Kagyu Samye Dzong London News

September 2008
             

Contents

  1. Yes they did get there - final bike ride report!
  2. Making friends with stress, and other teachings
  3. Forthcoming Events
 Kagyu Samye Dzong aims to provide a place
of peace and tranquillity for all in central
London, with the shrine room available for
individuals to come and sit during the day. For
full details of the Centres, including the programme of evening meditations and forthcoming events, visit the website at: www.samye.org/london

News in Brief

Big changes are taking place at Samye Dzong London. A little over five years since we were given 12 months notice to quit Carlisle Lane, we are finally leaving at the end of this month.

  • Farewell Fair house and garden sale Saturday 13th and Sunday 14th September
    10am – 5pm. When the Savoy Hotel closed for renovation they sold off all their lampshades, books, chairs, etc to the public. Well, we’re facing a demolition, and so we’re doing the same -- but what you’ll get is much better than a Savoy lampshade: Ever fancied cooking your dinner in a pot that has seen many meals made for Lamas and Rinpoches? How about enriching your book shelf with a Dharma book that has soaked up the Centre’s atmosphere? Or how about adopting a plant that grew in the silence of our meditations. So come to our house and garden sale and for a small donation you can let Carlisle Lane continue to live at your own home!
  • Carlisle Lane Closing Party Saturday 27 September 3pm
    Come and celebrate 10 years at Carlisle Lane Centre on Saturday 27th September at 3pm when we are going to have a Closing Party. We hope you can come on this special occasion.
  • Cooks needed at Samye Dzong every day except Monday, Thursday and Friday. Our excellent cook, Ira, is moving on. Starting on the 24th Sept he will be travelling to India, New Zealand, somebody mentioned Canada as well. In addition to a big thank you to Ira for all the wonderful meals he's produced for us, we're also putting out an appeal for new volunteer cooks to help out. If you'd like to cook lunch on one (or more) days per week on a regular basis the office would be delighted to hear from you whether by email or phone on 020-7708 8969.
  • Community Clinic Open Day - If you'd like a taster of any one (or more) of a range of complementary therapies, check out this Open Day on Sun 5th Oct, 11.00 - 6.00 pm. See Forthcoming Events for further information.
  • A new Tibetan Language Class for beginners will be starting on Wednesday 5th November from 7.00-8.30 pm. Over seven weeks you will learn the Tibetan alphabet, how to read and write, and some vocabulary. In order to confirm your place on this course you must book and pay in advance. If you'd like to know more about the benefits of learning Tibetan, click here.

..and now for the rest of the newsletter.

1 - Yes they did get there - final bike ride report! (Really!!!)


Watch the video of the ride here,
including the arrival at Samye Ling

Bernard Mordan writes:

"During a break in the rain, in front of Akong Rinpoche, Lama Yeshe Rinpoche, Lama Zangmo and the gathered crowds, our four brave bike riders arrived at the steps of Samye Ling temple. Will, Neil, Andy and Pete all worked hard to train for the ride, and managed to make the trip free from major spills and debilitating injury. Then finally, having been rained on and baked in sun-shine during their 518 mile ride from London, they were doused in sparkling fruit drink and given a hero's welcome.

As I watched the bikers arrive through my camera lens I felt a wonderful rush of excitement through the back of my neck because I remember the meeting when the original idea of riding to Samye Ling was first mooted. This sequence of cause and effect I was celebrating with the riders, a fundraising idea thought up in the tearoom, had turned into £10,000 cash. Now the £10,000 just needed to turn into a building for Kagyu Samye Dzong London, a Tibetan Buddhist meditation centre for world peace and health.

We can all feel pleased with the result of the bike ride fundraising event. All the interest and support is very encouraging for the future development of Samye Dzong London. Our collective ability to transform ideas into the more practical, financial means for establishing Dharma activity in London is so important."

Thank you to everyone who sponsored our riders, you have helped Samye Dzong directly. If you would still like to contribute, the Biking for Buddhism page at JustGiving.com will be open until the end of this month. Every bit counts.

2 - Making friends with stress, and other teachings

This autumn we are fortunate enough to have Rob Nairn giving a series of teachings at Samye Dzong London from the middle of October through to early November. An outstanding teacher with extensive training in both meditation and western psychology, Rob communicates very clearly and directly. Here is a taste of Rob's approach from his book "Diamond Mind: the psychology of Meditation".

"Meditation is not just calm sailing. It can sometimes be a stormy sea. It also has the hidden reefs that we have talked about: assumptions, expectations, goals and so on. We need to let go of the naive view, that if we sit and meditate everything is going to become peaceful and wonderful. When we meditate, obstacles are going to arise. But, everything is workable. We train ourselves to work with obstacles.

One of the greatest strengths of Vajrayana is that it is designed to work with obstacles. It works on the understanding that the path is obstacles. This is why we are trained to bring all conditions to the path. We turn everything into the path of liberation. The bigger the obstacle, the bigger the opportunity because a great deal of energy is contained in that obstacle. It's like a huge dung heap. If you have a lot of dung you are going to be able to grow beautiful vegetables. If you just have an open, barren piece of ground, you are not going to grow much. After a while, the true practitioner welcomes obstacles."

Appropriately enough, Rob's first teachings on Wed 16th and Thurs 17th October, 7.00-8.30 pm are on "Making Friends with Stress". This is closely followed by "From Neurosis to Joy" on Sat 18th and Sun 19th from 10.00 - 4.00 pm. To book your place on these courses now contact the office at Manor Place on 020-7708 8969.

4 - Forthcoming events

To see the full programme of activities at the Centre, please click here to visit the website

Carlisle Lane Samye Dzong
SEPTEMBER 

VOLUNTEER DAYS - THE MOVE
As you may know, we have to start making the move from Carlisle Lane during September so we would very much appreciate the help of volunteers who can offer their time, energy, vehicles, etc on the following dates: Sat 13th, Sun 14th, Sat 20th, Sun 21st, Sat 27th, Sun 28th of September.

FAREWELL FAIR - HOUSE AND GARDEN CLEARANCE SALE
Sat 13th and Sunday 14th September
10am - 5pm
We will be selling plants, furniture, flower pots and much more from the centre that we cannot bring with us to Manor Place. Get your Carlisle Lane memorabilia here today!
Help from volunteers would be very much appreciated over this weekend

CLOSING PARTY
Saturday 27 September 3pm
Come and celebrate 10 years at Carlisle Lane Centre on Saturday 27th September at 3pm when we are going to have a Closing Party. We hope you can come on this special occasion.
Manor Place Samye Dzong
OCTOBER 

VOLUNTEER DAY
Sat 4th October 2008 10am onwards
An opportunity to enjoy a day together doing some cleaning and leafleting around the area. Lunch and tea provided. Please let us know in advance if you can come.

COMMUNITY CLINIC - OPEN DAY
Sunday 5th October, 11am - 6pm
Now is the time to come and give yourself a treat!
We will be offering taster sessions of complementary therapies such as Reflexology, CranioSacral, Massage, Acupuncture, Homoeopathy and many others. The cost is £8 for a 20 minute session. There will also be some free talks about these different therapies through the day. Come and browse in the shop and have a cup of tea.

INTRODUCTION TO MEDITATION
Tuesday 7th and 14th Oct, 7pm-8:30pm.
£18
An overview of meditation instructions covering such areas as posture, the use of breath as a focus, and dealing with commonly encountered obstacles. Ideal for beginners.

REFLEXOLOGY - HOW TO TREAT FAMILY AND FRIENDS:
With Joelle Peeters
Sat 11th Oct, Sun 12th Oct and Sat 25th Oct. 10am-5pm.
£75 for whole course.
Reflexology is an ancient therapy which uses reflex areas found on the feet to treat the whole body on a physical and emotional level. In this course you will learn about the Reflex areas found on the foot and the Reflexology sequence.
This is a largely practical course, with some theory. At the end of the course you will be able to give treatments to your family and friends. Please bring a towel, baby wipes and foot cream.
Joelle Peeters has over 10 years experience in reflexology and has taught the ITEC professional reflexology course for over 3 years.

MEDICINE BUDDHA PUJA
Sun 12th Oct, 7pm-8pm. Free
Everybody welcome.

MAKING FRIENDS WITH STRESS:
with Rob Nairn.
Wed 15th Oct and Thurs 16th Oct, 7pm-8:30 pm.
£20
Stress is part of modern life. Does it have to be problematic? We will explore the psychology of stress, discover why we experience it, and learn how mindfulness can lead to freedom.

FROM NEUROSIS TO JOY:
with Rob Nairn.
Sat 18th Oct and Sun 19th Oct, 10am-4pm.
£55
Understanding depression, anxiety and panic from a Buddhist perspective; discovering how neurosis creates opportunity and motivation. We may be trapped in these states because we do not know why they happen. With appropriate training they can become positive points of psychological growth and spiritual realisation. Mindfulness can reveal their causes and lead to integration and freedom instead of suffering.
Rob Nairn has responsibility for several Buddhist centres in Southern Africa. His unique mix of training and experience in law and psychology, as well as having been instructed by eminent meditation teachers, enables him to explain traditional Buddhist concepts from a Western perspective.

MINDFULNESS IN A BUSY WORLD:
With Rob Nairn
Wed 22nd and Thurs 23rd Oct, 7pm-8:30pm.
£20
Mindfulness is a faculty we all have but usually neglect. It brings us into the moment, enabling us to live more effective, stress free and happy lives. We will learn progressive steps which can enable us to live happily in a busy world.

COMPASSION TRAINING:
With Rob Nairn
Wed 29th Oct, 7pm-8:30pm.
£10
Compassion brings happiness to ourselves and others. We will learn how caring and kindness can be cultivated within the context of our busy lives; compassion training exercises will be taught.

GURU RINPOCHE TSOK PUJA
Sun 26th Oct, 7pm-8:30pm. Free. Everybody welcome.
Offerings of fruit and flowers for the Tsok Pujas are welcome.

 


About the Newsletter

This newsletter goes out to those who have expressed an interest in Kagyu Samye Dzong London. It covers news of the efforts and progress towards finding and funding a new site for the centre, and other events taking place in the coming weeks Being on this mailing list is not compulsory. If you do not want to receive this newsletter, or would like it to be sent to a different email address, please use the links at the bottom of the newsletter.

Back to contents

Kagyu Samye Dzong London Tibetan Buddhist Centre
33 Manor Place, London, SE17 3BD
Tel: 020-7708 8969
Email: manorplace@samye.org

Web-site: www.samye.org/london
Newsletter editor: David Bates davidjbates@mac.com