Lojong Mind Transformation Retreat with Rio Helmi | January 6-10, 2026
This retreat is an invitation to engage directly with the inner mechanics of perception, emotion, and identity as revealed through Lojong practice.
Rather than attempting to eliminate difficulties, Lojong teaches us how to use every challenge as material for awakening.
Through this method, ordinary life becomes the field of transformation, and the mind itself becomes the path.
About the Retreat
-
Location
Brahmavihara Arama is the largest Buddhist monastery in Bali, located in the quiet hills of North Bali near Banjar and Lovina. The monastery was founded in the early 1970s by the respected Indonesian monk Bhikkhu Girirakkhito, with the vision of creating a space for Theravāda practice, meditation, and inter-Buddhist dialogue.
Built in traditional Balinese architectural style and surrounded by tropical gardens, mountains, and sea views, it offers an ideal environment for deep retreat. His Holiness the Dalai Lama has Brahmavihara Arama in the past and gave teachings at this place.
-
The Retreat
This 5-day Lojong Retreat is centered on the 11th-century Tibetan text Eight Verses of Mind Transformation by Langri Tenpa. Through meditation, guided reflection, and practical mind-training exercises, participants will learn how to transform everyday challenges into a path of clarity, compassion, and inner stability.
The retreat is experiential and accessible, offering both philosophical depth and direct application in daily life.
-
The Teacher
Rio Helmi first received these Lojong instructions in 1990 from the late Lati Rinpoche at Gaden Shartse Monastery in South India. In the years that followed, he continued to receive extensive teachings on the Eight Verses and on mind training from:
His Holiness the Dalai Lama
Dagpo Rinpoche
These transmissions ensure that the retreat is grounded in an unbroken living lineage, preserving both the textual precision and the experiential depth of the tradition.
Lineage and Historical Context
This brief instruction was written by the great master Geshe Langri Tangpa (1054–1123), one of the early Kadampa teachers in the direct lineage descending from the great master Jowo Atisha Dipamkara Shrijnana. Atisha was invited to Tibet from India at the request of Tibetan Buddhists. His principal disciple, Dromtonpa, later established the Kadam lineage.
Jowo Atisha placed strong emphasis on the graduated path to enlightenment, which brought together all the essential elements of the Buddhist path into a clear and accessible system, even for non-scholars. A crucial aspect of this step-by-step path, the Lam Rim, is its role in generating the mind of enlightenment — Bodhicitta.
From this tradition emerged the Lojong teachings, which emphasize the radical transformation of our habitual, self-centered perspective into a far more open, compassionate, and transformative attitude. At first glance, the Eight Verses appear deceptively simple, yet they are rooted in a profound understanding of the path. The focus of this retreat is to unpack the deeper meaning of this text and to familiarize ourselves with this powerful perspective through direct practice.
Financial Contribution
Service fee (covers accommodation, meals & staff gratuities):
2,000,000 IDR
Dana (donation for teachings):
Offered at the end of the retreat, according to personal capacity and gratitude.
Registration & Payment
A 50% deposit of the service fee is required to secure your place.
Deposit deadline: December 24, 2025
The remaining balance is paid on arrival.
Group size is limited to preserve depth, focus, and personal attention.