Dharma Village Retreat

June 2nd - 7th, 2026 Boulder, Colorado Shambhala Center

This 5-day, in-person, Mahasangha gathering is a rare opportunity to come together as a living sangha, sharing contemplative practice, music, ritual, and community in the heart of Boulder. Over the course of the week, you’ll be invited into a rich rhythm of shared experiences, including:

  • Planetary Dharma Convergence Gathering at the Shambhala Center on Spruce Street. More information and registration page coming soon.

  • Opening celebratory dinner at the Boulder Dushanbe Tea House on 13th Street

  • Daily core retreat offerings: 9:00am-5pm.

  • Time TBD. Sometime during the 9am - 5pm retreat window.

  • Retreat Closing dinner at T/aco on Walnut Street.

Welcome to Dharma Village. In person, together! We’ll meet you in Boulder!

Arrival & Departure

Nestled at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, Boulder is a place where natural beauty and contemplative culture meet. With open skies, mountain views, walkable streets, and a vibrant arts and food scene, the city offers a rare balance of wildness and refinement. June brings long days, fresh air, and an ease that invites both deep practice and relaxed enjoyment; an ideal setting for Dharma Village to unfold.

Most students rent Air B&B’s close to the Shambhala Center and room with other students during the retreat. Here is a WhatsApp Link to help you find a roommate for our time together in Boulder.

Retreat Setting & Lodging

Fly into Denver on the morning of Tuesday, June 2nd, and plan to make your way to Boulder, which is about 30–45 minutes by car from Denver depending on traffic.
We recommend booking travel that allows you to arrive in the morning or early afternoon so you can settle in before our welcoming dinner which begins at 5pm (more details below). Closing dinner on Sunday, June 7th. Plan to fly out on the 8th.

Venue

Our retreat will be held at the Boulder Shambhala Center, located at 1345 Spruce Street, Boulder, CO 80302, an American epicenter of Buddhist education and practice since the 1970s. The Shambhala Center reflects the evolution of Buddhism in the West; serious practice, lived culture, and human warmth woven together. It offers an ideal container for a week of meditation, music, ritual, and community.

Rituals, Celebrations + Free Optional Bonus Event!

  • Bonus Event - Planetary Dharma Day: ICON Gathering (Optional/Free)

    Monday, June 1st, 2026 | 9:00am-5:30pm

    As a brief heads up: the week leading into Dharma Village (Tuesday, May 26–Monday, June 1, 2026) will be a particularly rich moment in Boulder, centered around the ICON 2026 Conference (Integral Conference of North America) from Tue May 26 - Sun May 31.

    Following the conclusion of ICON on Sunday, May 31, Planetary Dharma will host a free, public Planetary Dharma Day on Monday, June 1st at the Shambhala Center. This gathering is open to the broader Boulder community, ICON Conference participants, and anyone in our sangha who is in town, as an optional, informal opportunity to arrive early, connect in person, and ease into the Dharma Village field.

    More info on this day coming to this page in the next few days.

  • Celebration Opening Dinner: The Boulder Dushanbe Teahouse

    Tuesday, June 2nd, 2026 | 5:00-9:00PM

    We’ll begin Dharma Village with an intimate opening dinner at the Dushanbe Tea House, one of Boulder’s most beautiful and beloved gathering spaces, located at 1770 13th St, Boulder, CO 80302. This evening marks the soft opening of our retreat…a time to arrive, settle, and begin weaving the relational field.

    Surrounded by handcrafted beauty, shared food, and conversation, Banyan and Aspen cohorts will have time to meet, reconnect, and orient together. This first night is about presence and arrival, socializing, gathering, and letting the retreat begin through simple human connection.

    The opening dinner is designed as a ritual threshold: a moment to step out of daily life and into shared practice, community, and belonging.

  • Ritual: Bodhisattva Vows Ceremony

    Saturday, June 6th, 2026 | TBD

    Banyan students will be invited to take the Bodhisattva Vows during Dharma Village on their own authority. This offering is entirely optional and will be held with care, context, and appropriate preparation. For those who feel called, the vows mark a meaningful threshold in your training, an expression of intention to orient one’s life toward awakening in service of the whole.

    Aspen and Aspen FIT students are warmly invited to renew their Bodhisattva Vows, should they wish. Renewal is likewise optional and offered as a chance to consciously rearticulate commitment, clarify intention, and re-enter the vows from wherever you currently stand.

    The vow ceremony will be held as a shared, ceremonial moment on the final day of the retreat, honoring both individual readiness and the collective field that supports such commitments.

  • Celebration Closing Dinner: T/aco

    Sunday, June 7th, 2026 | 5:00 - 9:00PM

    We’ll wrap up Dharma Village with a joyful, relaxed celebration at T/aco, Boulder’s beloved urban taqueria located at 1175 Walnut Street, Boulder, CO 80302.

    After a week of meditation, shared practice, and deep connection, this casual dinner is the retreat’s cherry on top! A place to laugh, eat tacos, sip margaritas and tequila, and celebrate all we’ve experienced together. With its warm, lively atmosphere and delicious house-made tortillas and creative tacos, T/aco sets the perfect tone for an evening of good food and good company.

    The party runs from 5:00–9:00PM(ish!). This closing dinner is not a formal sit-down meal, but a relaxed, collective celebration of our shared week and the sangha we continue to weave. A relaxed exhale together, where friendship, celebration, and shared meaning carry us across the threshold back into daily life.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Most students choose to book accommodations through Airbnb or a similar short-term rental service, often sharing a house or apartment with fellow participants near Pearl Street and the center of town. We’ll provide a WhatsApp group to help registered participants self organize, connect, coordinate lodging, and find potential roommates ahead of the retreat (see next question in FAQ’s for WhatsApp link).

  • Yes! Here is your WhatApp link to self organize and look for roommates for the retreat.

  • Yes, Boulder sits at about 5,430 feet (1,655 meters) above sea level, which is higher than Denver and can cause mild altitude sickness and increased UV exposure for visitors coming from sea level, requiring extra hydration and acclimatization.

  • Comfortable clothes for sitting and comfortable walking shoes. A light jacket or layers are recommended, as Boulder can swing from cool evenings to very warm days. A meditation shawl or light sitting blanket is also nice to have. A water bottle and hat are also recommended.

  • You don’t need to bring a meditation cushion; the Shambhala Center has plenty on hand. However, there are limited meditation benches, so if that is what you prefer, you’ll need to bring your own.

  • Yes. Retreat fees cover shared costs for the gathering as a whole, including venue rentals, venue staff support, logistics, and group meals. These costs are fixed at the group level and are not adjusted based on individual participation in meals, as Planetary Dharma is required to provide final participant numbers to each venue months in advance.