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Reaching Karmê Chöling: The Journey of our Bridge
We extend a heartfelt thanks to the City of Barnet for constructing a functional bridge for us so quickly! Repercussions from the Flooding This development is, in many ways, a continuation of the saga from the July flooding. That month, Vermont caught the tailend of a hurricane that had started down in the Southeast. In our area we received a deluge of eight inches of rain in three hours. While we dealt with some flooding in our basement, the most significant impact was the erosion of our roads and the banks of the Stevens River, which our bridge spans. After the storm, the State of Vermont and the City of Barnet set about attending to the large number of infrastructure issues that needed inspection and repair. They've worked diligently over the last three months and have now been able to look into the matter of our bridge. The Situation When the State inspected our bridge and its eroded banks they decided it was too unstable for safe passage of vehicles. On October 4th they asked us to stop driving on it. To be able to have access to the broader world outside of Karme Choling, we parked our cars at the park-n-ride, a half mile from the house. All traffic across the bridge came to a halt, including deliveries of food, heating fuel and mail. Anything that arrived at the house either had to be walked across the bridge or transported with the Polaris (our light-weight, off-road vehicle we use to transport people and items up to the retreat cabins) The Plan Needless to say, not having a bridge was a strain on our operations. However, the city assured us that they would have a solution in just a few days, which they did! They decided to construct a temporary bridge over the top of the original bridge, so we could have access to KCL while they make the necessary repairs below. The Bridge Materializes Our temporary bridge arrived in "lego" pieces one week later on Friday, October 11th. The following day, a local crew member began marking the site for the new bridge, and by Monday, the equipment and personnel were on-site. First the bridge itself was assembled. Those of us who love seeing big machines move large objects around, found excuses to go down and watch their progress. Tuesday was devoted to establishing access up-to and down-from the new bridge. More big machines moved concrete barriers into place while workers compacted a mixture of dirt and stone around them. By Tuesday evening we were driving across our temporary bridge! Back to "Normal" For those of us housed at Ashoka Bhavan, walking an extra mile, (round trip) to the park-n-ride was good exercise, but we're happy to go back to hopping in the car and driving the whole way! We're now receiving deliveries again and program participants are able to be brought up to our front door! Looking Forward With this adventure behind us, we can look back to our ongoing kitchen remodel project at Ashoka Bhavan. We are at the point of replacing the gas stove that is in the downstairs kitchen with a new electric one. If you would like to help us out with this project, please follow the "Donate" button below. Here is a link if you would like to see what we're buying: Lowes Hotpoint Stove Donation for Stove
Basic Goodness
Officially four months in, I am teetering on the edge of long-term staff status here at Karmê Chöling. Nearly two seasons have passed, and fall is definitely in the air. The nights are becoming crisp and cool, and the leaves are starting to change to red and gold. I am excited for once in my life to be living in New England in the fall. Zoom in on the table top puzzle of colorful hills, red barns, and wooden bridges, and you will find me. Having my morning coffee, gazing at the waterfall outside my window, and contemplating basic goodness. Basic goodness was something that I felt as a child but did not know it. It is something that propelled me into my life as an adult but I did not recognize it. It is a feeling that when missing, I feel despondent, depressed, anxious, worried, hopeless, and many other negative emotions. But I did not know that the cause of these feelings was fear and a lost connection to basic goodness. Mine. Others’. The world’s. Last week, I took a 5-day basic meditation training, a foundational program here at the retreat center. I have been meditating almost daily for 4 months and yet, the simple, clear instructions and concise dharma teachings that came with them, were quite illuminating. Here’s a very brief summary of the training: We are all basically good. Now, sit on your cushion with a relaxed but erect posture, gaze down about 6 feet in front of you, and focus on your out breath. As thoughts come, notice them and gently, let them go. We create a cocoon around ourselves to protect ourselves from discomfort and pain, and the scary, even terrifying things about life we would rather not think about or experience. This cocoon is made of our material things, our mental habits, our defenses, our addictions… even going to sleep when we have had enough sleep. There are many ways we create our cocoon. And the cocoon feels safe and comfortable. Easier. Less work. Why wouldn’t we want a cocoon? And for sure, it must be okay to have one. But, our cocoons can become our prisons. We can become numb and depressed inside. Less open. Less willing. Less able to feel deep joy. Less able to feel at all. Our cocoon and our many habitual ways of being can obscure our ability to see basic goodness in ourselves and others. Despite the comfort of the cocoon, we are missing out on the deeper, stiller, innate essence of goodness that we all have within us. Now, sit on your cushion with a relaxed but erect posture, gaze down about 2-3 feet in front of you, and focus on your in breath and out breath. Notice the sensations in your body. Come into contact with your heart. As thoughts come, notice them and gently, let them go. Touch and go. As feelings arise, notice these too. Sit with these. Do not push them away. Feel them. Boredom. Anxiety. Frustration. Fear. Just be with it all. Do this for 20 minutes. Intersperse with walking meditation for 10 minutes (focus on the feeling of the feet on the floor). Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. In between the meditation and the teacher’s talks, there is discussion. And naturally, many questions and objections arise. As we search our experiences and think of those who have wronged us, and the many examples of evils in the world, we struggle to make sense of this very simple and naive-seeming idea that we are all basically good. And, how in the world does all this simple meditation help us to connect with it? OK, let’s revise this idea. We all have the potentiality for basic goodness. But those cocoons - that’s the trouble. They can take us away- far away- from our basic goodness. Take the idea of original sin and flip it on its head. We are all born with innate basic goodness. This is the Buddhist view. The bad stuff comes later, as we grow and live and face the traumas and trials that come with living as a human being. I have not completely gotten this straight in my mind yet, but somehow we go down the many rabbit holes of living a human life, and as we do, we add layer upon layer of shields, stories, substances, and suffering. We get stuck. So afraid of feeling the harshness of life, we can cut ourselves off from beauty, tenderness, and joy. I am struggling to make sense of these ideas. At every turn, there is so much to contradict the notion that every being has at least the seed of goodness within. I think of a picture of me as a child, sitting on a hearth with a bouquet of wild flowers in my hands, a smile of delight on my face. I remember times when I lashed out with bitter words towards the one I loved, hurt and confused. I wonder why some people are so damned hard to get along with, and how in the world will we ever stop fighting? I notice how my body grows cold when I am disappointed by the actions of others - small acts of indifference, tiny arrows of anger, and enormous acts of violence and hatred. I notice how I shut down and close off to the world in the face of these things. What if I decide to open my heart anyway? And I return to my breath. In. Out. In. Out. In. Out. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.
Coming Back to Reality. Now What?
Right now it feels as if I may be writing this to simply catch what I experienced before it is lost in the winds of reality. It’s Monday now. I just got home on Friday from having spent nearly three weeks at Karmê Chöling, a Shambala retreat center in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom. I feel like I’ve lived in at least two totally different worlds in the past month, maybe more. First, let’s just acknowledge the simple beauty, age, and rural quiet of Vermont. The entire state has only about 64,000 people more than the county than I live in here in Wisconsin. Of course, the land area of the state is much smaller than Wisconsin, but things are quiet in the Northeast Kingdom and that’s a beautiful thing. I never knew how loud Madison was until I came back home after nearly a month of listening to the mourning doves sing and the rain fall on the roof. It was good to reconnect, to hear the birdsong in my heart, see the stars, explore the hills, and even to feel the rain. Now, I am wondering how I keep connected, how I maintain the peace I gained, and how I move forward. I arrived at the retreat center on August 5th. I would be spending the next few weeks volunteering, meditating, learning, and just simply being in the space. The next day their silent retreat program began. While I wasn’t a participant in the program and didn’t make a full commitment to silence, as a volunteer I joined with staff and my fellow volunteers in a supportive silence which meant that we didn’t speak while in the presence of program participants. It was a quiet first week and just what I needed. I knew coming in that I was worn out, but I had no idea just how worn out I was. In my first days I was napping for two or more hours a day plus sleeping nine or more hours at night. I spent my days with meditation time for about an hour in the mornings and evenings, roughly five hours of volunteering in the kitchen, with garden tasks, or cleaning, and the rest of the day was mine to determine. Much of my time I spent coloring mandalas in a coloring book I’ve had for many years but have never found the time to do much with. It was another form of meditation for me. I also got out my camera which has hardly been out of its case in the last few years and just played, taking photos of flowers and mushrooms and whatever else struck my fancy. I read too, my book of choice for this trip was Altered Traits: Science Reveals How Meditation Changes Your Mind, Brain, and Body by Daniel Coleman and Richard Davidson. And, as I said earlier, I slept, a lot. Why spend three weeks meditating, coloring, sleeping, reading, and most excitingly getting to vacuum with the “Ghostbusters vacuum” for fun? Well, for me I went to Karmê Chöling for a couple of reasons. 1. I’m a special education teacher and I knew I needed to reset before starting the school year if I were to serve my kids in the best way possible and maintain my own wellbeing. 2. My own wellbeing, I have epilepsy that is impacted by stress. There is growing research showing that meditation can change how our brains respond to stressors both in the short and long term. 3. I wanted to learn, build my practice, and connect with others. I knew I was taking a risk going on a retreat like this. When I was kid, after the deaths of my mom and grandma, I made a promise to myself to never let anyone into my heart. It’s taken most of my life to break that promise and to heal from having made it. Meditation is breaking the promise. It is letting myself into my heart, opening the pathway to allow love in and out. It was during my last week in Vermont that I felt the barrier break. Some of my new found friends and I had planned a day trip and our plans had just fallen through. It was a disappointment to be sure, but not a huge deal. But something triggered in me. One moment I was sitting out on the front porch enjoying my time with this new found group of friends and the next I could feel the tears coming and was having a hard time eating my lunch. I slipped away to my room to cry on my own for a few hours. Then, after I started to feel a little more ready for the world, I went back out to the porch with my markers and coloring book and started in on my mandalas again. One of those friends, Sage, joined me on the porch and began to apologize for what she’d thought had made me cry. I told her what really brought my tears and she sat with me and listened and we shared stories of our lives. It struck me how things I’d thought I’d gotten beyond years ago could still hurt me and how great a gift it is to be able to let those things go and to have someone to listen and care. I looked in the mirror the next day and saw something I hadn’t seen before or at least not in a long time. My eyes had a sparkle they’d not had in I don’t know how long. It reminded me of the twinkle in my Dad’s eyes when he’d laugh. It felt good. I felt lighter. I felt relieved of some deep sorrows and pains. Now, when I was in Vermont I sat in meditation one to two hours each day, spent another one to three hours coloring mandalas, stayed away from social media and mostly away from computer screens in general, not to mention I got to be a part of Chay Drol, a Buddhist healing ceremony, as well as the dissolution of a sand mandala, and I was just spending time out in some of the most beautiful rural, wooded hills in the northeastern part of the US. The experience was working for me. I felt that I was healing. The questions remain though. How do I maintain that healing? How do I continue to heal? I wish I had great answers. Right now all I have are little pieces. I’m dropping my social media consumption significantly by cutting out my checking in before work and just asking myself if I really need to do this before I go online. I’m increasing my daily meditation time from fifteen minutes daily to probably thirty minutes each day with longer periods on Sundays of one to two hours at my local Shambala Center, and monthly gatherings with a mindfulness group at the school where I work. I’m trying to keep my creative path open by coloring, knitting, and coming back here to write again. Maybe life will allow me another retreat someday. Who knows? For now, I am simply breathing. Have you gone on a retreat and experienced this wondering of “now what?” on your return to reality? I would love to hear how you’ve dealt with the transition and how it’s worked for you. (Please share your comments with Amy on her blog: Sustainable Life in Action )
A Lineage of Cabin Practitioners
Today I was prepping a solitary retreat cabin when I found some juniper that someone had left on the shrine. I like it when people leave things behind for the next guy. Sometimes it’s a candle, or incense, or maybe an inspiring dharma text. Tea is another frequent gift to the next guy. Over a matter of months, I once watched a collection of interesting rocks on Yeshe cabin’s porch grow from two to four to seven — each one left there by a meditator. I consider those stones, these “gifts to the next guy,” to be the beginning of a looooooooong game of telephone, from one retreatant to another, and then to another and another and another. In silence, they are all saying “Hello! I was here, too!” It reminds me that each of the cabins has its own lineage of practitioners — people who have contributed to the cabin in one way or another, whether it's noticeable or not. Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, Padmasambhava and the Lord Buddha are all part of that cabin’s lineage, since it would not exist without them. We’re all part of an interdependent unfolding, without end. We are all siblings to the first particles of the Big Bang. And the unique contribution of each cabin retreatant reminds me of that. I like to think that one particular bird, with problems of her own, and who was at the forefront of a whole bird lineage, by the way, dropped a seed in just the right place, under just the right conditions, to unintentionally give birth to a tree that would serve as Nagarjuna cabin’s ridgepole. We’re all leaving gifts for the next guy all the time, with every one of our actions. And maybe this whole story is working up to a confession … which is that one of these gifts to the next guy, left last year, was a Toblerone chocolate bar. And I just went ahead and ate that. And I accept my karma without regret. So, we’re all playing our part.
Address to Vermont's House of Representatives
Karmê Chöling's Executive Co-Director, Vegan Aharonian was asked to give the opening Devotional for the April 9th session of Vermont's House of Representatives. This was the day after the April 8th, 2024 Solar Eclipse. See his short, very good dharma talk to the assembled group in the video below! Photo Album of the Day
The Profound Practice Container of Nirmanakaya
I fell in love with Nirmanakaya retreat cabin late last fall. I’ve never done a retreat there, and somehow had not formed a bond. My bosses had no idea where I was, which is the perfect state of affairs in my book. So I decided to spend time puttering around after putting freshly scrubbed dishware back on the shelves. What a profound cabin. First thing I did was build a fire and light a lamp, giving the space a warm, amber glow. The practice of hundreds of practitioners radiated from the walls. The cabin’s recently refinished floorboards love reflecting fire-light. I had the impression Nirmanakaya was waking up to greet me. Acharya Bill McKeever, one of the early directors of Karme Choling, had told me years before that Nirmanakaya was the first retreat cabin to be built on the land. Back then, it was at the very end of the Retreats Road, above a sloping meadow ringed by the mountain. Raptors circling the vast sky frequently dine in that meadow. The weather, playing out in the open space, is the main form of entertainment. The spot is perfect for heart-opening, mind-expanding practice. Although it was decided to build a new cabin above that meadow, practitioners loved Nirmanakaya so much that it was lifted off the ground and moved — I assume through the power of levitation. It now resides two-and-a-half stone throws from the campground’s Upper Meadow. I’ve startled more than a few deer relaxing on the grass in its “front yard.” Dr. Eva Wong, a holder of the Xiantianwujimen Taoist lineage, has identified a power spot just east of the porch, which holds an energy well-suited for contemplation. In its new space, Nirmanakaya is excellent for the practice of Shamatha. Its focus is powerful. I plan to do my next retreat at Nirmanakaya. So if you’re trying to book time there, remember to call first — I’ll let you know when I’m done. To learn more about entering solitary retreat at Karme Choling, contact Mike at retreats@karmecholing.org.
KCL Newsletter Oct 20, 2023
Dear KCL Friends, There has been such a flurry of activity around KCL! This week we are excited to welcome our first Warriors Assembly back on the land in five years! Much preparation has gone into making the various spaces and rooms ready for the staff and participants and we look forward to seeing everyone. Next, we have added in two major retreats this winter, geared to students and young people. We are offering special pricing and scholarships on these retreats to make them more affordable for this age group. See info on these programs below. Lastly, we are trying out this newsletter on our blog for the first time. Let me know what you think of the changes at eshafa@karmecholing.org The practice of caring for ourselves has been part of the Taoist arts of health and longevity for millennia. With increasing demands in our everyday life, self-care is more relevant than ever in helping us meet life’s challenges as well as appreciating the gifts of good living. In many ways, self-care can be understood as a form of Preventative Medicine. We take care of ourselves so that health problems can be minimized. Join us for this new series of holistic mind/body retreats, Taking Care of Body & Mind, These retreats feature the Three Taoist Pillars of Self-Care: Qigong, Meditation, and Lifestyle. The first retreat in the series is Relaxing Your Mind & Body and Balancing Your Life with Instructors Suzann Duquette & Heidi Meyer-Bothling Special guest speaker Dr. Eva Wong Nov. 4 - 10 During this 6-day retreat there will be ample time for meditation, contemplation, discussions of healthy lifestyle choices, nature walks, sensory exercises and of course qigong. Learn more and register: Balance Your Life If you would like to continue on from "Balancing Your Life" into the weekend, there is a Qigong Level 3 program that follows directly afterwards. The Gourd & Cauldron with instructor Beth Latchis Nov. 10 - 12 'I assembled the Solitary Retreats Team yesterday to tell them “my” idea about a drawing, in which participants can win a 10-day cabin retreat. We met in the Great Meadow, where a frog I’ve come to know sat in silence near the creek, not even blinking. Together with the three does and yearling twins foraging in deep grass, we officially had a quorum. “Guys, we have two new executive directors in the House, and have to look like we are being innovative,” I explained. ... ' Read Article for Drawing Special Guests Speakers (TBA) Jan. 6 - 14 Join us for this mindfulness retreat geared to students and young adults. In addition to mindfulness activities, we will hear about socially-engaged dharma from a diverse team of guest speakers, learn valuable tools and techniques to use in our daily life, and explore what it means to 'wake up' collectively. Learn more and register: Young Adults Retreat with Anne-Marie Keppel, author of "Death Nesting: The Heart-Centered Practices of a Death Doula" Dec. 8 - 10 or Dec. 8 - 12 Heading into the very darkest time of the year makes way for a beautiful opening to contemplate dying and death. Creating space to gather with others in a safe and uplifted environment is a deeply nourishing way to explore the preciousness of life. Through discussions, contemplations and meditative practices we will open to curiosity and the groundless feeling of "not knowing." Through our explorations you will develop an expanded vocabulary and confidence for engaging in conversations around death and dying and leave the retreat feeling refreshed and awake. Learn more and register: 4-Day Retreat Weekend Retreat with Bill Brauer & Caroline Demaio Nov. 22 - 26 or Nov. 18 - 26 Enjoy this Thanksgiving and sink into your meditation practice, joining in with the Karme Choling family for a holiday feast. Bill Brauer will lead us in mindfulness meditation and Caroline Demaio will guide us in Tai Chi. New meditators - receive meditation instruction from seasoned teachers in a supportive environment Experienced meditators - deepen your practice in a rich and gentle space There is your choice of either a 5-day or 9-day retreat! Learn more and register: 5-Day Retreat 9-Day Retreat with Eve Rosenthal & Basia Solarz Dec. 26 - Jan. 1 During this darkest time of the year, with its restriction of light and movement, it is traditional to reflect on the previous year, gather the insights it offers and envision the new year ahead. Join us for this opportunity to connect with oneself and others through meditation, reflection, conversation and embodiment practices in the winter wonderland of Karmê Chöling! (Also, see below our Winter Youth Retreat that runs concurrently from Dec. 27 - Jan. 1.) Learn More and register: Letting Go Retreat Dec. 27 - Jan. 1 The teachings on awareness and warriorship offer youth an opportunity to slow down, learn about oneself, and open one's heart to others. During this long-weekend retreat, we will explore what it looks like to lead our lives from the understanding that every person is fundamentally good and that we have the potential to manifest as Enlightened Society. Together we will create a culture that encourages our innate qualities of kindness, wisdom, and strength. (Held concurrently with the Letting Go and Letting Come retreat.) Learn more and register: Winter Youth Retreat Winter Weekthün Jan 13 - 21 Winter Half Dathün Jan 6 - 21 Five Wisdom Energies with Irini Rockwell May 24 - June 2 Tai Chi with Joseph Pascutazz Jan - March Please share this email with anyone you feel would benefit from it, using the "share" button below. If someone forwarded this email to you and you would like to sign up directly, you can do so with the sign-up form, located in the footer.
Bill Brauer: Set the Intention for your Retreat
Excerpt from the cabin retreat video with Bill Brauer. Bill Brauer, a senior teacher at Karmê Chöling, sat down with Retreat Assistant Joseph Pascutazz to record a video about solitary retreats, which will be used in an upcoming program. Below, we’ve borrowed some mildly edited insights from Bill, who has done many solitary retreats of his own. Bill Brauer: Once you’ve booked a solitary retreat at Karmê Chöling, intention and expectation is going to arise. There’s no way for it not to. If I’m sitting in Kansas City and I know that three weeks from now I’m going to be in the practice hills of Karmê Chöling, I’m going to be thinking about what I’m going to be doing. An appropriate intention would be to allow the retreat environment, the potency of the cabin, the surrounding woods, and the opportunity to withdraw from daily life to support the practice and deepen your connection to your own body and your own mind. So the intention should be very strong. “I guess the one caution is that we don’t bring into our retreat the expectation that I am going to accomplish some state of mind, or that I will achieve a clarity that I can’t at home because I’m too busy,” Bill said. “If we bring those kinds of intentions or expectations we are actually undermining the retreat and what it offers, which is a chance to let go of preconditions and just relax and let the retreat come to us.” Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche When he established the retreat culture at Karmê Chöling, Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche recommended that his students not to use this time for extensive study. The emphasis, he said, should be on the practice of meditation itself. “So the recommendation is that you take two, maybe three books,” said Bill. “A further recommendation is that they be inspirational or aspirational in nature, something you turn to in your regular life to inspire you, to remind you why you practice dharma, to raise your life force and make you happy to be a practitioner.” In retreat, it’s recommended that the books be something familiar to you, and that they remind us of why we are practicing, and rouse our aspiration to continue practicing. In this way, the retreat can be about deepening practice, rather than absorbing new material. In a solitary retreat, we want to dispense with the kind of busy-ness that goes into how to settle the mind. A schedule can relieve you from the fussiness of deciding, “Should I practice now? Or shouldn’t I?” Or, “My morning practice wasn’t the way I wanted, should I take a break now?’ The value of a schedule is that it allows you to simply relax into the practice. So if the schedule says for the next three hours you’re going to practice meditation, then you don’t have to ask yourself, “do I feel like meditating right now? Is this a good time to meditate?” It seems to genuinely, positively affect the practice because you’re not just trying to guess what’s best for you at the time, Bill said. Donate to Solitary Cabin Retreats
New Co-Executive Directors at Karmê Chöling
Karmê Chöling is very pleased to announce our newly appointed Co-Executive Directors, JT Buck and Vegan Aharonian. Aharonian and Buck will succeed Betsy Railla, who will step down on September 1st. Our New Executive Directors Both Vegan and JT come to the position with many years of experience in the community and with close ties to Karmê Chöling. Vegan is a teacher in the Shambhala community and a former resident of the center. JT has recently served on staff at Karmê Chöling as Residency Manager and Director of Programs. Both will work in tandem to lead the day-to-day operations of the retreat center. In addition, the co-directors will also lead the center’s fundraising, programming and public outreach. The Inspiration to Step Forward When asked what was the inspiration for stepping into this role, each had this to say: About Vegan Aharonian Vegan began studying Shambhala Buddhism in 1996. Originally from Armenia (the former Soviet Union), he came to the United States as a graduate student at Columbia University in 1991. Since 2008 he has been part of the Governing Council at the New York City Shambhala Center and head of its Practice and Education. In addition to teaching regularly in New York, he has also taught international Shambhala programs in Russia and Ukraine. Vegan holds a PhD in geophysics and has worked as a software engineer for most of his career. His last engagement was at the United Nations. About JT Buck JT has been a dharma practitioner since 2009. He has served KCL as Director of Programs, Residency Coordinator and Program Coordinator. He originally hails from Ohio, where he maintained an active and varied career in the performing arts and non profit sectors for nearly 20 years. He is a graduate of the University of Akron and has completed post-graduate studies both there and at the University of Houston. He recently completed pilgrimages to Nepal and to ancient family sites in the UK and Europe. A Bow of Gratitude Having completed her 4-year term that she began in late 2019, Betsy Railla's cheerful, can-do attitude will be sorely missed. She has been creative and resourceful in the face of major obstacles, the most prominent being COVID. Under her direction the residency program was begun and KCL launched it's online and hybrid programming which allowed the center to remain open and available to retreatants and residents alike. This was at a time when many small businesses were having to shut down. She will not be far away however, as she and her husband Nathan live nearby in the local area.
Solitary Retreat Cabins Open for Practice
You may have heard that Karmê Chöling’s retreat cabins were closed for a brief hibernation this summer. I frankly suspect this was a story circulated by a particular porcupine, who didn’t like the scolding I gave him for gnawing on the steps of Great Eastern Sun cabin. We’ve reached an understanding, and the cayenne pepper solution I’ve applied to the steps seems to have brought him around to my point of view. Fact is, we are again ready to support your solitary retreat. We’ve dusted off the cushions, repainted some walls, uplifted the shrines and fussed over the exact placement of candle-snuffers on the oryoki table. Long story short, if you are at a place where a solitary retreat would deepen your practice, and your commitment to the dharma, Karmê Chöling’s seven retreat cabins are jewels of great value. They’ve been seasoned with the practice of generations of practitioners, including some outstanding senior teachers you’ve probably learned from. Each cabin comes with a meditation instructor that you can meet with before, or even during, your solitary retreat. The forest, meadows and streams of Karmê Chöling have been blessed by many great Tibetan Buddhist teachers. In my opinion, solitary retreat in one of our cabins is some of the best practice you can do this lifetime. When the time is right, here’s where you can apply for a solitary retreat . — Mike, retreats@karmecholing.org Apply for a Solitary Retreat
Anyen Rinpoche Teaches on Profound Text “37 Practices of a Bodhisattva”
Anyen Rinpoche, who will teach on the “37 Practices of a Bodhisattva” Aug. 25 – 27 at Karme Choling, often speaks of the profound blessings showered upon the practitioner who truly serves their lama with devotion. “My lama really tamed my way of thinking and my arrogance and pride,” said Rinpoche. “Whatever good qualities I have are from my lama, but especially, the quality I got through him is that I always think about others first, how others feel.” Anyen Rinpoche was raised by a family of yak herders in the high forested mountains of eastern Tibet, a place with almost no evidence of modern life. When he was just three days old, he was recognized as a tulku by the great Dzogchen yogi Chupur Lama, who was living in the same yak-wool tent as Rinpoche’s family. When the young tulku was 7 years old, he exhibited intense and profound devotion upon hearing the name of the great master Khenchen Tsara Dharmakirti Rinpoche, who would become his root guru. Anyen Rinpoche not only gained recognition as a great scholar (khenpo), but also became a heart son of his root lama. The “37 Practices of the Bodhisattva” is a powerful Buddhist text on training the mind in kindness and compassion. It is a guide that teaches us practical ways to turn difficult situations into opportunities for growth and transformation. Rinpoche will be accompanied by his partner Allison Choying Zangmo, an accomplished translator of the Tibetan language who has been teaching the dharma under Rinpoche’s guidance since 2017.
Microbes: The Essential Workers
Today, May 4th, the first pole beans poked their heads above the ground inside our greenhouse at Karmê Chöling. Outside it is still windy and cold. Watching the birth of a plant, after warding off countless challenges from above and below, invariably fills me with awe and joy. After forty years of gardening, I still don’t take anything for granted and use the utmost care to aid the fragile process of germination. For me this process starts with building a healthy soil that is teaming with life: Microbes, fungi, and countless other visible and invisible creatures that create a beautiful soil structure, like an underground cathedral, with lots of open spaces for water and air to move up and down, in and out. Like the skin of our own body this earth needs to breathe! The question may arise: What can we do to support and strengthen these all-important microbial networks in our garden soil? First of all, we try to have this soil covered with living plants as much as possible. Plants have an extraordinary ability to capture sunlight and carbon dioxide from the air and draw moisture from the soil. They then rearrange these different molecules into simple sugars and oxygen, thus laying the foundation of this fantastic world we live in. Through this process of photosynthesis, plants not only grow roots, stems, leaves, and flowers, they also transport 10-30% of the carbohydrates produced in their leaves to the soil surrounding their roots - so-called root exudates - where they become like bitesize cookies feeding the microbes who have amassed themselves for a continuous banquet. Aside from improving soil structure, these bacteria and fungi also deliver essential minerals and moisture to the plants. In recent years we’ve also learned that plant roots eat bacteria directly through a process called rhizophagy cycle. This insight is likely to have profound implications for all farmers and home gardeners because, when taken to full advantage, it opens a biological pathway for complete plant nutrition. This is the way of natural ecosystems. An alternative to having green plants cover the soil is to use a generous layer of leaf mulch, grass clippings, or straw. This will also feed and protect the microbial community underneath. Next, to not destroy soil structure, we disturb the soil as little as possible, which allows for fungal networks to grow and thrive further. We may use a garden fork to lightly aerate (not turn) the top 7-9 inches. Third, we spread biologically active compost on top of the soil, not for nutrition but primarily to inoculate and feed the soil microbes. Only when we need to seed a crop directly, spinach or carrots for instance, do we fork the compost into the top 2 inches and rake the bed smooth. Generally I do not recommend animal manure unless it was composted in a hot compost pile. Lastly, I want to mention the benefits of microbial inoculants. You may have used a nitrogen fixing inoculant for peas and beans in the past. In recent years, research has shown which strains of bacteria and fungi are particularly beneficial to healthy plant growth. Many new products have appeared on the shelves of nurseries and catalogues. I recommend that you check out this new development. At Karmê Chöling, we use several products from Advancing Eco Agriculture and Tainio Biologicals that have helped our garden to flourish even more, including great germination of our pole beans. We have seen a steady reduction in insect pests and less need for soil fertilizer because these beneficial microbes both directly and indirectly feed the plants. If you want to learn more, join Karmê Chöling this summer for our Regenerative Gardening program co-taught by myself and Donna Williams, August 12-19. May these suggestions benefit you and your garden. Jan Enthoven