"Dorje Shugden always helps, guides and protects pure and faithful practitioners by granting blessings, increasing their wisdom, fulfilling their wishes, and bestowing success on all their virtuous activities."
Heart Jewel
Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso

Throughout the morning meditation with Gen Devi, the teachings with Gen-la Jampa and the first retreat session with Gen Tonglam there is a central theme: how we need protection for our spiritual life.
 The Temple was very quiet as over 1000 people listened intently to the teachings and especially to the words of our precious root Guru that Gen-la Jampa so kindly and powerfully shared with us. Taking his time and sharing them in full, he enabled us to deepen our heart connection with our Spiritual Guide and take his advice and encouragement into our hearts. A key point of the teachings was understanding the dependent relationship between being a sincere practitioner and receiving the powerful blessings and protection of Dorje Shugden whose function is to protect and flourish Kadam Dharma in our hearts and our world.

Geshe-la explained in his teachings that wanting sentient beings to experience the happiness of full enlightenment through helping Kadam Dharma to flourish indicates that Kadampa practitioners have very special good hearts.  In this way, we are keeping our heart commitment of cherishing others.  We want Kadam Dharma to flourish because we cherish people.

In the meditation sessions we had the opportunity to concentrate on heartfelt contemplations and sincere determinations, and to feel their power changing our minds and building the inner protection we seek. 

In the evening we began our short retreat with Gen Tonglam.