Images from Yarne 2025
Yarne participant Susan Barrett created many snow creatures as the season changed.
As the Yarne retreat started, we were still very much in the winter season. Ice was on the ocean, and we had several very snowy days followed by the usual melting.
Yarne started on a full moon day. As the flags went up early before the ceremonies began, we watched the full moon set. The light on the horizon is a crab fishing boat, first week of the season.
The Abbey wakes up for early morning liturgies.
The Yarne retreat starts with ceremonies that lay out the conditioins for the retreat and the committments for all participants.
Then we circumambulate the vihara, the whole Abbey, with the conch blowing and the banners flapping. Ani Pema chose to watch the procession this time.
Ani Pema presented teachings which were focused on the work of our founder, Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche’s seminal book Shambhala: Sacred Path of the Warrior. In these teachings she asked us each day, “how can these teachings be useful in this time of chaos?”
These teachings will be available later in 2025 by Shambhala.com as an online course. Stay tuned.
Part of our daily training is service somewhere inside or outside of the Abbey buildings. Everybody offers some service in the kitchen.
Yarne ends on Gagye, which translates to “lifting of the restrictions.” We celebrate with a grand meal. The instructions, which date back to the time of the Buddha’s first sangha, require participants to go beyond the usual physical boundaries of the retreat.
Gagye includes the “breaking of the boundaries” with a walk down the road to the beach.
