第十六世噶瑪巴涅槃靈塔之未來家園
It is with heartfelt sorrow that we received the news of the passing into parinirvāṇa of the great Kagyü master, His Eminence Chöje Ayang Rinpoche. His absence will be deeply felt by many within our community and beyond.
In this time of mourning, our resident Lamas at Karmapa Center 16 are offering butter lamps and prayers to support everyone affected by this loss. We invite all to join us in honoring Rinpoche’s memory and legacy.
In heartfelt support, may the Dharma guide us.
Karmapa Center 16
Karmapa Center 16 commemorates His Holiness the 16th Karmapa’s parinirvāṇa every year on November 5th, the day of his passing at the clinic which is now called City of Hope Cancer Treatment Center, in Zion, Illinois. Under the guidance of our resident teacher, Acharya Lhakpa Tshering, and Lama Tashi Gawa, we will be hosting a full day of pujas and practice in Tibetan. Please register below to receive the Zoom link. If you’d like to join onsite, please make sure you indicate this on the registration form.
We are also deeply honored that our friends in Taiwan will be hosting a 16th Karmapa Guru Yoga Teaching Retreat with a special teaching by His Holiness the 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, as well as practices and teachings by our advisor, Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, and our president, Dilyak Drupon Rinpoche, from November 1 to 3, and November 5. You can join online (via Zoom) or onsite. Teachings will be in English or Tibetan with translation into English and Chinese. Recordings will be made available to all registrants.
In addition to the teachings, this special retreat includes a traditional lung (oral transmission) of His Holiness the 16th Karmapa’s Guru Yoga Sadhana (from Dilyak Drupon Rinpoche), and practicing this Guru Yoga together in the presence of sacred relics of His Holiness.
Please find a tentative schedule below. Registration includes access to both the Guru Yoga Teaching Retreat and the Parinirvana commemoration. When you register, we will share the Zoom links, how to access recordings, and other practical information. For more information and registration in Chinese, please visit KC16 Taiwan’s Facebook Page.
All times are shown in the local time zone, Central Standard Time (Chicago). Please note: Daylight Saving Time ends on November 3, 2024.
| time (US Central Time, UTC-6) | puja |
|---|---|
| 7:00–8:00a | Tara |
| 9:00–10:30a | Guru Yoga (composed by Tai Situ Rinpoche) |
| 11:00a–12:30p | Guru Yoga (composed by Tai Situ Rinpoche) |
| 2:00–3:30p | Guru Yoga (composed by Tai Situ Rinpoche) |
| 4:00–5:30p | Mahakala |
After making an offering (of any amount) below, a resource page with Zoom links and participation information for the Taiwan and KC16 Wadsworth events will be automatically emailed.
Please see the detailed schedule of pujas prior to the 43rd Parinirvāṇa Anniversary program. The Zoom link will be delivered in a confirmation email. Thank you for being part of this year’s Parinirvāṇa Activities and kind support.
We feel extremely fortunate to announce there will be a Ullambana Festival Puja this year with our precious Dilyak Drupon Rinpoche on August 16 and 17 (Chicago Time).
The origins of this festival can be found in the Ullambana Sutra and is traditionally celebrated throughout the centuries in Asia during the 7th month of the lunar calendar. It relates to the story of Buddha’s disciple Maudgalyāyana wanting to repay his mother’s kindness. Therefore, this month focus on generosity to accumulate merit in general and the dedication of our practice for the benefit of our parents and ancestors.
Please find the schedule of teachings and practices below, how you can join us online, and make auspicious offerings during this special puja.
Starts Live at 8PM (Chicago Time, CT)
DAY 1 (August 16) – Oral teachings & Essential teachings; Namchö, The Sky Dharma Maha Sukhavati Sadhana
(Tibetan/Chinese)
DAY 2 (August 17) – Namchö, The Sky Dharma Maha Sukhavati Sadhana (Tibetan/Chinese), Tsok Offering
Please join us online using the following link:
https://zoom.us/j/91651714117 ID: 916 5171 4117
https://www.facebook.com/kc16taiwan/live or Zoom, and follow our Facebook for the latest updates.
You can also join live or watch the recordings on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@KC16
If you encounter any trouble or have any questions, please email info@karmapacenter16.org.
On the occasion of this special Ullambana Festival Puja, you can make auspicious offerings. Find below the various options for donations and fill in the form to donate.
On behalf of board members, staff, and volunteers, it is with deep sadness that Karmapa Center 16 announces the passing of our beloved friend, Phuntsok Bist, Founding Board Member, Vice President, and Treasurer. Lama Phuntsok passed away in the early morning hours of December 5th near Zion, Illinois, location of the parinirvana of His Holiness the 16th Karmapa. Lama Phuntsok dedicated his life to serving His Holiness Karmapa and the Karma Kagyu lineage, and kept his monastic vows from age 12 until the end of his life. His passing is a tremendous loss for us all.
After completing the monastic training at the Rumtek Monastery, he was appointed the junior chant master and soon became the teacher and administrator of Jamyang Khang, the monastery’s primary school. For many years, he served as Umdze and Chant Master at Dharma Chakra Center, Rumtek and also went into short retreats.
Due to a medical condition, in 1993 he took leave from the monastery and travelled to the United States for treatment. Lama Phuntsok worked as a volunteer teacher at the Karma Theksum Choling monastery until 2000, where he taught Tibetan language and literature, and monastic rituals. Also at this time, Lama Phuntsok was appointed the Dronyer Chenmo, Chief Public Relation Officer of His Holiness the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa in exile in India, and served until 2011. In 2012, Lama Phuntsok semi-retired and settled in the United States of America. Since that time he has been continually serving the Karma Kagyu lineage in a variety of ways, including the establishment of Karmapa Center 16 in Wadsworth, Illinois. The vision of this project is to commemorate the life of His Holiness the 16th Karmapa with a stupa, memorial, meditation hall, retreat center, and a place to learn and study Buddhism, and the history of the Karmapa lineage.
Lama Phuntsok will be remembered as a dedicated and devoted individual who lived his life helping others with kindness, gentleness, and a robust sense of humor. Donations for the traditional end of life practices and in memory of his life can be made at www.karmapacenter16.org/donate. May all be auspicious!
Sincerely,
Dilyak Drupon Rinpoche
Founding Board Member & President
Karmapa Center 16
According to the Tsurphu calendar, the 14th day of the first month was observed as the day of the parinirvana of Jetsün Milarepa and the 15th was the parinirvana of Marpa Lotsawa. On these two days, the Karmapa Center 16 performed Guru Yogas for both linage forefathers.
According to the Tsurphu calendar, January 31st marked the 29th day of the 12th month of the year. On this special occasion, the Karmapa Center 16 completed the Mahakala puja, performed to dissipate all obstacles before the start of a new year. The lamas also recited aspirations prayers for the long life of the Karmapa, all the teachers, and all sentient beings.
On this full moon day, the Karmapa Center 16 performed the Guru Yoga written by Dabzang Ngedon Tenpa Rabgye to honor the parinirvana of one of the forefathers of the Kagyu Lineage, Lord Gampopa, whose heart son was Düsum Khyenpa, the first Karmapa. In performing this Guru Yoga, the Karmapa Center 16 joined other monasteries, centers, and individuals all over the world that recalled the kindness of Gampopa, today.
Led by Dilyak Drupon Rinpoche, today lamas and friends, gathered at the center to make special offerings and prayers to the Buddha, recollecting his First Turning of Wheel of Dharma in Varanasi, India 2,600 years ago.
Karmapa Center 16 is grateful to have longtime Buddhist practioner Lynne Conrad Marvet now serving on its Board of Directors as secretary.  An artist, performer, teacher and professional fundraiser, Lynne grew up in Chattanooga, TN, and began meditating when she was 16 years old. But it wasn’t until she met His Holiness the 16th Gyalwang Karmapa, four years later, that she connected with Tibetan Buddhism and the Karma Kagyu lineage of His Holiness. In 1980, while living in New York City, Lynne’s friend suggested they attend the Black Crown ceremony held in the city during His Holiness’ third, and what would be his final, tour of the United States. So, they went, and the connection for Lynne was made. “The strongest connection to my heart was the description given for the Refuge Ceremony,” Lynne said. “At the time, I was not well versed in what taking ‘refuge’ meant. But the way His Holiness described it, I remember having a very strong feeling of ‘Yes, Yes’ this is what I want to do. I still get chills. (It was a) powerful experience: It was the principle of compassion, the power of his speech, his presence, and the message that this is a path to help transcend confusion and help all sentient beings. Because of meeting His Holiness, I felt very connected to the Karma Kagyu lineage.” Shortly after the ceremony, Lynne met her first Tibetan teacher, Khyabje Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche who served, from 1978 until his death in 2019, as abbot of Karma Triyana Dharmachakra in Woodstock, New York, the first Karma Kagyu monastery established in the United States and the North American Seat of His Holiness the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa. Her current and longtime teacher is Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, acknowledged as a heart son of the 16th Karmapa. Lynne shared with us a special description of the life of the 16th Karmapa spontaneously spoken by Khenpo Tsültrim Gyamtso Rinpoche, guru of Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, during an interview in Seattle in 1999. She had supplicated Khenpo Rinpoche for his words about His Holiness, which were then translated from Tibetan into English by Ari Goldfield. |
THE WONDERFUL, MIRACULOUS LIFE STORY OF HIS HOLINESS THE 16TH GYALWANG KARMAPA
By Khenpo Tsültrim Gyamtso Rinpoche
In the glorious valley of Gurum, there is a monastery called Tsurphu. It is the palace of glorious Chakrasamvara. The all-pervasive lord is Rangjung Rigpe Dorje himself. Simply meeting him causes faith to expand. Simply listening to his speech vanquishes the darkness of doubt. Receiving pith instructions from him causes dualistic appearances to be self-liberated. This is his wonderful, miraculous life story. He brings outer, inner and other together in Mahamudra and causes all of existence to shine as the infinite expanse of purity. His practice of the rituals of the four classes of tantra is uninterrupted. This, too, is his wonderful, miraculous life story…
Listen to Lynne read the rest of the story:
When asked about the stupa for Karmapa Center 16, Lynne said in many ways, it is incredible that the stupa doesn’t already exist.
“His Holiness had such a huge impact on people,” she said. “And, because he passed away (in Zion, IL), that place is blessed. To continue to share that with many generations to come, it is important to have a physical representation of his sacred body, which is what the stupa is: his enlightened body, speech, and mind. To have a stupa there will be a great blessing to not just those in close proximity but to the entire United States.”
“Recently, I’ve been thinking about the importance of blessings and what that does for one’s practice. I can’t say enough of adhisthāna or blessings that can be received as a result of the physical presence of the teacher or the representations of enlightened beings… It is something very real even though it is intangible. The Karmapa Center 16 is already that place, but it will increase, I have no doubt. It is important for us to invest in this dream.”
If you’d like to share your memories or photos of His Holiness with us, please send them to: media@karmapacenter16.org.
As always, we offer our heartfelt thanks for your continued interest and support of KC16. May the Center be of great benefit to all beings!
Today the Karmapa Center 16 held a ceremonial ritual in celebration of His Holiness Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje’s 36th birthday, with aspiration prayers for his long life and the flourishing of his activity. It was followed by a traditional tea and rice offering to His Holiness and everyone gathered.
