Pathgate News
Seminars for the Pathgate Sangha in Dublin, Athens, Hong Kong and Singapore
During May 2005, Lama Dondrup Dorje was invited to give a two-day seminar in Dublin, Ireland. This was followed by another seminar in Athens in early June. In both Dublin and Athens, members of the Pathgate Sangha were joined by students of other local Dharma Centres. In mid June, Lama Dondrup Dorje was in Hong Kong and Singapore to give a three-day seminar in each place to members of the Pathgate Institute of Buddhist Studies - the second seminar for Hong Kong this year and the third one for Singapore. (See photos).
Dharma Teaching and Taiji Picnic
On the weekend of 30th April and 1st of May, in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne, England,
Lama Dondrup Dorje gave a two day seminar on Lojong, the Eight Verses of Mind Transformation. This
Mahayana teaching on taming the mind is common to both the Sutra and Tantra traditions.
The objective of this mind training practice is to transform the dualistic mind into a
compassionate mind, through a process of recognising and removing negative thoughts and
harmful attitudes we have towards others.
This teaching which is relevant and applicable in all aspects of everyday modern life was followed by a one-day Taiji Picnic attended by over one hundred guests. A few weeks later, another two-days teaching, this time on the Namcho's 'Liberation is in the Palm of Your Hand' was given to the Pathgate students with once again the third day given to a Taiji Picnic. You can view the footage of the Taiji Picnic at the Pathgate Theatre.
Pathgate students in month long retreat in Namdroling Monastery, India
In February, Lama Dondrup Dorje took a group of eighteen students - from Cyprus, France, Canada, Singapore, New Zealand, Mexico and the United Kingdom – to the Namdroling Monastery in India to attend the month long Ngondro retreat given by His Holiness Penor Rinpoche. During their stay, Lama Dondrup Dorje’s Root Guru, His Holiness Penor Rinpoche, gave sound advice and instruction to the students – for the full account, see “Dharma Teaching” under “Penor Rinpoche”. (See photo).
Medical equipment for the Namling Tsepal Tobkyed Hospital
A large consignment of medical equipment and supplies were presented by Lama Dondrup Dorje to His Holiness Penor Rinpoche this February before being delivered to the Namling Tsepal Tobkyed Hospital which is administrated by Namdroling Monastery. A big thank you to the assistance given by the KLM office in Amsterdam for the shipment. The Pathgate Partnership Programme, which funded the many costs incurred at the new hospital including wages for staff, doctors and nurses, as well as costs for the power supplies and so forth was first started in May 2004. (See photo).
English edition of the Namdroling Monastery Daily Prayer Book published
The translation of the prayer book, ‘Wish-Granting Attainments’ is now complete and in print, published jointly by Namdroling Monastery and Pathgate Institute of Buddhist Studies in March 2005. The book is translated by Lopen Phuntsho Gyeltshen of Ngagyur Nyingma Institute and edited by Ngakpa Dondrup Dorje (Lama Dondrup Dorje) of Pathgate Institute of Buddhist Studies. Proof-reading of the text was made by Khenchen Tsewang Gyatso, Khenpo Tenzin Norgay and Khenpo Sangay Wangdi. Ani Dawa Choetso of Pathgate Institute of Buddhist Studies provided additional assistance to the project. This is the first time this prayer book has been translated into English. It has 239 pages and has a user-friendly format and layout. The front cover of the book is decorated with the emblem of Nyingmapa, selected personally by His Holiness Penor Rinpoche at the request of Lama Dondrup Dorje. ‘Wish-Granting Attainments’ daily prayers of Namdroling Monastery was translated into English in the hope to assist foreign students in the understanding of Tibetan prayers in both the phonetic sounds and the meaning. This prayer book contains all the essential and most common prayers used in the Palyul Tradition to meet the needs of beginners, such as the novice monks of Namdroling Junior High School.
Since the publishing of the English edition, Lama Dondrup Dorje has journeyed to Taiwan to make arrangements for the text to be translated into Chinese, with added Chinese phonetics and Chinese meaning.
New Computers for Namdroling Monastery
Since May 2004, one dozen desktop computers, in addition to laptop computers, printers, scanners, UPS (power supply units) and other office equipment has been procured for the Namdroling Monastery to be distributed for use between the Ngagyur Nyingma Institute, Tsogyal Shedrup Dargyeling, and the Monastery Administrative Office. New effort is now underway to determine the practicality of utilising solar energy as an alternative power supply to run the computers. (See photo).
Arlikumari Nursery School is still sound and standing
A recent revisit by Lama Dondrup Dorje to the Arlikumari Nursery School in Bylakuppe, South India, found the school buildings remained in sound condition. The school first received funding support in 2001 from Pathgate Institute of Buddhist Studies for the construction of a new extension, a new water tower with bathrooms, new carpets and a full range of modern educational tools for the classrooms, concrete flooring for the playground and the erecting of a school wall and front gate to enclose the entire school. The new facilities were blessed and officially opened by His Holiness Penor Rinpoche in the spring of 2002. Before the renovation of the nursery, the school had no enclosing wall and no gate. Stray dogs had been known to wander in and the playground became a muddy field during rainy season. Now, the children enjoy going to school, where their parents feel that their children are in a safe environment, with the risk of disease due to poor hygiene being much reduced. (See photo).
Improved living conditions at the Tsogyal Shedrup Dargyeling, India’s largest Tibetan Nunnery
We are happy to report that a number of projects started in 2004 to improve the living condition of Tsogyal Shedrup Dargyeling have been completed. A water tower to provide filtered drinking water has already been in operation for over a year. Other completed Pathgate projects at the Nunnery included the opening of a clinic, the completion of a three-day Memorial Monlam for Mipam Rinpoche, funding the cost of year long power supply, provision of a new refrigerator and so forth. Other projects that are currently underway include the plan to concrete part of the nunnery ground in preparation for the rainy season, the relocation of the main gate and the completion of a wing of dormitories comprising some sixty rooms which is still awaiting the installation of windows, doors, water and power supply plus final finishing. All these will vastly improve the living conditions for the resident nuns at India’s largest Tibetan nunnery (See photo).
Interior decoration of Padma Sangag Chokorling is close to finished
Interior finishing of Padma Sangag Chokorling, a new temple situated at the new camp in Bylakuppe is near completion. The cost of construction of the new temple is met by a number of sponsors. The marble flooring used throughout the temple is funded by the Pathgate Partnership Programme (See photo).