SECOND Vajra Yoga of Kālachakra: Empowerment, Teachings & Retreat with Khentrul Rinpoche
In-person only
To register for this event, please go to the Dzokden Kalapa website here.
August 11 – 21 (10 nights)
After repeated requests from individuals and groups over the last years, Rinpoche has finally accepted the request to teach all 6 Vajra Yogas of Kālachakra for the first time in Europe. This is a milestone in the history of Kālachakra practice in the West. This is a precious and incredibly rare opportunity, and we are delighted and grateful to be able to offer it at Kalapa.
If you have already received the First Vajra Yoga of Kālachakra with Rinpoche, we welcome you to check the requirements and to present yourself as a candidate by clicking here. To bring more clarity to the preparation process, we have prepared an additional explanation inside the application form. Only upon approval will you be able to proceed with registration. Please do not register before receiving the confirmation of approval. If you have, however, already received the Second Vajra Yoga in 2025, then you can proceed to registration directly without needing to send an application.
About the Event and Schedule
The Vajra Yoga of Stabilisation — Skt. Dhyāna, Tib. samten
The essence of the Second Vajra Yoga is to extend our realization of empty-forms (“forms of emptiness”) so that all perceptions arise as awareness:
Through this Second Vajra Yoga, the perception of the empty-forms attained in the previous practice is unified indivisibly with the awareness of an inner perceiver, and therefore one’s speech, inner wind, and awareness become unwavering. While the First Vajra Yoga allows one to perceive the empty-forms of the ten signs as the objects of the mind, the Second Vajra Yoga enables the practitioner to “mix” these signs with the mind and experience the joy and bliss of analysis (special insight). Prior to this stage, you practice with the eye sense consciousness and visual forms. Here, you practice with each of the sense consciousnesses and their objects individually — including sound, smell, taste, and touch. At this stage, special conditions such as a dark room are not always necessary.
The event encompasses 1) two days with Preliminary Practices, Guru Pūja, Kālachakra-Tsok, and a walk and practice in the nature with Rinpoche, 2) The Four Higher Empowerments of Kālachakra (Rinpoche will bestow them again for the sake of your spiritual progress), 3) Transmission and Teachings for the Second Vajra Yoga, 4) If needed, a personal audiences with Rinpoche (upon request), 5) one week of Retreat with practice sessions guided by senior students, as well as 6) food and accommodation at the Dzokden Kalapa Retreat Center.
SCHEDULE (10 nights)
August 11 — Arrival, Welcome Meeting & Introductions, Ritual | Check-in from 2:00 to 4:00 PM
August 12 (new moon) — Kālachakra Preliminary Practices, Rituals, Walk and Practice in the nature around Dzokden Kalapa Retreat Center with Rinpoche
August 13 — Four Higher Empowerments for the Second Vajra Yoga participants and Second Vajra Yoga Transmission
August 13 – 20 — Second Vajra Yoga Practice Retreat, Second Vajra Yoga Teachings & Personal Audiences with Rinpoche
August 21 — Last practice session and Check-out from 10:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Note: on the weekend of August 24 – 25, there will be the Vajra Sangha Family Day (register: kalapa.org/calendar). If you wish/need to stay one or more additional nights at the Retreat Center after the Second Yoga Retreat (either dormitory or tent), write us ([email protected]) so that we can inform you of the conditions.
How to Prepare and Materials
We recommend that you attend the Practice Retreat in the Winter and/or the First Vajra Yoga retreat of this year, so that you can be better prepared.
How to prepare: We strongly encourage you to prepare yourself as much as you can with all the 9 Kālachakra Preliminary Practices and especially all the practices related to the First Vajra Yoga. In addition to the sādhanas “Divine Ladder” and “Enlightening the Heart”, you will need to know the sādhana “Secret Ḍākinī Treasure.” For the latter, you must register here for the recorded commentary if you have not already received it previously (there you also find the recorded chanting).
Make sure to register for, study, and practice as much as you can the GURU PŪJĀ and the KĀLACHAKRA-TSOK to prepare yourself so that you know these rituals and their meanings very well beforehand. Both courses have texts and teachings translated into many languages. Inside, you find the chantings and practical explanations as well. If you wish (not mandatory), bring your own vajra, bell, ḍamaru, or other ritual instruments.
We encourage you to study all the sādhanas and pūjās as much as you can, including the chantings.
Materials: You can borrow printed texts of Guru Pūjā and Tsok to use during the event. Bring your printed books, “The Profound Path of Vajra Yoga“, the “Four Higher Empowerments” Booklet; your eye mask, and your meditation belt. You can also bring Rinpoche’s “The Hidden Treasure,” “Unveiling Your Sacred Truth 3,” and your restricted booklet as a reference for your practice. Everything must be on paper because electronic devices are not allowed after the strict retreat begins. Reading materials not directly related to this practice are not allowed during the strict retreat period. If you have already participated before, bring also your own restricted Second Vajra Yoga Booklet.
Retreat Information and Guidelines
After the Empowerments on August 13, the strict retreat period will begin. It will be closed and in silence. During this period, participants are not allowed to receive visitors or use mobile phones, tablet devices, pads, smart watches, laptops, computers, etc. We can store these in our office if you wish. If someone needs to contact you in case of an emergency, they can email [email protected] or call +43 676 395 8898, and we will inform you. Rinpoche advises participants to follow the guidelines respectfully, not only for the success of their own practice but also to avoid disturbing others.
The daily schedule consists of four practice sessions of the Second Vajra Yoga and occasional teachings, rituals, and audiences. Participation in two daily group sessions is mandatory unless health conditions completely prevent you from taking part. The remaining two sessions can be practiced in your own room if you prefer. Practice sessions will be conducted in English and Tibetan.
During this retreat, a participant accumulates at least 30 hours of Second Vajra Yoga practice, or more if one does longer sessions or practice/study in between.
Registration
The fee for the retreat includes three vegetarian meals and shared accommodation at the Dzokden Kalapa Retreat Center. Please inform us in advance if you have allergies, food intolerances, or other important health or mental conditions that we need to consider. We cannot offer space for individual rooms for participants of this event. However, you can alternatively bring your own tent and sleep outside near the Kālachakra Stūpa (see registration options below).
Off-Site Accommodations If you absolutely need an individual room, many options for accommodations are available near the retreat center’s area, in the Garanas region, and in the town of Bad Schwanberg. In this case, please search for and book the necessary reservations yourself.
FAQ: Please note that it takes incredible merit to have the conditions for this project to happen: 1) We have made a large effort to keep the cost reasonable within our context. We encourage practitioners to save up and create the conditions to participate. In the past, people have given everything they had to the Vajra Master for similar teachings. 2) If you cannot commit to attending for the entire period, please let us know in advance the exact date and time of your earlier check-out. Leaving earlier is not recommended at all, but we can make an exception if you have no other option or really cannot stay the entire period (please let us know the reasons beforehand by email). We cannot offer you a special registration cost. The cost is for the entire event, regardless of whether you can stay for the entire period or not.
Volunteer Opportunities
We need one volunteer to cook breakfast, lunch, and a light dinner for the participants, and a second volunteer as a cook helper. The volunteers will be able to enjoy all the areas in the retreat center except for the Kālachakra Temple, where the participants will practice. Unlike the participants, external volunteers can access electronic devices. This is an extraordinary opportunity to generate merit and create the causes to be able to engage in this practice yourself in the future. Rinpoche strongly encourages us to support our dharma brothers and sisters by volunteering.
During your stay, we can provide free access to an online course or recorded retreat at our digital learning center if you would like to support your practice and study while you are volunteering. Alternatively, if you have already received the Second Vajra Yoga teachings and want to volunteer full-time for the whole period, you can also participate in the sessions of the event in the temple for free.
If you are considering this opportunity, please write as soon as possible to [email protected]. You can also volunteer for only a portion of the event; you can offer as much as possible according to your possibilities. That being said, we prefer the participation of someone who can commit to the whole period.
If you are part of the EAP — Enlightened Activities Program — and need to gather participation for attending Completion Stage teachings, your participation as a volunteer for this event can be counted: Main Cook — around 128 EAP hours in total | Assistant Cook — around 108 EAP hours in total
How to get to Kalapa?
How to get to Kalapa? Dzokden Kalapa Retreat Center, Garanas 41, Bad Schwanberg, zip code 8541, Austria, Südweststeiermark. The nearest airport is in Graz, Austria.
By car: From the Graz-West motorway junction (A2/A9), get on the A2 towards Klagenfurt/Italy and take the Lieboch exit. Then, continue on Federal Road 76 towards Eibiswald. After about 30 km, you will reach Bad Schwanberg. At the end of the main square in Bad Schwanberg, turn left towards Garanas. After the bridge, keep the right side towards Garanas and follow the signs to “Kalachakra Kalapa Center” uphill for about 8 km to reach the center.
By train: To travel to Kalapa by train, start at the main train station in Graz. From there, take the S6 or S61 S-Bahn towards Wies-Eibiswald for about an hour to the Bad Schwanberg station. (timetable information) To travel from the Bad Schwanberg train station to the retreat center, we will send additional info via email some weeks before the event.
