Yuthok Nyingthig Ngöndro
Seven dAy group retreat guided by Christiana Polites
February 21st - March 1st-2026
(Seven full days of practice February 22 - 28)
Check in 3 - 6pm on Saturday, February 21st
Check out March 1st anytime by 12pm
In-PERSON RETREAT PRICE:
Commuter $900: Includes retreat + three meals a day (offsite accommodation)
Residential $1180 - $2300: Includes retreat, three meals a day, and onsite accommodation for eight nights
Application form for in person participation below
Limited to 15 residential guests
10% off early bird registration before December 31 2025
Reduced tuition for repeat students, please inquire
Ngöndro, meaning ‘foundational' or 'preliminary' practices is the root of the tree out of which all other Vajrayana Buddhist practices grow. Yuthok’s ngöndro, traditionally done in the context of a seven day retreat is incredibly transformative to one's mind, health, and life, and is the gateway into the profound path of the Yuthok Nyingthig.
This seven day intensive retreat combines sessions of silent meditation, group mantra recitation, prostrations, visualization and contemplation, as well as instruction in the practice while immersed within the healing natural environment of Pure Land Farms, our Yuthok Ling temple, and Medicine Buddha’s Tanaduk Gardens.
This retreat follows the Losar, the Tibetan lunar new. year and is a profound way to start the new year with spiritual commitment.
Only the first full day/ Sunday February 22nd will be livestreamed for our international sangha.
Daily practice Schedule:
8am: Breakfast
9am - 1pm: Practice Session One
1 - 3pm: Lunch and Break
3- 7pm: Practice Session Two
(Afternoon sessions will be self-guided on days 4 - 7)
7pm Dinner
8pm Shanglon Protector Practice
IN PERSON REGISTRATION
Please note that this is an intensive retreat with approximately eight hours of practice a day.
In order to assess if it is a good fit for you, kindly fill out this brief form.
After reviewing your form, you will be sent a link to register for the retreat.
New students may be requested to have a short Zoom call with facilitator prior to registering.
Yuthok Nyingthig, the ‘Heart Essence of Yuthok.' This unique and comprehensive set of Tibetan Buddhist practices was transmitted by Yuthok Yönten Gönpo the Younger, the great 12th century Tibetan physician and meditation adept who is considered to be an emanation of Medicine Buddha. It is a complete system of practice from the Anuttarayogatantra (Highest Yoga Tantra) class of teachings, beginning with Ngöndro (the preliminaries) and progressing through Kyerim and Dzogrim (Creation and Completion Stage practices) to the highest practices of Mahamudra and Dzogchen.
The tradition includes concise and essential methods perfectly suited for busy contemporary practitioners that offer both worldly benefits including improved health and longevity for oneself and others, as well as the ultimate benefit of complete spiritual liberation. The Yuthok Nyingthig is the main spiritual tradition connected with Sowa Rigpa (Tibetan medicine), and it contains many unique methods to heighten the intuitive, diagnostic, and healing capacities of doctors. It is the only complete cycle of Vajrayana teachings in which Medicine Buddha as a yidam (personal meditative deity).
Yuthok Nyingthig meditation practices are traditionally done in the context of a seven day retreat, making them practical and accessible in these modern busy times.
CHRISTIANA POLITES
Christiana Polites received her Bachelor of Arts in the Comparative Study of Religion at Harvard University and has been immersed in Eastern spiritual traditions for over twenty years. She has studied both Tibetan and Chinese Daoist healing arts and received a Masters in Acupuncture from the National University of Natural Medicine in Portland, Oregon. She has traveled extensively around the world, seeking out authentic living lineages in both the healing and spiritual sciences. Christiana is the Director of Pure Land Farms and the Sowa Rigpa Institute. She is also the co-founder of Yangchenma Arts & Music, a community organization celebrating the richness and diversity of human cultures through their artistic and musical wisdom traditions.
