The Manual tells all about what you can expect on retreat at the center. Here you will find information about available accommodation types as well as a recommended packing list and meals and food.
Accommodations
Accommodations in summer months are in comfortable, but unheated, dormitories or platform tents. (See fees for more information). Most housing is a short walk from the central dining, bath house and practice facilities. If you have health problems or special needs which would make this kind of dorm living difficult, please let us know well in advance, as alternatives are limited. All accommodations are shared with one other person. (New Dorms to right.) Click here to scroll through a panorama of the center (large file, wait for download).
No accommodation includes any linen service and retreatants must bring their own towels and sheets. Please see the recommended packing list, here, for more details.
Important note: The Health Department Prohibits Personal Tents
The Department of Health has limited the number of temporary residents permitted on the land and may penalize the center if this is not adhered to strictly. As a result, personal tents are *not permitted on the land.*
Additionally, the high cost of construction of the retreat center limits the center's ability to provide a discount to those who wish to use their own tents. Please speak with Lama Tsewang Norbu for more information.
Built in 1999, the "Old Dorm" is the most economical of the accomodations, having the lowest rate. It is also the quietest, placed farthest from the dining hall and temple. The rooms have a single window facing the state park forest and doors opening with a direct view of the lawn with its grape trellis and the temple. Each room is provided with two twin-sized beds and two dressers.
Built in 2000, the North Dorm was once known as the "New Dorm." The rooms have two twin beds, a dresser and/or closet. These rooms are well-ventilated but can tend to be chillier.
Completed in 2007 in time for the tenth year anniversary of the Retreat Center, the South Dorms are a two-story building that include cool stone tile flooring in the hallways, large screened windows and ceiling fans and plush carpeting in the rooms.
Platform tent users will be provided one mattress per roommate. The tents are roomy and tall. At this point, because of the number of retreatants who would like to participate and the limitations imposed on the retreat center by the Department of Health, the monks will require two persons per tent. Please indicate if you would not like to attend the retreat because of the mandatory roommate policy.
This section covers the costs of the retreat aside from that of tuition. For tuition costs, you should check the registration form located here:
The chapters below explain other details you may need to know, including discounts for children and monks and nuns.
Your fee helps to maintain the center in addition to paying for costs the center incurs over retreat. Utility expense is particularly costly, especially during these times of increased fuel costs. Airfare for teachers, ongoing yearly maintanence costs -- all of these add up. To thoroughly understand the costs the center must bear, please read our section covering this topic under About the Retreat Center.
Work-study
Work-study is available for those experiencing hardship, but on a very limited basis. There are no scholarships, currently, as funds are badly needed for other of His Holiness' projects. Personal recommendations are helpful for acceptance into this program. Please see the "Work Study" section for more info.
Discounts
Monastic: Shared tent accommodations for monks and nuns are available at a discount of 50%. When applying for retreat, please include a reference of ordination on a separate sheet including name of master who conferred ordination, date of ordination, center phone number and address, city, state, zip, country.
Student: College students with ID confirming full-time student status are eligible for a 25% discount when staying in tent accommodations.
Teenagers between 12 to 17 (shared tent only): less 50% of fee from table above Multiply total by 0.50
All retreatants, including children, must summit the registration form.
Children between 4 and 12: 75% of fee (with non-discounted payment of single room or tent fee by parent/guardian - in the case of two parents, a shared room at full fee).
Please see the downloadable flier for details of the retreat fees by accommodation option.
There are no other fees for the retreat. However, teaching dana (direct donations to the teacher) are customary.
The assignment of rooms is on a first-come, first-serve basis. Should you need to cancel your reservation, your deposit is refunded minus $90 for processing. Should you leave during retreat, a $90 processing fee will be applied and unattended days will be refunded.
All payments must be made in US funds-cash, check, traveler's check, or money order payable on a US bank. The bank charges the center $20 for handling any checks returned unpaid. This charge will be passed onto those writing a check to the center which is returned.
Telephone - No long distance telephone calls from center office phones. Pay phones are available for long distance calling.
Other expenses to consider include:
- Bus fare from New York Penn Station to Binghamton or Greene.
- Fees do not cover all costs. You may wish to consider making an additional and optional offering to the masters giving teachings, empowerments and interviews and/or to the monks working on the retreat. This need not be made at each empowerment as there will be so many; it can be offered at the last empowerment you attend. You may also wish to make an additional offering when you request an interview with any of the masters.
- You may wish to buy ritual materials (such as a mala) and offerings for the food offering ceremony.
- There will be a commissary this year, which will be open for two hours daily. However, you may wish to arrange to have fellow retreatants with cars transport you to Greene for more exotic toiletries.
- There is a commercial laundry in town for washing clothes.
- There may be texts you do not have which are used in your program that you may want to buy. These will be offered at cost.
- There is an ATM in Greene, New York.
You are welcome to visit The Palyul Center before your designated arrival day when retreats are not in progress. The Visitor Fee is $35 per night and does not include meals. The kitchen may not be open at all when you are onsite and you may need to take meals in town.
You are also welcome to stay after your program's designated departure date; the same Visitor Fee applies.
You must make arrangements with the office at the center prior to scheduling a visit.
If you wish to come an assist in set-up prior to the retreat's start date, you must make arrangements with the office in advance.
Some very limited work-study opportunities exist for individuals with special skills. Please make Lama Tsewang Norbu aware of your special skills prior to arriving to the retreat to see if arrangements can be made.
Work Study program participants are expected to work hard and to miss some practice programs. Teachings and Empowerments with His Holiness Penor Rinpoche are generally excepted - but not always! The Work Study positions are rarely granted because they are extremely difficult and require a lot of effort. For this reason, the center relies on strong recommendations from Palyul staff when selecting Work Study participants. The only exception are people with certification in special skills such as Electricians, Carpenters and Plumbers. Please call Lama Tsewang to discuss your special skill at 607-656-4645.
Because of the high cost of creating the center and because His Holiness Penor Rinpoche fully supports thousands of monks and nuns from the Tibetan refugee camps just in his own monastery, scholarships are not available.
Attached is a MS Word Version of the Work-Study Application.
The following rules can subject the retreatant to immediate expulsion if broken.
No drugs or alcohol
No illegal drugs or firearms are permitted. Possession and/or use of illegal drugs or firearms are grounds for immediate expulsion from the center with no refund.
The consumption of alcohol at the Center is permitted only in the context of certain ceremonies. In general, His Holiness Penor Rinpoche discourages the use of alchohol and tobacco so please try to avoid drinking and smoking at least during the retreat. Any recreational drinking must take place outside the limits of Palyul Center property. Please do not drink and drive; it is better to call the center for a ride should you over-indulge rather than risk the lives of others through drunk driving.
Smoking
Smoking is only permitted in designated areas. It is not permitted in living areas or within 500 feet of practice areas.
Pets
With the exception of Certified Guide dogs, pets cannot be accommodated on the land.
Class Level
Retreatants may under no circumstances change classes without written permission from both Khenchen Tsewang Gyatso Rinpoche and Lama Lobsang Chophel.
There are seven levels of practice, or seven classes, commonly referred to as first year class, second year, and so on. Progression from one year’s class to the next depends on successful completion of the earlier year class’s requirements. These requirements include receiving all the teachings of the respective class, participation in the regular practice sessions, and the approval of the khenpo.
Each student is a member of one, and only one, class. There are no exceptions to this rule. After the first week of the retreat, no one may switch from one class to another.
Classes have scheduled daily practice sessions and occasional teachings to guide the practice. Students may attend daily practices only in their own class. However, with the teacher’s permission, they may attend teachings of earlier level classes for review purposes. No one may attend teachings or practices in later-year classes for which the requirements have not been completed.
Besides the practices, each class has other duties, such as taking care of the altar, keeping the practice area clean, and so on. Each class must select a coordinator to organize these activities, to coordinate with the other classes and to represent the class at certain retreat functions.
One last point about the Dzogchen practice area: only students in third year and later should travel down the Dzogchen Highway to the Dzogchen practice area at any time. Even when classes are not in session, individuals may be engaging in the higher level practices on their own time.
Meals are served communally and consist of a combination of vegetarian and meat entries. There will be a sign-up sheet for vegetarian participants so enough food is cooked for retreatants who do not eat meat.
If you have a special diet, please make sure to note this in your registration form and please make sure to call the center and speak with the kitchen three weeks prior to the retreat to make sure that you should not make other food arrangements.
We do provide purified water, coffee and tea all day as well bread, butter and peanut butter for snacks.
The kitchen may be able to accommodate some food allergies, but there is no guarantee this can be done.
Everyone is expected to serve kitchen rota at least a few times during the retreat. The rota will consist in assisting the cook with preparation, serving and then cleaning at the end of meals.
This section will let you know very practical details such as where you can get your laundry done and how much money you should plan to have available for expenses.
The Palyul Retreat Center is located on an old farm among state forests in upstate New York. Because of weather patterns affected by the Great Lakes, Catskills and relative proximity to Canada, the temperature varies unpredictably even in summer. You could experience chilly evenings and perhaps even chilly, overcast, rainy days. However, summer days can also be sunny, warm, hot and humid with temperatures reaching to 90° F. So, be prepared for a range of temperatures, from low 40's to low 90's, and for sunny hot, humid to beautiful, breezy, crystal-blue-skies to grey and rainy weather.
|
Month
|
Record High
|
Record Low | Average High |
Average Low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June |
98
|
29
|
77
|
52
|
| July |
101
|
35
|
81
|
57
|
| August |
100
|
27
|
79
|
55
|
Families are always welcome at the Palyul Center. Please note, however, that child care is not available at the center. The center is simply not equipped to take on the responsibility of child care. Hence, if you choose to bring your children, you do so at your own risk.
As we would like the retreat experience to be equally wonderful for everyone, and we want our children to be safe and have a good time, a children’s playroom is located on the first floor of the South Dorm. Often parents make arrangements among themselves to mind each other’s children while they play in the Children's Playroom or on the lawn outside the Dining Hall.
There is a closed circuit TV located in the playroom so that parents can participate in the teachings while keeping children entertained. At the appropriate time, everyone comes to the Temple to receive the empowerment substances and blessings.
Further, please be considerate of other retreatants. Avoid allowing your children to play in and around the temple as this can distract other practitioners from their study and practices.
Parents must control their children at all times while in the temple or they may be asked to leave. You may hire a babysitter to watch your child while you are in the center, however the center cannot take any responsibility for the person you select, of course, nor make any recommendations. The Chamber of Commerce located in Greene may be your best resource for such needs. (See the Local Guide for telephone numbers).
Walking along the farmland roads or through state forests can be a wonderful meditative pastime. Please prepare yourself properly and follow these guidelines when walking outside the camp perimeter:
· Sign out on the centers off-site sign-out sheet and verbally tell someone you are going and when to expect you back.
· Always walk with a companion.
· Take at least a quart of water per person.
· Do not drink from local streams as there are many cattle farms nearby that have contaminated them.
· Please do not disturb planted fields or grazing cattle. Plants may be at a delicate juncture in their growing cycle and cattle may produce less milk when frightened.
· If hiking through state forest, wear bright colors.
· Heed all "No Trespassing" signs.
· In season, be alert for hunters.
Lyme Disease
There are many deer in the area and, although this area is much less afflicted, these deer may be infested with the tick that carries Lyme Disease. There are new vaccines for Lyme Disease available now, so consult your doctor prior to leaving for the retreat about the possibility of getting vaccinated. It may take several months for the vaccine to take effect. In any case, insect repellant is recommended.
Computers are available at the library in Greene, NY for those who wish to check email but do not have a portable email device.
For those who have wireless devices, Wi-Fi is available during lunch hour during the retreat. It is not available at other times in order to keep retreatants focused on their religious practice and study. It is also only provided as long as this access is not abused. "Abuse" means utilizing internet to harm others or create a negative environment. We all want the atmosphere at the retreat to be as extraordinary as possible!
Commercial laundry service is available in Greene.
Please be considerate of your fellow retreatants and refrain from utlizing sinks and showers for washing and drying clothing.
A new laundry room has been built near the Tent bathhouse. If you would like to donate using PayPal, click here.
Please have your mail addressed to:
(Your Name)
C/O The Palyul Center
359 German Hollow Road
McDonough, NY 13801
Important items not to forget:
No sleeping bags or extra blankets!!! No linens! Please be sure to bring your own towels, sheets, and either a sleeping bag or plenty of warm blankets.
Be prepared for a range of temperatures. See Environment to view high and low temperatures. Expect a mix of weather, humid and hot to cold and chilly. There may be rain and colder weather because of the phenomena known as "lake-effect" or balmy, breezy beautiful days.
Clothing:
Other:
Optional items: bedspread, throw rug, alarm clock, dharma books and pictures. A battery-operated lantern is advisable for nighttime study. No candles, kerosene or oil lamps as fires are not permitted in the tents. This includes smoking.
Suggestions for Optional Reading:
The following books are compiled based on their relevance to the subject matters being covered at this year's retreat. The texts will not taught during retreat but can make a good augmentation and enhancement of one's appreciation of the teachings one will receive.
A Guide to the Bodhisattva's Way of Life, Shantideva, (many translations exist)
The Excellent Path to Enlightenment, by Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo as explained by HH Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, 1987
The Four Thoughts, by Tenzin Gyatso, His Holiness the Dalai Lama
The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, by Sogyal Rinpoche.
Words of My Perfect Teacher (Kunzang Lama'i Shelung), Patrul Rinpoche, translated by the Padmakara Translation
Pay phones are located at the Dining Hall, near the restrooms.
These pay telephones will accept outgoing local calls only so a pre-paid calling card or credit card will be useful.
Emergency calls only can be received at the office: 607-656-9640.
You should also give those who may have an urgent need to contact you the monk residence number: 607-656-4645.
Forewarn possible callers that English is not the first language in that household and only call in case of an emergency. Callers should ask for Lama Lobsang Chophel or Lama Tsewang Norbu in the event of a true emergency. Please do not use this number for any other reason.
SHRINE ROOM ETIQUETTE
Many folks are unaware of proper etiquette in the shrine room and so, at their request, we are providing some details that you may wish to follow.
Etiquette is an expression of respect and gratitude for one's own Buddha nature, which is embodied by one's teacher and is reflected by the shrine room environment. It can also be a source of merit for, by not disturbing one's fellow practitioners, one is actually aiding their practice.
Part of the practice of making the shrine a sacred space is that we try our best to leave ordinary activities, speech and thoughts outside. Please remove your shoes before entering the shrine room. By doing so, you can leave the distractions and difficulties of the outside world with your shoes, and you avoid tracking in the dirt from the road. Be sure that you do not leave your shoes in the way of others entering the shrine. It is possible that His Holiness will enter where you have and it is nice to keep a neat environment for him to see before the teachings begin. At times students may offer a special carpet for His Holiness to walk on. Out of respect for this offering try to remember to walk around it when exiting or entering the room.
Try to arrive for teachings early. If you find you are running late for and your arrival coincides with that of His Holiness, stand in a slight bow and wait until he enters the shrine room ahead of you. Then wait a few moments allowing him to walk a few paces ahead of you before going in to find your seat.
If you find you need to stretch your legs when you are seated in the shrine room, please cover your feet. Try not to point your feet towards the shrine. In many cultures it is considered very disrespectful to show the soles of your feet to the teacher (and the teacher is always present in the shrine).
If you need to use the restroom during a teaching, please use the restrooms at the Dining Facility. The restrooms in the temple are for monk use and for the disabled. At the door you can turn towards the shrine and bow slightly if you wish (or simply exit). Prostrations may be offered upon returning, but are not customarily offered when exiting. During an empowerment or certain high teachings, it is best not to have to leave during the ceremony or explanations, but of course you can if you need to!
A respectful way to greet an ordained person is with a simple bow, with your hands in the gesture of prayer. You are bowing to one who represents the Buddha's Sangha. When His Holiness enters the shrine room, you should rise and stand in a slight bow until he is seated. The monks and the students may then offer three prostrations if they wish. When His Holiness stands at the end of the session, rise and stand, again, in a slight bow until he has left the room.
Texts, including prayer sheets, should never be placed directly on the floor, not stepped over, or stood upon because of their power to bring liberation and happiness. Please help those who must pass through the shrine room when it is crowded by picking up and holding your text.
In the shrine room we try to offer the most pleasing sites, sounds, and smells and cause the least distraction to His Holiness, the monks and our fellow practitioners. To achieve this, please keep your belongings to a minimum, and neatly contained, in the shrine room. Also, please do not eat in the shrine room during teachings or engage in any other activity that might distract someone who is practicing. This includes beating of drums, bells, cymbals, etc. during periods other than at Tsog. Please do not touch the monks' dharma musical instruments except in their presence with their express permission. Try to keep all ordinary conversation to an absolute minimum. Also be conscious that the small devices used to count prostrations can be distracting with the sound of their clicking. In general, try to be mindful; does it seem like your activity is disturbing others?
Please do not smoke in the vicinity of any practice areas, but restrict this activity far away from any possibility of disturbing the monks or His Holiness. Also, there may be practitioners who have taken vows to refrain from smoking; smoking near them may make it more difficult for them to keep those vows.
Please arrange your schedule so you can stay for the complete teaching session. If you know you must leave before the conclusion, please sit as close to an exit as possible so you can leave quietly and easily. If, for health reasons, you must get up or move around during the teachings, please sit close to the side or the back of the room so others are not disturbed. Evening teachings are known to run quite late with the question and answer period following so please consider sitting in the back if you know you will need to leave early to rest.
There may be seats in the shrine room reserved for Sangha, for guests, or for the people involved in work in various capacities. These seats will be clearly marked. Please do not sit in the sound recording station. Tapes will be made available as soon as is practically feasible. The sound recordist does not dupe the tapes. Please be sure to remove your belongings from the shrine room after empowerments to assist in the removal of rice.
Rota is an old English army word for rotating work assignments. At The Palyul Center everyone who visits or goes on retreat shares the responsibility for the care and maintenance of His Holiness' retreat center. This helps the monks keep down the retreat costs because otherwise it might be necessary to hire workers to maintain the center and the cost of the retreat will have to be increased substantially. Plus, it is a sign of gratitude to His Holiness who is providing us with the chance to go on retreat here in the United States without having to travel all the way to India. A job can only be considered "rota" when they directly affect the care of the center. The only exception is transcription duties.
Everyone is requested to spend a minimum of 8 hours per week on rota.
In rota, everyone contributes by performing mundane chores, monks and participants alike. So, no one is excepted; there is always a way to contribute. If you have physical limitations that might prevent you from performing certain activities, this is respected in setting up work assignments. If you have skills or desires that match certain needs, the monks try to take advantage of your preferences. Please make your desires and your physical limitations known to us ahead of time on your registration form.
Common rota jobs:
- bathroom: cleaning duty
- bathroom: supply replacement duty
- garbage: pick-up duty (placing in dumpster)
- garbage: recycling duty
- garden: watering duty
- garden: weeding duty
- kitchen: chopping duty
- kitchen: serving duty
- kitchen: sweeping duty
- kitchen: washing duty
- maintenance: repairing broken fixtures, replacing lightbulbs, etc.
- temple: vacuuming duty
- temple: trash pick-up duty and window-washing
This section will give more detailed directions and travel advice.
Federal Express and UPS both serve the center.
Please ship your packages to arrive no more than five days prior to your arrival. We cannot guarantee the security of luggage sent too much in advance of the retreat.
Address:
(Your Name)
C/O The Palyul Retreat Center
359 Hollow Road
McDonough, NY 13801
607-656-4645
The closest aiport to the center is in Binghamton, approximately a 45-minute drive from the center. It is also possible to fly to Newark, LaGuardia or JFK (in order of proximity) and to take the bus into New York City and transfer to a bus in Port Authority terminal.
At Binghamton Airport, you can find taxis waiting curbside for customers. If no taxi is present, you just need to wait a short while. Fare to the center ranges from $50 - $70.
You can also fly to Syracuse Airport and rent a car to come to the center, one-way, dropping off at Binghamton Airport.
Arrival dates for full-month retreatants:
July 8 and July 9 between 8:30 AM and 9:00 PM. D
Departure August 10 after 3 PM or August 11 before Noon.
(Please note if you are planning to stay for the Lama Dance, it will likely be held on 8/16. The kitchen will closed).
All others please try not to arrive after 9 PM weekdays as the registrar is unavailable.
The registrar is a volunteer position. Please be so kind as to forward as much information about your arrival and departure times as you possibly can so the registrar can make plans to accommodate arrival.
Coach USA/Short Line bus schedule: (1-800-631-8405)
Coach USA now owns the Shortline Bus Company.
On their website you can get a PDF of the NYC-Binghamton-Green Schedule.
Greene is 15 minutes from the center, however, please be forewarned, the center cannot officially pick up from the bus stop and public phones in Greene may be difficult to find. If you choose to take the bus to Greene, you may wait up to three hours for pick-up. Better is to take a taxi from the Binghamton bus station to the center.
The Short Line bus runs 7 days a week from New York's W. 42nd Street Port Authority Terminal. (Click for most updated information.)
Please try to limit the use of your vehicle during your program. This has been requested because of the fragility of the landscape and roads as well as the dust driving releases into the air. Most of our roads are not paved. If you notice the roads have been freshly oiled, please do not drive fast over the surface but maintain a speed of less than 10mph. (This is done once prior to the commencement of the retreat).
Parking is ONLY permitted in the parking lot outside the office. Please do not park by the temple, next to the dorms or in the tent areas except as absolutely necessary for unloading your luggage. Cars parked overnight are subject to tow at owner's expense. If you have a disability requiring special parking, please consult the office.
There is not much Public Transportation available to travel to the center.
If you are flying in, take a New York Bus Service to New York's Pennsylvania Station. From Penn Station, you must go to 42nd Street and 7th Avenue, Port Authority Bus Terminal (Penn Station is on 34th and 7th Avenue). Take the Short Line to Binghamton or, preferably, Greene, NY.
It is possible to take the AirTrain and then the "E" train to Penn Station, but it is not advisable if you have a lot of luggage and are travelling during the week.
The following arrival destinations are serviced by the taxi/car service to the Center:
Greene, NY bus stop (closest to the center)
Binghamton Greyhound bus station
Binghamton Shortline bus station
Binghamton Airport
Retreatants need to obtain their own transportation to the center. Checker Car Services (607) 722-2227 with Palyul Center Group rate (likely increased due to gas prices). Each car can be shared by up to 4 people.
Recreation Vehicles are prohibited overnight on the land due to Health Department occupancy rules. However, there are camp grounds in the neighboring area which accept mobile homes.
Checker Car Services (607) 722-2227.
Note that the Palyul Retreat Center group rate has likely increased. Each car can be shared by up to 4 people. (Note: the total cost is the same whether the taxi is shared or not.)