Sowa Rigpa Foundations:
March Meetup for Enrolled Students
with Dr. Bryan Watrous and Julia Mariko Shannon
March 13 - 15, 2026
This weekend program is designed to give the opportunity for Sowa Rigpa students to meet in person and practice what they have been learning so far in Sowa Rigpa Foundations.
This is the second of three optional in-person meetups in the Foundations school year. We will gather together to discuss how to approach food, drink, and daily lifestyle through the lens of Sowa Rigpa and use these principles as a dynamic healing tool for modern life. The weekend will provide an immersive experience within the Tanaduk Garden and Yuthok Ling Temple focusing on food, cooking, and getting to know and learn from one another.
Explore the Diet and Lifestyle trunks of the Tree of Treatment
Additions to the Trunk of Diet using locally available and/or culturally specific food and drink
Identify warming and cooling foods and the Six Tastes
Recipe modifications by Sowa Rigpa typology
Harvest and cook herbs and vegetables from the Tanaduk Garden
Practice interviewing skills and construct a Sowa Rigpa Dietary Plan with recommended lifestyle modifications
During breaks, you'll have the opportunity to experience Sowa Rigpa sessions and external therapies, ask questions, and connect with fellow students and practitioners. Beyond the core curriculum, we'll practice Nejang yoga healing meditations together. Join us to deepen your learning and connection to Sowa Rigpa community and rejuvenate on the healing land of Pure Land Farms.
This program is open to students currently enrolled in the Foundations of Sowa Rigpa course or those who have completed the course and would like to review and meet other students.
REGISTRATION
Non-residential program fee: $225 (Includes tuition + all meals from Friday dinner through Sunday lunch)
Onsite accommodations available (accommodation prices shown include tuition + meals, and vary according to selection, 2 or 3 night stay)
A limited number of one on one Sowa Rigpa consultations and external therapy sessions will be made available on the breaks for an additional cost
Dr. Bryan Watrous is a doctor of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine, with over 20 years of clinical practice. He is a Sowa Rigpa Tibetan Medicine practitioner and Ngakpa, ordained, non-monastic Tibetan Tantric Buddhist. Bryan is the clinical assistant of Dr. Nida Chenagtsang and the resident doctor at Pure Land Farms, Topanga.
Julia Mariko Shannon is a student of Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, completed a certificate in Sowa Rigpa Counseling from the Sowa Rigpa Institute of Tibetan Medicine, and holds a Master of Education degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling.
