21st November – 5th December 2009
Join us for two weeks of healing and nurturing in the foothills of the Himalayas.
AND
Qualify in Usui Reiki Level 1, 2 or Master, or Karuna Reiki® Practitioner or Master
PLUS
Learn how to incorporate knowledge of chakras, sound and mantra
into your Reiki treatments.

The theme of this trip is healing, or wholing – for ourselves as well as others. We will spend our first day in Boudhanath, where our hotel is right opposite the Great Stupa, called Jarung Khashor in Tibetan, which means “permission given for proper action.” We will have a guided tour of the Stupa, visit one or two of the local monasteries, and learn a little about the Tibetan Buddhist culture and spirituality. The Great Stupa is thought to be over two thousand years old and provides a powerful focal point of sacred energy. It is one of the most important places of pilgrimage for the peoples of the Himalayas, and for Buddhists, Hindus, Jains, Bonpos and others from all over the world. A stupa is a symbol of Buddha Mind and “kora” is the customary rite of circumambulation which confers blessings upon those who observe it. According to JC Cooper, the author of An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Traditional Symbols, “The Hindu and Buddhist circumambulation of a sacred object, keeping the object always on the right hand, is symbolic of circling the world, the All, contained in the Self.” We will be able to join the local Nepali and Tibetan people and visiting pilgrims for the evening kora around the Stupa.

From Boudha we will drive up into the hills above Kathmandu to the village of Nagarkot, where we will be staying for five days. Nagarkot is famed for its spectacular sunrise and sunset views and from our Reiki Room at the top of the hotel can be seen the whole of the Himalayan Langtang range. Reiki tuition will be available in Usui Reiki at level 1, 2 or Master, and also in Karuna Reiki® at Practitioner or Master level. Please note that if you wish to learn Karuna Reiki®, you need to have done your Usui Reiki Master’s degree a minimum of six months prior to the course in Nepal. There will be ample time for revising the knowledge and skills gained at your current level before progressing on to the next level. 

In addition to Reiki tuition at the level of your choice, we’ll be spending some time looking at different conceptions of the energy body and chakras and how to incorporate this knowledge into your Reiki treatments. We’ll also be learning how to use sound with Reiki in the form of Kotodama, toning and mantra, and how to enhance the scanning process using singing bowls and bells. Sound vibration has been used for millennia in healing as well as in esoteric spiritual practices, so although it’s not familiar to most Westerners, we’ll be following in a well-established tradition. 

In learning to facilitate the healing of others it is of central importance to be developing our own openness – an open mind and an open heart come from being engaged in our own healing process. This enables us to hold the space for others to heal. Therefore, an important part of our experience in Nepal will be doing healing on ourselves as well as receiving healing from others. Everyone collects “stuff” as they go through life and it is hoped that participants will find this trip provides a safe space plus whatever degree of support or privacy they might need for their self-healing process at this time. Therefore, we’ll also spend some time meditating together every day, we’ll have the chance to work with the Tamang shamans who live in the surrounding hills and to visit the local Hindu temple and perhaps have the darshan of the Shaivite sadhu who lives there.

From Nagarkot we’ll drive to the town of Pokhara, which is about 200 km to the west of Kathmandu. The drive takes us along the bank of the Trisuli River, a popular river for white-water rafting, with scenic views of the surrounding countryside and a leisurely stop for lunch. Pokhara is famed for the beauty of the Phewa Tal lake and the mountainous backdrop of the area – the Himalayan Annapurna range and the Machhapuchre peak. After a free day for rest or exploration, we will cross the lake and climb the stone staircase up the ridge opposite to the World Peace Pagoda to do ceremony there. This is one of eighty such peace pagodas which were built all over the world by Buddhist monks from the Japanese Nipponzan Myōhōji organisation. The first peace pagodas were built as a symbol of peace in the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki where the atomic bombs took the lives of over 150,000 people at the end of World War II. On the way down the other side of the ridge we can visit the Tibetan Refugee camp and the waterfall known as Devi’s Falls. For those who would like to do yoga, we can visit the Nepali Yoga Centre which is run by Devika Gurung and her partner Krishna, who are the most beautiful spiritual people you could wish to meet.

The next day we transfer from our hotel to Ganden Yiga Chozin Buddhist Meditation and Retreat Centre for an introductory course in Tibetan meditation and some quiet time before returning to Kathmandu. Once back in the city we’ll be staying at Tibet Guest House in Thamel, a part of Kathmandu which is a maze of tiny streets and alleyways where you can buy Nepali and Tibetan arts and crafts, books, clothing, music and so on, and enjoy some of the best coffee in Kathmandu! The Himalayan Buddhist Meditation Centre is within easy walking distance of our hotel and runs yoga classes and meditation sessions with instruction for beginners. For those who wish, a sightseeing tour of Kathmandu can be arranged, which could include for example the Monkey Temple at Swayambunath and the ancient city of Lalitpur. At the end of our last day together we will have our farewell dinner at the famous Rum Doodle restaurant in Thamel.

Itinerary

A brief itinerary is included here, but please bear in mind that the nature of this trip means it may be necessary to make changes to the itinerary at short notice. Similarly, it may be possible to include things which can’t be arranged a long time in advance.

Reiki Trip to Nepal, 21 Nov – 5 Dec 2009

Day 1:  Day 2:  Day 3:  Day 4-7: Day 8:  Day 9:  Day 10:  Day 11:  Day 12:  Day 13:  Day 14:  Day 15:

Arrive Kathmandu. O/n Hotel Padma, Boudha. In Boudha. O/n Hotel Padma. Drive to Nagarkot. O/n Hotel at the End of the Universe. Nagarkot – Reiki courses. Visits to the view tower, the local Shaivite temple, Changu Narayan and Sankhu are possible. O/n Hotel at the End of the Universe. Drive to Pokhara. O/n Hotel Trek O Tel. Pokhara, free day to explore. O/n Hotel Trek O Tel. Pokhara, visit to World Peace Pagoda. O/n Hotel Trek O Tel. Transfer to Ganden Yiga Chozin meditation retreat. O/n at the retreat centre. Ganden Yiga Chozin, one-day meditation course. O/n at the retreat centre. Drive to Kathmandu. O/n Tibet Guest House, Thamel. Free day in Thamel, farewell dinner at Rum Doodle. O/n Tibet Guest House. Depart to UK.

This trip is being arranged with the help of Dharma Adventures, a reputable and well-established travel company in Kathmandu. We will have one of their representatives travelling with us at all times to help everything run smoothly. 

The price for this trip will be £995 per person, on the basis of sharing twin bedded rooms. Single rooms may be available, in which case a single supplement will apply. Non-Reiki partners are welcome.

Price includes:

• meet and assistance at airport
• arrival and departure transfers
• sightseeing tours and entrance fees
• 2 nights twin sharing accommodation at Hotel Padma, Kathmandu on bed and breakfast basis
• 5 nights twin sharing accommodation at Hotel at the End of the Universe, Nagarkot on bed and breakfast basis
• 3 nights twin sharing accommodation at Hotel Trek O Tel, Pokhara on bed and breakfast basis
• 2 nights twin sharing accommodation at Ganden Yiga Chozin Meditation and Retreat Centre, Pokhara on full board basis
• 2 nights twin sharing accommodation at Tibet Guest House, Kathmandu on bed and breakfast basis
• farewell dinner at Rum Doodle Restaurant on Day 14
• all tuition with respect to Reiki, chakra course, mantra course, and meditation

Price excludes:
Nepal entry visa; international airfare; airport tax; refreshments, tips, bottled drinks and bar bills; insurance and rescue of any form; expenses arising out of flight cancellation/road blockades/landslides and reasons beyond our control; photography charges; lunches and dinners except as indicated above; porters; expenses of a personal nature; gratuities, tipping to guides and drivers; any other items not mentioned in the above cost.


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