Khyentse Rinpoche and his latest book

Recently I had a chance to attend a dharma talk by Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche, who is better known as Khyentse Norbu in the film industry for his works like The Cup and Travellers and Magician.
After a few days in Kuantan, he came to Petaling Jaya and gave a short talk that touches on the basic of meditation and the benefits of well wishes for the people around us.

It was a rush evening but I was glad to finally meet up with Rinpoche after so many years. Rinpoche just published a book called, What Makes You Not A Buddhist, and we managed to get hold of the book and got his signature. I've only finished the first two chapters and hopefully I'll be able to read more today. Will share some of the content from the book once I've finished reading the book.

Fund-raising to build Sakya Institute and kesa sponsorship

Recently, Guru Phurla Rinpoche was here in Malaysia. He has been coming back regularly especially since the setup of his Sakya centre here in Kepong, Kuala Lumpur. In his visit, I've only managed to attend Guru Phurla Rinpoche's teaching of Medicine Buddha and Vajra Kilaya.

If you are trying to look for any English website about Guru Phurla Rinpoche, you won't be able to find one (yes, there's none). I think this is simply because he is a Tibetan/Mandarin-speaker and spreads his dhamma teaching mainly in Taiwan, China, Malaysia and Singapore. I'll try to communicate with Guru Phurla Rinpoche or the committee members at his centres to see if it's possible to have a website for people to access into.

In this visit, Guru Phurla Rinpoche told us that there will be a puja ceremony in August 2007 to raise fund to complete a Sakya Institute (*look at the brochure on the left) for Buddhist Studies located in Ching Hai. Construction couldn't be continued because of insufficient fund. RM230k is needed to complete the building alone.

This Sakya Institute provide a decent environment for lamas (buddhist monks) to study Buddhism. Sponsorships will also enable the institute to provide teaching materials as well as to cover the basic expenses for lamas such as kesa (tibetan robes for monks) and food.

For further enquiry, please contact the following person-in-charge at these Sakya centres:

Taipei, Taiwan:

Taiwan Tibetan Vajrayana Sakya Sherabling Foundation

5F, No.289 Chengde Rd., Sec. 4 Taipei, Taiwan, Ro.O.C.

Tel: 886-2-28822475

Fax: 886-2-28822476

Hp: 0933-879548

Email: phurla.rinpoch@msa.hinet.net

Kaohsiung, Taiwan:

7F, No.175 Foren Rd., Kaohsiung, Taiwan, R.O.C.

Tel: 886-7-7245489

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: 012-638 5051 (Ms Choon Lan)

Singapore: 9617 8018 (Ms Phang)

*Please note that my translation of the brochure is not complete simply because I'm not Chinese-educated. So, for more information, drop me a message or contact the Sakya centres above.

meet up with Rinpoche and Lama

I've always been a devoted Buddhist. Even in my past lives. When I was a child, my parents would brought me to attend dharma teachings by Tibetan monks. I remember the first Rinpoche I met was Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche, when I was just 6 or 7 years old. He is also known as Khyentse Norbu, the director of The Cup and Travellers and Magicians.

Another Lama whom I haven't met for 20 years was Lama Jamyang Lekshey. The last time I met Lama Lekshey was when he was here in Malaysia with my guru, H.H. Sakya Trizin.

So, my sister and I decided to meet up with Lama Lekshey who was here last week with Luding Khenpo Rinpoche and another two Lamas. They were staying at Eastin Hotel. It was a great feeling to see Lama Lekshey again after two decades. Both Rinpoche and Lama Lekshey speak fluent English. We chatted for awhile with Lama and Rinpoche before we leave as there were other guests. My sister and I managed to snapped a picture with Rinpoche.