ON-LAND Graceful Exit: Preparing for a Good Death
August 18–24, 2025
Buddhist Path, Hybrid Program, On Land Retreats
Note: This is a hybrid program and you are on the registration page to attend on-land, at DMC.
If you prefer to attend remotely, head over to our online registration page for this program.
Program Start Date & Time: August 18th | 5:30 pm
Program End Date & Time: August 24th | 12:30 pm
All of life is held within the context of impermanence and death. By acknowledging and preparing for death now, you will live more fully and fearlessly. Join us as we celebrate the preciousness of life, and ready ourselves and others for this final journey. You will learn how to die a good death, and how to help others transition, exploring meditations and contemplations that prepare you for letting go. Buddhism proclaims, “If you die before you die, then when you die you will not die.” With preparation, you can transcend death, transforming the greatest obstacle into a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The bardo teachings lead to the death of death. The journey through the bardos is a journey into the mind, so by exploring the bardos you are exploring yourself. The teachings also apply to any moment that ends, like the loss of a relationship, or a job.
Topics Covered Include:
- Outer, inner, and secret signs of the eight stages of death
- Transcending fear
- Preparation for sudden death
- Dream yoga as preparation
- Phowa – transference of consciousness
- Voluntary vs involuntary rebirth
- The trikaya – three bodies
- Death as the discovery of emptiness
- Advance directives
- Role of hospice and palliative care
- Suicide, euthanasia, organ donation, death of a pet
Proposed Program Schedule
(All times listed are in Mountain Time Zone).
August 18th
Slideshow and Zoom Orientation: 7:30 pm – 7:45 pm
Opening Session: 7:45 pm – 9:00 pm
August 19th – 23rd
Session: 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Session: 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Session: 8:00 pm – 9:00 pm
August 24th
Final Session 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Presenter
Andrew Holecek
Andrew Holecek offers seminars internationally on meditation, lucid dreaming, and the art of dying. He is the author of many books, including Preparing to Die: Practical Advice and Spiritual Wisdom from the Tibetan Buddhist Tradition; Dream Yoga: Illuminating Your Life Through Lucid Dreaming and the Tibetan Yogas of Sleep; Dreams of Light: The Profound Daytime […]
