NEWS & CURRENT ACTIVITES

31st August – Dekyiling Tibetan Settlement, Dehradun.

– His Holiness the Gyalwang Karmapa graced the 25th anniversary of Mila’s Se-cham – a ritual religious ceremonial dance.

The day-long program commenced after short addresses from the organizers and the settlement head. His Holiness expressed his gratitude to the elders of the community, who have preserved this rare form of ritual religious dance (cham).

” I’m really grateful to the elders who have manage to keep this tradition of our forefathers alive so that it is possible to pass it on to the younger generation when Tibet was invaded by the Chinese, Tibetan culture and many traditions were affected and some were even lost. I hadn’t heard about this Mila’s Se-Cham until recently and I’m excited to see it. “

Thousands of people thronged to witness the Mila’s Se-Cham and to have a glimpse of His Holiness Karmapa.

Mila’s Se-Cham . This sacred dance was first, performed in celebration when Milarepa completed the task of building the nine-story house called Lhodrak Sekhar Guthok. Traditionally, the Se-Cham is performed from 12th -16th days of the 6th month of the Tibetan calendar in Lhodrak, central Tibet.

His Holiness arrived at Jolly Grant Airport in Dehradun yesterday. He was welcomed by a large number of well-wishers representing more then 30 groups of governmental and non-governmental organizations.

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21st August -Dharamsala

His Holiness will be on a religious tour where he will give Tara empowerment and religious discourse to the Tibetan Settlement in Sahastradhara

– Dehradhun, from 31st August to 2nd September. There will be a ritual dance of the Milarepa’s heart-son and 52nd anniversary of Tibetan Democracy celebration – where His Holiness will be the chief of guests. His Holiness will also visit to the monasteries located in those areas.

After completing the tour of Dehradun His Holiness will visit TCV Suja school in Bir district from 3rd – 5th September where His Holiness will perform the ritual prayers (Phurab-Choega) and give teaching to the students. Read the rest of this article

8th August – Dharamsala

On the day of commemorating his first year in office as the elected head of the Tibetan people, Kalon Tripa Dr Lobsang Sangay and his cabinet colleagues had an official ceremony. His Holiness Karmapa was requested to be the chief guest of the ceremony that was held at Tsuglag khang Mcleodganj.
Prior to the ceremonial speech, Central Tibetan Administration has organised a public prayer service in solidarity with the critical situation inside Tibet at the Tsug-la Khang, the main temple.
His Holiness the Gyalwang Karmapa presided over the prayer session that was attended by officials of the exile administration and thousands of Tibetans and supporters.
Dr Sangay in his public address following the prayer session reiterated the 14th Kashag’s guiding principles of “unity, innovation and self-reliance,” and paid tribute to the hard work and dedication of the elder generations.
Earlier in the morning, His Holiness opened the new Tsuphu Bookstore that is located near to Gyuto Monastery at Sidhbari. The Tsurphu Bookstore aims to collect all the dharma teachings and art of His Holiness the Gyalwang Karmapa.

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5th – 9th June -Norbulingka Institute, Dharamsala

First Hand Account

Given the focus of this year’s conference, it seemed appropriate that, as the delegates gathered in the grounds of the Norbulingka Institute to await the arrival of His Holiness the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa, the temperature was climbing steadily to 42 degrees. This year, Dharamsala has experienced both unusually severe winter conditions, with snow filling the Kangra Valley for the first time in fifty years, and unusually high summer temperatures. It is a reminder to everyone present that we are now living with climate change impacts.

Celebrating World Environment Day, His Holiness the 17th Karmapa and the Honorable Speaker of the Tibetan Parliament launched the 4th Khoryug Conference on Environmental Protection for Tibetan Buddhist Monasteries, which will focus on Biodiversity, Climate Change and Natural Disaster Preparedness.

The aims of the conference are to both Read the rest of this article

5th June – Dharamsala, Norbulingkha

Celebrating World Environment Day, His Holiness the 17th Karmapa and the Honorable Speaker of the Tibetan Parliament launched the 4th Khoryug Conference on Environmental Protection for Tibetan Buddhist Monasteries. The five-day conference will focus on biodiversity, climate change, and natural disaster preparedness, and is attended by over sixty representatives from forty-five monasteries from across the Himalayas and South Asia.

The goals of the conference are to provide environmental education on biodiversity and climate change, and to train the monastic representatives to learn climate adaptation strategies and to develop disaster preparedness plans for their monasteries. The conference is organized by Rangjung Khoryug Sungkyob Tsokpa, an association of Buddhist monasteries working to protect the environment of the Himalayas and South Asia, which is chaired by His Holiness the 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje. Parnter Read the rest of this article