orientation.html

Programs

Upcoming Programs

Rangjung Yeshe Shedra

Kumara Internship
Program

Participant Information

Membership Registration

Program Orientation

Pre-Arrival

The following forms are available for download from the website. Please fill them out in advance and either fax, e-mail or mail them to our office, or turn them in at check-in. These forms are considered internal documents and our staff has signed confidentiality agreements.

Health & Emergency Form (optional though recommended, especially if you have food allergies, dietary restrictions or a medical condition)
Practice History Form
Acknowledgement of Hazards

If you have previously attended a retreat at Gomde, we have done our best to retrieve copies of your completed forms. However, we may ask you to complete them again if our records are incomplete or outdated.

Registration is considered complete when your registration form and complete payment have been received by our office.

Certain retreats (like the annual Dzogchen Intensive with Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche) require that retreatants meet the following prerequisites:

You must have taken refuge and bodhicitta vows.
You must have begun the preliminary practices (ngondro), with a commitment to complete them.
You must have attended a previous Dzogchen Intensive. If you haven't been to one of Gomde's Dzogchen Intensive seminars before, please tell us briefly about your teachers and the teachings you have received and we will let you know if you are able to attend.

Off-Site Lodging A number of hotels and resorts are available within 5-45 minutes' drive from Gomde, offering a range of comforts, services and prices if you do not wish to camp on location. See the Local Accommodations link for contact information and details. Hotel rooms with kitchen facilities are available for those who wish to prepare their own meals (see meal policy in Costs section above). Most local hotels have air-conditioning and swimming pools. Please let us know where you are staying in case we need to contact you in an emergency. Offsite participants should park in designated areas and use the walking trails.

On-Site Camping Camping is available at Gomde for $10 per person per night. Campers will need to bring their own tents, sleeping bags and other camping gear. See the Packing List for suggested items. On arrival, you will be given a map of campsites, which are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Staff will available in the area to help you settle in. There are a few car camping sites available; plase notify the office in advance if you would like this option.

Children at Gomde: Please contact programs@gomdeusa.org about bringing children and/or teenagers to a particular Gomde retreat.

Costs

Seminar fees cover teachings and meals. Due to the complexity of the planning process, meal costs will not be pro-rated or deducted if you choose to eat off-site. Other expenses incurred may include on-site camping ($10 per day), lodging or camping off-site, transportation, comfort items (see Packing List), camping equipment, chant and practice books (see individual programs), dana gifts to the teachers, translators and attendants, and donations to projects of the Chokling Tersar and other foundations.

If seminar fees present a hardship to you, please view the section on Volunteering & Scholarships. Payment plans can be arranged in advance with a valid credit card by contacting the office at programs@gomdeusa.org.

Cancellation Policy

Seminar registration will be accepted with a deposit of $100 and will be completed upon full payment. Final payment is due two weeks before the start of your program. We cannot guarantee your space if full payment is not received by the deadline. The deposit will be returned (minus a $50 administrative fee) if cancellation is made up to two weeks before the seminar start date. No refunds or credits are made for cancellations within two weeks. Certain programs have unique cancellation policies, which supercede our general policy and are described on the particular program web page.

Arrival

Check-in The retreat begins with check-in at the Gatehouse, between 2 - 5 pm on the first day of the retreat. Please make every effort to arrive on time for check-in as well as the daily teachings and practice sessions. This will give you the opportunity to deepen your own retreat experience as well as enhance the experience of those with whom you are practicing.

Forms If you have not sent in the above forms, please bring them with you. If you do not have a copy of the forms, you can print them out here.

Program Schedule The daily schedule will be posted at various locations. It is subject to change, so please check regularly, and listen for announcments.

During the Retreat

Yogi Service

Yogi Service, AKA ‘Yogi Jobs,’ are opportunities to contribute one’s time and energy towards the harmonious functioning of the seminar, all participants, and the lama. In the process one can develop community, cultivate friendships, practice lojong, and, sometimes, patience. Most members of Gomde's staff are volunteers themselves, and appreciate the extra and much-needed help. Our seminars could not run without the help of all participants.

All retreatants are assigned a Yogi Job under a task team leader at the time of registration. These light tasks take approximately one hour per day and range from helping with meal set-up and clean-up to vacuuming the teaching hall at night. If you have a particular skill -- cooking, retail experience, gardening, data entry, carpentry, graphic design, or others -- that you would like to share for your Yogi Job, please contact us at programs@gomdeusa.org.

A copy of Yogi Job assignments will be posted on the Sangha House bulletin board. The tasks are pre-assigned to the best of our ability under team leaders for each major category of service work: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Site Maintenance, Ratna Shop, Tea Time, Buddha Hall Service, and Lama Service.

There will be a meeting immediately following the teachings on the first night, where you can meet your team leader and learn about your responsibilities. If you have a medical limitation or another serious reason you cannot complete the job as assigned, please note so on your registration form.

If you prefer, you can opt out of your Yogi Job committment by paying a set fee (see registration form). These funds will go towards program expenses.

The generous fulfillment of your Yogi Job makes it possible for the retreat to run smoothly and for all of us to receive these precious teachings. Thank you in advance for your responsible cooperation and dedicated contribution.

Cars & Driving
Please plan to leave your car in the designated parking areas after check-in and camp set-up, and follow the signs for walking trails around the property. Please contact the staff during registration if you have a special need to drive during the retreat, due to medical or other reasons. For some retreats a shuttle system staffed by Yogi Jobs may be offered. Please check the details of your particular program or speak with one of the staff.

Communications

A telephone line will be available in the afternoons outside the Gatehouse for phone calls or Internet connections from your own laptop. This is a local line, so please bring a calling card and/or configure your Internet connection to a 707 (Leggett) number. As this is the only line available to retreatants, please be mindful of sharing the allotted time.

Alternatively, there is a public telephone within five minutes of the center at the Redwood Mercantile Store (from the main gate, turn left and follow Drive Through Tree Road toward Leggett). If you need to make an emergency call, check with a staff member. The area is generally not serviceable by cell phones, and we ask you do not bring them with you into the Buddha Hall.

Security

As most people are in the Buddha Hall during teachings, the main gate will be closed fifteen minutes before and unlocked fifteen minutes after the teaching session.

Meals
Meals are vegetarian (not vegan), though a meat option will be offered on a few occasions. Meals will be served buffet style at the Sangha House during designated hours. A snack and tea bar will be provided throughout the day at the Sangha House. Plain vegetables and brown rice will be available at lunch and dinner. Please label your own dinnerware and bring it to each meal. ashing sites are near the dining area.

As the kitchen is very small, participants are not permitted to cook their own meals. Due to county fire regulations, cooking is not permitted in the campgrounds. If you have dietary restrictions not met by the above offerings, please so note on your health form and contact the office staff prior to registration at programs@gomdeusa.org. Cooking facilities are available at off-site campgrounds and lodgings (see list).

Ratna Shop
Practice texts (sadhanas and commentaries), books, practice support items (thangkas, statues, bells, damarus), and audio/video of teachers associated with the Chokling Tersar lineage are available at Ratna Shop, located in the Gatehouse. Come browse our selection -- the shop is generally open for a few hours after lunch. Mp3 files of the teaching sessions may be available as early as the end of the retreat, or shortly thereafter.

Departure

The retreat ends after lunch and clean-up on the last day. Garbage disposal is a health and environmental concern. Please follow the recommended procedures posted on the bulletin board. Program breakdown is an enormous task. If you are available for a few hours at the end of the program to help as a "Breakdown Bodhisattva," please contact a staff member.

Evaluation & Feedback

We will ask you to complete a Retreat Evaluation form at the end of the teaching program. Please turn it into the designated place, or hand it to a staff member. If you are unable to complete the form on site, please email or send it to us upon your return home. We sincerely appreciate your time in completing this, as it helps us to better serve you in the future.