Tashi Choling Dharma Foundation Inc. Newsletter Winter 2008

Transcription

1 Tashi Choling Dharma Foundation Inc. Newsletter Winter 2008 ZASEP TULKU RINPOCHE Tashi Choling Dharma Foundation has a long-standing relationship with the Venerable Zasep Tulku Rinpoche, a meditation master of the Gelugpa Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. Rinpoche received his training under some of the most competent Buddhist masters in Tibet prior to the Chinese invasion of that country. Later on in India he graduated from Varanasi Sanskrit University with an Acharya degree and spent 18 months in Thailand at the request of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. He first came to Australia in 1977 and taught for three years before leaving for Canada. He has established Buddhist centres and taught throughout North America. Rinpoche has also been the Spiritual Director of Dorje Ling Retreat Centre (formerly Illusion Farm) in Tasmania for many years. He is recognised as the 13th incarnation of the great Kagyu teacher Lama Chabdak who lived in the Kham region of Eastern Tibet and founded Zuru Gompa 600 years ago. Rinpoche is known for his gentle compassion and good humoured wisdom. FLYING MONKS DESCEND FROM THE SKIES The Gyuto Monks are set to touch down in Tasmania in less than a week. Many thanks to all those who have helped out with and attended the 1 Giant Leap screenings and Salamanca Chai stall, fundraising for this the imminent tour. We are also very grateful to those who have shown their support by making financial contributions. You ll find a full outline of their schedule included with this newsletter. As well as the Long Gallery program and their performance as part of the Festival of Voices, a particular highlight will be the urban retreat set to take place from the 4th to the 6th of July. Reports from previous participants have been glowing; see the flier for further details concerning cost and bookings. If you haven t already and would like to make a donation to help make this visit possible you can directly deposit donations to Commonwealth Bank the account Gyuto Monks, or send cheques to Gyuto Monks, PO Box 593, North Hobart, Organising Committee, Gyuto Monks in Tasmania 2008 Further enquiries phone or or gyuto@tashicholing.net IN THIS ISSUE: Gyuto Monks Page 1 President s Report Page 2 Library Page 2 Monthly Program Page 3 Interview with Rinpoche Page 4 Letter from Armidale Page 5 Time To Change Page 5 Pilgrimage to India Page 6 Leprosy Service Retreat Page 7 TASHI CHOLING DHARMA FOUNDATION PO Box 593, North Hobart, TAS Contacts: Maria Grist (03) or Kate MacNicol Web site < > <info@tashicholing.net> Our regular meditation meetings are held at pm every Tuesday above Gould s Naturopathica. Floor 2, 71 Liverpool St, Hobart. All welcome. See Page 3 for further details.

2 PRESIDENT S REPORT With our celebration of Saka Dawa, replete with an array of tea lights, candles and Christmas lights which would have made our Tibetan mentors proud, we marked that point of the year which celebrates the birth, death and enlightenment of the Buddha, and the (re)turning of the light from its farthest point away from us and the slow shortening of the long dark nights. At the same time we celebrated the refreshing of our Hobart centre and thanked some of our members whose generosity makes our ongoing operation possible. It s a great time of year for reflection, refreshing intentions and allowing a sense of renewal, newness, to infuse activity. It makes so much more sense to me at this time of year, than at New Year, the height of summer activity. At the same time, the members of the Tashi Choling Dharma Foundation committee are fully engaged across a wide front of dharma activity. From attending the Dalai Lama s teaching in Sydney to organising for the imminent visit of the Gyuto monks; from painting the centre and cataloguing the library to designing wonderful a new shower block for Dorje Ling and planning working bees; from leading the weekly Tashi Choling program to websites and money boxes and brochures and more. Our amazing collective pool of unique talents all being used in the service of dharma. I have been reflecting a bit on sangha lately. The third place of refuge often an ambivalent one. Something I read recently suggested that sangha is a place in which each member is (ideally) fully committed to the awakening of each and every other sangha member. Something to remember and aspire to, to trust and have confidence in, and to enact. Winter. At this time of the year, I both leave and get home in the dark every working day, and sometimes feel like I don t see the world from one weekend to the next. But at the same time, the inclination towards contemplation and touching the heart-mystery is stream-fed in that darkness. I find more time for my cushion, more time for reading and just sitting in nature, and with less compulsive doing, the inclination towards retreat is more likely to find a space for actualisation. It s actually a wonderful time of year. I hope you are finding the same. Sue Willey TASHI CHOLING LIBRARY The Library has been installed now, and when you come on Tuesdays you will be able to use the computer to search for books by subject, author, keyword etc. Ask Maria to show you how. Or, you can check online at report.htm Accessing the books: You can always access the Library every Tuesday evening. There s also a lock box installed in the passageway outside the meeting rooms. If you would like to use the Library during the week, and make yourself a tea or coffee while reading or studying, please ask a Committee member for the combination of the lock box. You will still need to come at a time when the bottom door is open this will be open during most office hours. BOOK REVIEW: HURRY UP AND MEDITATE By David Michie Our catalogue number: 1218 If meditation was available in capsule form, it would be the biggest selling drug of all time. It has been scientifically proven to deliver highly effective stress relief, boost our immune systems and dramatically slow the ageing process. It has also been shown to make us much happier and more effective thinkers. Given all the physical and psychological benefits, why aren t more of us doing it? In his thought-provoking and entertaining book, David Michie explains the nuts and bolts of meditation. As a busy professional, as well as long-term meditator, he also gives a first-hand account of how to integrate this transformational practice into everyday life. Combining leading edge science with timeless wisdom, Hurry Up and Meditate provides all the motivation and tools you need to achieve greater balance, better health and a more panoramic perspective of life. FROM THE INTERNET Excerpt taken from the Banned Books Resource Guide by the American Library Association, and Ready Reference Censorship, Copyright 1997, Salem Press (ed. Lawrence Amey et al.). Zen Buddhism: Selected Writings. D.T. Suzuki. Doubleday. Challenged at the Plymouth-Canton school system in Canton, Mich. (1987) because this book details the teachings of the religion of Buddhism in such a way that the reader could very likely embrace its teachings and choose this as his religion. The last thing we need are a bunch of peaceful Buddhists running around. The horror. See You can find over ten books written by this banned author in our Tashi Choling Dharma Foundation library!!

3 TASHI CHOLING MONTHLY PROGRAM 1st Tuesday of every month Practice of Green Tara (led by Madhu Lilley) Green Tara is the embodiment of that aspect of awakened mind which manifests as compassionate activity. This energy of compassionate activity is available to each and every one of us and the practice of this sadhana helps us to bring that forth within our own mindstream. Green Tara is said to be the most accessible of all the deities, a protective energy and presence that is available to anyone who calls upon it. Born from a teardrop shed by Avalokiteshvara, or Chenrezig, she is the active, compassionate and skilful response to the depth of suffering in the world. 2nd Tuesday of every month Lojong, Mind Training (led by Charles Chadwick). Lojong means to tame. It is also known as Thought Transformation. With Lojong training we can achieve Bodhisattva mind. 3rd Tuesday of every month Mahamudra (led by Roger McLennan). Mahamudra great gesture. Mahamudra meditation unifies calm abiding and insight to bring us to an experience of ordinary mind, that state of natural awakeness and luminosity which lies at the heart of all experience, beyond suffering and duality. 4th Tuesday of every month Lam Rim (led by Sue Willey). Lam Rim the words actually mean stages of the path. The Lam Rim condenses all of the teachings of Buddhadharma into a series of graded and logical steps which, if followed, lead one directly to the experience of awakening or Buddhahood. Beginning with a consideration of what it means to be human with the particular gifts and opportunities that this affords us, through issues such as death and impermanence, the nature and cause of suffering, through to a thorough investigation of the interdependence of all phenomena and the resulting awakening of compassion, a good heart, the Lam Rim is a ready guide on the enlightenment path. Chöd Practice Group meets monthly, for initiates who wish to practise together means cutting through, see article below. chod@tashicholing.net or phone VAJRAYOGINI TSOG Tsog practice gives me an intent to do sadhana practice twice a month when I know thousands of other students world wide are doing the same. Since the dates are set by the new moon, I feel the potency of the practice is amplified by synchronising it with others who use a deity practice to inspire them. Having had the golden opportunity to sit long retreats with other students of Zasep Rinpoche, I delight in remembering the sangha practising together and imagine them sitting with me. Please find the tsog dates listed below as calculated by the Australian Moon calendar. Please forgive any errors. Roslyn Alexander Saturday June 28th Saturday July 12th Sunday July 27th Sunday August 10th Monday August 25th Tuesday September 9th Thursday September 25th WORKING BEE TO BRING SHOWER OF BLESSINGS Plans are developing apace for the construction of a new shower facility at Dorje Ling. Towards this purpose, a special working bee will be held from Thursday the 23rd of October (Hobart Show Day) for nine days, ending the following weekend. This is a call out for help and contributions: all hands on deck! Pencil it in, take some time off, and help us build a beautiful new shower block. We will also be moving the kitchen to the purple house. You can come for all or part of the time. Free food and accommodation for any of our mainland sangha who would like to join us! For us local folk, please bring food to share. We will organise a cooking roster, and we will schedule some group meditation during this time as well. NEW CHÖD PRACTICE GROUP Chöd is the essence of Prajnaparamita. It focuses on attaining bodhicitta and realising emptiness. These are the central practices of Buddhism. There are many ways to generate bodhicitta Chöd deals with severing self-cherishing mind and with cherishing others more than oneself. The Tibetan word chöd means cutting. Kyabje Zong Rinpoche, Chöd in the Ganden Tradition. Two years ago, at the conclusion of a retreat at Dorje Ling focusing on the Mahamudra instructions of Tilopa, Zasep Rinpoche offered the Opening the Door to Sky empowerment necessary for the practice of Chöd. This was followed by several days instructions and commentary. Recently a small group has begun meeting each month to better learn the techniques and deepen their experience of this practice. Those who are interested, and have received the necessary empowerment, are welcome to join them on a regular or occasional basis. For more information info@ For more information please tashicholing.net or phone Sue on chod@tashicholing.net or or Guy on phone

4 INTERVIEW WITH ZASEP RINPOCHE The following is the second and final part of an interview with Zasep Tulku Rinpoche conducted by Tony Dix at Dorje Ling on the 16th of February This first part was published in the last edition of the Tashi Choling newsletter. Tony: What advice would you give to older students who have perhaps lost touch with the dharma but are starting to get a little bit interested again and who might have a little bit of resistance because they ve left it for a period of time? Rinpoche: I would say, Come back, guys! Dharma is always good. Especially when you get old, dharma is the ultimate refuge. Don t give up dharma. Dharma really protects us and dharma is a very good friend. When we become a dharma old-fox, it s important to remember that it s good to have dharma friends, to have dharma community around. You need support. Once you are a dharma person you are always a dharma person, even if you give up for a while. The Chinese have a saying, Once you are a monk, you are always a monk. Once you have had dharma in your life, there is always dharma in your mind. So people should come back. Don t feel intimidated if you haven t done the practice for a while, or a long time. Dharma will always welcome you, Buddha will always welcome you: it doesn t matter. Buddha doesn t say, Oh, you re a bad person; don t come back. Buddha always has a huge heart and love. Tony: What about encouraging young people into the dharma. You ve seen some people coming up here now. Would you encourage young people or would you just let them Rinpoche: Yes, I think it s a good thing to encourage. We don t want to be evangelical, going after people and trying to recruit them. That s not our Buddhist tradition and I have no interest in that sort of thing. I don t like it myself. People do what they need to do, what they should do and it s their karma. But at the same time we shouldn t just say, Well, everyone has their karma and if you don t come that s your karma. We don t do that either. We re here to serve and provide the facility for teaching dharma to all ages. Also for young people, many young people these days are lost because of social structures and the way the society is going in the West, with various problems and issues like drugs and so on. Young people really need encouragement for dharma. Dharma is safe; dharma is good for them. So when there are young people who come to dharma it is good if some of the younger people show it to them. Not like us older people, saying, Oh, you guys come and meditate, this and that. They might find that a little bit hard to connect with because there s such a big age gap, like thirty years. They think, Oh, I can t do this. You ve been doing this for thirty years I can t do it. I m just beginner. You need young people and we have young people in our community who have been practicing dharma very energetically, nice people, people like well I don t want to name them right now, some people might not want that but we have a really nice young woman and young man practicing in their twenties. If young people talk to them then there is less of an age gap and they can say, Well, I ve done practice, and explain how the practice works and encourage them. I think that s good. Also for young people there needs to be some social activities. Playing cricket, or something, maybe a little dharma rap, some music or other entertainment like watching some dharma movies. Talk about dharma with a little bit of external, outgoing activities. In Canada we go skiing, snowboarding things like that: kayaking, canoeing. If you have some activities then they feel it s fun, dharma is fun, you know. Not just sitting all the time. Tony: You ve mentioned the world can be a difficult place, where do you see things going? Do you have an optimistic view of the planet now, or pessimistic? Rinpoche: I m not too optimistic. I can t say that, because we know what is happening, the situation in the world: corruption, population problems, politics. These are big problems. So many world leaders today, so many governments, they re not very peaceful or tolerant. They re not honest with the people who voted for them. And there are so many big corporations and problems I don t need to go through this, we all know this. So, therefore I m not too optimistic. But at the same time, I m not really too pessimistic because I think that people have to have some balance in mind. We have to be optimistic, that s the only way to survive. You see, some people have this idea that, Oh, the world is going to collapse soon. The world is going to end within ten years. I don t accept that; I don t agree with that. If you think that way, if everyone starts to think that way, then it s going to collapse and that s not very good. Some people they think, I want a little sanctuary for myself, for my family. That s a little bit selfish too. How do you find a little sanctuary for yourself and your family if you think the world is going to collapse? You don t find a little cave somewhere, a little microclimate Shangri-la that is perfect for yourself. You re not going to find one. I think that one of the biggest problems is that the population is big and resources are running out. Problems aren t just caused by corporations and governments, resources are running out because the population is so big and also because of that we have climate change. But there are also lots of good things happening, good people in the world. Lots of good projects, people who do a lot of good things. And there are also people who are using resources for sustainable recycling and using solar energies that cause less damage to the environment. You look at India and China, they cause a lot of damage to the earth, but they are also developing lots of things like solar energy. They are a lot

5 more conscious about the environment than people in Canada and Australia. So, I think I m more realistic and what I m saying is it s important to be positive. That s all I can say. Tony: Is there anything that you would like to add? Rinpoche: Yes. I would like to say one last thing. I think dharma people in Australia, people in general, should appreciate life and appreciate where we are. You don t know how fortunate you are living in Australia. It s a beautiful country, you have peace and a fair society, a good society and we have such a big country, rich country. People should appreciate this and also dharma people should be really appreciative. Australia is a good place to practice dharma and there are good opportunities. I also want to say one more thing, a personal thing. I d like to thank all the dharma people who are being very kind to my projects: in Tibet building a health clinic and also building a monastery in Mongolia. A lot of people have been very kind and given lots of support. I d like to say thank you to everyone. Tony: Thank you Rinpoche. LETTER FROM ARMIDALE It is remarkable to think that our beloved Teacher, Zasep Tulku Rinpoche has been with us, visiting us and teaching us for over 30 years now with love, commitment, humour and perseverance. It is also remarkable to realise that Rinpoche will be turning 60 in It is a Tibetan Buddhist tradition that when the Lama becomes older he will spend more time in meditation and deity yoga sadhana retreats. Rinpoche has given us the jewel like holy Dharma teachings for years and now there is an opportunity for us, his students, to offer him support for his retreat. To this end a retreat fund to offer financial support to Rinpoche whilst he is in retreat has been set up. We would like you to be part of this retreat support fund as it gives us, his students, an opportunity to make a wonderful offering to our dear Teacher. There is no pressure to contribute; we are just making you aware of the possibility so you can make your own choice. The original idea was to set aside $1 a day with that purpose, but you are welcome to contribute whatever you can and wish to. Of course, you can make your offering to Rinpoche in Special General Meeting: August 7th, 6pm at Tashi Choling A special general meeting of the Tashi Choling Dharma Foundation has been called in order to vote on changes to the constituion, primarily to formalise the position of Zasep Rinpoche as our spiritual director. The proposed changes can be viewed online through a link from our website. For more information info@ tashicholing.net or phone Stuart on or Sue on person in the usual way as well.monthly direct debit payments or a one off payments to: New England Credit Union Ltd BSB number: Membership Number: Account Name: ZTR Retreat Fund If you make a payment please Pedro Sousa at release@ex .com.au with the details and at the end of the year we will give Rinpoche a list of the contributors. If you do not want others to know your name as a contributor then we will honour that. EXTRACT FROM TIME TO CHANGE BY JETSUNMA TENZIN PALMO In the traditional Buddhist teachings on love and kindness, thoughts of may all beings be well and happy are sent out in all directions. In some methods these loving thoughts are sent to the North, the East, the West and the South then to all the intermediate directions and up and down. Or we start with someone we are very fond of and then extend that warm feeling to people to whom we are indifferent, then to the people we don t like and finally to the world at large. But in either case, the meditation starts with may I be well and may I be at peace, because until we have loving kindness and compassion for ourselves, we will never really have genuine loving kindness and compassion for others. We have to understand that we are also a sentient being. When we have love and kindness for all sentient beings, this includes oneself. And as this particular reborn being is the one we have the most responsibility for, we must have loving kindness for ourselves, which means self-acceptance. One has to accept oneself and come to peace with oneself. This is extremely important. From the Buddhist point of view, certain things are going to be happening to us due to seeds which we have already planted in the past. How we respond to them is up to us if we respond to them in a skilful way, things go in one direction and if we respond in an unskilful way, things go in another direction. We mirror back what we are giving out. Therefore, we have a choice and we have freedom. We are not push-button machines. The more we really start to experience the moment and become present and aware in it, the more we start to wake up and stop being zombies, and the more we are able to bring in changes and more skilful responses instead of negative ones. Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo, extract from her web site

6 PILGRIMAGE WITH RINPOCHE Reflections on the many facets of pilgrimage in India with Zasep Rinpoche 2007 Gathering in New Delhi to meet and greet the Indian big city culture, the many facets of this journey began to unfold: Rinpoche as teacher, friend, travelling companion and tour director guiding us. While travelling with Zasep Rinpoche I saw how revered he is both as a teacher and as a member of the Tibetan community. Our time was divided between exploring Buddha dharma teachings and their historical context in the actual sites they were taught by Shakyamuni Buddha. Our schedule altered according to the conditions arising, including the energy level of the group. In Delhi, Rinpoche met with some dear old friends including his mothers sister, and a 90 year-old mentor, the Venerable Jontah Rinpoche who is residing there in the Tibetan refugee village. This community seemed very crowded and we found this elderly Tibetan gentleman amidst his community in a cluster of shelters, shops and tiny laneways running beneath a highway overpass. He offered Zasep Rinpoche two initiations and texts including the Lion Faced Dakini. Later, travelling on the overnight trains we experienced the local transport and were delighted with the offering of hot meals and chai on board, blankets and fresh sheets as well as the chance to get to meet some of Rinpoche s students from other states and countries. I began to feel less a member of minority on my spiritual path, becoming one of many pilgrims of all nationalities, ages and walks of life visiting stupas, circumambulating and repeating mantras and prayers for the sake of happiness for all living beings. Each day Rinpoche gave us a glimpse of his unlimited knowledge, delivering teachings that reached all of our varied personalities and particular aspects of study. It was amazing to think of these ideas being first recorded on leaves and bark; to imagine the deer park full of trees and wild life many thousands of years ago; here we were, still able to walk on the same earth and sit with a dedicated master. Mornings began with stretches, qui gong, yoga, walking to the stupa, and meditations at the site of the great stupas. Breakfast was a choice between spicy Indian foods or specially ordered Western style. While we listened to teachings on the four Noble Truths, at the place where Buddha first taught to his disciples after his enlightenment, amidst the ruins of the monastery and at the alter site we practiced mindfulness breathing to regenerate and replenish body cells and to feel peace; consider all defilements purified and the mind enlightening! OM MANI PADME HUM! One of the highlights for me was receiving teaching on the Heart sutra on the Vultures Peak mountain range where this sutra was first delivered Rinpoche inspired us with his discourse while balancing on a little retaining wall with the empty sky behind. On our climb up the peak, we stopped in tiny caves where disciples retreated in the past, feeling the simplicity and severity of some of the conditions they bore. At this exposed and well-visited altar on Vultures Peak we were able to recommit vows and make personal prayers. Drawing on the power of this holy place through Rinpoche s wise words we were given the opportunity to deepen our meditation on realisations and to taste transcendental wisdom as we meditated. Throughout the teachings dedicated Indian men were arranging our shoes neatly and guarding them for us! Of course there were rupees given in gratitude. OM GATE GATE PARAGATE PARASAM GATE BODHI SVHA. In the crowded city of Varanasi we were encouraged to examine our own practice of compassion. This had been discussed during the prior evening as we shared our different responses to the begging and poverty evident around us. Sharing and discussing common experiences gave us as a sangha a closer understanding of each other and perceived situations as they arose. The early morning activities on the Ganges were a cultural insight into the presence of history continuing on into modern times. Funeral pyres were being prepared and personal hygiene attended to as people dip and pray into this sacred river. Rinpoche added some ashes from beings recently passed over on behalf of friends in Canada while we chanted Tara mantras. At Sarnath we were guided through meditations and teachings of Mahamudra, Vipassana analytical meditations and practiced resting the mind in a natural state whether that be one of insight, fear or anger, recalling the hollow bamboo or empty sky analogy. Our day trips from Sarnath were wonderful adventures: spiritually, culturally, historically and personally. At Sujata s grove, Sujata one of the younger members of our group symbolically offered Rinpoche some milk re-enacting the story told of how Sujata in the texts gave milk to nourish the Buddha before his enlightenment. While we chanted Tara mantras at this sacred site under the tree, pilgrim women adorned in beautiful traditionally dyed clothes from Ladakh were blessing the site with incense. These people spoke their own language but the language of mantra is common so they sat to join us being part of the gathering of disciples sitting around the feet of the teacher as has been done for many thousand years. It was a very moving scene as we recalled the unconditional compassionate act made by Sujata thousands of years prior to nourish Shakyamuni Buddha whose body was nearly starved by practice as an ascetic yogi. Typical of Rinpoche s wish for us to meet the local people, and his encouragement for us to exercise and remain healthy, we took the long way back to town, weaving our way through little villages, native forest and wading through a wide, shallow river. The journey to Mahakala s Cave became an adventure as we

7 walked through a cremation ground, which was an old Chöd site. There was a young Indian man there who theatrically performed the rite of cutting some of the hair of a person who dared to lay before him on a concrete slab rehearsing the ultimate letting go, that of the body after death. Lying there, listening to the group chanting and gazing at the open sky felt quite a privilege the celestial voices led by my teacher, letting go my travel bag entrusted to a friend while I lay on the slab awaiting further release! At the cave site we were inspired to chant the mantra of Mahakala whole heartedly to Rinpoche s drumming after we had sat in the ancient cave-dark and felt the presence of the great protectors. Mahakala, the wrathful emanation of the Bodhisattva of compassion: OM SHRI VAJRA MAHAKALA CHIM CHITRA BEGANA BENAYAKA HUM HUM PHAT. Sharon displayed her rock-climbing skills so we could we add our string of prayer flags to the already colourful rockface. It felt very shamanic and I took the strength of this mantra as a protector during my travels in India. It is hard to describe the rich layers of this pilgrimage and the expansion and understanding that I felt in studying Buddha dharma in this context. The dedication, generosity and tireless offerings of our most venerable holy teacher, Zasep Rinpoche, and the caring for each other exemplified by the sangha made me feel like I was truly living the dharma. SERVICE FOR WHO? What a skilful way of raising funds and furthering the awareness that Dorje Ling is a place we have all contributed to, offering a sanctuary for deepening our practice and resting on sacred land. I offer my immense appreciation to all those who enabled and shared this journey with me, especially Roger and Rinpoche. Please forgive any mistakes as these are just reflections of a beginner on the path. In Peace, Roslyn Alexander Never harvest helplessness. Baba Amte The question I asked myself after being at Anandwan was, who was the service for: the people of this place or myself? Last year I was very fortunate to attend a four-week work and service retreat run by Sangha Seva at Anandwan leprosy colony in Maharashtra state, India. Anandwan, literally meaning the forest of joy, is the largest leprosy colony in India with 5000 people cured of leprosy spread over 3 large properties. Anandwan is the main place in India that offers treatment of leprosy for free. This incredibly inspiring place was set up in 1961 by Baba Amte, a wealthy former Indian lawyer who saw the plight of people with leprosy in India. These people are still the absolute outcasts of society even though these days it is 100% curable. Baba Amte was struck by the suffering and desperation of people with leprosy and gave up his lawyer practice and wealthy family to follow and support them as his spiritual practice. All people who come to live Anandwan are given the 3-month treatment to cure the disease in isolation. Once cured, to continue living in Anandwan they must commit to work. Baba Amte s vision was to give the people of Anandwan back their sense of worth through work and service to the community as a whole. Anandwan is now thriving with huge agricultural grounds, carpentry workshop, metal workshop, weaving mills, carpet weaving, tailoring section, dairy, cobblers, forestry, orchestra, huge kitchens, fish farm, printing press, three hospitals and a blind and deaf school, a science, arts, agricultural and commerce college. Our group of 15 started our time at Anandwan with a week silent retreat in a quite agricultural property surrounded by forest. We then moved to the main centre of Anandwan where most of the residents live and work. After the initial shock of seeing so many people with so many serious disfigurements and open wounds I was struck with how happy most people were! There was so much joy and laughter. Following a tour of all the workshops, hospitals and schools we chose where we wanted to spend the next three weeks giving service. I chose to spend the mornings changing dressings on the wounds of ex-patients before they headed out to work and massaging elderly residents in the afternoons. My first morning of changing dressings I was very repulsed at how open and huge people s wounds were, particularly on the feet and hands, but soon learnt there was no pain because of nerve damage and the wounds would probably never heal. After their wounds were dressed they would head off for a day s work. Massaging the elderly men was a real delight as some men had contracted leprosy at a young age and, consequently, had barely ever been touched by anyone in their life. Deep old muscles like pieces of wood slowly loosened under the skin so dry, cracked and dusty. Every day I was deeply moved by the joy and happiness from these amazing people with so much suffering and hardship. Sangha Seva is a fantastic organization that runs service related retreats in India with leprosy patients, Aids patients in South Africa and helps Palestinians in occupied Palestine, for more information try their website, org. Andy McIntosh