Related events:
Tibetan meditation teacher Tulku Thubten Rinpoche is returning to the valley next weekend for teachings and a retreat.
Tulku Thubten Rinpoche was born in Tibet and undertook Buddhist training in the Nyingma tradition at an early age. Soon after entering the monastery he was recognized as the reincarnation of Anam Lama. He has been teaching in the West since the 1990s and currently serves as the spiritual advisor and dharma teacher for the Dharmata Foundation in California.
Today, June 9 he is teaching from 7-9 p.m. at the Light on the Mountain Spiritual Center. The retreat is Saturday, June 10 and Sunday, June 11 from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 3 to 6 p.m., at the Hailey Yoga Center, Gateway, Hailey. Register with Mary Ann Chubb 726-7709 or m80@cox.net.
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The Sri Murugan Temple and Cultural Center of Sun Valley invites young men between the ages of 12 and 20 to participate in a very unusual summer.
It will be run by Ananda Kriya, of Ketchum, a practicing Hindu Shaivite since 1972 and the proprietor of Akasha Organics in Ketchum. The young men will take a vow of brahmachariya and vegetarianism. The goal of brahmachariya is to transform sexual energy into an alternate energy.
This vrata or vow taking begins in the full moon Sunday, June 11 at Akasha Organics.
During a ceremony participants will receive a sacred thread to be worn as a symbol of chastity or purity. He will also receive a danda, or staff for the upcoming climbs on Bald Mountain and Jacqueline Peak in the Hyndman Basin. The danda symbolizes the ascent of the chakras within the ethereal spine.
Those taking the vow will meet for a Shiva Aarti at 4:30 a.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday to sit for a 30-minute meditation after which they will climb to the top of Baldy arriving at sunrise.
On Sundays, the group will pilgrimage to the site of the Sri Murugan Temple being constructed near Jacqueline Peak, five miles beyond Triumph out East Fork. The peak is 11,000 feet high.
"The purpose of this discipline will be to focus in the handling of the sexual energies, utilizing them for a spiritual enfoldment instead," Ananda said. "This is good for young boys. They don't have teachings like this."
The fee for the summer long vrata is $108 as a donation to the construction of the Sri Murugan Temple. An additional $1,008 entitles the participant to one meal per day at Akasha Organics.
The Sri Murugan Temple will be built by hand on donated land. Mules will carry in the supplies and stone, while a helicopter will fly in the deities. Sri Muruga was the son of Shiva and Shakti is renowned for inner harmony and perfection.
The deadline to register is June 9. Contact Ananda at 726-4777 or email akashasv@yahoo.com.
The Art of Peace
Traditional Aikido practice at Being Peace Refuge, in Hailey, is now open to youth 4 to 5 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays, and adults 6 to 9 p.m.
For more information on meditation times and Aikido call 788-5879.
