In intensive Kagyu settings, Mahamudra practice is framed by a clear progression that begins with preparation and gradually opens into direct recognition of mind’s nature. Practitioners are usually grounded in the so‑called preliminary practices (ngöndro), which purify obscurations and gather the necessary conditions for deeper work through refuge, prostrations, Vajrasattva purification, mandala offerings, and guru‑yoga. On this basis, the retreat day is divided into multiple formal sessions, often many hours in total, interspersed with rest periods and occasional teachings that clarify the view and method. Silence, simplicity of lifestyle, and careful ethical discipline create a container in which attention can steadily turn inward and remain there with fewer distractions.

Within each formal session, the structure tends to move from devotional orientation to meditative stabilization and then to direct insight. Sessions commonly open with refuge, the arousing of bodhicitta, and lineage or guru supplications, sometimes explicitly in the form of guru‑yoga. This devotional dimension is not merely ornamental; it is regarded as the living link to the Mahamudra lineage and as the most direct support for receiving “pointing‑out” instructions. These instructions introduce the meditator to the empty, luminous, non‑conceptual nature of mind and are then repeatedly recalled in brief reminders during practice.

The meditative core of the retreat unfolds through a layered approach that first cultivates calm abiding (shamatha) and then insight (vipashyana), before settling into Mahamudra proper. Shamatha is developed by resting attention on simple supports such as the breath or a visual object, training the mind to be relaxed yet clear, and learning to recognize and release distraction and dullness. Once a measure of stability is present, vipashyana is introduced, examining how thoughts and experiences arise, abide, and cease, and investigating whether mind has any fixed form, location, or boundary. Periods of analytic inquiry alternate with non‑analytic resting, so that conceptual investigation naturally gives way to direct experiential knowing.

On this foundation, the retreatant is guided through the classical Mahamudra phases, often described as one‑pointedness, freedom from elaboration, one taste, and finally non‑meditation. In one‑pointedness, the emphasis is on deepening the stability and clarity of awareness, initially with objects and then increasingly by resting in mind itself. Freedom from elaboration highlights the direct experience of emptiness, as mental fabrications are seen through and released. One taste matures this insight so that all experiences—pleasant or painful, meditative or ordinary—are recognized as sharing the same nature within awareness, and the boundary between formal meditation and post‑meditation begins to soften. Non‑meditation refers to a state in which deliberate “doing” of practice falls away, and awareness abides naturally, without contrivance, throughout all activities.

Throughout such retreats, the structure is not rigid but responsive to the practitioner’s unfolding experience under the guidance of a qualified teacher. Regular interviews and teachings help to clarify misunderstandings, such as mistaking blankness for realization or clinging to meditative experiences. At the same time, supportive practices—chanting, protector prayers, dedication of merit, and the integration of mindfulness into walking, eating, and simple chores—ensure that Mahamudra is not confined to the cushion. The overall rhythm of the retreat thus leads from preparation and stabilization to direct recognition and integration, allowing the view of Mahamudra gradually to permeate both meditation sessions and the flow of daily life.