In-Person Only: Four Higher Kalachakra Empowerments & Retreat with Khentrul Rinpoche

In-person offered in English and Tibetan only. We do encourage international students to attend. We can supply the empowerment booklet in some languages.  This event is possible thanks to our partnership with Shambhala International.

September 25-26th (2 days)
This is for registration for the Kalachakra Four Higher Empowerments and mini-retreat. This will take place directly following the Kalachakra Empowerment in Boulder. If you have been previously approved or received the Higher Empowerment you can register without request. If you receive the Higher Empowerment you are able to register for any of the Dark Room retreats in the future. If you would like to go to Kalapa in Austria to do the Dark Room (3 isolations) practice retreat, you can do so for weeks 2-4 because you have received the empowerment previously.  Register for the August Dark Room retreats in Austria

Rinpoche has kindly accepted a request to bestow the Four Higher Empowerments of Kalachakra in the USA for the first time since 2018. After receiving these empowerments, you will have all the qualifications to prepare yourself to enter the profound completion stage of Kalachakra in the future. To ensure that students succeed in their paths, Rinpoche bestows these Higher Empowerments only to pre-approved students who genuinely wish to deepen their practice of the Kalachakra path. This is an important step to reinforce the bond between the vajra master and student in working together towards enlightenment. You are more than welcome to present yourself as a candidate to receive these empowerments by sending your application here. To make sure that we can evaluate your application in time, please send it in as soon as possible. However, if you have already been approved, you can simply register for this event directly.

(Note: the Kalachakra Four Higher Empowerments are not the same Kalachakra Empowerments that Rinpoche given in Hong Kong in 2020 and in other places such as in Vienna in 2019, which are called “The Seven Empowerments of a Growing Child”.)

About the Empowerments and Retreat
“Up to this point, our use of conceptual methods has been instrumental in removing our many layers of misconception, but as they are embedded in the dualistic mind, these methods function as a subtle barrier to experiencing our definitive nature. For this reason, we need to abandon them in favor of a direct approach that works without conceptual fabrications. We can achieve this transformation from conceptual to non-conceptual in two steps. Firstly we are introduced to the Kalachakra view by receiving the Four Higher Empowerments. Secondly, with the establishment of this view, we use the unique meditation technique of the Three Isolations (Wensum) to cut the proliferation of thoughts and abide in the nature of the mind.” (Khentrul Rinpoche, “Unveiling Your Sacred Truth 3”)

The program fee for the retreat encompasses 1) Secret Dakini Oral Transmission, 2) The Kalachakra Four Higher Empowerments, 3) Teaching-Transmission of the Wensum (Three Isolations) Practice, 4) a printed booklet about the Empowerments and Practice. Accommodations and food are not provided.

SCHEDULE:
September 25-26th
9:00 am – 9 pm Monday and Tuesday.
The last session is optional for those who need to leave earlier to return to their accommodation.

How to prepare for this retreat
If this will be your first time taking part, we strongly encourage you to prepare yourself as much as you can with the Kalachakra Preliminary Practices. In addition to the longer sadhanas “Divine Ladder” and “Enlightening the Heart”, you will need to know the sadhana “Secret Dakini Treasure”. For the latter, you must register here for the oral commentary Rinpoche gave recently if you have not already done so. We encourage you to study all the sadhanas as much as you can, including the transliterations and chantings, because there will be some sessions of chanting in Tibetan without a recording during the retreat.

Materials
Bring your practice book “The Profound Path of Vajra Yoga”. You can also bring Rinpoche’s commentary “The Hidden Treasure” as a reference for your practice. Other reading materials not directly related to the Wensum practice are not allowed during the retreat period. You will also need the Secret Dakini Treasure eBook.

Retreat Information and Guidelines
Practice sessions will be conducted in English and Tibetan. If you absolutely prefer, you can bring copies of the texts in your own language as well and read them silently while the group recites in English.

Payment Options
Once you have been approved for the empowerment and the 2-day retreat (accommodations not included), please choose the program fee that fits your financial circumstances. Rinpoche always reminds people to pay attention to what they prioritize and put their money on as the number 1 reason people ask for Financial aid is that they prioritized everything else in their life much higher than Dharma.

Accommodations
The location is central in Boulder. There are many cafes and places to eat around the location. For those trying to save money, we encourage airbnb and cafe. If you are on a limited budget we can try to find a community member for you to stay with. Please email [email protected] if you need further recommendations for accommodations.