrieval Healing Ritual with Lhari-la Kalsang Nyima.
Learn more >
In addition, Ligmincha routinely hosts other ongoing practice-related events in nearby Charlottesville, Va., such as (in 2010) a series of four free public talks by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche plus a six-week class by senior student John Jackson on integrating meditation into daily life, which begins Feb. 4. Visit our Serenity Ridge and Charlottesville Events page regularly for updates about local events.
Guided Practice Online
View a Recording of Jan. 3 Internet Broadcast by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
On Sunday, Jan. 3, Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche gave a live Internet broadcast from the Serenity Ridge retreat center in central Virginia. Rinpoche guided a simple dzogchen meditation practice known as Unification of the Three Spaces. The 67-minute broadcast was recorded and can be viewed by going to: https://www.ligmincha.org/retreats/live-internet-teaching-jan.-3-2010.html
Your Help Needed in Planning Family Retreat
Please Let Us Know Your Interest
We are looking into new opportunities for accommodating children at upcoming retreats, but first we need to know your interest. If you have not yet filled out our online survey please do so now at:
http://www.questionpro.com/akira/gateway/1335683-0-0
Upcoming Retreats
Ligmincha’s Serenity Ridge Retreat Center
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.
Feb. 5 - 7, 2010Catching Your Wild Mind: The Practice of Zhine in the Bon Tradition
A three-day practice retreat with Gabriel Rocco
The meditation practice of zhine, often translated from the Tibetan as "calm abiding," develops the ability to catch one's mind and develop concentration and focus. Rather than having your wild mind control you, you gain control of your mind. This year the zhine retreat is being offered to support beginning, intermediate, and experienced meditators; Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche encourages all his students to attend, as well as people who are new to the teachings of Tibetan Bon Buddhism.
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 >
March 10 – 20, 2010
Ten-Day Practice Retreat
With Lhari-la Kalsang Nyima
Join us at Serenity Ridge this March to engage in self-directed personal meditation practice and to participate in optional daily guided practice sessions led by Serenity Ridge's resident lama, Lhari-la Kalsang Nyima. Come for a minimum of three days and a maximum of 10 days.
Pricing and schedule >
For more information or to pre-register, please email Ligmincha or call us at 434-263-6304.
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.
New: Extend your stay >
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.
New: Extend your stay >
Learn more or register >
Oct. 6-10, 2010
Sleep of Clear Light: The Practice of Sleep Yoga
With Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
Centuries ago, Tibetan yogis developed the practice of sleep yoga to transform these dark hours of ignorance into a path toward enlightenment. A powerful tool for awakening, sleep yoga is more than a practice of the night. It helps us to integrate all moments — waking, sleeping, meditation, and even death — with the clear light of awareness. During this intensive five-day retreat, Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche will teach and guide us in the clear-light sleep practices of the Mother Tantra, one of the most important cycles of teachings in the Tibetan Bon Buddhist tradition
New: Extend your stay >
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:
