Supporting our Lamas

His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Lama Zopa Rinpoche at Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa, Italy, June 2014. Photo by Ven. Roger Kunsang.

Recently when Lama Zopa Rinpoche was visiting Sera Je Monastery, he was requested to help with a new elevator at Sera Lachi.  Sera Lachi is made up of Sera Je and Sera Mey Monasteries in southern India. 6,000 monks study between the two monasteries. 

The Sera Lachi monks. Photo courtesy of the Sera Lachi Facebook page.

Entrance to the new elevator at Sera Lachi.

The elevator will be used to bring His Holiness the Dalai Lama up to his rooms at Sera, which are located on the top floor. As His Holiness is now eighty years old, climbing all of those stairs has become difficult, and the monks wanted to have an elevator to easily bring His Holiness to his rooms and also to facilitate elderly monks getting to different levels of the building to access offices, rooms, etc. 

Rinpoche was very happy to make an offering of US$69,000 toward the cost of the elevator through a grant issued from the Lama Zopa Rinpoche Bodhichitta Fund. 

“Proper devotion to the guru, or virtuous friend, is the root of all success, from success in this life up to enlightenment, just as the trunk, branches, leaves and fruit of a tree depend upon its root,” Lama Zopa Rinpoche teaches in The Heart of the Path. 

The new elevator installed at Sera Lachi.

“Or we can think that guru devotion is like the fuel in a car or a plane, without which the vehicle cannot take us where we want to go. Without guru devotion, nothing happens – no realizations, no liberation, no enlightenment – just as without the root of a tree there can be no trunk, branches, leaves, or fruit. Everything, up to enlightenment, depends on guru devotion.

“Guru devotion is the root not only of ultimate success, achieving full enlightenment and bringing sentient beings to the ultimate happiness of liberation and enlightenment, but also of temporary success and happiness. This practice is the foundation of the development of the whole path to enlightenment, as well as the foundation of all happiness. Since everything comes from the practice of guru devotion, it is called the root of the path. …”

You can read more of Rinpoche’s teachings on guru devotion in “Why Do We Need a Guru?,” the first chapter of the book The Heart of the Path: Seeing the Guru as Buddha by Lama Zopa Rinpoche, published by the Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive.

Lama Zopa Rinpoche Bodhichitta Fund enables Rinpoche’s compassionate service to others to flourish. All the offerings from the fund are used toward the creation of holy objects around the world; sponsoring young tulkus, high lamas and Sangha in India, Nepal, Tibet and the West;  supporting FPMT centers, projects and services; sponsoring Dharma retreats and events; funding animal liberations, and much more.

Lifelike statue of Lama Yeshe, FPMT’s founder, residing now at Vajrapani Institute, CA, USA.

Since 2011, Vajrapani Institute has been working with others to create a lifelike statue of FPMT’s precious founder, Lama Yeshe. In 2013, Lama Zopa Rinpoche offered US$10,000 toward the completion of his statue. 

In November of 2015, after an unusual array of obstacles and difficulties, the finished fiberglass statue arrived at Vajrapani Institute from Thailand, just in time for a visit by Lama Zopa Rinpoche. Director Fabienne Pradelle explains, “When we opened the crate [after picking it up from the airport], Lama’s head appeared peaking up from the packing foam. Elaine Jackson burst into tears. We unpacked it and placed it in the Geshe House.” About the appearance of the statue, which depicts Lama Yeshe in a young aspect, Lama Zopa Rinpoche commented, “It is extremely good. He has become very young! In Mongolia there were statues made in China, very young looking, of Buddha Shakyamuni. The geshe said that it was very auspicious, looking young like this, so I think the young [appearance] is very auspicious.”

Lama Zopa Rinpoche meets the new statue of Lama Yeshe at Vajrapani Insitute, November 2015.

Two years previously, when Fabienne was checking the progress of the statue with Rinpoche, Rinpoche told her that the statue should go in Vajrapani Institute’s new gompa (yet to be built) surrounded by 999 smaller replicas to make a total of 1,000 Lama Yeshe statues. This will form the main altar of their new gompa. The smaller statues will be made from a mold which comes from a 3D scan of the main statue. With the 3D scan, they will be able to reduce the size of the statue to whatever height they determine. From that mold, they can also create smaller replicas (either in fiberglass or possibly bronze) to offer to benefactors.

Members of the Vajrapani community with the new statue of Lama Yeshe.

About building statues of one’s guru, Lama Zopa Rinpoche commented, “When you build a guru statue, you get the merit of having built numberless Buddha statues. Whether you build small or big you get unbelievable merit, the same merit as numberless statues of Buddha.” While Rinpoche offered to cover the cost of half of the smaller statues, he suggested that students should also join in the incredible merit of the statue creation by helping sponsor the other half. That is 500 opportunities to create the merit of building numberless Buddha statues! Vajrapani isn’t actively fundraising for this project yet, as they have to first build a prayer wheel, then a gompa, then an altar, in addition to other tasks before they will create the statues. But when the time approaches, all are welcome to join in and help fulfill this incredibly auspicious request from Lama Zopa Rinpoche. 

Vajrapani Institute wishes to thank Ven. Jamyang Wamgo who initiated the project and Elea Mideke who helped see this project through to completion and traveled to Thailand twice to work with the local artists. 

The Lama Zopa Rinpoche Bodhichitta Fund enables Rinpoche’s compassionate service to others to flourish. You can learn more about other beneficial activities this fund supports. 

Lama Zopa Rinpoche with His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Italy, 2014. Photo by Matteo Passigato.

Over twenty years ago, Lama Zopa Rinpoche requested that the FPMT organization offers a long life puja to His Holiness the Dalai Lama every year. This year the annual long life puja will be offered on January 1, 2016 following His Holiness’ Jangchup Lamrim teachings. 

On behalf of all the FPMT centers, projects, services and students, we are offering a silver dharmachakra, silver sets of the seven precious royal objects and the eight auspicious symbols, a right-turning conch shell and a money offering. Lama Zopa Rinpoche and Ven. Roger Kunsang are both in South India and will be able to present some of the offerings directly to His Holiness during the long life puja.

All are welcome to contribute to this long life puja which is offered to purify any mistakes that occur in relation to our spiritual teacher, and to create the causes and conditions to continue to receive benefit from His Holiness for a very long time. 

 “In Praise of His Holiness the Dalai Lama” was composed by Lama Zopa Rinpoche and Praise to His Holiness the Dalai Lama is a collection of comments from Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Online Advice Book.

Lama Zopa Rinpoche with the incarnation of one of his teachers, Domo Rinpoche.

Domo Rinpoche with His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

As a boy, Lama Zopa Rinpoche was ordained and educated at the monastery of one of his teachers, Domo Rinpoche — Drugkar Monastery.  Domo Rinpoche’s incarnation is now being educated at Sera Je Monastery in South India and Lama Zopa Rinpoche supports him in whatever way he is able.

It is a high priority of Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s to offer support, directly and indirectly, to the next generation of Dharma teachers who will continue to pass on Buddha’s teachings in an unbroken lineage. By offering support to young tulkus, at pivotal stages in their development, The Lama Zopa Rinpoche Bodhichitta Fund invests in the next generation of lamas by making offerings toward a number of young tulkus’ food expenses, educational needs and accommodation needs.

The Lama Zopa Rinpoche Bodhichitta Fund enables Rinpoche’s compassionate service to others to flourish. You can learn more about other beneficial activities this fund supports. 

Five dakinis in front of Lama Zopa Rinpoche during long life puja, Kopan Monastery, Nepal, December 29, 2012. Photo by Ven. Roger Kunsang.

Every year, the Long Life Puja Fund supports a long life puja offered on behalf of FPMT centers, projects, services and students to our most kind and immeasurably precious spiritual director, Lama Zopa Rinpoche. The next puja will be offered at Kopan Monastery, Nepal, on December 2, during the one-month November course.

The ritual itself is the extensive Lama Chöpa with an added request to the dakinis, a moving plea by the students for the five dakinis who have come to take away the teacher to a pure land to allow the students’ teacher to remain with them on earth.

The purpose of the long life puja is for students to purify the mistakes that occur in relation to their teacher, and to create the causes and conditions to continue to receive benefit from that teacher for a very long time. Lama Zopa Rinpoche also mentions regularly that offering long life pujas is a cause for one’s own long life. 

All are welcome to contribute to this upcoming long life puja for Lama Zopa Rinpoche at Kopan Monastery. Additionally, you may download Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s long life prayer for use at any time. 

Medicine Buddha statue at Buddha Amitabha Pure Land, Washington, USA. Photo by Chris Majors.

The Sangha living at  Buddha Amitabha Pure Land (BAPL), located in North Central Washington state in the United States, engage in weekly practices for animals and make extensive offerings to holy objects. 

Lama Zopa Rinpoche often explains the benefits of offering to many holy objects and encourages extensive offerings around the world. 

We are not aware of the limitless skies of benefits we achieve from the practice of offering, what we can achieve and enjoy from life to life. Even while you are in samsara, you enjoy good rebirths, wealth, and every happiness. Even just the samsaric perfections are amazing, without adding all those incredible realizations that allow us to offer deep benefit to sentient beings, liberating them from oceans of samsaric suffering and its cause, delusion and karma.

—Lama Zopa Rinpoche, (from Extensive Offerings, published by FPMT Education Services)

Extensive offerings at BAPL, Washington, USA. Photo by Chris Majors.

Weekly animal liberation practice and charity for ants, extensive daily offering practices, and nightly dharma protector practices and sur are offered. All of this is done with extensive dedications and prayers for the entire FPMT organization and all beings, as requested by Lama Zopa Rinpoche. 

Offering to His Holiness the Dalai Lama, BAPL, USA. Photo by Chris Majors.

Lama Zopa Rinpoche has said that by having as many holy objects as possible, when you enter the room then you can put your palms together in the mudra of prostration to all the holy objects, looking at each tiny holy object and prostrating. You can look around the room with your hands in the mudra of prostration and think “I am prostrating to all the buddhas.” When you do this you collect eight benefits in that second so for however many thousands or hundreds of pictures of buddhas, statues, tsa-tsas etc. you have, merely by placing your palms together respectfully you receive these eight benefits, the last benefit is that you will be enlightened.

Some of the many holy objects such as tsa tsas’s at BAPL, USA. Photo by Chris Majors.

In this way, in just one second, it is so easy to collect merit because there are so many pictures of deities and buddhas; even in one photo there are many buddhas, such as the Guru Puja merit field or the thirty-five buddhas, even in one picture there are so many merit fields. Each time you prostrate to them you collect that many causes of enlightenment, that many causes of liberation from samsara and, by the way, happiness of future lives.

Extensive offerings to the Thirty-Five Confession Buddhas. Photo by Chris Majors.

So you can see that it is very helpful to have many pictures and statues for prostrations, it helps the visualization and also with each prostration you do to just one holy object you create incredible causes, so the more holy objects the more causes you create.

When you prostrate you can think of all the ten direction buddhas, Dharma, sangha, statues, stupas, scriptures, tsa-tsas etc.; if you have many, many pictures of holy objects it makes it very easy to visualize the ten directions actually filled with buddhas. This is also very good if you can’t visualize very well.

When you are not prostrating, but even just entering the room where you have all the holy objects (the gompa or your meditation room), if you put your palms together to the holy objects every time, then in that second it is an unbelievable easy way to collect extensive merit.

Extensive Offerings to holy objects and the Dalai Lama lineage. Photo by Chris Majors.

Amitabha Buddha statue at Buddha Amitabha Pure Land, Washington, USA. Photo by Chris Majors.

Extensive offerings to 21 Tara, BAPL, USA. Photo by Chris Majors.

It is explained by Buddha in the Sutra of the Mudra of Developing the Power of Devotion:

The minute you see a holy object you create infinite merits, so no question, if you actually make prostrations, offerings and so forth, you create far greater merit.

Holy objects and extensive offerings at BAPL, USA. Photo by Chris Majors.

Please rejoice in the offerings and practices that take place daily at Buddha Amitabha Pure Land and the beautiful photography of Chris Majors which shows the extensive offerings to the holy objects. 

The Lama Zopa Rinpoche Bodhichitta Fund enables Rinpoche’s compassionate service to others to flourish. You can learn more about other beneficial activities this fund supports. 

Ganden Yiga Chozin in Pokhara Nepal

On Saka Dawa this year, Lama Zopa Rinpoche offered US$6,000 to FPMT’s Ganden Yiga Chozin in Pokhara Nepal. The center was negatively impacted by the 7.8 magnitude earthquake and subsequent aftershocks which occurred right before the center’s busy tourist and visitor season. Fortunately, no structural or property damage was sustained by the center. However, due to damage in surrounding areas, and due to general fear among would-be tourists of Nepal, the center has experienced a drastic loss in visitors. Without the anticipated income from courses and teaching events, the center has struggled to meet immediate expenses. When Rinpoche heard about this he was immediately inspired to do something to help the center survive until visitors started returning to the area. Thubten Drolkar, the center director, said the following about this donation, “It was so unbelievably kind of Rinpoche to offer the money, kind of overwhelming, really.  I’d been so worried about how we were going to keep the center open and worrying that the staff would lose their jobs (which would be devastating for them, and us, as they are very good staff!) and then I heard that Rinpoche was coming to the rescue.  I still feel like I can’t believe how fortunate we are!” 

All are welcome to offer a donation of any amount directly to the center to help with this unexpected loss of income. 

The Lama Zopa Rinpoche Bodhichitta Fund enables Rinpoche’s compassionate service to others to flourish.You can learn more about other beneficial activities this fund supports. 

His Holiness the Dalai Lama arriving at the Main Tibetan Temple at the start of ceremonies honoring his 80th Birthday in Dharamsala, HP, India on June 21, 2015. Photo/Tenzin Choejor/OHHD

An important priority for FPMT is offering long life pujas every year for our immeasurably precious teachers: His Holiness the Dalai Lama and our Spiritual Director, Lama Zopa Rinpoche. All FPMT centers, projects and services as well as many FPMT students contribute to these annual pujas.

A long life puja is a ceremonial long life offering to the spiritual teacher. This practice is done to request the spiritual teacher to live a long life for the preservation of the Buddhist teachings and the happiness of all living beings. Many enlightened beings such as Buddha Vajradhara have taught the complete Buddhist path to enlightenment according to the needs of individuals. In order to sustain the Dharma in the world for a long time and to benefit beings, the lamas incarnate as ordinary people. The lama serves as representative of all the Buddhas, benefiting others in ordinary form, as stated by Vajradhara:  

In the degenerate times, I will abide in the form of the spiritual master.
With the aim of benefiting sentient beings,
I will abide in ordinary forms.

Additionally, in early 2014, Lama Zopa Rinpoche translated this special quote from the Stainless Sky Sutra into English:

Ananda, the Tathagatas do not appear to the sentient beings, but the virtuous friend completely appears and reveals the Dharma and plants the seed of liberation; because of that, cherish the virtuous friend as more special than the Tathagatas. 

The tradition of offering the long life puja became prevalent in order for individuals to accumulate merit through sincere respect and devotion toward the guru, to create the cause for the guru to live long, and to help Buddha’s teachings proliferate.

Monks dressed in ritual costumes during the long life puja ceremony for His Holiness the Dalai Lama at the Main Tibetan Temple in Dharamsala, HP, India on June 21, 2015. Photo/Tenzin Choejor/OHHDL

Lama Zopa Rinpoche traveled to India to attend the long life puja offered to His Holiness the Dalai Lama on June 21, 2015, and on behalf of the entire FPMT organization, Lama Zopa Rinpoche made offerings to His Holiness the Dalai Lama during the elaborate long life puja. The long life puja offered was also in honor of His Holiness’ 80th birthday, and marked His Holiness’ actual birthday according to the Tibetan calendar.

Please rejoice in this offering and also in His Holiness’ 80 years of life tirelessly benefiting others.

You are welcome to contribute any amount to the Long Life Puja Fund for His Holiness the Dalai Lama, from which FPMT contributes to a long life puja being offered to His Holiness every year. 

You can learn more about the Long Life Puja Fund or other ways to support our lamas through the Lama Zopa Rinpoche Bodhichitta Fund. 

Kopan Sangha performing the pujas recommended for Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s long life. Photo courtesy of Kopan Monastery.

Every year, Ven. Roger Kunsang, Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s faithful assistant for 29 years and CEO of FPMT Inc. checks with high lamas about any pujas that are needed to be done for the health and long life of Lama Zopa Rinpoche. 

In March Ven. Roger Kunsang checked for 2015 and based on the advice received a number of pujas were arranged such as:

• Sixteen Arhats  Long Life Puja
• Namgyäl Tong Chö (One thousand sets of offerings to Buddha Namgyälma)
• Dartok Sersum
• Tse Drub

Extensive offerings carefully arranged for the pujas offered for Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s long life.

These pujas were sponsored by the Puja Fund and the Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Long Life Puja Fund and offered on behalf of the entire FPMT organization. 

Thanks to the Kopan Sangha for offering these pujas. 

May these pujas create the cause for Lama Zopa Rinpoche to have perfect health and a very long life. 

All are welcome to participate in the offering of these pujas by donating any amount to the Puja Fund or the Lama Zopa Rinpoche Long Life Puja Fund.

You can learn more about the Puja Fund the activities of the Long Life Puja Fund or any FPMT’s Charitable Projects.

North American Regional Meeting participants with Ösel at Maitripa College, May 12, 2015.

In May of 2013, participants of the North American Regional Meeting, which took place in Portland, OR, were delighted to hear a motivating talk from Tenzin Ösel Hita. In this talk, Ösel shares his wisdom on many topics such as the FPMT organization, how to work harmoniously with others, how to think about offering service, and he fields questions from the audience. 

“Life sometimes puts tests, brings tests. So in those situations we have to keep our cool, not think selfishly, we have to be humble, we have to be open, we have to work together as a community. In that way we create a harmonious community, we create the foundation so that other people are attracted to that energy. And then, slowly, slowly, keep growing, growing, growing…. Many people think the purpose of life is to have a good job, to have a family, nice car, and then have some heritage to give to the children. And basically they struggle their whole life like that. And then when it is about time and they see they will pass away soon, they start having stress, about ‘Wow… What have I done with my life?’ 

The Big Love Fund was established to provide financial resources to support the educational endeavors of Ösel.

An emergency relief team was established at Kopan Monastery immediately following the earthquake.

In light of the recent tragic earthquake in Nepal, Ven. Roger Kunsang has asked FPMT International Office to set up a fund so that FPMT can provide assistance. Donations to the Nepal Earthquake Support Fund will be used to provide for the immediate and long-term needs of Kopan Monastery and Nunnery and other local FPMT centers resulting from the devastation caused by the Nepal earthquake.

Looking down from Kopan Monastery after earthquake, Nepal. Photo by Ven. Sangpo Sherpa.

These needs include food and shelter for more than 800 monks and nuns as well as structural repairs and renovations to buildings at the Monastery and Nunnery that are no longer safe to occupy as a result of the earthquake.

Tents around the stupa at Kopan Monastery following the earthquake.

In addition, Nepal Earthquake Support Fund will be used to offer immediate relief and support to other areas in the Himalayan region such as the village of Thame (Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s birthplace) where there has been an incredible amount of destruction. If sufficient funds are raised, grants may also be provided to other carefully vetted organizations providing earthquake relief efforts.

We will be providing updates on exactly how all donations from this fund are used. Already Lama Zopa Rinpoche has offered $3,500 for immediate relief in Thame for tents and food.

Thank you for your support to this fund. The damage and need is great and contributions like yours will help tremendously. 

DONATE

You can learn more about the prayers and practices that are recommended in response to this earthquake and for the many who have lost their lives. 

IVY students have completed 580 nyung näs since November 2014.

One of Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Vast Visions for the FPMT organization is to sponsor others to complete 1,000 nyung nä retreats. Institute Vajra Yogini (IVY), France, upon hearing this incredible vision of Lama Zopa Rinpoche, immediately started hosting 108 nyung näs retreats a year. Now halfway into the fourth set of 108 retreats there is so much to rejoice in. Currently six people are committed to completing the whole 108 nyung näs. Nine people have so far done eight nyung näs or more. 66 people have done at least one nyung näs. 81 different participants in total have participated in one or more nyung näs and an incredible 580 individual nyung näs have already been accumulated.

On average, there are between 7 to 15 people participating in each single session of the nyung näs.

The Lama Zopa Rinpoche Bodhichitta Fund is sponsoring a number of the people to do the 108 nyung näs and recently sent over US$8,000 toward the sponsorship of food and lodging for individuals undertaking this practice.  The students are dedicating the merits of their practice to Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s long life, good health, and for the immediate fulfillment of all of Rinpoche’s wishes.

This practice is a trillion, billion times greater than becoming an Olympic champion. Doing so many nyung näs you become an unbelievable champion. This is what makes numberless buddhas and bodhisattvas most happy and brings sentient beings to enlightenment as quickly as possible.

—Lama Zopa Rinpoche, May 2007

In 2008 Lama Zopa Rinpoche wrote a letter to a student who had just completed 200 nyung näs and was continuing on to complete 1,000. Please enjoy an excerpt from that letter:

Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Washington, USA, July 2014. Photo by Ven. Lobsang Sherab.

Thank you for doing so many nyung näs….

What you have accomplished is really unbelievable, unbelievable, unbelievable! I wish I could do this some time, I think I have to meditate more on impermanence and death and on the lower realms and karma.

If you can finish these 1,000 it will be unbelievable, unbelievable. Shine [calm abiding] is just one small aspect of the path, but the nyung näs are a cause to achieve the path to enlightenment and to achieve all the qualities of Buddha, also so many eons of negative karma gets purified, 40,000 eons of negative karma are purified by just doing one nyung näs, then depending on how much compassion you generate and of course if you generate bodhichitta, then you can purify much more than that.

What you have done, the nyung näs, wow!! That is just amazing! A miracle, unbelievable, most unbelievable gift to His Holiness the Dalai Lama, to numberless buddhas and bodhisattvas, you can’t imagine how many hundreds of thousands of millions of many eons of negative karma that have gone by doing this, so many, many eons of negative karma have gone.

I hope you don’t feel you are missing the negative karma. I hope that you don’t fall asleep at night time and miss all those negative karmas. Sooner or later you will become a bodhisattva. So just like when someone wins soccer, when all the people jump up, clapping their hands, many tens of thousands of people clapping their hands, so in the same way all the buddhas and bodhisattvas are clapping their hands, from the ten directions, even from the pure lands.

This is your best offering, best service to sentient beings; this is how you collect most extensive merit. Doing all those practices, prostrations it is unbelievable purification, by reciting the names of the 35 Buddhas, Chenrezig meditation, recitation, by making offerings to Chenrezig, you collect the same amount of merit as having made offerings to all the buddhas, and then by taking the 8 Mahayana precepts on top … wow!!! Amazing, gorgeous!

Please download a free PDF, Praise and Prayer to Noble Avalokiteshvara in celebration of these amazing accomplishments by so many dedicated students who wish to support Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Vast Vision.

Tremendous thanks to Francois and Violette and all at Institute Vajra Yogini for all they are doing to make the 108 nyung näs Vast Vision a reality, and also for supporting all the nyung näs participants, which is creating more bodhichitta in the world.

You can learn more about Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Vast Vision for the FPMT organization, or about other beneficial activities of the Lama Zopa Rinpoche Bodhichitta Fund.

The dedicated nyung näs participants of IVY.