Earthen building workshop *
One week residential workshop to provide introductory hands-on training in some of the foundational skills of earthen building in the neo-traditional Kangra style of esteemed eco-architect, Didi Contractor as practiced at Dharmalaya Institute. Learn to work with earth in an adobe bricks, including the process of making and laying adobe bricks, plastering as well as other interior work.
The 5 elements & Natural building: Designing & living in Harmony with Nature
At Dharmalaya, we see architecture not as a subject, but as a living conversation between the body, the earth, and the elements. A well-built home doesn’t just shelter you, it breathes with you, it warms you, it soothes and nourishes you. When you walk into a building, you can feel the space, sometimes it lifts you, sometimes it drains you. A house, a room, even a simple mud wall holds a pulse. That pulse is the same rhythm that moves in your own breath, in your blood, in the quiet turning of the seasons.
Interconnected Roots: A gathering for collective healing, Remembrance and Radical Belonging
In a world where many are sensing the multi-crisis—the collapse of familiar structures, whether social, ecological, or spiritual—this gathering invites us on an ancient yet urgently needed journey: to remember our deep interconnection with the web of life. Through ritual, dialogue, embodied practices, and nature-based learning, we will traverse the Spiral of The Work That Reconnects, transforming our pain, rekindling our vitality, and reigniting our sense of purpose in service of a more life-affirming future.
Contemplative Carpentry: Slate Roofing Workshop
A two-week residential carpentry workshop, aimed to explore the intersection of contemplative practice, craft and sustainability through hands-on work doing roofing with slate, a natural material used traditionally in this region of the Himalayas.
Natural Design & Contemplative Architecture
An immersive residential course conducting a deep exploration of natural design, the power of space and form, geometry, the creative process, and our relationship with these. The course will integrate theory and practice, supported by a rich syllabus structured to support the interdisciplinary breadth of the course.
Contemplative Carpentry 2: Slate Roofing Workshop
A two-week residential carpentry workshop, aimed to explore the intersection of contemplative practice, craft and sustainability through hands-on work doing roofing with slate, a natural material used traditionally in this region of the Himalayas.
Compassionate Living Workshop
The Compassionate Living Workshop is a hybrid of a contemplative retreat and a training workshop. We explore the core principles and practices of a life of informed and engaged compassion: to understand, to care, and to act. This includes both the inner and outer aspects, providing a broad conceptual overview and deeper topical explorations supported by hands-on practice.
Natural Design & Contemplative Architecture
A year-long residential course conducting a deep exploration of natural design, the power of space and form, geometry, the creative process, and our relationship with these. The course will integrate theory and practice, supported by a rich syllabus structured to support the interdisciplinary breadth of the course.
Training and Volunteer Work Period
Volunteer work period, beginning with a six-day residential workshop to provide introductory hands-on training in some of the foundational skills of compassionate living as practiced at Dharmalaya Institute, including …
Training and Volunteer Work Period
Volunteer work period, beginning with a six-day residential workshop to provide introductory hands-on training in some of the foundational skills of compassionate living as practiced at Dharmalaya Institute, including …
Training and Volunteer Work Period
Volunteer work period, beginning with a six-day residential workshop to provide introductory hands-on training in some of the foundational skills of compassionate living as practiced at Dharmalaya Institute, including …
Sustainable Thriving Intensive Workshop
The Sustainable Thriving Intensive is a training workshop in which we explore the core principles and practices of compassionate living, including food, shelter, water, energy, consumption and waste, leadership, communication, personal development, providing a broad conceptual overview supported by practice.
Earthen Building Workshop
A ten-day workshop to provide introductory hands-on training in some of the foundational skills of earthen building in the neo-traditional Kangra style of esteemed eco-architect Didi Contractor as practiced at Dharmalaya Institute. Learn to work with earth in an adobe structure, including making and laying adobe bricks, as well as other interior work.
Compassionate Living Intensive
The Compassionate Living Intensive is a hybrid of a contemplative retreat and a training workshop. We explore the core principles and practices of a life of informed and engaged compassion: to understand, to care, and to act. This includes both the inner and outer aspects, providing a broad conceptual overview and deeper topical explorations supported by hands-on practice.
Building the Builders : A Deep-Dive Workshop for Interns & Residents
A twelve-day workshop exploring some of the finer points of earthen building and collaborative community living as practiced at Dharmalaya Institute, bridging skill development and personal development.
Sustainable Thriving Intensive Workshop
The Sustainable Thriving Intensive is a training workshop in which we explore the core principles and practices of compassionate living, including food, shelter, water, energy, consumption and waste, leadership, communication, personal development, providing a broad conceptual overview supported by practice.
Compassionate Living Intensive
The Compassionate Living Intensive is a hybrid of a contemplative retreat and a training workshop. We explore the core principles and practices of a life of informed and engaged compassion: to understand, to care, and to act. This includes both the inner and outer aspects, providing a broad conceptual overview and deeper topical explorations supported by hands-on practice.
Earthen Interiors 3 : Features & Finishing
A twelve-day training workshop exploring a range of interior features and finishing processes of earthen building as practiced in the neo-traditional Kangra vernacular as pioneered by Didi Contractor.
Earthen Building Workshop
A workshop to provide introductory hands-on training in some of the foundational skills of earthen building in the neo-traditional Kangra style of esteemed eco-architect Didi Contractor as practiced at Dharmalaya Institute. Learn to work with earth in an adobe structure, including making and laying adobe bricks, as well as other interior work.