Berkeley Teachings with Ven. Sogan Rinpoche
Dear Friends,
We are delighted to announce that on June 17-18, 2023, Sogan Rinpoche will be offering teachings at the Berkeley Shambhala Meditation Center. Rinpoche will present lojong (mind training) teachings from the Four-Themed Precious Garland: An Introduction to Dzogchen, the Great Completeness by Longchen Rabjampa, along with related meditation practice instructions from the Dzogchen tradition. The teachings will be translated by Lama Sean Price. More detailed information on the teaching topic can be found below.
Teaching Schedule: The teachings will be 10:00a.m.-12:00p.m. and 2:00-4:00p.m. on Saturday, June 17 and Sunday, June 18.
Early Registration: While registration will be available onsite, early registration is encouraged at the discounted rate of $50 per day. You may register online HERE or by enclosing a check to "Tupten Osel Choling" with "Berkeley Teachings" in the memo line and send to:
Tupten Osel Choling
℅ Teri Harrigan
2468 Cold Creek Trail
South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150
Onsite Registration: You may wait to register onsite at $60 per day.
Optional Rate: If you are unable to pay the suggested rate, please come with what you can pay on the day of the event and register then. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
Location and Parking: Shambhala Meditation Center, 2288 Fulton St. #203, Berkeley, CA. Parking information is available HERE.
Seating: The Center can accommodate 60+ people, with allowance for social distancing. There are benches and chairs in addition to floor seating with meditation cushions.
Health Safety Precautions: Please be vaccinated and boosted for the safety of yourselves and others. The meditation hall is large, well-ventilated and served by two very high-quality air filters. Seating will be well-spaced. Masks are optional and available. For those who are not vaccinated and boosted, masks are requested and available.
About Ven. Sogan Rinpoche
Ven. Sogan Rinpoche (Tulku Pema Lodoe) was born in 1964 in the Golok region of Amdo, in eastern Tibet. At the age of seventeen he went to Bayan Monastery to start his formal spiritual training. Later, he was recognized by H.H. the 14th Dalai Lama as the 6th Sogan Rinpoche and as a young man was enthroned at Awo Sera Monastery in East Kham (Serta), which he founded during his first incarnation as Sogan Rinpoche. He is also the head of Bayan Monastery in Golok. He assumed responsibility there at the direction of his root guru, Khenpo Munsel, a Dzogchen master and a chief disciple of Khenpo NgagChung, who taught in Tibet throughout most of the twentieth century.
Rinpoche has studied with many great masters of all four traditions of Tibetan Buddhism. After many years of study, pilgrimage and solitary retreat, Rinpoche left Tibet to continue his studies in India. While there, he studied extensively with prominent teachers and spent several years in retreat. Rinpoche travels throughout North America and in Europe to teach Buddhism. For many years he has taught in the SF Bay region where Tupten Osel Choling is based. In 2012, his students in northern Italy founded Tupten Osel Ling, another dharma center under his spiritual guidance.
About the teachings
Sogan Rinpoche will present teachings and instructions from The Four-Themed Precious Garland: An Introduction to Dzogchen, the Great Completeness. The lineage of this Mahayana system of meditation traces from Shakyamuni Buddha and has been transmitted mainly through the Nyingma Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism along with oral teachings preserved unbroken through the present day.
This text was composed by Longchen Ramjampa (1303-1363), one of the greatest codifiers of the Dzogchen teachings. In the text, he provides an overview of the nine vehicles to Enlightenment as traveled progressively through the sutra, tantra and Dzogchen modes of approach, and includes the techniques utilized at each of these stages for removing confusion about the abiding nature of reality. The text also includes a commentary from His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche, who was the revered head of the Nyingma Tradition during the latter half of the twentieth century.
For those who are interested in studying and contemplating the teachings prior to June 17-18, a translation of the basic text without commentary can be found HERE. The full text with integrated oral commentaries can be purchased through many online booksellers at their websites by searching for The Four-Themed Precious Garland: An Introduction to Dzogchen, the Great Completeness.
All are welcome, feel free to share this event with friends and Sangha.
© 2022 Tupten Osel Choling
