Volume 18, Number 1 / February 2018
Letter from the Editors
Auspicious New Beginnings in 2018
Dear Friends,
We have lots of wonderful news to start the New Year!
On January 1, 2018, the new 34th Menri Trizin was announced: His Holiness Geshe Dawa Dhargyal Rinpoche. You can learn more below about the selection process, as well as some of the details of his life growing up in Tibet and coming to India. More
Bönpos Welcome His Holiness Geshe Dawa Dhargyal Rinpoche as 34th Menri Trizin
E MA HO!
The Bön community worldwide welcomes His Holiness Geshe Dawa Dhargyal Rinpoche as the 34th Menri Trizin (abbot of Menri Monastery and holder of the Bön lineage). His January 1 selection from among 64 candidates followed a process that included prayers and rituals to Bön deities and protectors. More
Longevity, Well-Being and Finding Freedom
An Edited Excerpt from Oral Teachings Given by Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, Fall 2017
It's definitely true that as humanity – as a society and as individuals – we do want to live as long as possible, and as well as possible. We want to learn as much as possible, serve as much as possible and live with each other in harmony as much as possible. That's for sure, there's no question about it. But it seems like it's limiting yourself if you are always thinking about trying to keep your body alive forever. First of all, it's not going to happen. Second, you might be wasting your time and also draining your energy faster than necessary. Sometimes, the more you struggle with life and aging and its many challenges, the more you are going to drain your energy rather than preserving it. More
New Projects on the Horizon
Letter from Ligmincha International President Rob Patzig
Dear Sangha and Friends,
The year 2018 has begun with an extraordinary event! Last fall we entered a period of mourning and reflection as on September 14 His Holiness Lungtok Tenpai Nyima Rinpoche, the 33rd Menri Trizin Rinpoche, passed away. And while no one can replace His Holiness Lungtok Tenpai Nyima Rinpoche, we rejoice in the appointment of his successor, the 34th Menri Trizin, His Holiness Geshe Dawa Dhargyal Rinpoche. More
Losar 2018
Welcome the Tibetan New Year February 17 on Ligmincha's Facebook Page
All are invited to join Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, Ligmincha resident lamas and Ligmincha President Rob Patzig in a special live broadcast on Ligmincha International's Facebook page for joyfully ushering in the Tibetan New Year, the Year of the Earth Dog. More
'Sherap Chamma: Mother of Wisdom and Love'
Serenity Ridge Retreat February 16–18 with Marcy Vaughn
Sherap Chamma, Mother of Wisdom and Love, is the source of wisdom, and her medicine is love and compassion. The teachings of Sherap Chamma comprise one of the most important tantric cycles of the ancient Bön tradition.
Marcy Vaughn, senior student of Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, will help participants learn a beautiful and simple meditation practice enabling each to directly connect with the divine feminine energy. More
Upcoming Spring Retreats Focus on 'The Five Wisdoms'
Retreats at Serenity Ridge in Virginia and Vienna, Austria
Join Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche in exploring “The Five Wisdoms” this spring. Rinpoche will teach on the topic at the Serenity Ridge Spring Retreat April 13–15 and in Vienna, Austria May 11–13.
Wisdom has a specific meaning in dzogchen: the recognition of the natural state, one’s true nature. It does not refer to something we come by gradually or with age or experience; rather, it describes the recognition of the complete perfection in this moment, in any given moment. More
‘Ngöndro: The Foundational Practices’
New Ligmincha Learning Online Course Starting in March!
Ligmincha Learning is pleased to offer a NEW online course, “Ngöndro: The Foundational Practices.” This completely new course will begin March 2 and will continue for nine months until December 2, much longer than other online courses, due to the number of meditation practices and the commitment of the practitioners to accumulate 100,000 repetitions of many of the practices. Registration is now open for this course! More
February GlideWing Workshop
'The Truth That Sets You Free: Discovering Your Inner Wisdom Through Practices of Waking and Sleeping'
The next GlideWing online workshop with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, “The Truth That Sets You Free: Discovering Your Inner Wisdom Through Practices of Waking and Sleeping,” will be held February 17–March 11, 2018. More
TWR LIVE Pith Instructions Continue in 2018
Free Facebook Broadcasts with Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche plans to continue offering teachings in his Pith Instructions series on TWR LIVE this year. View the three January teachings in this live Facebook series in the Ligmincha Learning website’s archive of recordings, and look for more to come. More
'Meditation as Medicine' Research Study Results
Pain Reduced by One-Third Among Online Workshop Participants
In summer 2016, Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche and GlideWing Online Workshops offered a three-week online workshop featuring Bön Buddhist teachings and meditation practices for reducing physical and emotional pain. A formal research study was conducted to determine the effects of the workshop.
The findings showed that participants’ physical and emotional pain were reduced by more than one-third after three weeks, and that the effects persisted after the workshop. More
A Meeting of Hearts and Minds
'Common Ground Among Six Spiritual Traditions of Tibet'
On January 3, 2018, acclaimed Tibetan Buddhist teachers from six diverse Tibetan spiritual traditions participated in a TWR LIVE discussion of the common ground between their respective traditions — Sakya, Gelug, Kagyu, Nyingma, Jonang and Yungdrung Bön. The live broadcast was recorded and can be viewed via the links below. More
Lishu Institute's New Curriculum
Interviews with Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche and Sangmo Yangri
Lishu Institute, Ligmincha’s residential retreat center for intensive practice and study of Bön in Northern India, will complete its first three years of teaching and study in June and will begin a new cycle in September 2018.
The curriculum has been revised, and participants are now able to apply for any of the three 10-week cycles offered during a year, as well as for the entire yearly cycle of study. More
The 3 Doors in the New Year
New Report, Online Meditation and North American Academy
As The 3 Doors greeted the New Year in January, Outlook Report 2018 offered a colorful summary of where the organization has been and where it is going. The 3 Doors, founded by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, teaches ancient Tibetan meditation methods that are relevant to modern life. More
Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche's Teaching Schedule
Upcoming Retreats for February–May 2018
Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche’s new 2018 teaching schedule by date and location is available on the Ligmincha International website.
The schedule includes Rinpoche’s in-person teachings at Ligmincha International retreat centers or other locations throughout the world. It also includes his online teachings offered through Ligmincha Learning and GlideWing. A schedule of free TWR LIVE teachings offered regularly through Rinpoche’s Facebook page can be found on Ligmincha Learning as broadcasts are scheduled. More
Ligmincha Europe Magazine Autumn 2017
Featuring Worldwide Sangha News
Enjoy the latest issue, published in late December 2017.
Spanish Translation of VOCL
Link to December Issue Now Available
Look for the translations of Voice of Clear Light newsletters at the top of the Voice of Clear Light website. We hope to have the translation of VOCL in Portuguese at a later date.
Upcoming Retreats
Serenity Ridge Retreat Center
The retreats listed below will take place at Serenity Ridge Retreat Center, Ligmincha International headquarters located in rural Nelson County, Virginia. To register or for more information, click on the links below, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call 434-263-6304.
February 16–18, 2018
Special Retreat: Sherap Chamma: Mother of Wisdom and Love
with Marcy Vaughn
Learn more/register
April 13–15, 2018
Spring Retreat: The Five Wisdoms
with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
Learn more/register
June 24–July 7, 2018
Summer Retreat: Tummo: Inner Fire of Realization
with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
October 17–21, 2018
Fall Retreat: Powa: Transfer of Consciousness from the Bön Mother Tantra
with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
December 27, 2017–January 1, 2018
Winter Retreat: The Experiential Transmission of Zhang Zhung, Part 5
with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
Prerequisite: Previous completion of Parts 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the Experiential Transmission of Zhang Zhung series.
To register for any of the above retreats, or for more information about teachings in the Bön Buddhist tradition of Tibet, please This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , call 434-263-6304 or visit the Serenity Ridge website.