Tantric Path of Desire: Teachings & Six Buddha Families Blessing Ceremony with Khentrul Rinpoché
Online and in-person in Austria at Dzokden Kalapa. In English with the potential of live translation in other languages (TBA).
This page is for registration to attend in person only. If you would like to register to attend the event online please click here.
“Most followers of the Tibetan tantric Buddhist teachings are merely wearing an outer costume of tantra.” (Khentrul Rinpoché)
We are delighted to announce that Rinpoché accepted our request to present his exciting new tantra book, “The Tantric Path of Desire” in Europe. He will give related teachings, a blessing ceremony of the 6 Buddha Families, and address crucial questions of both new and veteran practitioners.
What is tantric practice really about? How to use our day-to-day ‘negative’ emotions as positive potential? How do the different levels of Buddhist paths relate to each other? How to use sexuality as part of the spiritual path according to the Buddha’s tantric teachings? Why does one need an authentic Guru to learn Tantra genuinely?
Preconceptions and misunderstandings about tantra have spread everywhere. Both in Western countries, as well as Asian countries where these teachings originated. Lost amidst extreme views and with a lack of proper clarification, it is difficult for practitioners to reach the essence of the tantric teachings. Rinpoché will teach about how the different levels of Buddhist teachings and their respective conduct of ethics support each other without contradiction. He will explain the varying degrees of tantric practice and what one should do to truly focus on tantra.
For Rinpoché, there is no doubt that different types of persons, including lay devotees, monastics, and non-religious ones, have the potential to learn the essence of tantric practice. This is because the tantric approach is closely aligned with our existing nature.
“In the tantric path, nothing that is naturally present in our mind needs to be eliminated. Instead, we learn means for putting these mental phenomena to work for us. When all these phenomena are subjugated by the brilliance of pure and true reality, they become our friends.” (Khentrul Rinpoché)
In the view of tantra, the pure aspects of our afflictive emotions are connected to specific Buddha Families. To strengthen this awareness and for the continued support of participants’ practice after the event, Rinpoché will bestow a Blessing Ceremony of the Six Buddha Families.
For the Q&A session, we thoroughly encourage you to gather all your questions that will clarify your understanding of tantra. Do not miss this precious opportunity.
Schedule
This is a weekend of teachings with Khentrul Rinpoché, although he may decide to direct senior students to teach one of the sessions or lead group discussions in support of the participants’ learning process.
Schedule in Vienna Time (CEST)
Friday 26th July | 7.00 p.m. – 8.30 p.m.
Session 1: Free Public Teaching: Tantric Path of Desire — An Introduction
Saturday 27th July
Session 2: 7.00 a.m. – 8.30 a.m. | Session 3: 11.00 a.m. – 12.30 a.m. | Session 4: 3:00 p.m. – 4.30 p.m. | Session 5: 7.00 p.m. – 8.30 p.m.
Sunday 28th July
Session 6: 7.00 a.m. – 8.30 a.m. (includes Blessing Ceremony of the 6 Buddha Families) – THIS CEREMONY MUST BE ATTENDED LIVE
Session 7: 11.00 a.m. – 12.30 p.m.
How to Prepare?
There are no prerequisites for these teachings. They are open to all, regardless of your background. Reading Rinpoché´s book, “The Tantric Path of Desire,” is suggested but not mandatory for participation. (It is currently available in English and can be purchased here). If you plan to attend the teachings in person at Kalapa and you would like a hard copy, you can reserve one by writing to [email protected] and can pick up it upon arrival. (Unfortunately, Kalapa cannot send books via mail.)
Registration
The fee for the retreat includes three vegetarian meals and shared accommodations at the beautiful Dzokden Kalapa Retreat Center. Please inform us ([email protected]) in advance if you have allergies, food intolerances, or other important health or mental conditions that we need to consider. We cannot promise space for individual rooms for participants of this event. However, you can alternatively bring your own tent and sleep outside near the Kalachakra Stupa (see registration options below). Please note: Parking in the area of Kalapa is very limited. If you are staying with us for the whole retreat, we encourage you to drop off then find a space to park at a distance (in the city, if possible) to help other travellers reach the site.
Additional Info for those attending in-person
Additional schedule for in-person participation on Friday 26th July:
14:00 to 16:00 – Check-in at Dzokden Kalapa Retreat Center
17:00 – Welcome Meeting at the Yoga Room (mandatory for everyone)
18:00 – Dinner
Check-out on Sunday the 28th July after lunch, 2 p.m. – 4 p.m.
Recordings: By attending in-person, you will also be automatically registered to participate online. This way, you will be able to access audio and video recordings of the sessions afterward through our learning platform.
Live translations: If you are participating in person and need live translation, you must provide your own internet connection and bring earphones to listen to the translated teachings provided over the internet using your tablet or mobile device in the temple. Laptops or notebook computers are not allowed in the temple. Unfortunately, we cannot provide a wireless internet connection for participants owing to technical limitations.
If you are a volunteer translator who is joining the retreat in-person and wishes to offer live translation, please let us know in advance so that we can reserve a space for you to translate during the teachings. The live translation will not be performed in the temple itself. Instead, in-person translators will participate in the event over an internet connection provided at the retreat center so that their translation can be broadcast to the online audience. You need to register yourself as an in-person participant.
Volunteer Opportunities
Rinpoche strongly encourages us to support our dharma brothers and sisters by volunteering. There are 2 full-time volunteer positions for this retreat:
COOK: For this retreat, we need one full-time volunteer to cook breakfast, lunch, and a light dinner for the participants.
SOUND-VIDEO-ZOOM: For this retreat there is also an open position for thechnical support for all the sessions, this include a.o. video, audio, mics/amplification, hosting the Zoom Webinar, and so forth. We can give you a general introduction to the tasks and devices, however, it is preferred that you have some previous experience in this field.
If you are considering one of these opportunities, please write as soon as possible to [email protected] so that we can arrange a video call to plan your participation. If you decide to be a full-time volunteer for the whole event, you can attend the event for free without needing to register as a paying participant. Full-time volunteers can arrive one day earlier for preparing their tasks.
Dana for Khentrul Rinpoche
If you additionally wish to show your generosity to Rinpoché’s precious teachings and to his immense efforts, you can do it in-person at the end of the retreat or, if you are attending online, you can offer Dana for Rinpoche on the Dzokden website here. This is completely voluntary.
How to get to Kalapa?
Dzokden Kalapa Retreat Center, Garanas 41, Bad Schwanberg, zip code 8541, Austria, Südweststeiermark. The nearest airport is in Graz, Austria. To travel to Kalapa by train, start at the main train station in Graz. From there, take the S6 or S61 S-Bahn towards Wies-Eibiswald for about an hour to the Bad Schwanberg station. (timetable information)
To travel from the Bad Schwanberg train station to the retreat center, a relatively inexpensive taxi service supported by the government is available that will take you directly to the Retreat Center, which is referred to as “Buddhistisches Zentrum” by this taxi service. For more information, please visit the following website: Regio Mobil. The taxi must be ordered at least one hour in advance, but visitors are recommended to do so much earlier or on the day before you intend to arrive. On weekdays, this taxi service operates between the hours of 6.00 a.m. and 8.00 p.m. On weekends it does not operate during the evening. As the journey is quite long (about 20 minutes), the service should be scheduled at least half an hour before the closing hours provided above. For trips on Sundays or public holidays please schedule the taxi service by 5 p.m. on the day before you intend to arrive.
To order: +43 (0)50 16 17 18 Cost: €6.00 total regardless of how many people are taking the taxi. Alternatively you can book a normal taxi service or similar.
By car: From the Graz-West motorway junction (A2/A9), get on the A2 towards Klagenfurt/Italy and take the Lieboch exit. Then, continue on Federal Road 76 towards Eibiswald. After about 30 km, you will reach Schwanberg. At the end of the main square in Schwanberg, turn left towards Garanas. After the bridge, turn right towards Garanas and follow the signs to “Kalachakra Kalapa Center” uphill for about 8 km to reach the center.
Speaker
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Khentrul RinpocheKhentrul Rinpoché Jamphel Lodrö is the founder and spiritual director of Dzokden. Rinpoche is the author of Unveiling Your Sacred Truth, The Great Middle Way: Clarifying the Jonang View of Other-Emptiness, A Happier Life, and The Hidden Treasure of the Profound Path.
Rinpoche spent the first 20 years of his life herding yak and chanting mantras on the plateaus of Tibet. Inspired by the bodhisattvas, he left his family to study in a variety of monasteries under the guidance of over twenty-five masters in all the Tibetan Buddhist traditions. Due to his non-sectarian approach, he earned himself the title of Rimé (unbiased) Master and was identified as the reincarnation of the famous Kalachakra Master Ngawang Chözin Gyatso. While at the core of his teachings is the recognition that there is great value in the diversity of all spiritual traditions found in this world; he focuses on the Jonang-Shambhala tradition. Kalachakra (wheel of time) teachings contain profound methods to harmonize our external environment with the inner world of body and mind, ultimately bringing about the golden age of peace and harmony (dzokden).