Audio Downloads, Podcasts & Audio Streaming

  • B. Alan Wallace 15 Nov 2010 – 30 Dec 2010 Thanyapura Mind Centre, Phuket, Thailand Welcome! On this site you’ll find downloadable podcasts from the Fall 2010 Shamatha Retreat led by B. Alan Wallace in Phuket, Thailand. Follow along with the retreat as Wallace gives daily meditation instructions to help one cultivate attention and awareness as well as the qualities of love, compassion, joy and equanimity. We hope you will enjoy and benefit from these beautiful teachings! We are offering this item free.
  • B. Alan Wallace 02 Sep 2011 – 21 Oct 2011 Thanyapura Mind Centre, Phuket, Thailand Dharma talks and guided meditations given six days per week during the Fall, 2011 eight-week Shamatha retreat at the Thanyapura Mind Centre in Phuket, Thailand, with B. Alan Wallace. Podcasts will be posted daily during the retreat.
  • B. Alan Wallace 10 Apr 2011 – 04 Jun 2011 Thanyapura Mind Centre, Phuket, Thailand Dharma talks and guided meditations given six days per week during the Spring, 2011 eight-week Shamatha retreat at the Thanyapura Mind Centre in Phuket, Thailand, with B. Alan Wallace. Podcasts will be posted daily during the retreat.
  • B. Alan Wallace 08 Apr 2012 – 30 May 2012 Thanyapura Mind Centre, Phuket, Thailand Spring 2012 shamatha retreat audio teachings with Alan Wallace. Live from the Thanyapura Mind Centre in Phuket, Thailand.
  • B. Alan Wallace 25 Aug 2012 – 17 Oct 2012 Thanyapura Mind Centre, Phuket, Thailand Teachings from the eight-week retreat at Thanyapura Mind Centre, Phuket, Thailand
  • B. Alan Wallace 03 Sep 2013 – 25 Oct 2013 Thanyapura Mind Centre, Phuket, Thailand Alan Wallace Fall 2013 8-Week retreat on Shamatha and the Bodhisattva Way of Life, including teachings on the Seven-Point Mind-Training and A Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life, by B. Alan Wallace at the Thanyapura Mind Centre in Phuket, Thailand, from September 2nd- October 28th, 2013
  • Fall 2014 Shamatha, Vipashyana, Dream Yoga, and the Experience of Pristine Awareness in the Great Perfection Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism B. Alan Wallace 21 Aug 2014 – 16 Oct 2014 Thanyapura Mind Centre, Phuket, Thailand This eight-week retreat will focus on three of the six transitional processes, namely: the Transitional Process of Living, with teachings on śamatha and vipaśyanā, the Transitional Process of Dreaming, with teachings on dream yoga, and the Transitional Process of Meditation with teachings on Dzogchen meditation. All these teachings will be based on the text The Profound Dharma of The Natural Emergence of the Peaceful and Wrathful from Enlightened Awareness Stage of Completion Instructions on the Six Transitional Processes, an “earth terma” of teachings by Padmasambhava, revealed by Karma Lingpa in the fourteen century. The English translation of this text has been published under the title Natural Liberation: Padmasambhava’s Teachings on the Six Bardos, with commentary by Gyatrul Rinpoche and translated by B. Alan Wallace.
  • Stage of Generation, Shamatha, Vipashyana and Mahamudra

    B. Alan Wallace 30 Jul 2015 – 24 Sep 2015 Araluen Retreat Center, Queensland, Australia This eight-week retreat will focus on stage of generation, shamatha, vipashyana and mahamudra.
  • This audio stream and download contains 26 meditations from retreats with Alan Wallace in Santa Barbara, CA in 2009 . You will receive a Dropbox link to listen to these guided meditations.
  • This retreat provides an overview of the central themes of the 42-hour training program called "Cultivating Emotional Balance" devised by the eminent psychologist Paul Ekman, Ph.D. and B. Alan Wallace, Ph.D. at the request of HH the Dalai Lama. Focusing on both theory and practice, Alan Wallace explains four aspects of mental balance: conative, attentional, cognitive, and emotional. Conative balance has to do with cultivating meaningful desires and aspirations that truly contribute to one's own and others' wellbeing. Attentional balance focuses on overcoming attention deficit and hyperactivity, replacing these imbalances with a sense of inner calm, centeredness, and clarity. Cognitive balance is achieved through the cultivation of mindfulness so that we can experience the world without cognitive distortions. Finally, emotional balance maybe achieved through enhancing the positive emotions of loving kindness, compassion, empathetic joy and equanimity while bringing afflictive emotional states under control through understanding and meditation. The weekend included guided meditations, lectures and open discussion. This audio stream/download via Dropbox (no account is needed), chronicles the weekend retreat held in Santa Barba's historical Old Mission from Feb 3rd-5th, 2012. Available on DVD, or Audio Stream/download. Select the type of media that you want. The DVD will be shipped via the US Postal Service. The audio files will be downloadable - you will receive an email with details.
  • In this meditation seminar, Alan Wallace teaches a sequence of meditations for cultivation of the "Four Immeasurables," namely loving-kindness, compassion, empathetic joy, and impartiality. These are followed by the teachings and practice of Buddhist Mind-Training, or "Lojong." While many teachings on Buddhist meditation fill us with a longing to spend more time in quiet, solitary meditation, these practies bring us back to life, to the active world of living with others. The optimal situation to apply these teachings on cultivating a good heart is active life, socially engaged with other people at home and about town, moving away from habitual self-centeredness to greater empathy and loving concern for the welfare for those around us. Regardless of whether we hold to any religious beliefs, these practices can be of benefit to everyone seeking to explore their own capacity to experience unconditional love and compassion. Recorded in November 2009 at the historic Santa Barbara Mission. Please select from the DVD video, MP3 CD disc, or the download audio files
  • The one-disc MP3 chronicales the weekend retreat held in September 2010 at Santa Barbara's historical Old Mission. The Heart Sutra is perhaps the most popular text in the Buddhist world. Known both for its profundity and brevity, this work quickly made its way from India to China, Japan, Korea and Tibet. It is recited daily in an array of languages around the world. The principle theme of the Heart Sutra is "sunyata" or emptiness. This retreat, led by Venerable Tenzin Priyadarshi, focuses on the study and practices that emerge from this profound discourse on sunyata delivered by the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara to Venerable Shariputra at Vulture Peak. What insights rise from this text? How can this text help us to transform our minds and hearts, recognize our potential for enlightenment, and help us liberate ourselves from samsara? In this retreat, goddess Prajnaparamita beckons us to engage on these reflections. The Venerable Tenzin Priyadarshi is the founding director of The Dalai Lama Center for Ethics and Transformative Values at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has a graduate degree in Comparative Philosophy of Religion from Harvard University and is an Integral Honors Scholar in Philosophy and Science. At the age of ten, he entered a Buddhist Monastery in Rajgir and was subsequently ordained by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, who is his spiritual Mentor. Venerable Tenzin lectures internationally and is also President of The Prajnopaya Foundation, a worldwide humanitarian organization. For more information on him and his work, vist www.iMonk.org.
  • In this weekend retreat held in Santa Barbara, California, B. Alan Wallace, Ph.D. explores methods of cultivating genuine happiness. The retreat consists of meditation, lecture, and discussion periods focusing on the themes found in Wallace's book "Genuine Happiness." These include methods for cultivating attentional stability and vividness, contemplative insight, and the Four Immeasurables of loving kindness, equanimity, compassion and sympathetic joy. The teachings are designed to help us integrate practice into our everyday life in the world through mind training. The downloadable MP3 audio files, and the four-disc DVD video set, chronicles the weekend retreat "The Cultivation of Genuine Happiness Meditation as the Path to Fulfillment" held at Santa Barbara's historical Old Mission July 24-26, 2009.

    Please select either the DVD video collection, or the download MP3 audio files and PDF.

  • The 19th-century classic Dzogchen treatise, The Vajra Essence, by the eminent master Dudjom Lingpa concludes with a concise lucid account of the Six Bardos, namely the Bardos of Living, Dreaming, Meditative Stabilization, Dying, Reality-itself, and Becoming. The teachings on these Bardos show how each of these trasitional phases of cyclic existence can provide a platform for achieving enlightenment, particularly by way of the practices of shamatha, Vipashyana, and Dzogchen. During this retreat, B. Alan Wallace offers an explanation of Dujom Lingpas teachings, together with guided meditations for putting them into practice. All seven days of this retreat are reproduced in full in this two CD set, conveniently divided into teachings, meditations, and discussions. PDF files on the first disk include explanatory notes on the audio files, retreat handouts, and other pertinent information. This audio MP3 CD set chronicles the seven-day retreat held at Santa Barbara's historical Old Mission. Recorded March 21-28,2010. MP3 CDs suitable for use in computers and MP3 players.
  • The 19th-century classic Dzogchen treatise, The Vajra Essence, by the eminent master Düdjom Lingpa concludes with a concise lucid account of the Six Bardos, namely the Bardos of Living, Dreaming, Meditative Stabilization, Dying, Reality itself, and Becoming. The teachings on these Bardos show how each of these transitional phases of cyclic existence can provide a platform for achieving enlightenment, particularly by way of the practices of shamatha, vipashyana, and Dzogchen. Lama Alan Wallace offers an explanation of Düdjom Lingpa's teachings, with guided meditations for putting them into practice. This seven-day retreat was recorded March 2011, at the Old Mission in Santa Barbara, CA The retreat is available via streaming video, streaming or downloadable audio recordings or DVD.
  • During this retreat, Lama Alan Wallace introduces the theory and practice of three methods of developing meditative quiescence or shamatha. He begins with the practice of mindfulness of breathing as taught in the Theravada tradition, which is especially effective for soothing the body and calming the discursive mind. He then explores an approach to shamatha that is particularly pertinent for Dzogchen practice, called "settling the mind in its natural state," as taught by the 19th century Dzogchen master Lerab Lingpa in his commentary to the "Heart Essence of Vimalamitra." Finally, he engages the practices of "shamatha without a sign" as taught by Padmasambhava in his classic treatise Natural Liberation. Although this subtle practice is taught explicitly as a means of achieving shamatha, Padmasambhava comments that it may even result in a realization of rigpa, or pristine awareness. The achievement of shamatha is widely regarded in the Buddhist tradition as an indispensable foundation for the cultivation of contemplative insight (vipashyana). The retreat consists of lectures, guided meditations and discussions. The retreat was recorded in January 2010, in Santa Barbara, CA and is available via DVD, Audio or Video Recordings.
  • During this week-long retreat, Alan Wallace teaches insight meditation drawn from the Dzogchen tradition of Tibetan Buddhism which probes the nature of the mind. He discusses the relation between lucid dreaming and dream yoga, including areas of complementarity and divergence. In addition, throughout the week, retreatants are taught how to engage in the daytime and nighttime practices of dream yoga. Guided meditations and groups discussions are included as well as teaching by Alan Wallace. Modern scientific research into lucid dreaming draws a sharp distinction between the waking state and dreaming, and it has developed practical methods for inducing lucidity, namely, recognizing that we are dreaming while we are dreaming. The common theories and practices of lucid dreaming do not deeply challenge our conventional assumptions regarding the nature of waking reality, but rather help us to become more mindfully engaged with daytime experience, and can be remarkably effective in helping us to start having lucid dreams. These practices include keeping a dream journal, recognizing recurrent "dream signs," conducting "state checks" throughout the day to confirm whether we are awake or dreaming, and cultivating "prospective memory," that is, remembering to do things in the future. The ancient Buddhist contemplative tradition of dream yoga emphasizes the deep similarities between the waking state and dreaming, while also acknowledging significant differences. Dream yoga begins with the recognition that we are dreaming while in the dream state, which is common to the modern discipline of lucid dreaming. But after recognizing the dream for what it is, dream yoga shows how to explore the nature of dream reality by transforming the contents of the dream. Latter stages of this practice leads to a fearlessness in the dream state and the experiential exploration of the "substrate consciousness," out of which all dreams emerge. The ultimate aim of dream yoga is to fully awaken to the nature of experienced reality as a Buddha, an "Awakened One." During this retreat, Alan Wallace discusses the relation between lucid dreaming and dream yoga, their areas of complementarity and divergence, and daytime vs. nighttime practices of dream yoga. Please select the media type you would like to receive: DVD video discs, or downloadable MP3 audio files and PDFs.
  • This MP3 Audio disc set chronicles the seven-day Meditation Seminar for Neuroscientists & Mental Healthcare Professionals recorded March 22 - 29, 2009 at the Old Mission in Santa Barbara, CA.
  • The seven-day retreat “Exploring the Depths of the Psyche: A Shamatha Retreat in the Great Perfection Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, presented on the basis of Dudjom Lingpa’s Mind Treasure, The Vajra Essence” in Santa Barbara, California from June 21 – 28, 2009, Available on DVD (9-disc set) or Audio Stream MP3 download. The Vajra Essence by Dudjom Lingpa is a classic, 19th century meditation manual in the Great Perfection (Dzogchen) tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. Covering all stages of meditative practice up to the achievement of spiritual awakening, it begins with an extraordinary presentation of the shamatha practice of "settling the mind in its natural state." In this week long retreat, B. Alan Wallace offers an oral commentary the shamatha section of  The Vajra Essence, which he received from his teacher, the Ven. Gyatrul Rinpoche, who authorized him to teach this portion of the text to general audiences. The retreat will also consist of meditation sessions and periods of discussion. Although this practice is presented in the context of Tibetan Buddhism, it is strongly resonant with Zen and Vipassana meditations, so it may be inviting and enriching to Buddhists of all traditions, as well anyone else who is interested to explore the depths of their own mind, and consciousness. All seven days of this retreat are reproduced here in full, conveniently divided into teachings, meditations, and discussions. PDF files are included on the first DVD disk and include explanatory notes on the audio files, retreat handouts, and other pertinent information. The audio stream download files include MP3 files and PDF notes. Please select either the 9-DVD set (sent via Priority Mail) or the digital MP3 audio download files (you will receive a download link).  
  • This MP3 set chronicles the seven-day The Way of Shamatha retreat held at Santa Barbara's historic Old Mission in April 2008.
  • A central message of the Buddha’s teachings is that the mind is purified of its afflictions through the integrated cultivation of meditative quiescence (shamatha) and contemplative insight (vipashyana). The four applications of mindfulness—of the body, feelings, mental states, and mental objects—comprise the foundation of Buddhist insight practice. As we investigate the nature of these features of our existence in this seminar, we will probe the nature of human identity and the possibility of freedom from suffering and its inner causes. This audio stream and DVD chronicles the seven-day Four Applications of Mindfulness retreat held at Santa Barbara’s historic Old Mission in May 2008.
  • A Meditation Retreat on Shamatha, Vipashyana, Mahamudra, and Dzogchen

    B. Alan Wallace 29 Mar 2016 – 24 May 2016 Lama Tzong Khapa Institute, Italy Spring 8-Week retreat on Shamatha, Vipashyana, and Mahamudra, based upon two texts: Panchen Lozang Chökyi Gyaltsen’s Highway of the Jinas: A Root Text on the Precious Geluk-Kagyü Mahamudra Tradition, and Karma Chagmé’s Naked Awareness: Practical Teachings on the Union. Prerequisite Requirements to Purchase Program To register for this retreat you should be familiar with the foundational teachings and practices of shamatha, the four applications of mindfulness, and the four immeasurables. See below for list of teachings. Please read full details below in Description.
  • Buddhahood Without Meditation is the most renowned of the five principal Dzogchen texts revealed by the 19th century Mahasiddha Düdjom Lingpa, and it is unique in that it consists of an anthology of teachings he received by way of pure visions of many of the greatest Indian and Tibetan Buddhist adepts and other enlightened beings.
    This retreat consists of lectures, guided meditations, and question-and-answer sessions, and is intended for participants with a sound understanding and practice of the foundational Buddhist teachings of the Four Noble Truths, Bodhicitta, and the Six Perfections.
    See below for additional information.
    This is offered via audio stream/download, video stream or DVD.
    This 6 day meditation retreat was recorded in Santa Barbara, CA  January 8-13, 2017  
     
  • Buddhahood Without Meditation is the most renowned of the five principal Dzogchen texts revealed by the 19th century Mahasiddha Düdjom Lingpa, and it is unique in that it consists of an anthology of teachings he received by way of pure visions of many of the greatest India  and  Tibetan Buddhist adepts and other enlightened beings
    Buddhahood Without Meditation Part 1, held in Jan. 2017 is a prerequisite to this retreat.
    This retreat consists of lectures, guided meditations, and question-and-answer sessions, and is intended for participants with a sound understanding and practice of the foundational Buddhist teachings of the Four Noble Truths, Bodhicitta, and the Six Perfections.
    See below for additional information.
      This is offered via audio stream/download, video stream or DVD. A 6 day meditation retreat recorded in Santa Barbara, CA from Jan 7-12, 2018.  
  • "Probing the Ultimate Nature of Reality" is available as a DVD set, or digital download MP3 audio stream files. Both options include PDF files, retreat handouts, and other pertinent information. DVD SET: This nine-disc DVD set chronicles the seven-day retreat “Probing the Ultimate Nature of Reality: A Vipashyana Retreat in the Great Perfection Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, presented on the basis of Dudjom Lingpa’s Mind Treasure, The Vajra Essence” in Santa Barbara, California from September 2009. MP3 AUDIO DOWNLOAD: All seven days of this retreat are available by MP3 audio stream and conveniently divided into teachings, meditations, and discussions. PDF files include explanatory notes on the audio files, retreat handouts, and other pertinent information. Pre-requisites: Part I  “Exploring the Depths of the Psyche: A Shamatha Retreat in the Great Perfection Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism", presented on the basis of Dudjom Lingpa’s Mind Treasure, The Vajra Essence” in Santa Barbara, California from June 21 – 28, 2009. Please select either the 9-DVD set (sent via Priority Mail) or the digital MP3 audio download files (you will receive a download link).  
  • Retreat  Title: Lucid Dreaming and Dream Yoga September 18-25, 2018 Sponsored by Garrison Institute, New York Audio Stream and Download
    Modern scientific research into lucid dreaming draws a sharp distinction between the waking state and dreaming, and it has developed practical methods for inducing lucidity, namely, recognizing that we are dreaming while we are dreaming.
    The ancient Buddhist contemplative tradition of dream yoga points out deep similarities between the waking state and dreaming, encouraging us to become lucid at all times. To fully awaken to the nature of experience is to be a Buddha, an “Awakened One,” and that is the ultimate aim of dream yoga.
    During this retreat, Alan Wallace will discuss the relation between lucid dreaming and dream yoga, including areas of complementarity and divergence. In addition, we will engage in the daytime and nighttime practices of dream yoga, interspersed with times for discussion.
    You may select either the digital download files (you will receive an email with download links) or the MP3 CD discs. These will be delivered via USPS mail.
  • Phase 1: “Taking the Impure Mind as the Path” and Phase 2: “Revealing Your Own Face as the Sharp Vajra of Vipaśyanā” in The Vajra Essence: From the Matrix of Pure Appearances and Primordial Consciousness, a Tantra Self-Emergent from the Nature of Existence with B. Alan Wallace.

    Retreat Dates: April 1- May 26, 2020

    Prerequisite Requirements to Purchase Program

    One must have genuine interest in practicing the dharma and must have read the text, “The Fine Path to Liberation.” If you need a scholarship, you can apply here.

    Please read full details below in description.

  • During this week-long retreat Lama Alan Wallace granted the oral transmission and commentary to the teachings on the root text of The Highway of the Jinas: A Root Text on the Precious Geluk-Kagyü Mahamudra Tradition and its auto-commentary by Panchen Lozang Chökyi Gyaltsen, tutor to the Fifth Dalai Lama. In addition, Lama Alan Wallace comments on excerpts from A Spacious Path to Freedom: Practical Instructions on the Union of Mahāmudrā and Atiyoga by the great 17th-century master Karma Chagmé. Recorded January 28- February 4, 2020 at Camp Ramah, Ojai, California 2020 Available via audio recording, video recording, or DVD.
  • Shamatha Teachings with Drupla Tsampa Karma Translated by Khenpo Namchak Dorji Recorded in October 19 and 20, 2019 (one and a half day retreat) Once you have made the payment,  links to download the audio recordings will be emailed.
  • The Vajra Essence – Part 2

    Phase 3: “Revealing the Ground Dharmakāya” and Phase 4: “Determining the Characteristics and Qualities of the Ground” in The Vajra Essence: From the Matrix of Pure Appearances and Primordial Consciousness, a Tantra Self-Emergent from the Nature of Existence. April 1 – May 26, 2021

    Prerequisite Requirements to Purchase Program

    By purchasing you acknowledge that you have satisfied the retreat prerequisites of listening to the 2020 8-week retreat and will listen to Lama Alan’s oral commentary to the Vajra Essence in its entirety and have had an empowerment or will receive the recommended empowerment. If you need a scholarship, you can apply here.

    Please read full details below in description.

  • Retreat on Atiśa’s Pith Instructions on Theory and Practice
    Lama Alan Wallace offers commentaries on Three Texts by Atiśa:
    Guide to the Two Realities
    Pith Instructions on a Single Mindfulness
    The Mahāmudrā Granted by the Noble Lord to Gönpawa
    For additional information please read below.
    Translations available into Portuguese and Spanish
    Please select your media option and language option.
  • Atiśa’s Pith Instructions on the Middle Way and Commentary by Prajñāmoksha

    This two-day retreat includes Lama Alan Wallace’s oral commentaries and guided meditations, as well as discussion and questions and answer sessions. Please read below for more information about the retreat.

    This was recorded September 19 – 20, 2020 in Santa Barbara.

    The retreat is also available translated into Portuguese.

    Audio  Download $108

    Video Stream $148
    Both $220
  • The Enlightened View of Samantabhadra
    Location: Lama Tzong Khapa Institute, Tuscany, Italy
    Held From: April 4th - May 30th, 2019

    During this eight-week retreat, Alan Wallace will give detailed oral commentaries on one of the five classic Dzogchen treatises by Düdjom Lingpa, The Enlightened View of Samantabhadra. This is the third in a series of 8-week retreats in which commentaries and oral transmissions will be offered for all five of these treatises: The Sharp Vajra of Conscious Awareness Tantra (2018), The Enlightened View of Samantabhadra (2019), and The Vajra Essence (2020-2023)

    Prerequisite Requirements to Purchase Program

    One must have genuine interest in practicing the dharma and must have read the text, “The Fine Path to Liberation.” If you need a scholarship, you can apply here.

    Please read full details below in Description.

  • B. Alan Wallace and Glen Svensson 04 Apr 2018 – 30 May 2018 Lama Tzong Khapa Institute, Tuscany, Italy During this eight-week retreat, Alan Wallace will begin by commenting on Sera Khandro’s explanation of the preliminary practices for Dzogchen in The Fine Path to Liberation and by granting the empowerment of the Lake-Born Vajra manifestation of Padmasambhava. He will then give detailed oral commentaries on one of the five classic Dzogchen treatises by Düdjom Lingpa, The Sharp Vajra of Conscious Awareness, in addition to Düdjom Lingpa’s commentary (edited by Pema Tashi), entitled The Essence of Clear Meaning. Alan will comment on all aspects of these texts except the pith instructions on the direct crossing over (thögal), which is to be taught only to individuals who are able to abide continuously in pristine awareness.

    Prerequisite Requirements to Purchase Program

    One must have genuine interest in practicing the dharma and must have read the text, “The Fine Path to Liberation.” If you need a scholarship, you can apply here.

    Please read full details below in Description.

  • “The Foolish Dharma of an Idiot Clothed in Mud and Feathers,” “Buddhahood Without Meditation” and “The Fine Path to Liberation” with B. Alan Wallace

    03 Apr 2017 – 30 May 2017 Lama Tzong Khapa Institute, Tuscany, Italy During this eight-week retreat Alan Wallace will give detailed oral commentaries on two of the five classic Dzogchen treatises by Düdjom Lingpa, The Foolish Dharma of an Idiot Clothed in Mud and Feathers and Buddhahood Without Meditation, in addition to the brief text on the preliminary practices for Dzogchen by Sera Khandro, entitled The Fine Path to Liberation. This will be the first in a series of 8-week retreats in which commentaries and oral transmissions will be offered for all five of these treatises: The Sharp Vajra of Conscious Awareness Tantra (2018), The Enlightened View of Samantabhadra (2019), and The Vajra Essence (2020-2023).

    Prerequisite Requirements to Purchase Program

    To register for this retreat, you should be familiar with the foundational teachings and practices of shamatha, the four applications of mindfulness, and the four immeasurables. See below for list of teachings. One must have genuine interest in practicing the dharma and must have read the text, “The Fine Path to Liberation.” If you need a scholarship, you can apply here. Please read full details below in Description.

  • Drubpon Lama Karma held three online teachings on the Four Immeasurables (recorded Oct. 24 and Nov. 21), and Practical Advice from The Ocean of Enlightened Activities to Benefit Beings by Karma Chagme (recorded Nov. 21 and Dec. 19, 2020). The teachings were translated by Khenpo Sonam into English.

    This retreat is available for video streaming and audio download - select your option below.

  • With the many demands on our time in today’s world, it is all too easy to continue our spiritual practice to brief periods of meditation each day, supplemented by occasional teachings and retreats. But it is difficult for such intermittent dedication to Dharma, interrupted by long periods of mundane activities and concerns, to bring about deep and lasting transformation in our minds and way of life. In his classic text “Transforming Felicity and Adversity into the Spiritual Path” the 19th century Dzogchen master Dodrupchen Tenpey Nyima provides practical instruction for transmuting all of life’s ups and downs into nourishment on the path to enlightenment. During this retreat, Lama Alan Wallace offers an explanation of these teachings, together with guided meditations for putting them into practice.
    This online meditation retreat had simultaneous translation into Spanish and Portuguese. After you place your order you will receive an email with a link to the teachings. The audio stream was recorded on July 25-26, 2020
    Audio Download $108
    Video Stream - $148
    Both Audio Download and Video Stream - $220
    Recordings are available in three languages, English, Spanish and Portuguese, please select the language you want to download.
       
     
  • Virtual retreat from Miyo Samten Ling in Crestone, CO

    This retreat will begin with oral commentaries on Alan Wallace’s two freshly translated dialogues between Atisha and his principal disciple Drom Tönpa; then we shall turn to a close examination of the fifty-one mental factors according to classic Indian Buddhist psychology.

    The retreat will be available by both video-stream and audio-stream/download, and both are included in the price. If you need a scholarship, you can apply here.

    Please see below for more information on the teachings and additional details about the retreat.

  • On November 18th, 2020 Lama Alan offered five hours of oral commentary to Drubpön Lama Karma’s experiential account of his own practice of shamatha and subsequent contemplative training. This is Lama Alan’s first teaching at The Center for Contemplative Research at Miyo Samten Ling in Crestone, CO. We are delighted to share with you these inspired teachings, in both audio and video form, and with a Spanish translation also available. Traducción al español disponible. Please see below for additional information.
  • Lama Alan offers concise, pith instructions on the four revolutions in outlook, the common, outer preliminaries that are the basis for the uncommon inner preliminaries. These teachings are from the 2020 8-week retreat, The Vajra Essence Part I. There are no prerequisites for these teachings. If you would like to register for the entire 8-week retreat you can click here
  • Over 15 sessions Glen Svensson will introduce the practice of shamatha, the practice of cultivating a calm, clear and focused mind. Each session includes discussion, guided meditation and Q&A. This program is suitable for those new to this practice and also those who are already well established in shamatha practice. These teachings were originally part of 2020 8-week retreat. Please see below for additional information.
  • The Seven Preliminaries according to the Revelations of Düdjom Lingpa

    Teaching, translations, and oral transmission by Eva Natanya (Yangchen Osel) from the 2020 8-week Retreat Eva Natanya presents previously untranslated material on the Seven Uncommon Preliminaries (or Ngöndro) as they appear in the revelations of Düdjom Lingpa and in key commentaries from the Düdjom Lineage. See below for additional information.
  • THE SCIENCE OF THE MIND: A Practical Inquiry Into the Nature of Mind Through Traditional Buddhist Meditation

    November 13-19, 2021, A Virtual Retreat with Video stream & Audio stream/download Like all other branches of science, the science of mind must be primarily based on the rigorous observation of natural phenomena. Much as astronomers rely on the telescope, so do contemplatives rely on the power of samadhi to explore the nature and potentials of the mind. Please see below for additional retreat information. This event is co-sponsored with our friends at CCN and the Vajrayana Institute, and partnered with The Contemplary.
  • A virtual retreat from Miyo Samten Ling in Crestone, Colorado

    Sponsored by Santa Barbara Institute and the Center for Contemplative Research

    The Vajra Essence – Part III March 31 - May 30, 2022

    Audio Stream/Download Registration

      This online, 8-week retreat will focus on completing Phase 4: “Determining the Characteristics and Qualities of the Ground,” Phase 5: "Determining Secret Dualistic Grasping and Revealing the Way of Natural Liberation" and Phase 6: "Teaching on the Essential Points of Practice and Their Key Distinctions" from The Vajra Essence: From the Matrix of Pure Appearances and Primordial Consciousness, a Tantra Self-Emergent from the Nature of Existence. Prerequisite Requirements to Purchase Program By purchasing you acknowledge that you have satisfied the retreat prerequisites of listening to both the 2020 and 2021 8-week retreats on The Vajra Essence and will listen to Lama Alan’s oral commentary to The Vajra Essence in its entirety and have had an empowerment or will receive the recommended empowerment. If you have not received the Lake-Born Vajra empowerment from Lama Alan, then you should not listen to Yangchen's teachings on the sadhana (which began after the empowerment was granted during the 2022 8-week retreat on May 11, 2022). We do hope that at a future date the empowerment will be available again. This year we are offering multiple pricing options as you will see below when you select Choose An Option. If you need a scholarship, you can apply here. Please read all of the details below under description.
  • With the many demands on our time in today’s world, it is all too easy to continue our spiritual practice to brief periods of meditation each day, supplemented by occasional teachings and retreats. But it is difficult for such intermittent dedication to Dharma, interrupted by long periods of mundane activities and concerns, to bring about deep and lasting transformation in our minds and way of life. In his classic text “Transforming Felicity and Adversity into the Spiritual Path” the 19th century Dzogchen master Dodrupchen Tenpey Nyima provides practical instruction for transmuting all of life’s ups and downs into nourishment on the path to enlightenment. During this retreat, Lama Alan Wallace offers an explanation of his teachings, together with guided meditations for putting them into practice. The audio recordings cover three and a half days of teaching and you will also receive the text. After you place your order you will receive an email with a link to the teachings. The audio stream was recorded in June, 2013 at Santa Barbara’s historical Old Mission.
  • The retreat was specifically designed for clinical psychologists, researchers, and other mental healthcare professionals interested in learning how various Buddhist contemplative practices can help to alleviate mental problems and enhance mental health and balance.

      DVD VIDEO SET: This nine-disc DVD Video or MP3 Audio CD set, chronicles the seven-day seminar retreat held at Santa Barbara's historic Old Mission in February 2008. MP3 AUDIO CD SET: This five-disc MP3CD set chronicles the seven-day seminar retreat held at Santa Barbara’s historic Old Mission in February 2008. The retreat was specifically designed for clinical psychologists, researchers, and other mental healthcare professionals interested in learning how various Buddhist contemplative practices can help to alleviate mental problems and enhance mental health and balance. Please select either the DVD video 9-disc set or the MP3 audio CDs.  Your discs will be shipped by US Postal Service or Fedex
  • Extracting the Vital Essence of Accomplishment: Concise and Clear Advice for Practice in a Mountain Retreat by twentieth-century Nyingma master, Düdjom Rinpoché, Jigdral Yeshé Dorjé. Lama Alan Wallace presents and comments on pith instructions of Dzogchen, the Great Perfection. Providing guidance on retreat, this course is based on the text Extracting the Vital Essence of Accomplishment: Concise and Clear Advice for Practice in a Mountain Retreat by twentieth-century Nyingma master, Düdjom Rinpoché, Jigdral Yeshé Dorjé. Lama Alan translates and explores the short, powerful text on retreat in terms of the preliminaries, main practices, and post-meditative practices of the Great Perfection path. This retreat consists of 10 one-hour lectures, each with a 30-minute guided meditation. To allow time for contemplation and practice, starting on June 3 you will receive a new teaching weekly for ten weeks. Each session will include a one-hour lecture and a 30-minute guided meditation. This will be a Virtual Retreat with Audio stream/download. We are offering multiple pricing options as you will see below when you select Choose An Option. Please see the description below for additional information. Si prega di vedere sotto per informazioni in italiano.
  • During the 2022, The Vajra Essence - Part 3, 8-week retreat, Lama Alan offered three teachings, and meditations, on these essential, integrated shamatha meditations:
    • Mindfulness of breathing,
    • Taking the mind as the path and
    • Shamatha without a sign.
    We are delighted to offer these three core teachings, and meditations, for free.
  • Fathom the Mind. Heal the World.

    with Lama Alan Wallace, Dr. Eva Natanya & Dr. Anuradha Choudry October 1-7, 2022

    Co-sponsored by Santa Barbara Institute for Consciousness Studies and the Center for Contemplative Research.

    This retreat is an opportunity to explore the interdenominational, inter-contemplative themes outlined by His Holiness the Dalai Lama in his vision for the Center for Contemplative Research:
    • The Buddhist meditative practices of śamatha and vipaśyanā
    • Teachings on nonviolence and compassion from other revered Indian traditions
    • Instruction in the contemplative traditions of Christianity
    The virtual retreat will be available with both audio and video recordings of each day's teachings. All Q&A sessions, the teachings from Dr. Choudry and the final day panel discussion will be live. All other sessions will be recorded and made available within 24-36 hours. We are offering multiple pricing options as you will see when you select 'Choose an option' from the drop-down menu below. Read more about the retreat below.

    Select your virtual retreat option

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