Rolwaling Retreat Pack

Have you heard about Rolwaling and thinking of doing retreat there? You may like to know more about the place, how to get there and what to expect whilst staying there. We’ve put this pack together to make your planning as easy as possible. If we’ve missed anything, or you have more speciﬁc questions please let us know via the contact information provided at the end.

General Background

Blessed by many powerful buddhist masters, Rolwaling is a high altitude east-west beyul (hidden valley) situated approximately 180 km northeast of Kathmandu near the border with Tibet. The very narrow valley stretches for over thirty kilometres through beautiful mountainous terrain of forest, glaciers, rivers and snow capped peaks dominated by Gaurishankar Mountain (7145m) marking the border with Tibet.

It is home to a buddhist sherpa community predominately following the Nyingma lineage of buddhism. However, many of the children from the area became monks (mostly at Kopan monastery in Kathmandu) within the Gelug tradition.

Rolwaling was also once home to Kyabje Thubten Lama Zopa Rinpoche, one of the most respected Gelug masters of our time, founder of Kopan Monastery and Spiritual Director of FPMT (Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition), a worldwide organisation committed to preserving and spreading the Buddhadharma.

Born in 1946 in Thame, in Solu Kumbu region of Nepal, Lama Zopa Rinpoche was recognised as the reincarnation of the Lawudo Lama, Kunzang Yeshe. At the age of six he left his home for Rolwaling, where he spent some years of his childhood studying Buddhism with his uncle before going to Tibet to continue his studies.

Spiritual History

Khandro Rolwaling can be translated as The Playful Ground of the Dakinis or region where the dakinis play. As a beyul, or hidden valley, Rolwaling was visited and blessed by the great buddhist master Padmasambhava, also known as Guru Rinpoche. There are many sights in the valley associated with his time there such as the Guru Rinpoche rock and cave near Na.

It is mentioned in the scriptures that there are many beneﬁts for sentient beings spending time such places. As foretold by Guru Rinpoche himself, they provide refuge to those with a virtuous motivation, therefore allowing Dharma to be preserved in times of crisis. Furthermore, meditative experience and realisations are said to arise swiftly for whoever practices in the beyuls.

Therefore, Beyul Khandro Rolwaling is a highly sacred and signiﬁcant place. It has been blessed with many treasures and is one of the meditation places of Guru Rinpoche. This sacred hidden valley is protected by Kasung Tashi Tseringma and the treasures are safely guarded by the terdag (treasure-owner) Gora Nagpo.

Many powerful lamas have spent time practicing in the valley including Dzatrul Ngawang Tenzin Norbu, His Eminence Kyabje Trulzhig Rinpoche, Kyabje Lama Thubten Zopa Rinpoche, Dephug Rinpoche, Ngawang Tsering Dondrub, Ngawang Shedrub Tenpe Gyaltsen Rinpoche, Lama Ngodrub Dorje, Lama Ngawang Trinle Gyatso, Tulku Ngawang Labsum Rinpoche

All these things combined make it a very conducive and powerful area to do retreat. Sacred Sites.

There are many sacred sites in Rolwaling making it possible to do pilgrimage either side of your retreat if you wish, or for it to be the sole purpose of your visit.

Beding

- The Footprint of Guru Rinpoche - Rolwaling Sangag Chöling Monastery (Beding Gompa) - Kephur Tshamkang - The Kephur Hermitage above Beding - Karmapa Cave

Beding - Na

- Urgyen Dubkhang , the Meditation Cave of Guru Rinpoche - Thrones (rocks) of Guru Rinpoche and Khandro Yeshe Tshogyal. - 'Chag go nasa’ - a rock with the Imprints of the Karmapa's head, knees and hands - Zamdar Gora - Entrance to Rolwaling - Ah rangjung ("rangzen"), the self-arisen syllable ah - Gaurishankar mountain - Chenrezig Rangjung: Self arisen image of Chenrezig - Dzambhala Rangjung: Self arisen Dzambhala - "Ne Go" (The gate to the inner beyul) - Hayagriva & Dorje Phagmo mountains

- Pema Chöling Monastery (Na Gompa) - Tshe bum, the Long Life Vase of Guru Rinpoche

Above Na

- Ome Tsho: Tsheringma's Lake - Ösel Phug: Milarepa's Clear Light Cave - Chi'i Gora: the outer kora

Settlements in Rolwaling

As a nomadic community, the people of Rolwaling move between three settlements throughout the year. However, the earthquakes of 2015 left their smaller winter settlement largely destroyed by a landslide, leaving their year mostly spent between the two larger settlements, Beding and Na.

Beding (3600m)

Beding is the main village of Rolwaling situated approximately 2-3 hour walk from Na in a narrow mountainous valley alongside a glacial river. People stay mostly stay here during the spring (March, April, May & June) and autumn (October/November & December) months. Na (4200m)

The summer settlement is on a slightly sloped plateau further into the valley from Beding. Surrounded by mountains on three sides, it is a warm and pleasant place in the spring, summer and autumn (April - December). The community stay here for nearly six months of the year during summer and autumn.

Places for retreat

Rolwaling has different options for people wishing to do retreat, ranging from places where you can be highly supported staying within a local community, to those of varying degrees of seclusion (up to a three 3 hour walk from the closest village).

Whilst the houses are closer together in Beding (and therefore a little noisier), they are quite spread out in Na giving more space and quiet which is worth considering depending upon your requirements and the time of year you would like to do retreat.

Houses in Beding and Na

Due to many of the local people moving to Kathmandu or abroad there are a number of houses in Beding which are not in use. Therefore, it is possible to use one of these vacant village houses to do your retreat.

Doing retreat in this way will mean you will have the local people there to support you if need, whilst respecting the quiet and space required for the environment to be conducive.

Please see the ‘Typical Sherpa Home’ section for an idea of what the accommodation will be like.

People are usually in Na for most of the year apart from the winter months (end of December to march) when they go to Kathmandu. There are usually only a few people in Beding during the summer months (July & August) when they move to Na and in winter (end of December to March when they go to Kathmandu). It could still be possible to do retreat there during these times if you are fully self-sufﬁcient and will not need anyone to deliver supplies.

Please consider whether you will be able to cope with the cold in the winter which can be very bitter and make it difﬁcult to collect water due to freezing pipes for much of the day as well as heavy snow fall in January, February and March while the monsoon months (July & August) bring torrential rain making everything very damp (including inside) and therefore increasing the risk of sickness.

The ideal times to complete retreat in the villages is June/July if you think you’ll be ok with the damp and October/November/December before the weather gets too cold.

Sherpa home interior Students of Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche may like to consider this area as this is where Rinpoche spent most of the years he spent in Rolwaling as a child.

If you wish to do retreat in Beding or Na please contact us through the contact form on our website http://www.rolwalingvalley.com/retreats.html so we can ensure a house is available for use and help you make all necessary arrangements to visit Rolwaling and complete the retreat.

Urgyen Dubkhang (Guru Rinpoche) Cave.

The most important site of Rolwaling from a spiritual point of view is Urgyen Dubkhang, a cave known as Guru Rinpoche Cave in English, situated on the northern side of the valley near Na. The cave lies below a large rock which is said to resemble the hat of Guru Rinpoche. It was inside this cave that Guru Rinpoche practised tantric meditation on the deity Vajrakilaya, subsequently achieving the realization of the deity.

The upper left part of the ceiling on the inner part of the cave is said to be a representation of the moon, while the upper right side is the representation of the sun. Small droplets of water known as drubchu (blessed water) drip from the area representing the moon during the summer months of Shrawan and Bhadra (July-August). That sacred water is considered to be the blessing of Guru Rinpoche.

The cave and its vicinity are said to be very suitable for meditators with pure motivation. Yogis from Tibet and various reincarnated lamas of Khumbu have stayed here for solitary retreats, whilst other advanced practitioners have completed three year or three month retreats at the cave.

The closest village to the cave is Na. However, despite being able to see the cave from the village, it is approximately a one hour (uphill) walk to the cave and therefore staying there will be a solitude retreat unless there are others practicing at the cave at the same time as you (there are currently two retreat rooms available).

Those with enough knowledge and who feel they can manage the solitude are welcome to use the rooms around the cave (one large and one small) and the kitchen to cook their own meals either using the small wood burning stove that is there or arranging to use a gas burning stove.

If two people complete retreat at the cave at the same time the kitchen will need to be shared. You can purchase wood from local villagers and the kitchen already has all the utensils you will need to cook with.

Water is readily available at the cave from June-December each year. The best months are October, November and December.

t might be possible to arrange for a local person to cook meals for you but plenty of notice will need to be given as this will not be the norm, will incur extra cost and may not be possible due to their being busy taking care of their homes, land and livestock.

Toilet and washing facilities will be very basic with no ﬂushable toilets or showers.

It might be possible to make radio contact via walkie talkie with people in Na in case of an emergency or to replenish supplies as necessary. Only basic food supplies such as tsampa and potatoes are available from Na itself but if you are completing a long retreat it should be possible to organise for other supplies such as rice and toiletries to be brought up from lower in the valley.

A solar charger will be useful if you have any electrical devices you will want to use as there is currently no electricity supply at the cave. Please note, it is not advised to complete retreat within the altar room of the actual cave itself as one of the local monks regularly visits to perform rituals and visitors to the area often wish to visit the cave which the community encourage due to the beneﬁts they receive. If you are completing retreat in one of the rooms very close to the actual cave they will ensure you are not disturbed.

If you wish to do retreat at the cave please contact us through the contact form on our website http://www.rolwalingvalley.com/retreats.html so we can ensure the cave is available for use and help you make all necessary arrangements to visit Rolwaling and complete the retreat.

Urgyen Dubkhang/Guru Rinpoche Cave

Ösel Phug, Milarepa's Clear Light Cave

Another signiﬁcant religious site is a cave where Milarepa meditated. This cave is situated at Thang Nag 2-3 hours walk up from Na. In order to preserve this holy place, Ngawang Lapsum Rinpoche has built a small hermitage at the cave which can be used for retreat.

Water is only available at the cave during monsoon months (July & August) so retreat at other times would be very difﬁcult.

Due to its remoteness we suggest only experienced meditators who are used to dealing with difﬁculties arising during retreat on their own do retreat here.

There is somewhere to cook meals but you would need to organise everything you need to sustain yourself such as food, ﬁre wood or gas stove with the local community before commencing your retreat.

Climate

The climate in the area will be an important factor to consider when planning your retreat with temperatures and rain/snow fall varying drastically throughout the year and each season bringing its own challenges. Summer (June-September)

Relatively light monsoon rains due to the orientation of the valley. Wet and warm with temperatures reaching 20 degrees celsius in the sun during the day. Conditions for retreat are warmer but can be damp.

Most local people will be living in Naa during this time.

At this time of year there is a high risk of landslides in the area making it more difﬁcult to take the bus journey and then trekking on the mountain paths.

Autumn (October - November/December)

The mornings are generally sunny and dry, while moisture from the Tama Koshi river brings lower temperatures and persistent fog to Beding in the afternoons.

Local people generally move between Beding and Na during this time.

Winter (December - March)

Average temperature below 10 degrees celsius. Snowfall typically starts in late December/January becoming heavier in February and sometimes continuing until April. However, this has become increasingly less predictable over the past few years.

During this time most of the local people will move to Kathmandu to stay with family during the harshest time. However, those with cattle stay to take care of them so it’s likely there will be people available if any assistance is needed but this should be checked prior to travelling to the valley.

The higher areas such as Na receive signiﬁcantly more snowfall than Beding so any locals who stay in the area will leave Na around the beginning of December.

There is also signiﬁcantly less daylight during this time due to the narrowness of the valley and lower sun.

Spring (March - May/June)

The mornings are generally sunny and dry, while moisture from the Tama Koshi river brings lower temperatures and persistent fog to Beding in the afternoons.

The shoulder seasons of Autumn and Spring are typically the best time for retreat in Rolwaling, with kinder temperatures and drier air providing more comfortable conditions and stunning views.

Living Conditions

It’s possible you might do your retreat in an empty sherpa house so you may like to know what to expect. A typical Sherpa house is built of stone with sloped roofs usually made of wood. Most of the houses are two-story, the lower part of which is typically used to house cattle and store ﬁrewood, fodder etc. The family lives in the upper story, traditionally one big, open room with a ﬁre, shrine and beds/seats. The doors and windows are typically smaller with cold drafts very common due to gaps in the brickwork, where the walls meet the roof and around the windows.

There are taps for water in some homes but the majority of households must collect their water from public taps. Water is easily available in the monsoon months but often freezes in the pipes for most of the day during the cold winter months of November - March.

Wood burning ﬁres are typically used for cooking wholesome sherpa food such as champa, syakpa (Sherpa stew), rigi kuri (potato pancake), thukpa (noodle soup) and many other delicious meals.

Toilets vary from home to home but the majority are some kind of outside squat toilet in a small stone outbuilding. They are not ﬂushable and vary from those made of porcelain like you ﬁnd in most Asian countries or simply a deep hole covered by wooden planks.

There are currently no showers. Most of the local people will wash using a bucket of water and a pail.

Beding village now has a reliable solar power system which provides enough electricity to be able to charge electronic devices and for light in the evenings. Na still has very limited electricity with each home providing their own as they are able but hope to install solar power soon.

Communication

At the time of writing (Dec 2016) there was no mobile phone signal or internet available in Rolwaling Valley, however there are plans for this to change in the relatively near future. Certain SIM cards will receive signal in Simigoan, the ﬁrst village you reach when trekking into Rolwaling.

It could be possible to use walkie talkies to make contact with the villages if you are doing retreat in more secluded areas in Rolwaling such as Guru Rinpoche Cave where no local people will be staying providing there is a way to charge the handset.LIV ING CONDITIONS

How to get there

Reaching Rolwaling takes around ten hours in a bus or jeep from Kathmandu to Gongor followed by a 2-4 day walk through the stunning himalayan mountains in Dolakha district, Nepal.

On your trek you will cross and follow rivers and waterfalls, climb rough stone staircases, pass through meadows of crops (if visiting before harvest time), enter steep valleys ﬂanked with rhododendrons (blooming in May and June) and visit villages and small settlements all under the gaze of the high mountains.

There are small, very basic tea houses which you can use along the way. They serve good food so there is no need for a tent or to bring your own food (apart from your favourite snacks and anything you will need during your retreat which isn’t available locally). Travelling this way means the local economy can beneﬁt as much as possible. Visas

For full and up-to-date visa information please visit the website of the Nepal embassy in your home country as requirements can vary depending on your nationality.

At the time of writing (Dec 2016) tourist visas can generally be obtained on arrival at Kathmandu airport on at border crossings with India if travelling by land for up to 3 months duration or in your home country before travelling. These can usually be extended by up to 5 months within one calendar year which is renewed on 1st January.

If you are considering a retreat of longer than 5 months a visa will be very difﬁcult to obtain unless your visit straddles a new calendar year. We would recommend researching this thoroughly and applying for the visa before travelling to Nepal.

Permits

You will need to get a TIMS Trekking Permit and Gaurishankar Area Permit to travel to Rolwaling. At the time of writing (Dec 2016) the TIMS costs approximately $20 and can be easily obtained in Kathmandu while the area permit costs 2000rs and is purchasable at a police check point on route to Rolwaling.

Travel Insurance

We highly recommend having comprehensive travel insurance for the duration of your visit. If you fall seriously ill or have an accident once you are into the valley it will take at least one day’s walk and a day by road to get to medical care in Kathmandu. The only way to get treatment quickly will be by helicopter evacuation so please keep this in mind when purchasing your insurance as helicopter evacuation often needs to be added an extra feature. If you don’t have this included in your insurance it will costs approximately $1600 to be evacuated to Kathmandu by helicopter.

Trekking companies

There are a number of trekking companies owned by people from Rolwaling which can provide assistance with planning your trip to Rolwaling. If you would like their assistance please let us know and we will pass on their details. http://www.rolwalingvalley.com/contact.html

What to bring (recommended items)

Sleeping bag - minimum three seasons Head torch Warm clothes with plenty of layers - the houses are cold during the day and night. Down jacket Water purifying tablets or pump for emergencies Solar charger Any retreat materials or objects you need - If you use electronic devices to read your practices we recommend also bringing them on printed paper wherever you are doing retreat in case there is a problem with the electricity and you are unable to charge your device. Good walking shoes Walking poles if your knees aren’t so good - there is a lot of steep down hill on the way back! Warm hat & sun hat Suncream Water bottle - best to have one that can hold boiling water. Warm socks Gloves Toiletries Food for retreat

It is likely you will be able to purchase some food such as rice, daal, potatoes, tsampa and some vegetables when you are in Rolwaling but it might be necessary to take other food you might require with you such as oats to make porridge, pasta etc. You may wish to contact us (http:// www.rolwalingvalley.com/contact.html) prior to commencing your trip to Rolwaling to check what can be purchased there at that time.

Medication

We recommend bringing any prescription medications you need with you from your home country if possible to ensure it’s quality and effectiveness. Other medications such as pain relief, ﬁrst aid supplies, antibiotics etc are NOT available in Rolwaling but can be easily purchased in Kathmandu.

Vaccinations

Please check the relevant websites or with your healthcare provider for up-to-date and accurate advice on recommended vaccinations for those travelling to Nepal.

Medical emergencies

If there is a medical emergency or accident while you are in Rolwaling a helicopter can evacuate you to Kathmandu. If you do not have helicopter evacuation as part of your travel insurance it will cost you approximately $1600.

Costs

Costs will vary depending on the types of food you will want to eat. If you are happy to eat a local diet i.e. rice, daal, potatoes, tsampa, pasta and similar average costs will be…

(prices to come soon)

Accommodation costs

Guru Rinpoche Cave Milarepa Cave House rental in Beding

Please note: Any proﬁt raised from these costs will be donated to local community initiatives such as the maintenance of the community school and monastery.

The local community will do everything they can to support your retreat in this incredibly powerful and conducive place. Please take time to carefully consider what your current capabilities are in terms of your spiritual practice and how you might deal with staying in a remote place, particularly if planning to use either of the caves.

Please also allow adequate time to organise everything you will need for your retreat with the local community both whilst in Kathmandu and after you arrive in Rolwaling. It’s likely some organising such as buying food and gathering ﬁre wood in Rolwaling could take a little time after you arrive so we recommend keeping some days free before starting the retreat. For further information about Rolwaling please visit www.rolwalingvalley.com

To register your interest in completing retreat please visit http://www.rolwalingvalley.com/ retreats.html

If you have any general questions about anything that hasn’t been answered here please contact us using our contact form http://www.rolwalingvalley.com/contact.html and we will do our best to answer.

We hope to see you in Rolwaling soon!