Marig Munsel Program

MARIG MUNSEL is like Basic Training in Buddhism, a condensed version of traditional monastic training styled for Westerners. The focus is on building, step-by-step, a strong, solid, foundational understanding of Buddhism. Each year builds on the previous, which provides an unequaled method of structured Dharma study. 

The three-year program has been held in various formats depending on the hosting center. It makes use of multiple learning approaches which engage the student on many different levels.

 Students learn and practice meditation techniques, read and study texts, learn how to contemplate and integrate and write about what they study, join in both small and large group discussion as well as research and share their personal areas of interest. One of the strengths of the program is that students learn from and inspire each other in a supportive environment under the guidance of an authorized teacher.

This course will challenge and deepen the student and has the potential to be deeply transformative. More effective meditation, a firmer and more comprehensive understanding of the scriptures and teachings, and the ability to truly benefit from the influence of their teachers are qualities which naturally result. Students will embody greater knowledge, wisdom, and kindness in general.

Get the foundation you always wish you had!

Lama Bruce Newman is an authorized teacher whose teaching stems from his many years of personal meditation experience, retreat, and study abroad and in the West. This and his understanding of both Eastern and Western approaches to the Dharma makes him unusually qualified to teach Dharma to Western students in a way they can truly understand and integrate into their daily lives.

Bruce’s extensive experience and knowledge of the Buddhist teachings is supported by his complete commitment to transmitting them purely without compromise, making this course the perfect method to provide the practitioner with an authentic means to hear, study, and contemplate the Dharma.

Here is Venerable Gyatrul Rinpoche's endorsement of the first program from 2001​

Based on our current program in Ensenada, Mexico, we will most likely be following the following curriculum, although it may be adjusted according to the needs and interests of the students.

In all three years we will have a balance between meditation and study, with the meditation relevant to the material being studied.

Year one

Foundations of Mahayana Buddhism. We will study Gampopa’s Jewel Ornament of Liberation which provides a strong overview of the whole Mahayana Buddhist path. Our meditation will be predominantly mindfulness meditation, loosely based on Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche’s Emotional Rescue

Year two​

Year Two: Lojong, Mahayana Mind Training, learning how to turn away from painful, self-centered thoughts towards expansive caring for others. Our main text will be Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche’s Intelligent Heart. We also use several sources for our meditation to augment our development of compassion

Year three

The Bardos. Studying the Buddhist concept of Bardos or intermediate states provides students with a good foundation for successfully delving into Vajrayana Buddhism. We will use two texts for both study and practice: Guru Rinpoche and Gyatrul Rinpoche’s Natural Liberation and Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche’s Mind Beyond Death.


Testimonials

“Bruce is the reason I am a Dharma practitioner. I remember at our very first Marig Munsel weekend, Bruce saying, ‘This isn’t Buddhism Light. Put whatever you’ve read or heard so far into a box and on a shelf for the next four years.’ This statement really struck me; I was so used to trite and socially expected remarks. He surprised me again and again with statements that come from truth, from what is real, and I could feel this in my body each time, as though my inner cogs were being reconfigured.”
C. B.
“In four years, Bruce has changed my life. I am a better person now. I feel a deep connection to a spiritual path and I’m traveling down that path. I used to be haunted by the question, ‘What am I doing here?’ This never bothers me any more, because the question is irrelevant. My mind was always here and is still here. The rest is work. Lama Bruce’s classes are truly for everybody. People come who have had thirty years’ experience or no experience. He can make a long time practitioner reexamine long held ideas, and he can make a beginner’s questions relevant on deep levels.”
L. L.
“My study with Bruce has been a wonderful experience these past years, and I am seriously considering taking the class again. I feel like my understanding of the teachings has grown tremendously, and my meditation practice has deepened considerably.  This is a really wonderful program which I heartily recommend to long time Dharma students and beginners alike.”
L. H.
“The four years of Marig Munsel has put me solidly on the Path. Lama Bruce is a blessing to all who will listen.”
M. M.
“I have understood Buddhism in a clear fundamental way, from its beginnings. Buddhism is not a light topic. Bruce has demonstrated a masterful ability to teach these topics, over and over again. Westerners take a long time to understand these ideas, and Bruce finds many different ways to explain things. He allows us to ask the same questions over and over again, until we can begin to see.”
L. L.
“I participated in the first Marig Munsel program with Lama Bruce Newman when it took place at Tashi Choling. I deeply appreciated the program for various reasons including Lama Bruce´s teaching style, humility, authenticity, and openness. I loved that the sangha had an opportunity to discuss dharma conversationally. The meditations, particularly the walking meditation, were very appreciated and this was the only time I´d ever engaged in either of these with a group at our center. As well, the studies were very applicable to my life. At that time, Lama Bruce gave us writing assignments which, as a writer, increased the richness of the program. We were able to deeply explore profound teachings, study dharma with others of like mind, have access to an experienced teacher, and feel the support of the spiritual community. It was one of the most uplifting and nurturing experiences I had in those days, or since.”
J. R.