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"All self-centered thoughts limit our vast mind. When we have no thought of achievement, no thought of self, we are true beginners. Then we can really learn something. The beginner's mind is the mind of compassion. When our mind is compassionate, it is boundless."
Suzuki Roshi
Rinpoche has many monastics under his care in Nepal, where he grew up and currently lives. In his main monastery, Ngesdon Osel Ling, many young monks from poor regions of the Himalayas receive excellent education and training in traditional Buddhist philosophy, meditation practice, languages and rituals. In Pharping Gebchak Gonpa, nuns who journeyed from Tibet on foot live and practice in a new retreat setting. In Chumig Gyatsa Gargon Abbey, nuns who recently struggled to maintain their tradition due to extreme poverty and dilapidated conditions now thrive, spending half of the year studying Buddhist scriptures and language in the Kathmandu Valley, and the other half alternating between retreat in the valley and service in Muktinath. Please click here to learn how you can help.
Ösel Ling is Rinpoche's seat in the East. More than 85 monks from Nepal and Tibet are schooled here by khenpos (teachers) who are widely educated in Tibetan Buddhism. Daily classes are given in many subjects, such as Tibetan and Nepali language, history and calligraphy. The monks are also well trained in philosophy, debate and traditional ritual practice. Many of the monks come from Nubri and Mustang, remote and poor areas of northern Nepal. Rinpoche originally planned for 50 monks, but has been unable to refuse the repeated requests from villages in these areas to accept more of their sons for Buddhist education and training. The monks’ quarters and the lhakong (assembly hall) are therefore over capacity.
Chumig Gyatsa Gargon Abbey and Clinic (mustang, nepal)
The Chumig Gyatsa Gargon Abbey and Clinic in Mustang is a classic example of the power of faith and trust. Located near the ancient pilgrimage site of Muktinath, the Abbey has been in existence for at least 300 years. Nearly 60 years ago, a devastating fire destroyed the Abbey, leaving the nuns without a home. These nuns struggled to maintain their nunnery without the guidance of a spiritual head or any basic material support. Despite these difficulties, they prayed daily as best they could in their shrine room, which was rapidly disintegrating. Hearing of a great Tibetan lama of their own lineage, three senior nuns walked hundreds of miles over mountainous terrain to Kathmandu in 1991 to request the spiritual and material help of Tsoknyi Rinpoche III.
Chumig Gyatsa Nuns
Rinpoche’s first visit led to the immediate construction of 10 small rooms. Since then, their nunnery has been repaired and enlarged, and the nuns were able to perform a full Buddhist ritual practice for the first time. Twenty young girls were ordained and joined the community. Today, the 51 nuns divide their time between Kathmandu and Muktinath. Also, a health clinic was constructed that serves the nuns and the local community. This year, a new large shrine hall is being constructed.
Pharping Gebchak Anis (pharping, nepal)
In 1999, a group of Gebchak nuns from East Tibet (also having practiced for decades without a spiritual guide) walked from Eastern Tibet to Kathmandu to meet their guru, Tsoknyi Rinpoche III. Upon their arrival, Rinpoche established the Gebchak Changchub Nuns Meditation Retreat Center (sister nunnery to Gebchak Gonpa in Tibet) in Pharping, a small village just outside the Kathmandu valley. Here, he created the opportunity for 23 nuns to complete a strict three-year retreat in a farmhouse. The nuns practiced just as they did in Tibet, sitting in meditation all day, and practicing dream yoga throughout the night. Now, with new young women from Nubri, there are about 32 nuns in the community.
Nuns of Nepal with Tsoknyi Rinpoche, Mingyur Rinpoche and Khenpo
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