preparing drubchen texts for training
Gebchak Gonpa is the mother nunnery to over 40 branch gonpas (nunneries, monasteries and hermitages) throughout Eastern Tibet. Last July-August Gebchak hosted a summer training camp for nearly 200 nuns and monks from these gonpas to refresh their practical knowledge of Gebchak’s tradition. Gebchak Gonpa’s annual curriculum includes 20 drubchens – extended group ritual practices of Tantric deities like Hayagriva, Green Tara and Vajrakilaya.
training starts young
Drubchens are a core element of the nuns’ lifelong Vajrayana practice, and the ritual meditations, materials and recitations that comprise them were the content of the summer training camp. Gebchak nuns taught all aspects of the training to the hundreds of people gathered, including to senior male yogins. The training camp was a success and an important event for keeping the Gebchak community united and thriving for the future.
Guru Rinpoche statue, Sept 2018
During the training camp, a Guru Rinpoche statue was built on the hillside behind Gebchak Gonpa, overlooking the valley with an all-embracing gaze. Its construction was a joint effort by several lamas from Gebchak and its branches, also intended as a an anchoring presence and blessing for the posterity of the Gebchak tradtition. The Tibetan Plateau has very quickly modernised and contemplative traditions of full-time practice are waning. Gebchak Gonpa’s nuns and lamas are doing all they can to keep their practices for realising human potential burning bright.
Lama Pema Drimey, May 2018
Sadly, towards the end of the training camp the senior most yogin of the local Gebchak community, Lama Pema Drimey, passed away in his late 70s. His death was accompanied by amazing signs and relics. Lama Pema Drimey lived permanently in retreat over the mountain pass from Gebchak, surrounded by hundreds of nuns and monks practicing his oral instructions on Vajrayana ritual, yogas and meditation. His passing is a great loss for the community and felt deeply by his disciples. Yet hundreds of them remain committed to lifelong training of his instructions, and this is extremely heartening as a future generation of masters.
Wangdrak Rinpoche and the Gebchak nuns pray that your year ahead is healthy, meaningful and fulfills your deepest aspirations. They are extremely grateful for all the moral and financial support you offer as Gebchak’s international community of friends. You are helping them to maintain their lifelong contemplative tradition in a quickly changing Tibetan world.
Please see this video link as an offering in return of Gebchak nuns sharing their advice on Buddhist practice:
https://vimeo.com/gebchak way of life
All best wishes for the Tibetan and Chinese New Year! Tashi Delek!
