Practice of Gomadevi and Explanations on Relative and Absolute Bodhicitta

by Urara Taoka

Our last retreat in Dzamling Gar in 2018 was a Practice of Gomadevi and Explanations on the Relative and Absolute Bodhicitta, led by various Santi Maha Sangha instructors such as Elio Guarisco, Fabio Andrico, Stoffelina Verdonk, Steven Landsberg and Elias Capriles.  One hundred-thirty people registered. Leticia Recepter was the Project Manager and together with an organized team, worked hard to manifest this retreat.

The purpose of retreat was to provide the opportunity to practice together for experienced students and newcomers who have interest in the Dzogchen teaching and that is why we organized two channels of webcast, open and closed.

For me personally, I was not really familiar with this practice at all, so I had some doubt about offering it at the beginning. But at the same time, I knew that this is one of most important teachings in the Longsal series of Chögyal Namkhai Norbu and that it is a very precious one. I decided to buy a book and started to read it parallel with retreat.  Rinpoche’s voice through the book and the explanations of the instructors got me absorbed in myself. Practice came closer to me day by day and I had no doubt at the end; also when we were in the practice that we were with our Master.

Rinpoche often called the temporary Gönpa at Dzamling Gar “gypsy style”, but it is the place where many important teachings and initiations have happened. I could feel how the Master empowered the last Gar for us and for our future.The place itself has a power and it was helping our practice. I did not understand this so well when our Master was physically here.

In the morning and afternoon we practiced the long thun, and in the evening we practiced the short thun combined with Vajra Dance; both are unique experiences. Somehow I could feel something totally different than a complete thun of Vajra Dance. Let’s call it energy.

I should not forget to say something about explanations of bodhichitta as well. It is always very nice to listen the explanations done by different people in different words, it could deepen or help our understanding.It seems that especially recently, instructors are trying to let people taste, not only lecturing in an intellectual way. All the books from Rinpoche are our treasure, but the Santi Maha Sangha Precious Vase has a special function and with our time limitations, it is not easy to go through Santi Maha Sangha explanations in one and half or two hours, but this kind of explanation could take or guide you to the book itself. It is an opening up and can be an introduction.

Thanks again to all of you who participated in this retreat and all collaborators, including instructors, the webcast team, and translators.

May all our activity could be the seed of liberating all sentient beings!

Love from Dzamling Gar, and see you at the Mandarava retreat!!