KSC news    Updated September 20, 2009

 
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Lama Jamdron, Offers Tibetan Buddhist Meditation Instruction, 13-15 September 2009
Sunday, September 13 at 1pm        The Four Noble Truths
 Yoga on the Hill, 78 Government Street (intersection of Rte 1), Kittery, ME. Open to the public. Suggested donation: $5.00. Chair seating available. Bring floor cushion if preferred.
Tuesday, September 15 at 7:30pm    The Seven Points of Mind Training 
West End Studio Theatre, 959 Islington Street, Portsmouth, NH. Open to the public. Bring floor cushion if preferred.

 

Lama Jamdron began her study of Tibetan Buddhism in 1984, soon after graduating from Vassar College in New York. In 1986 she entered the traditional Tibetan Buddhist three-year meditation retreat under the guidance of renowned retreat master Lama Norlha Rinpoche. Participants in such a retreat study original Tibetan texts and practice a graduated path of meditations that introduces them to the entire scope of Tibetan Buddhist teachings. 

 

Lama Jamdron has lived at Kagyu Thubten Choling Monastery since 1986, acting as an assistant teacher for the three-year retreats and as translator and personal secretary for Lama Norlha Rinpoche. She has accompanied Rinpoche on teaching tours all over the world, and recently returned from her fourth trip to Tibet, where she assisted Rinpoche in his efforts to establish and maintain monasteries for monks and nuns, and schools and medical programs for the public.

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bulletLama Depa is Coming To Portsmouth! Tuesday July 15, 2008   7:30
TRANSFORMING FEAR & CONFUSION INTO WISDOM
Tuesday, July 15, 7:30pm.  West End Studio Theatre, 959 Islington St., Portsmouth NH.
Kagyu Samten Choling Seacoast Dharma Study Group will host  a teaching in Portsmouth by Lama Depa, an ordained Tibetan Buddhist lama. The talk will address methods to transform fear and confusion through compassion.  Open to the public, no experience required.  Contributions welcome.  For more information, call (207) 438-9338 or email annsauve@aol.com.

 

Lama Depa is a senior teacher at Kagyu Thubten Choling, the monastery and retreat center directed by Lama Norlha Rinpoche in Wappingers Falls, New York. Lama Depa was ordained in 1986 by H.H. Dorje Chang Kalu Rinpoche, and has completed two traditional three-year retreats under the direction of Lama Norlha Rinpoche. She has taught extensively at various centers affiliated with Lama Norlha Rinpoche and at Omega Institute. She also leads Dharma activities and meditation practice for children and adolescents, and is presently completing a program for local teenagers, "Training in the Confidence of Selfless Compassion."

 


 

         

bulletKagyu Samten Choling schedule, spring,summer 2008: We meet every Tuesday evening in Portsmouth NH from 7:30-8:30pm for calm abiding meditation and study.We meet in Barrington on Thursday evenings from 7:30-9:00pm at the Barrington Dharma Center on Lois Lane to chant the traditional Tibetan practices of Chenrezi and Mahakala; and the first Sunday of each month from 10:00-11:30am, also in Barrington, to chant the practices of Green Tara and Medicine Buddha and do calm abiding meditation. In case of cancellation due to inclement weather,or other factors please contact us  before making the journey. For details, click here.  Stay tuned for updates.
bulletUpcoming events at KTC Monastery in Wappingers Falls, New York:
The Inauguration of the Seventh Cycle of the Three-Year Retreat - January 5, 2008      
Lama Norlha Rinpoche is pleased to announce the inauguration of the seventh cycle of the three-year retreat at Kagyu Thubten Choling. Participants in the retreat study original Tibetan texts and practice a graduated path of meditations that introduces them to the entire scope of Tibetan Buddhist teachings. The retreat is an excellent opportunity for practitioners to build a strong foundation of dharma practice that will not only benefit themselves, but will enable them to benefit the Buddha's teachings and all sentient beings.
We invite our members and friends to join us on this joyous and virtuous occasion. As  you may know our beloved former center director,Linda Jordan will be entering this  retreat. Please visit www.kagyu.com for details about this retreat,KTC's regular schedule and other upcoming activities.
 
bulletThe Dharma Path  is a program of structured meditation practice for lay practitioners offered by KTC Monastery. Anyone may participate from any location. We have a number of participants in the KSC community in New Hampshire and Maine, and some of our group activities are now structured to help fulfill the requirements of the program. Please visit the KTC website or contact us.
bullet Portsmouth schedule: Kagyu Dak Shang Choling meets every Tuesday from 7:30 to 8:30pm at the West End Studio Theater, 959 Islington Street, to study and practice shinay (calm abiding) meditation. New:We have just added a short practice of Medicine Buddha on the first Tuesday of each month.Beginners and visitors are always welcome. Click here for details.
2007 KTC Saka Dawa Million Mani Initiative, May 16-June 15: The final tally is in, and it's over 3 million! Working together, KTC Monastery and its affiliated centers, along with individuals from Colorado to Toronto to Cornwall UK, accomplished 3,168,532  recitations of om mani peme hung, the mantra of Chenrezi, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, during the holy month of Saka Dawa. For details, click here. For comments from some of our participants, click here.
bullet2006 Million Mantra Initiative! Continuing an annual tradition we began in 2003 following Lama Norhla Rinpoche's example, we joined together as a community to accomplish one million recitations of om mani peme hung, the mantra of Chenrezi, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, during the holy month of Saka Dawa, May 28-June 25. We had 22 participants and recited a total of 1,131,810 mantras. Click here for details, a list of participants, and some of their comments on the experience.
bulletSeptember 17-19, 2006, Lama Norlha Rinpoche visited New Hampshire and Maine for the seventh time since 2001. Rinpoche gave a seminar at the Barrington Dharma Center entitled "Who Am 'I'?" about our concept of self and how it is constructed and maintained by means of the five aggregates--and how it is contrary to reality. Six people took the Refuge Vow and 20 people took the Bodhisattva Vow. At the West End Studio Theater in Portsmouth, 40 people took advantage of an opportunity to receive direct meditation instruction and to practice meditation with Rinpoche, followed by questions on topics ranging from how to deal with illness to the nature of after-death experiences in the bardo.
bulletLama Depa, an ordained teacher from KTC Monastery, gave a seminar on "Training the Mind toward Awakening in Meditation and Daily Life," based on the Seven Points of Mind Training and tong len (taking and sending) meditation, in Barrington in November 2005.  Click here for details.
bulletWe had a wonderful visit from Lama Norlha Rinpoche August 26-29, 2005. He gave  a public talk in Portsmouth on "Finding Peace in Everyday Life," followed by a two-day seminar on calm abiding and direct insight meditation in Kittery Point, Maine.
bulletWe had a wonderful visit from Lama Norlha Rinpoche November 14-16, 2004. The theme of his activities during this visit was healing and coping with illness and other adversities. Rinpoche gave a talk at the Portsmouth Unitarian Church on "Transforming Illness and Adversity into The Path of Awakening." He also gave the Medicine Buddha Empowerment and a teaching on the Medicine Buddha practice and its role in healing oneself and others.
bulletLama Palmo Baker taught a seminar in Portsmouth in January, entitled "Voices of Great Female Masters: The Wisdom of Buddhist Women." The seminar introduced students to several classic songs by enlightened female practitioners, and included an all-day meditation retreat using the songs as meditation instruction.
bulletIn memoriam: Wim Frank, a founding member of both Kagyu Samten Choling in 2000 and the Barrington Zen group in 1994, passed away June 15, 2004, at the age of 88. His motivation and diligence with regard to Dharma practice were inspiring to all of us, and clearly served him well at the end of his life.  A photo of Wim with Lama Norlha Rinpoche may be found in our photo album. We remember Wim with great affection and respect, and continue to think of him often during our practice.
bulletVisiting teacher Palmo Baker gave a meditation workshop/seminar August 27-29, 2004: "Getting Started on the Path to Awakening: The Preliminary Practices of Tibetan Buddhism."
bulletLama Depa from KTC Monastery visited our Dharma centers in New Hampshire April 15-20, 2004. She taught a wonderful seminar on shinay meditation. Among other techniques, she taught meditation using each of the five senses as the focus of awareness, based on recent teachings by Mingyur Rinpoche at KTC.
bulletLama Tsultrim Ozer from KTC Monastery visited KSC and KDSC in February to give a seminar on shinay (calm abiding) meditation. He taught from the Aspiration Prayer of Mahamudra by the Ninth Karmapa, which presents a concise overview of the entire path to enlightenment, including instructions on meditation.
bullet Lama Norlha Rinpoche, the abbot of Kagyu Thubten Choling Monastery in Wappingers Falls, NY, taught in NH May 31-June 1, 2003. On Friday evening, Rinpoche gave a talk at the Portsmouth Unitarian Church, "What to Rely On in Difficult Times," attended by 150 people. On Saturday, he gave a full-day teaching on the six bardos, or intermediate states, including the experiences we undergo during and following death, and how to prepare for and help others through this difficult time. On Sunday Rinpoche gave the Refuge Vow and the empowerment of Chenrezi, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, the main practice we do at KSC and KDSC. During his visit, Rinpoche also enjoyed a walk along the Maine seacoast at Fort Foster in Kittery Point, and an excellent lunch at the Shalimar Indian Restaurant in Portsmouth. He has promised to return to New Hampshire and Maine to teach again as soon as possible.
bulletView a slide show of the history of KTC Monastery's recently completed stupa. The stupa, which is reflected in the Hudson River, is a physical symbol of the Buddha's enlightenment, and is considered to bring immense blessing, benefit and harmony to the region and the world.
bulletFor information about Lama Norlha Rinpoche's charitable projects in Kham, eastern Tibet, please visit www.nyema.org. Since 1982, in addition to his Dharma activity in the U.S., Rinpoche has been working tirelessly to rebuild his monastery in Tibet and support others; to build a flourishing monastery for nuns, which now includes the first monastic college for women in the history of Tibet; to establish free schools for the children of this remote region; and to provide basic health care, which has not been available for several decades. 
bullet Lama Norlha Rinpoche also visited Portsmouth and Barrington November 10-11, 2001. Click here for a synopsis of his previous activities in New Hampshire. 
bulletA Portsmouth Herald article on Buddhism includes quotes from Lama Norlha Rinpoche's talk in November 2001 on "Transforming Fear and Anger with Compassion."
bulletA Zen group meets at the Barrington Dharma Center several times a week, including a full day of sitting meditation once a month. Click here for contact information.
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