Chod is one of the crown jewels of the Vajrayana, practiced and revered by all four schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It is usually only accessed after years of sustained meditative practice. Bringing chod out more publicly is to benefit us in this time of instability and suffering. Chod is a healing protocol– it calls on the mother archetype of Tibetan Buddhism to harness the fierce female wisdom, in one of the most powerful liberation practices in the dharma.

Meditation practitioners who feel stagnant in their practice; survivors of trauma who are looking for a healing ceremony that releases the suffering from their body; anyone inclined in this time of breakage and turmoil to use that energy to turn towards their own transformation, into a being of wisdom and love.   

There are no formal pre-requisites for the retreat. Sue and Sunisa will offer Chod and guide participants through the practice. There is a physical stamina needed for 2+ days of meditation and visualization. Participants should have experience with silent sitting meditation, and be able to drop into a deep meditative state. 

This is a metaphor for our personal and collective negative patterns, the places we get stuck in confusion, rage, shame and grief. In Tibet, Chod was practiced in charnel grounds, where people used the visceral fear and aversion that arises when confronting death to bring the most difficult emotions into the field of practice.

Dharma teachers Sunisa Manning and Sue Kochan worked with Anam Thubten Rinpoche’s transmission of Chod. They are sharing it publicly now with their teacher's blessing, in the aspiration that others may receive the healing they have experienced. They will be offering Jigme Linga’s Chod, The Roar of the Dakini’s Laughter. 

• Meet Sunisa, Guiding teacher at Heart Sangha.

• Meet Sue, Guiding teacher here at Dharma Refuge.

Retreats offer a mix of silent sitting meditation, journaling, teachings and ceremony. Sunisa and Sue’s talks will be infused with the models of Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC), Sustainable Compassion Training (SCT), and Internal Family Systems (IFS).  

Chod ceremonies are shamanic. The teachers sing and play instruments to create the Chod container in an unbroken lineage from the 11th century. Chod is a Vajrayana ceremony that expands the wisdom of the Heart Sutra. Participants are held in the limitless compassion of the buddhas and bodhisattvas, in the alive lineage transmitted by the teachers.

Recommended Reading
Anam Thubten's book Into the Haunted Ground, A Guide to Cutting the Root of Suffering, is available widely through online resellers, in ebook, print and audio versions. This is a highly accessible introduction to the essence and practice of chod. It's not required reading for the retreat, but it will enrich your experience and understanding of this profound practice.