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On World Leprosy Day 2014, Adriana Ferranti (at right with blue bag) works with MAITRI staff and volunteers, January 2014. Photo courtesy of Adriana Ferranti.
Every year MAITRI Charitable Trust participates in World Leprosy Day, founded in 1953 by French writer and humanitarian Raoul Follereau. Director Adriana Ferranti serves some of India’s poorest people in the state of Bihar and has worked for 25 years to eradicate Hansen’s disease (leprosy), a treatable bacterial infection, and to reduce the stigma against physical disability associated with the disease. World Leprosy Day 2016 is on January 31.
Last year, for World Leprosy Day 2015, Adriana and her staff decided to share a brief video to illustrate the work they do daily.
Watch “MAITRI World Leprosy Day” on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/UFe1FQQ71CA
MAITRI Charitable Trust invites all FPMT students and supporters to participate in World Leprosy Day with donations and with prayers and practices dedicated to eradicating leprosy and its stigma, to the prevention of new leprosy-related disabilities, and to the the rehabilitation of those already with disabilities.
Mandala brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and of activities, teachings and events from nearly 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.
Lama Zopa Rinpoche, South India, January 2016. Photo by Ven. Roger Kunsang
We hope you enjoy our January E-News – out now!
In it you’ll find:
- News about Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Official Long Life Puja
- It’s Merit Box Collection time!
- Updates from FPMT Education Services
- Photos from the Long Life Puja Offered to His Holiness the Dalai Lama
and more!
Subscribe to the FPMT International Office eNews today and receive important updates about Lama Zopa Rinpoche, FPMT International Office, and the broader FPMT organization directly to your email box.
Ven. René Feusi, 2010
“In the 1990s, I went to Bodhgaya to do two months’ retreat. I had rented a cabin in Bodhgaya and one of the texts I had with me with was Bodhicharyavatara. It was Stephen Batchelor’s translation. While doing retreat there, they started to build a cabin just in front of mine. There were 20 or 30 Indians from early morning into late in the afternoon building and talking, and I started getting quite annoyed and angry. I was supposed to do retreat and was expecting quiet surroundings. I realized I could leave and try to find another place or try to make the best out the situation. And that’s when I remembered Shantideva’s chapter on patience,” FPMT registered teacher Ven. René Feusi shared in the January-June 2016 issue of Mandala while describing the evolution of his newest book, The Beautiful Way of Life, a distillation of Shantideva’s seminal work.
“I read it again and again, and liked it very much, but found that the way it was written was so flowery that I had difficulty following the stream of reasoning. So I said to myself, ‘Let’s attempt to write out what he actually says,’ taking away all the embellishments. What is his stream of ideas on how to remove anger? That’s how I started. It was enjoyable work. I discovered Shantideva’s text in a more intimate way. I worked on a few chapters there in Bodhgaya, and over the years, each time I would be in retreat, I would take it up again and do some more of the text.
“I went over it many, many times because new translations of Bodhicharyavatara would come out. I used at least five different translations to write The Beautiful Way of Life, each time seeing if there were some words that would be more appropriate from here or there. I lived at Vajrapani Institute in California for seven years and once showed the director, Fabienne Pradelle, what I had done and she said, ‘Oh, that’s great, you should finish it.’ Slowly, slowly over the years I finished it. She and another friend, Judith Kondo, went over the manuscript to polish up the English. We worked on it together. …”
Read the complete interview as a PDF.
First published in the January-June 2016 print issue of Mandala available through the FPMT Foundation Store or as a benefit of the Friends of FPMT program, you can now read the entire interview plus an excerpt from The Beautiful Way of Life as part of Mandala‘s January-June 2016 online content.
Martha Cabral blesses dog, Sedona, Arizona, US, December 2015. Photo via Maitreya Loving Kindness Tour’s Facebook page.
“The final North American Maitreya Loving Kidnesss relic tour event was held at Yavapai College in Sedona, Arizona, December 12-13, 2015,” said Karen Smith, who was there. “It was an intimate venue with magnificent views of the famous Sedona Red Rock vistas. The event was hosted by Andrew Facca and Jakob Merchant and staffed by a wonderful volunteer team, many of whom had flown in just for the occasion from various parts of the US and Canada.
“There was a steady stream of visitors over the weekend and many people and pets were blessed by the relics of Buddha and other Buddhist masters. The traveling tour managers, Martha Cabral and Ani Norbu, led emotional opening and closing ceremonies with reminders about the power of loving kindness and gave special thanks to Lama Zopa Rinpoche, who initiated the tour almost two decades ago. The European tour concluded in Ontinyent, Spain the same weekend.
“The first Maitreya Loving Kidnesss event took place in Taipei, Taiwan, in March 2001. Since then, there have been over 868 events displaying the relics in 68 countries. We estimate that almost 2.5 million people have been personally blessed by the holy relics. All of the touring relic collections will be placed on permanent display at the Maitreya Projects in Bodhgaya and Kushinagar, India, on the advice of Lama Zopa Rinpoche.”
Watch “Maitreya Loving Kindness Tour Pet Blessings” on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/S8LVTVUsM7o
FPMT.org brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and of activities, teachings and events from nearly 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 Karmapa, Tushita Mahayana Meditation Centre, New Delhi, India, December 2015. Photo by Abhijeet Kumar.
Ven. Kabir Saxena shares news about His Holiness the Karmpa’s recent December 2015 visit to Tushita Mahayana Meditation Centre in New Delhi, India:
We were really fortunate that His Holiness the Karmapa fulfilled his promise to visit Tushita just before Christmas. It was a short morning visit, but very sweet.
Director Dr. Renuka Singh, in her welcome speech, quoted His Holiness the Dalai Lama who has said that whereas the last century belonged to people of his generation, the 21st century belongs to young leaders like the Karmapa, who have a great responsibility to guide people in these challenging times.
His Holiness the Karmapa started his visit by saying how he felt a good spiritual feeling as soon as he entered Tushita and that he appreciated that.
His Holiness the Karmapa, Tushita Mahayana Meditation Centre, New Delhi, India, December 2015. Photo by Abhijeet Kumar.
In his short interaction with the approximately 30 people who had gathered, His Holiness said that the emphasis given to mindfulness practice at the present time has not been wholly positive. He felt it had been commercialized and thus its effect cheapened. He warned us against using Dharma in this way. His Holiness also stressed the tremendous importance of motivation in our practice. This determines whether what we do is Dharma or not.
His Holiness then carefully ate one biscuit and nodded appreciatively.
Then, while Ven. Kabir Saxena read out some words of thanks, people bustled around His Holiness to have photos taken with him, to which he kindly and patiently consented.
Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s thanks to His Holiness for visiting were conveyed, as well as a plea for His Holiness’ guidance in these degenerate times. We requested His Holiness to have a long and healthy life, for his holy wishes to be fulfilled and recalled a moving image His Holiness himself had used some years back in which he said he would like to have the moon always be the bearer of his love for us, even when his body is no longer present.
After His Holiness left, the glow of his love still pervaded the small Tushita gompa. How fortunate we are!
Watch “His Holiness 17th Karmapa Blesses Tushita – Delhi on 21-12-2015” on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9iEsxXVdYw
FPMT.org brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and of activities, teachings and events from nearly 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.
Message from Ven Roger Kunsang, assistant to Lama Zopa Rinpoche and CEO of FPMT Inc :
“Dear Friends,
This year seems especially important for all Rinpoche’s students to come together in some way to offer practice and prayers for Rinpoche’s long and healthy life. When I asked Khadro-la for her observation, Khadro-la answered with a deep concern and wish that all the students in all the centers, projects and services come together in some way and offer a long life puja to Rinpoche, as well as perform 100,000 tsog offerings.
Khadro-la went on to explain how very important it is for Rinpoche to be present in this world for a long time, teaching and benefiting sentient beings in many different ways. Khadro-la talked about Rinpoche’s many special qualities, impressing how fortunate we are to have Rinpoche with us, guiding us in so many ways.
Please everyone join the Long Life Puja, participate in whatever way you can.”
The Official Long Life Puja on behalf of the entire FPMT will be offered to Lama Zopa Rinpoche at Amitabha Buddhist Centre in Singapore on Sunday, March 13th (as part of Rinpoche’s teaching event there). The puja will start at 9am Singapore time.
During the long life puja Rinpoche will be requested to give teachings on lojong (thought transformation). These teachings and the long life puja will be livestreamed so that all can participate live (or by video later).
How You Can Participate:
Help your center to offer prayers and practices for the health and long life of Lama Zopa Rinpoche with a long life puja, and by performing 100,000 tsog offerings with Lama Chopa.
Donations to the Lama Zopa Rinpoche Long Life Puja Fund are welcome.
More Information for FPMT Centers, Projects, Services and Study Groups
Lama Zopa Rinpoche with Khadro-la (Rangjung Neljorma Khadro Namsel Drönme), South India, January 2016. Photo by Ven. Roger Kunsang.
Geshe Thupten Jinpa, Portland, Oregon, US, May 2015. Photo by Chris Majors.
“I have had the privilege to serve His Holiness for so long and I know that one of his main focuses is to promote an appreciation of basic human values. He calls it ‘secular ethics,'” Geshe Thubten Jinpa, His Holiness’ principal English-language interpreter, told Mandala in an extensive interview.
“His Holiness is deeply interested in promoting this way of understanding and exploring human experience, and appreciating the key defining characteristics of what makes us human beings. These are qualities of compassion, empathy, forgiveness, a sense of connection, appreciation of others and so on, which are fundamental values. One of the things that His Holiness does is to convey this without any connection to Buddhism or religion. And I have been very impressed and inspired by that line of thinking and work. It has made a tremendous difference in the larger world.”
Read the complete interview “Cultivating Compassion: Geshe Thupten Jinpa Brings Dharma into the Secular World,” one of Mandala‘s featured online interviews. In it, Geshe Jinpa talks about the secular compassion training program he helped create as well as his newest book A Fearless Heart: How the Courage to Be Compassionate Can Transform Our Lives.
Kshitigarbha statue at Land of Medicine Buddha, California, US, January 2015
Ven. Losang Drimay reports on Land of Medicine Buddha’s 24-hour New Year’s Kshitigarbha “mantra-thon” to help fulfill Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s advice to pacify earthquakes, particularly those on the West Coast of the United States. Rinpoche has asked FPMT students to complete this advice by January 31, 2016:
Kshitigarbha statue. Photo courtesy of Ven. Losang Drimay.
With one month left to accomplish the practices recommend by Lama Zopa Rinpoche to pacify earthquakes in California and throughout the world, Land of Medicine Buddha held a 24-hour mantra-thon as a push to accumulate more recitations of the Kshitigarbha long mantra, one of the practices advised by Rinpoche. Over the 24 hours, we collectively recited 6,253 long mantras. As of January 11, Land of Medicine Buddha and other FPMT centers have collected 479,828 of the recommended 1.8 million long mantras, which is just over a quarter of the way towards the goal.
The mantra-thon went from 10 a.m. on December 31 to 10 a.m. on January 1. We had anywhere from 17 people (during the 11 p.m. session) to one person (during the 3 a.m. session), with six to eight being typical. Sessions began each hour with a 15-minute break between and a rotation of session leaders.
Staff member and participant Laurel Woolley said, “I thought it was a memorable and powerful way to bring in the New Year with the sangha, especially in light of the environmental events that we are expecting this year.”
Work-study resident Sue Ann Powers said, “Denice and all the sangha were inspirational in fulfilling our guru’s wishes.”
Some people here are still having a hard time deciding to do this Kshitigarbha practice, even though they consider themselves Buddhists. I try to remind people that following the guru’s advice is a way to create the cause to have the gurus stay with us and continue to guide us. Also, I stress that doing what the guru requests is not a matter of blind faith. First, we check carefully that the guru is qualified and has only our best interest in mind. Then, if what he or she is telling us to do is not dangerous or harmful, we should try to do it.
In this case, Lama Zopa Rinpoche and Khadro-la (Rangjung Neljorma Khadro Namsel Drönme) are trying to protect us from harm by giving us ways to purifying our negative karma in relation to the environment. That’s why we are doing these pacifying earthquake practices.
To help students everywhere with the mantra recitations, student Nadzeya Norton put together a subtitled video of Ven. Steve Carlier reciting the mantra clearly.
Watch “Kshitigarbha Practice Long Mantra” on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XurWgnnE8ro
The only way we are going to reach our goal of 1.8 million recitations is to get many more people reciting the mantra. If one million people recited the mantra just once, that’s a million right there! The mantra gets easier with practice. You just start out slow and gradually a rhythm develops. Thank you for helping!
FPMT.org brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and of activities, teachings and events from nearly 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 having tea with Ven. Thubten Labdron (Trisha Donnelly) at Root Institute, India, February 2015. Photo by Ven. Roger Kunsang.
Long-time FPMT student Ven. Thubten Labdron (Trisha Donnelly) passed away on December 19, 2015, in Queensland, Australia, due to cancer, with which she had recently been diagnosed. She was 71.
Ven. Trisha offered decades of service to FPMT. She helped start Tushita Mahayana Meditation Centre in Dehli, India, in 1978 and worked there until 1985. From there she went to Dharamsala to do retreat. In 1986 she traveled with Lama Zopa Rinpoche and a small group on Rinpoche’s first trip to Tibet. In the 1990s she lived for several years at Kopan Monastery in Nepal, doing her ngondro practice and working in the monastery clinic taking care of young monks. She also worked for the Maitreya Project from 1996 to 1998 while living at Kopan. In February 1999 Ven. Trisha, who was still a lay student at the time, became director of Root Institute in Bodhgaya, India. She left Root in December 2003 and got ordained. Then she returned for a second term as director at Root in 2007, remaining there until June 2015.
During her illness, Ven. Trisha was staying next to Chenrezig Institute in Queensland and was looked after by Sangha and lay friends. She spent her last hours at Dove House Hospice. When Ven. Trisha took her last breath, Ven. Yeshe Khadro, an old friend, was with her and on Skype with Ven. Holly Ansett who was with Lama Zopa Rinpoche in India. Rinpoche immediately began prayers for Ven. Trisha. Ven. Khadro was able to administer a holy relic pill offered by Rinpoche, who dedicated the Lama Chopa tsog on December 20 at Kopan House at Sera Monastery for Ven. Trisha.
Ven. Trisha will be remembered as a dedicated Dharma practitioner, a good friend and a wonderful, warm-hearted person by the countless FPMT students who had the good fortune to meet her.
Ven. Thubten Labron (Trisha Donnelly) before the foundation stone laying ceremony for the Maitreya Project in Kushinagar, India, December 2013. Photo by Andy Melnic.
Over the years, Ven. Trisha contributed several articles to Mandala, including an account from December 2013 of the foundation stone laying ceremony for the Maitreya Project in Kushinagar.
Mandala will share a complete obituary of Ven. Trisha in the July-December 2016 issue.
Video teachings of Lama Zopa Rinpoche are available 24/7 via Rinpoche Available Now!
Season’s greetings to you! We hope you enjoy the December 2015 FPMT International Office eNews.
There’s so much to rejoice about, including:
- A long life puja being offered to His Holiness the Dalai Lama during the Jangchup Lamrim teachings
- Sera Je Food Fund’s celebration of 25 years of offering food
- Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s newest book, How to Enjoy Death (coming out soon!)
- Giving the gift of Dharma – Foundation Store’s holiday specials
Subscribe to the FPMT International Office eNews today and receive important updates about Lama Zopa Rinpoche, FPMT International Office, and the broader FPMT organization directly to your email box.
Thubten Gyatso with new marble statues for Thubten Shedrup Ling, August 2015. Photo courtesy of TSL.
Long-time student and monk, Thubten Gyatso, shared with Mandala news from Thubten Shedrup Ling Monastery (TSL) in Australia:
All the monks and several volunteers have been working for six months to repair the fire damage to our new building, and at last we are nearing completion. The cost of repairs and replacement of destroyed equipment and holy objects has been completely covered by the generosity of many friends, in particular, the Vietnamese community of Melbourne.
Marble Tara statue carved for Thubten Shedrup Ling, 2015. Photo courtesy of TSL.
Now, Geshe Rapten from Sera Je and his translator, Losang Dorje from Nalanda Monastery, will be able to move directly into their new accommodation when they arrive in January. Geshe Rapten will be the new geshe for Atisha Centre.
Again through the generosity of the Vietnamese people, we have commissioned 1.2-meter (4-feet) high statues of Shakyamuni Buddha and the Sixteen Arhats, carved from white marble. These will be placed in the garden. In Saigon, another artisan is making similar-sized statues of Tara and Amithabha Buddha, copied from photographs of Mongolian statues made by the great bodhisattva Zanabazar. The artisan is also making a 2-meter (6.5-feet) high Thousand-armed Chenrezig for our new altar.
It appears that, on top of the current drought, we are facing the hottest and driest summer on record. With this and the recent theft of our AUS$5,000 solar powered water pump that brought water from a dam, our flowers are quite worried. But isn’t it wonderful that so much karma has been purified?
FPMT.org brings you news of Lama Zopa Rinpoche and of activities, teachings and events from nearly 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.
For more on Mandala January-June 2016, visit our webpage (https://fpmt.org/mandala/this-issue/), where you can also find this issue’s exclusive online content.
Mandala is offered as a benefit of the Friends of FPMT program. You can also order it from the FPMT Foundation Store.