Dear Rinpoche, It is wonderful you came to USA. We need you here. Please open a center with various departments here in USA we need more spiritual work.
Note: This section of H.E. Tsem Rinpoche’s blog is meant for Dharma questions or questions related to Kechara and our lineage. If the question is not relevant or out of our scope, we will respectfully request you to seek an answer on a more relevant platform. Before posting your question, we would also like to suggest that you look through some of the older posts (or do a search on this blog) before you post a question as your question may have been already answered in an older post.
Dear Pastors,
I would like to know how does chanting help to alleviate problems in our daily lives. To be more specific what is actually going on while/ after we chant and is this merely a mythical exercise and a psychological practice for spiritual development? Or is there really something magical in it!
Love to find out 🙂
Dear Pastors,
i am curious why some of the questions posted here were leave 'blank' without any feedback?
Despite some questions might be a bit vague, not necessary or totally out of question regarding Buddhism/kechara/leneage, but still..
how hard could it be to spare some time answering a question?
people ask because they are lost, not because they have abundant of time to waste nor they wanted to keep the pastor busy on purpose..
i was going through the many post and its just sad to see many who pour their hearts out writing to pastors, asking for help and receives no feedback. maybe giving some personal advice too wouldn't be too hard? i mean its inevitable too if they come approach you by person.
but.. if.. the person does not seek other help, the person might be lost forever or taken advice from the wrong person.. i think its wise for them to seek the pastor of Kechara instead of other people.
Just a thought.
dear pastor, i have some questions thrown to me which i dont know how to answer, please help.
1) why ask help from a Buddha when one can ask help from a god (taoist god or etc), where problems are solved more faster, easily and instantly.
2) so whats next after one became a Buddha? isnt it boring where you only sits on a lotus and chant everyday? isn't better to go to heaven and enjoy the bliss granted by god? -ask by a non buddhist-
3) my friend who received teachings from another guru, insist that meat eating is legal even for monks as long as they chant before they eat their flesh. they say if they do not eat the meat, the dead animal is not liberated. therefore eating meat is a necessity.
how should i retaliate to his answers? this is very wrong.. right?
4) someone from other buddhist sect insist that i joined them, i refuse and then they gave me a mantra, they say the mantra would 'guarantee' to grant me my wish faster compare to all the mantra ive been using now, after i complete it for a cretain period. how would Pastors reply because i was at loss of words that time.
5) a person comes and tells you that, his guru is the reincarnation of Lama Tsongkapa, we should follow no other guru other than the reincarnated Lama Tsongkapa, teaching by other guru are not recommended. how would pastors reply?
please tell.
Dear Rinpoche, you have changed my life. I would like to take Tsongkapa as my main practice and this year I have saved enough to invite a large Tsongakpa to my home through vajrasecrets.com. Thank you for all the information, teaching and love that shines through this blogsite which is tremendous. This blogsite is a walking Lam Rim book.
Dear Pastors,
One of my friends just encountered a situation with a naga. She was sick and getting fever and not matter what antibiotics they were giving her, the fever was not going down. So her parents asked monks in India to do a divination, and it turns out that someone had just given her father a naga statue and the naga was the one making problems. So the monks gave instructions to have pujas made in at the monastery in India, and to take the naga statue to the river, and after to do getor (obstacle torma) at the house. This was all done yesterday. After watching Tsem Tulku's video on naga vases, we realised that a lot of naga disturbance signs were showing up, such as having skin falling from her face, increased fighting in the house, and the night before taking the naga statue out, she had a dream about a woman with a funny animal face with a very long body, she described it as looking like a giant monster lochness, biting her.
So after the naga statue was taken out and the getor puja done, her fever started to go down and she didnt feel as much anger anymore (she was feeling a lot of anger build up before then). But then yesterday night (night after the naga was taken out) she had another dream about a dog biting her. So we are now wondering if the dog bite dream is also significant of some more harm coming? Could you please explain what this could mean?
Thank you
Hi all,
I had a ghostly experience in Year 2010 right after my grandpa passing away and then i become a Buddhist without knowing what is actually happening in the ceremony. The monk asked me to recite "Om mani pad me hung" and invite the ghost to recite with me but it was no use at all. The ghost was very fierce until i was possessed by it after days of sleepless night my stamina and energy to fight was running slow.
Then i came to a Taoist temple which has a person who is possessed by god to save me. He said I must be one of them to be possessed by god then I would only be safe from the disturbance of the spirit as the spirit wanted my life. Then i went through some ceremonies to prepared my body to be possessed by god in hope that i am free from the disturbance. Then, i don't know what happened I was unable to be possessed by god. the ceremony was stopped half way. They have no choice and eventually helped me to do some ceremony and some offerings to the spirit. then the spirit was gone.
I was greatly shocked by this incident about god and ghost until i couldn't sleep at night of worrying i will be possessed again by either god or ghost until i got mental sickness that is schizophrenia. I come to realise that as a buddhist i should understand about what is buddhism. As I learn more about buddhism, i got more and more confused that if one day i really possessed by god to help people like the person who helped me.I will be doing something that increase the self centred mind of human because there are many of them asking god for something because of their desire of wanting something. I very worried that i will be like them possessed by god one day.
I feel bad that Taoist temple was the one which save my life but my heart was so much into buddhism and don't wish to be possessed by god like anyone of them. Can you tell me whether i will be possessed again as they told me i will be possessed by god one day. I have been following a lot of dharma to find the answer. All I believe is that as long as i am happy and with positive energy with me with the dharma, i wont be possessed by any sentient being.
Namaste to All,
Last Thursday, I experience a unpleasant experience. A taxi make an illegal U-turn and almost hit me and my son while we are crossing, although I'm not sure he aware or unaware of our presence on the middle of that road, nonetheless, he still running into our direction and almost hit both me and my son. Seeing that as an imminent danger I pull back my son immediately. But out of fear and anger, I kick at the taxi door as it passes me by to display my anger and dissatisfaction of how the driver disregard the law and the safety of pedestrian. After that I cross back to a safety area. As a result, the driver stop, open his door and hand holding a piece of steering lock, threatened me into a brawl.
When the moment he do that, there a surge of immense anger and frustration that at that point, I start to scream back in a extreme fierceful tone which I find myself in a trance of anger. It's probably a paternal instinct seeing it less than a meter knowing my son will be run into because of such driver act. Hence, that fire of anger burst out while I yell back telling him how wrong is him to drive as such. And the threatening, screaming and yelling returning back and forth as it brawling is inevitable. Fortunately, nothing had happen as I think the driver know that it some where legal aspect he is totally wrong or probably the traffic doesn't allow him to stop in the middle of a road, forcing him to leave.
But after that come to pass, I realized that such anger is a very dangerous element. During the berserk emotion, the THOUGHT of make the driver suffer greatly keep flashing in my mind. And that scared me. It feel like I may beat that man to death should he in any form hurt my son. It been bothering me for the last few day as how human can have such a huge primal form of rage. I try to recollect myself after a few minutes later though the wandering thought of how we can find peace more easier in such predicament. I really hope to find some answer from the way of Dharmma. Thank you very much for your time in advance.
Hi, sorry if my English is not perfect but i am an Italian man, aged 53, and i am a believer but i am not part of a Religion by now, and i have a question to ask you concerning a spiritual transcendental experience that I got at the age of 16, in Italy, after 3 years of practice of the Trascendental Yoga of the Empthiness of Mind (totally cancellation of any kind of though: colours, forms and sounds).
My name is Roberto, and this is the experience that o got to live at 16: a summer evening I was in a park with some friends and I smoked too much marijuana, and trying to sleep on the grass, after 10 minutes I found myself in a state of mental confusion containing noises, lights and colors of any kind, but chaotic, and to go out of it I got to pray the Lord to help me on it (it has been terrible and terrifying). Praying, I tried to practice the mental vempthiness, and after a few minutes i found myself out of it, in an empty and dark space, where a cyclopic Sphere of White Light came slowly towards me and so i found myself to enter into Her, to pass through Her and to go out of Her from the other side of Her.
After that, an empthy and dark Sky was all around me, and a cyclopic Sound OM was present everywhere in that sky. and after few minutes a cyclopic Red Opaque Sphere came in my direction slowly and accompanied by the noise of thunders, saying, "All is one and one is all," and i found myself to get into her (as before with the Sphere of Light), discovering inside of Her million of opaques spheres, each one having a color, tonality and size different from the other ones, that emitted words in the Hindu language, but also perhaps in ancient Egyptian language and in Chinese, and only a smaller number of them also in other languages of our planet and not. I've got to go through them at an incredible velocity (perhaps of the light) and after a while for me was only possible to see lights, colors and hear their voices without seeing them clearly anymore (for my velocity of navigation).
Then i found myself out of it, in an empty sky, dark and infinite, where only a cyclopic Multicolor Egg appeared in front of me (i got to get out of it but looking in his direction). This egg, in front of me, moved away from me very slowly, until it was almost disappearing in the Empty Sky in which the silence was at 100% (impossible in our Universe due to external and internal or mental noises).
At that point, a friend of mine woke me up doing lips to lips breathing and pressures on the stomach: he and my other friends were strongly in paranoia, due to the fact that before that moment my heart was not working anymore (they sayd), and so i was dead.
End of story.
I am interested to know what kind of experience it has been in Buddhist words, and also what are the Spheres that I got to passthrough, and the Egg, and so at which spiritual experience it corresponds.
I do not care to receive a response from you immediately, the important thing is that i will have the possibility to understand the Spiritual-Esoteric significance of it. From your answer will depend the possibility that i may become Buddhist. I've already read books of all religions of the world but I have not yet understood what i lived at 16 with that experience.
Thank you in advance for your help.
Gently, Roberto.
Dear Pastor,
Thank you for your message about my kitten. He already passed away peacefully. I write to you today is about myself and seek advice from you. To make my story short, I summarize it. I've been doing own business for 2 years and the sales sometime good and sometime very bad for few months. We're both have some study on Pure Land Buddhist. As problems come we chant Amituofo and Guan Yin Pusa. It temporary relief our stress. But both us are so worried and in fear. Sometime I feel like I had lost my life path. I feel scared. Me and my husband had lots of debts to be clear and commitment.
I had read H.E. Tsem Rinpoche’s blog for few months. I'd found myself feel relief. That's why I write to you Pastor to seek advice and guide. What kind of practice or teaching suit us? How to do? We just want our life back to normal and not living in fear. If Pastor need to meet us, both us will be very appreciate. My apologize if my english grammar is wrong. You can write to me at zoekey87@gmail.com.
Dear Rinpoche,
I am writing you to ask your permission and blessing to use an image of your likeness and an image of His Holiness Zong Rinpoche in two different places utilized by our school and students. I have benefited so much from your precious teaching offered on you tube and on the website for many years. Your guidance and advices as helped me to serve my Teacher and work with my dharma sisters and brothers better and better all the time. May you have a long and healthy life and continue to bless beings with the light of Dharma. With endless gratitude from my heart
Dear Pastors,
I am writing to you from a European country Serbia. I was born Christian but five years ago I encountered buddhism and since then I started practicing it. Since there are no Dharma centers here in Serbia the only way I could learn about buddhism was hrough books and blogs such as this one and my practice consists mostly of reciting Sutras, reading teachings about emptiness and meditation. Recently I encountered teaching about Vajrayogini practice. Because it belongs to Tantric teaching I was wondering what practices should I do to create cause to meet a qualified teacher in the future and to establish closer connection to Vajrayogini?
Thank you for Your time.
Dear pastors,
If my motivation to practise dharma is just to avoid being bullied by others, to have genuine friends which I can interact freely, get a good relationship with a pretty girl, to be smarter so I can do my job properly. Is it okay if these are the motivations when I do prayers and chanting and prostration?
Dear Ven Master of Buddhism Tsem Rinpoche, it is wonderful to know you are in NYC my home. I was a professional model and now yoga teacher. My clients enjoy your teachings very much and it has impacted their lives positively.
I hope your books hit the bookstores in NYC so more will have access to your teachings. Books are still in here in NYC. The more people know about you, the more you will impact their lives.
I hope to see you one day soon. NYC is blessed with your presence.
Good evening , currently i m doing Sengdongma mantra daily. can i add on Dzambala mantra without any daily puja or water pouring ? can i mentally visualise ? if yes what am i to visualise when i chant dzambala mantra. I also chant manjusri mantra randomly during my daily work and during activity like jogging and so on , is it ok to do that ? Thank you
Hello, good evening. I would just want to ask a question. I am a buddhist and my fiancé is a Catholic. We are wanting to get married, my fiancé is fond that the wedding would be conducted in his Catholic church. In order to get married in the church, it is said that both groom and bride would have to be baptised to avoid complications. I am a strong buddhist and have taken refuge before this. Should I just convert to a Catholic for the sake of having to go through the complications then convert back into a buddhist? Can any advice be given for this situation. Awaiting your replies, thank you. Sincerely Kaleina.
If you are in the United States, please note that your offerings and contributions are tax deductible. ~ the tsemrinpoche.com blog team
Serving the community. Tirelessly
Combining the responsibilities of the ordained and the appearance of a layperson, pastors are the connection between the sangha and the everyday practitioner. They are ordinary people who have taken an extraordinary step in dedicating their lives towards sharing the Buddhist tradition. As laypeople holding vows, pastors will make the Dharma accessible to more people, giving them guidance and sharing knowledge. The pastors are usually present at Kechara House and available for consultation anytime. For more information, contact house@kechara.com.
As a pastor, Chia will dedicate his life to befitting others through spreading the works of Tsem Rinpoche and Dharma to many people, through the use of pujas, rituals, counseling and sharing of his knowledge.
Ordained as a Pastor in 2011, Chia Song Peng has had a rich and varied Dharma career. He has held a core position with the Kechara Paradise retail outlets, served as a personal attendant to Tsem Rinpoche, embarked on various pilgrimages and received initiations into higher yoga tantric practices. He is accomplished in many pujas and has a deep understanding of the Dharma.
As a pastor, Chia has dedicated his life to befitting others through spreading the works of Tsem Rinpoche and Dharma to many people, through the use of pujas, rituals, counseling and sharing of his knowledge.
When Chia first met Tsem Rinpoche, he was asked if he wanted to become a monk, however even though this was his aspiration he informed Tsem Rinpoche that he would do so at a later date. For Chia, as he has is already in the Dharma full-time, it would be best if he became ordained. Tsem Rinpoche has reminded Chia from time to time to work towards becoming a monk and he promised that he would do so in the future.
Kechara began from nothing to become a growing Dharma organisation with major projects such as Kechara Forest Retreat, so Chia thinks that this is the perfect time to become ordained as a monk. Recently Tsem Rinpoche asked Chia again if he would like to be ordained, this time Chia said yes.
Jean Ai wishes to become a vessel that holds the teachings of Lama Tsongkhapa to benefit future generations, inspiring others to live by the Buddha’s teachings.
Jean Ai met His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche as a young child and through her parents' involvement with Kechara over the years, she has never known a life without His Eminence. Jean Ai was a regular volunteer of Tsem Ladrang during her childhood and teenage years. After graduating with a BSc (Hons) in Psychology from the University of Warwick in the UK and working at the London Probation Service, she returned to Kuala Lumpur to join Tsem Ladrang's e-division. There she managed kechara.com, responsible for the weekly Kechara e-newsletter, including content generation and editing. Since then she has joined His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche’s writing team, responsible for executing Rinpoche’s personal instructions and managing his correspondence.
Having visited a nunnery in India in 2004, Jean Ai remembers noticing how happy and purposeful everyone was. She had a feeling of familiarity and the sight of the robes comforted her. Immediately, Jean Ai messaged her mother who told her to ask Rinpoche’s advice. Rinpoche told her to complete her secular education so that when she taught the Dharma her words would carry the credibility and weight of a university degree, something she completed with the motivation that some day she wanted to become a nun.
Through her ordination as a nun, Jean Ai wishes to become a vessel that holds the teachings of Lama Tsongkhapa to benefit future generations, inspiring others to live by the Buddha’s teachings. Through this she hopes to repay the kindness of her parents and her Guru. Above all she wants to abide in a state free of suffering, and she wants this for others as well.
For Shin, this is a great step forward to being fully committed to the cause of others and repaying others’ kindness through sharing the Dharma with others.
Before joining Kechara, Shin worked as a lecturer and provider of content and e-learning content solutions for various start-ups. Whilst providing training to educators teaching students in English for Specific Purposes (ESP) at various colleges, she was invited to attend a Dharma talk given by His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche at Kechara House. This event rekindled her interest in Tibetan Buddhism, as she recalled the joy of accompanying her parents to teachings as a teenager.
Joining Kechara Media & Publications in 2006 as a volunteer, Shin assumed a full time position there as a Marketing Executive, with the aim of making His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche’s teachings available to more people around the world. Shin is now a member of the Tsem Ladrang Team, who takes care of His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche’s secular matters, enabling Rinpoche to focus on teaching the holy Dharma.
Shin states that when she decided to join Kechara full time, she had already decided to be of some benefit to others and spend the rest of her life doing only that. Working closely with His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche, seeing his tireless effort in helping others and spreading the Buddhadharma through the Gaden tradition despite tremendous challenges has made her realise that the next logical step is to become ordained as she has the opportune conditions to study with her Guru. For Shin this is also a great step forward to being fully committed to the cause of others and repaying others’ kindness through sharing the Dharma with others.
Since finding her spiritual home here in Kechara, Adeline has made dharma work her life’s mission and wishes to dedicate herself fully towards the benefit of others.
Adeline stumbled across His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche's blog towards the end of 2010 and has been following his blog and Facebook page ever since. Since graduating from Dharma Drum Buddhist College Taiwan with a Masters of Arts in Religious Studies in July 2012, she returned to Malaysia and joined Kechara as a Senior Education Executive. Adeline was attracted by His Eminence’s straightforwardness and impressed at Kechara's growth under his guidance. To Adeline, His Eminence is someone who walks the talk, keeps his promises and sincerely cares for others displaying an excellent example of guru devotion, qualities that she seeks to develop herself.
Since finding her spiritual home here in Kechara, Adeline has made dharma work her life’s mission. It was in May 2013 that she officially requested His Eminence for ordination as a nun to dedicate her life fully for the dharma. According to Adeline, become ordained means that she is being true to her calling to live according to the dharma and be of benefit to others.
This however can only be achieved by meeting and studying under her root Guru. Adeline has been fortunate enough to have met with hers - His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche.
It is Niral’s motivation for full ordination to better himself, learn the teachings of our lineage in order to preserve them for future generations. He wishes to benefit others, just as he has benefited and is still benefiting from Tsem Rinpoche’s explanation of the Dharma.
Niral was born and raised in the UK, having graduated with a BA in Anthropology, he was working as a Financial Administrator for a Serviced Apartment & Hotel company as well as a Management Services company before stumbling across His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche’s Youtube channel, entirelyby accident. It was through His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche’s teachings that he began to understand the importance of practicing the Dharma, in order to benefit himself and others around him.
Having been in contact with one of Tsem Rinpoche’s long time students in the UK, he was encouraged to visit Kechara in late 2012 for a 10 day visit. At the end of the visit Tsem Rinpoche requested Niral to come to work at Kechara, to which he agreed.
Niral moved to Malaysia in February 2013 to work as an education coordinator at Kechara House, assisting the Education Division in the creation and implementation of the new education syllabus, teaching teenagers during the Kechara Sunday Dharma School. Ever since meeting Tsem Rinpoche, he has always been encouraged by Tsem Rinpoche to do more Dharma work and strive to better himself. It is with that in mind, that Niral has requested monastic ordination.
It is Niral’s motivation for full ordination to better himself, learn the teachings of our lineage in order to preserve them for future generations. He wishes to benefit others, just as he has benefited and is still benefiting from Tsem Rinpoche’s explanation of the Dharma.
Gim Lee’s main focus is to guide and help anyone who steps through Kechara’s doors through Dharma sharing, counselling, performing pujas and other Buddhist services. She wishes to repay Rinpoche’s kindness by spreading Lama Tsongkhapa’s holy teachings and inspiring others on the spiritual path.
She discovered Kechara by chance in 2006 and started to participate Kechara's activities almost immediately especially the retreat to collect 10 million Migtsema recitations. In April 2006, when Gim Lee met H.E. Tsem Rinpoche and first listened to his teachings, she wept uncontrollably. Though she could not understand it at the time, she had finally found her perfect teacher. She is especially touched by Tsem Rinpoche's compassionate method of teaching by setting his own examples.
Having joined as a staff of Kechara House responsible for housekeeping in 2009, Gim Lee is now one of Kechara House's Front Desk Managers predominantly based in the retreat centre in Bentong, Pahang. She also teaches the Sunday Dharma Class and moderates Dharma discussions on Tsem Rinpoche's blog chat.
The many teachings she has received from Tsem Rinpoche have changed her priorities in life. She found answers to her questions about the purpose of life, and she has realised that the way to overcome the sufferings of pain and anger is by following the path of compassion and wisdom as taught by Lord Buddha. These realisations have led to her request to be ordained as a Sangha member.
As pastor now, and later as a Buddhist nun, Gim Lee's main focus is to guide and help anyone who steps through Kechara's doors through Dharma sharing, counselling, performing pujas and other Buddhist services. She wishes to repay Rinpoche's kindness by spreading Lama Tsongkhapa's holy teachings and inspiring others on the spiritual path.
Loh Seng Piow developed a strong wish to help Rinpoche in spreading the Dharma to the world. With that determination, Loh Seng Piow chose not to pursue his PhD degree in Cambridge University (for which he had been offered a place), resigned from his research job, and joined Tsem Rinpoche as full-time Dharma worker, and has never looked back since.
Back in 2001, Loh Seng Piow had no inkling of just how involved in Dharma he would become. As a Masters degree-holder in Engineering, Loh Seng Piow was working as a research engineer in Singapore when he met His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche. Rinpoche’s talk left a strong impression on him and after a few encounters with Rinpoche, Loh Seng Piow started developing websites for Rinpoche and Kechara.
Loh Seng Piow was trained in science, but soon realised that there were many questions that science could not answer. At the same time, he also felt that science and technology are not the solution to human problems, as humans are much better off compared to thousands years ago, yet the problems in this world are still the same, if not more, and we do not seem to be happier than our ancestors.
Loh Seng Piow soon realised that the Dharma is the ultimate solution to human problems, and that the methods used by His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche are very suitable for this modern era. Loh Seng Piow developed a strong wish to help Rinpoche in spreading the Dharma to the world. With that determination, Loh Seng Piow chose not to pursue his PhD degree in Cambridge University (for which he had been offered a place), resigned from his research job, and joined Tsem Rinpoche as full-time Dharma worker, and has never looked back since.
Meeting Rinpoche was a very refreshing experience for Loh Seng Piow, as he never knew Dharma could be so unconventional yet maintain its essence. As Rinpoche’s personal attendant, Loh Seng Piow has had many incredible moments with Rinpoche and considers himself extremely fortunate because he sees real Dharma in action, both on and off the throne. It challenges him to practice Dharma 24/7. In this way, Rinpoche has blown away his old and persistent way of thinking, which was very much focused on the outer rituals of Dharma.
Having seen that Tsem Rinpoche truly embodies what he teaches, Loh Seng Piow is convinced beyond doubt that it is possible to develop our minds to a higher state, and ultimately achieving enlightenment. All these factors have propelled Loh Seng Piow to take a step further in his Dharma career to become ordained as a pastor in order to be even more effective in sharing and disseminating the Dharma to benefit others.
Naturally an introvert, Yek Yee has transformed what was once her weakness into her strength; making what was once impossible now eminently possible.
Independence was forced upon Kok Yek Yee from the tender age of nine, when she had to juggle between work and school to make ends meet. Always the introvert, Yek Yee had few friends and had difficulty expressing herself. So it was unexpected when she chose a career in journalism.
Yek Yee excelled as an award-winning reporter with Guang Ming Daily and Nanyang Siang Pau. Her articles garnered her a fanbase, and in writing, she found an outlet for the thoughts and feelings that she could not verbalise. However, despite her success, Yek Yee was not satisfied. Temporary happiness was not what she was looking for – success, money, relationships, or fame was not the key.
In her search for happiness, Yek Yee met H.E. Tsem Tulku Rinpoche, who told her “don’t retaliate with your speech, but use your power of writing to express yourself”. This led her to join Kechara Media & Publications as a writer; subsequently she was appointed Senior Editor as well as a Liaison to His Eminence.
Yek Yee now holds a core role in Kechara Care, giving advice, tours, counseling and teachings to whoever walks through their doors. Through courage and determination, she has transformed what was once her weakness into her strength; making what was once impossible now eminently possible.
As a Pastor, her patience and open-mindedness developed through her journey with Kechara will bring comfort and solace, and her new-found ability to nurture and teach others will bring hope to many.
Having been a Pastor for a year, Lanse wishes to continue with her integral duties by renewing her vows again.
Lanse graduated with a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) from Jinan University in Guangzhou, China in 1999 and became a part-time lecturer for several years, teaching western medicine in a Traditional Chinese medical college in Kuala Lumpur.
For a long time, Lanse remained an atheist, subconsciously searching for a spiritual guru as she sought answers to questions she harboured in her mind, questions that had led her into a state of depression during her time at university. As such, she would often read philosophical books in her search for answers.
Lanse first came to know of Kechara in 2007, through her friend of over 10 years, Pastor Yek Yee. She was surprised to see a complete transformation in Pastor Yek Yee, whom she had always known as a non-spiritual person. The first book by Kechara that Lanse chanced upon was the Chinese version of Be Greedy. Naturally, Lanse was skeptical at first, thus she read the book in an attempt to find mistakes with the philosophy. However, she couldn’t find any and was left impressed by how logical the explanations in the book were.
In March 2009, Lanse joined Kechara Media & Publications (KMP) part-time to carry out Chinese translation and help with transcription. The following year, she contemplated upon whether to pursue a full-time medical or a Dharma career, finally deciding on the latter. Lanse came to realise that, although both careers share the same motivation of easing people’s sufferings, she felt that her work in Dharma could lead to a greater contribution for the sake of all sentient beings in a deeper, spiritual sense.
Having been a Pastor for a year, Lanse wishes to continue with her integral duties by renewing her vows again.
It was not until she witnessed how Rinpoche brought peace and comfort to her dying mother, that she realised she also wanted to touch others with the Dharma.
Lim Han Nee, a mother of two, is a retired secondary school principal. She retired in December 2000 after a 30-year career in education. She obtained her Master’s Degree in Education at Leicester University in the UK, at the end of 2001.
After gaining her master’s degree, Han Nee considered further options of embarking on a doctorate in education or spending her years in retirement, travelling and visiting family. At the same time, she was also in search of her spiritual path. She had begun exploring Theravadan and Chinese Mahayana Buddhism for answers to questions she had.
In December 2004, Han Nee attended a teaching retreat on the topic of the Lamrim and White Tara held by His Eminence Gelek Rinpoche. As the retreat proceeded, she found her questions were being answered. Then in June 2005, Han Nee was introduced to Kechara by her sister, where she met her spiritual guide, His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche, who has recently told her that she must go all the way in the Dharma for the benefit of others.
Han Nee had been a school guidance counsellor for nearly twenty years. However, it was not until she witnessed how Rinpoche brought peace and comfort to her dying mother, that she realised she also wanted to touch others with the Dharma.
A member of Kechara’s Puja Team, who conduct sponsored pujas in Shabten Khang, Han Nee is also a member of the Education Division with the portfolio of Content Development. Apart from this, Han Nee is also a member of the weekly Kechara Chat Time team.
In 2014, with a sincere wish to benefit others, David decided to be ordained as a Buddhist pastor to continue serving the spiritual needs of the organisation.
David Lai has been a student of His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche for over a decade now and was one of the founding members of Kechara. He joined Kechara as a full time staff in 2005 and has been working in various departments beginning with the Kechara Paradise outlets.
Right from the beginning, David had been advised by His Eminence to go into writing. Overcoming various hurdles, David finally began his literary career with the publication of his first book and autobiography, There’s No Way But Up in 2009. The book charts his spiritual journey from his childhood and culminates in the meeting with His Eminence.
The positive feedback from this book led him to write various other publications like Vajrayogini and Other Power Places in Nepal – a pilgrim’s guide of Nepal, Tales My Lama Told Me – a book on short stories and Conversations in Love – a book on relationships. These books continue to inspire and bring people onto the Dharma.
Besides writing, David has found his passion in sharing the Dharma since his earlier days working in the Kechara Paradise outlets. Over the years, David has received innumerable teachings from His Eminence, ranging from public teachings to personal instructions and advice. He is known to passionately share these teachings whenever he can and to whomever he meets. In 2014, with a sincere wish to benefit others, David decided to be ordained as a Buddhist pastor to continue serving the spiritual needs of the organisation.
After following Rinpoche as a Dharma student for all these years, learning and practicing the Dharma, Henry knows the importance of the pastors’ role in Kechara founded by Rinpoche. He wants to become a pastor to serve Rinpoche, to serve Kechara, and to serve the public.
Born in 1952 in Penang, Henry moved to Kuala Lumpur in search of work after he finished his Form Five studies in 1969. He worked at different types of jobs and it was when he was jobless in 1997/8 that he met His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche at the house of his cousin, Ruby (now Dato’ Ruby Khong), when Rinpoche was giving a dharma teaching. At that teaching Henry was awed by how Rinpoche taught Dharma with simple yet profound explanations.
With the kind guidance, teachings and Dharma practices by Rinpoche including instruction to engage in their first spiritual retreat, Henry and his wife Angel started a small business that soon became profitable. A few years later after Kechara House Buddhist Association was founded, Rinpoche started to enrol students as liaisons and that was when Henry and Dato’ Ruby offered themselves. Later more students were elected as liaisons that saw the birth of Liaisons Council. The Liaisons Council is now known as the Board of Directors of which Henry is one of its members.
Currently Henry is the Project Director, overseeing the construction and completion of projects in the Kechara Forest Retreat. Prior to this appointment he was the Head of Department in Kechara Paradise retail outlets of which he served for about ten years. He still remains as its company director as well as director for most of the companies within Kechara. He served one term as vice president of Kechara House Buddhist Association from 2012 to 2103.
After following Rinpoche as a Dharma student for all these years, learning and practicing the Dharma, Henry knows the importance of the pastors’ role in Kechara founded by Rinpoche. He wants to become a pastor to serve Rinpoche, to serve Kechara, and to serve the public. As he aspires to be a monk as he grows older, being a pastor of Kechara will pave the way for his aspiration. Henry believes that as one gets older in life, one should have already prepared for the imminent, death. And what a beautiful death it will be, to die in Kechara Forest Retreat in a monk’s robes. This is the kind of death that Henry wants. But before the imminent death happens, Henry wants to continue working in Kechara Forest Retreat, serving the community and whoever comes into it in whatever way he can. And when he is not physically anymore to serve others, he will request instructions from Rinpoche to enter into retreats in Kechara Forest Retreat.
All that Patsy wants now is to spend the rest of her life doing dharma work, dharma practices and being of benefit to others.
Formerly a full time housewife with plenty of free time, Patsy had the great fortune to visit Gaden Monastery and meet H.E. Tsem Rinpoche almost twenty years ago. That one week stay in the monastery changed her view of life. Prior to that, she had no spiritual inclinations but meeting Rinpoche stirred something inside her, and she realised that there was more to life than just eating, sleeping, shopping and having fun. Rinpoche’s approach to dharma was logical and practical but most importantly, he stressed that we should always focus out and work towards benefitting others. Rinpoche made dharma easy to understand and his advice was and still is, to “change inwardly, not outwardly.”
In 2009, after years of practicing and applying what she had learned from Rinpoche’s teachings, Patsy decided to set up a Kechara retail outlet in Penang to share the dharma with others. She knew that Rinpoche’s teachings were very applicable to the people of our time and that his activities would benefit others just as they had benefited her. She also wanted to repay the kindness of her Guru who had constantly helped and guided her. Today, Kechara Paradise Penang is not just a dharma shop but also organises puja sessions, animal liberation and dharma talks.
In 2010, again with Rinpoche’s blessings, Patsy set up the Kechara Soup Kitchen Activity Center in Penang. Saddened to see the plight of the homeless and urban poor on the streets, Patsy decided to practice “compassion through action” as taught by Rinpoche in the most active way she knows. Today, together with her team of volunteers, Patsy feeds the homeless and urban poor four times a week and provides basic food provisions to many hardcore poor families on a monthly basis.
All that Patsy wants now is to spend the rest of her life doing dharma work and dharma practices, and that she may be of benefit to others.
In 2008, Albert Ratchaga began working as a part timer in Kechara Paradise, but as he learned more about the works of Rinpoche and Kechara, Rinpoche’s kindness and compassion touched him deeply. He realised that his work gave his life more meaning and decided to join Kechara full time.
Through his work as a sales executive, Albert was able learn more Dharma from Rinpoche's teachings and use this wisdom to assist those who entered his store to overcome their problems, thus improving their lives.
Albert soon developed a deep wish to follow in Rinpoche’s footsteps and in 2016 was ordained as a Pastor to continue benefitting and serving others.
Dear Jihn Haur Leong,
This is how mantras work. According to H.E. Tsem Rinpoche, when we chant or recite the mantra of a Buddha, for example Mother Tara, we are tapping into her energy. When you tap into Tara’s energy, the results are two-fold: (1) The energy of Tara reverberates through your body to help the body to heal or (2) it helps to avert something (negative) that might be coming in the future. For example, maybe two or three years from now, we are supposed to get a certain disease, but if we do this mantra now, it activates the healing energies in our body which prevent the disease from opening or becoming serious.
In John Blofeld’s book entitled “Mantras: Sacred Words of Power”, one of his Chinese friends cured himself of a life-long addiction to opium by reciting mantras without resorting to medication or other methods. He completely recovered. He said that his private shrine room is the best of clinics and the power of mantras is the best of medicines!
Mantras also help to alter our states of consciousness, by making the mind stay still instead of chasing after thoughts. There are many types of mantras with their specific purpose, for example, to multiply virtue, to bless the rosary, to bless the feet, to purify negative karma, for long life, for making offerings etc.