News from the post Fall Festival retreats ~ Part 2
Nov 16, 2024
January 25 is a special day in the Kadampa calendar – it is Heruka Day. Heruka is Buddha’s mind of compassion manifested as form. On this day, Kadampa Centers worldwide celebrate by organizing community events and prayers.
Discover the latest activities of KMC Metz, the center in the east of France, including Learning to Let Go, a Public Talk with Resident Teacher Gen Kelsang Konchog, and a Feast of Great Bliss puja organized by the community.
Practitioners around the world are taking time this January to engage in retreat. Wonderful events are being organized globally, providing opportunities for people to retreat from their usual busy pace of life. They can slow down, look inwards, and engage in their spiritual practice more deeply. See this post for retreats in Argentina, South Africa, and Germany.
More than one hundred people attended the weekend of empowerment of Green Tara with the Resident Teacher, Gen Kelsang Tonpa. This high in-person attendance at KMC Paris brought the event energy and joy. The participants, some very new, also appreciated the teachings on the theme of being supported in adversity. We learned about how, through relying on Arya Tara, we can swiftly receive help and transform adverse conditions. What a wonderful weekend!
The students of Mahamudra KMC in Hermosa Beach spent a long weekend in Joshua Tree, California, enjoying teachings on Universal Compassion by Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. The Resident Teacher, Gen Tsoglam guided the retreaters through the teachings on love and the healing power of compassion.
The month of January is a special month in the Kadampa calendar during which we emphasise the practices of Heruka and Vajrayogini, the principal Highest Yoga Tantra Deities of modern Kadampa Buddhism. Today, the twenty fifth day of the month, is Heruka Day.
Sutra and Tantra teachings of Buddha are a practical way to fulfill our own potential and gain the ability to lead others to pure and everlasting happiness. This year, in January, two Centers in Spain – KMC Granada and KMC Barcelona – explored these inner paths to enlightenment during retreats in the village of Moclín and the Montserrat Temple. Explore these retreats with photo galleries and shared experiences of participants.
A wonderful new development in Xalapa, Mexico, where a new center was opened this January. The local community came together to celebrate the opening of this new space with meditation and a talk by the Resident Teacher, Kelsang Shewang.
Australian Sangha recently came together to receive the blessing empowerment of Dorje Shugden from Gen-la Kelsang Kunsang at Kadampa Meditation Centre Australia. The event was filled with positivity and hope, bringing together Sangha from many countries.
New Zealand Festival 2024 appeared in Wellington from 16th to 19th January. Practitioners from around New Zealand and some from the UK gathered to receive teachings and empowerment from Gen-la Kelsang Kunsang.