author: clchang
Introduction
The Namgyal Monastery Institute of Buddhist Studies is the North American branch of His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s Namgyal Monastery in Dharamsala, India. Founded in 1992 under inspiration from the late Venerable Pema Losang Chogyen (a Namgyal monk), the North American institute is located in Ithaca, New York. Its mission is to “bring authentic Tibetan Buddhism to Western practitioners in a monastic setting.” The monastery, while following His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s Tibetan Buddhist tradition, is non-sectarian, and teaches Tibetan Buddhism from all sects.
Venerable Pema Losang Chogyen
Venerable Pema Losang Chogyen (1957-1996) was a revered monk from Namgyal Monastery and the Director of Namgyal Monastery Institute of Buddhist Studies. He was known for his insightful scholarship and artistic gifts, and for his ability to teach Tibetan Buddhism to a contemporary western audience.
Ven. Chogyen was born in Nyenkar, Tibet in 1957. In 1970, he began studying at Namgyal Monastery. He received the highest degree at the monastery in the first division in 1986, granting him a title of Master of Sutra and Tantra. Along with traveling alongside His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Ven. Chogyen also taught mandala and ritual arts.
In 1988, he traveled to the United States. From 1989 to 1991, he worked with Cornell University’s Computer Graphics program to create a three-dimensional Vajrabhairava mandala that could be viewed on a main-frame computer. He also worked on illustrations related to the Vajrabhairava Tantric Cycle.
Also in 1989, Ven. Chogyen presented the idea of Namgyal Monastery Institute of Buddhist Studies to His Holiness the Dalai Lama, along with several friends. While serving as director at the Institute in the following years, he also participated in Columbia University’s doctoral program in Religious Studies. Another artifact of Ven. Chogyen’s is the English edition of a book on Kalachakra that he contributed to at the end of his life. Venerable Pema Losang Chogyen is dearly missed by his devotees and all who knew him.
Tibetan Buddhism
Mahayana “the great vehicle” Buddhism formed about 600 years after the Buddha’s death (approximately 100 BCE-100 CE). This school of Buddhism, as compared with Theravada Buddhism, placed particular emphasis on the idea of becoming a Bodhisattva, a compassionate being on the path to awakening, who seeks to bring all sentient beings to nirvana. Mahayana Buddhism also places authority in a body of sutras that are not found in the Theravada tradition.
Vajrayana Buddhism, also known as Tantric Buddhism, was born within the Mahayana tradition and is central to Buddhism found across Tibet. Vajrayana practices include mudra, mantra, and meditation, and often involve meditating on and visualizing Buddhas. Tantric texts introduced novel Buddha images, including ‘wrathful Buddhas’ and ‘Buddhas in union.’
Tibetan Buddhism has four major schools that developed over time, starting in the 10th century. Each of the four schools, Nyingma, Kagyu, Sakya, and Gelug, contributed to the conception of the Dalai Lama that is well-known today.
Nyingma is the oldest and first school of Tibetan Buddhism (8th century), originating from Vajrayana. Nyingma was brought to Tibet by Padmasambhava. The Nyingma tradition includes texts referred to as the “Termas,” which were hidden and revealed in disciples’ minds. An important Nyingma practice is the Great Perfection practice, which is known to be the highest Vajrayana practice and can bring the practitioner to see their own enlightened nature. The Great Perfection practice includes a ‘Breakthrough Meditation’ stage and a ‘Direct Transcendence’ stage.
The Kagyu school (early 11th century) birthed the idea of incarnate lamas, or lamas that are reincarnations of the previous living lama. The tradition traces back to Indian masters Tilopa and Naropa who lived during the 10th and 11th centuries. The lineage was passed onto a Tibetan disciple of Naropa, Marpa (11th century), Milarepa (12th century), Gampopa (12th century), and Karmapa (late 12th century). Karmapa became the first incarnate lama, stating at the time of his death that he would return as a child.
The Sakya school (1073) originated with the mahasiddha Virupa. The Sakya school created an ‘uncle to nephew’ transcendence of lineage. The fourth patriarch, Sakya Pandita, was given authority to represent Tibet. This created the idea of a ‘Patron-Priest’, wherein a religious leader is given secular power by a political patron.
The Dalai Lama tradition emerges directly from the Gelukpa school (1409). Gelukpa, or the “model of virtue” order, was founded by Tsonkhapa, a Buddhist scholar from the 15th century (1357-1419). Tsongkhapa’s teacher, Manjushri, taught him the Graded Path of Sutra and Tantra, which brought the student to the origins of Buddhism. He was thought to believe Vajrayana practices were over-emphasized and for advanced practitioners, and he favored a more gradual approach to englightenment. This tradition also emphasized discipline and esoteric ritual practice. Several monasteries were created under this tradition, including Tsongkhapa’s Ganden monastery, Drepung monastery, and Sera Monastery. The first Dalai Lama emerged from the Drepung monastery.
Because Namgyal-Ithaca is non-sectarian, the institute supports and teaches from all four schools of Tibetan Buddhism.
Programming at Namgyal-Ithaca:
Students at Namgyal-Ithaca can participate in a two-year core curriculum, where classes in Buddhist sutras, philosophy, and Tibetan language are taught in the evenings by monks from Namgyal’s parent monastery. The classes are taught once a week for 10-12 weeks, following a Fall-Spring schedule. All students can find a class suited to their level of experience and understanding, as the institute offers both introductory level classes on Tibetan Buddhist philosophy and advanced sessions that include readings and discussions.
Students at Namgyal-Ithaca are not allowed to be ordained as monks or nuns. The Institute also offers student residences.
Visitors to the monastery can also participate in weekend and summer retreats, guided pilgrimages, daily meditation practices, and celebrations of Tibetan holidays. Weekend intensives are offered, devoted to specific areas of Tibetan Buddhism. The monastery also holds conferences, and it serves as a cultural center for Ithaca’s Tibetan refugee community.
Dü Khor Chloe Ling
Dü Khor Chloe Ling (Land of Kalachakra Study and Practice) is an expanded area of Namgyal-Ithaca Monastery that resulted from a generous donation given in 2004. DKCL was named in reference to the Kalachakra mandala, a sacred symbol system in Tibetan Buddhism that embodies wisdom, compassion, peace, and cross-cultural understanding. DKCL is comprised of four buildings pointing in the four cardinal directions that surround a central Shrine Room. The buildings include a Community building, monks’ Residences, and student Residences. The biannual Kalachakra Retreats are hosted here, as well as numerous other teachings, retreats, classes, and celebrations. DKCL also holds the honor of being the first monastery in the world devoted to the Kalachakra and its study and practice.
Special Events
Special events hosted at Namgyal-Ithaca include annual celebrations such as the birthday of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Losar, Uprising Day, and Tibet Day. Ritual ceremonies, such as Saka Dawa, Tibetan art and dance demonstrations, and Kalachakra Sand mandala constructions are also performed at the institute.
Kalachakra retreats are hosted twice a year. Once a year the monastery holds the Mansfield Lecture on Science and Buddhism.
History of Namgyal Monastery in India
This parent monastery was founded in the 16th century by the second Dalai Lama, Gendun Gyatso. It was originally located in Lhasa next to the Potala Palace (the residence of the Dalai Lamas). After the present Dalai Lama fled to India and Nepal during the Chinese invasion of Tibet in 1959, along with thousands of other Tibetan people, the Namgyal Monastery was re-established nearby where His Holiness was granted asylum in Dharamsala.
Life in the day of a monk at Namgyal Monastery includes two hours of ritual practice, two hours of sacred arts (such as creating sand mandalas), three hours of philosophy study, two and a half hours of debate, and several additional hours of meditation and personal study. Monks also participate in meditation retreats, train in ritual activities, and may go on exchange at Namgyal Monastery Institute of Buddhist Studies. After completing the full 13 year program at Namgyal, students receive a degree titled ‘Master of Sutra and Tantra from Namgyal Monastery.”
The Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama, or “big sea teacher,” is the high lama in the Gelukpa school of Tibetan Buddhism. The Gelukpa school was founded by Tsongkhapa (1357-1419). Contrary to popular belief, the Dalai Lama is not the leader of the Gelukpa School. The Dalai Lama does appoint the Ganden Tripa, however, who does serve as the school’s leader.
The Dalai Lamas take rebirth in a lineage of tulkus, and are believed among Tibetan peole to be the earthly manifestation of the Buddha of Compassion, Avalokiteshvara. Tenzin Gyatso is the present and 14th Dalai Lama. He has guided Tibetan people as both a spiritual and political leader, including during periods of Chinese invasion and occupation and throughout his life in exile in India. The Dalai Lama relocated to Dharamsala, India, in 1959, after escaping from Lhasa during the communist invasion of Tibet.
The Chinese invasion of Tibet peaked during the Cultural Revolution (mid-1960s through mid-1970s) and involved the destruction of Buddhist Institutions and the starvation, imprisonment, and execution of thousands of Tibetan and Chinese citizens. India, Nepal, and Bhutan served as refuges for Tibetans who fled their homes, including the Dalai Lama Himself.
His Holiness was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on December 10, 1989 for his efforts to free Tibet and reach a resolution with the Chinese government in a non-violent way.
Funding
Namgyal Monastery Institute of Buddhist Studies receives funding from donations and is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.
Citations
“Namgyal Monastery Institute of Buddhist Studies.” n.d. Namgyal Monastery Institute of Buddhist Studies. Accessed December 2, 2024. https://namgyal.org/.
Project, Tibetan Nuns. 2020. “The Four Main Schools of Tibetan Buddhism.” Tibetan Nuns Project. June 8, 2020. https://tnp.org/the-four-schools-of-tibetan-buddhism/.