Upcoming Events
Meditation—the Heart of the Buddhist Path
The highest goal of meditation is to awaken in us the sky-like nature of mind and introduce to us who we really are: our unchanging pure awareness. This Course guides us through a range of meditation methods as we seek to transcend our ordinary mind and discover that unchanging awareness which is our fundamental nature. Through this, we will learn to transform our moods and emotions, to settle our thoughts and to rest in spacious ease.
IN THE MIRROR OF DEATH
In the Mirror of Death
Starts Saturday, January 18th ( 8 Weeks )
10 am PT / 1 pm ET
“Death is real, it comes without warning. This body will be a corpse.”
- The Four Thoughts for Turning The Mind to the Dharma
While we all know we are going to die some day, most of us go about our daily lives acting as if it will never happen. Ignoring the reality of our own death is not only burying our head in the sand, but it also means we are missing an incredible opportunity to allow the reality of our mortality to inform and enrich the way we live.
In addition to providing participants with tools to personally prepare for death, this course will include practices for supporting someone nearing death, which can help them to meet death reassured by loving support, peace of mind, and increased confidence.
The Deathless and Unending Nature of Mind
The Deathless and Unending Nature of Mind
Starts Wednesdays Nov 27, 2024 (4 weeks only)
4pm PT / 7 pm ET
In this module we explore the power of our mind as the universal ordering principle; it is the creator of suffering and the creator of happiness. We investigate two aspects of the mind: the appearance of the mind - our thoughts, emotions, all the stories, the ordinary mind; and the essence of mind – which is clear, cognizant and has unconfined capacity. And we look at how to make our meditation practice truly meaningful.
Rigpa US Autumn Retreat
TIMELESS AWARENESS
Exploring Sogyal Rinpoche’s teachings on the nature of mind with Rigpa Senior Teacher Sherab Leypoldt
This retreat in Alameda in November 2024 will be a precious opportunity to explore some of Rinpoche’s key teachings on the Dzogchen way of being, and to really take them to heart.
Rinpoche will show us what it means to have Buddha nature and the capacity to bring our minds home to our primordially pure nature. He will also show us how to actually live this way, the enlightened way, abiding in the true nature of our minds and continuously being aware of our awareness.
We will explore Rinpoche’s focus on the clear light nature of mind, and what being aware of awareness actually means. He reveals the pervasiveness of awareness in its most crucial aspect ― how this can become the very way that we can live, that we can function, that we can interact with others and with our own thoughts and emotions.
The Heartbeat of Impermanence
The Heartbeat of Impermanence
Starts Wednesday Oct 16, 2024
4pm PT / 7 pm ET
This course, the second in a year-long series of brief courses based on the Tibetan Book of Living and Dying by Sogyal Rinpoche, delves into an investigation of death and impermanence, introducing basic Buddhist principles that can help us understand the mind's true potential. We will share brief videos of Tibetan and Western Buddhist masters, with ample time for meditation, reflection and group discussion, to allow these precious teachings to infuse and permeate our lives.
A Weekend of Teachings with Patrick Gaffney
Save the date:
Patrick Gaffney will be teaching live in Arlington, Massachusetts, June 1 and 2.
This program will be both in person and via webinar.
Further details to be announced.
The Heart of the Tibetan Book of Living and Dying
The Heart of the Tibetan Book of Living and Dying
April 22 - May 20
We are pleased to offer an exciting new online course exploring The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying by Sogyal Rinpoche.
You are warmly invited to join us this spring for an introductory, 5-week course “The Heart of The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying.” The course will provide an overview of the Tibetan Buddhist teachings as presented in this acclaimed book along with additional teachings by Sogyal Rinpoche and other contemporary masters.
Additionally, this fall, Rigpa US will launch a year-long series of courses examining the book’s profound wisdom and practical advice for transforming your heart and mind. Participants will be able to take any one or all of the 5-week courses that will be offered throughout the year. This is an opportunity for deep study, contemplation, and meditation, with course material designed to guide you on a unique journey of personal transformation.
The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying is a groundbreaking book that has helped millions of people to find and to deepen their understanding and experience of the Buddhist path to freedom and ultimate wellbeing.
This introductory course begins Monday, April 22, 2024, at 4 pm Pacific Time/ 7 pm Eastern Time via Zoom and will run for 5 sessions every Monday ending on May 20th, 2024.
Please allow 2 hours for each session.
Each course night follows a clear schedule of meditation, explanation, sometimes a short video, reflection, and sharing with others.
You will need a copy of the Tibetan Book of Living and Dying. The book is readily available for purchase online. Other reference materials will be provided as needed.
The Zoom link will be provided upon registration.
Led by Teachers: Pat Best, Linda Forrester, Debbie Kinton, Jeff Middelton, and Betty Lynn Moulton
Pat Best has been instructing Rigpa public courses since 2011. She originally met Sogyal Rinpoche, first through his book The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying in 1992, and later found that there was a local group of students and began classes in 1997. She finally met him in person when he was with His Holiness the Dalai Lama at American University in 1998. During the years in between, she found the teachings a way to understand her mind and therefore, a new way of seeing the world in a more expansive and open way. With many years of study, practice, and the motivation to help others, she continues to offer time to guide students with their own study and practice. Recently, she has accepted to be an entrusted Rigpa teacher in 2022. She lives in the Washington, DC area with her husband and her daughter, and three grandchildren nearby.
Linda Forrester first read and fell in love with the Tibetan Book of Living and Dying in 2001. She knew that she needed to meet the author! She sought out the New York City Rigpa center and started going to weekly meditation sessions. In May 2001, she attended her first retreat with Sogyal Rinpoche. She felt she’d found her Home, and she became Rinpoche’s student. In the chaos that followed in September of that year, she also felt his support and the solidarity of the local sangha. Over the years, Linda attended many retreats, in the U.S., France, and Ireland. She has been a Rigpa instructor since 2005. She completed the Intensive Home Retreat in 2012 and a 5-month retreat in 2022. Retired now, Linda Forrester taught ESL at the City University of New York for over 25 years. Her work with immigrant and international students was constantly inspired by Sogyal Rinpoche’s teachings, and she feels deep gratitude to him.
Debbie Kinton was first introduced to Tibetan Buddhism in 1979 in Galway, Ireland. She has studied and practiced under the guidance of highly regarded masters from the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. Her connection to the Tibetan Book of Living and Dying deepened during retreats where chapters of the book were read aloud. Studying the Tibetan Book of Living and Dying has been a cornerstone of her spiritual path. She completed a three-year retreat in Lerab Ling in southern France in 2006-2009.
Jeff Middelton has been a student of Sogyal Rinpoche and a member of Rigpa for over twenty years, having initially connected through the Tibetan Book of Living and Dying while traveling in India, only to find that a Rigpa center was in his neighborhood back home in Seattle. He has found that the brilliant clarity in the teachings and the practice have provided an accessible refuge so essential in today’s modern world. He completed the 7 year home retreat program in 2012 and has instructed Rigpa courses since 2010. He particularly enjoys interacting with students who are drawn to the Buddhist path. He was entrusted as a teacher in 2022.
Betty Lynn Moulton is a retired psychologist. She has been instructing Rigpa courses for 15 years. She originally met Sogyal Rinpoche over 25 years ago and was immediately moved by the clarity and relatability of his teachings. Rinpoche’s teachings were exactly what she had been seeking in her quest to understand the mind. Betty Lynn has been privileged to help guide many students over the years in their study of the teachings. She particularly enjoys interacting with students who are just beginning to study the Buddhist path. She was entrusted as a Rigpa teacher in 2022. She lives on Maui with her husband, three horses, and three cats.
When
April 22, 2024 through May 20, 2024 at 4 pm Pacific Time/ 7 pm Eastern Time via Zoom
Suggested Donation – $100
Concession – $50 (or whatever you can pay)
The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying Course
The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying
Book Course
Thursdays, January 18 through March 21, 2024 (10 Sessions)
Start Time: 3 pm PST/ 6 pm EST
End Time: 5 pm PST/ 8 pm EST
Online via Zoom