Here is a listing of Dharma Ocean events that are currently in-progress or that have completed over the last year-and-a-half.
Wilderness-based Teen Mindfulness Retreat
Teens ages 15 – 19 will have the opportunity to explore the natural area in addition to a regular schedule of events. Combining meditation with awareness of the outdoors, this retreat offers teens a life transforming experience in the serenity of nature. Offered through iBme.org.
Somatic Meditation: The Journey Home
June 9 – June 16, 2017
Salt Spring Island, BC, Canada
Led by Neil McKinlay: Meditation is a coming home. Through the simple practice of being in one’s body, developing a sense of familiarity with and fidelity to immediate experience, we reconnect with the life we are living and the person we are. Under the guidance of Senior Teacher Neil McKinlay, this week-long retreat will explore the foundational methods of somatic meditation offered by the Dharma Ocean lineage.
The Somatic Practice of Pure Awareness: The Tantric Style of Embodied Meditation
Led by Reggie Ray: This online program centers around the somatic practice of pure awareness. This is the simplest and also the most advanced teaching–the essence–of the Tibetan tantric tradition. Pure Awareness, also called the awakened state or the Buddha mind, is our most fundamental nature, a part of ourselves that is neither born nor dies and underlies all of the experiences of our human life.
Winter Meditation Intensive
December 11, 2016 – January 8, 2017
Led by Neil McKinlay and Norman Elizondo: This month-long meditation retreat is a powerful practice for engaging the journey of meditation more deeply and for transforming our everyday experience by sowing the seeds of awareness. Come for weekly segments or for the full month.
The Three Samayas: VTI 2016 Online Study Course
October 10 – November 21, 2017
Online
Led by Dr. Reggie Ray: This 6-week online course is an opportunity for the vajrasangha to study the teachings and practices that Reggie presented at this year’s VTI. The question at the heart of this year’s teachings is: What does it mean to be a tantrika in this lineage?
Sutrayana Study and Practice Intensive — Part Two: Mahayana
September 19 – November 29, 2016
Online
Led by Neil McKinlay: The Sutrayana Practice and Study Intensive offers practitioners an opportunity to deepen their understanding and experience of the teachings of Reggie Ray and his teacher, Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, as embodied in the Dharma Ocean lineage. This is the second part of a two-part course led by Dharma Ocean Senior Teacher Neil McKinlay.
Awakening the Body: The Way of Somatic Meditation
September 1 – November 10, 2016
Online
Led by Reggie Ray: In this online immersion, Reggie leads us in exploring the view and practice of somatic meditation and how it reveals the joy, altruism, and creativity that reside at the core of our being. Designed for beginning and advanced students alike, the training focuses on a series of powerful somatic meditation practices drawn from Tibetan and East Asian Buddhism and spiritual Taoism.
Meditating with the Body® Europe
June 6 – June 13, 2016
United Kingdom
Led by Reggie Ray, Caroline Pfohl, and David Iozzi: Our body is the most direct path to profound spiritual transformation. Through it, we connect with the inherent, self-existing wakefulness already present within it. This is Dr. Reggie Ray’s and co-lineage holder Caroline Pfohl’s first time teaching in Europe, for this comprehensive five-month program.
Northeast Dharma Ocean Retreat
May 13 – May 15, 2016
Claverack, New York
Led by Tina LaGreca and Sarah Miryam: In this weekend retreat offered from our Northeast sangha, participants will focus on spring as the time of emergence and new growth. We will answer spring’s call to more fully and deeply inhabit our bodies and draw on the wisdom that is always there.
Your Body is Awake: A 7-Week Immersion in Somatic Meditation
May 9 – June 27, 2016
Boulder, CO
Led by Bryn Rees: In this 7-week program, we will explore the core practices from the Meditating with the Body® curriculum, developed by Reggie Ray. This Boulder-based program is accessible to all levels of experience, from beginners to advanced practitioners. It will be of great benefit to anyone looking connect to and live from the body as the next step, and every step, on our path.
The Body Loves: Somatic Practices for Developing Bodhicitta
March 19 – March 27, 2016
Crestone, CO
Led by Reggie Ray and Caroline Pfohl: In this program, we will explore the tantric bodhicitta tradition by entering into the utter depth of our own Soma, our physical incarnation. There, in a unique way, we are able to connect with this love, release it into our lives, and finally identify with it as the sole purpose of our life.
Invoking the Protectors: The Practice of Protection
March 3 – March 6 2016
Boulder, CO
Led by David Iozzi: In our Vajrayana tradition, the protection principle is in operation throughout the Dharma Ocean mandala, preserving the integrity of the practicing lineage. While those who serve in the protection mandala are the most visibly manifest aspect of the protection principle, the practice of protection is an activity shared by all who help to create and maintain containers within which we and others can hear and practice the teachings.
Sutrayana Study and Practice Intensive — Part One: Hinayana
February 29 – May 10, 2016
Online
Led by Neil McKinlay: Dharma Ocean’s Sutrayana Study and Practice Intensive offers practitioners an opportunity to deepen their understanding and experience of the lineage embodied by Reggie Ray and his teacher, Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche. This is the first part of a two-part course.
Sitting Body, Sitting Buddha Exploring the Practice of Meditating With the Body
February 13 – February 14, 2016
Vancouver, BC
Led by Neil McKinlay: This all-level workshop will continue our work with the practice of ‘Meditating with the Body’ as we explore somatic space in a direct and experiential way. Mixing guided meditation and group discussion, we will touch the inherent groundedness of our being and find ourselves able to engage our lives more fully than ever before.
Awakening Through Relationship: The Tantric Consort
February 12 – February 13, 2016
Boulder, CO
Led by Reggie Ray and Caroline Pfohl: Within the Vajrayana, it is believed that the tantric consort relationship provides a uniquely powerful crucible for our ultimate transformation. Dr. Reggie Ray and Caroline Pfohl will offer teachings and practices that can be carried forward into our lives and practiced on our own or with a partner. All are welcome.
In Love with Life: Awakening Through Somatic Meditation
January 25 – February 29, 2016
Boulder, CO
Led by Caroline Pfohl: The somatic practices at the heart of the Dharma Ocean lineage are the ideal foundation for uncovering Bodhicitta: the awakened heart. In this six-week evening course, we will take an embodied approach to awakening, connecting the practice of meditation to our actual lives.
The Journey of Just Being: Winter Meditation Intensive
December 13, 2015 – January 10, 2016
Crestone, CO
Led by Reggie Ray: This month-long meditation retreat is a powerful practice for engaging the journey of meditation more deeply and for transforming our everyday experience by sowing the seeds of awareness. Come for a one, two, or three-week segments, or for the full month.
The Journey of Just Being: A Two-Week Online Meditation Retreat
December 27, 2015 – January 13, 2016
Online
Led by Reggie Ray: This year we’re excited to offer an opportunity to take part in Dharma Ocean’s annual Winter Meditation Intensive online with Reggie Ray. This unique two-week online program will run in parallel with the last two weeks of The Journey of Just Being, and will feature recordings of select teachings and guided meditations from the residential retreat.
Touching Enlightenment: Introduction to Meditating with the Body
October 21 – November 18, 2015
Online
Led by Jeremy Lowry: Explore the foundational practices of embodied meditation in this four-week online course. Listen to audio recordings of talks and guided meditations led by Dr. Reginald “Reggie” Ray. Participate in a dynamic online forum with other course participants.
Embodied Wisdom for Challenging Times: A 3-Day Meditating with the Body Retreat
November 2 – November 5, 2015
Queensland, Australia
Led by Manuela Mischke-Reeds: This 3-day retreat will feature somatic practices that include sitting, walking, lying down, and longer periods of silence and self-contemplation. Dharma talks and short group discussions will also enhance this supportive practice environment, which will provide a chance to unplug from the daily stressors while being held within a safe community.
The Power of Stillness in an Anxious Age
October 17 – October 24, 2015
Crestone, CO
Led by Al Blum: A six-day introductory program. This program is designed for those yearning for a genuine spiritual path amidst the speed, confusion, and materialism of contemporary life. Al will offer practical and experiential instruction on the practice of meditation through guided meditation sessions, talks and group discussions. We’ll also explore deep silence in order to support a contemplative and nourishing environment.