Easter Retreat: Refuge Ngöndro

The Easter retreat this year is dedicated to the Refuge Ngöndro. Each day will feature short guided meditations on the causes for refuge, traversing from a worldly refuge, through the three levels of capability, and including the tantric perspective. We will also have a short a refresher of the main points in Geshe-la’s teachings, and plenty of time to accumulate Refuge recitations.

We understand the challenges of long-term practice and are committed to supporting you every step of the way! The company of our fellow Ngöndro participants will help us all stay motivated to complete this first of the preliminary practices.

The First Ngondro: Refuge
A key component of Ngöndro is the practice of taking refuge. While we often seek temporary refuges in life, the ultimate refuge is buddhahood itself. By sincerely taking refuge in the Three Jewels, we open ourselves to the blessings and transformative power of the Buddha’s teachings.

In this ngöndro, we think of our guru as a buddha and feel that all the buddhas are present with him in front of us. The cause for us to receive their blessings is our aspiration.

You can consider yourself a Buddhist if you feel that buddhas are really present and if you are confident in their power to free you definitively from suffering; and not only you but all other beings. If you feel this intensely, strongly, this is the real, actual taking refuge.