Kagyu Samye Dzong London News

April 2008

Contents

1. The Kagyu Monlam Chenmo
2. Ani Samten - a year in Manor Place
3. Nine Dragon Bagua
4. Forthcoming Events

News in Brief

• We welcomed Choje Akong Tulku Rinpoche to London Samye Dzong for twelve days this March. Rinpoche attended sessions of our first ever week-long Guru Rinpoche Drubcho, held more than 60 private interviews, gave teachings, empowerments, speeches, gave Refuge at Manor Place, attended the launch of Rokpa London, and even found time to stroll down Oxford Street. It is always a busy time in the Centre’s annual programme, but this year's visit was particularly popular, a very encouraging way to mark 10 years of Kagyu Samye Dzong London’s inner city presence. To see the slideshow, click here.
• Volunteers needed - volunteers are the lifeblood of Samye Dzong London, carrying out a wide range of activities that enable us to keep the Centres open: maintaining the buildings we have - trying to make sure we retain them(!) and establish a permanent presence in London; generating the funds to do so through a range of events and activities; and raising the profile of the Centre through things such as this newsletter, the programmes that are sent out and the stories that get out into the local and, occasionally, national press. We would welcome more volunteers to join the following groups which all meet monthly: fundraising; publicity; and property. Experience, while always welcome, is not required. For more information, please email london@samye.org
• A wishlist for the Centre - every now and then new needs arise, and at the moment we are looking for: two office desks; a colour printer; a good quality working vacuum cleaner; a graphics tablet; and finally, some fire door springs / closers. If you have any of these going spare / cluttering up your home / work place and would like to donate them to the Centre, please get in touch by phone on 020-7928 5447 or email. Many thanks for anything you are able to help with.
• Regular weekly classes in Manor Place - each week Manor Place hosts a range of classes designed to help maintain and develop health. So if you're interested in trying out yoga, tai chi, Tetsudo, Nine Dragon Bagua (featured in this newsletter), or the mums and baby yoga - please contact the office at Manor Place for more info on 020-7708 8969, or by email.
• A new Dharma shop is now open in Manor Place - full of wonderful things that Lama Zangmo brought back from her trip to Nepal in February. Look out for more details (and pictures!) in the May newsletter.

1 - The Kagyu Monlam Chenmo

The 26th Kagyu Monlam will be held from January 4–11, 2009, in Bodhgaya, India. The Gyalwang Karmapa will continue his teaching on The Life of Milarepa and will confer the Tara empowerment. In addition, the purification pujas of the Buddha Akshobhya for the living and deceased, reading of the Kangyur, an alms procession, and other activities will be performed during the Monlam.

Following the 26th Kagyu Monlam, The Gyalwang Karmapa will give a special teaching primarily for students from Western countries. The teaching will be held from January 12–14, 2009. Its topic will be: “The Gyalwang Karmapa shares his experiences: Living the Dharma.”

Lama Zangmo will be taking a group of people from Kagyu Samye Dzong London to the next Kagyu Monlam in India. If you would like to join this group or would like more information please contact Samye Dzong London by emailing london@samye.org. We will set up an email list for those who are interested in joining.

If you have experience in organizing groups and would like to get involved, please contact us at the same address.

2 - Ani Samten - a Year in Manor Place

I became a Tibetan Buddhist nun on the 1st  of January 2007 in Samye Ling Monastery, in Scotland. I had been living there for some months and it was after taking the decision to become a nun that  Lama Yeshe asked me if I would like to come down to London to work at  Kagyu Samye Dzong London at the Manor Place centre. I arrived at Manor Place in March 2007 with Lama Yeshe Rinpoche, Ani Lhamo and Ani Semchi. I had some little gifts for Lama Zangmo so the first thing I did was to give them to her after offering her a kata, a white silk scarf. London is a very big and busy city. I was a little bit overwhelmed when I first arrived. Noise, police cars, a lot of people in the street, lots of traffic, fumes.

My first impression of the centre was very positive; everything was decorated and refurbished by a group of volunteers. High ceilings with big staircases and very spacious rooms beautifully painted.

After the opening ceremony Lama Yeshe Rinpoche went back to Scotland and I was sad when he left as when a child sees her father going away leaving her behind. Being with Lama Zangmo and the nice group of residents and volunteers helped me feel at home very soon.

We started being busy at the Manor Place centre, lots of people asking for information about Buddhism and meditation, wanting to have a look around, enquiring about our activities like tai-chi, yoga, martial arts, bagua, our holistic day, the low cost clinic, etc. The number of visitors was increasing and also the number of volunteers which really made a difference to the centre. There are a lot of generous people who offer their time, skills and their talents to the centre. How wonderful!

Practising at the centre is quite interesting. One day I was meditating in the shrine room which is next to the Southwark council’s recycling centre. That day the noise that was coming from next door was loud, the shrine room was shaking, but that day my mind was even nosier than the noise next door. I started laughing at myself because it doesn’t matter if there is noise or not outside. I realised that if I don’t engage my mind with the sounds outside, it is fine. So the practise of meditation and mindfulness in my daily life should be the remedy in order to find peace and space in my mind. Sometimes we complain that we have no space, no peace, no happiness out there, but what we have to train and tame is our mind so that we can find this happiness wherever we are.

For me living in London as a nun is a great opportunity to learn and practise Dharma. As Lama Yeshe Rinpoche always says, we have to bring all situations into the Dharma, Living Dharma. Also Lama Zangmo reminds us to be mindful at every moment of our lives. Mindfulness is everything.

Every day when I wake up I feel grateful about being here where so many challenges are presented all the time. Working in the office dealing with emails, phone calls, and people, training in mindfulness and practising meditation as much as I can before and after work, this is my retreat.

I wish and pray that the right and auspicious conditions arise in order to establish a permanent site for Kagyu Samye Dzong London. I hope that the precious job and huge efforts already made at Manor Place thanks to the skilful means and wisdom of Lama Zangmo bring their results so that we can continue benefiting all beings in the area and elsewhere.

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3 - Nine Dragon Bagua

Juilong Baguazhang or Nine Dragon Bagua is an internal art closely related to Tai Ji Quan. It is a unique fusion of yogic meditation and stretching exercises, and Tai Ji-like gentle movements building up to controlled aerobic stepping patterns, which will relax and gently stimulate your mind, muscles and cardiovascular system.

The benefit you may obtain from this system is a sense of well being, relaxation and vigour, along with complete whole body strength and improved health. The art consists of learning how to utilise specific body postures to stimulate internal energy for health and self-defence. These energies may stimulate or tone sinews, muscles, internal organs, moods, circulation of blood and Qi (Chi).

All students begin the class with seated meditation and a type of dao-yin yoga to gently open the joints and improving flexibility—followed by qi-gong training to create internal power and strength. These standing forms also help to release binding tension and stress. They also help to develop root, or connection to the ground, and whole body movement. Basic postures are then undertaken and examined to develop correct bio-mechanical force. This is done in standing, and then slowly in, linear forms and finally in circle walking shapes, the trade mark of Bagua. In advanced classes mental images of the Yijing, the Book of Changes, are used for creating jin or bio-mechanical force. You can also vary the speed of practising Bagua according to the mood you are in. For relaxation and calming the mind a slow pace of walking can be done. An increase in speed may tone the muscles and invigorating the mind and may aid in weight management issues and improved cardiovascular conditioning.

Bagua is suitable for both sexes and similar to Tai Ji Quan the practitioner improves his or her posture the more relaxed you become. There is no age barrier, and unlike jogging the “circle walking” forms are gentle on the joints. Come along and give yourself a treat, and learn to control your energies and life-force.

Nine Dragon Bagua classes are held at Manor Place every Tuesday evening from 7.00-9.00 pm. For more information contact instructor Rey Bowen on 07949-535812 or by email.

4 - Forthcoming events

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

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.

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