Ligmincha Europe Magazine # 9 – Summer 2013

LIVING AND STUDYING AT LISHU INSTITUTE
Two students from Mexico are going to live
and study for one year at Lishu Institute.
Recently they moved to India, and here is
their report.
Friday, June 7, 2013.
It was during a Phowa retreat at Chamma Ling
Valle de Bravo, Mexico — where the Stupa for
World Peace was at the time under construction
— where we spoke with Tenzin Wangyal
Rinpoche about our desire to stop living in the
second largest city in the world (Mexico City) in
order to move to a place surrounded by forest so
that we could lead simpler lives and practice the
Bon teachings more consistently.
Rinpoche told us about the ongoing construction
of a place called the Lishu Institute in India, which
was close to Menri Monastery and was designed
to be a place where western practitioners could
go to live, study and practice the Bon teachings in
a more dedicated and in-depth way. We were
instantly drawn to the idea.
Three years later we were ready to go! Two days
after our wedding, which also
served as a good-bye party for
our friends and family in
Mexico, we were on a plane
headed for the other side of
the planet; we were thrilled
and ecstatic!
We arrived in Delhi and were
greeted by our dear friend
Geshe Thupten G. Negi whose
contagious smile warmed our
hearts and spirits after a long
journey across the globe. We
ate lunch at a Tibetan restaurant,
where we discovered
momos! Those delicious
Tibetan dumplings are now one
of our favorite dishes! After a
lovely meal we set out for
Dehradun, and from there we
drove up the three or four
Going beyond
hundred meters through the forest and finally
arrived at Lishu Institute.
Even though we had seen photos, we were genuinely
awe struck when we got out of the car and
stood in front of Lishu's main building! What a
beautiful building it is, indeed! And the surrounding
scenery is breathtaking! The mountains to the
northeast and the valley to the southwest create
a wonderful setting for such a magnificently
designed structure.
We've been at Lishu Institute for seven weeks
now and we couldn't be happier! The environment
is totally perfect for spiritual practice, birds
sing constantly, the air is clean and pure, and the
trees and mountains embrace us and welcome us
to our new home. The sounds of city life are
absent here, and only occasionally do we hear the
sounds of motor engines approaching, mostly a
motorcycle or two when the neighbors return
from their errands.
Geshe Thupten has been so kind, patient, and
helpful with us and has become a good friend of
ours. Our primary focus right now is Hindi and
Tibetan, since we'd like to master these two
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