PRACTICES & RETREATS

PRACTICES & RETREATS


Our practices are rooted in Tibetan Buddhism, which comprises the three main phases of Buddhist thought and practice: the early teachings of the Buddha (Foundational Vehicle), the Mahayana (Great Vehicle) and the Vajrayana (Diamond Vehicle). Essentially, our focus is on cultivating compassion and wisdom, and being of service to others. Lama Tsultrim Allione, author and international teacher, is the founder or our practice community and has developed our curriculum based on her many years of traditional study with Tibetan masters and her own realization born of many years of practice, retreat, and teaching in the West.

Although many of our practice meetings have prerequisites, our goal is to provide teachings and make the practices accessible to all levels of practitioners. Please join our newsletter and refer to our calendar to see when teachings and transmissions are being offered. You can also email us for more info.

New Events and Retreats

Embodying Tara Book Launch 


ONLINE COURSE

Embodying The Wisdom and Compassion of the 21 Taras

Contemporary Study and Practice (ONLINE)
with Chandra Easton
April 25 through December 12, 2024
Online Zoom 


Explore the symbolic meaning, power, and purpose of the 21 Taras through teachings, 

embodied meditation, mantra, and journeys with Tara.

In this immersive and transformative program, Dorje Lopön Chandra will offer us a lens 

through which we can understand and integrate the contemporary context of the Taras 

through inspiring stories about historic and modern Buddhist and 

non-Buddhist women who embody their myriad qualities.


For more information: Click Here


RETREATS

June 1st:   

“The Sadhana of All Dakinis the Especially Profound Great Sky Treasure.”

Registration is open for this June 1 event!

We are honored to share some wonderful teachings from the Ancient BÖN Tradition of Tibet on the Enlightened Feminine 

  • On June 1 2024 join us in welcoming Tibetan Bön Rimé teacher, Geshe Dangsong Namgyal for a day of teachings and ritual practice of “The Sadhana of All Dakinis, the Especially Profound Great Sky Treasure.”

The teaching and ritual will be held in Berkeley California from 10AM-4PM and also online. This is open to all and does not have any restrictions. Beginners are welcome!

For more information click on the image below:




June 14 thru June 16

Ösel Nyingtig Cycle – Tröma Nagmo Empowerment

 and Explanation: The Path of Secret Primordial Wisdom (Retreat in Berkeley CA)


Ösel Nyingtig in Berkeley June 14 through 16, 2024

Tulku Ösel Dorje will be offering the empowerment for the next phase of the Ösel Nyingtig Program. If you have received the Ngondro and the Yeshe Tsogyal Sadhana you may be eligible to receive the next practice which is the Tröma Nagmo Sadhana. Please check the Tara Mandala Website for more information by clicking the image below:





Coming in December 2024

 Dzogchen Meditation Retreat 

with Adzom Gyalse Rinpoche

Teachings from the Choying Dzod

An in-person retreat with Adzom Gyalse Tulku Rinpoche; 

teaching on The Choying Dzod,  "The Basic Space of Phenomena" 

 

_________________________

Practices

_________________________

Online and In-Person Practices



Tara Mandala Bay Area and other Satellite Sanghas  are offering more online practice opportunities. Some of these will be classes with authorized teachers such as Lopön Chandra Easton , while others will be peer led practices by long-term sangha leaders. Please see below and join us!

All the following will be offered via the Zoom platform (you'll find zoom links in descriptions):
for more practices offered around the country click here: 




Well of Being Wednesdays  
With Lopon Chandra and Eve Ekman

Every Wednesday, join us at the “Well of Being” where Chandra and Eve offer contemporary translations of ancient Tibetan Buddhist tools coupled with modern psychology for cultivating concentration, emotion awareness, insight, and compassion. As guides, Chandra and Eve respectively draw from their expertise as lead instructors in experiential and evidenced based trainings for emotion transformation, Feeding Your Demons® and Cultivating Emotional Balance. Reveal the healing source of your inner well-being through meditation, contemplation, and discussion.
Wednesdays 7:30 – 9:00pm via ZOOM

Join using this link: http://bit.ly/sfdharma 
Password to log in: 108108
or 301-715-8592 to join by phone
Meeting ID: 545 039 806 

                                                                     ___

The Mandala of the 
Five Wisdom Dakinis Practice

 In person Reading Group and Practices will resume in 2024


The Dakini Mandala creates a sacred geography within the psyche leading toward the realization of the innate perfection of the world. The mandala is a blueprint for sacred reality on every level. Ritually, aesthetically, and symbolically it expresses the inherent purity of all existence, and embodiment as a path to liberation. Through the mandala, the psyche is provided with a container and structure for transformation and architecture of enlightened experience. In this practice, we explore through color, light, sound and visualization how our human emotions are the very seeds for our own transformation and enlightenment. Pre-requisites: must have familiarity with the book and/or learned the practice from Lama Tsultrim or an authorized teacher.


_______________________


 
Prajña Paramita Practice
 

Practice will return in 2024

Prajña Paramita is the Great Mother. She is luminous clarity that is full of compassion. She is a deity, a symbol, and a sutra. Above all, she is the teaching that guides us to the experience of prajña, or wisdom, which is the capacity to perceive the ineffable vastness of basic space. The Prajña Paramita practice from Lama Tsultrim Allione is a nature of mind practice which requires transmission. Prajña Paramita is a foundational practice in our sangha. We offer courses locally throughout the year in the Bay Area and at Tara Mandala during the retreat season (April-Oct).  

Pre-requisites: at least two years of meditation or internal arts practice (i.e. Chi kung, Tai chi, or yoga) and must have received transmission from Lama Tsultrim, Chandra Easton, or other authorized teacher.



_____________________


 Chöd

The Chögyal Namkhai Norbu Chöd came to this great Dzogchen master in a dream. Chöd is a unique blend of the Tibetan Shamanic traditions and the Buddhist tradition of compassion and emptiness. This centuries-old practice is sung and is accompanied by the use of a traditional Chöd drum and bell. Healing comes when fear, fixation, and self-clinging are cut through, based on nurturing not fighting what assails us, giving rise to the awareness of the empty nature of afflictive emotions. Pre-requisites: This practice is open to all. People who have learned the practice can join in and anyone can come and receive the healing energy of the practice.

The Parchangma Chöd is an integral part of Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje’s Dzinpa Rangdröl (Self-Liberation of Clinging) treasure cycle (terma). This practice is sung and is accompanied by the use of a traditional Chöd drum and bell. Healing comes when fear, fixation, and self-clinging are cut through, based on nurturing not fighting what assails us, giving rise to the awareness of the empty nature of afflictive emotions. Pre-requisites: This practice is open to all. People who have learned the practice can join in and anyone can come and receive the healing energy of the practice. 



Please Make a taxable Donation to support your local sangha: