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Razor’s Edge: The Dance of Absolute & Relative Truths
July 12 - July 14
Razor's Edge: The Dance of Absolute & Relative Truths
Online or In-Person | July 12-14, 2024
Razor’s Edge: The Dance of Absolute & Relative Truths
- You’re wondering how to truly transform suffering and struggle in your life.
- You’d like to study fundamental Buddhist philosophical understandings of the nature of reality with a wisdom teacher in the Namgyal lineage.
- You’d like to bridge the gap between meditative realizations and every day challenges.
- You have a strong curiosity into the nature of reality.
- You have the burning question inside of you which has led you to this webpage in the first place.
The Razor’s Edge is the line between wisdom and ignorance—and it lives inside of you. A paradoxical, joyous, and pristinely aware place, the edge of is finer than any other.
This weekend course is a precious opportunity to study with meditation master and Namgyal lineage teacher Qapel (Achariya Doug Duncan). He will share fundamental Buddhist teachings on the nature of absolute and relative truths, and how we can best dance between, within and amidst the two. This is a priceless chance to learn with one who has danced on the Razor’s Edge for decades, and dedicated his life to the welfare of all beings by sharing how to do so.
What You’ll Learn: How to Dance the Razor’s Edge!
- What is absolute truth? What is relative truth?
- What does the relationship between these truths have to do with you, and your life?
- How can you dance with and integrate these two seemingly paradoxical points of view?
- How might you live and dwell on the “razor’s edge” of this form of wisdom and compassion?
- How can you do this dance with others? What is your role in bringing this dance into our world?
Meet the Teacher
Qapel (Achariya Doug Duncan)
Qapel studied with the Ven. Namgyal Rinpoche from 1974 until the latter’s passing in 2003. Doug received lay ordination from Namgyal Rinpoche in 1978, and is a lineage holder in that teaching. He also received teachings from the 16th Karmapa and other Tibetan Rinpoches, as well as from the Ven. Sayadaw U Thila Wunta and from a Master of the Western Mystery School. In addition, Doug has undertaken numerous three-month solitary meditation retreats.
Doug has been leading retreats, teaching and training in universal practices of spiritual unfoldment since 1985, helping thousands of students in numerous countries liberate themselves from suffering. His teaching also draws on contemporary psychology and science. In 2004 he co-founded Clear Sky Retreat Center in the BC Rockies where he is resident teacher along with Catherine Pawasarat Sensei.
On Absolute & Relative Truth
Attending to tasks while remembering the light:
What’s Expected of Me?
- An open mind and heart, and a spirit of adventure are excellent things to bring!
- It’s human to have some apprehensions about doing something new, meeting new people, or going to a new place—particularly when all three happen together. We try to make this as supportive as possible.
- When exploring our growth edges, it’s natural to feel uncertain and awkward. And it’s very fruitful to transform that emotional tension into creative energy by drawing on your own inner resources—such as inquiry, going with the flow, and self-reflection, just a few of the many kinds of constructive engagement.
- To maximize your retreat experience, we ask that you refrain from reading, using the internet, phone or listening to music during the course.
- Students are expected to be silent during the silent parts of the retreat, and participate in all classes, group meditations, activities, and discussions.
- We ask that you refrain from microdosing or consuming mind-altering substances before or during this retreat and in the days immediately following it.
The Location – Clear Sky Center
- Located in the BC rocky mountains, Clear Sky offers over 300-acres to deepen your practice and reconnect with nature. Founded by Qapel (Achariya Doug Duncan) and Catherine Pawasarat Sensei, the center is home to students from around the globe who are dedicated to co-creating a supportive and innovative space for awakening in our modern world.
- How to get there, what to bring and other FAQ about Clear Sky
- Our teachings and Clear Sky operate based on the ancient tradition of dāna or generosity. As generosity is the basis upon which all spiritual practice flourishes, we recommend that you learn more about this profound practice before you register.
Course Details
Time and Location
The Razor’s Edge weekend will be led by Qapel Doug Duncan at Clear Sky Meditation Center in Eastern BC. This course is offered online or in-person.
Schedule / Class Times: Classes will be 60-90 mins in duration, with classes in the morning and evening and possibly the afternoon each day (Mountain Time) – the exact schedule to be confirmed. Please ensure you are available for the whole weekend to focus on the course material and attend classes live.
Online participants are expected to attend classes live. We will arrange class times to be comfortable for most time zones. However we understand that some class times might occur after midnight in some regions, if this is the case for you, please let us know when you register. Then we can provide a recording so you can catch up on that particular class.
What Does the Course Cost?
In-Person Participants: 1) dāna to the Teacher plus 2) accomodation and meal costs for your stay Clear Sky Meditation Centre.
Online Participants: 1) dāna to the Teacher 2) online administration fee of $150 CAD.
Keen Practitioner Pricing: Book now and get 10% off listed prices. Offer valid until Jun 6, 2024.
You may have come across this elsewhere in the form of “pay from the heart”. Dāna is a Sanskrit term meaning “generosity”. With dāna, we give as a mutual exchange of generosity. It’s our joy to offer this course, and we trust you’ll match our time, energy, and passion by giving an amount of money that feels good and healthy to both you and us.
The dharma has been built on generosity. No-one is excluded for lack of funds but it is also extremely beneficial to give as much as you are able
Typically people give in a range of $120-$500 USD for a course.
As we’re committed to ensuring everyone has access to the Dharma, please feel comfortable to give less if you are not financially secure. Another form of giving dāna is to offer service, and if you are interested in providing support in a non-financial way, we invite you to contact us.
Conversely, if you are financially secure, we invite you to generate merit by providing more financial support to the Triple Gem. Contributions like these make the difference in supporting our teachers, teachings, and center.
Learn more about the practice of dāna here.
In a traditional model of in-person teachings, a retreat center or urban meditation center invites teachers to visit. In these cases the centers have infrastructure and organization costs to cover, which might be covered by an admin fee. For the teaching itself, dāna to the teachers is offered in a bowl. This honors both the sustainability of the teachers, and of the supporting center.
We’ve tried to recreate this approach online. The teachers’ time and the teaching themselves are offered on the basis of dāna, separate to the admin fee. With our dāna offering we are making a direct gift of generosity to the teachers to support their teachings and livelihood.
The admin fee* goes to support the infrastructure and organization necessary to support them to teach. As anyone with an online business will know, it can be surprising the costs of setting up a good infrastructure to support effective teaching and connection online. The admin fee changes based on date of registration.
*We also do not wish to exclude anyone from the Teachings, so if you are not currently in a financial position to afford the admin fee, please contact the course Registrar via [email protected] so we can support you to attend.
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Below are a few of the work and benefits that your admin fee payment is supporting:
- high speed internet (to allow interviews and classes on-line)
- online class systems (Zoom)
- registration / admin systems (Eventbrite, Basecamp)
- communication systems to keep everyone informed, share connection details, teachings and other resources (Mailchimp)
- online storage (for example, Dropbox, to allow us to let students watch recordings, and to store and share selected teachings in other forms such as podcasts and video later, and Amazon cloud)
- quality sound, video and editing equipment (both for live teachings and to provide good enough quality for later sharing as podcasts and video). We are regularly updating our equipment to improve your user experience.
- online calendar booking system to allow students to book interviews
- website hosting and maintenance for sharing upcoming courses, teachings, blogs and other resources.
We welcome any questions. May all our efforts be sustainable, abundant and for the benefit of all beings!
We work hard to support the online learning experience.
- We have been delivering online offerings since 2012 and are always looking for new ways to optimize your experience.
- Classes are live-streamed and some recordings are available for a certain time.
- HD cameras and professional audio equipment provide high quality video streaming.
Registration
Questions?
If you have questions about the retreat, please contact the Clear Sky Retreat Manager at 250-429-3929 (phone) or at [email protected] (email).
Why Retreat In-Person?
Retreating in person at a retreat center is the best way to retreat – why?
- You can’t beat live interaction with the course Teachers. Being in the same space with clear beings ‘tunes’ you to more wholesome states.
- We create a welcoming environment and follow a supportive retreat schedule, based on decades of hosting successful retreats worldwide.
- Wholesome and delicious food is provided so you don’t have to spend time cooking for yourself.
- Breath-taking and restful, natural environment puts your body and mind at ease and resets your nervous system.
- Retreating at our center gets you out of your usual home environment and routines – they can be distracting.
- Retreating with others (your co-retreatants) is incredibly supportive and energy building.
What Do Previous Retreatants Say?
