“May this tradition of the Conqueror, Losang Dragpa, That takes the emptiness explained in the Causal Vehicle (sutra), And the great bliss that is achieved through the Resultant Means (tantra), Conjoined with the essence of the collection of eighty-four thousand teachings flourish." — Extracted from His Holiness the Dalai Lama's Speech to the Second Gelug Conference (Dharamsala, India, December 6, 2000) at: www.dalailama.com.

Je Tsongkhapa (1357–1419) was a famous teacher of Tibetan Buddhism whose activities led to the formation of the Gelug school. He is also known by his ordained name Lobsang Drakpa or simply as Je Rinpoche.
Tsongkhapa heard Buddha's teachings from masters of all Tibetan Buddhist traditions, and received lineages transmitted in the major schools. His main source of inspiration was the Kadampa tradition, the legacy of Atisha.
Based on Tsongkhapa's teaching, the two distinguishing characteristics of the Gelug tradition are the union of sutra and tantra and emphasis on the step-by-step graduated way to enlightenment along the three principal aspects of the path (a genuine wish for liberation, generation of bodhicitta, and insight into emptiness).

In his two main treatises (lam rim chen mo and sngags rim chen mo), Tsongkhapa meticulously sets forth this graduated way and how one establishes oneself in the sutric and tantric paths.
For more information about Je Tsongkhapa, visit: Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive and Alexander Berzin's Archives.
(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Je_Tsongkhapa)

"If you have a sense of caring for others, you will manifest a kind of inner strength in spite of your own difficult situations and problems. With this strength, your problems will seem less significant and bothersome. By going beyond your own problems and taking care of others, you gain inner strength, self-confidence, courage, and a greater sense of calm. This is a clear example of how one's way of thinking can really make a difference." — His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso.

Our spiritual inspiration and guide, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso is the spiritual leader of Tibet and describes himself as a simple Buddhist monk. He was born on 6 July 1935, to a farming family in a small hamlet located in Taktser, Amdo, northeastern Tibet. At the very young age of 2, the child who was named Lhamo Dhondup at that time, was recognized as the reincarnation of the previous 13th Dalai Lama, Thubten Gyatso.

The Dalai Lamas are believed to be manifestations of Avalokiteshvara or Chenrezig (Tibetan), the Bodhisattva of Compassion and the patron saint of Tibet. Bodhisattvas are believed to be enlightened beings who have postponed their own nirvana and chosen to take rebirth in order to serve humanity.
For more about His Holiness, please see biography and other information here: http://www.dalailama.com/biography. (Public Domain picture).

"The way to solve problems in your life is to open your heart to others and think differently." — Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche.

Lama Zopa Rinpoche, the spiritual director of The Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (FPMT), is the reincarnation of the Sherpa Nyingma yogi Kunsang Yeshe, the Lawudo Lama. Rinpoche was born in 1946 in Thami, not far from the cave Lawudo, in the Mount Everest region of Nepal, where his predecessor meditated for the last 20 years of his life. While his predecessor had belonged to the Sakya tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, the Lawudo Lama himself had been a great master of the complete tantric teachings of the Nyingma tradition.

Rinpoche left Thami when he was about 4 years old and was put in a Monastery that was very close to the border of Nepal and Tibet. Rinpoche stayed at this Monastery for several years until he went to Tibet and took getsul ordination in 1958, and continued his studies in Domo Geshe's monastery in Phagri, Tibet.
In 1959, Rinpoche escaped from Tibet and continued his studies in Sera Jhe monastery in Buxa Duar, in the north of India. This is where the Indian Government housed the monks from Sera, Ganden and Drepung Monasteries who wanted to continue their studies, along with monks from the other sects. It was at Buxa Duar that Rinpoche became the disciple of Geshe Rabten Rinpoche and then of Lama Thubten Yeshe. Frida Bedi then invited him to join her school for incarnate lamas in Dalhousie where they were given the chance to learn English for 6 months. Upon the completion returned to Buxa Duar and his studies.

Lama Yeshe and Zopa Rinpoche's contact with Westerners began in 1965 in Darjeeling, when they met Princess Zina Rachevsky from Russia. She became the Lamas' first Western student. In 1969, they founded the Nepal Mahayana Gompa Center at Kopan, above Boudhnath Stupa in Kathmandu, Nepal. At the insistence of Zina Rachevsky the Lamas started to teach courses on Buddhism for Westerners at Kopan.

In 1971, Rinpoche took gelong ordination from His Holiness Ling Rinpoche in Bodh Gaya. By 1975, 12 centers had started. In 1976, the growing worldwide organization was named by Lama Yeshe "The Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition" or FPMT. FPMT is an organization devoted to the transmission of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition and values worldwide through teaching, meditation, and community service.

On April 13, at 9:30 a.m. Nepal time, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, our most precious guru and spiritual director, entered his final meditation.

For more about Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche or FPMT, please visit: fpmt.org and lamayeshe.com. (photo courtesy of fpmt.org)

"[Dharma] study dispels the darkness of ignorance in our minds. Also, the wealth of understanding gained by study can never be stolen by others; it will be with you forever. When you have difficult times, your understanding will help you and allow you to distinguish between bad choices and good ones to take to build a better life for yourself." — Gyumed Khensur Rinpoche Lobsang Jampa, The Easy Path.

Venerable Emeritus Abbot Khensur Rinpoche Lobsang Jampa (known as Geshe Trinley Topgye) was born in 1937 in Nyaktren, a sector of Lhasa, the capital of Tibet. In 1947 at the age of 10, he gained admission to Sera Mey Monastery of the Sera Mahayana Monastic University near Lhasa – one of the three major seats of highest Buddhist studies. In 1952, he received his novice monk vows from the late Minyag Tondues Rinpoche, the 95th Throne Holder of Gelugpa Tradition in Tibetan Buddhism. In 1959, he received the complete Bhikshu vows – the highest level of ordination – from His Eminence, the late Yongzin Ling Rinpoche, the 97th Throne Holder of Gelugpa Tradition and also senior Tutor to His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. Khensur Rinpoche studied in Tibet until 1959 when he fled to India after China invaded and forcefully occupied Tibet.

Rinpoche soon returned to his studies in the exiled Sera monastery.
From 1980 to the present, Khensur Rinpoche has continued to teach at Sera Mey Monastic University. In 1989, he assumed the position of Discipline Master for one year. Then in 1990, he received the advanced degree of Ngagrampa (highest degree in Buddhist Tantra studies) from Gyumed Tantric College.
In 1993, Khensur Rinpoche became Discipline Master of Gyumed. Monastic leaders soon after submitted his name and that of eight other prominent Geshes to the Dalai Lama as candidates for the post of Lama Umdze (Head Lama to lead all rituals) of the Tantric College. On January 7, 1994, the Dalai Lama selected Khensur Rinpoche to serve as the Lama Umdze, and on November 12, 1996, the Dalai Lama appointed him as the honorable Abbot of the Gyumed Tantric College.

During his term as Abbot of Gyumed, Khensur Rinpoche made his first visit to the USA and Canada to conduct various religious teachings and rituals at the request of the Gyumed College administrators and Western students.
Khensur Rinpoche is both a scholar of great knowledge and understanding, and a holder of many traditional teaching lineages. He is highly qualified to teach on all levels of Buddhist practice and to conduct all Buddhist rituals. He teaches at various centers in the US.
For more information about Rinpoche see dnkldharma.org. (source: https://dnkldharma.org/node/103)

"Buddhism asserts that a good, happy life is determined not by anything external but rather by the quality of our minds and hearts in each moment of life. Regardless of what we do or don't do externally, a life spent cultivating wisdom and compassion is a good life." — Dr. Lorne Ladner, Ph.D., The Lost Art of Compassion: Discovering The Practice Of Happiness In The Meeting Of Buddhism And Psychology.

Dr. Ladner is a clinical psychologist in private practice in Centreville, VA (www.lorneladner.com). He provides individual psychotherapy, family therapy, and assessments. Dr. Ladner also provides workshops and trainings on the psychology of positive emotions, the integration of meditation and psychotherapy, and on Buddhist psychology.

He is the author of a number of books and articles including The Lost Art of Compassion: Discovering The Practice Of Happiness In The Meeting Of Buddhism And Psychology (HarperCollins, 2004). He also edited Gyumed Khensur Rinpoche Lobsang Jampa's book The Easy Path: Illuminating The First Panchen Lama's Secret Instructions (Wisdom Publications, 2013) and (also by Gyumed Khensur Rinpoche) A Detailed Commentary on the Practice of the Six Yogas of Naropa (ebook, FPMT, forthcoming in 2024).

Dr. Lorne Ladner, Ph.D., previously served as director of The Guhyasamaja Center for nearly 25 years. At the center, he has also led meditations, retreats, and interfaith events and has taught a range of topics related to Buddhist philosophy, psychology and practice including FPMT’s Discovering Buddhism and Basic Program curricula.

Dr. Ladner began studying Buddhist meditation over 35 years ago. Over the years, he has studied Tibetan Buddhism closely with some of the greatest living Tibetan masters and with numerous leading Western scholars. He was a student of the late Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche for many years, and was also a close student of the late Kyabje Ribur Rinpoche. In recent years, he's been studying closely with Gyumed Khensur Rinpoche Lobsang Jampa.

Dr. Ladner has also taught Buddhist meditation and practice for many years at various meditation centers around the country. He has taught workshops on using meditation in integration with psychotherapy — especially for evoking positive emotions such as compassion — at venues including Omega Institute, Tibet House, The New York Open Center, and the Smithsonian in Washington, DC. He also teaches workshops on these subjects for clinicians.

In addition to his Ph.D. in psychology (from Pacifica Graduate Institute), Dr. Ladner has also earned a B.A. with high honors in Religious Studies (from Wesleyan University) and an M.A. in non-fiction writing (from the University of New Hampshire). Other books by him include Bridges of Compassion: Insights And Interventions In Developmental Disabilities, co-authored with Alex Campbell and published in 1999 by Jason Aronson, Inc., and The Wheel Of Great Compassion: The Practice Of The Prayer Wheel In Tibetan Buddhism, published by Wisdom Publications in 2000. He also produced a video on integrating mindfulness meditation with psychotherapy published in 2006 by the American Psychological Association Press, entitled Mindful Therapy.

Ven. Lobsang Damchoe (damchoe@guhyasamaja.org) is a Buddhist Nun, Physician, and registered FPMT Teacher. Currently, she leads classes, support groups, workshops and provides medical support for The Sibley Senior Association at Sibley Hospital. She completed her Residency as a Chaplain at Halquist, a local Inpatient Hospice. From 2016 to 2020, she worked as a Bereavement Counselor running groups for patients, their families, and staff. Prior to this, she served as a physician providing medical care to the elderly and chronically ill in their homes.

Ven. Damchoe first took her Refuge vows in 1997 and has practiced Dharma since then. She was ordained in 2004 and has been studying at the Guhyasamaja Buddhist Center since 2019.