Individual Retreats
Gomde Pyrénées offers a serene and supportive environment for individuals from all lineages and backgrounds to embark on personal retreats. Whether you're seeking a few days of solitude or an extended retreat, we welcome practitioners for any length of time. Accommodation is provided in cozy single rooms, offering you a peaceful space to focus on your practice.
Our resident retreat master, Drubpon Lama Tenzin Sangpo, is at Gomde for most of the year and is available to help create a personalized retreat schedule or answer questions you may have about your practice.
Gomde Pyrénées is a wonderful retreat place for those with an established practice who have received guidance from a qualified teacher and feel comfortable undertaking their retreat independently. The center is run by dedicated volunteers and does not have psychological support staff. Therefore, it's important that retreatants come well-prepared to manage their practice and any challenges that may arise during their stay. If you're uncertain whether this aligns with your situation, please reach out to us. We will be happy to offer guidance and support to help you make an informed decision.
Please be aware that the center is situated in a remote mountain area, and the nearest health facility and shops are about an hour away. For more details about the facilities available at Gomde, please refer to the "About Gomde - Facilities" section. During closed group retreats, we are unable to accommodate individual retreats.
If you are interested in doing a retreat at Gomde, please fill out the Personal Retreat Inquiry form. We will get back to you with information about availability, usually within a few days. For any retreat related questions write to us at retreatinpyrenees@gomde.fr.
Retreat with Part Time Volunteering
Gomde is entirely run by volunteers, and we are always in need of extra help with housework, kitchen assistance, and especially with construction and maintenance tasks. If you're interested in combining your retreat at Gomde with part-time volunteering, please fill out the Personal Retreat Inquiry form. We will get back to you with details about availability and the specific skills that are currently needed.
Group Retreats
Sphere of Refined Gold -
Three-month spring retreat and shorter fall retreat
Each year, Gomde offers one or two group retreats led by Drubpon Lama Tenzin Sangpo, focused on the Sphere of Refined Gold — a terma revealed by Chokgyur Lingpa, with commentary by Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche. These retreats include daily group practice of Vajrasattva. The 3-month retreat typically begins in early spring, while the fall retreat can range from two to three weeks around October.
The minimum prerequisites for participation include having a strong foundation in Buddhist practice, supported by both study and time spent in retreat, as well as having received teachings on the Great Perfection from a highly qualified master. In addition, you would ideally have received:
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The Vajrasattva empowerment in the Chokling Tersar Lineage
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Teachings on Sphere of Refined Gold from Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche or another highly qualified master.
If you are uncertain about whether this retreat would be beneficial for you, we recommend consulting with Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche. For any additional questions regarding your eligibility, please feel free to email us at retreatinpyrenees@gomde.fr.
We will be happy to discuss your situation with Drubpon Lama Tenzin and provide further guidance.
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Other group retreats
In addition to the Sphere of Refined Gold retreats, Gomde offers other group retreats throughout the year, typically guided by Drubpon Lama Tenzin Sangpo. The specific retreats vary each year and have previously included Vajrakilaya, Green Tara Sadhana, and Shamatha retreats.
Some of our group retreats and seminars are also offered online, providing those who are unable to travel to the Pyrenees with the precious opportunity to receive teachings and participate in group practices from the comfort of their home.
All of our onsite and online group retreats, including dates and registration links, are listed under the ‘Calendar’ section as soon as they become available.
Seminars with Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche
Every year, we are honored to welcome our founder and spiritual guide, Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche, who offers profound meditation teachings from the Dzogchen tradition. Following Rinpoche’s seminar, we typically offer a one-week meditation retreat, providing attendees the opportunity to directly apply Rinpoche’s precious instructions in practice, under the guidance of Drubpon Lama Tenzin Sangpo. To listen to samples of Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche’s public teachings from Nepal in past years, please visit dharmasun.org.
Daily Group Practices at Gomde & Online
We gather for two group practices every day: one in the morning and one in the late afternoon. Everyone is welcome to attend these practices onsite at Gomde, as long as there is no closed group retreat. They are also available to join online.
Morning practice: 7:00 - 8:15 - Treasure of Blessings, Concise Daily Practice (Guru Rinpoche), Sang, White Sur
Afternoon practice: 17:15 - 18:05 - Vajrakilaya, Protectors, Red Sur
Additionally, Tsok is practiced on the 10th and 25th day of the Tibetan lunar calendar, usually from 15:30 - 17:30 and includes the protector practice.
For online participation, please use this Zoom link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86412563564?pwd=ZkxaQW13L05xdldMS1h3VkUxNXZuUT09
Meeting ID: 864 1256 3564
Passcode: 744320
When attending online, the practice texts will be provided on request in the Zoom chat at the beginning of the practice. Please note that these texts are meant to be used in the context of group practice only. If you wish to do the practices individually as well, please ensure that you seek out the relevant empowerments and instructions from qualified teachers before practicing them alone.
During group retreats, and on Tsok days, the starting time of the practices may differ. You can find the most up-to-date practice times under the section ‘Calendar- Daily Group Practices’.