On the weekend of Feb 8th Gomde again hosted the Buddhist Studies Department of UC Berkeley for the second annual Rangjung Yeshe Gomde-UC Berkeley Buddhist Studies Workshop.  Organized by Gomde’s Dharmachakra Translation Center, 25 professors and graduate students gathered at Gomde to read works from the Hevajra Tantra corpus with the renowned scholar of Sanskrit Buddhist tantra, Harunaga Isaacson of the the University of Hamburg. Workshop participants, guided by Professor Isaacson’s unique sensitivity for the material and unparalleled language ability, read from a selection of Sanskrit texts, including passages of the Hevajra Tantra and the commentaries and practice manuals of Ratnākaraśānti and Dombi Heruka.  Many of the participants brought their partners and children, who were able to make the most of the land and the unseasonably pleasant weather.  The rugged beauty and remoteness of Gomde provided the perfect venue to study and translate such exceptional Buddhist texts.

We have made great progress on our master plan efforts this last fall.  Our first step is to secure a Use Permit and Rezoning.  The Use Permit establishes what specific activities at can take place on the property and the new zoning establishes the uses and provides for the definition of such things as such as height, density, setbacks etc. We submitted out Use Permit and Rezoning Application in late December and are awaiting initial comments from our Mendocino County planner.  We also submitted a fire safety permit.  Jay Kilgammon, one of our members from Canada who is a fire fighter assisted us in developing a well thought out fire response and safety plan. Thank you Jay!

As part of this process we have also been in discussions with the Building Inspection Department of the County.  We will have to bring the Buddha Hall up to code as a public assembly building.  What this will entail is still up to discussion and review with county staff.  It is safe to expect that this work will need to take place sooner than later.  It is estimated to cost about $140,000.

As part of this process we must also review our status, permits and system requirements for water, septic/wastewater, and utilities.  Short term improvements are likely to include upgrades to our gray water system and water treatment systems.  Water storage is also likely to be needed.  The exact timing of these improvements has not been determined.

Once we have an acceptable application it will be distributed to a variety of public agencies including State and Federal agencies such as regional water quality and fish and wildlife.  We had a botanical survey done on the property last year and there is only one potential plant that may have any protected status.  This is good news.

Our application’s main purpose is to bring the property into compliance with County requirements as they relate to our actual uses and activities as a retreat center.  We have requested a small amount of new development, including the conversion of the barn into a 12 room dormitory, two new retreat cabins, and new storage buildings to replace our existing storage sheds across from the Sangha House.

Other good news is that based on a legal review of our water rights, we have established legal rights to use all of the water interchangeably on the property, i.e., springs and water from Leggett Gulch, Cedar Creek and the Eel River. Exactly what water we will use has not been determined and will be based on the “demand” the county will expect to meet our uses and activities.

The rough budget for work is as follows:

Planning Studies, Engineers, processing fees, etc.:     $142,500

Water, Sewer and Utility Upgrades:                             $130,000

Buddha Hall Code Compliance Upgrades:                   $141,000

Other buildings, roads, campground, etc.:                    $126,000

Total Short Term Budget:                                             $539,500

This work is expected to take place over the next five years.

The Master Plan committee consists of:

Joanne Brion, Project Manager

Shabad Khalsa, Fire, Water and Utilities

Bruce Hammond, Building Codes, Design and Septic/Wastewater

Dorje Bond, Community Outreach and Building Code/Permits

Please let us know if you have any questions. Click here to email Joanne.

In early 2012, Ryan helped clear the area on the North side of Shedra Meadow for a possible Translation Center building area. Land areas were cleared, and brush piles were burned from the 2011 effort by Jack and his crew. Considerable effort was expended on pruning the fruit trees.

Lee proceeded to complete new flooring, painting, molding, and lighting in the pantry area of the Sangha House. Ani Marcia rearranged the pantry and purchased new storage containers and created a better lay out for the storage of food and equipment/cooking utensils.  Lee put a new roof on the Middle House shed and built the new platform for the Ratna shop across from the Sangha house. Lee and Joanne and other volunteers converted the Gate House kitchen back to a real kitchen and cleared out all the Ratna Shop inventory and supplies.  The Gate House living and dining room and kitchen and ceilings were painted and new lighting was installed in the kitchen and dining area.  Tent platform locations and the use permit botanical survey locations were decided in the spring. Dave Lawson became our new grounds caretaker in May, working three days a week.  His hours were increased to up to 110 hours per month during the seminar season.

During and near the time of work week in May, the following improvements were made:

1. Built porch for Tara Cottage

2. Built new 3 tent platforms

3. Set up Ratna Shop tent and installed small solar light system

4. Removed old porch and built new trex porch at front of the Lama house

5. Installed window blinds in Gate House

6. Cleaned the carpets at the Gate, Middle and River Houses

7. Replaced covers on two 12×20 shade structures (at Ratna Shop and Barn)

After work week and continuing through the summer, we saw work as follows:

1. Groovy old land signs were removed and new commercial signage installed

2. Additional effort to clean and organize the barn

3. Gardening and improvements to the campground were completed, including a new numbering system for all campsites

4. New solar lights were added to the campground

5. Lee repaired screening on storage shed #2 and at the back of Sangha House

In July, people from URS (Shabad’s employer) conducted botanical surveys.

In September the MH shed wiring was replaced. In October, we planned a possible Kumara area in the campground, but the final location and plan is expected to change. Lee completed MH shed insulation and sheet rocking and repair of the MH leach field piping.

The primary focus for several people was the Use Permit application. Meetings were conducted at Mendocino County in July, October, and November. The permit application was submitted in December.

Overall, 2012 continued to see excellent work provided by Lee Rust and David Lawson, contractors to Gomde. Several areas saw wonderful improvement, including the Lama House and Tara Cottage porches, the MH shed, the campground, and signage on the land.

Solitary retreat is an essential element for Vajrayana practice encouraged by our teachers both present and past. Rangjung Yeshe Gomde offers a serene and powerful environment blessed by Trulshik Rinpoche and many Nyingma and Kagyu masters for individual retreats. The blessings of the lineage and the auspiciousness of the land combine to create an extraordinary experience. Rangjung Yeshe Gomde is available for all traditions of Buddhist practice.

Retreat accommodations are available when programs are not in session. Personal retreats can range from a weekend to several months from October to May. Retreatants can mingle practice sessions with time spent appreciating Gomde’s unique natural environment. Walking trails crisscross 250 secluded acres of woods and meadows and meander along the banks of the rushing Eel River. Or you may choose to do an exclusively indoor retreat.

Click here to download an article giving clear guidelines for conducting your own retreat, by Lama Gerry Prindiville.

Click here to learn more about our retreat accommodations.

If you need a ride to or from Gomde, or you can offer a ride, now you can connect with other drivers on our Rideshare Board.  Click here to go to the Rideshare Board now.

In the summer of 2012 the Dharmachakra Center for Translation and Translation Studies will run a number of events designed to promote the engaged and sustained study of all facets of Indo-Tibetan Buddhism.  For students of the Tibetan language the Dharmachakra Center offers the Dīpaṃkara Translator Internship Program, designed to train future translators in the skills necessary to undertake their own translation projects.  The Center will continue its lecture series with two talks, Kurukulle and the Ḍākinī Tradition and a weekend program with Jacob Dalton of UC Berkeley.  For more on the Dharmachakra Center and its activities, please visit the main page.

Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche and Dharmachakra Practices are pleased to offer an online meditation program based on Tara, the female buddha of wisdom in action.

Known as The Triple Excellence, this teaching describes the entire Buddhist path in gradual practical instructions. With its rich and vibrant interface, The Triple Excellence is perfectly accessible and profound for both beginners and seasoned practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism. The instructions spring from the great Tibetan master Chokgyur Lingpa, who met Tara in person and received this terma teaching of deep and true meaning.

In practical steps this teaching covers all three vehicles (The Triple Excellence) from the perspective of the Vajrayana. Beginning with fundamental mind training, one proceeds to the Bodhisattva path of love and insight combined. Finally, the penetrating wisdom of the Vajrayana is introduced, culminating in the secret paths of the higher tantras. At this more advanced stage of practice, participants will receive a transmission, which includes methods that use the energies of the subtle body, and they will be initiated into the practice of trekchö or “cutting through resistance” within the primordial purity that is the nature of the mind.

Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche received these teachings from H.H. Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche and Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche. Rinpoche is also a close descendant of Chokgyur Lingpa. This is a wonderful and rare opportunity to receive these precious teachings from an authentic master who holds a short and uninterrupted lineage of transmission.

The program will be open from January 28th, 2011 onwards.

For more information, click here.

Best Wishes
DharmaSun team

In Nepal in January of 2006, Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche gave two days of teachings on “The Five Powers: The Art of Living and Dying.” In preparation for Rinpoche’s teachings on the same subject at Orgyen Dorje Den in Alameda CA on August 23, Ka-Nying Shedrub Ling Monastery has authorized us to release the transcripts of his 2006 teachings.

Use the following links to download Part 1 and Part 2 of “The Five Powers”:

Download Part 1
Download Part 2