IGNITING 2026: Light the Fire of Joy through Compassion - Annual New Year’s Dharma, Pranayama, Yoga, Kirtan & Astrology Celebration

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IGNITING 2026: Light the Fire of Joy through Compassion - Annual New Year’s Dharma, Pranayama, Yoga, Kirtan & Astrology Celebration

December 27 - January 01, 2026

As we enter the Year of the Fire Horse, we are invited to light the fire of joy with compassion, harnessing this bold, transformative energy to move forward with purpose, heart, and fearless authenticity.Join friends of Tibet House US | Menla for an 18-year tradition as our community gathers in person to ring in the New Year in the magical, secret valley of the Medicine Buddha. Over five inspiring days, we’ll practice, pray, and play together—through teachings, breathwork, yoga, astrology, devotional chanting, and more. Let’s release limiting patterns and set powerful intentions for manifesting our dreams for the year ahead—all while sharing in much-needed joy and celebration.We kick off this year’s retreat with an unforgettable kirtan experience featuring Krishna Das, Nina Rao, and crew. Robert Thurman will share wisdom and Dharma teachings alongside our lovely guests. Michele Loew and John Campbell will lead daily morning yoga sessions, while Paul Bloom will guide afternoon Qi Gong classes. Elizabeth Pyjov will bring us into meditative spaces, and Arjun Bruggeman will offer an afternoon of rhythmic sound. Krishna Das and Nina Rao will also share additional kirtan and participate in several dynamic group conversations.Master astrologer and astronomer Alexander Mallon returns with his renowned Astrological Forecast for 2026, introducing the basics of reading a chart and offering insights into the energetic patterns shaping our personal and collective futures. He’ll also provide expert consultations and lead a group chart-reading session sure to inspire all but the most steadfast skeptics.For our New Years Eve celebration on December 31st, we’ll enjoy our beloved annual group sound bath with Woodstock’s Sage Academy of Sound—a powerful sonic meditation.Following this performance, we are incredibly honored to welcome world-renowned performance artist Marina Abramović, whose groundbreaking work has inspired generations to engage with art, presence, and consciousness in radical new ways. Marina will guide participants through The Art of Presence, drawing on her sixty years of artistic practice in performance art. In this session, she will illuminate the history and transformative power of long-duration performances, exploring how they deeply influence both the performers and the audiences who experience them.The evening will conclude with a guided meditation led by Elizabeth Pyjov and Menla’s Managing Director, Lynn Schauwecker, followed by a countdown at the Nalanda Conference Center and a festive late-night celebration, complete with refreshments and opportunities for community connection.Together, we will recharge, reflect, and realign—ready to face the challenges of our time with fiery joy, clear vision, and compassionate action, manifesting the highest good for ourselves, our communities, and our world in 2026.

We encourage you to register early—space is limited!

THIS PAGE IS FOR IN-PERSON ATTENDANCE REGISTRATION. TO REGISTER FOR ONLINE/VIRTUAL ATTENDANCE, PLEASE CLICK HERE

ScheduleSaturday, December 27

3 - 8 pm Arrival & Check-in

6 - 7 pm Dinner

7:30 pm Welcome with Robert Thurman & Kirtan with Krishna Das, Nina Rao & Friends

Sunday, December 28

7 - 8 am Vajrayoga Asanas with Michele Loew

8 - 9 am Breakfast

9:15 - 10:45 am Self-Compassion through Ancestors Practice with Elizabeth Pyjov

11 am - 12:30 pm Prayers for the Goddesses Durga, Lakshmi, Saraswati and Tara with Nina

12:30 - 1:30 pm Lunch

1:30 - 4 pm Free Time for Spa Treatments, Astrology Consultations, Relaxation, etc

1:45 - 3:15 pm Qi Gong with Paul Bloom

2 - 3:30 pm Rhythmic Sound Journey with Arjun Bruggeman

4 - 5:30 pm Afternoon Teaching with Robert Thurman

6 - 7 pm Dinner

7:30 pm Kirtan with Krishna Das, Nina Rao & Friends

Monday, December 29

7 - 8 am Vajrayoga Asanas with Michele Loew

8 - 9 am Breakfast

10 am - 12 pm Setting Intentions for 2026, Science of Willpower and How to Make our Wishes Come True with Elizabeth Pyjov

12:30 - 1:30 pm Lunch

1:30 - 4 pm Free Time for Spa Treatments, Astrology Consultations, Relaxation, etc

1:45 - 3:15 pm Qi Gong with Paul Bloom

4 - 5:30 pm Afternoon Class with Robert Thurman and Krishna Das

6 - 7 pm Dinner

7:30 pm Kirtan with Krishna Das, Nina Rao & Friends

Tuesday, December 30

7 - 8 am Vajrayoga Asanas with Michele Loew

8 - 9 am Breakfast

10 am - 12 pm Morning Class with Michele Loew

12:30 - 1:30 pm Lunch

1:30 - 4 pm Free Time for Spa Treatments, Astrology Consultations, Relaxation, etc

1:45 - 3:15 pm Qi Gong with Paul Bloom

4 - 5:30 pm Afternoon Class with Robert Thurman

6 - 7 pm Dinner

7:30 pm 2026 Astrology Forecast with Alexander Mallon

Wednesday, December 31

7 - 8 am Vajrayoga Asanas with John Campbell

8 - 9 am Breakfast

10 am - 12 pm “Magic Hat” Public Astrological Chart Readings with Alexander Mallon

12:30 - 1:30 pm Lunch

1:30 - 4 pm Free Time for Spa Treatments, Astrology Consultations, Relaxation, etc

1:45 - 3:15 pm Qi Gong with Paul Bloom

4 - 5:30 pm Afternoon Class with Robert Thurman & John Campbell

6 - 7:30 pm Special New Year’s Dinner

8 - 9:30 pm Group Sound Bath with Sage Academy of Sound

9:45 - 11 pm Marina Abramovic Session: The Art of Presence

11 pm - 12 am New Year's Meditation, Intention-Setting, Countdown and Celebration with Elizabeth Pyjov and Lynn Schauwecker

Thursday, January 1

7 - 11 am Check out of Guest Rooms

7 - 8:30 am Qi Gong with Paul

8 am - 7 pm 108 Hanuman Chalisas with Nina Rao, KD & Friends: All Day from Tibet House US in NYC (virtual offering)

8:30 - 9:30 am Vajrayoga Asanas with John Campbell

9:30 am Coffee, Tea and Danishes at the Conference Center

9:45 – 11:15 am Closing Talk with Robert Thurman and John Campbell

11:30 - 1:30 Brunch & Departure

1:30 - 4:30 pm Individual Astrology Consultation with Alexander Mallon by Appointment

*Please note that the schedule is subject to change.

ABOUT THE TEACHERs

Krishna Das

Krishna Das is a Grammy-nominated chant artist and has sung with people all around the world for over 35 years. His music offers the practice of chanting mantras– mostly in the Indian tradition, with some Buddhist and Gospel infusions. By sharing his life experiences on the pa...

Nina Rao

Nina Rao learned traditional chants from her grandfather in a village in south India when she was nine years old. The chants quietly stayed with her until she rediscovered chanting with Krishna Das in New York in 1996. For many years Nina has been Krishna Das business manager and...

Robert A.F. Thurman

Robert Thurman is Professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies at Columbia University as well as co-founder and President of Tibet House US and it's Menla Retreat & Spa. A world-wide lecturer on Tibetan Buddhism, activist for the plight of the Tibetan people, translator of Buddhis...

Michele Loew

Michele Loew is an international yoga teacher & practitioner of Hatha & Tibetan Yogas & the co-founding director of the Vajra Yoga School of Comparative Buddhist & Indic Yogic Studies where sheco-teaches with Professor Robert A.F. Thurman at Menla & abroad. She has taught, practi...

John Campbell

John Campbell is a Dharma and yoga teacher, Mysore yoga school graduate, initiate of senior Tibetan Lamas, and graduate of Columbia University Buddhist Studies. He is a senior Certified teacher in the Ashtanga Yoga lineage of southern India, and a practitioner-teacher of Tibetan ...

Paul Bloom

Paul studied Chinese philosophy and history at Harvard and Columbia Universities. He has studied and practiced Classical Qigong with Kwan Sai-hung for over 30 years; Zen Buddhism with Roshi Joan Halifax, Roshi Enkyo O’Hara and Sensei Kazuaki Tanahashi; and Tibetan Buddhism with...

Alexander Mallon

A celebrated astrologer and intuitive, Alexander Mallon has practiced for over 45 years, sharing his gifts with clientele spanning the globe, from NY to New Zealand. Alexander has been an avid telescope builder and amateur astronomer for nearly 50 years as well and incorporates h...

Lea Garnier

Lea Garnier has worked in the healing arts for over 25 years and is an established practitioner in the field. She is the Director of Sage Academy of Sound in Woodstock, NY which she founded in 2007. She is an Upledger trained Craniosacral Therapist, practicing since 1990. Sh...

Arjun Bruggeman

Arjun Bruggeman, world percussionist, drummer, composer and session recording artist, is highly acclaimed for his unique hybrid of East-meets-West rhythms. For the past decade, he's toured with Krishna Das worldwide and has recorded and performed with artists such as John Densmor...

Marina Abramović

Since the beginning of her career in Belgrade during the early 1970s, Marina Abramović has pioneered performance as a visual art form. She created some of the most important early works in this practice, including Rhythm 0 (1974), in which she offered herself as an object of exp...

Elizabeth Pyjov

Founder, Happiness Sangha Law School and Business School Faculty at Loyola University Chicago MTS Harvard Divinity School, Theology Degree J.D. Harvard Law School‍ Certification Stanford Medical School in the Neuroscience, Philosophy, Pedagogy of Compassion B.A. Harvard Colleg...