Dear friends, students, and fellow meditators,

By the time you read this letter, I will have begun the long retreat that I announced last year. As you may know, I have felt a very strong connection with the tradition of retreat since I was a young boy growing up in the Himalayas. Even though I didn’t really know how to meditate, I would often run away from home to a cave nearby, where I would sit quietly and chant the mantra “Om Mani Peme Hung” over and over again in my mind. My love of the mountains and the simple life of a wandering meditator called to me even then.

Click the link below to read the Chinese and English translation:
Letter from Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche upon Entering Retreat 2011