Lama Gendun and Lama Tenpa Phuntsok have recently returned from a long journey to the Himalaya region in the far north of India, on the border with Nepal. They went there at the request of the local community, who have asked the monastery to provide a monastic education for some of their boys.
These families are Tibetans who have intermarried with Nepalis, living in a sparsely populated area in the remote hills. They have become totally cut off from Tibetan culture, with the children speaking Nepali as their first language.
Living conditions in this area are very poor, with no access to education or health facilities. These families live by subsistance farming and work as daily wage laborers.
At the request of the families, nine boys aged from eight to eleven years old have been admitted to Tsechen Damchos Ling as novice monks.
These boys are now learning the Tibetan languge and alphabet, and while at the monastery they will receive a religious and general education.
The boys have settled well into their new community, and have already adapted to the new environment in south India.
The monastery has also recently admitted three new arrivals from Purang, Tibet. They are all in their twenties. Now they are living in freedom in India, they are able to fulfill their wish to receive a Dharma education.
If you would like to make a donation or offer sponsorship for a monk, please contact:
Acharya Guru Gyaltsen, Tsechen Damchos Ling, Village No. 1, P.O. Tibetan Colony, Mundgod 581 411, Disst. N.K. Karnataka, India. E-mail: g2bts@sancharnet.in
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