We are happy to share that Geshe Sonam Gurung will be co-leading a retreat with John Jackson May 17, 2025. This one day retreat will be held in northern Virginia near Warrenton in the US, and will also be available via Zoom for those who cannot travel to the retreat.
Our busy lives appear to be uniquely filled with stress and conflict, but many of the ways we cope may fail to help us be able to face these challenges with inner peace. Instead, our own reactions sometimes propagate negative behaviors in a self-reinforcing circle of reaction. These cycles of reactivity have been challenges for people in all times and cultures, including the Tibetan monks and yogis, who addressed these through the practices of Bön for millenia.
This day-long workshop introduces participants to the foundational practices that help prepare the mind for a deeper connection with the universal ground of being, whether one aims to be a householder or a secluded monastic. Participants in this workshop will have a better understanding of how to compassionately recognize their own reactivity and expectations and create the space to choose a response to an event. Practices will include the 9-round breath, simple calm-staying exercises, and meditations that help to generate a compassionate approach to others.
This retreat is sponsored and organized by the Mustang Bön Foundation, which is supporting the development of the Shenten Thagye Ling Bonpo monastery in Mustang, Nepal, a free medical clinic grounded in Tibetan medicine, and the education of over 60 children in a hostel in Jomson, Nepal. All these projects are under the guidance of Geshe Sonam, who after completing his geshe degree and serving at Menri monastery, returned to his home in Mustang to support the preservation and flourishing of the Bön tradition there. Geshe Sonam has co-translated and published many important Dzogchen texts available through Amazon.
If you have questions you may contact the retreat organizer, Debby Kirkman at debby@mustangbonfoundation.org