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Masters Program students (left to right): Ven. Tiziana Losa, Jacob Fisher, Yaniv Sagi, Marina Brucet, Hans Burghardt, Yumi Terada and Joan Dombón, Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa, Pomaia, Italy, July 2013. Photo courtesy of ILTK.
The second cycle of the FPMT Masters Program at Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa (ILTK), Pomaia, Italy, is coming to a close. Students of the Masters Program class of 2008-2013 at ILTK are currently preparing for their final exams. Marina Brucet (Spain), Yumi Terada (Japan), Ven. Tiziana Losa (Italy), Hans Burghardt (Spain) and Jacob Fisher (England) have all participated in this Masters Program from the very beginning. They were interviewed for the October-December 2013 issue of Mandala about their backgrounds, their studies up to now and their upcoming retreats.
What was the best part of the Masters Program for you?
Marina: [The best has been] all I’ve learned about Buddhist philosophy, especially on emptiness and on the view of the Buddhist path. Parallel to that, the program gives you the conditions to practice Dharma and to work a lot on transforming your mind as you face all the different phases you go through when engaging in such deep studies. It also gave me the opportunity to start teaching introduction to meditation, which I appreciate very, very much.
Yumi: For me, it was Guhyasamaja Tantra because it was the culmination of all the presentations that we had studied before this text.
Ven. Tiziana: It is difficult to say, because all the texts have their own particular purpose, and they are all necessary to give an overview on the entire path.
Jacob: For me, it was studying the tantra modules with Geshe Gelek, as I found this part of the studies much easier to relate to. The transmission of the knowledge from the various realized lineage masters seemed so much closer and more direct. It also showed me in a much more precise way how an unenlightened mind can become free and transformed into that of a buddha. Geshe-la has a very profound knowledge of this area. I found his teachings very lucid and they helped me understand the great depth and intensiveness of the various teachings of tantra in this lineage.
Hans: Aside from the amazing teachings from Khensur Rinpoche Jampa Tegchok on the Madhyamakavatara and many other things, the best was the possibility to start teaching introductory courses. I’ve learned a lot from those whom we usually label as “beginners.” They’ve also given me a boost of motivation to further deepen my practical knowledge and to develop and strengthen the wish to go on one retreat after another for as long as possible, before I start teaching, to be able to give them as much as possible.
From Mandala October-December 2013
Young monks from Sera Je benefit from the meal provided by the Sera Je Food Fund. Photo courtesy https://photos.app.goo.gl/C4MnbETKrdyayPtU6
In Mandala October-December 2013, Geshe Thubten Jinpa writes about the benefits of the Sera Je Food Fund, an FPMT Charitable Project dedicated to offering three meals a day to the 2,500 monks of Sera Je Monastery.
A 78-year-old monk walks back and forth two times every day for the meal being served in the main prayer hall of Sera Je Monastic University, situated in South India. After each meal, he comes back with a half-loaf of bread that he did not finish. I thought the leftover bread would go in the garbage bin, but I was wrong. He puts the bread in the sun and lets it dry. Later in the day when his young disciples come back hungry from class, he offers the dry piece of bread as a snack with a cup of black tea.
This old monk has been doing this for decades. Now it is just a habit, but 30 years ago he started this ritual out of helplessness and responsibility. In those days, senior monks who had young disciples had to save half of their food so that their young pupils could eat and be able to continue their studies in the evening without an empty stomach.
… Today, the Sera Je Food Fund provides highly nutritious meals, hygienically prepared for thousands of monks every day. Since the food fund started in 1991, the health of all the monks improved dramatically. They are now able to devote their full time to their Dharma studies without worrying about their meals or if they will have enough food. The most significant impact of the Sera Je Food Fund can be seen by the increase of numbers of the monks, and that senior monks like Geshe Wangchen are now able to accept as many new students as they can without worry.
From Mandala October-December 2013
Currently, the Sera Je Food Fund offers over 3 million meals annually. You can learn more about the fund and make a contribution to the project online.
Thomas: What elements will be incorporated into the retreat community?
Andy: The core elements of Land of Joy will be the group retreat and conference facilities, the solitary retreat huts, the contemplative community, the Tara Hospice Care service and a monastic community. There will be an organic market garden and orchard providing as much as possible of the food consumed at Land of Joy, sustainable energy generating plant and a library. Group retreats, conferences and courses will be provided by both the center and by partner organizations on a hire-out basis. The contemplative community will be for adults of all ages who wish to lead a semi-retreat lifestyle based on Buddhist refuge. Members of this community will link up with other community members living nearby the center for a range of Dharma activities such as meditations, discussion groups and pujas. It is anticipated that they will also help to provide a program of Buddhist and related courses, groups and activities for people living in the area. The Tara Hospice Care service will start out by training volunteers to give non-medical end-of-life support in the local community. In due course, it is hoped to develop a small hospice at Land of Joy providing for one or two resident patients. The monastic community will begin with either a monastery or nunnery for a small number of ordained Sangha residents. In due course we hope to establish both at Land of Joy.
Thomas: Will Land of Joy only be for Buddhists?
Andy: Land of Joy will welcome people of all faiths and none, who are interested in the benefits of retreat. The program of retreats offered by Land of Joy will reflect a very diverse range of needs and preferences. There is no reason why retreats led by members of non-Buddhist faiths may not take place there as partner programs. It is intended to offer a range of Universal Education activities and retreats for various groups. There will be activities for youth, families and other special interest groups. There will be programs of secular retreats on either mindfulness or compassion training. At the heart of the program will be traditional Buddhist retreats in the FPMT tradition, covering a diverse range of Sutrayana and Vajrayana practices, and including regular visits by high lamas giving Vajrayana empowerments and teachings. Land of Joy will be a place of learning and contemplation for everyone. …
From Mandala October-December 2013
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Cover from the new Mandala October-December 2013
Lama Zopa Rinpoche has recently been commenting on the need for FPMT students to actualize the lam-rim teachings and achieve realizations. You can read Rinpoche’s recent advice in the just-published Mandala October-December 2013:
Special group of retreatants
First of all, I want to say that the FPMT has been developing now for many years and over that time people have been studying and practicing the Dharma according to their ability. Generally, when I look at the FPMT organization, what I see is that the students have developed more compassion and good-heartedness. This is extremely worthwhile because compassion for all sentient beings is the very heart of Buddhism; it is the most important Dharma practice for the happiness of the individual students, for their families, for society, for the country, for the world and for the six realms’ sentient beings.
There has been a lot of study and the study is going well; there is Discovering Buddhism, the Basic Program and the Masters Program. Particularly in the Gelugpa tradition there is a lot of teaching and learning philosophy, and in the FPMT organization we have been doing that. Buddhist philosophy is now being studied in almost every center, especially where there is a resident geshe. We even have Western students who have completed the Masters Program and can teach philosophy where there is no geshe, or even where there is a geshe. There are more centers teaching the Masters Program and some centers have already taught the Basic Program several times. People have been learning about Buddhism, and especially the lam-rim, for quite some time now in the FPMT and there are some who are also trying to meditate and practice the lam-rim.
Now what is needed are people who will sacrifice their lives, as they did in India, Tibet and Nepal, not just to study the Dharma like at a college or university, but to actualize the teachings in a monastery or isolated place. In Tibet, the mountains were full of caves like ants’ nests, where people would go to practice without distraction. When I came from Solu Khumbu [in Nepal] to Tashi Lhunpo Monastery in Tsang [Tibet] and then on to Pagri [in Tibet] there were many caves along the road where meditators would practice with hardship and the realizations of guru devotion, renunciation, bodhichitta, right view and the two stages of tantra would all come. Wow, wow, wow. It’s unbelievable! That’s why the country of Tibet is so blessed and so precious because there are many, many caves where meditators, like Milarepa, for example, achieved different realizations, such as the rainbow body.
This is how Buddhism really comes alive – when it is not just words, not just scholars, but really living Buddhism. When study and realization come together, Buddhism will really last. Wow, then like an ocean in the heart and the mind, it will spread and be preserved. …
From Mandala October-December 2013
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Participants in European Regional Meeting, Jamyang Buddhist Centre, July 2013. Photo by Natascha Sturny.
Jamyang Buddhist Centre London “hosted a successful and very happy Europe Region Annual meeting in July,” wrote Jamyang’s Adnan Hadzi.
Meeting delegates enjoy the sun and a chance to talk, Jamyang Buddhist Centre, July 2013. Photo by Natascha Sturny.
“Sixty delegates from 15 countries in Europe met to discuss the benefits of five-year rolling plans, how they could improve their governance and improve the range of courses they offer, and to formulate plans for their groups for next year. It was very inspiring meeting our FPMT family members from all over Europe,” Adnan wrote.
Jamyang also shared some great photos from the event with Mandala.
Mandala brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and FPMT activities, teachers and events from over 160 FPMT centers, projects and services around the globe. If you have news you would like to share, please let us know.
European Regional Meeting, July 2013. Photo by Natascha Sturny.
Great Stupa of Universal Compassion, Victoria, Australia, August 2013. Photo courtesy of Ian Green via Twitter.
The Great Stupa of Universal Compassion continues to rise from the bush of Victoria, Australia. The massive project has been captured in an impressive new video that shows the current development of the 50-meter [164-foot] stupa in Maiden Gully, near Bendigo.
Video: Great Stupa of Universal Compassion
The video was shot by a camera attached to a “mini-drone,” providing amazing aerial views of the grounds and stupa, which when completed will be the same size and design as the Great Stupa of Gyantse in Tibet and will house a gompa, many large holy statues as well as sacred relics. In addition to construction on the stupa, workers are busy with planting and landscaping the grounds. Rosemary and lavender are currently being planted.
Planting rosemary at Great Stupa, September 2013. Photo courtesy of Ian Green via Twitter.
The development of the Great Stupa began in the mid-1990s. Ian Green, a long-time student of Lama Yeshe and Lama Zopa Rinpoche, directs the $20-million project. In a 2011 interview with Mandala, he talked about the history of the site, its progress and his involvement with FPMT.
Reflecting on the project’s pace of development, Ian said, “Rinpoche has commented that the way the Great Stupa has been built is a good example for other major projects to follow. He described our careful, steady progress as being like an aircraft on a runway which takes quite a while to get to maximum speed before taking off and soaring to great heights. He said, and I agree totally with him, that the biggest danger is to leap into things before you are prepared. These leaps can lead to crashes which can set major projects back for a very long time. Unfortunately, first impressions really do last a very long time.”
Three-dimensional model of master plan for development at Great Stupa. Image courtesy of Ian Green via Twitter.
Atisha Centre and Thubten Shedrup Ling share the large grounds with the stupa and are integral to the flowering of the vast long-range vision of a Buddhist community, which Ian describes in the interview and can be seen in a three-dimensional model of the master plan for the site, currently with the local Bendigo Council.
You can find more photos and news from the Great Stupa on Twitter and Facebook. For more information on the project, visit the Great Stupa’s website.
Mandala brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and FPMT activities, teachers and events from over 160 FPMT centers, projects and services around the globe. If you have news you would like to share, please let us know.
Ven. Robina Courtin with members of Shen Phen Ling Study Group, Victoria, Australia, June 2013. Photo courtesy of Shen Phen Ling Study Group.
Shen Phen Ling Study Group, based in Albury/Wodonga, Victoria, Australia, hosted Ven. Robina Courtin in late June. Ven. Robina gave a weekend teaching on “Courageous Compassion” in the small rural town of Yackandandah, located in northeastern Victoria, not far from Albury/Wodonga. For the teaching event, study group members transformed an old courthouse into a beautiful gompa.
An “eclectic assortment of people” turned up for the teaching. In addition to more experience students, a few people with no prior experience with Buddhism attended. “Taking it all in her stride, Ven. Robina presented an engaging discussion that weaved in humor, personal experience and audience participation,” study group coordinator Julie Klose shared with Mandala. The audience was inquisitive and participated in energetic and topical debate Julie reported.
“After covering the fundamentals of wisdom on Saturday, Sunday’s teaching focused more on compassion and great compassion. Not only did we get valuable individual advice and guidance over the weekend, but we also gratefully received instruction and guidance for our small bur keen study group,” Julie wrote.
Mandala brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and FPMT activities, teachers and events from over 160 FPMT centers, projects and services around the globe. If you have news you would like to share, please let us know.
Ven. Jesús Revert (Champa Shenpen) lead the procession of the Kangyur at O.Sel.Ling Centro de Retiros, Orgiva, Spain, July 2013. Photo courtesy of Ven. Fabio Poza.
From Ven. Fabio Poza, O.Sel.Ling Centro de Retiros spirtual program coordinator
On July 22, we organized a procession of the Kangyur to celebrate the temporary installation of the texts in the center’s big gompa.
On August 2, we finished our one-month lam-rim retreat, which was led by Ven. Jesús Revert, our resident teacher. In total, eight people engaged in retreat, either doing the complete month or a couple of weeks.
Our offering during summer were very exciting and included Ven. Sangye Khadro, who led a one-week shamatha-vipassana retreat; Jimi Neil, who led a combined tonglen and Tara retreat; and Paco Hita, father of Tenzin Ösel Hita, who led a weekend course of yoga combined with meditation. During Ven. Khadro’s course in August, we hung prayer flags for Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s health.
Hanging prayer flags, O.Sel.Ling, Spain, August 2013. Photo courtesy of Ven. Fabio Poza.
In the Alpujarras of southern Spain, O.Sel.Ling Centro de Retiros provides ideal conditions for individual and group retreats. Visit their website to learn more about upcoming retreats and programs.
Find details on prayer and practices for Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s health on fpmt.org.
Mandala brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and FPMT activities, teachers and events from over 160 FPMT centers, projects and services around the globe. If you have news you would like to share, please let us know.
Lama Zopa Rinpoche at 100 Million Mani Retreat, Mongolia, August 2013. Photo by Ven. Roger Kunsang.
The 100 Million Mani Retreat in Mongolia concludes on Friday, August 30, with a long life puja offered to Lama Zopa Rinpoche, who led the retreat. FPMT Mongolia organized the retreat, which began August 1 at Idgaa Choizinling Dratsang (College), Gandan Monastery, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Rinpoche’s assistant and CEO of FPMT Ven. Roger Kunsang wrote that 108,939,500 recitations of OM MANI PADME HUM were counted during the retreat. Ven. Roger also reported that Rinpoche has been emphasizing impermanence and death in his teachings.
Idgaa Monastery, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, August 2013. Photo by Ven. Roger Kunsang.
Rinpoche and FPMT built and sponsored Idgaa Monastery, which can sit up to 1,000 monks. Idgaa is officially a part of Sera Je Monastery in India.
FPMT has taken an active role in rebuilding Buddhism in Mongolia. The history of Buddhism in Mongolia dates back to the 3rd century B.C.E. But with the rise of communism in the 1920s and Mongolia’s close alignment with the Soviet Union, Mongolian Buddhists suffered heavy oppression and witnessed the destruction of monasteries and temples and the purging of an extraordinary number of monks and lamas in the late 1930s. You can read more of Mandala’s coverage of FPMT activities in Mongolia and FPMT Mongolia online.
Western Sangha at 100 Million Mani Retreat, Mongolia, August 2013. Photo by Ven. Roger Kunsang.
Mandala brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and FPMT activities, teachers and events from over 160 FPMT centers, projects and services around the globe. If you have news you would like to share, please let us know.
Two friends at the Fifth Annual Milarepa Day, Milarepa Center, Vermont, US, July 2013. Photo courtesy of Ven. Amy Miller.
From Ven. Amy Miller, director Milarepa Center
On July 6, Milarepa Center celebrated our Fifth Annual Milarepa Festival Day. This year, we incorporated the enchanting music of Tibetan anthro-musicologist Penpa Tsering with an interfaith service to celebrate our region’s Compassion Day and His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s birthday.
Kitchen in Tiny House, Milarepa Center. Photo courtesy of Ven. Amy Miller.
More than 100 participants attended along with Village Harmony, a youth choir who sang songs from South Africa. It was a glorious day! We also had two large birthday cakes for His Holiness and everyone sang “Happy Birthday” and wrote personal notes on a card that will be delivered.
Milarepa Center also recently completed construction on a new “Tiny House!” The lovely one-bedroom cabin was built in record time and will no doubt be a tremendous asset to Milarepa Center.
If you like what you read on Mandala, consider becoming a Friend of FPMT, which supports our work. Friends of FPMT at the Foundation level and higher receive the print magazine Mandala, delivered quarterly to their homes.
Students studying in Chandrakirti Centre’s Basic Program with Geshe Tarchin, June 2013. Photo courtesy of Chadrakirti Centre.
From Phillipa Rutherford, director Chandrakirti Tibetan Buddhist Meditation Centre
Nine students at Chandrakirti Tibetan Buddhist Meditation Centre, in Richmond, New Zealand, completed their first subject from the Basic Program, passing their exam after studying the Wheel of Sharp Weapons. New resident teacher Geshe Jampa Tharchin began the second subject on August 1, Awarenesses and Knowers, covering the intermediate lam-rim. We have now made it possible to follow the teachings from our web site with online students sending in weekly homework.
Chandrakirti Centre’s fiberglass Buddha awaiting painting. Photo courtesy of Chandrakirti Centre.
Chandrakirti Centre has a new 8-foot [2.4-meter] fiberglass Buddha – a replica of the Jade Buddha for Universal Peace. We are busy painting and decorating the Buddha and throne, a very majestic and holy presence in the center’s grounds. We send our thanks to the Great Stupa of Universal Compassion near Bendigo, Australia, for the Buddha.
Mandala brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and FPMT activities, teachers and events from over 160 FPMT centers, projects and services around the globe. If you like what you read on Mandala, consider becoming a Friend of FPMT, which supports our work. Friends of FPMT at the Foundation level and higher receive the print magazine Mandala, delivered quarterly to their homes.
Geshe Ngawang Dakpa checking the torma for Padmasambhava incense puja, Land of Medicine Buddha, California, August 13, 2013. Photo by Dionne Wilson; courtesy of LMB’s Facebook page.
Land of Medicine Buddha (LMB) in Soquel, California, has had a busy summer. In June, they celebrated their Eleventh Medicine Buddha Festival Day, which also included a visit from the Maitreya Heart Shrine Relic Tour. Hundreds of people attended the festival. Lama Zopa Rinpoche attended in 2008 and gave much encouragement and advice, which LMB each year reviews and works to fulfill.
Denice Macy, LMB’s director, wrote, “The accomplishment this year was following Rinpoche’s advice to ‘have many performers, not just one or two.’ By following Rinpoche’s advice, we found that people stayed longer; it was Rinpoche’s observation that people left after the puja, and he wanted them to stay longer, so by adding more musical offerings, people did stay! It was a very moving and joyful day. We had music and dance offerings from India, Mongolia, Japan, Indonesia and Tibet!” A YouTube video was made of the performances.
Large Medicine Buddha thangka painted by Peter Iseli at LMB’s Medicine Buddha Festival, June 2013. Photo courtesy of LMB’s Facebook page.
The festival has become a significant community event, even being written up in the local newspaper, and attracting community involvement. “This year, as in the previous year, we offered a free lunch to at least seven hundred people,” Denice wrote. “The Santa Cruz Tibetan community made nearly three thousand momos. Also this year we received food offerings of green curry donated by Star of Siam Thai restaurant as well as Indian food that was donated by an Indian family. We also sold more than 50 sweet pies that were made by a team of volunteers and nearly 300 fresh coconuts!”
Then, LMB welcomed Choden Rinpoche, who gave lam-rim teachings at the center and who was offered a long life puja. On July 6, His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s birthday and FPMT North America’s Compassion Day were celebrated with an incense puja and prayers followed by a picnic. Later in the afternoon, LMB community members performed the Blessing for the Sentient Beings in the Ocean (and who touch the ocean or have anything to do with the ocean) out on a pier in the Pacific Ocean. They placed their Namgyälma mantra board into the water and did a short meditation with mantra recitation, following the instructions of Lama Zopa Rinpoche.
Hanging prayer flags at Land of Medicine Buddha, August 21, 2013. Photo courtesy of LMB’s Facebook page.
The center celebrated Chokhor Duchen with a Shakyamuni Buddha puja and the liberation of 1,400 worms, the merit of which was dedicated to Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s good health, and quick and full recovery. Many more teachings and pujas took place over July and August.
On August 21, which was a full moon day, the day His Holiness the Dalai Lama finished his three-week retreat in Ladakh, India, and a Wednesday, which is a special day for His Holiness astrologically, LMB’s community of students, staff and local Tibetans gathered to perform the sang (incense) offering and made prayers advised by His Holiness for the Tibet cause and offered prayers for the long lives and good health of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Lama Zopa Rinpoche and for all their holy wishes to be fulfilled.
Then they hung many Tendrel Nyesel prayer flags as advised by Khandro-la for Rinpoche’s health and long life. These prayer flags were designed by Lama Zopa Rinpoche.
LMB community members after hanging new prayer flags, August 21, 2013. Photo courtesy of LMB’s Facebook page.
You can see more photos and learn more about the activities of Land of Medicine Buddha by visiting them on Facebook.
Mandala brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and FPMT activities, teachers and events from over 160 FPMT centers, projects and services around the globe. If you have news you would like to share, please let us know.