Something from the Director ...

A warm hello to everyone again. It has been nearly a year since our last newsletter. Time passes so fast at Tushita – there’s so much happening all the time, it can sweep one along without noticing that the end of one’s life is approaching faster and faster. Although living in India, the veil of comfort and security is not as thick as in some other places of the world. All the analytical meditations on death and impermanence done at Tushita are not just mere philosophical experiments – they are all too real sometimes.

A few thanks ... firstly, a special “thank you” to Denma Locho Rinpoche for giving Vajrayogini Initiation and commentary at Tushita. It was a very blessed time for the Centre (the eight Nyung Na retreat was happening simultaneously too).

I would like to acknowledge the work of our office man supreme, Irish Jackie Livingstone. The office person has a very stressful job, dealing with so many people each day. Jackie was outstanding, with his patience, tolerance and humour. He had to leave suddenly for family reasons, but he will go down in Tushita’s history as being “one of the best” – thanks Jackie, we miss you.

And thanks to Gregg Ruskusky, who enthusiastically stepped into the role of Acting Director when I went to Delhi in March to help with the Gelug Conference. (And THAT was an amazing few days too!)

Our 10 day “Introduction to Buddhism” courses have been attracting up to 121 registrations each course lately (of which around 55 can actually participate). The shorter courses are also very well attended. Even in the monsoon, when we try to close the centre down a bit to provide a good retreat environment for the current twenty three-month Vajrasattva retreaters, and give the hard working staff a bit of a break, still many people come up and request teachings – it’s hard to refuse! Thanks to Ven Rita who always gives her time and energy to talk to groups even when everyone else has left to escape the monsoon! Thanks also to Venerables David Marks and Ann McNeil who have done a fantastic job as our resident teachers since the beginning of this year. Somehow the combination of a monk and a nun teaching, one having a slightly “new age” style of teaching and one having a more traditional style, has worked excellently.

One of the most satisfying accomplishments this year was finally lining the walls of the Vajrasattva Gompa with wooden shelves to display many thousands of Vajrasattva tsa tsas, as Lama Zopa Rinpoche advised. The tsa tsa shelves are fitted from the base of the windows up to the ceiling, with below the window level to the floor in beautiful wood panelling. So now when you enter the gompa, it has a soft gentle glow, along with a delicious smell of fresh wood. Eventually, lights will be placed along each shelf to illuminate the tsa tsas. And of course, presiding over all this beauty and inspiration, is the statue of Lama in Vajrasattva aspect. Our resident sculptor Jonathan, (the wonder Australian) has been hard at work, completely re-making the aura-surround behind Lama’s statue – this has been painstakingly sculptured in clay and is just about to be painted gold and set in place.

Another highlight of this year, was the arrival of the seven life-sized Medicine Buddha statues from Delhi, also made following the advice of Lama Zopa Rinpoche. Their presence certainly enhances the monthly Medicine Buddha pujas we do at Tushita!

Work has begun building a separate bathroom with toilet for Lama Zopa’s use beside Rinpoche’s new room. Once that’s completed, work will begin finishing the space underneath Lama Zopa’s new room, to be made into attendants’ rooms (or Lama rooms or retreat spaces when needed), a kitchen and waiting room, bathroom and toilet. It will be nice to be able to offer Lama Zopa and other visiting Lamas more comfortable accommodation.

And then, if we survive all that, work will begin on enlarging and making the main gompa more beautiful, to host the new 12 ft Lama Tsong Khapa statue! All this to be accomplished before mid February 2000 when Tushita’s year will begin with a rush with ...
* Pre Ordination Course for Sangha
* His Holiness’ public teachings beginning around 19th Feb
* Then straight into the two month Lam.rim retreat with Yangsi Rinpoche (which we are really looking forward to)
* More 10 day Introductory Courses begin again
* Then hopefully His Holiness will be able to give Vinaya teachings to the Sangha
* Then a one month Sangha retreat at Tushita
* The 2000 three month Vajrasattva retreat again
* And more introduction courses....
... it goes on and on and I hope Tushita will go on for a very long time, providing Dharma teachings and the environment for studying and retreating. It’s a very, very blessed place. Come and experience it yourself, and enjoy the unique atmosphere in Dharamsala.

With love,
Sally