Tibetan Healing Retreat

Here is news of an interesting healing retreat at the wonderful Saranam retreat center near Elkins, W.Va. Dr. Yonten is a very interesting fellow, who practices the ancient Tibetan healing arts at a very subtle and deep level. This below comes from an e-mal I received about this event. Here is a story I did on Dr. Yonten in the Charleston Gazette in May 2008 on a previous visit here by him and his young West Virginia-born assistant. | Douglas
Saranam retreat center just north of Elkins, W.Va., will welcome Dr. Jampa Yonten and assistant Kyle Weaner who will lead a weekend healing and teaching retreat, April 16-18, 2010.  The retreat will begin with supper and Introduction Friday evening; Saturday morning we will begin practice early; the retreat will end after lunch on Sunday. This year the Tibetan Healing Retreat will focus on Care for the Very Sick and Dying.  We are very pleased that Amchila (honored doctor) is returning to Saranam for a fourth year.  The previous retreats have deeply touched many people.

For those not yet familiar with Saranam, it is a comfortable facility located in a beautiful private setting in Montrose W.Va.  We will meet in the meditation hall, sleep in dorm-style accommodations, and share simple healthy meals.  Cost for the weekend retreat is $200. PLEASE RESPOND TO:  Barbara Weaner (weaner2@gmail.com) or Kyle Weaner (thcbangalore@gmail.com). Click on ‘More’ to read Dr. Yonten’s outline of the goals and objectives for the weekend and more on what he does.

Tibetan Healing Retreat

Care for the Very Sick and Dying

Focus of Retreat: This Tibetan Healing Retreat led by Dr. Jampa Yonten will combine personal retreat with the study of the care for the very sick and dying. The retreat setting keeps the mind in morality and mindfulness, aiding the integration of teachings. We will focus on beneficial ways of aiding sick and dying people with the body, speech, and mind, based on the Tibetan medical texts. As a practicing physician Dr. Yonten will also share practical examples and guidance.

Knowledge Objectives: Participants will receive teachings on sickness and death as natural sufferings, recognizing the signs of an approaching death, recommendations for care of the very sick patients, and the specific methods of helping dying patients.

Practice Objectives: The practical methods of healing one’s self and others encompass activities for the body, speech, and mind. We will practice sound healing of the speech through the use of mantra, mind healing through Medicine Buddha meditation and healing the body with walking meditation and simple yoga.  The practical methods of healing others will include compassionate touch and compassionate presence, therapeutic interactions important for healing the body and mind

Goals of Retreat: Through listening, practice, and experience participants will have a chance for direct healing, which is beneficial for themselves and others. Since all of us face our own illness and death, as well as that of our loved ones, and members of our community, these teachings are vital.

Dr. Jampa Yonten practices traditional Tibetan Medicine, and is the medical director of the Tibetan Healing Center in Bangalore, Karnataka, India.  He is a graduate of Chagpori Tibetan Medical Institute in Darjeeling, under the guidance of the late Trogawa Rinpoche.  He also studied in Dharamsala, India under Dr. Lobsang Chopal, and received the transmission of the Fundamental text from the late Dr. Tenzin Chodrak. He has received Medicine Buddha practice from Kamtrul Rinpoche and the Yuthog Nying Thig from Taglung Tsetrul Rinpoche. He was awarded the Gold Medal from the Indian Board of Alternative Medicine. Dr. Yonten has travelled to different parts of the world holding Tibetan Medicine and Healing retreats, workshops, and teachings.

Tibetan Medicine: Tibetan Medicine combines science, philosophy and art to provide holistic health care.  The tradition combines wisdom from teachings of the Buddha, Indian Ayurveda, traditional Himalayan herbalism and shamanism, Persian Medicine and Chinese Medicine, in a systematic, scientific framework based on an understanding of the body in relationship to the environment. It relies on Buddhist principles of altruism, loving-kindness, generosity, causation, and ethics. Tibetan Medicine is a holistic medicine system. It addresses the root cause of a disease or affliction from many factors—both internal as well as external—and offers treatments, which are beneficial for the long term both physically and mentally

For more on Dr. Jampa Yonten.