A Few Pictures from our Khandroling Community Work Day on May 1, 2016

THE FOLLOWING PHOTOS of our Sunday, May 1, 2016 Karma Yoga day on Khandroling are reprinted from Facebook posted by Anastasia Ezequelle 

[photo of Sang practice by Paula Barry]

Thank you all....Kathleen, Adrienne, Anastasia, Will, Caroline, Jeremy, Cindy, Paula Amanda, Tim, and others

Issue 131 of The Mirror Available as a PDF Download

Dear Members of the International Dzogchen Community

The English version of the Mirror issue 131, as printable pdf, is available to all members to download as a membership benefit (with no extra charge). Go to dzogchen.net, log in, and you can find a link to download the Mirror on the drop-down menu attached to your name.
We will let you know as soon as other language versions are available.

Enjoy!

The Mirror Team

Shang Shung Institute Presents a Public Talk by Steve Landsberg, Beyond Hope and Fear: The Application of Presence

SMS Base - Session IV Meditation Practices of the Nine Yanas

We'll explore the various meditation practices of the nine yanas in 'Demystifying Santi Maha Sangha,' Session IV. Each class will have an explanation, followed by a guided meditation of the practices, which include Arya Tara, Guruyoga, the Recitation of the Three Roots, the Outer, Inner and Secret Rushen, and the Seven Fundamental Semdzins.

This course is taught by SMS Base Instructor, Lynn Newdome, and all students of Chögyal Namkhai Norbu are welcome to join in.

Classes are held at Tsegyalgar East in Conway and recorded for remote participation. The afternoons of Sunday intensives will be held at Khandroling, weather permitting.

Course duration:

• Mondays, April 25, May 2, 9 & 16 @ 7-9:00
• Sundays, May 8 & 15 @ 10-5:00

Cost: $60/all, or

• Sundays: $30 each, or $15 per morning / afternoon
• Scholarships are available for those with financial need. Contact: secretary@tsegyalgar.org

For more information and to register:
Click Here

Khandroling Road Sign, Part III

After weeks of siting in a dark and cold warehouse the sign roof has finally

made it to its home. Next step is to put roofing shingles on-- Joe Zurylo

Even the smallest project requires coordination and commitment from many individuals to bring to fruition. Please join us for our week-long Summer Celebration (July 31-August 1, 2016)  on Khandroling for an opportunity to practice and work together. 

Joan Casey of Bellingham, WA dies April 12, 2016

Here at Tsegyalgar East we recently heard that Joan Casey, a long time devoted student of Chogyal Namkhai Norbu was critically ill. We were in the process of dedicating an organized group practice session as individuals who knew her continued to practice for her. She was affiliated with our Berkeley, CA Dzogchen Community, Dondrubling.

However, we are sad to report that our friend, Vajra Dancer, and long-term Dzogchen community member, passed away this morning. Her husband John communicated that Joan was so very happy to know the community were practicing for her. He was also able to  put the Samantabhadra mandala around her neck. These are his words….

"Sadly, this will be the final report on Joan's health, because she has now failed, and the end of her life has come about 9AM this morning. Her blood oxygen level had dropped below 80% despite being on a ventilator at 100% oxygen. Her damaged lungs were incapable of sustaining her life without permanent damage to her brain and other vital organs. Under these circumstances, Joan did prefer dying peacefully and pain-free to being kept artificially alive.”

Joan’s dear old friend and Dzogchen community member, Nora, was with her along with her husband John. Please add our sister Joan to any practices, prayers and Xitro.

With gratitude for this precious transmission.

[Joan on her balcony at sunset]

{The above message is thanks to Erica Rayner-Horn]


My own recollections of Joan go back many years when we were first practicing with Lama Tsultrim Allione and the newly formed New York Dzogchen Community. In the early 1990's Joan's mother died and we did extensive Xitro practice for her with Lama Tsultrim at Tara Mandala in Valley Cottage, NY experiencing many remarkable signs. Joan was an ardent and accomplished practitioner as well as a supportive Vajra sister. About a year ago she corresponded with me about creating a more senior friendly environment for practitioners in their final years, an interest we shared.  Many blessings to her on her vast journey towards realization--Jacqueline Gens

[Photos reprinted from http://bellinghamstertalk.blogspot.com/]

Video of Dr. Phuntsog Wangmo Speaking at the Conway Historical Society

Published on Mar 24, 2016

A presentation by Menpa Phuntsog Wangmo of the Shang Shung Institute School of Tibetan Medicine in Conway, MA, titled 'What is Tibetan Medicine?' recorded at the Conway Historical Society on March 22, 2016 by Frontier C

                                                                                                       ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,ommunity Access Television.

Khandroling Road Sign, Part II

[Photo by Joe Zurylo, 2016]

This winter Joe Zurylo wrote us that there was a new Khandroling road sign in the making to replace the old one rendered defunct by a snow plow. The new sign was created, carved, painted and gold leafed by a number of people including, Amanda, Jeremy, Joe, Nary and Jim Smith (below). 

The most recent chapter of this project is the installation of a pressure treated post (above) being installed for the Khandroling sign by what Joe referred to as the  Khandroling "geriatric" construction crew. 

[Amanda's selfie after completing the gold leaf on the sign]

The finished sign!   We await the final installation. Thank you guys!

Lama Tsultrim Allione to Give Shamatha Instruction in Durango, CO on April 11

Lama Tsultrim Allione, head of our our Dam trog sister organization Tara Mandala will be giving a public talk on Shamatha in Durango, CO on April 11, 2016. The talk will be recorded and filmed for instructional use later.  

Lama Tsultrim will also be giving an all day workshop on Feeding Your Demons on April 16, 2016.

Namkha Club on April 9, 2016 to make Your Own with Lauri Denyer

Construct your own Namkha Lauri Denyer will be available to assist in the construction of Namkhas. Participants will need to get the layout and colors of their own Namkha from the book of Namkha, by Chögyal Namkhai Norbu. April 9, 2016 Schoolhouse Gonpa 18 Schoolhouse Rd. Conway, MA 10am-12:30pm 2pm -5pm Supply List: Everyone will need dowels and a certain amount of colored thread (not yarn). We will need a couple of small saws- like coping saws to cut the doweling- and some sharp knives for making notches. Materials: Dowels 10mm diameter (.3937008 inch) - purchased at hardware store Cotton or wool thread (not yarn) of five colors (Jo-Anne Fabric) green, red, yellow, white, blue and if necessary, also dark blue. rulers small saw to cut notches in the doweling sharp knives for making notches

Recap of April 3 Khandroling Paper Cooperative Workshop on Writing the Six-Syllable Mani Mantra

[The Jewel in the Lotus]

On Sunday, April 3, a blustery and snowy day, a small group of us met to explore writing the famous Tibetan mantra--Om Mani Padme Hum Hrih with Dara Juels, a Tibetan translator who is married to a Tibetan and lived for many years in Nepal and studied at Rangjung Yeshe Gomde in California. Dara inspired us with her enthusiasm for the Tibetan language, in particular, this mantra so widespread among Tibetans. We look forward to working with her on other mantras, Tibetan language studies and drawing traditional Tibetan motifs of the five elements. 

We learned a bit about the origins of the mantra brought to Tibet by Guru Rinpoche and its function as a vehicle of Liberation through Hearing, Seeing and so forth. 

[Dara Juels]

                                                                                                                                                                     We also listened to several readings by Dara from commentaries on the famous mantra.   She left us with Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche's commentary on Patrul Rinpoche's extraordinary text. The Heart Treasure of the Enlightened Ones. 

After completing a demonstration of each syllable with brief explanations, we then applied ourselves to write the mantra over and over--each person deeply concentrating. 

[Brenda Lilly, a resident of Conway]

[Sheryl Jaffe who also took Tashi Mannox's Tibetan Calligraphy course last April]

                                                                           

                                                                            

[Here Sheryl is showing us some of Tashi's lettering of the mantra

]                                  Left to right: Amanda, Sheryl, Brenda, Dara]  

This workshop is part of a series devoted to the Lotus as a metaphor with deep meaning in many Buddhist cultures. Our Lotus Project is an international endeavor to preserve the historic schoolhouse in Conway, MA. As a gesture of goodwill, we are participating in the 2017 250th Anniversary of the town of Conway, MA by making a paper lotus float for the town's parade and handing out thousands of our handmade paper lotus blossoms.    

Recently, we began making wood blocks to print on our own paper. Our next project will be to carve the mantra to print for distribution.  

[Dara's beautiful free form mantra in gold on painted surface]

Brenda Lilly, our origamist, upon seeing the mantra written in the Lotus wondered if she could reduce our origami with eight petals to six petals in order to write the mantra on the leaves with the Hrih in the center. Here are the results--what she says, "see what happens on a snow day" when all the schools are closed for the day and teachers and students have the day off. All our members are artists, teachers and/or therapists who bring their expertise and passion to our collective experience.

[Six petal lotus with Six syllable mani mantra by Brenda Lilly]

[Six syllable Mani mantra on the Lotus with Hrih in the center y Brenda Lilly]


TO LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR LOTUS BLOSSOM PROJECT VISIT OUR KHANDROLING PAPER COOPERATIVE BLOG HERE