Tuesday, June 29, 2010 • Tibetan Lama to visit Susanville

Publisher’s note: This story originally appeared in the Tuesday, June 29, 2010 edition of the Lassen County Times.

Lama Jigme Rinpoche, a Tibetan Lama living in Reno, will visit the newly founded Zephyr Forest Dharma Center in Susanville on July 17, time to be announced.

Rinpoche was born in Amdo, Tibet in 1956. He began his study of Buddhism as a young man and for 10 years lived in retreat in the mountains, caves and forests. Eventually, he moved back to his hometown, then onto Lhasa, Tibet where he lived for five years. In 1991 he made his way to Dharamsala, India.

After receiving teachings from the Dalai Lama and others, Rinpoche became abbot of the Padma Rigdzin Ling Monastery in Dharamsala where he taught Buddhist values like compassion and emptiness. Eventually, his students brought him to the U.S.

For four years he taught Tibetan yoga and Buddhist meditation at the Bushidokan Martial Arts Dojo in Reno. With the help of his students, he also founded the Ocean Lotus and Padma Rigdzin Ling Buddhist Church in northern Idaho.

Today, he carries out his life as a Lama in Reno, meditating every day from 4:30 to 11:00 a.m., teaching in the afternoons and performing Buddhist ceremonies on a regular basis.

\On Saturday, July 17 he will give a Dharma and Buddhist talk for anyone interested in learning more about meditation and Tibetan Buddhism.

The Zephyr Forest Dharma Center is a newly formed group for anyone interested in exploring Buddhist teachings and meditation. It’s open to everyone regardless of religious affiliation. The center welcomes the public to attend this event and ask Rinpoche questions.