There is an atmosphere of great happiness as thousands of people enter the Temple for the first session in the evening. The Temple is illuminated prominently against the dark night sky and it feels wonderful to come inside and see the exquisite artwork and statues so lovingly crafted and unique to this Temple.

After long journeys and much work at the Festival site to make everything ready, finally everyone settles into the introductory teaching with Gen Drime, the Resident Teacher at Kadampa Meditation Center Brazil. He is light and joyful and he encourages us to appreciate the incredible opportunity we have to be in such a blessed place and to listen keenly to the teachings we will receive by deeply appreciating the many benefits of listening to Dharma.

He reminds us that the last International Festival here was 14 years ago with Venerable Geshe-la, how he deeply blessed this place at that time and how auspicious it is that we are arriving or returning here 14 years later, on Je Tsongkhapa Day. He invites us to feel that we have arrived home and to feel that we are very much in the right place at the right time.