Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
Workshop Information
A Journey to Self-Realization
Discover the Best of Who You Are and Can Be
with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
June 11 - 26, 2022
A two-week online workshop with personal support and guidance provided by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
(This workshop was formerly titled "Who Am I?")
Workshop registration: US$325.00
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"I–Who Am I?
I am no one.
I can be anyone."
- Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
Many of the world's spiritual traditions are founded on a single, fundamental truth: that the source of all suffering in life is a mistaken sense of identity. We are forever searching for the light that can dispel the darkness of our uncomfortable thoughts and emotions; yet, we can't see that we already are the light we are seeking.
As Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche explains, who we truly are is limitless love and compassion, beyond any boundaries of identity. With a subtle yet profound shift in how we understand ourselves, we can open up the space that permits us to rise above challenging situations with less fear and anxiety. We can acknowledge that we are not the sick patient, the angry family member, or the struggling employee. We are none of that, and we are so much more.
In this intimate teaching based on "Who Am I?," a poem he wrote that arose from his own heart practice, Rinpoche begins by laying a strong foundation of the essential points of meditation. Then, step by step, he points you to an understanding of who you are not, followed by the deepest truth of who you truly are and can be. In meditation, he guides you to bring your sense of "pain identity" into the space of open awareness, and to give it what he calls a spacious, luminous, warm hug. As you allow your mistaken identity to dissolve into that space, what was once painful becomes an ornament of your vast potential. You are freed to follow your life's journey with more joy and spontaneity.
The primary journey of every spiritual path is to reclaim what has been lost: the truth of who we really are. Once we come to a deep recognition that our true nature is spontaneous perfection, there is no more need to search for insights or solutions, no more need to strive. According to the dzogchen tradition of Tibetan Bon and Buddhism, this simple recognition is the way to ultimate liberation, to our own Great Perfection.
Throughout every stage of life, from childhood through adulthood and old age, we have a different sense of identity, a strong mental image of who we are. Each of these identities causes us pain, because it is only a mental projection based on ignorance, anger and attachment. In the workshop, Rinpoche encourages you to make note of your current sense of identity and work with it in guided meditations as well as informally throughout your day. For it is only by discovering who you are not that you can connect deeply with the beauty and infinite potential of who you are.
About the Workshop
This is a two-week workshop that is divided into four teaching sessions plus an introduction to the workshop practices. The workshop is intended to be experiential rather than purely philosophical or conceptual in nature, with each teaching session providing guidance and exercises for your formal practice. Rather than presenting extended lectures, each teaching session consists of a series of short videos, each one focused on a specific aspect of the teachings. The teaching session videos have a total duration of about an hour or less. A new teaching session will be introduced twice a week, on each Saturday and Tuesday of the workshop.
The videos in the workshop were recorded specifically for this program, and once a teaching session has been introduced, it remains available for you to review for the duration of the course. Although the videos are generally available only for the duration of the workshop, it is important to us that you have as much time as you need to complete your work with the teaching sessions. If you find that you would like to have additional time to access the videos and course materials, we'll be glad to extend your access.
Because our participants will be attending from all over the world and many different time zones, the teaching sessions can be accessed according to your own schedule, when it is convenient for you. This workshop includes four guided meditations for your formal practice, with audio versions that will be downloadable in MP3 format. Informal practice, as the name suggests, can be done anywhere and any time you have a moment to reflect on the situations that arise in life. Detailed instruction for both formal and informal practice will be provided in the workshop videos.
Rinpoche makes himself available throughout the two weeks of the workshop to answer questions about the teachings and your experiences with the practices through our private workshop forums and messaging system. Through the forums, you will be able to communicate and share your experiences with the group who will be working with the teachings along with you. We encourage you to use the forums so that everyone may benefit from your experiences and from Rinpoche's responses and guidance. Because of his busy schedule, Rinpoche asks that your questions be about the teachings presented in the workshop and in particular, your experiences with them. He also asks that your questions come from the heart, rather than being conceptual or merely inquisitive in nature.
Workshop Features:
- Two-week teacher-guided online workshop
- Step-by-step class instructions (via pre-recorded video)
- New material released twice a week
- Four hours of video instruction, exercises, and meditations
- No set class times - review video instruction any time and as often as necessary throughout the workshop
- Continuous personal support and individual advice from Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche via workshop forums
- Easy to use and navigate course site