DHARMA PROGRAMS 2018 in a glance

KyabjeDudjomSangyePemaZhepaRinpocheandSangha,PemaOselLing,Summer2018

Wearehappytosharethehighlightsofour2018dharmaactivity!

SummerRetreatJune1–June24

This year we had the extreme good fortune tohave Kyabje Dudjom Yangsi Sangye PemaZhepa Rinpoche (now known as KyabjeDudjomRinpoche)presideoverour29thannualSummerRetreatatPemaOselLingduringhisfirstvisittotheUnitedStates.

KyabjeDudjomRinpoche’sarrivalatPemaOselLing

DudjomTersarEmpowerments

Outofhisgreatkindness,RinpochebestowedtheDudjom Tersar Empowerments (Wangs). Allwho attendedwill attest to the sublimemagicalatmosphere thatRinpoche createdatPemaÖselLing. Therewere rainbows, seed syllable cloudsandhundredsofbutterflies!Rinpoche’swisdomcompassionwaspalpableanditwasevidentthatwewereallpartofsomethingveryprofound,anhistoricmomentofgreatimportance.

KyabjeDudjomYangsiRinpocheduringWangs

BAMSyllable(right)w/rainbowcircle

afterKhandroThukthikWang

SkyoverPemaOselLingfirstdayofWangs

SkywithprayerflagduringWangs

The bestowal of these wangs from Rinpoche atPema Ösel Ling was a profound heart wish ofLama Tharchin Rinpoche and Lama SonamRinpoche, who worked tirelessly to make it areality.Wefeeloverwhelminggratitudetothem,as well as to Tulku Thadral Rinpoche, TulkuJamyang Rinpoche, Lama Gyaltsen Rinpoche,Khenpo Sonam Rinpoche, Lama Phurba, ourgeneroussponsors, translators, tirelessstaffandvolunteers,andallwhoattendedfromaroundtheworld.

PhurbamandalaandSanghainWangstent

TromaNagmowithSangyeKhandro

Before Kyabje Dudjom Rinpoche arrived to give the Dudjom Tersar empowerments, we were very fortunate to have Sangye Khandro return, for the fourth summer, to continue her Troma Ngondro teachings from Master Pema Lungtog Gyatso's extensive commentary on Dudjom Lingpa's terma revelation, Heart Essence of Saraha. The teachings were as fresh and insightful as always!

Kyabje Dudjom Rinpoche leading the Medium-Length Troma

feast at the conclusion of Sangye Khandro’s teachings

The day after the wonderful Troma tsok, Rinpoche began the transmission and empowerments of the Dudjom Tersar. Sangye Khandro stayed as the translator for Rinpoche with Lama Chonam, Christina Monson and Benson by her side. We are so grateful to all our Lotsawas!

VajrakilayaMedrupDrupchen

After the Wangs, Kyabje Dudjom Rinpochepresided over our29th annual Drupchen. ThisyearweperformedaVajrakilayaNamchakPutriMendrup Drupchen. With Rinpoche’s sublimepresence, thiswas a special opportunity to fullyexperiencethisVajrakilayapractice,whichhasthepower to remove outer, inner and secretobstacles.

Bringingdowntheblessings

KyabjeDudjomRinpoche

inBlackHatDuring this Mendrup Drupchen, hundreds ofrare and sacred substances which had beengathered,werepreparedandconsecratedthroughintensivegrouppracticetocreatemendrup.

GuruRinpochesaid:Thebenefitsofeating(dudtsi)areinexpressible:DudtsiisLiberationthroughTasteforallbeingsinallrealms.Externally,itwillcureyourbodilyillnessesandremoveobstacles.Internally,itwillpurifythefivepoisonsofthepassions.Itwillrepairallyourbrokenanddamagedsamaya.Youwillrealizewisdom,theall-pervasivesecret.

Rinpochepreparingmendrupdudtsi

Mendrupdudtsidrying

DrupchenJinseksFirePujas

As always, on the last day of Drupchen weperformed jinseks (fire pujas) and received theDrupchensiddhis.This year, the jinseks of the four activities -peaceful, increasing,magnetizing andwrathful -wereperformedsimultaneously,alongwithafifthcentral “Supreme” jinsek. Kyabje DudjomRinpochepresidedover this gloriousdisplayofVajrayanaritual,alivewithcolor,fireofferingsandthesynchronicityofenlightenedactivities.

KyabjeDudjomRinpochepresidingoverfirepujas

The day after Drupchen ended we celebratedGuruRinpocheday.

OfferingtsokonGuruRinpocheDay

Onthisveryspecialday,weofferedanabundanttsok,preparedbythesublime,youngstudentsofKunzang Gatshal. We also offered our annualsacred lama dances to Rinpoche and all of oursangha. It was an honor and blessing for thedancersandallofus!

SunDokTenshukLonglifeceremony

The next day, we performed Khandro ThukthikpujaandofferedaSunDokTenshuk(long-life)ceremonyforKyabjeDudjomRinpoche.

TenshukCeremony

LonglifeofferingsforKyabjeDudjomRinpoche

MandalaofferingatTenshukCeremony

Dechö5thAnniversaryofLamaTharchin

Rinpoche’sParinirvana

KyabjeDudjomRinpocheandLamasat

LamaTharchinRinpoche’sKu-DungStupa

During the month of July, Rinpoche travelledaroundNorthAmerica.UponhisreturntoPemaÖsel Ling, he presided over ourDorsem LamaChöpa puja on the fifth anniversary of ourmostkindteacher,LamaTharchinRinpoche’sparinirvana—an occasion of extraordinaryblessings.

KyabjeDudjomRinpoche

withLamaTharchinRinpoche

We began this 2018 yearbook with our Summer Retreat, the highlight of our year. Following are our other retreats in chronological order, as well as news on additional dharma activities. Annual Trekchod Retreat /January

Lama Pema Dorje Rinpoche

The Annual Trekchod Retreat began in 2001 with Lama Tharchin Rinpoche. In 2014, after Lama Tharchin Rinpoche’s parinirvana, Lama Pema Dorje Rinpoche began leading the retreat, following Lama Tharchin Rinpoche’s wishes.

We were extremely fortunate again in 2018, to have Lama Pema Dorje Rinpoche with us for incredible trekchod and rushen teachings. Even though his health was challenged, he selflessly taught for nine days, putting all his energy into the pith instructions and always having time for questions. His wisdom and compassion were truly astounding. On July 5, 2018, our most kind and precious teacher, Lama Pema Dorje Rinpoche, passed into parinirvana. Our sorrow was profound.

Remembering Lama Pema Dorje Rinpoche 1945 – 2018

Lama Pema Dorje Rinpoche

Following are excerpts from a beautiful letter that Lama Sonam Rinpoche wrote upon hearing about the parinirvana of our kind teacher. “LamaPemaDorjeRinpochewasoneofthekindestandmostauthentichiddenyogipractitionersinourgeneration.Fromaveryyoungagetotheendofhislife, he was completely authentic, humble anddevoted one hundred percent to dharma and hisrootguru.Rinpoche inspiredandtouchedeveryonewhomethim! He held the Dudjom lineage impeccably, aswellasthecompleteexpansiveanuyogalineage.AllofusatVajrayanaFoundation/PemaOselLingowe LamaPemaDorje Rinpoche a deep heartfeltdebt of gratitude. He was one of Lama TharchinRinpoche's best friends. Lama Tharchin Rinpoche

trustedLamaPemaDorjeRinpochecompletely toteach Pema Osel Ling's students all stages ofpractice, including the most advanced tsa-lungpractices.AfterLamaTharchinRinpoche'sparinirvana,LamaPema Dorje Rinpoche, out of his great kindness,becameourthree-yearretreatlamaandguidedtheretreatantswithprofoundcaringandwisdom.Healso taught our annual Trekchod retreat andRushenpractice.Inmyownidiotideaofsublimeactivity,Ican'thelpbut believe that Lama Pema Dorje Rinpoche'sparinirvanawasmore evidence of his completelypuresamaya.HislifestartedwithDudjomRinpocheandthedissolutionofthislifebeganwithDudjomYangsi Rinpoche, (during the Dudjom Tersarempowerments), including the auspicious timingthat allowed Dudjom Rinpoche to be with LamaPemaDorjeRinpocherightafterhisparinirvana.Therewasnoplanandyet this incredibleactivityhappened, showing us that all wisdomminds areconnected inonetaste! Inhis lastcompassionateaction,LamaPemaDorjeRinpocheagaintaughtustohavefaithinthedharmaandtheinfallibletruthofenlightenment.”Allofus,andsomanyaroundtheworld,willtrulymissthiscompassionateandwiseteacher.

LamaTharchinRinpoche,LamaPemaDorje

RinpocheandLamaSonamRinpoche

NangJangTeachingsFebruary

We were once again honored to have ChakungJigmeWangdrakRinpochecontinuehisseriesofteachings on Dudjom Lingpa’s profoundDzogchen text Nang Jang (BuddhahoodWithoutMeditation)atPemaOselLing."NangJangissopowerfulthatevenhearingitreadaloud ensures that the listener will eventuallyescapethesufferingsofsamsara.”DudjomLingpa

Chakung Jigmed Wangdrak Rinpoche is afourth-generationdescendantofthe19thcenturymaster Dudjom Lingpa. He was requestedbyKhenchenJigmePhuntsokRinpocheandDakiniKunzang Wangmo (a greatly revered femaleteacher in Tibet) to teach and preserve theDudjomlineage.Ashehaddone for the last twoyears,RinpochebestowedtheNangJangEmpowermentandOralTransmission(Lung-Wang).Thisissokind,asitmeans that new students may join thiswonderfulserieseachyear!

VajrakilayaGutor/LosarFebruary

This was the 29th year that the VajrayanaFoundation has done profound VajrakilayaGutor practice to remove obstacles andnegativityfortheNewYear.Forthesecondyearina row,wealsoaccumulated100,000Shenpaprotector prayers. Kyabje Dudjom Rinpochespokeaboutthesepracticesinaletterhesenttooursanghain2017.

Letter from Kyabje Dudjom Rinpoche

Itwasaverypowerfulexperiencetoaccumulatethe Shenpa Protector prayers. Many sanghamembers helped sponsor the accumulations atPema Osel Ling and also recited the mantra intheirownhomes.

TulkuThadralRinpochewastheDorjeLoponforourGutor/LosarretreatandbestowedthePutriRepkong Empowerment. We were alsoextremelyfortunatetohavehadtheopportunityto practice with Chakung Jigme WangdrakRinpoche,TulkuJamyangRinpoche,LamaSonamRinpocheandotherspecialguests.

TulkuThadralRinpoche

TulkuJamyangRinpoche

GutorCeremonyAswedo each year,weperformed a traditionalGutorceremonytoclearthenegativityofthepastyear, with the ritual burning of the large ZortormaandthesacredBlackHatdance.

ZorTorma

This was followed by Tibetan Fortune soup,duringwhichthelamasreadourfortunesfortheyear. As always, there is a feeling of lightnesswhentheceremonyiscompletedandweeatthedeliciousTibetansoupandshareourfortunesfortheNewYear!

VajrakilayaRitualSubstances

OnLosarDayweperformedLakeBornVajraandKhandroNorlapujas,afterbringingintheNewYearwithofferingstotheThreeJewels,auspiciousrice,homemadechang,andtea.

RiwoSangChoRaisingofPrayerFlags

Intheafternoon,wereplacedandraisedourlarge,handmadeDudjom prayer flagswith Riwo SangChosmokeoffering.

ItwasasplendidentryintotheNewYear!

CascadingWaterfallNgondroRetreat

March

Acharya Sam Bercholz once again visited PemaOsel and engaged students with his arrestingcommentaryonDungseThinleyNorbuRinpoche’sseminalwork,ACascadingWaterfallofNectar,aswellassharingstoriesandwisdomfromhisbookAGuidedTourofHell.Asarticulateasalways,Sambeguiledallattendingwithanecdotesofhisownexperiences and exchanges with Thinley NorbuRinpoche.

Thefollowingweek-longNgondroretreatwasledbyLamaSonamRinpocheandAmyGreen,aseniorstudentofDungseThinleyNorbuRinpoche.Thisretreat offered teachings, instructions, time foraccumulationsandpersonalinterviews.Many in attendance were part of our Ngondroprogramand therewere older sanghamemberswhomadefreshresolvetofinishtheirNgondrointhis lifetime! A noble goal that is definitelyattainablewiththerightsupport!"Ifthereareanywisepersonswhodesiretobecompletelyfreed,Fromthehottormentsofthefirepitofsamsara,theyshouldRelyonthissupremepath,Ngondro,which,likethekingoftrees,Willreviveoneinitscool,denseshade,enlightenment."-H.H.DudjomRinpoche

AnnualTeachingswith

OrgyenChowangRinpocheNovember

This year Rinpoche gave an explanation ofthegreatmasterLongchenpa’sfour-parttreatisecontainingthecompletepathtoenlightenment.Rinpoche explained the four parts with pristineclarity.

• Howtoturnone'smindtowardthepathofdharma;

• Howtoensurethatone'sspiritualpracticefollowstherightpath;

• Howthepathofdharmacan liberateonefrom one's own distortions and negativeemotions;

• Howallexperiencesanddistortedstatesofmindcanariseasenlightenedawareness.

Rinpoche's unique teaching style and deepunderstanding of this ancient wisdom makesit accessible, meaningful and especiallyrelevant to modern Western students. We aredeeply grateful that he continues to share hisskillfulwisdomandkindnessatPemaOselLing.

ThanksgivingRetreat/VajraArmorNovember

LamaSonamRinpoche

Every year on Thanksgiving we perform anAmitabha tsok and host a Thanksgiving dinner,followedbythreedaysofretreat.Thisyear,LamaSonamRinpoche,taughtontheprofoundpracticeofAmitabhaPhowa.“Phowa, or transference of consciousness at thetimeofdeath,isoneofthemostpreciousamongallthepithinstructionsandtantrasoftheGreatSecretVajrayana.” LamaSonamRinpoche VajraArmorPrivateHealingRetreat

This week-long retreat is becoming one of ourmostpopular.Itoffersstudentsprivaterooms,thetransmission, extensive time for practice,individual guidanceand several group teachingsfromLamaSonamRinpoche,whosededicationtodharma,and inparticulartheDudjomlineage, isimpeccable.Heisaconstantreminderofwhatitmeanstodedicateone’swholelifetoservingthe Three Jewels. He selflessly oversees thedharmaactivityandongoingoperationsofPemaOselLingandweareforevergrateful!

TheOutreachProgramWisdomCenterSantaCruz

"The Wisdom Center of Santa Cruz provides an inviting space for wisdom-seeking individuals to explore the root of human goodness, and unveil the essential nature in Wisdom traditions.”

Lama Sonam Rinpoche, Pema Osel Ling guest lamas, our resident translator Cy Kassoff and senior students of the Vajrayana Foundation are bringing the Dudjom Tersar to downtown Santa Cruz with teachings, practice and empowerments. January – February: Medicine Buddha Empowerment and teaching March: Great Mother Transcendent Wisdom April: Khandro Norlha Empowerment May: Dharma Talk July: Wisdom & Skillful Means - Video of Lama Tharchin Rinpoche August: Introduction to Vajrayana Buddhism September: Patrul Rinpoche's The Practice of View, Meditation and Action I October: Introduction to Ngondro November ~ November: Healing with Tibetan Medicine December: Patrul Rinpoche's The Practice of View, Meditation and Action

NgondroProgram

Ongoing

MandalaOffering

Lama Tharchin Rinpoche and Lama SonamRinpoche started the Vajrayana FoundationNgondro Program in February 2013. Theprogram is designed for dharma students whowant to seriouslyundertake theVajrayanapath.The program provides guidance from seniorstudent mentors, interviews with Lama SonamRinpoche, special texts and teachings, and amonthlywebcast.Participation in the program requires acommitment to practice and study. The totalnumberofhoursforeachaccumulationdependsonanindividual’sphysicalcapacity.Studentsdevelopapersonal schedulewith theiradvisorsinordertobeabletofinishin1to6years.Enrollment isopenandstudents can joinat anytime.Pleasee-mailngondro@vajrayana.orgifyouareinterested.

NgondroProgramWebcastsinProgressw/

TulkuThadralRinpoche,LamaSonamRinpoche,ReginaDeCosse,FreddieTrancoso,StefanGraves

PersonalRetreatatPemaOselLing

ViewfromKunzangCholingRetreat

This year we were able to provide anothersecluded cabin forpersonal retreats. Weare sohappytobeabletoofferincreasedopportunitiesforretreattoourmembersandsangha.LamaTharchinRinpochesaid:“Pema Osel Ling is one of the best places to dopractice. We have incredible holy supportingobjects like the body aspect of Guru Rinpoche’sstatue,madebyourLordofRefugeDungseThinleyNorbu Rinpoche, and the mind aspect of ourstupas.”v KunsangCholingRetreatCabins

Two secluded cabins with great viewsavailableforprivateretreats:

Ø One-bedroomwitha fullkitchen,bathlivingroomanddeck.

Ø One-room studio with a kitchenette,bathanddeck.

v Shrine Cabin – Our comfortable shrinecabinisoneroomwithasharedrustickitchenandbathhouse. The cabin is in proximity totheshrineroomandstupas.

LamaSonamRinpochesaid:“Now is the time to practice.Don’t think youwillhavemoretimelater.Asthegreatmasterstoldus,weshouldpracticewiththesameurgencywewouldfeelifourhairwereonfire–wewouldn’twaituntila better time to put it out! Rememberimpermanence.”

Kunzang Choling Retreat Cabin

KunsangCholingRetreatCabin

ShrineCabin

DiscountedfeesandreservationpriorityforVFMembers

Pleasee-mailoffice@vajrayana.orgforinformation

Drubdra-Three-YearRetreatProgram

DrubNyiyDöjöGatsal

LamaTharchinRinpocheinDrubNyiyDojoGatsal

Drub Nyiy Döjö Gatsal (The Joyful Grove thatProvides Both Kinds of Accomplishments) aNyingma School of Vajrayana Buddhism Three-year Retreat Center in the Dudjom TersarLineage.ThisdrubdrawasestablishedbyLamaTharchin Rinpoche in 1992 and retreats havecontinuedsincethenuninterruptedly.ThecurrentretreatundertheguidanceofKyabjeDudjomRinpochewillbecompletedinOctober2019. The next retreatwill begin in November2019. Contact drubdra@vajrayana.org for moreinformation.

RainbowsoverDrubNyiyDojoGatsalonThinleyNorbuRinpoche’sParinirvanaAnniversary

TheVajrayanaFoundation/PemaOselLing

GuruRinpocheStatueinPemaOselLingShrineRoom

ABriefHistory

LamaTharchinRinpocheestablished theVajrayanaFoundation in1987,upon theadviceofKyabjeDudjomJigdralYesheDorjeRinpocheandDungseThinleyNorbuRinpochetotransmittheDudjomTersarlineageintheWest.TheFoundationboughtPemaOselLingin1991andayearlycycleofteachingsandpracticebeganontheland. In1998DungseThinleyNorbuRinpocheagreedtoguidetheVajrayanaFoundationandasked Lama Sonam Rinpoche to administer Pema Osel Ling with Lama Tharchin Rinpoche.In2011,afterDungseRinpoche’sparinirvana,LamaTharchinRinpocheandLamaSonamRinpocheofferedPemaOselLingtoKyabjeDudjom(Yangsi)Rinpoche,whoacceptedPemaOselLingashiscenter.Wemake aspirations thatwith Rinpoche’s guidance and our sangha’s support,wewill be able topreservePemaOselLingasablessedplacetoactualizeprofoundBuddhistteachings.

Wewanttoacknowledgeandexpressourdeepappreciationtoyou,thepreciousjewelofthesangha!

Theopportunitytoworktogethertohelprealizeoursublimeteachers’aspirationsisveryprecious.Yoursupportwillhelpuscarryoutayearfullofdharmaactivityin2019!

WishingYouPeaceandHappinessintheNewYear!