Lhagkar means “White Wednesday”.
It is the day His Holiness the Dalai Lama was born and is considered to be His Holiness’ Soul Day.
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Associate Dean for Faculty and Academic Affairs, Harvard Divinity School, and classmates
I welcome you to our second edition of Lhagkar Newsletter covering the highlights of our center activities. For some personal updates, as my first semester at Harvard Divinity School comes to an end soon, it has been a wonderful journey of learning and gaining new experiences for me. Being the only Tibetan monk currently at the university, I worked hard to live up to the expectations. Historical research of early Buddhist texts in Tibet, especially the birth of Kangyur and Tengyur and the research on the application of compassionate based therapies and care provided in Tibetan and Himalayan regions are some of the interesting projects I am involved in at the university.
At our center in Tawang, this year’s six months’ Buddhism and Tibetan language courses were concluded on a joyous note. I thank our teachers, staff, and students for their hard work and dedication. I am extremely happy to announce that we will open the doors of Tashol Tengyur School to our first students in March 2023. Our special appreciation goes to Wisdom Bridges New York for their support without which this would not be possible. Our school strives to provide education of heart and mind for children in the remote region of Arunashal Pradesh. If you are interested in the work that we do, please support our school. We are grateful for any gift that you can make to help further our efforts.
With prayers and good wishes,
Tengyur Rinpoche
VISIT OF GANDEN TRI RINPOCHE, OCTOBER 22, 2022
His Eminence Kyabje Gaden Tri Rinpoche paid a kind visit to our center on October 22, 2022. All our members extended heartiest welcome to Rinpoche. Rinpoche very kindly gave the transmission of Gangloma, the Praise to Manjusri, followed by blessing our new school building. Rinpoche urged everyone to join the Buddhism course at our center and thanked our center for creating opportunities for lay people to study Dharma in an accessible way.
BLESSINGS BY KYABJE LAMA ZOPA RINPOCHE, OCTOBER 22, 2022
Our director Venerable Tashi Tendar and Venerable Damchoe had an audience with the most Venerable Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche on behalf of Tengyur Rinpoche to inform Rinpoche on the progress of our center projects. Rinpoche was very pleased to know of the successful inauguration of the school and offered his deepest congratulations and prayers for success. We offer our sincere gratitude to Rinpoche for his guidance and support during all these years.
PRAYERS FOR PASSING AWAY OF JAMBEY TASHI, MLA, NOVEMBER 2, 2022
Our center mourned and offered prayers for the late Jambey Tashi, the honorable MLA from Lungla, who passed away unexpectedly at a very young age. He was a visionary leader in the Mon region and has been a kind supporter of our center for many years.
VISIT OF SIKYONG PENPA TSERING, NOVEMBER 11, 2022
Sikyong Penpa Tsering of the Central Tibetan Administration, Dharamsala visited our school during his maiden visit to Tawang. Sikyong was informed of our center and Tasho Tengyur School’s vision and goals and he was very pleased with our school infrastructure, curriculum, and our plans for next year’s opening. He promised to extend whatever support we may need from the CTA and the Department of Education under CTA. We are thankful to CTA and Sikyong for their support and we look forward to working with them to develop a rigorous curriculum.
CONCLUSION OF BUDDHISM AND TIBETAN LANGUAGE CLASSES, NOVEMBER 13, 2022
Our six month’s Buddhism and Tibetan language classes for this year were concluded on a very auspicious note. Students and faculty members offered Guru Puja Tsog at the center on the concluding day and dedicated the merits for the long life of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. These courses will continue next year and we look forward to welcoming new students.
KUNCHOK DOLMA THE NEW PRINCIPAL OF TASHOL TENGYUR SCHOOL, NOVEMBER 20, 2022
Kunchok Dolma, one of the founding members of Tashol Tengyur School, is appointed as the principal by our board of directors for her dedication and leadership. She has a Bachelor degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from Thiagarajar College of Engineering, Madurai and Bachelor in Education from the government of Arunachal Pradesh. She worked as the director at our foundation since 2016 and she is also the force behind the success of Dharma Coffee House, the first and the most appreciated coffee house in Tawang.
FIRST TRIAL CLASS HELD AT TASHOL TENGYUR SCHOOL, NOVEMBER 23, 2022
The first trial class of the school was held with 15 children from Tawang. This class helped us get a first hand experience of running a real school. The vision of Tashol Tengyur School is “School is Happiness” where children love to come to school and bring home the memories of joy of studying to share with their family members.
