International Office News
August 2022

Lama Zopa Rinpoche in Singapore, July 2022. Photo by Ven. Lobsang Sherab.

Lama Zopa Rinpoche:

Teachings in Singapore

Lama Zopa Rinpoche just concluded offering very precious teachings from Amitabha Buddhist Centre (ABC), Singapore. Teachings started on August 1 and continued through August 16 and initiations through August 28. We are in the process of releasing videos, transcripts, and summaries of these teachings through August 16 in our Lama Zopa Rinpoche News and Advice blog. 

Lama Zopa Rinpoche teaching at Amitabha Buddhist Centre in Singapore, August, 2022.

Newly Published Teachings, Talks, and Advice from Rinpoche

• A few hours after his discharge from a hospital in Singapore for a medical procedure, Lama Zopa Rinpoche joined the Amitabha Buddhist Centre (ABC) community in Singapore for their special celebration of His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s 87th birthday on July 6, 2022. Rinpoche offered incredibly powerful and precious words about His Holiness’s qualities, guru devotion, and impermanence.
• “The Foundation of Thought Transformation Is to Understand the Kindness of Sentient Beings,” is a teaching Rinpoche gave on June 26 from Kopan Monastery, Nepal, at the request of Telo Tulku Rinpoche, Ganden Tendar Ling FPMT Buddhist Center, Aryadeva FPMT Study Group, and the Save Tibet Foundation in Russia.
• “The Foundation of Thought Transformation Is to Stop Harming Others,” is a teaching Rinpoche gave on June 25 from Kopan Monastery, Nepal, at the request of Telo Tulku Rinpoche, Ganden Tendar Ling FPMT Buddhist Center, Aryadeva FPMT Study Group, and the Save Tibet Foundation in Russia.
• “Your Main Practice in Life Should Be Cherishing Others,” is a teaching Rinpoche offered to students from China and Malaysia via Zoom on June 13 from Kopan Monastery.
• “The Real Refuge Practice Is Cherishing Sentient Beings,” is a teaching Rinpoche offered to students from China and Malaysia via Zoom on June 12 from Kopan Monastery.
• “Live Your Life to Generate Bodhicitta,” was recorded in December 2017 at Kopan Monastery. By emphasizing that the most important thing in our life should be to generate and increase our bodhicitta. This is how we can best help ourselves and all sentient beings. This is how to achieve happiness.
• Recent episodes of the “Lama Zopa Rinpoche Essential Extracts Podcast” include, “The Real Enemy Is Our Self-Cherishing Thought,” and, “From Birth to Death We Believe in the Hallucination Projected by Ignorance.” New episodes are released every other Monday and previously published episodes are available on the Essential Extracts Podcast page as well.

All teachings from Lama Zopa Rinpoche are published regularly, unedited on our full-length teachings podcast shortly after the teaching finishes.

We’re Rejoicing About:

Support Offered for the Education of Children in India and Nepal

Students of Ngari Institute, Ladakh, India, one of the seven schools we are supporting through the Social Services Fund.

The FPMT Social Services Fund offers essential grants which benefit children, the elderly, sick, and very poor primarily in India, Nepal, Tibet, and Mongolia where access to aid is particularly. We wanted to share this recent update on the US$192,445 offered in grants this year to seven free schools in India and Nepal serving nearly 1,000 children. Please read more about these schools and their mission of offering both a modern and Dharma education to those most in need. We invite you to rejoice in this, and to learn how FPMT is helping to break the cycle of poverty and destitution in impoverished areas.

Merit Box Grants Awarded for 2022

Large prayer wheel under construction at Chandrakirti Center, New Zealand. The center was awarded a 2022 Merit Box grant for the project.

Earlier this year, 28 grants were awarded through the Merit Box Fund, providing a total of US$61,875 to FPMT centers, projects, services and study groups. This year included the remaining funds held for special hardship relief for financial difficulties caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Grants supported projects for book publications, holy objects, center repairs, a social service, and more! You can see the full list of 2022 grant recipients here.

This marked the 20th year of grants from the Merit Box Project! We share our gratitude for all of the generosity offered through the Merit Box Fund over the years. Over these two decades, US$1,216,780 has been distributed! While we no longer have physical Merit Boxes available for order, one can still offer support through our online donation form.

Scholarships Available for the Next FPMT Masters Program

We are pleased to announce that scholarships will be available for residential/full-time students of the two FPMT Masters Programs, starting February 2023 at Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa in Italy and February 2024 at Nalanda Monastery in France. The FPMT Masters Program is our most advanced education program. Six years of full-time study—combining a comprehensive curriculum with practice, training, service, and month-long retreats—are completed with the integrating experience of a year-long lamrim retreat.

You can learn more about the FPMT Masters Programs being offered at Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa in the Tuscany region of Italy, and at Nalanda Monastery in the South of France.

For information about the scholarships, the criteria for eligibility and the application process, please contact FPMT Education Services.

Become a Friend of FPMT

What’s New?

New Blogs and Stories from FPMT.org

Lama Yeshe teaching at Chenrezig Institute, Australia,1979. Photo courtesy of Pearl Bailey (donor) and Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive.

You can keep up on all of our latest blogs, featured stories, community news, and teachings by checking in regularly to the What’s New page on FPMT.org.

Recent highlights include:

• “Acting in the Middle Path,” excerpted from a teaching given by Lama Yeshe at Chenrezig Institute, Australia, in September 1979.
• “Helping Tenzin Phuntsok Rinpoche Prepare for His Rik Chung Debate: Ven Tenzin Gache Shares the Story”

Publications to Support Your Dharma Study and Practice:

Foundation Store Highlights

• 1,000 Offerings to the Victorious One Invincible Savior, Maitreya is an abbreviated offering ritual to Maitreya Buddha arranged by Lama Zopa Rinpoche.

• King of Naga Lords is a short practice of the King of Naga Lords, one of the Thirty-Five Buddhas, composed by Lama Zopa Rinpoche. Reciting the name of the Naga King has the power to purify heavy negative karma and you don’t receive harm from nagas through diseases such as leprosy, arthritis, or cancer.

• Mantra of Akashagarbha for Success is the mantra of the bodhisattva Akashagarbha and has unbelievable benefits and it is especially beneficial when you are going to speak to someone or request something, or when success is particularly important. You can recite the mantra and also wear it.

• The Dharani Called “Possessing the Attributes of All the Buddhas is a Dharani to protect from the fears of aging, sickness, debilitation, and death. Available in English, French, Tibetan, Indonesian, and audio.

• Milarepa’s Hymn: During a Milarepa initiation Lama Zopa Rinpoche offered a profound commentary on Milarepa’s Hymn, an inspiring prayer concluding that the way to really enjoy happiness in this life is by giving up desire. Listen to this hymn.

• Verse to Put at the Base of Paintings and Statues of Milarepa: During an Milarepa initiation, Lama Zopa Rinpoche translated this verse to put at the base of holy objects depicting Milarepa.

• A Very Short Medicine Buddha Practice is a short practice with Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s advice on the benefits of reciting and hearing the Medicine Buddha mantra and the actual practice, including the long and the short mantra of Medicine Buddha.

Minor updates:

• Liberating Animals from the Dangers of Death PDF
• Prayers for the Long Life of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Tibet PDF
• Prayer of Auspiciousness from the Mani Kabum PDF
• Prayer to Chenrezig, Compassionate-Eye-Looking One PDF
• The Exalted Zung Called ”Thoroughly Pacifying Hatred” PDF
• King of Prayers PDF
• The Dharani Called ”Possessing the Attributes of All the Buddhas” MP3 Download
• Medicine Buddha: The Wish Fulfilling Jewel PDF

New material in other languages:

• El Yoga de las Tres Purificaciones de Shri Chakrasamvara PDF

For a complete list of FPMT Education Services prayers and practices, please visit our catalogue page. You can also find all new arrivals, updated materials, and translated materials in our Foundation Store (shop.fpmt.org).

Opportunities and Changes within the Organization:

Would you like to spend your days making a meaningful contribution? Have a look at the various meritorious opportunities to offer service providing the opportunity to serve as a volunteer or as paid staff in FPMT centers, projects, and services around the world.

Impermanence at Work

Contact information for the following, and all FPMT centers, projects, and services, can be found in the FPMT Directory.

Karuna Hospice Service, Australia
We welcome new spiritual program coordinator (SPC) – Ven. Tsultrim
With grateful thanks to outgoing SPC – Ven. Chodron

Lawudo Gompa, Nepal
We welcome new director – Geshe Tsultrim Sherab
With grateful thanks to outgoing director – Sangay Sherpa

Ocean of Compassion Buddhist Center, USA
We welcome new director – Stefanie Harvey
With grateful thanks to outgoing director – Kim Winn

Shakyamuni Center, Taiwan
We welcome new director – Ven. Thubten Osel
With grateful thanks to outgoing director – Huang Chun Roo

Tara Institute, Australia
We welcome new director – Kerry Whitlock
With grateful thanks to outgoing director – Damien Busby

Tushita Meditation Centre, Spain
We welcome new director (previously acting co-director) – Albert Gamez
And we welcome new SPC (previously acting co-director) – Marina Brucet

Yeshin Norbu, Sweden
We welcome new director – Carina Thoren
With grateful thanks to outgoing director – Amanda Mindus

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FPMT International Office is Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s office.