Located at the foot of the Sangre De Cristo Mountains the Vajra Vidya Retreat Center was built by Venerable Thrangu Rinpoche for all serious practitioners who want to deepen their meditation and spiritual practices. Both new and seasoned practitioners are welcome.

Thrangu Rinpoche’s Rinpoche's vision of providing all the elements needed for successful practice have come together in this special place. There are eight retreat rooms, a shrine room, and a living space all of which support focus on practice itself. Three meals a day are provided in the dining room. Participants and the Lamas eat together at all meals. Our food is vegetarian. An office allows for necessary communication between retreatants and families through computers and telephones, though the use of these is restricted to check-in time and special situations.

On staff are Lama Karma Wangdu and Khenpo Jigme, who are both highly trained lamas sent by Thrangu Rinpoche to support retreatant practice. They are available for guidance, teaching, and to answer questions throughout your stay. Private interviews can also be scheduled. There is always at least one Lama in residence, though each of them travel several times during the year to teach at other centers. In general, retreatants determine with their own teacher what practices are appropriate and which texts to be used on their retreat. This allows for practitioners of all levels of experience to engage in an authentic practice with complete support--something difficult to get alone in an isolated retreat cabin.

Click to download the pre-registration form or the pre-registration form with instructions

PRE-REGISTRATION FORM

Name:

Street or PO Box:

City:

State/Province:

Zip/Postal Code:

Country:

Telephone number:

Email Address:

I have scheduled a retreat from ___________ to _____________ .

Expected Arrival Time: ________________________ .

What kind of retreat did you want to do?

What is your mode of transportation to the retreat?

Will you require an airport pick up in Alamosa when you arrive? (a $35 fee will apply each way)

    Flight #:
    Arrival Time:

Do you have food allergies or special dietary restrictions or requirements? (Please contact us to be sure we can accommodate your dietary needs if they are complicated.)

To schedule your retreat please send an email with your proposed retreat dates to: coordinator@vajravidyaretreatcenter.org

Or call us at the Vajra Vidya Retreat Center at (719) 256-5539.

Our normal office hours are from 9:00am to 1:00pm Monday through Friday. You can also leave a message and we will return your call as soon as possible.

To confirm your room reservation once your retreat has been scheduled we require that you send a 50% deposit along with a completed copy of the Pre-Registration form to:

Vajra Vidya Retreat Center - Bookings
P. O. Box 1083
Crestone, CO 81131
USA

Cancellation policy:

If you must cancel your visit, and you notify us at least 2 weeks before your scheduled arrival date, your deposit will be returned. If you notify us less than 2 weeks before your scheduled arrival date, you may use the deposit as a credit toward a future retreat or give it as a donation to the retreat center.

* Prices are calculated as follows
  $45 per day
  $40 per day for 28-88 days (1-3 months)
  $35 per day for three months (88 days) or longer

Traditionally, there are four practice sessions in a day when doing a retreat. At Vajra Vidya we have scheduled times for four sessions of individual practice in your room, as well as two sessions for group practice in the shrine room in the morning and evening. You are encouraged to do all four meditation sessions because the more you put into it, the more you will get out of your retreat. The Morning Group Practice starts after breakfast and includes the lineage supplication, a short Manjusri practice and one hour of sitting meditation.

Interviews can be scheduled with the Lama to follow the Morning Group Practice. The Evening Group Practice is after dinner and alternates between Chenrezig and White Tara practices with closing prayers. In addition, there is a Medicine Buddha practice every Sunday and a Sukhavati practice on every full moon. All group practices are lead by the Lamas and chanted in Tibetan with the English translation given underneath.( Group practice periods are optional but encouraged.)

Meals are served for everyone at the same time - breakfast is at 7:00am, lunch at 12:00 noon and dinner at 6:00pm. Silence is kept all morning until lunch and then throughout the rest of the day during practice times.

If you want to do a completely silent retreat with no talking at meal times, you may come before the scheduled meal times to serve your food and take it to your room to eat. For silent retreatants we can also assign a cleaning task that avoids contact with other retreatants. Please see the Daily Schedule below for more specific time information.

DAILY SCHEDULE FOR VARJA VIDYA RETREAT CENTER

* *5:00am	Wake up
5:30 - 7:00am	First individual meditation session
7:00 - 8:00am	Breakfast
8:00 - 9:00am	Morning Group Practice (opening prayers and sitting meditation)
9:15 - 10:00am	Interviews available with the Lamas
9:15 - 11:30am	Second individual meditation session
12:00 - 1:00pm	Lunch
1:00 - 2:00pm	Work period
2:00 - 5:00pm	Third individual meditation session
5:00 - 6:00pm	Break (Time for tea, phone calls, internet or a walk)
6:00 - 7:00pm	Dinner
7:00 - 7:45pm	Evening Group Practice (either Chenrezig or White Tara and closing prayers)
8:00 - 9:30pm	Fourth individual meditation session
9:00pm	Outside doors are locked
(A bell is rung to announce the start of individual practice sessions)* *

SILENCE IS KEPT UNTIL LUNCH TIME AND WORK PERIOD, THEN FUNCTIONAL SILENCE THE REST OF THE DAY. Keeping SILENCE provides an important support for practice. While most of our day is spent in silence, there are opportunities to speak with other retreatants and staff during lunch and dinner. At all other times, talking is limited to 'functional' talking only. If you are unfamiliar with what 'functional talking' means, please ask a staff person about it when you arrive. During a retreat difficult issues and emotions may arise. THE LAMAS AND STAFF ARE ALWAYS AVAILABLE FOR SUPPORT AND ADVICE IF YOU NEED TO TALK TO SOMEONE.

Vajra Vidya Retreat Center is a four hour drive from Denver and is located on 35 mountain acres. The retreat center has eight retreat rooms. Each has a single bed, linens, pillow, blankets, meditation cushions (Gomden and zabuton), table, reading light, and place for storing clothes. The center is heated by radiant heat, has a shared bathroom with hot showers, a kitchen serving three vegetarian meals, a dining room, and laundry facilities. There is a small shrine room and Buddhist library which will be expanded in future phases of construction. The kitchen is very new and modern with commercial stove, refrigerators and freezers. There is also an office with telephones and email. Extensive pine-forested grounds with mountain views are lovely for walks.

The Vajra Vidya Retreat Center, located at an altitude of 8,300 feet, is nestled into the rise of the 14,000 feet high peaks of the Sangre de Cristo mountains. Crestone averages 300 days of sun a year. Summer is generally hot and dry and winter is cold with occasional snowfall.

In June, July and August the weather usually has bright sunny skies with highs in the mid 90's and lows at night in the 60's. There are periodic rain showers lasting about an hour in the afternoon.

In September and October there is mild weather with the daily temperatures in the 70's with lows at night in the 50's.

Because Crestone is surrounded by mountains there is little moisture and therefore there is usually little snow in the winter time. It does get cold, but the sun is out almost everyday and the ground is dry. The building is new and very well insulated, therefore it is never cold or chilly inside. Most days you can go out for a walk and enjoy the bright sun.

WHAT TO BRING

Personal Practice materials (zafu and zabutan are provided in the room)
Personal Shrine photos
Incense and candles (we have these for sale in our Dharma Store)
A face cloth, towel, and toiletries
Any medication (we are far from pharmacies or hospitals so bring enough for the duration of your stay)
Clock for your room (if you want one)
Inside shoes or slippers (no shoes worn inside the center)
Water bottle, thermos, electrolyte drinks and skin moisturizer (We are at 8,300' so these are advised)
During summer you need a light jacket, sun screen and mosquito repellant.
During winter you need winter clothing for cold and snow.
If you are particular, bring your own pillow and own meditation cushion.

* Retreatants staying a month or more may request that personal items be purchased on bi-monthly shopping trips. Please bring a sufficient quantity of any needed personal items to last for the duration of shorter stays.

WHAT NOT TO BRING

Tobacco, alcohol, recreational drugs, electrical appliances for your room, or pets.

We look forward to having you at VVRC! If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.

DRIVING:

FROM THE NORTH: Take Route 285 South from Denver (pick it up in Morrison, just outside Golden, Southwest of Denver on Rt.70). Take 285 left onto Highway 17 (about 3 hours South of Denver, follow the signs for Alamosa and the Great Sand Dunes National Park). From the turnoff onto Route 17 it is 17 miles to the town of Moffat. At Moffat turn left (East, toward the mountains) onto County Road T. Follow County Road T 12 miles to the Information Kiosk at the fork in the road, just past the Baptist Church. Turn right (South) onto Camino Baca Grande, through the white gates that say "Baca Grande". Stay on Camino Baca Grande for about one mile until the point where it becomes a dirt road. Just before the pavement ends turn right (West) onto Camino Real (known locally as Two Trees Road). Take Camino Real about 3/4 mile to Wagon Wheel Road. Turn left (South) onto Wagon Wheel Road (you'll see a ranch house on the corner, with many old cars parked on the lot). Continue on Wagon Wheel until you come to a stop sign (about 2 miles). Turn left (East) at the stop sign onto Camino del Rey, a paved road. Follow it to the T. Turn left (North) at the T (you're now back onto Camino Baca Grande extension), and see the entrance to Vajra Vidya immediately on the right. Follow the drive through the trees to the center.

FROM THE SOUTH: Take Route 17 North from Alamosa 40 miles to the town of Moffat. Turn right (East) on County Road T. (If you pass the Moffat School and post office/trading post on your left you have missed the turnoff.) Follow County Road T 12 miles to the Information Kiosk at the fork in the road just past the Baptist Church.. Turn right (South) onto Camino Baca Grande, through the white gates that say "Baca Grande". Stay on Camino Baca Grande for about one mile until the point where it becomes a dirt road. Just before the pavement ends turn right (West) onto Camino Real (known locally as Two Trees Road). Take Camino Real about 1/2 mile to Wagon Wheel Road. Turn left (South) onto Wagon Wheel Road (you'll see a ranch house on the corner, with many old cars parked on the lot). Continue on Wagon Wheel until you come to a stop sign (about 2 miles). Turn left (East) at the stop sign onto Camino del Rey. Camino del Rey will quickly become a dirt road. Follow it to the T. Turn left (North) at the T (you're now back onto Camino Baca Grande extension), and see the entrance to Vajra Vidya immediately on the right. Follow the drive through the trees to the center.

FLYING: If you are flying, it is easiest to fly into Denver International Airport and then take Great Lakes Airlines to Alamosa. We will pick you up there. Because it is a 100 mile round trip journey, to pay for gas and car expenses we charge $35 each way for pickup and delivery to Alamosa. The airport in Albuquerque is a four hour drive from Crestone. In the winter the drive from Albuquerque is often easier than from Denver, because there are no mountain passes to cross.

FINDING THE RETREAT CENTER

Vajra Vidya Retreat Center
P. O. Box 1083
3203 Camino Baca Grande
Crestone, CO 81131
Phone: (719) 256-5539
Email: Coordinator@VajraVidyaRetreatCenter.Org

Arrivals and Departures:

You are welcome to arrive any time before 9:30 pm., although late arrivals can be accommodated with advance notification. If you arrive in the morning you may not be able to get into your room until 1:00pm. Room check-out time is 12:00 noon. All retreatants are required to clean their room, wash their sheets and remake the bed, and generally leave the room tidy for the next occupant by the check-out time.

Airport/ Greyhound Bus Pickups:

Pickups are available from the Alamosa Airport or from the Greyhound Bus Station in Alamosa. This is a 100 mile round-trip from VVRC and there is a $35 fee each way to cover expenses.