Through the highest mountain passes, this little boy walked for 10 full days, committed to his dream. He sought an education, it must be free, and he’d found his chance at the Kag Chode Monastic School in Kag Beni, Mustang.

Lhundhup Gurung reached the school, adapted well, becoming a star student. This smart, athletic, friendly little boy now found another goal, and he was adamant: he wanted to become a monk, and studied hard.
This past winter, though, illness struck the boy with high fever, weakness and severe head pain. Local treatment failed. Lhundhup went into a coma. Cared for at a hospital in Kathmandu, he stayed in ICU a month, and then in private care. He suffered from both meningitis and TB.

Lhundhup Gurung, age 8, passed away on March 11, 2011. The cost of his care was covered by a small nest egg – his new school’s meager building fund. The Kag Chode Monastic School of Mustang had carefully accumulated funds to build a new school. Cramming eager children in inadequate facilities, the monastery had slowly scraped together funds for the modest new school, a place where eager children could be housed and fed and educated. To care for Lhundhup la, though, the monastery’s choice was clear: Funds were needed, first for the small boy’s care and then for his funeral, and the monastery did not hesitate to provide them. Those funds are gone.

But we can now make certain that the chance to build that new school is not lost. Please join us to build a Legacy Fund, in Lhundhup’s name. Replace the funds so kindly offered by the monastery –$5,000– and let other children have the dream that Lhundhup sought. The monastery remains committed to offering free education to the poorest children of Mustang and the surrounding regions, which have so few resources and offer so few chances for their children to attend a school.

Restore their funds, so they can build their school. They now have 22 children waiting for this chance. His childhood poverty and leaving home at 7 did not rob Lhundhup la of his desire. Help other children just like him – living in an unusually harsh and desperately poor area—achieve their dream of learning. Please help the Kag Chode monastery accomplish this. Restore the funding for their school.Though he passed on, we know from the choices he made in his brief life, that Lhundhup la wanted to learn

Any donation, large or small, is welcome. The Conservancy for Tibetan Art and Culture (CTAC) will use one hundred percent for Lhundup’s Legacy.

Please donate now.

© Tenzing Paljor

The Conservancy sponsored the participation of numerous distinguished foreign guests including Mongolian scholars, Tibetan lamas and Himalayan Buddhists. The topics included:

· Buddhism in Mongolia: Past, Present and Future
· Buddhism and Mongolia’s Unique Cultural Heritage
· Mongolia’s role in the development and spread of Buddhism
· Encounters between Modernity and Traditional Mongolian Buddhist Culture
· Role of Buddhism in Contemporary Mongolian Society
· Social Engagement in Contemporary Mongolian Society
· Buddhism’s Encounter with Modern Science
· Buddhism and Protection of the Environment
· Buddhism and the Role of Women in Contemporary Mongolian
Society

Important Tibetan scholars such as His Holiness Gaden Tripa Rinpoche, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Gelek Rinpoche and others participated in panel discussions on topics relevant to 21st Century Buddhist culture. Participants stressed the need for continued discussion and collaboration amongst the followers of all Tibetan Buddhist traditions.

The also agreed that Buddhist monasteries should make more effort on behalf of the lay community through social welfare projects and the teaching of basic Buddhist thought.

From the DVD:

Finding Wisdom in the Modern World: His Holiness the Dalai Lama explores manifestations of wisdom in the contemporary world, in a discussion that ranges from underscoring the importance of religious harmony to delineating a profound understanding of “self.” Through following the classic Buddhist path of gaining a clear understanding of reality, checking it through meditation and expressing it through action, His Holiness, with his usual humor and remarkably incisive intelligence, discusses our shared human experience, and illuminates how wisdom and compassion can positively transform our daily lives.

Using Wisdom as the Heart of Change: Dynamic, accessible and practical presentations by accomplished spiritual leaders, scholars, philosophers and social activists, including Tsoknyi Rinpoche III, HE Jetsun Khandro Rinpoche, Robert Thurman and others, clarify, deepen, and stabilize our understanding of the morning’s teaching by His Holiness, and inspire our journey on the path to wisdom, compassion and lasting happiness.

Please help us preserve Tibetan Buddhist Culture in its birthplace and in the lands to which it has spread by ordering “The Heart of Change” DVD today. Free with any donation of $25 or more.

After fifty years, the dissemination of Tibetan Buddhism in the modern world is no longer in its infancy, but has reached a crucial intermediate stage. Having established itself and laid down roots outside of traditionally Tibetan Buddhist areas through the efforts of many teachers, and particularly His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the time has come for teachers and students of Tibetan Buddhism to consider its future direction, with an eye to ensuring that the tradition continues to grow as a beneficial force for the peace, well-being and happiness of humanity. Coinciding with the three-day visit of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Emory University in Atlanta, GA, this conference will bring together the preeminent leaders, teachers, scholars, translators, supporters, and students of Tibetan Buddhism from both traditionally Tibetan Buddhist areas and western countries to engage in substantive discussion about the current state of Tibetan Buddhism in the modern world and how best to move forward collectively.

What is the current situation of Tibetan Buddhism, and what does the future hold for it? What new challenges and opportunities present themselves for an ancient tradition that now finds itself as one among many traditions in the modern world? How will Tibetan Buddhism be transformed through its encounter with modern society, science, and other religious traditions, and what can it bring to complement them?

This major international conference will focus on Tibetan Buddhism in the modern world, following on from the Congress of Tibetan Buddhist Dharma Centers of the Americas, held at the Garrison Institute, NY, in 2003. The conference promises to be distinctive due to the contemporary relevance of the topics to be discussed and the diversity of speakers and participants who will be present, including leaders of Tibetan Buddhist communities in both traditionally Buddhist and western countries, some of the most prominent western scholars of Tibetan Buddhism, and representatives from western Dharma centers.

For more information and to register for this conference, please visit Emory University.

When you tell the world you’re a Friend of Tibet with the nation’s first Tibetan special license plate, you’ll be doing more than sending a powerful message — because of special legislation in the Commonwealth of Virginia, proceeds from the sale of every Friends of Tibet plate help Tibetan refugee families preserve their endangered culture.

Click here to order your Friends of Tibet license plate from the DMV or use the link below to order your own Friends of Tibet plate directly for the DMV — and even personalize it with a message of your choice. (There are also souvenir plates for Friends of Tibet who don’t own cars in Virginia.) Order your own Friends of Tibet Virginia license plate today, and help preserve Tibetan culture.

Map of the Buddhist regions.

The carpet industry continues to be an important source of income for Tibetans living in Tibet, Nepal, and India. The shapes and designs of the carpets have changed with the demands of Western consumers. Floor carpets in many sizes, some with non-Tibetan motifs, are now produced in cottage industries and large factories. Tibetan wool is still used for many of these carpets, but in South Asia, it is often supplemented with New Zealand wool. A few refugees have brought looms to Europe and North America and continue the tradition in the West.