***** March 2020 *****
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***** February 2020 *****
Lama Lena Returns to Louisiana
February 28 – March 5
Lama Lena (Yeshe Kaytup) is a teacher of Direct Mind Perception Meditation and a lineage holder of several Tibetan Buddhist traditions. Her informal style is precise and direct and she is revered by students around the world for her exceptional ability to share profound teachings in a clear, poetic, and humorous way.
Beginning in 1972, Lama Lena spent three years studying with Lama Thubten Yeshe at his monastery in Nepal. She then spent seven years in retreat and practice in a small cave above Tso Pema under the tutelage of her root teacher, Ven. Wangdor Rimpoche. She continued to travel extensively with him as his translator and assistant.
Having also studied Chinese medicine, Lama Lena had a private practice in the San Francisco Bay Area. In 2005 she returned to Tso Pema to assist Wangdor Rimpoche. She currently lives on the mountain above Lotus Lake with her two khandros where she provides medical assistance to the Tibetan refugee community, the local Indian villagers, and mountain tribespeople.
At the request of H.E., Zigar Choktrul Rimpoche and Ven.Wangdor Rinpoche – as well as many Western and Tibetan dharma students – she has been traveling, teaching, and translating from the lineages she holds.
Official Lama Lena Archive site: LamaLenaTeachings.com
e-Sangha Facebook Group: Lama Lena Teachings FB Group
Teaching Schedule: LamaLenaTeachings.com/teaching-schedule
****** January 2020 *****
Mindfulness for Kids
Courses for Ages 6-8 and Ages 9-12
Kids ages 6-8
Wednesdays, 4:15pm – 5:00pm
January 8, 15, 22, 29
Led by Katie Taber
Kids ages 9-12
Thursdays, 4:15pm – 5:00pm
January 2, 9, 16, 23
Led by Whitney Stewart
Fee: $80 per child, for four weeks.
To register for the four-week session, please contact Tibetan House: info@tibetanhouse.com.
Sometimes kids’ lives can get busy and out of control, and worries can take over. When that happens, knowing how to pause and regain composure with mindfulness can help! This class introduces kids (ages 6 – 8yrs and 9 – 12yrs) to mindfulness as a way to find clarity, manage stress, handle difficult emotions, and navigate personal challenges. With breathing, relaxation, and guided meditation exercises, kids will have an entire toolkit at their disposal. Kids will learn to settle their thoughts and look inward through a series of fun writing prompts, games, and meditation exercises.
About the Teachers
Katie Taber always knew that she wanted to teach kids from the time she was in second grade. She told her mom that she wanted to teach Physical Education so she could wear sweat pants to work every day. Katie received a B.S. in Physical Education in 2012 and has been working with kids in a professional environment since then. She is now a kids yoga and mindfulness teacher and loves creating a space where kids feel safe and heard. There was a quote displayed in her childhood PreK classroom that read, “Childhood is a journey not a race.” She carries this philosophy with her so many years later and uses yoga and mindfulness to help kids slow down and enjoy the ride.
Whitney Stewart is a children’s book author and mindfulness instructor. Her recent publications include Mindful Kids: 50 Mindfulness Activities for Kindness, Focus, and 
Calm, and Mindfulness and Meditation: Handling Life with a Calm and Focused Mind (2019) For more information about Whitney Stewart, visit hhtp://whitneystewart.com.
Author
Whitney Stewart is an award-winning children’s book author of fiction and nonfiction books for kids, for toddlers to young adult. When she is not writing, she teaches mindfulness and meditation to kids. You can find Stewart’s books on her website link below or wherever you buy books.
www.whitneystewart.com
*****
Awakening!
How Meditation can Transform your Life
An introduction to the Clairvision style of Inner Alchemy
Thursday, January 23
7:00pm – 8:30pm
Tibetan House. 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Suggested $20 donation
What exactly is meditation and inner alchemy and how does it work? What’s the difference in styles and what are the results?
How do I decide what’s right for me?
Learn how meditation can transform you and your life to be better and more fulfilling, with greater clarity, focus and joy.
Bring your questions!
About the Instructor
Robert Volinsky has been a body-mind therapist,
Reiki/energetic healer and meditator since 1996. He has been a student of the Clairvision School for over 13 years and is an IST Practitioner practicing in Manhattan. He brings his passion of exploring limits, and his curiosity about the mind and consciousness to his work and teaching. He is excited by the possibility of inspiring others to be more, to transform, and by helping others to know themselves more honestly and deeply.
More info about Robert at www.restorativetherapies.com
***
Inner Space Therapy, with Robert Volinsky
Private Sessions are available
January 23 – January 25, 2020
Inner Space Therapy (IST) is an interactive technique of self-discovery and past-life regression. It is aimed at promoting emotional freedom through self-awareness, overcoming fears and releasing negative emotional patterns and blockages. IST is a tool to find and free your deepest and truest parts, bringing clarity, self-confidence and joy.
Through a meditative space of relaxation, you will be gently guided beyond the ordinary mind to become aware of deep patterns and limiting behavior. The emotional scars and traumas of your past (or past lives) can keep you from your very best. IST will help to unlock and release these imprints. It is this unlocking that will enable you to see and know yourself as you truly are, and to move toward your highest potential.
Beyond emotional work and regression therapy, IST is also a technique to map consciousness in general. It can strengthen your connection with and awareness of the non-physical presences, energy and spirit that interact with you in many unseen ways. IST can also bring deep states of union with the divine and profound glimpses into existence and of your most evolved self.
IST was created and developed by Samuel Sagan, and the Clairvision School of meditation.
Robert is available for one on one Inner Space Therapy Sessions.
Fee: $150 per session.
If you are interested, please contact us: info@tibetanhouse.com or leave a message at 504 897 9339.
*****
SMELL THIS:
Introduction to Essential Oils and Aromatherapy
Led by Robert Volinsky
Saturday, January 25, 2020
10:00am-1:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Fee: $60-$70sliding scale.
Pre-registration is required.
To register, contact: info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339.
What are essential oils anyway? Begin to understand and make sense of the world of aromatherapy. Learn how to use essential oils for physical, emotional and mental well-being, and how to apply and use oils safely and for maximum benefit.
This mini workshop is geared to beginners and bodyworkers/healers who are interested in exploring the benefits and many uses of essential oils but don’t know where to start.
- What are essential oils?
- How to use essential oils safely?
- How to use essential oil to support physical and mental health, and open you energetically?
- Why is there so much confusion around essential oils?
- How do I know what oils are good?
- How can I use oils to enhance health and wellness? Ideas for self treatment and working with others.
About the Instructor
Robert Volinsky has been a body-mind therapist, Reiki/energetic healer and meditator since 1996. He has been a student of the Clairvision School for over 13 years and is an IST Practitioner practicing in Manhattan. He brings his passion of exploring limits, and his curiosity about the mind and consciousness to his work and teaching. He is excited by the possibility of inspiring others to be more, to transform, and by helping others to know themselves more honestly and deeply.
More info about Robert at www.restorativetherapies.com
*****
Mythology and the Body
Led by Melanie Weller
Sphenoid Bone of the Neurocranium
Intro to Mythology and the Body
Thursday, January 30
7:00pm – 8:30pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Fee: $20 suggested donation
Cranial Mythology: It’s All in your Head Workshop
Saturday, Feb 1
10:00am-1:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Fee: $60
Pre-registration is required.
To register, contact info@tibetanhouse or call (504) 897-9339
Mythology was a mode of scientific writing and tells the story of our anatomy and gives us clues to the spiritual underpinnings of our physical dysfunction. Melanie Weller will be presenting an overview of the topic on Thursday, January 30, 2019 (donation) and will do a deep dive into the mythologies that go with our cranial anatomy with techniques to identify, shift, and balance the distortions of how these stories live in our bodies. February 1, 10am-1pm. $60
Melanie Weller is the world’s leading expert on 
multidimensional alignment. With an extensive background in treating patients no one else could help, she now focuses on mitigating burnout and optimizing performance in entertainers, athletes, and medical professionals. Melanie uses her extensive physical therapy credentials and logically organized metaphysical system to voice the story of your body. When we give a voice to the physical expression of our internal narrative, and the internal expression of our physical narrative, we find the shortest path to our highest potential. She is a Physical Therapist, board-certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist, Certified Athletic Trainer and Certified Exercise Expert for Aging Adults.
***** December 2019 *****
Sati Yoga: Introduction to the Kaiut Method
Sunday December 8Morning Class
9:00am-11:00am
1.5 hours of class time
Plus 30 minutes of Q&A, tea and light bites and noble chatting
4:30pm-6:30pm
1.5 hours of class time
Plus 30 minutes of Q&A, tea and light bites and noble chatting
Fee is sliding scale $20-$25′
To register, please contact: info@tibetanhouse.com
Ale and Bruno are from different parts of the world, but the same passion brought them together. Bruno was born in New Orleans, Alessandra in Brazil. In 2015, they met in her hometown, Curitiba, which is also the home of the creator of the Kaiut Method, Francisco Kaiut.A globetrotter at heart, Ale has traveled solo to fourteen countries. On returning home from yoga training in India, she opened two studios and started training intensively with Francisco Kaiut.Yoga also brought Bruno around the world. Practicing yoga since 1997 with renowned teachers like Richard Freeman, Pattabhi Jois and senior Iyengar teachers, Bruno attended the first class Francisco Kaiut taught, in Colorado in 2005. He moved to Brazil in 2010 and mentored under this unusually talented and skilled teacher at his main studio in Curitiba.Ale and Bruno became the first teachers to teach the method in the Deep South and the only teachers in Louisiana.Kaiut Yoga is changing the face of yoga. It is accessible, inclusive and a powerful healing tool, for students of all ages and body types.
***** November 2019 *****
Healing Through Loving Kindness Practice with Bhante Sujatha
Sunday, November 10, 2019
3:00pm-5:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Connect with your natural healing power with the gentle guidance of Bhante Sujatha, Buddhist monk from Blue Lotus Temple in Woodstock, IL. This 2-hour workshop has been life-changing for many of its participants, regardless of religious background. The teaching is centered around the cultivation of self love, for without healthy self love, you cannot be fully present to love anyone or anything else.
Activities will include:
• Lecture: “What Is Loving-Kindness?”
• Learning the practice of Loving-Kindness
• A profound blessing of healing energy with each individual
Benefits of this workshop are:
• Reduced stress, anxiety, worry and depression
• Healing and enhancing relationships with others.
• Gaining a sense of empowerment over challenging issues in your life.
• Insights into your life purpose.
• Awakening to the blessings of the present moment.
• Attaining unshakable inner peace.
Space limited. Advanced registration required.
Fee: $35, Proceeds go to to Bhante’s Incubator Project in Sri Lanka.
Bhante does his book signing after workshop and his cds will also available to purchase.
Bhante Sujatha, a 30+ year Buddhist Monk, is singularly focused on adding more love in the world. Bhante teaches loving-kindness meditation to people around the globe for all those seeking the art of happiness and contentment. His approach to meditation is deep and simple, bringing core Buddhist teachings to everyone in a way that is practical and easy to understand. A joyful, radiant, funny and wildly energetic monk, Bhante will help you obtain peace that can only be found in deep silence. He is originally from Sri Lanka and is the head monk / abbot of the Blue Lotus Buddhist Temple and Meditation Center in Woodstock, IL. For more information, visit: http://www.bluelotustemple.org/.
***** October 2019 *****
Mindful Kids Class
5-week class for ages 9-12
Thursdays, 4:15pm-5:00pm 
October 3, 10, 17, 24, & 31 (If class decides not to meet on Halloween, we will offer class on Nov. 7)
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Fee: $100 per child, for five weeks.
To register for the five-week session, please contact Tibetan House: info@tibetanhouse.com.
Sometimes kids’ lives can get busy and out of control, and worries can take over. When that happens, knowing how to pause and regain composure with mindfulness can help! This class introduces kids (ages 9 – 12) to mindfulness as a way to find clarity, manage stress, handle difficult emotions, and navigate personal challenges. With breathing, relaxation, and guided meditation exercises, kids will have an entire toolkit at their disposal. Kids will learn to settle their thoughts and look inward through a series of fun writing prompts, games, and meditation exercises.
About the Teachers
Our regular teacher, Whitney Stewart, is traveling at this time. She introduces and endorses her MindfulMe—PeacefulMe LLC collaborator, yoga and mindfulness teacher Katie Taber, who will teach the October Mindful Kids session.
Katie Taber always knew that she wanted to teach kids from the time she was in second grade. She told her mom that she wanted to teach Physical Education so she could wear sweat pants to work every day. Katie received a B.S. in Physical Education in 2012 and has been working with kids in a professional environment since then. She is now a kids yoga and mindfulness teacher and loves creating a space where kids feel safe and heard. There was a quote displayed in her childhood PreK classroom that read, “Childhood is a journey not a race.” She carries this philosophy with her so many years later and uses yoga and mindfulness to help kids slow down and enjoy the ride.
Whitney Stewart is a children’s book author and mindfulness instructor. including her recent publications Mindful Kids: 50 Mindfulness Activities for Kindness, Focus, and Calm, and Mindfulness and Meditation: Handling Life with a Calm and Focused Mind (2019) For more information about Whitney Stewart, visit hhtp://whitneystewart.com.
‘Real World Conservation’
An Evening with Dr. Jordan Karubian
Thursday, October 10, 2019
7:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Suggested donation: $10
We turn on the TV or the radio and learn that fires are burning the Amazon, storms are threatening our shores and coral reefs are withering. Hearing these stories of environmental degradation and loss, we feel sadness and anxiety along with a mounting sense of helplessness: what can we as individuals do to change this downward spiral?
This is the story of how a team of individuals from very different backgrounds and skill sets have come together to make a difference in one of the last great remaining rainforests on the Pacific coast of Ecuador – a ‘conservation hotspot’ of global importance.
About Dr. Jordan Karubian
As Dr. Jordan Karubian, a Professor of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology at Tulane University, will explain, the key to conserving these exceptional forests is to engage with local human residents in a meaningful and mutually respectful way to find win-win solutions.
Dr. Karubian will present an honest appraisal of what real-world conservation looks like and provide concrete actions that you as an individual can take to make a positive impact.
***
Introduction to Engaged Dharma Theater
A workshop at the crossroads of Engaged Buddhism,
Participatory theater, and Imaginal Practice.
Sunday, October 13, 2019
3:00pm-6:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Suggested donation $20
Please RSVP at info@tibetanhouse.com
Participants will be gently guided into their bodies, hearts, and imaginations, using the ancient technologies of theater and play. Participants will find nourishment for their personal practice and explore together how this can be brought into compassionate action in the world.
Workshop will include a range of different practices including games, exercises, sitting practice, dialogue in pairs and with the whole group.
Suitable for beginners to experienced practitioners. No acting or theater experienced needed!
Led by Lauren Elliot and Derek Roguski
Lauren Elliott has been practicing Buddhist meditation in the Insight tradition for 10 years. During this time, she has logged over a year of silent meditation retreats. In the past few years, she has fallen in love with the Soulmaking teachings from Buddhist teachers Catherine McGee and Rob Burbea and is excited to share this approach to the dharma with others.
Derek Roguski has been practicing Buddhist meditation in both Zen and Insight traditions for 10 years. In this time he has also been a student and facilitator of Theatre of the Oppressed. Over the past year his passion for collective liberation on all levels has driven him to weave these traditions together, exploring what a Dharma Theater might open into. He is also a dedicated student of Catherine McGee and Rob Burbea’s Soulmaking Dharma.
***
***** August 2019 *****
Chamtrul Rinpoche returns to Southeast Louisiana
“To cross the ocean of samsara we need to know what to do, 
and we need to do it.
Without study would be like
having an engine without a boat.
And without practice would be like
having a boat without an engine.”
– Chamtrul Rinpoche
Friday, August 2, 2019
7:00pm-9:00pm
Chenrezig: The Buddha of Compassion
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Saturday, August 3, 2019 & Sunday, August 4, 2019
2-Day Retreat
For more information, please contact Clearwater Sanctuary: info@clearwatersanctuary.org or (985) 630-1009
Monday, August 5, 2019
5:30pm-7:30pm
Meditation on Reflections and Reasonings to Experience Emptiness
Samten Choeling Dharma Center
For more information and RSVP contact Ngawang Legshe at (504) 723-1317
Donations are appreciated.
Suggested offering: $20
No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
About Chamtrul Rinpoche
Chamtrul Rinpoche is the recognized reincarnation of a great master and scholar from the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, the oldest school in Tibet.
Having studied many years, he holds a vast and profound knowledge of sutra, tantra, and dzogchen, and has been conferred the title ‘Khenpo’ – roughly equivalent to ‘Doctor of Buddhist Philosophy’.
Known for his nonsectarian quality, he has received all the cycles of teachings, empowerments and transmissions from more than twenty five accomplished masters and scholars from all four major traditions of Tibetan Buddhism – namely, Nyingma, Kagyu, Sakya, and Gelug.
Chamtrul Rinpoche currently lives and teaches in India, in the Himalayan town of Dharamsala. Dedicating his life to helping people find inner peace, he also travels the world each year to teach and guide many old and new students.
In his own words:
“Teaching is what I do in this life, wherever someone asks me to teach, I am there. Without discriminating against anybody based on their gender, race, creed and so forth, I wish them to enjoy excellent peace and harmony. I try to the best of my ability to promote the view, meditation and conduct of non-violence, which is the indispensable source for the spread and enhancement of the inner peace of mind.”
***** July 2019 *****
An Introduction to Buddhist Philosophy, 3-Part Series
Wednesday Evenings, 7:00pm-9:00pm
July 3,10,17
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Sliding scale fee $30 – $40
RSVP appreciated
John Clark is Director of La Terre Institute for Community and Ecology and
Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Loyola University. La Terre Institute is located on 87 acres in the forest of the Mississippi Gulf Coast and is dedicated to the project of social and ecological regeneration on both the local and global levels. His recent books include The Tragedy of Common Sense (2016), Lightning Storm Mind (2017), and Between Earth and Empire, which is forthcoming in June. Since 2005 he has worked with the Loyola summer study program in Dharamsala, in association with the Louisiana Himalaya Association. He directs the LHA’s Tibetan Women’s Scholarship Fund.*****
Mindfulness for Kids
5-week Class for Ages 9-12
Thursdays, 4:15pm-5:00pm
July 11, 18, 25, August 1, 8
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Sometimes kids’ lives can get busy and out of control, and worries can take over. When that happens, knowing how to pause and regain composure with mindfulness can help! This class introduces kids (ages 9 – 12) to mindfulness as a way to find clarity, manage stress, handle difficult emotions, and navigate personal challenges. With breathing, relaxation, and guided meditation exercises, kids will have an entire toolkit at their disposal. Kids will learn to settle their thoughts and look inward through a series of fun writing prompts, games, and meditation exercises.
Fee: $100 per child, for five weeks. Included in the price is Whitney Stewart’s Mindful Me Activity Book, for use in class and at home.
To register for the five-week session, please contact Tibetan House:: info@tibetanhouse.com.
*****
Locked Film Screening w/ Q&A about Industrial Canal Project
7:00pm-9:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
This event is free and open to the public.
Join us to learn about a significant project that is proposed to widen the Industrial Canal. Filmmakers and members of the organization CAWIC will be screening the documentary Locked, followed by a Q&A. Topics that will be discussed include the history of the Army Corps’ Lock Replacement project, the decades of action that community residents have taken to stop the project, updates on the status on the project and next steps. Please join us.
About ‘Locked’
Local Urban Ecologist Dr. Josh Lewis tells the hundred year history of the Industrial Canal and Lock that dissects the infamous 9th Ward in New Orleans. He describes the wide reaching effects of how we do water transportation in Louisiana and describes how irresponsible urban planning that ignores ecology has lead to repeated catastrophic flooding in the region since 1927.
This history seeks to educate and mobilize the local community and the country around the intersection of industry, ecology, climate change and politics.
About CAWIC
Citizens Against Widening the Industrial Canal is a community-based non-profit dedicated to preventing construction of the US Army Corps of Engineers proposal to expand the channel and build a new lock. Its members have worked against the project for 25 years because of the significant negative impact on the City of New Orleans, its people, and surrounding environment.
To connect with CAWIC,
Email: CAWIC.L9@gmail.com
Follow on Facebook: www.facebook.com/CAWIC.L9
For more information about the project:
- Lower Nine faces 13 years of hell if canal project rolls forward – The Lens
- Industrial Canal Could Pose an Existential Threat to the City’s Most Vulnerable Community – Bayou Brief
- Industrial Canal has been a Nightmare for Residents, Opinion by John Koeferl, President of CAWIC – Nola.com
- Lower Ninth Ward is Not on Board – Antigravity Magazine
*****
***** June 2019 *****
Awakening the Third Eye Weekend Retreat
Led by Karen O’Connell
Senior Instructor of the
Clairvision School of Meditation
The third eye is a universal pathway to the “teacher inside”. Found both in the Eastern and Western tradition, it is recognized as the “eye of knowledge”. It opens a gateway for your awareness to go beyond the thinking mind, bringing awakening and clarity to your life. Grounded in a simple but profound meditation technique, awakening the third eye provides the foundation for a multitude of spiritual experiences to unfold.
The ‘Awakening the Third Eye’ weekend workshop is an immersion into using the third eye as a means to internalize your awareness and have direct experience of inner realms. Meditation and techniques of inner vision, energetic protection and interpersonal communication will be taught.
Whether you are new to meditation or a seasoned practitioner, this dynamic weekend workshop will give you systematic methods to journey inside.
About Karen O’Connell
Karen O’Connell is a senior instructor at the Clairvision School. One of the original students of the founder of the school, Samuel Sagan, Karen was the first instructor to bring the Clairvision techniques to the US in 1997. She is currently living at the school’s meditation retreat center in Northern California.
Karen has an extensive background as a practitioner of Inner Space Techniques, IST. Her mainstream experience as a clinician in counseling organizations in Australia provides a subtlety and depth to her teaching style.
Awakening the Third Eye Weekend Course
June 22, 9:00am – 5:00pm
June 23, 9:30am – 5:00pm
$150 – $175 Sliding Scale
Pre-registration required due to limited space
Contact Tibetan House, (504) 897-9339 or info@tibetanhouse.com
or contact Gael Thompson at (504) 330-3507
*****
Mindful Buddhist Environmentalism throughout the Solar System
Wednesday, June 26
7:00pm-9:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Suggested donation: $10-$20
As human beings reach further into space, so do the environmental issues that people bring with them. Examples of environmental problems beyond Earth include the mass of space junk that orbits our planet, the mining on the moon that NASA will support by the year 2024, and a human presence on Mars by 2040.
In response, Buddhism possesses some environmental tools that proactively can help us to counteract ecological difficulties in space, such as the vivid values of do no harm, compassion, and lovingkindness. In a stimulating, forward-looking discussion Dr. Dan Capper of buddhismandspace.org will walk us through various space environmental issues as well as possible Buddhist reactions to them. Hopefully, in whatever world people visit, they will tread in an ecologically responsible way, and Buddhist principles can help to ensure this outcome.
About Daniel Capper
Daniel Capper, Ph.D., Professor at the University of Southern Mississippi, is a specialist within religious studies on Buddhism, science, and the environment. With degrees from the University of Virginia and the University of Chicago, he has published the books Guru Devotion and the American Buddhist Experience, Learning Love from a Tiger: Religious Experiences with Nature, and Roaming Free like a Deer: Buddhism and the Natural World. Currently he is working on a research project regarding American Buddhist environmental ethics in space, as evidenced by his web site www.buddhismandspace.org.
*****
Introduction to Tarot
11:00am-1:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas
$40
To register, contact info@tibetanhouse.com.
***** May 2019 *****
Morning Meditations with Tsering la
Wednesday, May 8
9:00am-10:00am
Thursday, May 9
9:00am-10:00am
Friday, May 10
9:00am-10:00am
Saturday, May 11
9:00am-10:00am
There is no adequate way to describe the sublime experience of beginning your day meditating with Tsering la. Here is an opportunity to do so, for four consecutive days.
A great opportunity to practice generosity.
Donations appreciated.
*****
Reflections on Suffering, Disaster, and Awakening
An Evening with John Clark
7:00pm-8:30pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
About John Clark
John Clark is Director of La Terre Institute for Community and Ecology and Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Loyola University. La Terre Institute is located on 87 acres in the forest of the Mississippi Gulf Coast and is dedicated to the project of social and ecological regeneration on both the local and global levels. His recent books include The Tragedy of Common Sense (2016), Lightning Storm Mind (2017), and Between Earth and Empire, which is forthcoming in June. Since 2005 he has worked with the Loyola summer study program in Dharamsala, in association with the Louisiana Himalaya Association. He directs the LHA’s Tibetan Women’s Scholarship Fund.
*****
An Evening of Tonglen with Dapon Will Ryken
Thursday, May 23
7:00pm – 8:30pm
Suggested donation $10 – $20
“Tonglen practice, also known as “taking and sending,” reverses our usual logic of avoiding suffering and seeking pleasure. In tonglen practice, we visualize taking in the pain of others with every in-breath and sending out whatever will benefit them on the out-breath. In the process, we become liberated from age- old patterns of selfishness. We begin to feel love for both ourselves and others; we begin to take care of ourselves and others.”
– Pema Chodron
About Will Ryken
Dapön Ryken became a student of Trungpa Rinpoche in October 1972 and joined the Dorje Kasung in 1975, attending the 2nd Magyal Pomra Encampment in 1979. He became the personal attendant to Rinpoche, and spent thirty years in Boulder in association with Shambala.
Dapön Ryken now lives in Ruskin FL, along with his wife Paula Bickford, Kadö and their three dogs. Will and Paula are active members of the St. Petersburg Fl Shambhala Center and teach around the Shambhala world. This year Dapön Ryken was appointed a Shastri. Dapön Ryken is widely known and beloved around the Shambhala Mountain Center for his insight, wisdom and humor.
For more information, contact Tibetan House, contact info@tibetanhouse.com
*****
Sound Therapy
Led by Diane and Ray Matherne
Saturday, May 25
6:00pm-7:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Fee: $25
Pre-registration required as space is limited.
To register, contact Tibetan House
info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339
Diane and Ray bring sounds of healing to the mind, body and soul with Crystal Singing Bowls, drums and other instruments. The vibration can be felt in the body. Bring your favorite blanket, pillow or anything that will bring ease and comfort in helping to release stress and bring the body to a relaxing state.
Let us celebrate each other in raising our vibration and setting us free from anything that is holding us back from becoming who we are.”
Diane and Ray Matherne come from Houma, LA. They have been doing Sound Therapy for 6 years.
***** April 2019 *****
The Venerable Tsering Phuntsok returns to New Orleans!
Ven Tsering Phuntsok, Tsering la, as he is affectionately 
and respectfully called, will be with us in New Orleans and Lafayette for April and a bit of May. Tsering la’s arrival always brings a kind of relief, a flavor of levity and lightness. His spontaneously joyful smile reminds us that loving kindness is possible at all times, in any circumstances. If you have not met Tsering la, now is the time! Here is a listing of his public events. As many of you know, he is available for private sessions and blessings. You can contact us here at Tibetan House to set up appointments.
Morning Meditations with Tsering la
Wednesday, April 10
9:00am-10:00am
Thursday, April 11
9:00am-10:00am
Friday, April 12
9:00am-10:00am
Saturday, April 13
9:00am-10:00am
There is no adequate way to describe the sublime experience of beginning your day meditating with Tsering la. Here is an opportunity to do so, for four consecutive days. As a part of the morning practice, Tsering will offering guidance on how to prepare an altar and environment for ritual ceremony. On Sunday, April 14, Tsering will be officiating a Smoke Puja at Tibetan House. We welcome your help in creating the Altar and Space for this wonderful offering.
A great opportunity to practice generosity.
Donations appreciated.
*****
Smoke Puja with Venerable Tsering Phuntsok
at Tibetan House
Sunday, April 14
6:00pm-8:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Every year we look forward to our annual Smoke Puja officiated by the Venerable Tsering Phuntsok, our very dear friend from India and Nepal. Simply explained, a Sang puja, or smoke puja, is a ritual of purification, clearing away stale and stuck energies, in yourself, in the environment, in the general state of affairs. It can be described as clearing of impurities in the midstream of those attending the offering. In truth, the depth of purpose of the Smoke Offering, or the Pure Offering, is far-reaching.
This year’s Smoke Puja Ceremony is in part to appease the land energies in regards to the year long construction happening in our neighborhood at Tibetan House.
According to Sogyal Rinpoche:
Riwo Sangchö means ‘An unceasing offering to the mountain gods’, but it is much more than that. It is a practice of generosity and offering that frees your heart and inspires your generosity to others. It is a practice of prosperity that also brings you confidence. It is a practice of healing through which you repay all your karmic debts and heal your relationships. Riwo Sangchö is also practice of purification in which all your obscurations are purified and burned away in the sang offering. You purify the outer pollution (environmental degradation, disharmony, and physical sickness); You purify the inner pollution (negative emotions, blockages in your channels and imbalances in our energy) ; You purify the secret pollution (fundamental ignorance). Riwo Sangchö is also and especially a practice that enhances your energy and your lung ta, thus making your rigpa more vivid to you.
Please explore these websites for a more comprehensive understanding of what occurs when we join together with Tsering in the Smoke Offering.
http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Riwo_Sangchö
https://samyeinstitute.org/wisdom/sang-puja-cleansing-offering/
http://wcbs.us/rigzinphodrang/events/SmokeOfferingEN.htm
http://www.lotsawahouse.org/tibetan-masters/dodrupchen-III/guide-sang-practice
A great opportunity to practice generosity.
Donations appreciated.
*****
Kham to Kathmandu: Monastic Vajrayana in Motion, A Historical, Demographic, and Ethnographic Study of Ka-Nying Shedrub Ling
Presentation by Robert Offner
Tuesday, April 9
7pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
$10 suggested donation
This presentation focuses on Ka-Nying Shedrub Ling monastery in the Kathmandu Valley. The monastery was founded by Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, one of the foremost meditation masters of the 20th century from Kham in Eastern Tibet. It will explore:
About Robert Offner
Robert Offner has lived in New Orleans off and on since 2008, when he first moved here from St. Louis to study at Loyola. A few years after finishing college, he decided to pursue a master’s degree in Buddhist Studies in Kathmandu, Nepal. This was largely inspired by seeing the Dalai Lama speak to Tulane’s 2013 graduating class in the Superdome and my exposure to zazen practice through the Mid City Zen Center.
Robert spent roughly 3 years studying and practicing Buddhism at Rangjung Yeshe Institue in Kathmandu’s Tibetan neighborhood, Boudha. Founded by Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche, the institution coexists within Ka-Nying Shedrub Ling Monastery founded by his father, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche. Robert’s research focuses on the lives and practices of the monks at Ka-Nying and how the Tibetan monastic tradition has resurfaced in diaspora. He recently moved back to New Orleans after completing his studies in Nepal and wishes to share some of these experiences with Tibetan House.
*****
How to Increase Your Love, Compassion, and Wisdom
Dzogchen Buddha Path Teachings with
Bodhi Lama Shannon Young
Friday, April 19 – Sunday, April 21, 2019
Friday April 19
7:00pm-9:00pm
Transforming Suffering into Happiness
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Saturday, April 20
10:00am-12:00pm
Increasing Happiness by Cultivating the Mind in Love and Compassion
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
This morning class will be the first part of a teaching and practice, that will conclude with a practice at the Saint Louis Cemetery No. 2.
3421 Esplanade Ave
Sunday, April 21
10:00am-12:00pm
Wisdom in Daily Life
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
$20 suggested offering.
Bodhi Lama Shannon Young
Venerable Bodhi Lama, Dr. Shannon Young, Pema Shiwa Tso, is an authorized Lama and Dharma Teacher in the Dzogchen Lineage of Buddhism. Shannon received her Doctor of Pharmacy degree in 2001 and has been a practicing Pharmacist for over 17 years. She first studied with her root teacher His Eminence Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche in 2003 and for over 15 years has studied and practiced with Rinpoche while helping establish the Dzogchen Retreat Center, USA and the Dzogchen Shri Singha Foundation.
Lama Shannon graduated from nine Dzogchen Lineage Internships along with many seasonal retreats. In 2014, Lama Shannon also received an advanced degree of Tantra Practitioner at the first Dzogchen Lineage Internship commencement ceremony at the Dzogchen Retreat Center USA. In the same year, Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche authorized Lama Shannon, along with eight other Lamas, as a Venerable Archarya Lama. The Lamas were selected through a dynamic process of divination, prayer, Rinpoche’s 10-year evaluation, and a majority vote of the 2014 Dzogchen Lineage Internship Sangha. Lama Shannon has taught many students in public teaching events, weekend workshops, and tutoring during Dzogchen Lineage Internships.
Following her teacher’s aspirations, she has dedicated her life to practicing and teaching the Dharma, serving as a Director on the the Board of the Dzogchen Shri Singha Foundation, and recently, founding One Path Outreach, a humanitarian aid organization which just completed four clinics in remote villages of Tibet.
***** March 2019 *****
Studying the Buddha Way:
Diving deeply into the Fundamentals of Buddhism
Led by Reverend Michaela O’Connor Bono
Tuesday evenings
March 12- April 2
7:00-8:45pm
$80-$100 sliding scale
To register, contact Tibetan House,
info@tibetanhouse.com
Reverend Michaela O’Connor Bono is a Zen Buddhist Priest, meditation teacher and the leader of Mid City Zen, a sangha in New Orleans, LA. She trained at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center and Green Gulch Farm, both monasteries in the Suzuki Roshi lineage. She has served on the board of the Buddhist Peace Fellowship and Sakyadhita USA, a branch of the International Association of Buddhist Women and she teaches meditation in prisons. Rev. Michaela believes everyone has a mystic heart and she loves sharing the practice of meditation, especially with those who think they are bad at it.
*****
***** February 2019 *****
Lama Lena Teachings in Louisiana
February 5 – February 12, 2019
Lama Lena (Yeshe Khaytup)
Tuesday, February 5
6:00pm-8:00pm
Lunar New Year: Losar Gana Puja
(Please bring a dish or drink to share – blessing begins at 6:30pm)
LHA Community Center
623 N Rendon Street
New Orleans
lhainfo.org
Wednesday, February 6
3:00pm-5:00pm
“12 links of dependent origination. AKA “Original Oops”. (no sin was involved.)”
Clearwater Sanctuar
Northshore
Contact: info@clearwatersancturay.org or (985) 630-1009
http://clearwatersanctuary.org
Thursday, February 7
6:30pm-8:30pm
The Will of the Ego and the Will of the Spirit
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
New Orleans
info@tibetanhouse.com
Friday, February 8
6:30pm-8:30pm
Buddhist Practices for Awakening into Mindfulness
LHA Community Center
623 N Rendon Street
New Orleans
Saturday, February 9
11:00am-1:00pm and 3pm-5:00pm
Green Tara Practice – Cultivating the Feminine
LHA Community Center
623 N Rendon Street
New Orleans
Sunday, February 10
4:30pm-6:45pm
Fire Puja /blessing ceremony at 4:30pm
Sacred Tara Dance/ Group Performance at 6:00pm
LHAA Community Center
412 Lafayette Street
Lafayette
lhainfo.org
Monday, February 11
6:30pm-8:00pm
Relaxing into the Openness of Mind: Tibetan Buddhism (Dzogchen and Mahamudra)
Camélia House
708 Jefferson Blvd
Lafayette
cameliahouse.com
Tuesday, February 12
6:30pm-8:30pm
“Relaxing into the Openness of Mind”
Mid City Zen Center
3248 Castiglione Street
New Orleans
The Dharma cannot be sold or have a price put on it. In accordance with Tibetan custom, there is no “door fee” for Lama’s teachings. Rather, it is appropriate to make an offering based on what you can manage and the value the teachings have for you. No one is turned away for lack of funds. Offer what you can, if you can.
For more information about the teachings, contact Tibetan House: info@tibetanhouse.com
***** January 2019 *****
Mindfulness for Kids
Ages 9 – 12
Thursdays, 4:15pm – 5:00pm
January 3, 10,17, 24, 31
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
$100 per child, for five weeks. Included in the price is Whitney Stewart’s Mindful Me Activity Book, for use in class and at home.
Class Description
Sometimes kids’ lives can get busy and out of control, and worries can take over. When that happens, knowing how to pause and regain composure with mindfulness can help! This class introduces kids (ages 9 – 12) to mindfulness as a way to find clarity, manage stress, handle difficult emotions, and navigate personal challenges. With breathing, relaxation, and guided meditation exercises, kids will have an entire toolkit at their disposal. Kids will learn to settle their thoughts and look inward through a series of fun writing prompts, games, and meditation exercises.
Author Bio
Whitney Stewart will travel far for a story. She’s trekked in the Himalaya with Sir Edmund Hillary and visited remote Buddhist monasteries in Nepal, Tibet, Myanmar, and Japan. She’s interviewed the Dalai Lama, sat for days in meditation retreats, and even been a puppeteer in France. She is the author of multiple children’s books, and when she is not writing or traveling, she teaches mindfulness and meditation to children.
To register for the five-week session, please contact Tibetan House:
info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339.
*****
Ayurveda for Women’s Health for a Vibrant New Year
Saturday, January 12
11:00am -1:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Fee $35
Join us for an empowering workshop designed to empower, inspire and celebrate women’s health, happiness and harmony at all stages of a woman’s life.
Ayurveda translates to “ life wisdom” and it is by exploring this ancient road map for optimal health and longevity that we are given the opportunity to deeply connect with the rhythms of Mother Nature to live a life filled with vibrancy, energy, balance and grace… through every stage of a women’s life.
This workshop will begin with a brief introduction to ayurveda, followed by simple, time tested, ayurvedic recommendations for optimal health for each stage of a woman’s life. We will discuss daily lifestyle routines, ayurvedic herbal remedies, essential oils and more. We will also address some of the specific health concerns that are unique to woman’s journey through life, including hormonal balance, as well as ways to address these health concerns naturally. This workshop is for women of all ages.
Bethany Cantin is an Ayurvedic Practitioner and Yoga Therapist who brings a vibrant energy and a dedicated spirit to 18 years of inspiring others to deepen their connection to life. Bethany is recognized by NAMA ( National Ayurvedic Medical Association) as a certified Ayurvedic Practitioner and has certifications from The Ayurvedic Institute in New Mexico,The Kerala Ayurveda Academy in California, Ayurvedagram in Bangalore, India and Kerala Ayurveda Academy in Cochin, India. She offers ayurvedic workshops, seasonal cleanses, private ayurvedic consultations as well as private yoga therapy sessions.
*****
Introduction to Tarot
Led by Lisa
Saturday, January 26
11:00am-1:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas
$40
What can the Tarot teach you about your life? How can you use the cards to give you the upper hand on your daily decisions?
Lisa will teach you how to key into messages from the Tarot. No matter what level you are,Tarot professional or just picked up the card, you’ll learn to have a better relationship with them. This two hour class will give you an overall look at some of the ceremony surrounding the Tarot while at the same time, demystifying it in order to make it a daily 21st century aid.
Course requirement: Tarot Card deck – Rider Waite Smith preferred.
About Lisa
Lisa comes from a long line of intuitives. Her biggest inspiration was her grandmother, who read cards, tea leaves, coffee grounds… you name it.
Lisa has many gifts as well. She is a clairaudient, claircognizant, clairsentient reader and energy healer. Lisa started reading Tarot cards when she gifted a deck some 30 years ago.
New Orleans born and bred, Lisa has read professionally in Hong Kong, Thailand, and the Maldives, among other places. Her clientele spans the globe and she reads mostly by phone.
Lisa’s spent her life in communications, whether it was producing TV, teaching college students, or training dogs. Her first love, however, is Tarot.
***** December 2018 *****
“Form is Emptiness and Emptiness is Form” (Heart Sutra) with Venerable Dr. Thich Dong Tuyen
Sunday, December 9
7:00pm to 9:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Suggested donation $20
Our instructor for Buddhism from a Zen Perspective, Thich Thien Tri, is very excited to introduce his teacher to you. His teacher, Ven. Dr. Thich Dong Tuyen, is visiting from California and will be in New Orleans for 4 days. He will be at Tibetan House on Sunday, Dec 9th at 7pm.
About Ven. Dr. Thich Dong Tuyen
Ven. Dr. Thich Dong Tuyen, born in 1948 in Thua Thien, Vietnam. He is a highly accomplished scholar with degrees in History, Buddhist Studies and Philosophy.
Ven. Dr. Thich Dong Tuyen is a Standing Member of the Central Dhamma Executive Council of Vietnam Buddhist Sangha in US and other countries, the Abbot of Dai Bao Trang Nghiem Temple-California. He has given Dhamma lectures and presentations on Buddhism throughout the world including the United States, Canada, Thailand, Taiwan, the Philippines, New Zealand, Australia, French and others.
For more information contact
Zen and Mind Family:
zenandmind@gmail.com or zenandmindfamily@gmail.com
Or Tibetan House:
info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339
*****
Being Present with What Is:
A Spontaneous Evening with Will Ryken
Thursday, December 13
7:00pm-9:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
It is a wonderful opportunity to sit with Will Ryken.
Will visits New Orleans every two months to sit with a gentleman on death row. We invited him to sit with us at Tibetan House whenever he is town, and he graciously accepted.
To sit with Will, chat with Will, be in the same room with Will, is guaranteed to brighten your perspective and lighten the depths of your being. This is so because Will simply ‘is’. He is a true testament to the teachings that he received from Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche.
Dapön Ryken became a student of Trungpa Rinpoche in October 1972 and joined the Dorje Kasung in 1975, attending the 2nd Magyal Pomra Encampment in 1979. He became the personal attendant to Rinpoche, and spent thirty years in Boulder in association with Shambala.
Dapön Ryken now lives in Ruskin FL, along with his wife Paula Bickford, Kadö and their three dogs. Will and Paula are active members of the St. Petersburg Fl Shambhala Center and teach around the Shambhala world. This year Dapön Ryken was appointed a Shastri. Dapön Ryken is widely known and beloved around the Shambhala Mountain Center for his insight, wisdom and humor.
https://www.shambhalamountain.org/teacher/dapon-will-ryken/
https://www.shambhalamountain.org
If you would like to know more about Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, check out this page from Shambhala:
https://shambhala.org/teachers/chogyam-trungpa/
***** November 2018 *****
Traditional Tibetan Medicine Workshops
with Sorig Khang Bay Area
Join us November 29 – December 2 for meditations and workshops from the Tibetan medical and spiritual traditions, offered by Jason Whitlow from Sorig Khang Center for Tibetan Medicine! CEUs are pending for these programs.
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The Five Elements in Health & Spiritual Practice
Talk & Guided Meditation with Jason Whitlow
Thursday, November 29, 2018, 7–9 PM
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street, New Orleans
The five elements are the essential building blocks of the world around us, as well as of our body, subtle energy, and mind. Outwardly, we seek to balance the five elements to care for the environment and cultivate health and well-being, while inwardly, we seek to recognize their pure nature as light and wisdom. Join us for a talk, purification breathing practice, and guided meditation on the five elements according to the Tibetan medical and spiritual traditions!
This talk and practice is open to everyone.
Learn more & register at: bayarea.sorig.net/nola
Also streamed online.
Suggested Donation: $20
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Medicine Buddha Healing Meditation with Jason Whitlow
Friday, November 30, 2018, 7–9 PM
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street, New Orleans
Join us for a guided meditation on the Medicine Buddha, the embodiment of perfect balance and healing wisdom, to harmonize the environment and eliminate the illness and suffering of ourselves and all who struggle. This profound and accessible practice from Tibetan master Ju Mipham Rinpoche uses mantra and visualization, the power of vibration and mind, to balance body, energy, mind, and the world around us, bringing health and well-being on all levels.
This practice is open to everyone.
Learn more & register at: bayarea.sorig.net/nola
Also streamed online.
Suggested Donation: $20
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An Introduction to Tibetan Medicine:
Cultivating Health, Long Life, & Happiness
Workshop with Jason Whitlow
Saturday, December 1, 2018, 10 AM – 6 PM
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street, New Orleans
Traditional Tibetan Medicine, known in Tibetan as Sowa Rigpa, is one of the oldest healing sciences on earth. It offers a vast medical knowledge that is accessible to everyone, and cultivates good health and long life together with a happy mind.
Tibetan Medicine offers a holistic, ecological view of health that considers the balance of our body, energy, and mind together with our interdependent relationship with other beings and the environment. It uses preventative and therapeutic methods customized to the unique traits of each individual, making it a truly personalized healthcare system.
In this workshop, we will explore the fundamentals of Traditional Tibetan Medicine, including its essential understanding of health and disease, its sophisticated assessment techniques, and its many practical healing methods including lifestyle and diet guidelines, herbal medicines, massage and external therapies, and healing breath and yoga practices.
This workshop is open to everyone, with no prerequisites.
Learn more & register at: bayarea.sorig.net/nola
CEUs are pending for these programs.
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Tibetan Hormé Therapy: Soothing Stress, Relaxing Body, Calming Mind
Hands-on Workshop with Jason Whitlow
Sunday, December 2, 2018, 10 AM – 6 PM
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street, New Orleans
Hormé is one of the essential healing therapies described in the root texts of Tibetan Medicine. This safe, simple, and portable method uses warm herbal compresses and oil to unwind the nervous system, deeply relaxing and nourishing the body and mind.
Hormé can be performed as a standalone therapy, or combined with other healing modalities such as acupuncture or massage. In the Tibetan medical tradition, Hormé is one of the superior remedies for stress, anxiety, and insomnia. It is also excellent for prenatal as well as postpartum care.
In this hands-on workshop we will review the fundamentals of Tibetan Medicine, focusing on the function and disorders of the wind element. We will learn about the historical use of Hormé, as well as how to identify the types of people and conditions it can benefit. We will then study the points where Hormé can be applied, learn how to make the herbal compresses, and practice offering the therapy to each other.
This workshop is open to everyone. Students are encouraged to attend the Saturday workshop as well, especially if this is your first encounter with Tibetan Medicine.
Learn more & register at: bayarea.sorig.net/nola
CEUs are pending for these programs.
Workshop Fees
One Workshop:
Register by November 11: $120
Register after November 11: $150
Both Workshops:
Register by November 11: $200
Register after November 11: $270
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Dakini Healing Mantra Practice & Feast
Guided Meditation with Jason Whitlow
Sunday, December 2, 2018, 6–7 PM
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street, New Orleans
Also streamed online.
On this auspicious Dakini Day, join us to chant the healing mantra of the five dakinis, the embodiment of enlightened feminine wisdom, power, and the pure forms of the five elements. This simple practice supports health and harmonizes the planet, and is dedicated to the empowerment of women worldwide. We will also offer a feast together in celebration — please bring food and drink to share!
This practice is open to everyone.
Learn more & register at: bayarea.sorig.net/nola
Free
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Continue Your Studies of Tibetan Medicine & External Therapies!
Students who wish to study Tibetan Medicine in depth are encouraged to attend the online Foundations of TTM workshops offered by Sorig Khang Center for Tibetan Medicine. The next training cycles start October 27–28, 2018, and in the spring of 2019. Learn more at: bayarea.sorig.net/foundations
Sorig Khang and Tibetan House will offer further Tibetan Medicine & External Therapies workshops in New Orleans in 2019 — please join our mailing list for updates!
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About Sorig Khang
Sorig Khang is a nonprofit center offering programs in the study and practice of Traditional Tibetan Medicine and the related Yuthok Nyingthig spiritual lineage in the San Francisco Bay Area, New Orleans, and beyond. It is part of the Sorig Khang International network of Tibetan Medicine centers in over 50 countries around the world. Learn more at: bayarea.sorig.net
About Jason Whitlow
Jason studies, practices, and teaches Tibetan Medicine and the Yuthok Nyingthig spiritual lineage under the guidance of renowned Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, and directs Sorig Khang centers based in the San Francisco Bay Area and New Orleans. Jason graduated with honors from Harvard University, where he studied neurobiology, computer science, and pre-medicine, and has also trained in somatics and trauma recovery.
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***** October 2018 *****
Ayurvedic 8-day Fall Cleanse for Optimal Health and Longevity
Led by Bethany Cantin
October 6 – October 20
Ayurvedic cleanses are used for optimizing health and prolonging life by removing physical, chemical and mental impurities from your body to restore you to a balanced, healthier way of life.
Ayurvedic philosophy believes that food is medicine and that healthy, nutritional, seasonal foods, whole grains, healing spices, along with disciplined self-care are the only medicines we need for vibrant, healthy living.
Fall is an excellent time of year to create physical and mental optimal health and to connect with the rhythms of Mother Nature for rejuvenation, clarity and transformation.
Pre Cleanse meeting
Saturday, October 6, 11:00am-12:30pm
Cleanse Dates
October 14-21
Cleanse Wrap Up Meeting:
Saturday, October 20, 11:00am-12:30pm
We start with a 1.5 hour meeting a week prior to the cleanse start date to familiarize ourselves with the many details of the cleanse. I will provide everyone participating in the cleanse with an in-depth, 20 page manual that will detail every single aspect of the ayurvedic cleanse and this will be reviewed and handed out at the meeting.
In a nutshell, the cleanse is 8 days long and starts with a 3 day diet of whole grains, seasonal fruits veggies. This is followed by 3 days of a mono diet of “kitchari” which is a wonderfully healing, warm, deeply nutritional and cleansing dish of basmati rice, mung beans, spices and vegetables. We finish the cleanse with 2 days of a rejuvenation phase of slowly incorporating smart food choices back into your diet.
Daily rituals that balance and restore you (called dinacharya) are incorporated into every day of the cleanse.
Bethany will send daily emails to everyone participating in the 8 day cleanse to support you in the process and to share additional ayurvedic wisdom that will deepen your experience each day. Bethany will also be available to answer any questions you may have each day of the cleanse.
Please reach out with any questions to: Bethany@NolaAyurveda.com
If you have specific health concerns it is advisable that you see me for a private ayurvedic consultation before the cleanse starts.
Fee $110
To register, contact Tibetan House: info@tibetanhouse.com.
About Bethany Cantin
Bethany Cantin is an Ayurvedic Practitioner and a Yoga Therapist who brings a vibrant energy and a dedicated spirit to 17 years helping others deepen their connection to life. Bethany offers private ayurvedic consultations here at FSY as well as ayurvedic workshops and seasonal ayurvedic cleanses . Bethany is recognized by NAMA (National Ayurvedic Medical Association) as a registered Ayurvedic Practitioner and has certifications from The Ayurvedic Institute in New Mexico, Kerela Academy in California. She completed 2 internships in India at Ayurvedagram in Bangalore and Kerala Ayurveda Academy Hospital in Cochin.
Bethany is also the Director and Founder of The Yoga Foundation, a non-profit organization offering free yoga, meditation programs to the underserved to help foster empowerment, self reliance and self love. Visit NolaAyurveda.com for more information.
11:00am – 1:00pm and 2:00pm – 4:00pm
Lunch break 1:00pm-2:00pm
Pre-registration required as space is limited.
To register, contact Tibetan House
info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339
Retreat led by Gael Thompson, Co-owner of Tibetan House.
***** September 2018 *****
Being Present with What Is: A Spontaneous Evening w/ Will Ryken
Saturday, September 8, 7:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
It is a rare and wonderful privilege to sit with Will Ryken.
To sit with Will, chat with Will, be in the same room with Will, is guaranteed to brighten your perspective and lighten the depths of your being. This is so because Will simply ‘is’. He is a true testament to the teachings that he received from Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche.
About Will Ryken
Dapön Ryken became a student of Trungpa Rinpoche in October 1972 and joined the Dorje Kasung in 1975, attending the 2nd Magyal Pomra Encampment in 1979. He became the personal attendant to Rinpoche, and spent thirty years in Boulder in association with Shambala.
Dapön Ryken now lives in Ruskin FL, along with his wife Paula Bickford, Kadö and their three dogs. Will and Paula are active members of the St. Petersburg Fl Shambhala Center and teach around the Shambhala world. This year Dapön Ryken was appointed a Shastri. Dapön Ryken is widely known and beloved around the Shambhala Mountain Center for his insight, wisdom and humor.
*****
Mindfulness for Kids
5-week Class led by Whitney Stewart
September 13, 20, 27, & October 4, 11
For youth ages 9 – 12
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
$100 per child, for five weeks. Included in the price is Whitney Stewart’s Mindful Me Activity Book, for use in class and at home.
Class Description
Teacher Bio
To register for the five-week session, please contact Tibetan House:
info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339.
*****
An Introduction to Ayurveda for Vibrancy, Longevity & Optimal Health
11:00am-1:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Cost $35
To register, contact Tibetan House: info@tibetanhouse.com
Ayurveda is a 5000 year old sister science to yoga which translates to “life knowledge”. Ayurvedic principles connect us to the daily rhythms of nature through proper seasonal diets, daily routines (called dinacharya) and simple lifestyle changes, which can increase your vibrancy, longevity and create greater joy and balance in your life.
In this hands-on workshop we will discuss the great elements of Vata (air/either), Pitta (fire/water), and Kapha (earth/water) and how they apply to the seasons, times of day, stages of life and to you as an individual.
We will determine your unique blend of these elements, known as your prakruti, and you will leave with seasonal dietary suggestions, daily routines, as well as suggestions for the best practices to balance your unique being.
Bring a notebook, a pen, and an open mind.
About Bethany Cantin
Bethany Cantin is an Ayurvedic Practitioner and a Yoga Therapist who brings a vibrant energy and a dedicated spirit to 17 years helping others deepen their connection to life. Bethany offers private ayurvedic consultations here at FSY as well as ayurvedic workshops and seasonal ayurvedic cleanses . Bethany is recognized by NAMA (National Ayurvedic Medical Association) as a registered Ayurvedic Practitioner and has certifications from The Ayurvedic Institute in New Mexico, Kerela Academy in California. She completed 2 internships in India at Ayurvedagram in Bangalore and Kerala Ayurveda Academy Hospital in Cochin.
Bethany is also the Director and Founder of The Yoga Foundation, a non-profit organization offering free yoga, meditation programs to the underserved to help foster empowerment, self reliance and self love. Visit NolaAyurveda.com for more information.
***** August 2018 *****
9-week Courses in
Basic Buddhist Meditation from a Zen Perspective with Thich Thien Tri
Zen teacher Thich Thien Tri, Thay, will be leading this course. He graduated from Vietnamese Buddhist Association with a Bachelor of Arts in Buddhism. Since his arrival in the USA in 2002, Thay has taught in many US cities. In July 2015, he was invited by Van Hanh Buddhist Center of New Orleans to establish ’Zen and Mind Family’.
This course is progressive, each class building on the previous class. You will be introduced to these practices:
• Four Noble Truths
• Six Senses and the objects of Six Senses
• Sitting, standing, walking meditation
• Chanting
• Mani Mantra
This course will take place:
Thursday evenings, 6:30pm-8:30pm
August 9 – September 27
Fee: $200
For more information, contact
Master Thay at (504) 452-0891 or zenandmind@gmail.com
Required pre-registration begins August 1, contact Tibetan House at info@tibetanhouse.com
Location: Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas St.
If you have to miss a class, Thich Thien Tri will be happy to have a make up class with you.
Students who successfully complete the course will receive a certificate and graduate to the next level.
Please let us know if you would like to participate! We need five participants for the course to take place!
Mind-Body-Spirit Based
Relapse Prevention for Addictions
with Dr. Jose Calderon
Wednesday evenings, 7:00pm-9:00pm 
August 22
August 29
September 5
September 12
Classes will take place at
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Fee for the course is $80.
Wanting, aversion, and confusion are at the core of many unskillful behaviors including addictions. Entering and sustaining recovery often requires skillful use of psychological, behavioral and ethical/spiritual tools.
This is a 4-week workshop for those wanting to learn or modify skills to sustain sobriety from chemical or behavioral addictions. This workshop teaches mindfulness, mind-body medicine, and cognitive behavioral skills to support your practice and complement any other form of addiction treatment, 12-steps, SMART recovery, or Refuge Recovery work you may be doing. Selective mind-body skill may include gentle mindful movements and other forms of embodied mindfulness practices, meditation, imagery, cognitive behavioral skills and other.
Participants are required to attend all 4 sessions, come to sessions sober, and commit to practice between sessions.
To register please contact Tibetan House, info@tibetanhouse.com.
About Jose Calderon-Abbo, M.D.
Dr. Calderón is board certified in psychiatry and addiction medicine, with an additional certification in mind-body medicine. He is a long time Vipassana practitioner, and mind-body medicine group facilitator. Dr. Calderon is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychiatry with LSU School of Medicine Department of Psychiatry, Clinical faculty at Tulane University, and is the Medical Director of the New Orleans Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse. He is Senior Faculty at the Center for Mind- Body Medicine in Washington DC where he conducts national and international trainings and supervision in mind-body medicine skills for the general public healthcare providers.
***** July 2018 *****
Meditation with Dapön Will Ryken
Sunday, July 1
7:00pm-9:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
It is a rare and wonderful privilege to sit with Will Ryken.
Will visits New Orleans every two months to sit with a gentleman on death row. We invited him to sit with us at Tibetan House whenever he is town, and he graciously accepted. This visit he will be speaking more directly about meditation and will lead us in a practice.
To sit with Will, chat with Will, be in the same room with Will, is guaranteed to brighten your perspective and lighten the depths of your being. This is so because Will simply ‘is’. He is a true testament to the teachings that he received from Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche.
Dapön Ryken became a student of Trungpa Rinpoche in October 1972 and joined the Dorje Kasung in 1975, attending the 2nd Magyal Pomra Encampment in 1979. He became the personal attendant to Rinpoche, and spent thirty years in Boulder in association with Shambala.
Dapön Ryken now lives in Ruskin FL, along with his wife Paula Bickford, Kadö and their three dogs. Will and Paula are active members of the St. Petersburg Fl Shambhala Center and teach around the Shambhala world. This year Dapön Ryken was appointed a Shastri. Dapön Ryken is widely known and beloved around the Shambhala Mountain Center for his insight, wisdom and humor.
https://www.shambhalamountain.org/teacher/dapon-will-ryken/
https://www.shambhalamountain.org
If you would like to know more about Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, check out this page from Shambhala:
https://shambhala.org/teachers/chogyam-trungpa/
*****
Chamtrul Rinpoche is the recognized reincarnation of a great master and scholar from the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, the oldest school in Tibet.
Having studied many years, he holds a vast and profound knowledge of sutra, tantra, and dzogchen, and has been conferred the title ‘Khenpo’ – roughly equivalent to ‘Doctor of Buddhist Philosophy’.
Known for his nonsectarian quality, he has received all the cycles of teachings, empowerments and transmissions from more than twenty five accomplished masters and scholars from all four major traditions of Tibetan Buddhism – namely, Nyingma, Kagyu, Sakya, and Gelug.
Chamtrul Rinpoche currently lives and teaches in India, in the Himalayan town of Dharamsala. Dedicating his life to helping people find inner peace, he also travels the world each year to teach and guide many old and new students.
In his own words:
“Teaching is what I do in this life, wherever someone asks me to teach, I am there. Without discriminating against anybody based on their gender, race, creed and so forth, I wish them to enjoy excellent peace and harmony. I try to the best of my ability to promote the view, meditation and conduct of non-violence, which is the indispensable source for the spread and enhancement of the inner peace of mind.”
For more information about Chamtrul Rinpoche, visit his website: http://www.chamtrul-rinpoche.com
Teaching Schedule
Tuesday, July 24,
10:00am-12:15pm: “Relationship between Body, Mind and Energy
1:30am-3:45pm: “Meditation On Selflessness”
Clearwater Sanctuary in Covington
For more information, contact:
info@clearwatersanctuary.org or (985) 630-1009
Wednesday, July 25
10:00am-12:15pm: “Meditation Teaching With Guided Practice ”
1:30pm-3:45pm “Overview Of Vajrayana and Dzochen”
Clearwater Sanctuary in Covington
For more information, contact:
info@clearwatersanctuary.org or (985) 630-1009
Thursday, July 26, 7pm-9pm
Practicing the Union of Emptiness and Compassion
Mid-City Zen Center
3248 Castiglione Street
Friday, July 27, 7pm-9pm
Tong-Len: the Healing Power of Compassion
LHA Community Center
623 North Rendon
Saturday, July 28 – Sunday, July 29
Tonglen Teachings with Guided Meditation
LHA Community Center
623 North Rendon
Saturday, July 28, 11:00am-1:00pm & 3:00pm-5:00pm
Sunday, July 29, 11:00am-1:00pm
Monday, July 30, 6:45pm-8:00pm
Topic to be announced
Samten Choeling Dharma Center
For more information and to RSVP, contact:
Ngawang Legshe at (504) 723-1317
Tibetan House and Sorig Khang Bay Area Center for Traditional Tibetan Medicine present
Ku Nye Tibetan Massage & External Therapies Trainings
With Sorig Khang Center for Tibetan Medicine
June 15–19, 2018
Public Talk with Eric Rosenbush, L.Ac.
Thursday, June 14, 2018
7:00pm–9:00pm Central
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street, New Orleans
Streamed online at: bayarea.sorig.net/online
*****
.
6:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas St
According to Sogyal Rinpoche:
Please explore these websites for a more comprehensive understanding of what occurs when we join together with Tsering in the Smoke Offering.
- http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Riwo_Sangchö
- https://samyeinstitute.org/wisdom/sang-puja-cleansing-offering/
- http://wcbs.us/rigzinphodrang/events/SmokeOfferingEN.htm
- http://www.lotsawahouse.org/tibetan-masters/dodrupchen-III/guide-sang-practice
Everyone who has traveled to India with one of the annual groups from Tulane, Loyola, Ochsner or LMHPCO is invited to attend.
Reconnect with classmates and network with like-minded professionals.
The evening will include a Smoke Puja led by Tsering Phuntsok and a brief presentation on the impact of 15 years of India trips from Louisiana. Perhaps we’ll also brainstorm on ways to continue to serve the Tibetan community in exile.
Food and drinks provided. Feel free to contribute if you are so inclined!
In addition to past participants, anyone attending a trip this year OR interested in joining one of the trips in the future is WELCOME to attend!
11:00am-12:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
About Mindful Me
When that happens, knowing how to pause and regain composure with mindfulness can help! This easily digestible guide introduces kids to mindfulness as a way to find clarity, manage stress, handle difficult emotions, and navigate personal challenges. With over 30 breathing, relaxation, and guided meditation exercises, including stepby-step instructions, readers will have an entire toolkit at their disposal, and writing prompts will help them process their discoveries.In the activity book, kids will learn to settle their thoughts and look inward through a series of fun writing prompts, games, and meditation exercises. Serving as a guide to reflect upon the lessons learned in Mindful Me, it offers kids a place to record their reflections, creating a tangible account of how far they’ve grown in their meditation practice.
About Whitney Stewart
*****
Chöd Ceremony with the Venerable Tsering Phuntsok
Tuesday May 15
7:00pm – 8:30pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas St
I have read so many descriptions of this practice. I have heard it practiced many, many times while traveling in India and Nepal. There is no simple, easy way to translate the experience into an explanation. The Tibetan word Chöd translate into ‘to sever’. In context of this practice, it is to sever the ego and is most commonly referred to as ‘Cutting Through the Ego’.
Thank you, Tsering for sharing this powerful practice with us.
If you feel inclined, investigate these sites. There are many others. There are also youtube videos.
- https://fpmt.org/mandala/archives/mandala-issues-for-2007/june/the-real-chod-practice
- https://chodpaorg.wordpress.com/what-is-chod/
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_Vd4hpqFmk
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dreGjqO2yxY
- https://fpmt.org/mandala/archives/mandala-issues-for-2007/june/the-real-chod-practice/
*****
Applied Meditation Practices
A Taoist Approach with Stephen Josephs, Ed.D.
and guest, Jose Calderon-Abbo, M.D
Wednesdays, May 16, 23 & 30
7:00pm-9:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Course fee: $60
This 3 module course looks at meditation as a pathway to feeling fully alive in the midst of life challenges. What are normally considered hinderances can, in fact, be gateways to our ever expanding experience of awareness. The practices you will learn are designed to deepen and stabilize your meditation.
In three successive sessions, we will learn specific sets of meditative skills that we will apply to 1) Pain reduction, 2) Unwanted behaviors and thoughts, and 3) The Paradox of Goal Achievement.
You may recognize this approach to inviting, accepting, and embracing all experience as characteristically Taoist in flavor. It is. Yet its principles are not only consistent with non-dual teaching from many traditions, but with recent discoveries in neuroscience.
To quote Lao Tzu:
…And whether a man dispassionately
Sees to the core of life
Or passionately
Sees the surface,
The core and the surface
Are essentially the same,
Words making them seem different
Only to express appearance.
If name be needed, wonder names them both:
From wonder into wonder
Existence opens.
The sessions are meant to build on each other in succession but will be valuable as individual sessions, as well.
Stephen Josephs,Ed.D. has practiced meditation and various mind-body disciplines for over 50 years. This includes Taoist “water method” meditation – a method of systematic dissolving of blocks while in a state of non-dual awareness. He has been an executive coach for over 37 years. He co-authored Leadership Agility, a study of how leaders mature in their roles and how maturation affects their capacity to lead. This evolution for executives all comes down to “getting over yourself,” and meditation is offered to leaders as a cure for self-importance. As Lao Tzu would say of a sound man and a leader, “By never being an end in himself, he endlessly becomes himself.”
Jose Calderon-Abbo, M.D. is board certified in psychiatry and addiction medicine, with an additional certification in mind-body medicine. He is a long time Vipassana practitioner, and mind-body medicine group facilitator. Dr. Calderon is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychiatry with LSU School of Medicine Department of Psychiatry, Clinical faculty at Tulane University, and is the Medical Director of the New Orleans Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse. He is Senior Faculty at the Center for Mind- Body Medicine in Washington DC. where he conducts national and international trainings and supervision in mind-body medicine skills for the general public, healthcare providers and the department of defense. He is developing and studying an emergent model for relapse prevention and mental health care combining neurosciences, mind-body medicine, and functional medicine for mental health, wellness, and addictions.
Dr. Calderon is the host of Whole Body Mental Health Radio, a radio show that thinks broadly about mental health and addictions, from the mind-body connection and genetics, to the community and the world! This program airs on WHIV, 102.3 FM, on Wednesday evenings, 7:00pm-8:00pm. The archive is available on itunes.
For more information about Dr. Calderon’s practice, visit his website, www.mindfulpsychiatry.com.
*****
Tsering Phuntsok at Tibetan House
Thursday, May 17
11:00am-6:00pm
Tsering is available for private sessions. You can schedule an astrology readings, or a sitting, or have a question/answer discussions.
Drop in or make an appointment to visit with him.
To connect with Tsering, contact Tibetan House: info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339.
*****
leading this course. He graduated from Vietnamese Buddhist Association with a Bachelor of Arts in Buddhism. Since his arrival in the USA in 2002, Thay has taught in many US cities. In July 2015, he was invited by Van Hanh Buddhist Center of New Orleans to establish ’Zen and Mind Family’.This course is progressive, each class building on the previous class. You will be introduced to these practices:
• Four Noble Truths
• Six Senses and the objects of Six Senses
• Sitting, standing, walking meditation
• Chanting
• Mani Mantra
We are offering two opportunities for this course:
Saturday evenings, 6:30pm – 8:30pm
June 2- July 28
Fee: $200
Pre-registration is required: contact Tibetan House at 504 897 9339 or info@tibetanhouse.com
Location: Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas St.
If you have to miss a class, Thich Thien Tri will be happy to have a make up class with you.
Students who successfully complete the course will receive a certificate and graduate to the next level.
Please let us know if you would like to participate! We need five participants for the course to take place!
*****
SoulCollage,
Workshop with Catherine Williams
Sunday, May 20
12:45pm-5:30pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Cost: $40
Please be prompt, doors lock at 1pm
This creative process offers a way of making meaning beyond the world of words through colors and images that appeal to you.
Created by Seena Frost, SoulCollage® has evolved as a way to deepen your connection to self and your own purpose in this world, using images that intuitively call to you.
Eventually you’ll have a deck of personal wisdom cards, created through the knowing guidance of your intuition. Then through an interactive process of ”reading” the card, you will find it offers access to a place of wisdom and kindness in yourself. From this place come messages from your Self to your self, timely and affirming.
About Catherine Williams
Catherine Williams has been a SoulCollage® facilitator since September 2011. With a Master’s Degree in Drama Therapy, she has led workshops for over 20 years combining art, movement and drama therapy. She is certified as a teacher of the Enneagram in the narrative tradition.
*****
Drepung Gomang Monks in New Orleans
May 21-29, 2018
We are overjoyed that the monks of the Sacred Art Tour of Drepung Gomang Monastery in South India will be with us for the end of May. The Sacred Art Tour is committed to preserving the Tibetan Culture, Traditions and Religions.
Thursday, May 24, 7:00pm-9:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
***** Vajrasattva Purification Puja
$20 Suggested Offering
Saturday, May 26, 12:00pm-5:00pm
New Orleans Healing Center, 2372 St Claude Avenue
$20 Suggested Offering
Sunday, May 27
The Fly at Audubon Park
***** 5:00pm Puja
$20 Suggested Offering
We are very sorry to have to cancel the World Peace Puja this Sunday afternoon, May 27, at the Fly. Unfortunately, the Drepung Gomang Monks from South India have to leave New Orleans earlier than expected.
Our apologies to those of you that were looking forward to this beautiful and timely peace offering
About the Monastery:
“Drepung Gomang Monastic University is one of the most reputed centers (the three great seats: Drepung, Gaden and Sera) for learning, contemplating and practicing Tibetan Buddhist thoughts and science notably known as the second Nalanda University in Tibet. As prophesied in Langsheg Sutra by Lord Buddha: When once Nagaraja Madhopa pledged Lord Buddha with a white conch, Lord Buddha handed it over to Maugalayana, one of his two closest attendants who possessed transcendental miracle-power, with blessed and instructive decree to take it to Gogpa Ri (Garlic Hill) at Gaden in Tibet and hide it there in the hill. It adds that in the future the Bhiksu of Lotus-purity in nature would unearth it and it would thereafter be used as Tsogdhung, to be blown as the signaling medium for gathering to spiritual congregation …..”
( H.E. 80th Abbot /Khen Rinpoche Geshe Lobsang Gyaltsen)
The Sacred Art Tour is also a fundraising venture for the Monastery:
“This monastery solely survives on the donations, contribution and prayer offering and every single fund helps us a lot in taking care of our monks here.
We conveys our sincere thank you to kind donors, sponsors, well wishers for their continuous support which has made this monastery to survive here in exile.
We sincerely appeal everyone to continue kind support towards this monastery and will understand if you are unable to do so. We thank you all once again and will include you all in our daily prayers.”
http://drepunggomang.org/test-tour-page/326-sacred-art-tour-2017-2018
Tibetan HouseTibetan House is very excited to host Will Rykenfor an evening talk. Dapön Will Ryken became a student of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche in October 1972. If you are unfamiliar with Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, you can watch the documentary film, Crazy Wisdom.
Will Ryken has been teaching in prisons for the
past twenty years and is currently a mentor for a gentleman on death row in Angola state prison in Louisiana.
He first connected to Chögyam Trungpa and the Buddhadharma in Boulder, Colorado in 1972 and that was it. While in Boulder, he became a Dorje Kasung in 1975, lived at Karme Chöling for two years and then was Director of Dorje Khyung Dzong for another two, returning to Boulder until moving to Florida in 2006. Mr. Ryken co-founded the Shambhala Sun Summer camp in 1984, and he is a Dapön in the Dorje Kasung. He currently lives in Ruskin FL. with his wife Paula Bickford. They both teach and play at the St. Petersburg Shambhala Center as well as teaching and assistant directing Shambhala and Kasung Programs around the world. Mr. Ryken is well known for his wisdom and humor.
*****
Offering Two 9-week Courses in
Basic Buddhist Meditation from a Zen Perspective
April 3 – May 29
April 14 – June 9
Fee: $200
Pre-Registration is required.
Minimum 5 students,
Maximum 10 students
To register, contact Tibetan House
info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339
This course is progressive, each class building on the previous class. You will learn sitting, standing, and walking meditation practices. You will study how to chant, the Mani mantra, the Six Senses and the Object of Six Senses, and the Four Noble Truths. Students who successfully complete the course will receive a certificate and graduate to the next level.
*****
With Sorig Khang Bay Area Center
for Tibetan Medicine
We are excited to announce our next offering of talks, practices, and classes from the Tibetan medical tradition, offered April 5–8 by Jason Whitlow, director of Sorig Khang Bay Area!
And please save the date for a 5-day intensive training in Tibetan Ku Nye Massage, coming June 15–19 at Tibetan House! More details to come.
Healing the Body, Energy, & Mind
7:00pm-9:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street, New Orleans
Streamed online at: bayarea.sorig.net/online
Suggested Donation: $20
Eliminating Obstacles Meditation
From the Spiritual Tradition of Tibetan Medicine
Friday, April 6, 2018
7:00pm-9:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street, New Orleans
Streamed online at: bayarea.sorig.net/online
Suggested Donation: $20
Nejang Tibetan Healing Yoga Workshop: Opening the Channels, Balancing the Energy
Saturday, April 7, 2018
10:00am-6:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street, New Orleans
For more information, and to register, please visit: bayarea.sorig.net/nola
Tibetan La Massage
Sunday, April 8, 2018
10:00am-6:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street, New Orleans
‘La’ Massage is one of the subtle energetic treatments from the Tibetan medical tradition. It is used to replenish the vital protective energy known as ‘la’, described in both the Tibetan medical and astrological traditions as an essence of our consciousness. ‘La’ energy pervades the body, circulating through it on a lunar cycle and giving us strength and vigor, as well as bliss, sensitivity, and satisfaction. Signs of depleted ‘la’ energy include feelings of tiredness, sadness, and anxiety, a fuzzy mind, and a grayish complexion.
In this workshop, we will review the fundamentals of Tibetan Medicine, including the five elements and three humors, and will learn how their gross and subtle forms (including ‘la’ energy) manifest in our body, energy, and mind. Jason will then introduce the practice of ‘La’ Massage, including the visualizations, recitations, and techniques used to contact and replenish this protective energy. Advice will also be given on how we can gather and protect ‘la’ energy in our day-to-day life, as a means of supporting our vitality and sense of blissful well-being.
For more information, and to register, please visit: bayarea.sorig.net/nola
Workshop Fees
One Workshop:
Register by Mar 25: $120
Register after Mar 25: $150
Both Workshops:
Register by Mar 25: $200
Register after Mar 25: $270
About Jason Whitlow
Director of Sorig Khang Bay Area, Jason graduated with honors from Harvard University, where he studied neurobiology and computer science, and has worked professionally as a somatics teacher and modern dancer. He has studied and practiced for many years under the guidance of Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, a renowned doctor of Tibetan Medicine and holder of the Yuthok Nyingthig lineage.
About Sorig Khang Bay Area
Sorig Khang Bay Area is a nonprofit center offering programs in the study and practice of Traditional Tibetan Medicine and the related Yuthok Nyingthig spiritual lineage. It is part of Sorig Khang International, a network of Tibetan Medicine centers in over 40 countries around the world.
Learn more at: bayarea.sorig.net
Offering Two 9-week Courses in
Basic Buddhist Meditation from a Zen Perspective
March 6-May 1
March 10-May 5
Fee: $200
Pre-Registration is required.
Minimum 5 students,
Maximum 10 students
To register, contact Tibetan House
info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339
This course is progressive, each class building on the previous class. You will learn sitting, standing, and walking meditation practices. You will study how to chant, the Mani mantra, the Six Senses and the Object of Six Senses, and the Four Noble Truths. Students who successfully complete the course will receive a certificate and graduate to the next level.
*****
Practicing Mindfulness in our Daily Living
An Evening with the Venerable Dr. Thich Tam Duc
Thursday, March 22 at 7:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Suggested donation $20
Our instructor for Buddhism from a Zen Perspective, Thich Thien Tri, is very excited to introduce his teacher to you. His teacher, Ven. Dr. Thich Tam Duc, is visiting from Vietnam and will be in New Orleans for six weeks. He will be at Tibetan House on Thursday, March 22.
About Ven. Dr. Thich Tam Duc
Ven. Dr. Thich Tam Duc, born in 1953 in Thua Thien, Vietnam. He is a highly accomplished scholar with degrees in History, Buddhist Studies and Philosophy.
Ven. Dr. Thich Tam Duc is a Standing Member of the Central Dhamma Executive Council of Vietnam Buddhist Sangha, the Vice Rector and General Secretary of the Vietnam Buddhist Research Institute as well as the Vice Rector & Lecturer of Vietnam Buddhist University in Ho Chi Minh City. He has given Dhamma lectures and presentations on Buddhism throughout the world including the United States, Canada, India, Thailand, Taiwan, the Philippines, New Zealand, Australia.
For more information contact Tibetan House:
info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339
*****
Mindfulness Meditation: Journey to a Healthier, Happier Life
Thursday February 22, 7:00 pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Suggested Donation: $20
RSVP and Questions: hmoutonlandry@gmail.com
Wednesdays, January 3, 10, 17, and 24
7:00pm-9:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Wanting, aversion, and confusion are at the core of many unskillful behaviors including addictions. Entering and sustaining recovery often requires skillful use of psychological, behavioral and ethical/spiritual tools.
This is a 4-week workshop for those wanting to learn or modify skills to sustain sobriety from chemical or behavioral addictions. This workshop teaches mindfulness, mind-body medicine, and cognitive behavioral skills to support your practice and complement any other form of addiction treatment, 12-steps, SMART recovery, or Refuge Recovery work you may be doing. Selective mind-body skill may include gentle mindful movements and other forms of embodied mindfulness practices, meditation, imagery, cognitive behavioral skills and other.
Fee for the workshop is $80. Proceeds will go to support Tibetan House New Orleans, and the Whole Body Mental Health Radio podcast.
Participants are required to attend all 4 sessions, come to sessions sober, and commit to practice between sessions.
To register please contact Tibetan House, info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339.
Registration deadline is December 31.
Hungry Ghosts. Preta-gati in Sanskrit. Gakidō 餓鬼道 in Japanese. The realm of
hungry spirits; characterized by great craving and eternal starvation
Tibetan Buddhist Teachings w/ Lama Lena
January 12 – January 16, 2018
Lama Lena (Yeshe Khaytup)
At Tibetan House
Introduction to Dzogchen: Direct Mind Perception
Friday, January 12, 7:00pm-9:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
At LHA Community Center
Lhundup Teachings: Awakening through our feelings & emotions,
the spontaneous perfection of appearances
Saturday, January 13, 11:00am-5:00pm
LHA Community Center. 623 N. Rendon Street
Session 1: 11:00am – 1:00pm;
Session 2: 3:00pm – 5:00pm
Sunday, January 14, 11:00am-1:00pm (Continued)
LHA Community Center, 623 N. Rendon Street
Session 3: 11:00am – 1:00pm
These three sessions do build upon one another yet you are encouraged to attend at least one, any one, if that is all you are able to do.
At Tibetan House
Refuge Ceremony and Teachings
Tuesday, January 16, 6:00pm-8:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
This session is for those wishing to go deeper into Buddhism.
Suggested Donation $20 for each talk.
No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
For more information, contact Tibetan House at
info@tibetanhouse.com or call (504) 897-9339.
Awakening the Third Eye, Wenndi Freer in New Orleans
Introduction to the Third Eye, an Evening with Wenndi Freer
Thursday, January 18, 7pm-8:30pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Free
Have you ever wondered what the Third Eye really is, and what it would be like to experience being in the third eye? In this talk, Wenndi Freer will be taking us into the mysterious and intriguing realm of the Third Eye. She’ll also be introducing us to subtle bodies and how to cultivate awakening by working on these subtle bodies of energy. Following this talk, Wenndi will be leading a workshop, “Awakening the Third Eye”, at Ashtanga Yoga Room, Jan 20 & 21.
Awakening the Third Eye Weekend Workshop
Saturday, January 20, 11:45am-6:00pm
Sunday, January 21, 11:15am-6:45pm
Ashtanga Yoga Room, 2521 Jena Street
Fee: $150
Awakening the Third Eye is for those who want direct experience of deeper states of consciousness and those who want to learn skills for cultivating and managing their energy. You will learn a technique that develops awareness of the third eye, an energetic organ of perception. It will include third eye meditation techniques for awakening spiritual vision, protecting and grounding your energy, quieting your mind, and fast recuperation from fatigue. We will explore easy and powerful ways to incorporate what you are learning into your daily life. The result will be a sense of awakening that has the potential to renew and invigorate your passion for life. Click here for additional details.
Click here to register for the weekend workshop.
For more information, contact Ashtanga Yoga Room, (504) 813 3738.
Basic Buddhist Meditation from a Zen Perspective
9-week course with Thich Thien Tri
Saturdays, 6:00pm-8:00pm
January 20-March 31
Adjustments will be made for Mardi Gras, no class on February 3 and February 10.
This course remains open for new participants for the first 3 classes.
Classes held at Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas St
Fee: $200
Pre-registration required. Contact Tibetan House, info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339.
Space is limited. Minimum 5 students, Maximum 10 students
Zen teacher Thich Thien Tri will be leading this course. He graduated from Vietnamese Buddhist Association with a Bachelor of Arts in Buddhism. He began his journey in America in 2002 and has taught in many cities in the US. In July 2015, he was invited by Van Hanh Buddhist Center of New Orleans to establish the ‘Zen and Mind Family’ in order to teach how meditation benefits our lives, spiritually, emotionally and physically.
This course is progressive, each class building on the previous class. You will learn sitting, standing, and walking meditation practices. You will study how to chant, the Mani mantra, the Six Senses and the Object of Six Senses, and the Four Noble Truths. Students who successfully complete the course will receive a certificate and graduate to the next level.
10:00am-5:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
There are three important aspects of meditation: mindful attention, open awareness and loving kindness. By practicing these, we can let go of negative mental patterns and expand our heart and mind, bringing about joy, peace and inner freedom. Anam Thubten will teach and guide participants in developing these three aspects of meditation and share Buddhist wisdom on working with our thoughts and emotions.Anam Thubten grew up in Tibet and at an early age began to practice in the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. Among his many teachers, his most formative guides were Lama Tsurlo, Khenpo Chopel, and Lama Garwang. He is the founder and spiritual advisor of Dharmata Foundation, teaching widely in the U.S. and abroad. He is also the author of various articles and books in both the Tibetan and English language. His books in English include The Magic of Awareness and No Self, No Problem. To view Anam Thubten’s teaching and retreat schedule, please visit www.dharmata.org/events-calendar. Through the essential wisdom of Buddhism and his personal experience on the spiritual path, Anam Thubten brings alive the timeless teachings and invites everyone to participate.
Journey from Zanskar
at Unity Church and Tibetan House
Journey from Zanskar, Film Screening
Wednesday, December 27, 6:30pm
Unity of New Orleans Spiritual Center
3722 St. Charles Avenue
Admission: $10.00
Meet Filmmaker Frederick Marx
Thursday, December 28, 7:00pm-9:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Suggested donation: $10.00
About the Film
Zanskar is one of the last remaining original Tibetan Buddhist societies with a continuous untainted lineage dating back thousands of years. In nearby Tibet and Ladakh, in Sikkim, Bhutan, and Nepal, traditional Tibetan Buddhist culture is either dead already or dying. The horror of Chinese government design in Tibet is being matched by the destruction of global economics elsewhere. Zanskar, ringed by high Himalayan mountains in northwest India, one of the most remote places on the planet, has been safe until now. But that’s changing.
In 3-5 years a road connecting Padum, the heart of Zanskar, with Leh, the heart of neighboring Ladakh, will be finished. The route which previously took up to two days by car will take only 4-5 hours. As economic growth descends on Zanskar it will bring with it an end to this unbroken Buddhist social tradition. Will the native language, culture, and religious practice be able to survive? Watch Journey From Zanskar to discover how two humble monks, far from their Buddhist temple, honor their vows by supporting these remote village children to get a great Buddhist education.
About the Filmmakers
Warrior Films produces compelling documentary films about solutions to the world’s problems: Everyday people finding ways to overcome oppressive socio-economic barriers. Most known for HOOP DREAMS, we tell transformational stories that transform lives. Though we specialize in stories of the poor, youth, people of color, the dispossessed… each story is issue specific. We go worldwide to tell the right story.
***** November 2017 *****
Introduction to Tranditional Tibetan Medicine: Cultivating Health, Long Life, and Happiness
Led by Jason Whitlow, Director of Sorig Khang Bar Area
November 16-November 19
We are very excited to announce our first workshops in the fundamentals of Traditional Tibetan Medicine, starting this November! These talks and workshops will be offered by Jason Whitlow, director of Sorig Khang Bay Area.
Sorig Khang Bay Area is a nonprofit center offering programs in the study and practice of Traditional Tibetan Medicine, and the related Yuthok Nyingthig spiritual lineage. It is part of Sorig Khang International, a network of Tibetan Medicine centers, teachers, and practitioners in over 40 countries around the world.
To learn more and register: bayarea.sorig.net.
EVENING TALKS
Thursday November 16. 7:00pm – 9:00pm
“May I Benefit Beings Like the Sun and the Moon”: An Introduction to the Spiritual Tradition of Tibetan Medicine
The Yuthok Nyingthig is the unique spiritual tradition of Tibetan Medicine, practiced by doctors, healers, and meditators from all lineages. Known for its concise methods and swift blessings, it is the perfect practice for modern, busy practitioners. It contains one-of-a-kind techniques to develop intuition and healing abilities while cultivating wisdom and compassion.
These teachings have been transmitted by Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, a renowned doctor of Tibetan Medicine and lineage holder of the Yuthok Nyingthig. In this talk, Jason will introduce the history and singular qualities of the Yuthok Nyingthig, and will give an overview of the structure and approach of this cycle of Vajrayana Buddhist practice. He will also lead a guided meditation and mantra recitation from this tradition.
Suggested donation $20
Friday November 17, 7:00pm – 9:00pm
Medicine Buddha Healing Meditation
Join us for a guided meditation practice on the Medicine Buddha, the embodiment of perfect healing wisdom. From the Mantra Healing Treatise of Tibetan master Ju Mipham Rinpoche, this accessible practice uses mantra and visualization, the power of sound and mind, to heal ourselves and others.
Suggested donation $20
FULL DAY WORKSHOPS
Saturday November 18, 10:00am – 6:00pm
A Personalized Approach to Health: Typology in Tibetan Medicine
One of the oldest medical systems in existence, Tibetan Medicine offers a truly personalized approach to cultivating health based on each individual’s unique typology. Through understanding the distinctive traits of our own body and mind, we can make better choices to prevent and cure disease and to support our own well-being.
In this workshop, we will learn the fundamentals of Tibetan Medicine, including the five elements and three humors that are the foundation of typology. Through interactive exercises, we will determine our own personal typology, and will explore Tibetan Medicine advice about the best diet, lifestyle, and external therapies for each type. We will also learn about simple ‘kitchen pharmacy’ remedies that can be made using the food and spices in our own home
Sunday November 19, 10:00am – 6:00pm
Nejang Tibetan Healing Yoga Workshop
Nejang is a Tibetan healing yoga practice that consists of simple breath work, physical exercises, and self-massage. It is designed to improve the function of the sense and inner organs, open the channels, balance the energy, and relax the mind. With roots in the Tibetan Buddhist Kalachakra tradition, it has been prescribed to patients by Tibetan doctors for centuries due to its ability to support health and cure disease.
In this workshop, Jason will introduce the fundamentals of Tibetan Medicine, including the channels and energies of the subtle body, and teach the key points of posture and breath used in Nejang. We will then learn and practice some of the twenty-four Nejang exercises and explore their specific therapeutic applications using the Nejang text and commentaries.
For more information, and to register, please visit: bayarea.sorig.net/nola
Registration Fees for Workshops
One Full Day Workshop:
Register by Nov 4: $120
Register after Nov 4: $150
Both Full Day Workshops:
Register by Nov 4: $200
Register after Nov 4: $270
To register, visit the Sorig Khang Bay Area website: https://bayarea.sorig.net/schedule/
About Jason Whitlow
Jason Whitlow is director of Sorig Khang Bay Area, a nonprofit center offering programs in Tibetan Medicine and the Yuthok Nyingthig spiritual tradition. Jason graduated with honors from Harvard University, where he studied neurobiology and computer science, and worked as a somatics teacher and professional modern dancer. He has studied and practiced for many years under the guidance of Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, a renowned doctor of Tibetan Medicine and holder of the Yuthok Nyingthig lineage
*****
Basic Buddhist Meditation from a Zen Perspective
9-week course with Thich Thien Tri
Tuesdays, 9:00am-11:00am
November 21-January 30
Classes held at Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas St
Fee: $200
Registration for this course is open until December 5.
Adjustments will be made for the holidays.
Pre-registration required. Contact Tibetan House, info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339.
Space is limited. Minimum 5 students, Maximum 10 students
Zen teacher Thich Thien Tri will be leading this course. He graduated from Vietnamese Buddhist Association with a Bachelor of Arts in Buddhism. He began his journey in America in 2002 and has taught in many cities in the US. In July 2015, he was invited by Van Hanh Buddhist Center of New Orleans to establish the ‘Zen and Mind Family’ in order to teach how meditation benefits our lives, spiritually, emotionally and physically.
This course is progressive, each class building on the previous class. You will learn sitting, standing, and walking meditation practices. You will study how to chant, the Mani mantra, the Six Senses and the Object of Six Senses, and the Four Noble Truths. Students who successfully complete the course will receive a certificate and graduate to the next level.
Death and Dying from a Tibetan Buddhist Perspective
Wednesday, November 29
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Suggested Donation: $10
A conversation with Paloma Landry about spiritual preparation and actions that can be done for ourselves and to assist others during the dying process.
About Paloma Landry
Paloma Landry studied Tibetan language at Rangjung Yeshe Institute in Kathmandu, Nepal. After becoming proficient in the Tibetan language she began translating for Tibetan monks and teachers in 2002. Since then she has translated for dozens of lectures on the Tibetan and Buddhist view of death and dying, fielded hundreds of questions in translation on the topic, and facilitated advice and practices to be done during the dying process. After serving as one of the primary care takers for her grandmother and a close friend as they were dying, she realized that Americans are vastly unprepared for death, resulting in enormous stress and suffering for both the patients and their families and loved ones. After exploring this further and studying many articles and legal aspects associated with dying, she began providing death and dying workshops across the U.S. and Canada in hopes that we can be better prepared for this inevitable outcome to our lives.
***** October 2017 *****
Basic Buddhist Meditation from a Zen Perspective
9-week course with Thich Thien Tri
October 14-December 9, Saturday evenings
Saturdays, 6:00pm-8:30pm
Classes held at Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas St
Fee: $200
This course remains open for new participants through October 28.
Pre-registration required. Contact Tibetan House, info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339.
Space is limited. Minimum 5 students, Maximum 10 students
Zen teacher Thich Thien Tri will be leading this course. He graduated from Vietnamese Buddhist Association with a Bachelor of Arts in Buddhism. He began his journey in America in 2002 and has taught in many cities in the US. In July 2015, he was invited by Van Hanh Buddhist Center of New Orleans to establish the ‘Zen and Mind Family’ in order to teach how meditation benefits our lives, spiritually, emotionally and physically.
This course is progressive, each class building on the previous class. You will learn sitting, standing, and walking meditation practices. You will study how to chant, the Mani mantra, the Six Senses and the Object of Six Senses, and the Four Noble Truths. Students who successfully complete the course will receive a certificate and graduate to the next level.
***** September 2017 *****
Basic Buddhist Meditation from a Zen Perspective
9-week course with Thich Thien Tri
Tuesdays, 9:00am-11:30am
September 5-October 31
Classes held at Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas St
Fee: $200
Pre-registration required. Contact Tibetan House, info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339.
Space is limited. Minimum 5 students, Maximum 10 students
Zen teacher Thich Thien Tri will be leading this course. He graduated from Vietnamese Buddhist Association with a Bachelor of Arts in Buddhism. He began his journey in America in 2002 and has taught in many cities in the US. In July 2015, he was invited by Van Hanh Buddhist Center of New Orleans to establish the ‘Zen and Mind Family’ in order to teach how meditation benefits our lives, spiritually, emotionally and physically.
This course is progressive, each class building on the previous class. You will learn sitting, standing, and walking meditation practices. You will study how to chant, the Mani mantra, the Six Senses and the Object of Six Senses, and the Four Noble Truths. Students who successfully complete the course will receive a certificate and graduate to the next level.
***** August 2017 *****
An Evening with Violet Law, Official Translator for Tsering Woeser
Voices From Tibet: Selected Essays and Reportage
written by Tsering Woeser and Wang Lixiong
Fore more information, here’re two other pieces by Tsering Woeser, trasnlated by Violet Law published in the New York Times:
https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/15/opinion/learning-to-forget-tibet-in-china.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/03/opinion/international/tibets-enduring-defiance.html?_r=0
Introduction to Tibetan Medicine
Cultivating Health, Long Life, & Happiness
7:00pm-9:00pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Traditional Tibetan Medicine (known in Tibetan as Sowa Rigpa) is one of the oldest healing traditions in existence. It offers a vast medical knowledge that is accessible to everyone, and supports the cultivation of a happy mind along with a healthy body.
In this talk, Jason Whitlowwill introduce TTM’s essential understanding of health and disease, its sophisticated diagnostic techniques, as well as its many practical healing methods including diet and lifestyle guidelines, natural medicines, and external therapies including massage and acupuncture.
Whitlow will also introduce the unique spiritual tradition of Tibetan Medicine, which contains a complete path of Buddhist practice as well as healing yoga, mantra, and meditation practices.
This talk will also be streamed online at: facebook.com/
About Sorig Khang Bay Area
Sorig Khang Bay Area is a nonprofit center offering programs in the study and practice of Sowa Rigpa (Traditional Tibetan Medicine) and the related Yuthok Nyingthig spiritual lineage. It is part of Sorig Khang International, a network of Tibetan Medicine centers, teachers, and practitioners in over 40 countries around the world. Learn more at: bayarea.sorig.net
About Jason Whitlow
Jason is director of Sorig Khang Bay Area. He has studied Tibetan Medicine and the Yuthok Nyingthig for many years under the guidance of renowned Tibetan doctor and yogi Dr. Nida Chenagtsang. Jason graduated with honors from Harvard University, where he studied neurobiology and computer science, and previously worked as a somatics teacher and professional modern dancer.
Dakini Mantra Practice
On Thursday morning, August 17, from 10:00–10:30 AM Central, join Sorig Khang Bay Area online to chant the healing mantra of the five dakinis, the embodiment of feminine wisdom and power, to heal both women and men and to harmonize the planet. This short guided practice is open to everyone.
Join online at: www.crowdcast.io/sorig
***** July 2017 *****
Chamtrul Rinpoche in New Orleans
July 18-July 23, 2017
About Chamtrul Rinpoche
Chamtrul Rinpoche is the recognized reincarnation of a great master and scholar from the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, the oldest school in Tibet.
Having studied many years, he holds a vast and profound knowledge of sutra, tantra, and dzogchen, and has been conferred the title ‘Khenpo’ – roughly equivalent to ‘Doctor of Buddhist Philosophy’.
Known for his nonsectarian quality, he has received all the cycles of teachings, empowerments and transmissions from more than twenty five accomplished masters and scholars from all four major traditions of Tibetan Buddhism – namely, Nyingma, Kagyu, Sakya, and Gelug.
Chamtrul Rinpoche currently lives and teaches in India, in the Himalayan town of Dharamsala. Dedicating his life to helping people find inner peace, he also travels the world each year to teach and guide many old and new students.
In his own words:
“Teaching is what I do in this life, wherever someone asks me to teach, I am there. Without discriminating against anybody based on their gender, race, creed and so forth, I wish them to enjoy excellent peace and harmony. I try to the best of my ability to promote the view, meditation and conduct of non-violence, which is the indispensable source for the spread and enhancement of the inner peace of mind.”
Tuesday, July 18, 6:45pm – 8:00pm
A teaching on “Meditation on Metta Practices”
Samten Choeling Dharma Center
For more information and to RSVP, contact:
Ngawang Legshe at (504) 723-1317
Wednesday, July 19, 1:00pm-3:00pm
Teaching on “Practicing the Two Collections” (of merit and wisdom)
Clearwater Sanctuary in Covington
For more information, contact:
info@clearwatersanctuary.org or 985 630-1009
Thursday, July 20, 7:00pm – 9:00pm
Teaching on “Mind Training”
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Friday, July 21, 7:00pm – 9:00pm
Teaching on “Practicing Mindfulness and Vigilance”
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Saturday, July 22-Sunday, July 23,
Day and a Half Teaching on 12 Links of Interdependent Origination
Swaha Yoga Center, LHA 623 North Rendon Street
Saturday, July 22
11:00am-1:00pm & 3:00pm-5:00pm
Sunday, July 23,
11:00am-1:00pm
All events are free and open to the public.
Donations to help with travel expenses will be much appreciated.
Please arrive at least 15 minutes before the event begins.
An envelope will be provided for an offering that you can present to Rinpoche
at the end of the teaching. This offering reflects
your appreciation of the teacher and the Dharma.
For more information, visit Chamtrul Rinpoche’s website:
www.bodhicitta.org
Basic Buddhist Meditation from a Zen Perspective
9-week course with Thich Thien Tri
Saturdays, 6:00pm-8:30pm
Classes held at Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas St
Fee: $200
Pre-registration required. Contact Tibetan House, info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339.
Space is limited. Minimum 5 students, Maximum 10 students
Zen teacher Thich Thien Tri will be leading this course. He graduated from Vietnamese Buddhist Association with a Bachelor of Arts in Buddhism. He began his journey in America in 2002 and has taught in many cities in the US. In July 2015, he was invited by Van Hanh Buddhist Center of New Orleans to establish the ‘Zen and Mind Family’ in order to teach how meditation benefits our lives, spiritually, emotionally and physically.
This course is progressive, each class building on the previous class. You will learn sitting, standing, and walking meditation practices. You will study how to chant, the Mani mantra, the Six Senses and the Object of Six Senses, and the Four Noble Truths. Students who successfully complete the course will receive a certificate and graduate to the next level.
***** June 2017 *****
Basic Buddhist Meditation from a Zen Perspective
9-week course with Thich Thien Tri
Tuesdays, 9:00am-11:30am
June 13-August 8
Classes held at Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas St
Fee: $200
Pre-registration required. Contact Tibetan House, info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339.
Space is limited. Minimum 5 students, Maximum 10 students
Zen teacher Thich Thien Tri will be leading this course. He graduated from Vietnamese Buddhist Association with a Bachelor of Arts in Buddhism. He began his journey in America in 2002 and has taught in many cities in the US. In July 2015, he was invited by Van Hanh Buddhist Center of New Orleans to establish the ‘Zen and Mind Family’ in order to teach how meditation benefits our lives, spiritually, emotionally and physically.
This course is progressive, each class building on the previous class. You will learn sitting, standing, and walking meditation practices. You will study how to chant, the Mani mantra, the Six Senses and the Object of Six Senses, and the Four Noble Truths. Students who successfully complete the course will receive a certificate and graduate to the next level.
***** May 2017 *****
Evenings with Tsering Phuntsok at Tibetan House
Thursday, May 4
Mantra Chanting for World Peace and Healing for the Lost Soul
7:00pm-8:00pm
Thursday, May 11
37 Practices of Bodhisattva
7:00pm-8:00pm
Thursday, May 18
Pilgrimage in Nepal with Tsering Phuntsok
7:00pm-8:00pm
Venerable Tsering Phuntsok was born in the Himalayas, in a Nepal town bordering India and Tibet. In 1982, at the age of 12, he began his study and practice of Buddhism from his own village monastery. In 1986, at 16 years of age, he joined Palyul Choekhorling Nyingmapa Buddhist Monastery in Bir, India. Tsering Phuntsok has received many teachings and transmissions in both Sutra and Tantra in Tibetan Buddhism from His Holiness the Dalai Lama, H.H. Drupwang Pema Norbu Rinpoche and many others great Masters.
Beginning in 2002, Tsering Phuntsok has been a group host, teacher and leader in programs from the United States, Europe and Mexico that study Tibetan culture and Buddhism in India and Nepal. In 2009, by invitation from universities in the United States, and by direction of his monastic Abbot, H.E. Rigo Tulku Rinpoche, Tsering began traveling and sharing his experience about Himalayan Culture and Buddhism in America and Europe.
Tibetan House is located in Uptown New Orleans,
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Suggested $10 donation to support travel accommodations, meals and expenses.
For more information, visit www.tibetanhouse.com or contact Tibetan House: info@tibetanhouse.com, (504) 897-9339
Basic Buddhist Meditation from a Zen Perspective
9-week course with Thich Thien Tri
Saturdays, 6:00pm-8:30pm
May 13-July 8
or
Tuesdays, 9:00am-11:30am
May 9-July 11
Classes held at Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas St
Fee: $200
Pre-registration required. Contact Tibetan House, info@tibetanhouse.com or (504) 897-9339.
Space is limited. Minimum 5 students, Maximum 10 students
Zen teacher Thich Thien Tri will be leading this course. He graduated from Vietnamese Buddhist Association with a Bachelor of Arts in Buddhism. He began his journey in America in 2002 and has taught in many cities in the US. In July 2015, he was invited by Van Hanh Buddhist Center of New Orleans to establish the ‘Zen and Mind Family’ in order to teach how meditation benefits our lives, spiritually, emotionally and physically.
This course is progressive, each class building on the previous class. You will learn sitting, standing, and walking meditation practices. You will study how to chant, the Mani mantra, the Six Senses and the Object of Six Senses, and the Four Noble Truths. Students who successfully complete the course will receive a certificate and graduate to the next level.
Dreaming in Color, an Evening with Haiyan Khan- Founder of Santosha Village
Thursday, May 25
7:00pm-8:30pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Join us for an interactive dialogue with Haiyan Khan, founder of Santosha Village, a local organization working to build a tiny house, healing community for the homeless in New Orleans. Haiyan will describe the Village concept and facilitate a discussion on tiny house design, community living, emotional wellness, and creating the space to ask, “what is a meaningful life”.
Suggested donation $10 to support Santosha Village.
For more information about Santosha Village, visit santoshavillage.org or contact haiyan@santoshavillage.org.
***** April 2017 *****
Smoke Offering for New Orleans Commemorating Prayer Flag Day
Thursday, April 20, 7pm
Suggested Offering $10, greatly appreciated.
We are delighted to have The Ven. Tsering Phuntsok with us to officiate our spring Smoke Offering.
A Smoke offering, or Sang, is focused on the Gods of the mountain, the Gods of the sky, the Gods of the river, and the Gods of all aspects. You first invite the Gods of the whole universe, and then you offer especially to the Gods of your local place.
The Sanskrit word for offering is puja meaning to please. A traditional ritual of healing and purification, a puja is offered to overcome negativity that may be obstructing release from suffering. The chanted prayers of the puja promote spiritual, emotional, mental and physical well being.
We will also commemorate Prayer Flag Day, April 20, 2013. On this day we officially invited the City of New Orleans to raise flags as a welcoming gesture to His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. Ten miles of prayer flags were raised!!!
Traditionally, prayer flags are left flying until there is nothing left of them. Prayer Flags that come down before they disintegrate, should be hung in a forest, rather than put in the trash. If you are ready to replace your prayer flags, or if you have some you want to get rid of, bring them to us on April 20, and we will hang them in a forest.
***** March 2017 *****
Permaculture from Gandhian & Buddhist Perspectives:
Modern & Traditional Approaches in Nepal and India
An evening with Michael Smith, Co-Founder of Woven Earth
Thursday, March 9 at 7pm
This talk and Q&A will define and explore the practice of Permaculture as a contemporary expression of traditional worldviews that advance harmony and freedom within the individual, society and the natural environment. The speaker will provide practical examples that focus on Tibetan Buddhist and Gandhian ethical philosophies, discussing ways to overcome the challenge of practically implementing these perspectives in modern life and spiritual practice.
Michael D Smith, MSW MPH is a Louisiana native and adjunct faculty at the Tulane School of Social Work and Loyola University, coordinating and instructing their India Summer Study Abroad Programs. He teaches courses on culture, contemporary social activism, and the religions of north India, Nepal, and Tibet, drawing on 14 years of extensive travel, language study and work in South Asia. He is a Board Member of the Louisiana Himalaya Association (www.lhainfo.org) and a co-founder of Woven Earth (www.wovenearth.org), which organizes courses in Permaculture and natural building in Nepal and Indonesia.
Thursday, March 9 at 7pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Suggested Donation: $10.00
For more information about Woven Earth: www.wovenearth.org/
Dharma Teachings with Lama Lena
March 16-March 19
Lama Lena (Yeshe Khaytup)
Comfortably straddling both East and West, Lama Lena, brings with her 40 plus years of traditional Buddhist study and practice, including a 7 year cave retreat in Tso Pema, India as well as some 30 years traveling with translating for the Venerable Wangdor Rinpoche, whose lineage in both Dzogchen and Chagchen she holds.
Traveling internationally, she teaches in a direct, informal style, blending earthy wit with compassion and incisive clarity. Currently, when not teaching, Lama Lena divides her time between home in the San Francisco Bay Area and India, continuing to assist Ven. Wangdor Rinpoche, and providing medical assistance, as a Doctor of Chinese Medicines, to the Tibetan refugee community, local villagers, and mountain tribe people.
Thursday, March 16
Spirituality in Difficult Times
7pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Friday, March 17
Symbolism of Tara from a Dzogchen Perspective
7pm
Tibetan House, 4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
Saturday, March 18
11:00am-1:00pm, 3:00pm-5:00pm
Spirituality with Lama Lena: Open Minded & Open Hearted Activism
LHA Community Center, 623. North Rendon Street
Suggested Donation $10-20 for each talk.
No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
For more information, contact Tibetan House at
info@tibetanhouse.com or call (504) 897-9339.
Drepung Gomang Monks from India
Tibetan Sacred Arts Tour visits New Orleans, March 19-March 25
OBJECTIVE OF DREPUNG GOMANG MONASTERY’S TOUR
A) To make a contribution to world healing and peace by sharing unique Tibetan Buddhist teachings, sacred religious performances, chanting, and Tibet’s unique identity treasures of culture and authentic traditions.
B) Recognizing well, and very deeply, that there have been great tragedies in every part of the world, we want to share our sympathy and prayers together with you as human beings sharing this planet and sharing the future of this home of ours.
C) To generate a greater awareness of the endangered Tibetan civilization and human rights abuses by the Communist Chinese since 1959. As the situation in Tibet is becoming more desperate by the day, due to massive displacement of Tibetans by Chinese citizens sent there by the Communist government, and ever new rules and difficulties, especially at the monasteries, we need your help now.
D) To raise support for the refugee monks’ community in south India for proper food, improvement in health & hygiene and for providing better education facilities for the monk students. We preserve our tradition and culture.
Click here for short bios of members of the Sacred Arts Tour.
Full Schedule of Events
Saturday, March 18
Drepung Gomang Monks in retreat at Clearwater Sanctuary in Covington, Louisiana.
Teachings or private meeting available upon request.
For more information, contact Clearwater Sanctuary.
Sunday, March 19
Morning Service at Unity Temple
11:00am
3722 St. Charles Avenue
New Orleans, LA
Sunday, March 19
Snow Lion Dance
Louisiana Children’s Musuem
2:00pm-3:00pm
420 Julia St, New Orleans
Monday, March 20
Green Tara Puja
Green Tara is the Female Buddha that grants protection and relief from sufferings, generates compassion, love and peace.
4:00pm-5:00pm
The Fly at Audubon Park. The Fly is located on Riverview Drive at the far end of Audubon Park.
Behind the Zoo.
New Orleans, LA
Tuesday, March 21
Opening Ceremony for the Green Tara Sand Mandala
11:00am-12:30pm
Viewing the Creation of the Green Tara Sand Mandala
11:00pm-5:00pm
New Orleans Healing Center
2372 St. Claude Avenue
New Orleans, LA
Tuesday, March 21
Snow Lion Dance
This evening will include the presentation of the Snow Lion pageant as well as Tibetan Chanting and a brief talk.
5:30pm-6:30pm
New Orleans Healing Center
2372 St. Claude Avenue
New Orleans, LA
Wednesday, March 22
Viewing times for the Creation of the Sand Mandala
10:00am-5:00pm
New Orleans Healing Center
2372 St. Claude Avenue
New Orleans, LA
Thursday, March 23
Viewing times for the Creation of the Sand Mandala
10:00am-5:00pm
New Orleans Healing Center
2372 St. Claude Avenue
New Orleans, LA
Thursday, March 23
Green Tara Puja
7:00pm-8:00pm
Tibetan House
4900 Tchoupitoulas Street
New Orleans, LA
Friday, March 24
Last day for viewing the creation of the Sand Mandala
10:00am-5:00pm
New Orleans Healing Center
2372 St. Claude Avenue
Saturday, March 25
Green Tara Sand Mandala Closing Ceremony & Dissolution
The mandala is swept up and shared with the community in a ceremony of gratitude and blessings. This event will include a trip to the Mississippi River where the sand will be released into the water.
2:00pm-3:00pm – PLEASE NOTE THAT THE TIME HAS CHANGED 
New Orleans Healing Center
2372 St. Claude Avenue
New Orleans, LA
All events are open to the public.
Donations are appreciated to support the charitable good work of the Drepung Gomang Monastery in India.
At the Healing Center the monks will have a pop-up shop and be selling Tibetan Dharma items, jewelry and gifts.
Meals for the Drepung Gomang Monks
The Drepung Gomang Monks, eight of them plus their driver, will be in need of wonderful New Orleans cuisine from March 19-25. Word has it that they would love to share a dinner with you in your home! If you want to feed the monks but feel that your home too small, you could prepare the meal and dine with them at their residence on Pitt Street in New Orleans. If you are excited by that possibility, please contact us ASAP!
The Drepung Gomang Monks are also in need of lunches from March 21 – 25 while they are creating the beautiful Green Tara Sand Mandala at the New Orleans Healing Center. This would involve preparing the lunch and delivering it to the Healing Center around noon.
Restaurants around the city are also always eager to host the Monks for a meal. They could either create a lunch and have it delivered, or have the monks come to their restaurant and dine for dinner.
It is a wonderfully auspicious experience
and we look forward to your enthusiastic response!!