Some lovely pictures of Tsum Himalaya landscape and it's surroundings taken by Geshe Tenzin Zopa.
Showing posts with label General. Show all posts
Showing posts with label General. Show all posts
Friday, March 20, 2009
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Monday, January 14, 2008
Update As At January 1st, 2008
On behalf of all the Tsum sanghas and other communities, we like to wish all the benefactors, volunteers, friends and direct or indirect supporters a very happy, healthy and successful meaningful 2008 year. In both Rachen Nunnery and Mu Monastery, they are performing extensive 4 Mandala Offerings, Tara Puja conjoined with Medicine Buddha practice, Incense Puja, Amitabha Pure Land Puja, Heart Sutra, Diamond Cutter Sutra and Long Life Deity practice everyday without any break through out the year especially dedicated to the long life of our guru His Holiness Dalai Lama, Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Khenrinpoche, Tenzin Phuntsok Rinpoche and to all the benefactors and supporters of this project. It will also be dedicated extensively for every good purpose of your life and I like to request you do the same from your side. These make things more effective and if you wish to add any specific dedication and name please e-mail to me and I will gladly forward them to our Tsum manager.
In end November 2007, Geshela Tenzin Choylay who is the resident teacher in Tsum Monastery and Nunnery, manager Ven Tenzin Lhundup, doctor Anila Dogra, the four other teachers and 50 over young nuns plus some senior nuns and monks from Rachen Nunnery and Mu Monastery came down to Kopan Monastery to spend winter for about two months during the heavy snow in Tsum. Their advantage was to learn philosophy from Khenrinpoche and with the ability to upgrade their studies by following the study program in Kopan. They also celebrated their new year there and receive profound teachings from the great masters followed by the annual great prayer festival. I was very delighted to see the joy of all the young nuns and monks with their faces glowing with much happiness. They were happy and felt contended as they had the opportunity to survey the progress of their study. They had done a good job!
The medical team, teachers and of course the manager and Geshela is doing a great job. Both the monastery and nunnery are really flourishing both in dharma as well as living condition and that is very pleasing and encouraging.
I was updated on the accountings by both the Kopan and Tsum Manager and I must say they did very clear and detailed accounts. I really thank them for that. At the same time it was extremely shocking to know we have spent a lot until the fund is below zero! Nevertheless I have full faith in the triple gem and I do not intend to stop any works.
We are almost at the completion stage of the sanghas room, living facilities, school and medical centre in the nunnery and we still need expenses for food and other administration.
Mu Monastery is half way through their constructions of rooms, school and other living conditions which started beginning of last year and will take at least another two years for completion. I also have in mind to build a big gompa like the one in the nunnery plus many other plans.
I am just waiting and praying for the miracle, the great bodhisattva benefactor to descend into this very poor, critical, needy and important project. Whoever great hearted being who wish to be part of this compassionate service to those urgent needy people in the
Saturday, September 15, 2007
A Word From Geshe Tenzin Zopa
I was in Tsum from Sept 6 to 15. It had been a while since my last visit due to my packed schedule to other areas. However, it was very encouraging to see the great achievements and progress in Tsum. Anyway I was there for 2 reasons. The first is for the Tsum project. It was planned under the advice by the most respected guru Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche (Rinpoche) and Khenrinpoche after the Tsum monastery and nunnery was handed over to Rinpoche in 2003 that I was appointed to oversee the development of this project. During my visit in 2004, I planned a 5 years project which included providing food, shelter, resources for over 100 monks and nuns and that includes building rooms for over 100 sanghas in Rachen Nunnery and for over 50 sanghas in Mu Monastery. By the end of 2006, I have completed all the rooms in Rachen Nunnery plus the facilities for the sanghas communities such as kitchen, storerooms, dining room, room for teachers and classrooms, schools, solar lights, renovation for old existing buildings, setting up water supply, clinic with complete sets of western and herbal Tibetan medicine and a full set of robes for sanghas every 3 years and a complete study program. We provide good teacher for different subjects as normal academic schools. Our qualified guru who is the spiritual guide Geshe Tenzin Chogley from Sera Je Monastery University has been assigned to take care of the complete vinaya monastic activities for both nunnery and monastery. He conducts philosophy studies and the extensive studies of ritual from the 4 traditions. Since I am trying to preserve this traditional long historical nunnery and monastery with the undivided tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, I am providing the annual teachings of complete graduated path to enlightenment such as Lam Rim from Gelug tradition, Kunsang Lamai Shallung from Nyingma Tradition, Dagpo Thagken from Kagyu Tradition and Lam Drey from the Shakya tradition. This precious teaching from the different tradition is regarded as the main teachings of graduated path to enlightenment conducted on a yearly basis to sanghas and lay communities in the Tsum region by Guru Geshe and he is to complete this teaching within four years (one year one tradition). We also established the annual great fasting retreat nyungnay for many days and zillions of accumulating the compassionate Buddha’s mantra and the Guru Padmasambawa’s mantra specially dedicated for the long life of His Holiness Dalai Lama, all the holy gurus and also to world peace. This is an annual practice which has been done in the past under the guidance of the founder Drukpa Nyawang Kyenrab Rinpoche and the great Mahasiddha Geshe Lama Konchog. It was extremely fortunate all events and retreats for the first year were fully sponsored by Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche and the second year by Khenrinpoche. I had the great honor to take charge of these meritorious events and by today all the senior sanghas are strictly preserving this authentic tradition by strictly staying in retreat, cultivating the essence teachings of the 4 traditions of Tibetan Buddhism and there are great signs of achieving realizations proven by past senior monks and nuns’ life long retreats. Very qualified senior monks and nuns there are transmitting their marvelous and rare skills of various rituals and practices on a daily basis without worrying about any material conditions such as food, shelter, including teachings…etc. There are a large number of monks and nuns who came into the monastery these last few years which was after we took over the project. Many of them were teenagers and they were provided with extensive academic study program and were also thought various skills both mundane and spiritual. The health care facility is run by a qualified doctor providing medicine and consultations at no cost. The presence of the sangha community brings great benefit for the villages through their constant guidance, prayers, consultations and social services. Their study program this year will begin in a few months time. In the Mu Monastery which is about 5 hours away from Nunnery, it has well developed rooms and schools, exactly like what was provided in the Nunnery. All these progress is indeed very encouraging. It inspires me to plan for bigger things such as to build a big gompa (temple). A gompa is very important as the numbers of sanghas are increasing so quickly and we also need to create a condition to invite great high lamas and teachers to conduct the annual teachings, initiation and blessing to that remote village. I just placed orders for all necessary things to build a very beautiful lama shrine and one stunning library and many other things.
On behalf of Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Kopan Monastery, our organization and all the sanghas of the Mu Monastery and Rachen Nunnery and all the villagers whose benefiting form the project, I represent all the above to show great appreciation, prostration and countless thanks to all the benefactors and volunteers who has made this project a great success within a very short time.
For the great development of this project, it has a lot to do with the generosity of the people from all over the world especially the two fund raising events that I have held in
For your information, there are still a lot of marvelous and meritorious on going plans and I will from time to time update this blog, so please visit the blog for any update.
If you like to know more about the past history of the Tsum Project, please log into www.fpmt.org/project/tsum/
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