The 50 Years of Dhagpo Kagyu Ling
The year 2025 marks the 50th anniversary of Dhagpo Kagyu Ling, the transmission place of Gampopa’s lineage, and the European seat of the Karma Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism.
Every month this year, from the moment in January when the Gyalwa Karmapa, in his 16th and 17th incarnations, set foot in Europe twenty-five years apart, right up to the present day, we will highlight milestones that planted the seeds for women and men from across Europe and beyond to receive authentic Buddhist teachings, experience the Buddhist path, and for Buddhist knowledge to be preserved and shared.
This is a year to learn about the precious Karma Kagyu lineage, to be inspired by what has been accomplished and to pay tribute to the masters that made it all possible. In this way, we deepen our confidence in the Buddha Dharma.
The year will be marked by dedicated practices on key dates to connect us to Dhagpo’s history, an online series of talks on the life of the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa, and special events that will be announced over the months to come.
December
December 3, 1980: Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche Teaches on Gampopa
Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche (1920-1996), holder of the Kagyu and Nyingma lineages and considered one of the most eminent Dzogchen teachers of the twentieth century, taught these Four Dharmas of Gampopa at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling in December 1980. […]
December 18-26, 1980: Bokar Rinpoche Teaches on Nyungne at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling
In 1980, Venerable Bokar Rinpoche (1940-2004), one of Tibetan Buddhism’s renowned meditation masters, travelled to the West for the first time with Venerable Kalu Rinpoche, of whom he was a disciple. […]
Décember 20, 1981: The Last Funeral Rites of the King of Yogis—A Testimonial the 16th Karmapa’s Cremation
Khenpo Chödrak Rinpoché se trouvait alors au monastère de Rumtek, en Inde. Il se souvient en détails des jours qui ont suivi le rapatriement du kudung (la dépouille d’un maître éminent) de Karmapa en Inde, ainsi que des préparatifs culminant avec les derniers rites funéraires, le 20 décembre : […]
Event
To commemorate this event, a day-long practice of the Guru Yoga of the 16th Karmapa will take place on Saturday, December 20 in the Dhagpo Kagyu Ling Institute.
November
November 28, 1983: The Acquisition of Arnaud and Denise Desjardins’ Property in Le Bost Paves the Way for a Retreat Center
;[…] Then a miracle occurred, opening up new horizons. Arnaud Desjardins, an author and filmmaker whose work had significantly contributed to bringing the wisdom of the Tibetan masters to the general public, decided to sell his property in Le Bost, near Clermont-Ferrand […]
November 24, 2013: The Buddha’s Relics Arrive at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling
[…] Expressing his gratitude to the Buddhist Union of France for its kindness and generosity, Thaye Dorje, the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, shared the meaning of these relics in a message recorded for the occasion, […]
November 11, 1977: The 16th Karmapa Gives the Black Crown Ceremony at Arnaud Desjardins’ Ashram
In his work The Message of the Tibetans, published in 1966, Arnaud Desjardins described his first meeting, the prior year, with the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, in the old Rumtek monastery in Sikkim, […]
Event
To commemorate this event, a day of practice will be held at Dhagpo Kundreul Ling.
November 9, 1976: Creation of the Dhagpo Kagyu Ling Association
The year after Lama Jigme Rinpoche and Lama Gendun Rinpoche arrived in Landrevie, the Dhagpo Kagyu Ling Association, created on November 9, 1976, provided the first legal structure for supporting […]
November 5, 1981: Departure of the Dharma King: The Passing of the 16th Karmapa
[…] In 1982, Künzig Shamarpa wrote The Garland of White Lotuses: Praise in Verse Form Narrating the Account of Liberation of the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa (ཀརྨ་པ་བཅུ་དྲུག་པ་རིག་པའི་རྡོ་རྗེའི་སྐུ་ཚེའི་རྣམ་ཐར་ལ་བསྟོད་པ་ཚིག་སུ་བཅད་པ་ཀུནྡའི་ཕྲེང་བ།), which he complemented with an explanatory commentary in 2012, The Fragrance of White Lotuses (ཀུནྡའི་དྲི་བསུང་།). In a traditional style of Tibetan poetry that reveals his full literary mastery, Shamarpa relates (ཀུནྡའི་དྲི་བསུང་།). […]
Event
To commemorate this event, a day of dropcheau practice will take place at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling. Then, on Sunday, November 9, Lama Jigme Rinpoche will share his reflections and memories of the mahaparinirvana of the 16th Karmapa at 2:30 p.m.
This event will take place in Dhagpo Kagyu Ling’s Institute. It will be streamed online and translated into several languages.
October
October 2022: Publication of the Five Royal Sutras in French
Expressing prayers and aspirations to follow in the footsteps of the Buddha and attain perfect enlightenment—this is what Thaye Dorje, the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, recommended in his Vesak [1] message for May 2021, as the world continued to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic and successive lockdowns. […]
October 31, 1997: Parinirvana of Gendun Rinpoche
A dream, a photo, a friendly piece of advice, open doors, an announcement for a conference, a quest for meaning…many different paths steered several generations of individuals toward Lama Gendun Rinpoche. […]
Event
To commemorate this event, on Friday, 31 October at the Dhagpo Kagyu Ling Institute, various practices and teachings of Gendun Rinpoche will take place.
October 30, 1982: A Week with His Eminence Gyaltsab Rinpoche
His Eminence Gyaltsab Rinpoche, an eminent lama of the Karma Kagyu lineage, visited Dhagpo Kagyu Ling for the first time in late October 1982 to teach, confer empowerments, and lead ceremonies to commemorate the first parinirvana of the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa, Rangjung Rigpe Dorje. […]
October 1980: Kalu Rinpoche, A Regular Presence at Dhagpo
In 1971, Kalu Rinpoche, head of the Shangpa Kagyu lineage and holder of the Karma Kagyu teachings, undertook his first trip to the West, sent by the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa Rangjung Rigpe Dorje to see if Westerners could benefit from the Buddha Dharma. […]
October 28, 1977: The 16th Karmapa Seals the Blessing of the Karma Kagyü Lineage on the Côte de Jor
In 1977–1978, Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, His Holiness the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa, visited Europe for the second time. He returned to most of the countries he had visited on his first trip to the West in 1974–1975 […]
Event
To commemorate this event:
– November 2: Purification ritual through smoke offering
– From Wednesday 5 to Tuesday 11 November: Accumulation of the practice of Chakrasamvara
October 27, 2019: Joint prayer by Trinley Thaye Dorje and Ogyen Trinley Dorje for the Long Life of Künzig Shamar Rinpoche’s Reincarnation
One year after their first meeting, His Holiness Trinley Thaye Dorje et His Holiness Ogyen Trinley Dorje published a joint prayer in October 2019 for the long life of Künzig Shamarpa’s reincarnation. […]
Event
To commemorate this event on Wednesday October 29, a day of practice will be held at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling.
October 11, 2018: Historic Meeting in France of His Holiness Trinley Thaye Dorje and His Holiness Ogyen Trinley Dorje
For many years, Mipham Chökyi Lodrö, the 14th Künzig Shamarpa, worked to bring about a peaceful resolution to the controversy surrounding the recognition of the Gyalwa Karmapa, which divided monastic and lay practitioners, families, and friends. […]
Event
To commemorate this event, on Saturday, October 11, we will perform the practice of purification through a smoke offering ritual.
October 2010: Karmapa Receives the Transmission of the Treasure of Precious Instructions from Pewar Rinpoche
Beginning in early October 2010 and over the course of the next two months, His Holiness the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa pursued his education as lineage holder. […]
Event
To commemorate this event, on Monday October 6, a practice will take place at Dhagpo Kundreul Ling and, on Saturday October 18 at 8 p.m., Trinlay Rinpoche will spend the evening with us for a discussion on the significance of receiving oral transmissions in a lineage
October 4, 2018: Start of the Chenrezig Curriculum with Lama Jigme Rinpoche and the Institute’s Students
Three times a year, for the past eight years, Lama Jigme Rinpoche has been guiding some 250 practitioners enrolled in the Chenrezig cycle, a progressive curriculum of study and meditation developed by the 14th Künzig Shamarpa, Mipham Chökyi Lodrö.. […]
September
September 2023: Fifteen Years in the Making of the ‘Internal’ Study and Meditation Curriculum
8:30 a.m. September is back-to-school month for students of all ages and backgrounds! With some 80 students enrolled, this course, based on teachings given for nearly fifteen years by qualified khenpos and acharyas (1), focuses on the textual study of the Dharma, […]
September 29, 1985: Gendun Rinpoche Discovers Laussedat
Gendun Rinpoche visited Laussedat in September 1985, on September 29 precisely. On this day, I announced that I would donate it to him, . […]
17 September 1986: Künzig Shamarpa Designates His Representatives in France
Since the parinirvana of the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa in November 1981, Künzig Shamarpa assumed spiritual responsibility for the Karma Kagyu school throughout the world. As part of the application process for recognition of the Karme Dharma Chakra congregation, in September 1986 he appointed his representatives in France by official letter: Lama Gendun Rinpoche and Lama Jigme Rinpoche, both of whom arrived in Dordogne in 1975.
This letter marked a step towards legal recognition by the French state of the activities of the Karma Kagyu school. From then on, his two representatives had the legal authority to approve the statutes of congregations that might exist in France. From then on, they fell under the authority of Künzig Shamarpa, pending the return of the Gyalwa Karmapa. This letter stipulates that Jigme Rinpoche and Gendun Rinpoche are responsible for drawing up the declaration relating to these congregations, as provided for by the 1901 law.
Fourteen months later, on January 8, 1988, the French government recognized the Karme Dharma Chakra Buddhist monastic community as a congregation. This was the first non-Catholic congregation to be officially recognized.
Traslation:
I, the undersigned, His Holiness SHAMARPA, acting in my capacity as First Regent of the KAGYU-PA school of Tibetan Buddhism, enjoying full spiritual authority over the members of this school, whose world headquarters are located at the RUMTEK Monastery (SIKKIM) in India, hereby designate .
– the Most Venerable Lama GUENDUNE RIMPOCHE
– and the Venerable Lama JIGME TSEWANG
both residing at LANDREVIE in ST LEON-SUR-VEZERE – 24290
MONTIGNAC, as qualified representatives in metropolitan France of the KAGYUPA school designated above, and consequently to confer upon them by the present document ALL powers in order to, for me and in my name:
– approve the statutes of congregations that may exist in France and fall under my authority, pursuant to Article 4 of the Decree of July 1, 1901, relating to the application of Article 13 of the Law of July 1, 1901,
– draw up the declaration relating to the said congregations provided for in Article 20 of the Decree of August 16, 1901, laying down public administration regulations for the implementation of the Law of July 1, 1901, relating to the association contract.
Done in Paris on September 17, 1986.
September 16, 1986: Kundreul Ling’s Stupa: A Worksite Marked by Trust and Perseverance
On September 16, 1986, Künzig Shamarpa sealed the consecration of the stupa with the blessing of the lineage that he holds, making this stupa a suitable support for practice at Kundreul Ling. […]
September 14, 2018: Presenting Thugseyla to Lama Jigme Rinpoche at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling
Light offerings on the stupa of enlightenment shine in the night at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling as Thaye Dorje, His Holiness the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, steps out of his car, cradling against him his son Thugseyla, just over one month old, […]
Event
To commemorate this event, on Monday the 15th, we will perform a smoke offering practice at 9:30 a.m. in the Temple.
September 11–20, 1981: Künzig Shamarpa Plants the Seeds of Blessing at Dhagpo
The establishment of centers offering traditional retreats lasting three years, three months, and three days is an important part of anchoring the Dharma in the West and was the main reason Lama Gendun Rinpoche came to Dhagpo Kagyu Ling in 1975 […]
Event
To commemorate this event, on September 11, the extensive Dorje Pamo ritual will be performed throughout the day at the Dhagpo Kagyu Ling Institute.
August
August, 20-24, 1997: The Heart of Dharma: The Last Teachings of Gendun Rinpoche
Starting at the end of August 1997, Gendun Rinpoche gave what would be his last teachings over several days at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling, twenty-two years after his arrival in France, where he had been sent by the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa Rangjung Rigpe Dorje to share the wisdom of the Dharma with Westerners […]
Event
To commemorate this event, we will recite the Guru Yoga of the 14th Shamarpa during four sessions in the Temple and, in the evening, we will screen Kudung directed by Tokpa Korlo (in English).
August 15–17, 2015: Karmapa and Shamarpa Lay the Foundation Stone for the Dhagpo Kagyu Ling Institute
Between two intensive retreat periods at Dhagpo Kundreul Ling, Thaye Dorje, His Holiness the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, held a public program at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling from August 15 to 17, 2002.
[…]
Event
To commemorate this event, we will recite Kagyu Meunlam wishing and aspiration prayers.
August 15, 1981: Shamarpa’s First Teachings at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling: Texts by the 3rd and 9th Karmapas
In August 1981, Mipham Chökyi Lodrö, His Holiness the 14th Künzig Shamarpa, came to Dhagpo Kagyu Ling for the first time. He stayed for several weeks to share some of the lineage’s essential teachings written by the 3rd and 9th Karmapas. […]
Event
To commemorate this event, we will broadcast teachings given by Künzig Shamar Rinpoché at the Bodhi Path Center in Virginia (USA)
August 14–17, 2000: The 17th Gyalwa Karmapa Teaches on Bodhicitta
During his first visit to Europe in January 2000, Thaye Dorje, the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, visited Dhagpo Kagyu Ling before continuing on to Dhagpo Kundreul Ling for a retreat that lasted several months, during which he received numerous transmissions. […]
Event
To commemorate this event, we will broadcast a teaching by the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa.
August 14, 2023: The 17th Gyalwa Karmapa Consecrates Sukhavati Garden
Amid intense heat and storm warnings, Thaye Dorje, His Holiness the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, led the final consecration ceremonies (rabne) of the Sukhavati Garden at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling for nearly four hours on August 14, 2023. […]
Event
To commemorate this event, we will perform the practice of Korlo Demtchok starting at 9:30 a.m. and 2 :30 p.m. in the Institute.
August 11, 2018: Thugseyla is born
On August 11, 2018, a new moon day, Thaye Dorje, the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa and his wife, Sangyumla, had the joy of becoming parents to their first child, Thugseyla […]
Event
To commemorate this event, we will make a mandala offering and the offering of body, speech and mind.
August 5, 1994: Thirteen Nuns Receive Full Ordination with Thich Nhat Hanh
Shortly before leaving retreat in May 1994, the retreatants at Laussedat were informed that they would be able to receive full monastic ordination—the disciplines of gelongma (Skt: bhikshuni pratimoksa)—at Plum Village in August of that year, during a ceremony led by the Vietnamese master Thich Nhat Hanh. […]
Event
To commemorate this event, we willl take Sojong vows at 6:30 a.m. in Dhagpo Kagyu Ling’s temple and in Kundreul Ling’s small temple.
July
July 31, 2015: Consecration of the Dhagpo Kagyu Ling Institute
Two years after its inauguration by Künzig Shamar Rinpoche, the Dhagpo Kagyu Ling Institute, was formally consecrated and its statue of Buddha Shakyamuni […]
Event
To commemorate this event, we will recite Kagyu Meunlam wishing and aspiration prayers in the Temple from 11 a.m. to 12 :30 p.m..
July 31, 2014: Künzig Shamar Rinpoche’s Final Forty-Nine-Day Voyage
This traditional forty-nine days of grieving and practice began upon the parinirvana of Mipham Chökyi Lodrö, the 14th Shamar Rinpoche, in Renchen-Ulm, Germany, on June 11. […]
Event
To commemorate this event, we will recite the Guru Yoga of the 14th Shamarpa during four sessions in the Temple and, in the evening, we will screen Kudung directed by Tokpa Korlo (in English).
July 21, 2001: The Buddha of Kundreul Ling’s Main Temple: From Creation to Consecration
On July 21, 2001, Künzig Shamarpa Mipham Chökyi Lodrö consecrated the majestic statue of Shakyamuni Buddha in the Main Temple of Dhagpo Kundreul Ling […]
Event
To commemorate this event, on Monday July 21 in Dhagpo Kundreul Ling, the wishing prayers of the Kagyu Monlam will be recited at the Main Temple from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
July 15, 1994: The Launch of Dhagpo Kagyu Ling’s Summer University
Creating conditions for study, contemplation and meditation is a core aspect of anchoring Buddhist wisdom in the West and for its integration in the minds of practitioners.[…]
Event
To commemorate this event, Khenpo Chödrak Rinpoche will share his thoughts on the Summer University, where he taught since 1994.
His Talk will take place at 5.30 p.m. in the Institute.
It will be streamed online on Youtube, and translated into several languages.
July 13, 1978 : Anchoring the Dharma in the West: Advice from the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa
On July 13, 1978, when the 16th Karmapa Rangjung Rigpe Dorje wrote a letter from his seat Shedrup Chökorling in Rumtek, Sikkim, concerning his vision for maintaining Dharma in the West […]
Event
To commemorate this event, on July 13, we will recite Kagyu Meunlam wishing and aspiration prayers in the Temple.
July 1, 1977: First Black Crown Ceremony at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling
In spring 1977, the community in Landrevie was abuzz, finishing the small temple in order to welcome Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, His Holiness the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa, […]
Event
To commemorate this event, on July 1, we will recite the Guru Yoga of the 16th Karmapa during four sessions in the Temple
June
June 26, 1992: Legal Recognition of the Karma Thartchine Lhundroup Monastic Community
By decree dated June 26, 1992, signed by the French Prime Minister, the Karma Thartchine Lhundroup Buddhist monastic community, based in Biollet, Puy-de-Dôme, Auvergne, was legally recognized.
This is the second legal entity linked to the activities of the Gyalwa Karmapa in France to be formed following the recognition of the Karmé Dharma Chakra monastic congregation, based in Saint-Léon-sur-Vézère, Dordogne in January 1987, the first non-Catholic congregation to be recognized by the French government.
This legal recognition provides protection for the monastic community of Dhagpo Kundreul Ling, the site of a monastery where traditional three-year-three-month-and-three-day retreats have been held since 1984, fulfilling one of the wishes of the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa, Ranjung Rikpe Dorje.
Today, Lama Jigme Rinpoche, spiritual advisor to Dhagpo Kagyu Ling and secretary-general of the 17th Karmapa in Europe, is the superior of these two congregations, ensuring the cohesion and vision of the entire community.
The Imprint of the 14th Shamarpa, Mipham Chökyi Lodrö, on Dhagpo Kagyu Ling
For thirty-three years, from 1981 to 2014, Shamarpa took care to come to Dhagpo Kagyu Ling nearly every year to share teachings and empowerments. Primary holder of the Karma Kargyü lineage, he also took care to confer the essential transmissions of the lineage in the traditional three-year-three-month-three-day retreat center at Dhagpo Kundreul LIng.
June 19-20, 1982 :International Tibetan Buddhism Days with Künzig Shamar Rinpoche at the Vincennes Pagoda
In June 1982, seven months after the parinirvana of the 16th Karmapa Rangjung Rikpe Dorje, the 14th Shamarpa, Mipham Chökyi Lodrö, now solely responsible for the Karma Kagyü lineage, initiated the International Days of Tibetan Buddhism and Tradition at the Pagode du Bois de Vincennes in Paris, alongside Lama Gendun and Lama Jigme Rinpoche. […]
June 13, 2013: The Inauguration of Dhagpo Kagyu Ling’s Institute
From June 13, 2013, Dhagpo Kagyu Ling’s Institute was inaugurated in the presence of several thousand people from all over the world, fulfilling one of the 16th Karmapa’s wishes to make the Buddha’s authentic teaching accessible to as many people as possible. […]
Event
The retreatants’ arrival to Dhagpo Kagyu Ling as well as the Institute’s consecration will be marked by a day of practice at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling, followed by a friendly tea-time get together on June 13.
This event takes place only onsite.
June 11-13, 1987 : Coming out of First Retreat at Dhagpo Kundreul Ling and Arrival at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling
After three years, three months, and three days in seclusion from the outside world, the first group of fourteen men and five women to complete the traditional retreat emerged on June 11, 1987 from their drupkang, retreat center, at Dhagpo Kundreul Ling, and then traveled to Dhagpo Kagyu Ling on June 13,1987. […]
Event
The retreatants’ arrival to Dhagpo Kagyu Ling as well as the Institute’s consecration will be marked by a day of practice at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling, followed by a friendly tea-time get together on June 13.
This event takes place only onsite.
June 11, 2014: Künzig Shamar Rinpoche enters into Parinirvana
In the early morning of June 11, at his main European seat in Renchen-Ulm, Germany, the 14th Shamarpa, Mipham Chökyi Lodrö, passed away at age sixty-two from heart failure, leaving his innumerable disciples across the world in deep shock. He had just completed several days of teachings. […]
Event
To commemorate this event, we will gather for a day of practice in the Temple, followed by a Talk on the life of Künzig Shamar Rinpoché given by Trinlay Rinpoche in the Institute. It will be streamed online and translated into several languages.
June 6, 1981 : Tai Situ Rinpoche’s First Visit to Dhagpo Kagyu Ling
On June 6, 1981, Tai Situ Rinpoche, then twenty two years old, taught for the first time at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling, where he stayed for two weeks.
This high-ranking lama of the Karma Kagyu lineage chose to teach in English about the first commitment of all practitioners, the gateway to the Buddhist path: taking refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha. […]
Event
To commemorate this event, on June 6, Meunlam prayers will be recited throughout the day at Dhago Kagyu Ling.
This event will only take place onsite.
May
May 2000: Karmapa receives the transmission of two key collections of the Karma Kagyu lineage at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling
IIn May 2000, Thaye Dorje, His Holiness the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, then in retreat at Dhagpo Kundreul Ling since February, received the transmission of two key collections of the Karma Kagyü lineage […] His Holiness, the 14th Künzig Shamarpa, Mipham Chökyi Lodrö (1952–2014) conferred these transmissions.
Event
The 17th Karmapa’s birthday as well as the transmissions he received from Künzig Shamar Rinpoche at Kundreul Ling will be marked by a day of practice at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling and Dhagpo Kundreul Ling.
Part of this event will take place onsite only; another part will be offered onsite and online.
May 24, 2014 : Künzig Shamarpa’s Last Teaching at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling
The 2nd Gyalwa Karmapa, Karmapa Pakshi (1204–1283), indicated that he would manifest in the future in two physical forms that would be one in essence: the Black Crown Karmapa and the Red Crown Karmapa, otherwise known as the Shamarpa. […]
Event
Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 May
This event will be commemorated by the screening of Künzig Shamarpa’s last teaching at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling on the fourfold application of mindfulness.
This event takes place in Dhagpo Kagyu Ling’s Institute. It will be screened online and translated into several languages (English, Spanish, German, Russian).
May 21–27, 2002: Karmapa, in retreat at Dhagpo Kundreul Ling, receives transmissions from Khenchen Trinley Paljor Rinpoche
Upon the request of Künzig Shamarpa, Khenchen Trinley Paljor Rinpoche, one of the primary holders of the Kagyu lineage transmitted the Karma Kamtsang tradition of the six yogas of Naropa, Dorje Pamo practice and other texts on meditation practice to Thaye Dorje, His Holiness the 17th Karmapa from May 21 to 27, 2002 at Dhagpo Kundreul Ling. […]
Event
This transmission from the master Khenchen Trinley Paljor Rinpoche will be commemorated on May 21 by the extensive practice of Dorje Pamo in the Institute and the screening of the film “From Youth to Mastery”.
This event takes place only onsite.
May 6, 1983. Birth of the 17th Karmapa Thaye Dorje
Eighteen months after the passing of His Holiness the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa Rangjung Rigpe Dorje on November 5, 1981, his reincarnation, later recognized by the 14th Künzig Shamarpa, was born in the Barkor area of Lhasa on May 6, 1983.[…]
Event
The 17th Karmapa’s birthday as well as the transmissions he received from Künzig Shamar Rinpoche at Kundreul Ling will be marked by a day of practice at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling and Dhagpo Kundreul Ling.
Part of this event will take place onsite only; another part will be offered onsite and online..
May 4 and 5, 2000 : Chogye Trichen Rinpoche Confers Two Empowerments
After transmitting key teachings to Thaye Dorje, His Holiness the 17th Karmapa at Dhagpo Kundreul Ling in the Auvergne, the eminent Sakya master Chögye Trichen Rinpoche made a stop in Dordogne to confer the empowerments of One-Thousand-Armed Chenrezig and Green Tara on May 4 and 5, 2000. […]
May 3, 1975 – Lama Jigme Rinpoche Arrives at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling
In January 1975, I was in Geneva with Lama Namgyal. I was taking care of the 16th Karmapa’s birds as he was in Zurich.
I was waiting for him and the rest of the group so that we could all return to India together. It must have been around four o’clock in the morning when the phone rang. I wasn’t quite awake when I picked it up. […]
Event
This day will open with a smoke offering practice (sang puja) from 6:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. in the Institute.
The ritual will be followed by Jigme Rinpoche’s teaching for the Chenrezig Progressive Curriculum of Study & Meditation, onsite and online.
The teaching is given in English and translated into French, Spanish and German..
April
April 26–May 1, 1992 – Learning to Live Freely: The First Teen Course
“Using your strengths to gain your freedom.” This was the theme of the first course for 13 to 18-year-olds guided by Lama Jigme Rinpoche at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling from April 26 to May 1, 1992.
“At the time I was doing courses for top management. That’s when I saw there was something missing for the young generation, to help them have a vision,” explains Lama Jigme Rinpoche. […]
April 2000: A Library is Born
Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, His Holiness the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa, explained that the existence of a library is one of the five key resources for Buddhism to take root where it did not previously exist.
The mission of the Dhagpo Kagyu Library is therefore to preserve a unique Buddhist corpus faced with […]
Event
On April 30, from 3:00 p.m., to mark this event and for this first time at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling, all practitioners will be invited to join a Kangyur procession.
Ahead of this, between April 14 and 18 (from 10 to 10:30 a.m. and from 2 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.), practitioners who can read Tibetan are invited to join reading aloud from each of the 103 volumes that constitute the collection, in the Library’s reading room and in the Tibetan documentary holding room.
April 9–22, 1990: Kunzig Shamarpa Teaches the Dawe Öser, Treatise on Mahamudra Meditation
In the courtyard of the Lama House, buffeted by the colds spring winds in April 1990, the 14th Kunzig Shamar Rinpoche Mipham Chökyi Lodrö transmitted a major treatise on the stages of Mahahumdra meditation, Moonbeams (Dawe Öser), by Dakpo Tashi Namgyal (1512-1587).[…]
Event
To commemorate this event: April 9, 10, and 11, the audio recordings of Kunzig Shamarpa’s teaching on the Dawe Öser will be streamed in the Institute (in French and English).
This is an in-person event.
The recordings are also available for consultation in the Dhagpo Kagyu Ling Library.
April 2000 – The 25th Chogye Trichen Rinpoche Transmits Major Teachings to Karmapa at Dhagpo Kundreul Ling
April 6, 2000, Chogye Trichen Rinpoche, one of the most eminent Sakya masters of the 20th century, is welcomed to Dhagpo Kundreul Ling in order to transmit teachings to Thaye Dorje, His Holiness the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, who had been in retreat there since February 6, 2000. […]
Event
Sunday, April 27 at 3:30 p.m.: Talk by Dhongtsang Shabdrung Rinpoche.
Dhongtsang Shabdrung Rinpoche of the Sakya school is renowned for his great erudition. His predecessor was the elder brother of the 16th Karmapa, Rangjung Rigpé Dorjé. While he is at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling, he has agreed to speak to us about Chögyé Trichen Rinpoche.
Streaming in several languages will be available.
March
March 17, 1984 – A Historical Step: The First Three-Year Retreat
Close to 6:30 in the evening, after a day of rituals, a convivial buffet, the receiving of their sacred texts, and a procession around their future place of practice, fifteen men and five women crossed the threshold of the retreat center or drupkang located in Dhagpo Kundreul Ling, which they would not leave for the traditional period of three years, three months, and three days. […]
Event
To mark this event, three days of practice will take place in the small temple of Dhagpo Kundreul Ling:
Sunday 16 and Monday 17 March: Extensive ritual of Dorje Pamo
March 8, 1993: Consecration of the Stupa of Enlightenment
With the consecration of the Stupa of Enlightenment, Dhagpo Kagyu Ling welcomed its first support for offering and virtue accumulation, representing the very manifestation of Buddha’s mind.
This stupa is so named because it was first built in India on the occasion of Shakyamuni Buddha’s enlightenment […]
Event
To mark this event, we will gather on March 8th in the presence of Lama Jigme Rinpoche to perform the Guru Yoga practice of the 16th Karmapa at the Institute and carry out recitations and offerings around the stupa.
The practices will also be streamed online.
March 1, 1982 – Anchoring the Dharma in the City: Creation of the First Urban Center in Biarritz
Offering the opportunity to connect to the Dharma in the city, close to home—this is the vocation of the Karma Teksum Tchöling centers, the first of which began in Biarritz in March 1982.
To begin, what is the meaning of this name given by His Holiness the 16th Karmapa? Karma indicates that the center is under the spiritual authority of the Gyalwa Karmapa. Teksum means […]
Event
To mark this event, on March 1st, Lama Jigmé Rinpoche will continue his account of life alongside Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, His Holiness the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa.
Streaming in several languages will be available.
After Losar, the Nyungne season
Since 1980, Nyungne retreats—the meditative practice of Chenrezig, the Buddha of Compassion with eleven faces and one thousand arms—have been a feature of Dhagpo’s program in the first month of the Tibetan year, a period considered to be very propitious for Dharma practice.
The practice—a powerful means of purification—is based on the […]
February
1985: Dhagpo Kagyu Ling Turns into a Worksite
From the month of February 1985, bulldozers transformed Dhagpo Kagyu Ling into a vast worksite to improve the Center’s living conditions and welcoming capacity.
Despite the rain, the work went ahead to dig trenches in order to install drains, water supply and electricity distribution pipes.[…]
Losar Over the Decades
As a local newspaper reports in February 1980,
“To celebrate this first day of the Tibetan New Year, people had come from everywhere: from Germany, the Paris region…but also from Périgord,” with Tibetan cakes served for all in the early morning.
The article refers to the presence of Lama Gendun Rinpoche and Lama Jigme Rinpoche, as well as Tenga Rinpoche
February 6, 2000: the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa in Retreat at Dhagpo Kundreul Ling
After his first European tour, Thaye Dorje, His Holiness the 17th Karmapa, travelled to Dhagpo Kundreul Ling in the Auvergne region where he stayed in retreat from February 6 to June 8, 2000 to pursue his education alongside His Holiness the 14th Künzig Shamarpa, Mipham Chökyi Lodrö (1952-2014).[…]
Event
To mark this event, on February 6th, the extensive ritual of Dorjé Pamo will be performed throughout the day in two locations: at the Institute of Dhagpo Kagyu Ling and in the great temple of Dhagpo Kundreul Ling.
February, 1996: Creation of Dhagpo Dedröl Ling, a center for secular practitioners
“Gendun Rinpoche spoke to us about his wish to create a retreat center for secular practitioners.
He asked us to carry out tsok accumulation practices for this to go well,” confides Lama Henrik in an interview with Tendrel magazine (no. 42, December 1996).
January
January 21, 2023: the Library Receives an Exceptional Collection
The late Kunzig Shamar Rinpoche had asked the Dhagpo library to acquire this exceptional work, to complement the version from Derge held in the traditional pecha format in its collection.
January 21, 1975: The16th Gyalwa Karmapa Touches Down in Dordogne
During a day trip to Dordogne on January 21, 1975, the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa Rangjung Rigpe Dorje visited the stretch of land on the Côte de Jor that was to become Dhagpo Kagyu Ling.
He was invited by Bernard Benson, a British industrialist who owned the Château de Chaban and surrounding land on the Côte de Jor
[…]
Event
On January 21st, Lama Jigme Rinpoche will give a talk on the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa, who described him as “his heart.”
Streaming in several languages will be available.
January 17, 1975: The 16th Gyalwa Karmapa Meets Pope Paul VI at the Vatican
In a highly symbolic moment marking the Church’s openness to a Buddhist presence on European soil, Pope Paul VI met with the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa Rangjung Rigpe Dorje at the Vatican, in Rome, on January 17, 1975.
Welcoming the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa, the Pope stated that “the Second Vatican Council expressed admiration for Buddhism in its various forms and for the contribution it makes to the spiritual elevation of man.”
Event
Dhagpo Kagyu Ling will perform a day-long garsang, a ritual practice that restores any damage caused to the inner or outer environment.
January 9, 2000: During His Inaugural European Trip, the 17th Karmapa Visits Dhagpo Kagyu Ling
Under gusty skies at the turn of the new century, the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa Trinley Thaye Dorje, was greeted at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling on January 9— three days after arriving in Paris on his first visit to Europe.
Addressing some two thousand practitioners under a large marquee, the 16-year-old Gyalwa Karmapa recalled his predecessor’s instructions for Buddhism to take root in the West,
[…]
Event
To mark this date, we will gather in Dhagpo’s Institute to recite the Five Royal Sutras and the practice of Vajrasattva as requested by the 17th Karmapa, as well as the Sutra of Longevity.
The practice will also be streamed.
January 8, 1988: Official Recognition of Karme Dharma Chakra Congregation
Coming soon… The key dates for November
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