Lama Yeshe, Sicily, 1983. Photo by Jacie Keeley, courtesy of Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive.

In 1983, more than 50 centers and projects constituted the international FPMT mandala. Representatives from those centers and projects gathered in January of that year at Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa in Italy to discuss the registration of FPMT as a charitable organization and the formulation of its bylaws. During the week-long meeting, Lama Thubten Yeshe, who founded the FPMT organization with Lama Zopa Rinpoche, gave an inspiring talk on the FPMT organization’s objectives, structure, and function. Here’s an excerpt from that talk:

Why have we established the FPMT? Why are we establishing these facilities all over the world? I think we are clean clear as to our aim—we want to lead all sentient beings to higher education. We are an organization that gives people the chance to receive higher education.

We offer people what we have—the combined knowledge of Buddha’s teachings and the modern way of life. Our purpose is to share our experience of this.

We know that people are dissatisfied with worldly life, with the education system and everything else. It is in the nature of our dualistic mind to be dissatisfied. So what we are trying to do is to help people discover their own totality and thus perfect satisfaction.

Now, the way we have evolved is not through you or me having said we want to do these things but through a natural process of development. Our organization has grown naturally, organically. It is not “Lama Yeshe wanted to do it.” I’ve never said that I want centers all over the world. Rather, I came into contact with students who then wanted to do something, who expressed the wish to share their experience with others, and put together groups in various countries to share and grow with others.

Personally, I think that’s fine. We should work for that. We are human beings; Buddhism helps us grow. Therefore, it is logical that we should work together to facilitate this kind of education. And it is not only we lamas who are working for this. The centers’ resident geshes and the students are working too. Actually, it is you students who are instrumental in creating the facilities for Dharma to exist in the Western world. True. Of course, teachers help, but the most important thing is for the students to be well educated. That is why we exist.

When we started establishing centers there was no overall plan—they just popped up randomly all over the world like mushrooms, because of the evolutionary process I’ve just mentioned and the cooperative conditions. Now that all these centers do exist, we have to facilitate their development in a constructive, clean clear way; otherwise everything will just get confused. We have to develop properly both internally and in accordance with our 20th-century environment. That’s why I’ve already put forward guidelines for how our centers should be—residential country communities, city centers, monasteries, and so forth. …

Now, the way to bring Dharma to the Western world is to bring the nuclear, essential aspect of Dharma. Of course, you cannot separate the essence from the Eastern cultural trappings immediately: “This is culture; that isn’t.” However, what you should do is take the practical points of Dharma and shape them according to your own culture. In my opinion, you should be making a new kind of Dharma dependent on each different place and its social customs. Since we are Mahayanists, we have a broad view and don’t mind if Dharma takes different shapes. To bring Dharma to the West, we should have a broad view. …

Our aim is clear; it is to educate people. Each center should have strong emphasis on education. The education system and program are essential for us to be successful. Why are we building communities? Because we have no home? No! We are not refugees; we have not started centers to house refugees. Thus it is important for each center to have a strong educational program and a spiritual director to conduct it. This is an essential part of our structure and must be there.

But I am not going to keep telling you things that you know already. Still, it is important that I clarify the reason for our existence and what we are doing. It is important work; we are not joking. We are real. Also, we are confident. I have great confidence in my involvement with Western people; I believe in it. I think that there are things that we can understand in common. We understand each other; therefore, we can work together.

Also, it is important for directors to have a great vision; they should not neglect their center’s growth. They should have a very broad view in order to be open to people. In many of our centers we find that already the facilities are too small. Of course, to build adequate facilities takes time and energy; but we should have a broad open view: “We would like to have things this way, without limitations.” Having a broad view is not forcing any issue but simply saying that if we have the opportunity to do various things, we’ll do them. You never know when somebody might come up to you and say, “I’d like to do something beneficial with my money.” At that time you can reply, “Well we have this project ready to develop,” and show that person your plans. If, however, you feel suffocated with what you already have and don’t have any vision of how to expand, you can’t show potential benefactors anything. Therefore, you should plan ahead with great vision and have everything ready to show people how you want to expand and improve your facilities. … Remember—to bring Dharma to the West, we have to have a broad view.

Read more in “Lama Yeshe’s Legacy: Taking a Broad View.” From Lama Yeshe’s address to the Council for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (CPMT) meeting at Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa, Italy, January 1983. Edited by Nicholas Ribush and excerpted in Mandala January-March 2015. You can read the entire talk “Lama Yeshe’s Address to the FPMT Family” on the Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive website (lamayeshe.com).

Through timely advice, news stories, and updates, FPMT.org and Mandala Publications share the wisdom culture inspired and guided by the teachings of FPMT founders Lama Thubten Yeshe and Lama Thubten Zopa Rinpoche.