The Joy of Meditation with Marcia Schmidt

September 17 - 20, 2026

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Arrival: Thursday, September 17th 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM

Departure: Sunday, September 20th 12:30 PM

Tuition:

Dana + 3 nights lodging

This retreat is offered on a dana basis. An opportunity to offer dana to your teacher will be provided during the retreat. Any amount is welcome, and our suggested dana offering is $50 and above.

Meals & drinks included
Inc. V, VG, GF

Add extra nights at 50% off

Tuition:

Dana + 3 nights lodging

This retreat is offered on a dana basis. An opportunity to offer dana to your teacher will be provided during the retreat. Any amount is welcome, and our suggested dana offering is $50 and above.

Meals & drinks included
Inc. V, VG, GF

Add extra nights at 50% off

This page will allow you to register for the on-land version of this retreat. To register to attend virtually, from home, please click here.

About the Retreat

Your meditation can be joyful. An act fully embracing and expressing happiness, equanimity, and celebration. In the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, a sadhana—a practice text meant to be read aloud—is itself a joyful gathering. It celebrates the extraordinary conditions that have brought us to the path: the ripening of our own karma, the blessings of the teachings and lineage, and the rare opportunity to practice and awaken together.

At the heart of this retreat is The Concise Daily Practice of Padmasambhava. This hidden treasure—a terma—contains every essential element of deity practice in just a few pages. Rich with symbolism, aspiration, and devotion, it becomes a living expression of the Vajrayana path that we will explore and practice together.

We often speak of the path as letting go of ego-clinging, habitual patterns, and suffering. But we can also practice from what is already present: our good fortune, innate wisdom, intelligence, and determination. Rather than dwelling only on what must be abandoned, we meet the sacred with the very qualities that have brought us here, recognizing the awakened nature that has always been present.

Bring forward your extraordinary capacity to practice alongside everyone present. Or, as the saying goes, get enlightened while having a good time.

A note on dana: Dana is a generosity based practice supporting teachers which has been traditional since the time of the Buddha. Registration covers lodging and meals – while your generosity supports both teacher and teaching. 

Retreat Faculty

Marcia Binder Schmidt

“Marcia lived at the feet of one of the greatest Tibetan Masters of meditation for 17 years at the epicenter of unfolding events of Dharma that crossed many oceans.” –Tulku Thondup Rinpoche “Marcia [Dechen Wangmo] has followed many great lamas, some of the best of this century. Her experience as an American amidst this older [...]

What to Expect

Marcia will explain some of the theories behind the practices to help bring us in to the experience these rituals are designed to provoke, and the state of mind they bring us closer to.

There will be opportunities for question and answer, and discussion, with Marcia, whose depth of experience in the meaning and the energy of sadhana practice can help bring us into them as a lived experience.

In this atmosphere of making a personal relationship with sadhana practice, Marcia will offer the reading transmission for the Concise Daily Practice of Padmasambhava is a hidden treasure which we will practice as a group so that we can make that magical connection with the wisdom the practice embodies which we can take home with us when we leave retreat.

For beginners, this retreat will offer a different perspective on how to practice sadhana – as celebration, rather than recitation.

For the intermediate practitioner, this retreat will help bring us into the world of sadhana practice fully, to help us experience the wisdom energy these practices invoke.

For the experienced practitioners, this retreat will equally offer a different way to enter and practice sadhana – from the deep lifelong experience of one of Tulku Ugyen Rinpoche’s early Western students.

Lodging

We have several accommodations to choose from during checkout.
All options include our healthy meals and drinks. Inc V, VG, GF.

Monk Rooms
A cost-effective option for participants looking for indoor, solitary lodging, but who don’t mind using a shared bathroom or are looking for a more affordable retreat solution. These rooms are in the same hall as the Ridgen Dormitories, but offer more privacy than the dorms. In addition to a bed, bedding, a private room and closet, the monk rooms also have a large window and a desk and desk chair for added comfort.

Single and Double Rooms
The perfect choice for a retreat where you want both your own space and your own bathroom. Each room offers a little more space, a dresser and closet, and a 3/4s bathroom (toilet, sink, and shower, no bathtub) attached to each room.

Junior Suite
Our Lodge Junior Suites include a queen-size bed topped by a cozy comforter, a desk, dresser, closet and private bath with bathtub, plus a sitting area.

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