This in person midweek retreat is based on Surrendering to Calmness. It is the final chapter of Tarthang Tulku’s second Kum Nye book The Joy of Being. We will especially look at what relaxation ultimately means: relaxing also the one doing the meditation so that only Joy of Being remains.
“Rejecting nothing, accepting nothing, setting up nothing-these are the guidelines for relaxation that opens wide the gateways to meditation. There is no need to fix or improve anything: there is no need to stamp out thoughts, no need to add anything or take anything away. When there is nothing to distort the clarity of direct experience, there is only being. This is the kind of experience we need.” – The Joy of Being p 187
Surrendering to Calmness
In this weekend retreat, led by Elske van de Hulst and Ivan de Wolf, we will close-read together some passages of Surrendering to Calmness. Kum Nye exercises from both the first Kum Nye book and The Joy of Being will help opening up our senses and energy centers to direct experience.
We will do several carefully chosen experiential practices that invite you to let go of the subject-object orientation. It usually stays subtly present – even in our Kum Nye or meditation. Therefore, by letting go of the doer, the meditator or the interpreter, we enter directly into our experience. As a result, we enter a vast calmness that sees all appearance as manifesting life’s natural richness. No problems remain and nothing needs to be achieved. All we could ever need is already present, manifesting in countless ever-changing appearances and opportunities as we learn to trust innate inner freedom.
Practical information
Costs
Retreat in a shared double room: €585,-
Retreat with a double room for single use: €685,-
Date and time
August 24 to August 28
Retreat starts on Monday with arrival between 15:00 and 15:45 and ends on Friday at 11:30.
Language
English & Nederlands
Information about food and stay
The World Peace Stupa Center is located in Winterswijk Woold, set within an enchanting national landscape free of light and noise pollution. Surrounded by the natural beauty of the Achterhoek region and close to the historic town of Winterswijk. With its markets, museums, cafés, and lively shopping streets—the center offers a peaceful and inspiring environment for retreat.
Retreats take place at the World Peace Stupa Retreat Center, where participants stay in comfortable double rooms with private bathrooms. All meals are vegetarian and prepared according to Healthy Planet principles, with accommodations available for specific dietary needs. We encourage arrival by public transport and offer pickup from the Winterswijk or Bocholt train and bus stations.
Daily schedule can be found here.
For whom
The retreat is meant for people wishing to deepen their meditation practice by learning to surrender to calmnesss. However, some experience with Kum Nye or meditation is recommended.
Text
We recommand you to purchase the book The Joy of Being, because it is a great book for both meditators and Kum Nye practioners. The book can be purchased in USA though Dharma Publishing, in Europe through Lotus Design Shop. But if you do not own the book, the text of the chapter will be provided to retreatants on site.
Instructors
Elske van de Hulst
Elske van de Hulst is co-dean and senior instructor at Nyingma Centrum Nederland in Amsterdam. Moreover, she graduated at Amsterdamse Hogeschool voor de Kunsten and worked in the theater as an actress, director, producer and author between 1969 and 1998. In 1998 she started studying the theatre of the mind, guided by Tarthang Tulku’s books and programs, and she never stopped since. Elske is co-dean and trustee at Nyingma Centrum Nederland and has been planning for a retreat center since 2008. She plans to live part-time at the new center and will continue to teach Meditation, Knowledge of Freedom, Revelations of Mind, Dimensions of Mind, Caring and Lotus Trilogy teachings in cooperation with other Nyingma organisations.
Ivan
After years of practicing yoga, followed by vipassana with Goenka and Advaita, Ivan was introduced to Kum Nye. He was surprised that he could undergo such a profound transformation through simple physical exercises and discovered that the body is truly the ultimate healer. Relaxing mind, body and senses thorugh Kum Nye, life becomes more vibrant, contentment seeps in, and it feels like you have finally come home. Kum Nye as a path to relaxation, wholeness, balance, and joy is what he likes to share with others.
Before his retirement, Ivan worked as a television producer for international news for Belgian television and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).
Further study
Weekly classes in Understanding Mind or Deepening Meditation are starting in September in German at the Nyingma Zentrum Deutschland and in English or Dutch at Nyingma Centrum Nederland. Most classes can also be attended online.