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FPMT News
October 2008 If you received this from someone else, or unformatted, click here to
Rinpoche's Schedule
To find more information as it becomes available, and for details of how to contact the center and book for these events, please go to Rinpoche’s Schedule. We have recently updated this webpage to be even easier for you to use!
2008 2009 February – Potowa Center, Jakarta, Indonesia April 18 – 19 Medicine Buddha initiation, Kalachakra Centre, Paris, France May 5 – June 6 1000-Arm Chenrezig Great initiation and 100 million Mani Retreat with Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Institut Vajra Yogini, France October 1 – 15 Teachings on Lamp of the Path, Kadampa Center, Raleigh, USA
So now please rejoice as we have succeeded in our prayers.” Gong to Call All Buddhas and Bodhisattvas “This is a universal gong. By ringing this gong may all the buddhas and bodhisattvas pay attention and give us their blessings, favors and realizations. May they liberate all suffering, peaceful mothers.” Skillful Hair Cutting Enjoy brief glimpses of Rinpoche on our streaming videos page New FPMT Center, Project and Study Groups
Bringing the total number of FPMT centers, study groups, projects and services worldwide to 151!
Manjushri Wisdom Center, USA Kasih Hospice Care, Malaysia Khedrup Sangye Yeshe Study Group, Mexico Thubten Kunkyab Study Group, Mexico Our new Coordinator for French BP Materials will be Ven. Ngeunga, who is already part of the French Translation Office. In this new role Ven. Ngeunga will focus on gathering French BP materials and preparing them for distribution on the BP web update page. To enable French BP students to collect their three month lam-rim retreat commitment, after Institut Vajra Yogini offered a month lam-rim retreat last winter, the tradition is continued by Kalachakra Centre who will offer a month lam-rim retreat in their new retreat center in January 2009! Spain is also going strong, with the first round of BP near completion at Nagarjuna Barcelona (and a second round already in full swing!), Valencia in the second year of a productive BP, and Madrid having completed the first exam in June this year. Now we need a coordinator for Spanish BP materials. The BP at Chenrezig Institute in Australia has started preparations for the second impressive Lam-rim Chenmo teaching that will begin in 2009! Translation
As we mentioned last month, Rinpoche has appointed members to the new FPMT Translation and Editorial Committee. Ven. Fedor Stracke, Ven. Joan Nicell, Ven. Namdak, Conni Kraus, and Jon Landaw will be heading up the efforts to establish an FPMT glossary of terms and style guide that will be used for all FPMT program translations. As a great boost to getting this work underway, Ven. Joan will be attending a distinguished translation conference sponsored by Khyentse Foundation in India next March.
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Education Materials
Rinpoche has given new advice for the prayers to be recited before teaching occasions and has advised us to make this into a small booklet for center gompas that can be taken away by students if they would like. Please download the updated Prayers for Teaching Occasions.
FPMT Brochure
Reminding all centers, study groups, projects and services that the new FPMT brochure is available. This brochure will help place your activities in the amazingly positive and inspiring context of the worldwide FPMT mandala. It will be helpful as a way to connect people to Lama Zopa Rinpoche and the FPMT. We encourage you to make it available to visitors, students, center/project board members – anyone who you want to help understand that your activity is a part of a fantastic organization.
FPMT Training
Inner Job Description training: A very successful two day training was held at Vajrayana Center, Australia led by Ven. Chokyi and Allys Andrews. In November, Amy Cayton will lead an IJD training at the North American regional meeting in Portland and Allys Andrews will lead at the Australian national meeting. These are great opportunities for centers to send candidates to cultivate as future trainers. See a full list of trainings.
Harald Weichhart will be offering software training in France and Germany in October with an emphasis on helping our translation offices in these countries become fully versed in the design and layout programs used by Education Services. France and Germany will soon be printing Essential Buddhist Prayers, an FPMT Prayer Book Volumes 1 & 2 in the same format as the English. With luck, the Spanish and Italian will also be done in time for Rinpoche’s European retreat in May 2009. Harald is also helping us to get French, Spanish, German and Italian subtitles on the Discovering Buddhism DVDs. FPMT Snippets
Lama Zopa Rinpoche carving mantras on stone and the completed carving. Amitabha Pure Land, Washington, USA, August 2008.
Photos by Ven. Thubten Kunsang and Ven. Holly Ansett Happy Anniversary!
This year Jamyang Buddhist Centre, London, UK is celebrating its 30th anniversary, Maitreya Institute, Amsterdam, Netherlands is celebrating its 10th anniversary and Panchen Losang Chogyen Centre celebrated its 5th anniversary! Congratulations!
As Lama Zopa Rinpoche says, We rejoice with you at the emergency rescue operation offered by all of our centers! Sanghata Sutra Marathon
For the second time, the monks of Nalanda Monastery will recite the Sanghata Sutra continuously for 10 days from October 7 – 17. The whole Sutra recitation will be broadcast live via webcam 24 hours a day for all who view the event to receive the blessings of this Sutra. Once they’ve started, the recitation can be seen live anywhere in the world at Sanghata Sutra Marathon.
Rejoice in the Success of the 2008 Sera Je Food Fund Campaign
FPMT would like to thank everyone for their heart felt and compassionate support of the 2008 Sera Je Food Fund campaign. From April 29 through June 30, over $165,000USD was raised. This included generous donations by individuals as well as centers.
“Taking responsibility for supporting these practitioners is extremely worthwhile because they are preserving and spreading the entire teaching of the Buddha.” On May 14, FPMT sent $118,000USD to Sera Je Monastic University to cover the expenses of offering food to the 2,700 monks in residence for 6 months. Please rejoice in this virtuous merit. Thank you again! Connecting Our Dharma Practice with Our Life in the World
Shen Phen Thubten Choeling Study Group meets at Elaine Brook’s house in the Golden Valley in England. It recently had an energy audit, done by the “Superhomes Network”, an organization that arranges visits to eco-homes for people who want to learn more and change their own homes in order to prevent climate change.The audit showed that the house used less than 40% of the energy than is average for this size of house. This was achieved by the use of extra insulation, energy efficient light bulbs, solar hot water and solar electricity, and using hedge and fruit tree prunings as fuel. What also makes a big reduction is avoiding waste, because lights and appliances are switched off when not in use, and woolly sweaters take the place of turning the heating on full in the winter - this last one makes the biggest difference and is also much healthier as it reduces dust and dust mites. So the house is now an official “Superhome” and will be open for visits from those interested in learning what works and what doesn’t in the search for the ultimate “carbon neutral house”. To explore these and other ideas, join www.buddhistecologylink.org Opportunities to Offer Service in FPMT
Keep checking www.fpmt.org/resources/jobs.asp for interesting opportunities to offer service in FPMT centers around the world.
Opportunities include House Manager and Volunteer Coordinator at Mahamudra Centre, New Zealand and Vajrapani Institute in California, USA is looking for a caretaker. Impermanence at Work – Center Details Changes
NB: center details are always most up to date in the directory on the FPMT website, www.fpmt.org/centers/default.asp Kunsang Yeshe Centre, Australia Liberation Prison Project, USA Losang Dragpa Center, Malaysia Nagarjuna C.E T. Alicante, Spain Shakyamuni Center, Taiwan With love, |
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