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Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Kopan Monastery, Nepal, May 2021. Photo by Ven. Lobsang Sherab.
We hope you enjoy our June FPMT International Office e-News!
This month we bring you:
- Highlights of Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Thought Transformation Teachings
- New Live with Compassion Posters
- Pilot of a New FPMT Education Program
- New FPMT Practice Materials
And more, including the usual array of fabulous photos.
Have the e-News translated into your native language by using our convenient translation facility located on the right-hand side of the page.
The FPMT International Office e-News comes from your FPMT International Office. Visit our subscribe page to receive the FPMT International Office News directly in your email box.
Ladakhi Lama at Root Institute for Wisdom Culture, Bodhgaya, Gaya District, Bihar, India. Photo by Paolo Regis (@paoloregisphotography).
We are saddened to share the news that Ven. Thupten Tsewang (also known as Ladakhi Lama and Baling Lama), born in Ladakh, India, passed away at the age of 92, at Kalpataru Buddha Vihar, Nagpur, Maharashtra, India, on April 25, 2021, of natural causes.
Ladakhi Lama had been an attendant to Indian Buddhist master Khunu Lama Tenzin Gyaltsen Rinpoche (1894–1977). In his later years he was a part-time resident at Root Institute for Wisdom Culture in Bodhgaya, Gaya District, Bihar, India.
Geshe Ngawang Rabga, the FPMT resident geshe at Root Institute from 2016–2020, wrote a kind remembrance of Gen-la, as Ladakhi Lama was sometimes called, to share with the international FPMT community:
“Gen-la was very respectable and close to me. His demise has saddened me deeply. He lived his life as a fully ordained monk and received Dharma teachings from many great masters like His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Kyabje Zopa Rinpoche. Therefore, he made his life a meaningful one. I truly appreciate the life he lived. I pray from my heart that he returns in his next life as a great teacher of the Buddhadharma in general, and especially of the teachings of Lama Tsongkhapa.”
In his younger days, before he ordained, Ladakhi Lama worked as a radio broadcaster at All India Radio in Ladakh. Ven. Tenzin Paldron, center director at Root Institute from 2015–2019, and Annie McGhee, who volunteered at the center, remembered him as an avid reader of The Times of India. “Lama loved to read the newspaper on a daily basis and was very well versed in political affairs in India and loved to discuss politics with the guests that visited,” Ven. Paldron said. Annie added, “He loved a good debate and engaged in many animated discussions over meals at the dining table.”
Ladakhi Lama, Ven. Tenzin Paldron, and Geshe Ngawang Rabga at Root Institute for Wisdom Culture, Bodhgaya, Gaya District, Bihar, India. Photo courtesy of Root Institute.
Ladakhi Lama met Khunu Lama in Varanasi in 1954, and Khunu Lama ordained him shortly after their meeting. After six years of being a devoted disciple, he became Khunu Lama’s attendant in 1960. Ven. Paldron said, “He often regaled many of us in the dining hall with stories of the times he spent serving high lamas like Khunu Lama and Denma Locho Rinpoche, and of the rich and varied experiences that he had living as an ordained monk in various temples.”
Annie recalled, “One story which really moved me was when Ladakhi Lama was making lunch—probably rice and dhal—and Khunu Lama told him, ‘Stop cooking now; we have to practice.’ So they had half-cooked rice for lunch! If only we had that dedication and commitment to study and practice the Dharma in the most beneficial way and not waste time on trivialities like food.”
Ladakhi Lama lived in various places, such as Mumbai and Nagpur, before going to Bodhgaya, which is where he met Lama Zopa Rinpoche. Rinpoche requested that Ladakhi Lama stay at Root Institute. “When I became director of Root Institute in June 2015, the first task given to me by Rinpoche was, ‘Take good care of Ladakhi Lama,’” Ven. Paldron said.
He became a much valued presence at Root Institute. “He was like a fatherly figure to us in many ways, often giving us teachings and advice, including making predictions such as who would get ordained,” Ven. Paldron said.
Vicki Taylor, another volunteer at the center, said, “Gen-la was a quiet and friendly presence for several years, bringing humor and cheer to our guests—especially in the dining hall. Despite his advanced age, Gen-la retained the fresh perspective and cheeky sweetness of a child, and I’m sure this gentle presence radiating Dharma contentment benefited many people.”
Indian monk Ven. Tashi Choedup first met Ladakhi Lama at Root Institute in 2017 and had many fond memories of him to share:
“Newly ordained myself, I hadn’t met many Indian ordained Sangha, Himalayan or otherwise; Lama was one of the first. His welcoming nature, warmth, love, and our ability to communicate in Hindi helped us establish a connection from our very first meeting. Lama was generous, sharing stories from his life experiences during our mealtimes. No matter how brief a guest’s visit to Root Institute was, all were touched by Lama’s infectious smile and kindness.
“Lama took me to my first ever Sangha dana ceremony and to many more such gatherings in Bodhgaya thereafter. I fondly remember making a trip to Patna Museum with Lama to pay respects to Buddha relics there.
“I also had the fortune of living in the room next to Lama’s and had the blessing of waking up to Lama’s prayers as early as 3 A.M. every morning. Although we only knew each other for a few years, Lama inspired me to practice Dharma more diligently and gave me the confidence to live an ordained life until the very end.
“Of Lama’s many qualities, one that was always visible was his giving nature. He was always giving away whatever money, food, or resources he had with him. He would never keep anything for himself—except maybe for the packets of Yippee instant noodles, his favorite.”
Ven. Tashi Choedup and Ladakhi Lama at Root Institute for Wisdom Culture, Bodhgaya, Gaya District, Bihar, India, November 2019. Photo by Ven. Thubten Munsel.
Inder Kant, who met Ladakhi Lama in 2016 in Bodhgaya, commented on his kindness and humor as well as his profound generosity, recalling a story about visiting a very sick 102-year-old lama at a Tibetan monastery in Bodhgaya with Ladakhi Lama. “We gave the lama some food we had brought for him,” Inder said. “Ladakhi Lama used to visit the elderly lama, looking after him. The lama’s room was messy so Ladakhi Lama and I cleaned the room and made his bed with a new bed sheet. It was overwhelming to see the kindness of Ladakhi Lama.”
Ven. Paldron recounted another quality of Ladakhi Lama: “He was not afraid to challenge someone’s authority, no matter what their position was, if Lama thought they were behaving unethically or inappropriately. He shared various stories of how he had confronted bullies—including some lamas in temples—to make sure that the vulnerable and needy were treated fairly and justly. Lama did not care about his reputation or what would happen to him. If something needed to be corrected, he spoke out against it very fiercely.”
Ladakhi Lama was also very knowledgeable about the history of Bodhgaya and the Mahabodhi Stupa, as well as the significance of many of the small and large stupas around the main temple. He also knew all the main pilgrimage sites.
“In early October 2016, I arrived at Root Institute to volunteer for the winter season,” Annie McGhee said. “I had longed to go to Vikramashila, the home monastery of Lama Atisha. This pilgrimage site is in northeastern Bihar, a region unsafe to travel to as a single woman. I had made many prayers to go and had mentioned this to two friends. One morning I was standing in the breakfast queue when Ladakhi Lama came up to me and said, ‘You want to go to Vikramashila? OK, I will take you.’ I was overjoyed but a little concerned for Lama because it would be a long journey with rough conditions.
“A few of us from Root Institute made the trip together, traveling for ten hours one way by Jeep. At the entrance we stopped to take it all in, as it was a large and important monastic university in its time. Lama remarked, ‘Here is what is left of stupas that would have held the 108 arhats who resided at Vikramashila.’ He was quiet and reflective at other places but led us in many practices and prayers at some of the holy sites.”
Ladakhi Lama and Lama Zopa Rinpoche at the Mahabodhi Stupa, Bodhgaya, Gaya District, Bihar, India, 2015. Photo by Andy Melnic.
Sharing her favorite memory of Ladakhi Lama, Vicki Taylor said, “Lama Zopa Rinpoche had requested from Gen-la the oral transmission of Gampopa’s classic lamrim text The Jewel Ornament of Liberation, which he himself had received from Khunu Lama. The transmission took more than one session, and a few of us were gathered in the Root Institute’s small gompa, about to start a subsequent session. When Rinpoche arrived, he showed great respect to Gen-la by trying to prostrate to him before we resumed. Gen-la could not bear to see Rinpoche struggle to prostrate to him, due to Rinpoche’s manifesting signs of a stroke and especially because of Gen-la’s deep respect and appreciation for Rinpoche. So Rinpoche was trying to prostrate, and Gen-la was trying to hold one of his arms to prevent him, all the while politely imploring Rinpoche not to prostrate. I remember the two of them, in a sort of ‘battle of politeness,’ intent on showing great respect to each other. It was beautiful to see.”
The practice of bodhicitta was very close to Ladakhi Lama’s heart. At Root Institute, he also gave the transmission of the verses from Jewel Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta, written by Khunu Lama.
Because it was his wish to go to Tushita Pure Land once he departed his body, a butter lamp is being offered in honor of Ladakhi Lama at Tushita Meditation Center, the FPMT center in Dharamsala, India, over the forty-nine day period along with daily prayers and dedications. May all of Lama’s wishes be fulfilled and may he quickly return to guide us on the path to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings.
For more on practices recommended by Lama Zopa Rinpoche at time of death and other resources to support yourself and loved ones at time of death, please visit fpmt.org/death/.
FPMT.org and Mandala Publications brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and of activities, teachings, and events from over 160 FPMT centers, projects, and services around the globe. If you like what you read, consider becoming a Friend of FPMT, which supports our work.
A view of the new O.Sel.Ling Nunnery building at O.Sel.Ling Centro de Retiros, Spain
“There are many who desire enlightenment in a man’s body, but none who work for the benefit of sentient beings in the body of a woman. Therefore, until samsara is empty, I shall work for the benefit of sentient beings in a female body.” — Arya Tara
A new FPMT nunnery is being created at O.Sel.Ling Centro de Retiros, an FPMT retreat center in Spain. Ven. Joan Nicell, who is part of the nunnery advisory board, shares this update on progress of the nunnery:
Thanks to the hard work and tremendous generosity of a great many people, the project to build a nunnery on the land of O.Sel.Ling Centro de Retiros in southern Spain has finally materialized. A million thanks to all the people who helped and supported this project! In particular, our gratitude goes to the director of O.Sel.Ling, Anne Wenaas, who has worked tirelessly to realize this project and has also enabled O.Sel.Ling to contribute financially to its development, and to the late Isabel Arocena, a long time FPMT student, whose generosity allowed the building to be quickly finished just in time for Lama Zopa Rinpoche to bless the nunnery during his visit to O.Sel.Ling in May 2019.
O.Sel.Ling is situated in the Sierra Nevada, a mountain range about forty kilometers (twenty-five miles) from the Mediterranean coast, and within easy traveling distance of Granada. The retreat center covers a large portion of the top of a mountain within a national park and has a spacious view over the wide valley below out to the distant sea.
Scenery around O.Sel.Ling, Spain
The new nunnery building is located on the side of the hill just below the large Tara statue. It consists of a gompa, eleven single rooms, a combined library and sitting room, a shared kitchen and dining room, and a large open terrace.
Rinpoche’s more recent advice includes building a Tibetan-style entrance gate, as well as adding Tibetan-style doors and windows, and constructing a beautiful traditional altar for the gompa. We are very lucky to have Peter Griffin, a skilled and experienced artist, working on actualizing this project. Hopefully we will have soon everything we need, including the necessary funds, to fulfill Rinpoche’s wish!
But, now, what the nunnery needs is nuns! Lama Zopa Rinpoche has said that the nunnery should be a place for older nuns to meditate and practice, and for new nuns to engage in studying the Dharma. As Rinpoche has been emphasizing in his recent video advice, in which he calls the Western Sangha in particular “heroes and heroines,” it is of great importance for non-Tibetan Sangha to have conducive places to live, where they can keep their morality pure and dedicate their lives to study, contemplation, and meditation.
Geshe Jampel, from Nalanda Monastery, doing pujas to the landlord spirits and so forth at the old ruins before starting the construction of the new nunnery building; almost all of the FPMT the Spanish nuns were present for the pujas as well as O.Sel.Ling volunteers and friends, O.Sel.Ling Centro de Retiros, Spain, 2017
Living together in a monastic setting gives Sangha the opportunity to be supported by other Sangha members. In addition, a supportive and caring community helps us deepen our practice. Living according to the Vinaya allows us to take refuge in the Buddhadharma and apply our practice in our daily lives. By nurturing and supporting the Sangha Jewel, we wish to create a community that inspires others to practice Dharma and take ordination for the benefit of all.
Ven. Thubten Khadro, who is currently teaching in New Zealand, was recently appointed as coordinator. She is planning to begin helping the nunnery remotely in August 2021 and hopes to actually go to O.Sel.Ling in May 2022. Rinpoche has also advised two young Russian nuns to come to live in the nunnery and they are currently working on getting the necessary visas. A German nun currently doing retreat in O.Sel.Ling has expressed interest in being part of this new community.
However, we believe it is very important to have some senior nuns join the community. In this way, the less experienced nuns will have the support of more experienced ones. For this reason, we would like to offer FPMT senior nuns the opportunity to come to live, practice, and study the Dharma in this beautiful place. We would be very happy to collaborate with you in creating a community of nuns that can serve as an inspiration for and be of benefit to all sentient beings.
With thanks from the O.Sel.Ling Nunnery Advisory Board: Ven. Sangye Khadro, Ven. Joan Nicell, Ven. Nerea Basurto, and Ven. Marga Echezarreta.
A view of the new O.Sel.Ling Nunnery building from below, O.Sel.Ling Centro de Retiros, Spain
If you are interested in being part of this new Sangha community or if you would like to offer support to completing the building project and furnishing the rooms so that the first nuns can move in, please email monasterio.oseling@gmail.com.
Learn more about O.Sel.Ling Centros de Retiros:
http://www.oseling.org/
FPMT.org and Mandala Publications brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and of activities, teachings, and events from over 160 FPMT centers, projects, and services around the globe. If you like what you read, consider becoming a Friend of FPMT, which supports our work.
A Medical University student teaching soup kitchen guests how to properly wash their hands, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, October 2020. Photo courtesy of Lamp of the Path.
In 2005, the FPMT center in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Ganden Do Ngag Shedrup Ling, organized a nonprofit organization, Lamp of the Path, to take over the center’s social welfare activities. Community Service is one of FPMT’s Five Pillars of Service. Center director Ianzhina Bartanova shares about their current projects.
Lamp of the Path’s main soup kitchen has been closed almost continuously since the beginning of 2021. We were able to re-open for a short time, only to have to close again due to COVID restrictions. Nevertheless, we continued to offer support to one of the most vulnerable communities of Mongolia, the Mongolian Blind’s People’s Association.
Mongolian Blind People’s Association member and his sister receiving food support from Lamp of the Path, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, February 2021. Photo courtesy of Lamp of the Path.
In January 2021, we began helping families by providing food and essential coal supplies. Most of the seventy-five families we have helped live in a ger district. This means they have one felt tent to share with up to seven family members. The Mongolian government provides visually impaired citizens with a small monthly stipend of approximately US$105 per person.
One of our beneficiaries, Ms. Oyunbat, lives with her daughter and two nieces in one apartment. Her daughter is unemployed and looks after the children. Another beneficiary, Ms. Enkhtuya, is living with her son, daughter-in-law, and three grandchildren. Her son’s income is unstable, and life is quite challenging for the entire family.
The visually impaired members who are employed often work at massage salons, sell handmade goods, or work at the Mongolian Blind People’s Association. Multiple lockdowns have made it impossible for them to earn any extra income. They haven’t received much assistance from the government—just a reduction in utility fees and a discount on the price of coal.
Things are even more challenging for elderly people and those who are living alone. Social workers have few opportunities to visit them due to social distancing rules. We are very delighted to be able to provide some help to this vulnerable community. The Mongolian Blind People’s Association expressed their heartfelt gratitude for our timely and essential support and shared about our efforts on their website.
Amgalan residents receiving food support from Lamp of the Path, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, January 2021. Photo courtesy Lamp of the Path.
Amgalan, another of our long-term nonprofit partners, offers shelter to former alcoholics and the homeless. We recently provided substantial food supplies to eighteen residents. We were pleased to learn that our partner 12th khoroo District will receive some help from the government. Lamp of the Path is located in the 12th khoroo District and we feel very connected to people living there.
In 2020, we began a new project in cooperation with government social workers. Every week, a social worker or someone from our group visited five poor families. We delivered food items from lists prepared by the social workers. When we didn’t receive any requests this year we inquired, and learned they are now receiving government help. We hope the government will expand their efforts and reach more people in need.
We visited hundreds of family households and observed that many are headed by single mothers. We have decided to focus on helping single mothers this year as much as we can.
When we briefly opened our soup kitchen, we observed our guests didn’t know how to properly wash their hands to prevent the spread of COVID-19. They would touch the tap water for a few seconds and then consider their hands clean. We invited medical students to offer an informative seminar, “Diseases Communicated through Unclean Hands.” The medical students spoke about diseases spread by unclean hands, conditions that require handwashing, and handwashing techniques. The audience had a lot of fun!
Guests enjoying a meal at the soup kitchen while adhering to mandatory social distancing, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, March 2021. Photo courtesy of Lamp of the Path.
We are also pleased to share that we have been able to retain our entire staff, and that they continue to receive their full salaries. This is a challenging time around the world, but it has shown us human beings have great potential to act with love and kindness. We can work together to bring great benefit to those in need. We are deeply grateful to all our supporters, and we wish them all the best!
We plan to further serve our community this year by continuing our collaborations with the Enerel Clinic, International School of Ulaanbaatar, Medical University, the Mongolian Blind People’s Association, government social workers serving the 12th and 23rd khoroos of Bayanzurkh District, and more.
To learn more about Ganden Do Ngag Shedrup Ling, visit their website:
http://www.fpmtmongolia.org/
The Social Services Fund was honored to offer US$29,400 to this incredible project this year. Since 2012, thanks to a generous donor and the support of many, we have offered over US$246,000 to the Lamp of the Path program.
FPMT.org and Mandala Publications brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and of activities, teachings, and events from over 160 FPMT centers, projects, and services around the globe. If you like what you read, consider becoming a Friend of FPMT, which supports our work.
Volunteer training course class taught by Alexandra Mejia at Centro Nagarjuna Madrid, Spain, February 2019. Photo courtesy of Alexandra Mejia.
La Asociacion Potala Hospice (Potala Hospice Association) is one of FPMT’s hospice services offering service to the community during the COVID pandemic. Community Service is one of FPMT’s Five Pillars of Service. Alexandra Mejia, coordinator, shares the story.
La Asociacion Potala Hospice began its journey in December 2000, one month after a group of students had the opportunity to meet Lama Zopa Rinpoche on Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands. Rinpoche told me it would be good to organize a group of people at Nagarjuna C.E.T. Madrid, an FPMT center, who were interested in the subject of death so we could accompany and support people who are dying. Rinpoche advises me to learn everything I could from the work done by Ven. Thubten Pende (Ken Hawter), founder of Karuna Hospice Service, an FPMT project in Queensland, Australia. This is how, under the inspiration and advice of our precious Lama Zopa Rinpoche, we began to meet once a week. In May 2003, we became a registered nonprofit organization in Spain. Our organization’s name was given to us by our dear Rinpoche.
La Asociacion Potala Hospice board members Jose Enrique Parra, Leticia Bonon, Alexandra Mejia, Andreu Stany, Iago Carbonell, and Isabel Picaso meeting on Zoom, April 2021. Photo by Alexandra Mejia.
In 2007, we signed a collaboration agreement with Hestia Hospital in Madrid to accompany patients in the palliative care unit. Since then, hundreds of people have become La Asociacion Potala Hospice volunteers and have completed one of the training courses we periodically offer. Our organization continues to grow. We formed a volunteer group in Valencia in November 2019 and a group in Barcelona in December 2020.
Our organization’s main function has been face-to-face volunteering. The volunteer plays an important role in hospitals, and their work is well-recognized, accepted, and appreciated among hospital staff. Illness from disease creates a situation that favors the emergence of questions in the human mind. The tedious hours spent hospitalized, the beginning of gradual and irrecoverable losses, the difficult encounter with fragility and dependence on others, the feelings of powerlessness that follow, and the senselessness of suffering raise questions connected with our spiritual dimension. Our physical needs to eat, sleep, drink, and breathe are normally satisfied by objects, but a person’s spiritual needs can only be satisfied by another human being. Our need for affection, contact, respect, reconciliation, and hope can never be satisfied by a machine, drug, or concept. Volunteers, through their presence and support, help the sick find hope.
Zoom volunteer training class on how to offer telephone support during COVID, May 2020. Photo by Iago Carbonell.
Our volunteers are people who, through their own motivation of solidarity, sought out training to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes they need to accompany the patient at the end of life. When COVID broke out, our volunteers were engaged in this work in Madrid, Valencia, and Barcelona, and we had plans to begin collaborating with new institutions. However, due to COVID, volunteering is not allowed in the hospitals in Spain.
We reinvented our activities so we can continue with our main objective, which is to accompany people in their suffering through illnesses and death. In 2020, we maintained cohesion among our volunteers by training them to offer telephone support for people affected by COVID. We met weekly by Zoom during the months of April, May, and June. We wanted to maintain communication between ourselves and support each other, while also continuing to train ourselves through participation in workshops on the subject of death, dying, and accompaniment.
While hospitals are still closed to volunteers, we continue to help the community by offering workshops on death via Zoom to the FPMT Hispana community. We also increased our social media presence, launching a Facebook page and Instagram account to share helpful content.
To learn more about La Asociacion Potala Hospice, visit their website:
https://www.potalahospiceluzclara.org/en-au
FPMT.org and Mandala Publications brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and of activities, teachings, and events from over 160 FPMT centers, projects, and services around the globe. If you like what you read, consider becoming a Friend of FPMT, which supports our work.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama with Naresh Mathur. Photo courtesy of the Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
We are saddened to share the news that Naresh Sahai Mathur passed away at the age of 67, in New Delhi, India, on April 25, 2021, of COVID-19. Naresh was an early student of FPMT founders Lama Thubten Yeshe and Lama Zopa Rinpoche, and a long-time FPMT volunteer. Kabir Saxena, also a long-time FPMT student who currently serves as the spiritual program coordinator at Tushita Mahayana Meditation Centre in New Delhi, wrote a personal remembrance of Naresh to share with the international FPMT community.
By Kabir Saxena
With the recent untimely passing away of Naresh Mathur—another victim of the second murderous wave of COVID-19—the Indian Buddhist sangha, his friends worldwide, as well as the Tibetan community, have lost an invaluable supporter, legal advisor, and much beloved friend.
Naresh was born in Old Delhi in 1954, close to where some twenty-five years later the pioneers of Tushita Mahayana Meditation Centre would be living. It’s a testimony to his great intellectual and spiritual thirst that he was willing and able to seek beyond his quality education in sociology and law at two of Delhi’s esteemed establishments and find himself at the doors of both Tushita Mahayana Meditation Centre and Tibet House in Delhi.
While the practice of law provided his bread and butter, it was Buddhist studies that quickly established their prominence in Naresh’s heart and mind. Early on he had the great good fortune to receive personal, one-on-one teachings on lamrim and Madhyamaka from the renowned Geshe Palden Drakpa, who became a lifelong friend of the family and a recipient of Naresh’s generous medical help. It was, I believe, this deep experience of the teachings with Geshe-la that made Naresh a lifelong proponent of the sublime Nalanda parampara (tradition), with its emphasis on the guru-disciple relationship, logical inquiry, and debate. It was to these teachings that Naresh returned again and again; even in the last decade of his life, he was an important part of the core group of students at Geshe Dorji Damdul’s Tibet House Nalanda Masters Course.
Naresh was a lover of knowledge, a philosopher in the true sense of the word, and all his life he combined that with his work as a lawyer in the High and Supreme Courts in Delhi.
Naresh Mathur
When I first met him in 1980, he was a bright and extremely handsome young man, much impressed by his contact with Lama Thubten Yeshe and Lama Zopa Rinpoche. Naresh went on to be a director of Tushita Mahayana Meditation Centre, an organizer of the Dharma Celebrations with His Holiness the Dalai Lama in Delhi, and the creator of Root Institute for Wisdom Culture’s Trust Deed in 1984 in Bodhgaya. He remained a trustee until a few months before his death.
His dedication to the cause of bringing the Dharma back to Indian people was profound and lasting. He participated in the teachings His Holiness gave to small groups of Indian students in the early 1980s and despite his heavy workload would, almost thirty years later, travel to Bodhgaya for the weekends to give teachings in Hindi to local students.
Naresh unstintingly helped the Tibetan cause with his legal talents and the list of his efforts on their behalf would be too long to include here. As an example, it was largely due to his legal actions that the Tibetan Colony of Majnu Ka Tila in Delhi was saved from destruction. Tenzin Geyche Tethong, former secretary to His Holiness, recalled how he had known Naresh since 1980 and how he greatly admired his interest in and knowledge of Buddhism, and also appreciated Naresh’s contribution to the Dalai Lama Trust of which he was a trustee.
In addition to his connection with Lama Yeshe, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, and FPMT, Naresh had a close connection with Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche and his Deer Park Institute in Bir, as well as with Samdhong Rinpoche, whose Gandhian vision, critique of modernity, and Dharma advice were like nectar for Naresh.
Naresh was a lover of the meditative dhrupad style of Indian classical music, and we also spent many happy moments listening to Bob Dylan together. He could also be quite mischievous, and we would especially enjoy making silent and secret fun of speakers at conferences whom we considered not up to the mark.
He was a practitioner, especially of the Madhyamaka and the Kalachakra, and was increasingly drawn to extended practice in the last year of his life, according to his wife, Antonella. Throughout his life he had inspired and encouraged a younger generation of students by his example.
For me, and I am sure for many others, including his dear circle of Italian and international friends, Naresh was like family. His deep soulful eyes were those of the eternal seeker and lover; they grabbed you. My father, to whom Naresh was very loving and generous, used to say that going by Naresh’s piercing gaze, he was always in a state of otherworldly intoxication!
In his last year, during long walks together in the woods near his home in south Delhi, Naresh would always steer the conversation to the Dharma, the importance of a grounding in lamrim, and his great love and obsession: the presentation of emptiness in the Gelug tradition. Despite his allegiance to many lamas of different schools of Tibetan Buddhism, he always seemed to be happily and no doubt karmically tethered to the pole of Lama Tsongkhapa’s works and Geshe Palden Dragpa’s teachings.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama with Naresh Mathur. Photo courtesy of the Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
After his passing, His Holiness the Dalai Lama made the encouraging pronouncement that Naresh was his disciple, that we should not worry, and that he would take a good rebirth and would remember this life of his. The passing of this kind-hearted and generous man, still somewhat unreal and unbelievable to some of us, leaves a big void in many lives. Naresh is survived by his wife, Antonella, a gifted healer; daughter, Mudita, a talented graphic designer; and son, Atisha, a profound, upcoming teacher of the Dharma, especially of Buddhist logic, the subject matter his dear departed father so admired and communicated so readily to those fortunate enough to cross his path.
The FPMT India community organized a moving online prayer meeting and memorial for Naresh Mathur on May 5, 2021, with Naresh’s family and many long-time students around the world joining in. You can watch the two-hour recording of the Zoom call:
https://www.facebook.com/1652241455007411/videos/457118005515720/?__so__=channel_tab&__rv__=all_videos_card
For more on practices recommended by Lama Zopa Rinpoche at time of death and other resources to support yourself and loved ones at time of death, please visit fpmt.org/death/.
FPMT.org and Mandala Publications brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and of activities, teachings, and events from over 160 FPMT centers, projects, and services around the globe. If you like what you read, consider becoming a Friend of FPMT, which supports our work.
Geshe Palden Sangpo, Sandy Carlson, Paul Krebbs, David Strevel, Joey Gooch, and Elise Strevel with the Little Free Pantry at Kadampa Center, Raleigh, North Carolina, US, January 2021. Photo collage by Sandy Carlson.
Kadampa Center, an FPMT center in Raleigh, North Carolina, US, created a Little Free Pantry to offer food and other items to people in need. Community Service is one of FPMT’s Five Pillars of Service. Sandy Carlson, Kadampa Center board of directors president and volunteer, shares the story.
“Give what you can, take what you need”—this is the mantra of the Little Free Pantry. Nestled between two bushy evergreen trees, the bright red box at Kadampa Center invites any passerby to open its door and find what they need, whether it’s food, toiletries, or paper goods.
Little Free Pantry at Kadampa Center, Raleigh, North Carolina, US, March 2021. Photo by Sandy Carlson.
The Little Free Pantry is a movement of neighbors helping neighbors. It’s about people reaching out to others, town by town, throughout the world. Following the idea of Street Libraries, Little Free Pantries offers items to meet basic human needs, accessible to everyone all the time, no questions asked.
The current pandemic, with the economic stresses that accompany it, inspired members of the Kadampa Center community to create our own Little Free Pantry. Filled with cans, jars, and boxes of food, it not only helps our neighbors, but also allows our members to practice loving kindness, compassion, and generosity.
Already, after only a few months, we have seen evidence that we are fulfilling a need for the food and toiletries that pass through our new Little Free Pantry, even though we are not physically open for classes.
The pantry arose through the help of many people who brainstormed the best location (keeping in mind discretion, visibility, and awareness of the exposure to sun and weather), provided carpentry work (remodeling a used kitchen cabinet from Habitat for Humanity), and painted and placed the pantry when it was ready.
One of our FPMT resident teachers, Geshe Palden Sangpo, performed a beautiful blessing, and he has started painting mantras in the pantry. Geshe Sangpo also donated the very first items of food.
Watch the four-minute video “Geshe Sangpo Blessing Little Free Pantry” on the Media Kadampa Center YouTube channel:
https://youtu.be/slP9rKi3-C8
We so appreciate all our members who helped bring this awesome project to life: Elise and David Strevel, Diane Meyer, Paul Krebbs, Joey Gooch, and Sandy Carlson. We also send much love and appreciation for those in our community who continue to keep our Little Free Pantry full of items for anyone in need. This truly is compassion in action.
To learn more about Kadampa Center, visit their website:
https://kadampa-center.org/
FPMT.org and Mandala Publications brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and of activities, teachings, and events from over 160 FPMT centers, projects, and services around the globe. If you like what you read, consider becoming a Friend of FPMT, which supports our work.
The FPMT Inc. board of directors are pleased to be able to share with you an update on what is being done in the organization, especially regarding the steps taken in the area of safeguarding, that is, protecting all those at FPMT centers, projects and services from abuse. The recommendations of two safeguarding organizations, Faith Trust Institute (FTI) and Thirtyone:eight, have been implemented, and a significant amount of work accomplished in the last year.
As you will see, the safety from all kinds of abuse of all those who interact with FPMT centers, services and projects in any way is being taken very seriously. On all levels, efforts have been made, and continue to be made, to ensure that safety.
The first two points below are related to actions mentioned in our February update, taken following the Dagri Rinpoche investigation, for which we commissioned FTI.
Therapy Support: In our last update we explained that we had reached out to each of the five victims who shared their testimony with FTI during the Dagri Rinpoche investigation to offer financial support for therapy, even when their experience did not occur in an FPMT center: this funding is all now provided to those who wished to receive it.
Processing Other Complaints: As mentioned in the February update, additional complaints related to other FPMT teachers and FPMT affiliate staff were submitted to FTI during the course of their investigation of Dagri Rinpoche. The FPMT Inc. board established a subcommittee to review these complaints, working closely with any affiliates concerned. We have now concluded a review of these complaints. A summary of the steps taken and conclusions reached are outlined below with the intention to be as open and transparent as possible about these complaints, while also respecting the need for confidentiality. Therefore, in the interests of the individuals and affiliates concerned, the specifics of situations that have come to the FPMT safeguarding subcommittee, comprised of board members and IOF staff, will not be made public. We ask for your understanding of this approach, as it is very challenging to give details and at the same time uphold the requirement to protect confidentiality of those involved.
- A complaint was received from a third party individual outlining an allegation that a lay teacher and a lay teacher assistant each had an intimate relationship with an individual who was their student, while that student was engaged in a study course in the center. This complaint was shared with the center concerned, which established a committee to review and investigate the details of the allegations. The investigation process included interviewing the alleged victim, who submitted a written testimony that no relationship had taken place during the time that the student was studying in the center. The committee concluded that there had been no breach of the FPMT Ethical Policy. FPMT Inc. also updated our guideline regarding ethics and protecting from abuse with further guidance about relationships, in order to provide greater clarity on this topic.
- An anonymous complainant alleged harassment, retaliation, and the creation of a hostile work environment by a former staff member in an FPMT center. Neither the complainant nor the staff member concerned work at the center any longer. To prevent similar situations in the future, the center reported to us that they have done an extensive review of their policies and procedures for staff management, and for managing complaints and protecting from abuse, and continues to make updates and improvements to those policies and procedures. These include improving staff communication policies and establishing committees for ethics and human resources, to ensure that clearly defined reporting protocols and safeguarding procedures are now in place.
- An anonymous complaint was received about a former staff member in an FPMT center having had inappropriate images on a computer. The center was already familiar with the issue as this claim had already been made several years earlier to the center. At that time, the center had the computer reviewed by an independent IT analyst; no evidence to support the allegation was found. Upon receiving notice of the same complaint – this time through FPMT Inc. – the center, exercising an abundance of caution, sent the computer to a company specializing in criminal technology investigations; they found no evidence to support the allegation.
- An anonymous complaint was received related to inappropriate habits of speech of an FPMT registered teacher. As the complaint did not specify a location, the details of the complaint were reviewed by the Teacher Services Committee, which then issued a formal warning to that teacher, and the committee will continue to monitor reports from their teaching program.
- An anonymous complaint was received outlining dissatisfaction about how a complaint was processed and managed by an FPMT center and International Office, including a recommendation to improve our complaints procedure to allow a formal process to raise complaints in a way that feels fair, confidential, and safe at local, national and international level. This recommendation was reviewed and assessed for incorporating into the new Protecting from Abuse Policy and complaints procedures.
Then, in response to recommendations we received from FTI and Thirtyone:eight during our safeguarding audits, the following steps have been taken in order to help enable those in leadership positions in the FPMT organization maintain safe and healthy environments in their center, project, or service. It is our sincere hope and belief, that with the support of all involved in our community, these steps will be of help to us all.
Protecting from Abuse Policy: A Protecting from Abuse Policy was developed and has been put out as a new FPMT policy, with a training course designed to unpack and support the policy. We are also reviewing whether additional new guidelines related to complaints about FPMT teachers may be needed in order to supplement the Protecting from Abuse policy. Our aim in providing these new resources, in addition to the current ethical policy and guidelines, is to help provide learning, tools, and strategies to better ensure protection from abuse in FPMT affiliates, and to help ensure that any complaints can be appropriately reported, processed, and resolved.
Protecting from Abuse Training: Alongside the new policy, a new online Protecting from Abuse training course was developed and launched. This training is mandatory for all in leadership positions within the FPMT organization, including registered teachers, and has been reviewed by Thirtyone:eight and other stakeholders within the FPMT organization. It includes guidance regarding sexual abuse, healthy boundaries, power imbalance, and crisis intervention. The training course is currently being provided in English, while being translated into several languages, including Tibetan. Additionally, FPMT Foundation and Teacher Development Service Seminars will refer to and make use of the new Protecting from Abuse policy and training.
FPMT Inc. Policies: We implemented a number of new policies specifically for FPMT Inc., including updating our complaints procedure and confidentiality policy. We implemented additional internal steps to ensure that clear pathways are described for making and processing complaints, as distinct from requests received for spiritual advice.
Education Materials: Guru Devotion: We have received various requests to have additional guidance and materials available about Guru Devotion, and have implemented steps to develop further guidance in this area.
FPMT Inc. Board of Directors: The FPMT Inc. board worked extensively on the Dagri Rinpoche investigation and the adjudication of the findings from the report. This was a difficult and challenging process. The board made efforts to conclude the initial work to the stage where the final report from FTI was received and adjudicated, and that those initial conclusions were all accepted. Due to various reasons, some board members resigned at that time. We thank them sincerely for all their effort and for the invaluable contribution they made under such challenging circumstances. New board members have accepted to join the board, as was recently announced. Our intention is to have a mixture of ordained and lay individuals, a gender balance, and a good range of professional skills and FPMT organizational experience.
To find out more about current FPMT policies and guidelines instituted to uphold a safe, respectful environment in local FPMT centers, projects, or services, please visit Safeguarding in FPMT Entities. This leads to our public information about Ethics and Protecting from Abuse in the FPMT organization, and includes links to our policies, including the FPMT Ethical Policy.
We are sincerely grateful to all those who have contributed to the process of making these changes and improvements, directly or indirectly through their feedback or input. We want to express our deep thanks for the support of all involved in our community for the implementation of these important new policies.
Rinpoche beginning to write the Prajnaparamita in gold (after a break of 10 years).
Welcome to the May FPMT International Office e-News! This month we bring you news about:
- Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Advice and Thanks
- Support and Merit-Making During Saka Dawa
- New Free Book From Our Lamas
- Academy Focused on Buddhist Mind Science
…and more
Have the e-News translated into your native language by using our convenient translation facility located on the right-hand side of the page.
The FPMT International Office e-News comes from your FPMT International Office. Visit our subscribe page to receive the FPMT International Office News directly in your email box.
Rinpoche offering incense puja at Kopan Monastery, Nepal, May 2021. Rinpoche is offering these pujas to help all those suffering due to COVID-19, particularly all those in India, Nepal (including in Kopan Monastery and Nunnery), and throughout the world.
As we shared last week, there has been a COVID-19 outbreak at Kopan Monastery and Nunnery in Nepal. The latest information from Kopan is that unfortunately more people at Kopan Monastery have tested positive for COVID. Currently, there are four Kopan monks in the hospital in Kathmandu with COVID-19.
One of those monks is Geshe Thubten Sherab, the FPMT resident teacher at Thubten Norbu Ling Tibetan Buddhist Center in Santa Fe, New Mexico, US, who is in Nepal. Geshe Sherab was taken to the hospital in order to have oxygen available to help with his COVID-related breathing difficulties. Geshe Sherab talked with Ven. Roger Kunsang earlier today and Geshe Sherab says he is not needing oxygen at this time and is doing better. Many FPMT centers and regional and national offices—including Thubten Norbu Ling and FPMT Australia—are organizing prayers for Geshe Sherab and Kopan Sangha.
Lama Zopa Rinpoche is continuing in isolation at Kopan Monastery. Rinpoche is still in good health and has been continuing to offer incense and other pujas to help the situation with COVID-19 in India, Nepal (including at Kopan), and the rest of the world.
The Kopan community would like students to know that they are committed to keeping each other as safe as possible and are so appreciative of everyone’s good wishes and prayers. As we mentioned in our previous blog on this situation, Kopan is requesting that the monastery not be contacted at this time unless there is an emergency.
Thanks to so many of the FPMT family who are continuing to keep all at Kopan Monastery and Khachoe Ghakyil Nunnery, as well everyone affected by the pandemic, in their prayers.
You can find Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s advice for this critical time on our Resources for the Coronavirus Pandemic page.
Watch videos from the series Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Teachings on Thought Transformation during the Time of COVID-19 and find links to videos in transcripts, MP3s, additional practice advice, and more:
https://fpmt.org/fpmt/announcements/resources-for-coronavirus-pandemic/advice-from-lama-zopa-rinpoche-for-coronavirus/
FPMT.org and Mandala Publications brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and of activities, teachings, and events from over 160 FPMT centers, projects, and services around the globe. If you like what you read, consider becoming a Friend of FPMT, which supports our work.
Lama Zopa Rinpoche receiving COVID-19 test at Kopan Monastery, April 27, 2021. Photo by Ven. Roger Kunsang.
As COVID-19 continues to spread around the world, Kopan Monastery is now experiencing its first outbreak. Many individuals at Kopan Monastery and Khachoe Ghakyil Nunnery, both in Nepal, have now tested positive. Infected and non-infected individuals have been separated for accommodation, meals, and study and this will continue for ten days. Lama Zopa Rinpoche and Ven. Roger Kunsang are well and staying in isolation in Rinpoche’s apartment. We have just received news that Rinpoche and all of his attendants have been tested and are all negative.
Kopan has requested that contact to the monastery should be limited to emergency only at this time. Ani Fran (Ven. Fran Mohoupt) has set up automatic replies to some of the website links in order to deal with the normal puja and prayer requests.
Please keep all at Kopan Monastery, Khachoe Ghakyil Nunnery, as well as everyone around the world affected by this virus in your prayers and dedications. You can find Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s advice for this critical time on our Resources for the Coronavirus Pandemic page.
Watch videos from the series Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Teachings on Thought Transformation during the Time of COVID-19 and find links to videos in transcripts, MP3s, additional practice advice, and more:
https://fpmt.org/fpmt/announcements/resources-for-coronavirus-pandemic/advice-from-lama-zopa-rinpoche-for-coronavirus/
Practice advice from our teachers, Dharma study-from-home opportunities, and more can be found on the page “Resources for the Coronavirus Pandemic.”
Here’s a short excerpt of the story that looks at how centers moved their Dharma programs online last year:
“For center directors, it quickly became clear that many things that had been done in the center’s gompa could be moved online.
“Paula [de Wijs, director of Maitreya Instituut in the Netherlands] writes, ‘For years we had discussed doing more on the internet or through YouTube but had never really managed to put these ideas into practice. The expertise and equipment were not available and there was no real need to acquire either of them. Although many of us had used Zoom or other virtual meeting sites to attend meetings with people internationally, we had never considered holding teachings and meditations through such a medium. Suddenly this possibility became a necessity and we were able to continue the meditations and teachings without a break. That was a great relief on that score, since making the teachings of the Buddha accessible to people is our raison d’être: it is why we exist.’
“Center staff around the world studied and mastered Zoom and began to stream most of their regular teachings online. ‘I was amazed and impressed by how quickly this happened!’ Drolkar McCallum, who is the FPMT regional coordinator for North America, commented in April [2020].
“With the shift to online, some centers were seeing larger audience for their teachings. For example, Land of Joy in the UK, hosted an online retreat with Paula Chichester that had 130 participants.
“Mauricio Roa, who serves as the regional coordinator for Latin America, reported, ‘Centers who were used to having only a few members at classes, teachings, retreats, etc., multiplied their number of participants with their online offerings.’ Mauricio shared an example of a class given by Ven. Robina Courtin, teaching from the United States, offered through Centro Shiwa Lha in Brazil, which had 600 participants. Centers also started hosting retreats online. Some centers created different options for attending retreats, allowing different levels of participation. This flexibility also made it possible for more people to attend. And because of all the shut downs, some students reported that they found they were able to go deeper with their practices at home.“
Read the complete story in “Centers, Projects, and Services during the Pandemic: Turning a Difficult Situation into a Positive Result.”
Read more from Mandala 2021.
FPMT.org and Mandala Publications brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and of activities, teachings, and events from over 160 FPMT centers, projects, and services around the globe. If you like what you read, consider becoming a Friend of FPMT, which supports our work.