Here’s an insight on what the ongoing book retreat up on the second floor of the EC villa looks like.

In book retreat for the whole month of February with the exception of two weekend courses in Prague and Heidelberg in between, Lama Ole, Caty, and Maike Weigelt are working the whole day on a new book about the main meditation practices of Diamond Way Buddhism in the West – e.g. the Foundational Practices (Tib. ngöndro) or the Meditation on the 8th Karmapa. They are an experienced book-writing team: Maike types in the remarks and additions which Lama Ole is writing by hand into the explanations he wrote many years ago, while Caty is editing. This way it is possible to work on several chapters at the same time. The outcome will be a modern elaboration on all our main meditations, fit especially for lay practitioners in the Western world.

From time to time, Lama Ole takes a short break from writing to guide the morning meditation, to help with the work outside, or to answer his students’ questions in the evenings.

We are often asked about the differences of book retreats and project days. On project days, Lama Ole usually has many different activities during the day. He writes articles, makes phone calls, answers emails, gives interviews, or meets with teams working on different projects worldwide. Writing a book requires more one-pointed focus and uninterrupted working atmosphere for days or even weeks. Other work then slows down to minimum, reserved usually to late night after-hours.