General Spiritual Director
An Auspicious Beginning for Kadam Dharma in Venezuela
Jul 7, 2026
From generation
to generation
Tomorrow, on the auspicious day of the 10th of April 2026, as the role of General Spiritual Director passes from Gen-la Kelsang Dekyong to Gen-la Kelsang Jampa, we can clearly see the extraordinary skill of Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche.
Through this transition, we will witness in action the system he established to ensure the purity and continuity of the lineage of Modern Kadampa Buddhism.
One of the unique qualities of the New Kadampa Tradition, established so carefully by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso for the people of the modern world, is the system he created to support its continuity into the future. Geshe-la recognized the importance of the Internal Rules within NKT-IKBU, something he worked on for many years, as well as a seamless handover from one Teacher to another so that the focus always remains on the meaning and practice of the teachings themselves, allowing them to be preserved and experienced with clarity and sincerity.
Sixteen Years of service: Gen-la Kelsang Dekyong
Gen-la Dekyong has set a beautiful example in her time serving the New Kadampa Tradition as the General Spiritual Director, showing deep dedication to Geshe-la, carefully contemplating his words, following the Internal Rules and transmitting his teachings, for 16 years.
Teaching at International Festival 2013
Teaching at International Festival 2019
As a result she has led individuals and society in general into the pure spiritual paths of Modern Kadampa Buddhism, teaching tens of thousands of people. She has granted ordination to hundreds of new monks and nuns and prepared for and granted the Highest Yoga Tantra empowerments multiple times.
Throughout this period she has been the Resident Teacher at Manjushri Centre, the mother center of our tradition in the Lake District.
A New Chapter: Welcoming Gen-la Kelsang Jampa
Now, according to Geshe-la's wishes and the Internal Rules finalised 8 years ago, Gen-la Jampa has come from Los Angeles after many decades flourishing Dharma in the USA to become our new General Spiritual Director. He too has already shown us his special dedicated qualities in his eight years as our Deputy Spiritual Director.
He has traveled tirelessly, visiting centers, Temples and communities around the world, helping them to improve their spiritual development, inaugurating and opening centers and teaching internationally. Gen-la Jampa has taken on the responsibilities set out by Geshe-la with great dedication and compassion and we feel very fortunate to come under his care.
We look forward to many years of receiving his kind spiritual guidance, benefiting from his clear teachings, and being inspired by his pure example to engage ever more sincerely in our own spiritual practice.
We deeply appreciate the great kindness and wisdom of our Founder and Spiritual Guide Venerable Geshe-la in preparing everything perfectly so that the New Kadampa Tradition can flourish with great stability and purity, and be protected from generation to generation for the benefit of people throughout the world.
