Natural Bridge, VA 24578
Summer of Mindfulness
At Bodhi Path Natural Bridge
Cultivating Mindfulness:
On the path to awakening, awareness is a key factor. Through meditation one sharpens the capacity to remain one-pointedly in stillness. With this skill, the discovery of the innermost essence of mind is possible.
There are many ways to cultivate mindfulness: sitting on the cushion, mindful walking, holding a calligraphy brush. During these two weeks we will explore these different methods in pursuit of the same goal: A calm, attentive mind capable of contemplating itself.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Join us for a two-week immersion
in several methods of mindfulness
Complete program: June 23-July 7,
or attend either session:
Session 1: Sitting and Strolling; a meditation retreat June 23 to 30
Session 2: Brush and Breath; a contemplative approach to calligraphy
June 30 to July 7
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Session 1:
Sitting and Strolling; a meditation retreat
Led by Dharma Teacher Tsony
During this workshop we will explore mindfulness through sitting meditation and contemplative walking. By means of regular calm abiding meditation, we can begin to uncover the basic nature of mind. In doing so, our natural, pure intelligence, or Buddha Nature, is revealed, and gradually awakening begins to dawn. This seven-day retreat of sitting and walking is an opportunity to pursue this path to awakening, to experience the world more directly, and to connect more fully with the nature of our own mind. Join us for the simple, but quite profound exploration of mindfulness.
Session 2:
Brush and Breath; a contemplative approach to calligraphy
Led by Dharma Teacher Kunkyab
During this workshop we will explore mindfulness through calligraphy, investigating the sacred as expressed through art from the Tibetan and Chinese traditions. The truth of creative gesture is linked to one’s state of mind at the moment of creation. The source of this comes from the depth of one's being in a state in which one is no longer conscious of the self. When the artist considers him/herself as a simple vehicle through which the creation is realized, free from all notions of a creator, action, and output, then this state of mind gives rise to the sacred dimension. Join us as we explore this world of breath that gives life to art using the Chinese brush and the Calam, or bamboo pen.
No prior art training is necessary. All art supplies will be provided. Limited to 30 participants, accepted on a first come, first served basis.
The teachers:
Dharma Teacher Tsony was a Buddhist monk for over 25 years, completing two traditional 3-year retreats under the guidance of the great meditation master Gendun Rinpoche. For 15 years he was the Abbot of Kundreul Ling Monastery in France where hundreds of Westerners have completed traditional 3-year retreats.
He has been teaching Buddhism and meditation practice at Bodhi Path centers under the spiritual guidance of Shamar Rinpoche since 1999. In 2007, after choosing to adopt the lifestyle of a lay Dharma teacher, he left the monastic community to concentrate on nurturing Bodhi Path activities in Europe and the US. Following Shamar Rinpoche's advice, he became the resident teacher at Bodhi Path Natural Bridge 2009.
Dharma Teacher Kunkyab is an artist and Buddhist teacher of the Kagyu Lineage. A painter by training, Kunkyab holds a degree in fine arts, and taught art in secondary school before he became a disciple of Gendun Rinpoche. He completed two traditional 3-year retreats under Gendun Rinpoche’s guidance. He has been teaching the Dharma in Europe since 1999.
Shamar Rinpoche has expressed repeatedly his wish that Dharma art be established in the West and sourced directly from the Karma Gadri School (the tradition of the Karma Kagyu). Dharma Teacher Kunkyab has been studying Tibetan art since 1987 while assisting the master painter Denzhong Norbu during the 12 years it took to complete the intricate tangkas, frescoes and mandalas of Kundreul Ling temple in France. He currently co-directs the sacred Buddhist art workshops of the Gadri project.
Schedule:
Session 1 starts Saturday, June 23, with an introductory talk from 5 to 6:30 pm. It continues daily from 9 am to 5 pm through Saturday, June 30, concluding with a mid day picnic celebration.
Session 2 starts Saturday, June 30, with an introductory talk from 5 to 6:30 pm. It continues daily from 9 am to 5 pm through Saturday, July 7, concluding with a mid day picnic celebration.
Lunch is provided throughout.
General information
Location: Both programs will take place at Bodhi Path Natural Bridge, located eight miles south of Lexington, Virginia, at the south end of the beautiful Shenandoah Valley.
Address: 12 Bodhi Path,Natural Bridge,VA,24578.
Accommodations:
For out of town participants, there are limited on-site, shared housing options filled on a first come, first served basis. Cost for on-site housing:
Two week stay, $35 per night shared room.
One week stay, $40 per night shared room.
For details about these and other accommodation options please write to Wendelin at: housingva@bodhipath.org.
Hotel/motels:
South River Highlands, 540-463-2593. innkeepers@southriverhighlands.com. Lovely rustic cabins, dorm spaces ($45 per night) and private rooms ($85 per night). 15 miles from center, car necessary. Mention Bodhi Path.
Budget Inn Natural Bridge, 540-291-2896. A modest motel, 1+ mile from the center. Special rate of $59.95-$69.99 for the “nothing fancy” crowd. Mention Bodhi Path.
Blacksmith Inn B&B, 540-291-4000. 3-miles from the center. Mention Bodhi Path.
Natural Bridge of Virginia Hotel, 800-533-1410. 5 miles from center.
For other accommodations 10+ miles from the center, please visit the Lexington Visitors Center’s website at www.lexingtonvirginia.com.
Camping:
Natural Bridge KOA. 540-291-2770. RV hook-ups, small cabins, tents. 2 miles from the center.
Transportation:
The closest airport is in Roanoke, VA, 45 miles from the center. Car rental available at airport.
Limo Service available from: Roanoke Airport Transportation Service, 540-345-7710, and Prestige Limousine, Inc., 540-342-8049. Price depends on number of people traveling together. Call for pricing. Make arrangements early to insure availability.
Lynchburg, Virginia, is a regional airport about one and a half hours from the center. This airport is often cheapest for those flying from the west. You will need a rental car from this airport.
Washington DC airports, Dulles International or Reagan International, about 200 and 210 miles respectively. You will need a rental car if you fly into either of these airports.
Baltimore International Airport, about 240 miles from the center. You will need a rental
car if you fly into this airport.
Suggested Donation:
Complete Program (both sessions) June 23 to July 7:
$600. (Housing additional)
Session 1: Sitting and Strolling June 23 to 30:
$275 for the week, or $45 per day.* (Housing additional)
Early bird special for registration by May 15: $250.
Session 2: Brush and Breath June 30 to July 7:
$395 for the week or $65 per day.* (Housing additional)
Early bird special for registration by May 15: $350.
*Please note: If you are only able to attend part of the program, please attend the first few days so as not to interrupt the cohesiveness of the program mid way.
Reservation and payment deadline:
Advanced registration must be made, along with full payment, by June 10.
Please reserve early to help our planning.
Prior to June 10, your total program fee, minus a $40 per person registration fee, will be refunded upon cancellation. After June 10, no refunds will be made.
Please note: Your registration will not be complete until you receive our confirmation that we have received your payment.
Bodhi Path is an international organization founded by the 14th Shamar Rinpoche. Teachers provide meditation and philosophy instruction and guidance to learn and practice Buddhism.
Summer of Mindfulness
At Bodhi Path Natural Bridge
Cultivating Mindfulness:
On the path to awakening, awareness is a key factor. Through meditation one sharpens the capacity to remain one-pointedly in stillness. With this skill, the discovery of the innermost essence of mind is possible.
There are many ways to cultivate mindfulness: sitting on the cushion, mindful walking, holding a calligraphy brush. During these two weeks we will explore these different methods in pursuit of the same goal: A calm, attentive mind capable of contemplating itself.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Join us for a two-week immersion
in several methods of mindfulness
Complete program: June 23-July 7,
or attend either session:
Session 1: Sitting and Strolling; a meditation retreat June 23 to 30
Session 2: Brush and Breath; a contemplative approach to calligraphy
June 30 to July 7
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Session 1:
Sitting and Strolling; a meditation retreat
Led by Dharma Teacher Tsony
During this workshop we will explore mindfulness through sitting meditation and contemplative walking. By means of regular calm abiding meditation, we can begin to uncover the basic nature of mind. In doing so, our natural, pure intelligence, or Buddha Nature, is revealed, and gradually awakening begins to dawn. This seven-day retreat of sitting and walking is an opportunity to pursue this path to awakening, to experience the world more directly, and to connect more fully with the nature of our own mind. Join us for the simple, but quite profound exploration of mindfulness.
Session 2:
Brush and Breath; a contemplative approach to calligraphy
Led by Dharma Teacher Kunkyab
During this workshop we will explore mindfulness through calligraphy, investigating the sacred as expressed through art from the Tibetan and Chinese traditions. The truth of creative gesture is linked to one’s state of mind at the moment of creation. The source of this comes from the depth of one's being in a state in which one is no longer conscious of the self. When the artist considers him/herself as a simple vehicle through which the creation is realized, free from all notions of a creator, action, and output, then this state of mind gives rise to the sacred dimension. Join us as we explore this world of breath that gives life to art using the Chinese brush and the Calam, or bamboo pen.
No prior art training is necessary. All art supplies will be provided. Limited to 30 participants, accepted on a first come, first served basis.
The teachers:
Dharma Teacher Tsony was a Buddhist monk for over 25 years, completing two traditional 3-year retreats under the guidance of the great meditation master Gendun Rinpoche. For 15 years he was the Abbot of Kundreul Ling Monastery in France where hundreds of Westerners have completed traditional 3-year retreats.
He has been teaching Buddhism and meditation practice at Bodhi Path centers under the spiritual guidance of Shamar Rinpoche since 1999. In 2007, after choosing to adopt the lifestyle of a lay Dharma teacher, he left the monastic community to concentrate on nurturing Bodhi Path activities in Europe and the US. Following Shamar Rinpoche's advice, he became the resident teacher at Bodhi Path Natural Bridge 2009.
Dharma Teacher Kunkyab is an artist and Buddhist teacher of the Kagyu Lineage. A painter by training, Kunkyab holds a degree in fine arts, and taught art in secondary school before he became a disciple of Gendun Rinpoche. He completed two traditional 3-year retreats under Gendun Rinpoche’s guidance. He has been teaching the Dharma in Europe since 1999.
Shamar Rinpoche has expressed repeatedly his wish that Dharma art be established in the West and sourced directly from the Karma Gadri School (the tradition of the Karma Kagyu). Dharma Teacher Kunkyab has been studying Tibetan art since 1987 while assisting the master painter Denzhong Norbu during the 12 years it took to complete the intricate tangkas, frescoes and mandalas of Kundreul Ling temple in France. He currently co-directs the sacred Buddhist art workshops of the Gadri project.
Schedule:
Session 1 starts Saturday, June 23, with an introductory talk from 5 to 6:30 pm. It continues daily from 9 am to 5 pm through Saturday, June 30, concluding with a mid day picnic celebration.
Session 2 starts Saturday, June 30, with an introductory talk from 5 to 6:30 pm. It continues daily from 9 am to 5 pm through Saturday, July 7, concluding with a mid day picnic celebration.
Lunch is provided throughout.
General information
Location: Both programs will take place at Bodhi Path Natural Bridge, located eight miles south of Lexington, Virginia, at the south end of the beautiful Shenandoah Valley.
Address: 12 Bodhi Path,Natural Bridge,VA,24578.
Accommodations:
For out of town participants, there are limited on-site, shared housing options filled on a first come, first served basis. Cost for on-site housing:
Two week stay, $35 per night shared room.
One week stay, $40 per night shared room.
For details about these and other accommodation options please write to Wendelin at: housingva@bodhipath.org.
Hotel/motels:
South River Highlands, 540-463-2593. innkeepers@southriverhighlands.com. Lovely rustic cabins, dorm spaces ($45 per night) and private rooms ($85 per night). 15 miles from center, car necessary. Mention Bodhi Path.
Budget Inn Natural Bridge, 540-291-2896. A modest motel, 1+ mile from the center. Special rate of $59.95-$69.99 for the “nothing fancy” crowd. Mention Bodhi Path.
Blacksmith Inn B&B, 540-291-4000. 3-miles from the center. Mention Bodhi Path.
Natural Bridge of Virginia Hotel, 800-533-1410. 5 miles from center.
For other accommodations 10+ miles from the center, please visit the Lexington Visitors Center’s website at www.lexingtonvirginia.com.
Camping:
Natural Bridge KOA. 540-291-2770. RV hook-ups, small cabins, tents. 2 miles from the center.
Transportation:
The closest airport is in Roanoke, VA, 45 miles from the center. Car rental available at airport.
Limo Service available from: Roanoke Airport Transportation Service, 540-345-7710, and Prestige Limousine, Inc., 540-342-8049. Price depends on number of people traveling together. Call for pricing. Make arrangements early to insure availability.
Lynchburg, Virginia, is a regional airport about one and a half hours from the center. This airport is often cheapest for those flying from the west. You will need a rental car from this airport.
Washington DC airports, Dulles International or Reagan International, about 200 and 210 miles respectively. You will need a rental car if you fly into either of these airports.
Baltimore International Airport, about 240 miles from the center. You will need a rental
car if you fly into this airport.
Suggested Donation:
Complete Program (both sessions) June 23 to July 7:
$600. (Housing additional)
Session 1: Sitting and Strolling June 23 to 30:
$275 for the week, or $45 per day.* (Housing additional)
Early bird special for registration by May 15: $250.
Session 2: Brush and Breath June 30 to July 7:
$395 for the week or $65 per day.* (Housing additional)
Early bird special for registration by May 15: $350.
*Please note: If you are only able to attend part of the program, please attend the first few days so as not to interrupt the cohesiveness of the program mid way.
Reservation and payment deadline:
Advanced registration must be made, along with full payment, by June 10.
Please reserve early to help our planning.
Prior to June 10, your total program fee, minus a $40 per person registration fee, will be refunded upon cancellation. After June 10, no refunds will be made.
Please note: Your registration will not be complete until you receive our confirmation that we have received your payment.