The Challenges and Joys of Retreat
Stepping Away from this Busy World
with Paula Chichester
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At some point, having tried so many ways to be happy with the intent to be comfortable, one may wonder if retreating from the world would work to achieve happiness. It’s right to ask what’s the benefit of retreat. Through retreating from one’s usual activities, there is a more spacious opportunity to cultivate the habit of developing our kind heart, becoming more truthful, and more open minded. Paula Chichester will share the wisdom she’s gained over many years of short and long retreats – including suggestions of how, what, when and where to do them. During her talk she will weave in meditation that will help support yourself in retreat.
About Paula Chichester:
As an adolescent in Berkeley in the 1960’s, Paula began her search for a means to shift the dominant paradigm of our perceptions of reality in order to survive the coming environmental chaos and resulting social unrest. A decade later she met Lama Thubten Yeshe and told Lama that she wanted to become a mahasiddha. Following the advice of Lama Yeshe and Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Paula embarked on a 40-year journey of study and retreats, including two long retreats of 3 and 4 years.
Paula Chichester is known for her friendly, experiential teaching style that evolved from 4 decades of full-time training in Tibetan Buddhist philosophy and meditation as well as diverse psycho-somatic healing arts from Asia and the West. Her ability to distill and impart the essence of these disciplines is inspired by her main teachers, Lama Thubten Yeshe and Kyabje Zopa Rinpoche. In the last 13 years, Paula has traveled in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa giving talks, leading meditations and meeting wonderful heart friends.
Paula is dedicated to help create a world culture of health, compassion, wisdom and joy.
About Paula Chichester:
As an adolescent in Berkeley in the 1960’s, Paula began her search for a means to shift the dominant paradigm of our perceptions of reality in order to survive the coming environmental chaos and resulting social unrest. A decade later she met Lama Thubten Yeshe and told Lama that she wanted to become a mahasiddha. Following the advice of Lama Yeshe and Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Paula embarked on a 40-year journey of study and retreats, including two long retreats of 3 and 4 years.
Paula Chichester is known for her friendly, experiential teaching style that evolved from 4 decades of full-time training in Tibetan Buddhist philosophy and meditation as well as diverse psycho-somatic healing arts from Asia and the West. Her ability to distill and impart the essence of these disciplines is inspired by her main teachers, Lama Thubten Yeshe and Kyabje Zopa Rinpoche. In the last 13 years, Paula has traveled in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa giving talks, leading meditations and meeting wonderful heart friends.
Paula is dedicated to help create a world culture of health, compassion, wisdom and joy.

WOMEN OF WISDOM
Celebrating the Living Legacy of Buddhist Women
Over the course of a year, Women of Wisdom: Celebrating the Living Legacy of Buddhist Women will highlight and celebrate women teachers and practitioners in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. The programs in this series spotlight the history and impact of women in Buddhism and share the wisdom stewarded by a range of female lineage holders, teachers, scholars, monastics, and lay practitioners.
The series coincides with the 35th anniversary of the founding, by two women, of Tse Chen Ling Center for Tibetan Buddhist Studies in San Francisco. Women of Wisdom: Celebrating the Living Legacy of Buddhist Women hopes to contribute to ongoing efforts to support global programming featuring female Buddhist teachers and scholars and presenting topics of importance to women on the Buddhist path.
Celebrating the Living Legacy of Buddhist Women
Over the course of a year, Women of Wisdom: Celebrating the Living Legacy of Buddhist Women will highlight and celebrate women teachers and practitioners in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. The programs in this series spotlight the history and impact of women in Buddhism and share the wisdom stewarded by a range of female lineage holders, teachers, scholars, monastics, and lay practitioners.
The series coincides with the 35th anniversary of the founding, by two women, of Tse Chen Ling Center for Tibetan Buddhist Studies in San Francisco. Women of Wisdom: Celebrating the Living Legacy of Buddhist Women hopes to contribute to ongoing efforts to support global programming featuring female Buddhist teachers and scholars and presenting topics of importance to women on the Buddhist path.
Registration:
Advanced registration is required.
We offer all Dharma teachings and center events on a “dana” basis. This means we’re grateful for your generosity but there is no required cost to attend and no one is turned away for lack of funds.
Suggested donation amounts are provided, and we welcome you to offer what you can to help us sustain our programming and make the dharma and events like this possible. And of course, ordained sangha (ordained nuns and monks) are always welcome free of charge.
If you're not donating at this time but would like to attend, please email [email protected].
Advanced registration is required.
We offer all Dharma teachings and center events on a “dana” basis. This means we’re grateful for your generosity but there is no required cost to attend and no one is turned away for lack of funds.
Suggested donation amounts are provided, and we welcome you to offer what you can to help us sustain our programming and make the dharma and events like this possible. And of course, ordained sangha (ordained nuns and monks) are always welcome free of charge.
If you're not donating at this time but would like to attend, please email [email protected].