2023 Bodh Gaya Pilgrimage: 1000 Buddhas Empowerment with Khentrul Rinpoche
To register for the Nepal/ India trip following this click here.
To register for this tour, please use the Rime Buddhism Website.
Join us on this once-in-a-lifetime journey with Khentrul Rinpoché to the seat of the Buddha’s enlightenment in India. During this week-long retreat participants will connect to the Shakyamuni Buddha through the study and practice of the 1000 Buddha empowerment, puja, and sadhana at the most sacred site at and near the Mahabodi Stupa. This is the first time that Khentrul Rinpoche has offered this empowerment and has chosen the most auspicious location for the blessings of the Buddha.
Our journey takes place at the Bodhi Tree, nearby temples, and Mahabodhi Stupa where we will retreat and receive 1000 Buddha teachings. Accompanied by many monks we will perform pujas and offerings to the Buddha. In this practice, we can connect to all aspects of our Buddha nature and learn how we can use tantra to transform our emotions and samsaric limitations into the stainless qualities of Buddha nature. Each of the Buddha families represents different aspects of our enlightened nature. As we learn to identify and work with these aspects we can learn to use our daily life as the conditions and opportunities we need for enlightenment. Doing this practice in such a holy place as a pilgrimage is karmically purifying.
India is an important place for fully understanding this opportunity to use the emotions and aspects of our daily life for transformation. While Tibet has for many years maintained the Sutra and Vajrayana teachings largely in the monastic communities, India has preserved the rich variations of tantra embedded directly in their daily life and culture. Khentrul Rinpoche sees this as an inspiration for Buddhist Vajrayana. He is passionate about students being able to transform in their daily lives because if we are to keep the precious teachings of Buddhist tantra flourishing we need to keep it alive in living lay practitioners’ culture.
Cost: AUD TBD announced on April 1 (Includes shared accommodation, all teachings, empowerments, breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Daylong site-seeing in the Bodh Gaya area. Airfare is not included.)
The tour includes:
- 7-night stay in Bodh Gaya, Bihar, India
- Daily sadhana practices, guided meditations, and reflections guided by Spiritual Director, Khentrul Rinpoche,, and Senior students
- 1000 Buddha Empowerment (Initiation), Puja, and Sadhana Instructions
- Authentic traditional accommodations, all meals included
- 1 Day of Site seeing holy sites in the area
- Optional opportunity to book a personal Tibetan astrology reading
Who can come?
Pilgrimage, 1000 Buddha Empowerment, and retreat are open to everyone.
Tour Details
Tentative Schedule
Food & Accomodations
Food Indian diet is typically vegetarian and spicy. We may have the opportunity to have Tibetan cooking as well. We have arranged for a vegetarian trip as much as possible. We can not accommodate allergies. Accommodation Accommodations in Bodha Gaya are basic and not luxurious. The rooms will have bathrooms and western-style toilets. Rooms are either a twin share or a dorm-style. If you are traveling with a friend and would like to stay with them, please write in and request. We will do what we can to keep you together.
Registration
The price for this journey is $2500 AUD per person (shared occupancy). A non-refundable $1500 deposit holds your space. We will email you an invoice (via PayPal or stripe) at least a week before each due date.
Payment Schedule
Description | Amount | Due Date |
Payment #1 (20% – non-refundable) | AUD$1000 | Paid at registration |
Payment #2 (40%) | AUD$? | 1st of July |
Payment #3 (40%) | AUD$? | 15th of September |
Methods of Payment You can make payments for this tour via any of the following methods:
- Credit Card or Paypal: Check out on the form below
- Direct Debit: Tibetan Buddhist rime Institute Inc. Bank: ANZ. BSB: 013-479 Account: 4944-47223 (Please include your surname as a reference)
- Wire Transfer: Acc: Tibetan Buddhist Rime Institute. Bank: ANZ. Branch: Upper Ferntree Gully, Victoria Australia. Swift Code: ANZBAU3M. BSB:013 457. Account No: 4944 47223
Registration Process:
- Check out rimebuddhism.com website, with the non-refundable AUD$? using one of the methods described above.
- Once we have confirmed the payment, we will contact you via email to confirm your registration.
Price Includes:
- 1000 Buddha Empowerment(s) from Khentrul Rinpoche
- 3 Meals per day
- Transportation to sites within India
- All accommodations
- All meals
- All site entrance fees
- All tips at hotels and restaurants
- Indian cultural performance if possible
Price does not include:
- International airfare
- Transfer to and from the airport
- India visa fee if needed
- Travel and health insurance
- Photography fees at sites
- Tip to local guide and driver
- Dana to Teachers or Rinpoche
- Astrology or Massage bookings
- Beverages in addition to water
1000 Buddha Empowerment
Advice for Travel
You can read the American CDC’s recommendations here. We advise you to check with your local doctor to decide what is best for you. It is useful to bring a small first aid pack which includes: Nausea and diarrhea medicine, travel sickness tablets, glucose powder, paracetamol tablets, saline eyewash, cold and flu tablets, mosquito repellent, sunscreen and any other supplies you feel you may need or have been advised to bring. If you have a serious food allergy or medical condition we should know about please inform us by email to discuss it as soon as possible. This is not a strenuous trip. We will be sitting a lot. Please bring a cushion or folding chair if you need it for the sitting. On the site-seeing day we will be driving for several multi-hour stretches times on this trip, so guests should be able to sit in a vehicle for up to 5 hours at a time (although we can stop for bathroom breaks and leg-stretching along the way). Travel Insurance We suggest medical insurance which includes evacuation and trip cancellation insurance, as well, as you never know what obstacles life can toss at you leading up to a trip. However, we do not require this coverage, we only suggest it highly. We will be in remote areas that may not have a modern medical facility. Please plan accordingly. Clothing
Arriving in Bodha Gaya in October, the temperature is +32°C during the daytime and +21°C at night. The area is very dusty. In India clothes that can be hand washed are best. Also, dust can be difficult to remove from clothing so it is advised to keep that in mind when packing. Miscellaneous items
When attending the teachings, you will require something to sit on, so bring a meditation cushion with you and a plastic sheet in case it rains. You will most definitely need insect repellent. Other items which will come in handy are umbrella, sunscreen, towel, hat, sunglasses, toilet paper/tissues, batteries, headlamp, camera, SD card for extra storage, torch, chargers, adaptors, pen, paper/writing book, favorite snack food, access to $500 for extra food and miscellaneous expenses. Drinking-Water
We recommend drinking only bottled water, and you will want to rinse your toothbrush off in bottled water. Bottled and boiled water will be available throughout the trip. You can use water purification tablets and UV light purifiers. Money
You can either exchange cash in India or use local ATMs. All of your meals and transportation are covered, so you just need personal spending money. WIFI
For most of the trip, there will not be wifi available. Offerings Traditionally, an offering is made to the teacher at the conclusion of the Tour (please note that this is entirely optional) as a gesture of appreciation. You can offer whatever you think is appropriate. However, here are a few suggestions – a card, flowers, money, food or other items. A Tibetan offering scarf (khata) is given to the teacher for a blessing as part of the ceremony and can be borrowed or purchased from retreat volunteers or you may like to bring your own.
Speaker
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Khentrul RinpocheMiatt Jonang Kalachakra
Khentrul Rinpocsé Dzsamphel Lodrö a Dzokden alapítója és igazgatója. Rinpocse az alábbi könyvek szerzője: A szent igazságod feltárása I. II. III. kötet, A nagy középút: A más-üresség dzsonang nézetének magyarázata, Boldogabb élet, A mélységes ösvény rejtett kincse.
Rinpoché életének első 20 évét jakpásztorként, mantrákat kántálva élte a tibeti fennsíkon. A bódhiszattvák ösztönzésére elhagyta családját, és különféle kolostorokban tanult, az összes tibeti buddhista hagyomány, több mint huszonöt mesterének irányítása alatt. Felekezeti elfogultságtól mentes megközelítése miatt Rimé (elfogulatlan) Mester címet kapott, és a híres Kálacsakra mester, Ngawang Chözin Gyatso reinkarnációjaként azonosították. Míg tanításainak középpontjában az a felismerés áll, hogy a világ minden szellemi hagyományának sokfélesége nagy jelentőséggel bír; ő maga a Jonang-Shambhala hagyományra összpontosít. A Kálacsakra (az idő kereke) tanításai mélységes módszereket tartalmaznak a külső környezetünk, illetve a testünk és tudatunk belső világának harmonizálására, hogy végül elérjük a béke és a harmónia aranykorát (dzokden).