Thirty-sixth Birthday Message from HH 17th Gyalwang Karmapa

His Holiness the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa has written a letter to the Kagyu community on the occasion of his 36th birthday which was on Saturday 26th June. We are pleased to be able to publish the whole of his letter in the news section of our website.

Impermanence, Death and Dying - a new online course with Lama Zangmo

This 8 week online course, running on Sundays from 12th September to 31st October, 10.00 - 11.00 am, will cover teachings on impermanence, death and dying and the intermediate states called Bardos, with emphasis on putting the teachings into effective practice during this life. The teachings will focus on how to live a meaningful life and how to have a good death.

For details, including how to sign up, please visit the course page.

Support from the Centre during the pandemic

Dear Friends,

Although the doors of the Centre are shut, there are ways in which we can reach out to maintain the connection with the wider world and support people in these challenging times. 

• Meditation sessions are livestreamed from the Centre from Wednesday to Sunday on our YouTube channel and we invite you all to join us. See the weekly programme for full details and downloads of the relevant prayers.
  
  
• Our email newsletter  is sent out regularly.  If you don't already susbscribe just click on this link and follow the instructions. 

Our hope is that these activities will help maintain our connection with each other and support those who find themselves in isolation.

Who we are

We are a Buddhist community in the heart of London, affiliated to Kagyu Samye Ling Monastery in Scotland. We are under the direct guidance of Choje Akong Tulku Rinpoche's brother the Venerable Lama Yeshe Losal Rinpoche and our resident teacher Lama Gelongma Zangmo.

Our aims are:
• To make the teachings of Buddhism accessible to all.
• To foster the growth of wisdom and compassion.
• To benefit the wider community.
• To promote interfaith dialogue and understanding.

The Samye Dzong approach to course donations, by Lama Zangmo

At the beginning of 2015, in honour of our Founder Choje Akong Tulku Rinpoche, we decided to offer our Dharma courses without a suggested course fee, on a donation basis. We do this with the motivation to make the precious teachings of the Dharma accessible to everyone, and no-one will be excluded due to lack of funds.

Traditionally the Buddhist teachings are given freely because they are considered priceless. In the Buddhist tradition one practices generosity, or Dana, by making monetary offerings for the teachings. This generosity is not payment for goods or services rendered; it is an offering given freely from the heart in appreciation of the Dharma... 

Read the full letter from Lama Zangmo