| Part of a series on |
| Tibetan Buddhism |
|---|
 |
Tergar Meditation Community is a Buddhist meditation community led by Tibetan meditation master and writer Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche. [1] [2]
Tergar (tib. གཏེར་སྒར་ gter sgar) means "encampment of the treasure revealer". [3]
The Tergar largely descends from the Tibetan Buddhist Karma Kagyu lineage, and to a lesser extent the Nyingma lineage. [4] [5] "Ter" means treasure in the Tibetan language - meaning the practices and wisdom to obtain our greatest potential, alleviate suffering and attain enlightenment. "Gar" means gathering. "Tergar" then is the place where people assemble to enable transformation. [5]
The Karma Kagyu lineage was passed down through Karmapas, Tai Situ Rinpoches and incarnations of Mingyur Rinpoche. The Nyingma lineage was transmitted through the treasure teachings (terma) of Kagyu and Nyingma masters. [5]
The first school of the Tergar lineage began in the late 1600s by the 1st Mingyur Rinpoche, a wandering yogi, and his two sons who were tulkus. They first gathered in a tent in a camp (gar) and then in a monastery they built, Tergar Rigdzin Kacholing in eastern Tibet near Derge. His sons ran the monastery and the 1st Mingyur Rinpoche traveled and taught the Kagyu termas Pema Benza, Dorje Drolo, and the Union of Wisdom and Method Longevity Practice. These termas have been held and passed down by incarnations of Tai Situ Rinpoche and Karmapa. Tibetan texts have been destroyed by the Chinese government, so that the early Tergar lineage and history has been lost in the process. [5]
The Tergar Rigdzin Kacholing monastery grew in the 18th and 19th centuries to include a nunnery, a small shedra, and 2 retreat centers. Another monastery, Namlong Gompa was established. The 6th Mingyur Rinpoche oversaw the studies of more than 100 monks and 60 nuns at the Tergar monasteries before he left Tibet and went into exile with the 16th Karmapa. The Chinese government looted the monastery buildings and jailed Gase Rinpoche, the reincarnation of the eldest son of the 1st Mingyur Rinpoche, who had remained at Tergar. He was released from jail in 1982 and with Pema Karpo Rinpoche, began rebuilding the monastery, with a retreat center and shrine room. [5]
Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche continued the teachings of the Tergar tradition, including Dzogchen Desum and Chokgyur Lingpa's termas, with masters, lamas and major regents of the Kagyu and Nyingma traditions. His family line was the main holder of the Barom Kagyu lineage and was also linked to the Karma Kagyu lineage. He held the teachings of three great Nyingma masters Jamgön Kongtrul Lodrö Taye, Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo and Terchen Chokgyur Lingpa.
The 7th Mingyur Rinpoche (b. 1975) received Nyingma transmissions through his father Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche and Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche and Kagyu teachings from Tai Situ Rinpoche and Saljey Rinpoche. He also integrated modern ways of presenting Buddhist philosophy and practices of mindfulness, compassion and loving-kindness to people from a wide range of beliefs and backgrounds. [5]
The Tibetan Buddhist community's mission is "to make the ancient practice of meditation accessible to the modern world", [6] [7] leveraging meditation practices that have been used for centuries to "transform suffering into joy and confusion into wisdom." [1] [8]
Programs are offered to Buddhists and non-Buddhists in Tergar practice groups and meditation centers. The foundational study begins with three seminars on the "Joy of Living", which teaches how meditation "can be used to calm the mind, open the heart, and develop insight." Next is the "Path of Liberation" which is "designed to strip away the causes of suffering and uncover the radiant awareness that underlies all experience." [1] [8]
Tergar Meditation Communities and Practice Groups provide seminars, study and meditation sessions. Tergar International manages training programs and development of study and practice materials outside of Asia. [1] The Yongey Foundation was established by Rinpoche in 2003 to international activities, programs and publication of materials. [9]
It has groups in the United States, Canada and Mexico in North America; Brazil in South America; Denmark, France, Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, Russia, Ukraine in Europe; India, Nepal, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Taiwan, Singapore, and Australia. [1]
Since Tergar International was founded in 2009, the Yongey Foundation focuses on the development and maintenance of the Kathmandu Tergar Ösel Ling Monastery in Nepal, Tergar Monastery in Eastern Tibet, and Tergar Monastery in Bodh Gaya in India, [9] [10] where Buddha achieved awakening. [3] It also supports the development of a monastery for Tergar nuns. [9] [10]
Chögyam Trungpa was a Tibetan Buddhist meditation master and holder of both the Kagyu and Nyingma lineages of Tibetan Buddhism.
Nyingma, often referred to as Ngangyur, is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The Nyingma school is founded on the first lineages and translations of Buddhist scriptures from Sanskrit into Tibetan in the eighth century, during the reign of King Trisong Detsen.
Jamgön Kongtrül Lodrö Thayé, also known as Jamgön Kongtrül the Great, was a Tibetan Buddhist scholar, poet, artist, physician, tertön and polymath. He is credited as one of the founders of the Rimé movement (non-sectarian), compiling what is known as the "Five Great Treasuries". He achieved great renown as a scholar and writer, especially among the Nyingma and Kagyu lineages and composed over 90 volumes of Buddhist writing, including his magnum opus, The Treasury of Knowledge.
Jigme Lingpa (1730–1798) was a Tibetan tertön of the Nyingma lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. He was the promulgator of the Longchen Nyingthig, the Heart Essence teachings of Longchenpa, from whom, according to tradition, he received a vision in which the teachings were revealed. The Longchen Nyingthik eventually became the most famous and widely practiced cycle of Dzogchen teachings.
In Tibetan Buddhism, Ngöndro refers to the preliminary, preparatory or foundational practices or disciplines common to all four schools of Tibetan Buddhism and also to Bon. They precede deity yoga.
Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche is the title of a tulku lineage of Tibetan Buddhist lamas. They originate with Jamgon Kongtrul Lodro Thaye, one of the most illustrious lamas of recent history, known for his central role in the rimé or non-sectarian movement in 19th Century Tibet. Jigme Namgyel is the present Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche. He is the second or third incarnation, depending on whether Lodro Thaye is counted.
The 7th Dzogchen Ponlop is an abbot of Dzogchen Monastery, founder and spiritual director of Nalandabodhi, founder of Nītārtha Institute for Higher Buddhist Studies, a leading Tibetan Buddhist scholar, and a meditation master. He is one of the highest tülkus in the Nyingma lineage and an accomplished Karma Kagyu lineage holder.
Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche was a Buddhist master of the Kagyü and Nyingma lineages who lived at Nagi Gompa hermitage in Nepal. Urgyen Rinpoche was considered one of the greatest Dzogchen masters of his time.
Tertön is a term within Tibetan Buddhism meaning a person who is a discoverer of ancient hidden texts or terma. Many tertöns are considered to be incarnations of the twenty five main disciples of Padmasambhava, who foresaw a dark time in Tibet. He and his consort Yeshe Tsogyal hid teachings to be found in the future to benefit beings. A vast system of transmission lineages developed. Scriptures from the Nyingma school were updated by terma discoveries, and terma teachings have guided many Tibetan Bon and Buddhist practitioners.
Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche is a Tibetan teacher and master of the Karma Kagyu and Nyingma lineages of Tibetan Buddhism. He has written five books and oversees the Tergar Meditation Community, an international network of Buddhist meditation centers.
Kyabje Dudjom Jigdral Yeshe Dorje was known as Terchen Drodül Lingpa and as Dudjom Rinpoche. He is considered by many Tibetan Buddhists to be from a line of important Tulku lineage, and a renowned Tertön. Per lineage, he was a direct incarnation of both Padmasambhava and Dudjom Lingpa (1835–1904). He was a Nyingma householder, yogi, and a Vajrayana and Dzogchen master. According to his disciple Khenpo Tsewang Dongyal, he was revered as "His Holiness" and as a "Master of Masters".
Rangjung Dorje (1284–1339) was the third Karmapa and an important figure in the history of Tibetan Buddhism, who helped to spread Buddha-nature teachings in Tibet.
The Third Bardor Tulku Rinpoche' was a Tibetan Buddhist teacher, a holder of the religious lineage of Terchen Barway Dorje. Rinpoche is the founder of a Tibetan Buddhist center, Kunzang Palchen Ling, and the Raktrul Foundation, in Red Hook, New York.
Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche is a Tibetan Buddhist teacher and meditation master. He is the abbot of Ka-Nying Shedrub Ling Monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal. He is the author of several books, founder of meditation centers around the world, and an international teacher.
Tsoknyi Rinpoche or Ngawang Tsoknyi Gyatso is a Tibetan Buddhist teacher and author, and the founder of the Pundarika Foundation. He is the third Tsoknyi Rinpoche, having been recognized by the 16th Karmapa as the reincarnation of Drubwang Tsoknyi Rinpoche. He is a tulku of the Drukpa Kagyü and Nyingma traditions and the holder of the Ratna Lingpa and Tsoknyi lineages.
Tergar Osel Ling Monastery or Tergar Lungrik Osel Targyé Ling Monastery is a Tibetan Buddhist monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal of the Tergar Meditation Community.
Phakchok Rinpoche is a teacher of the Nyingma lineage and chief lineage holder of the Taklung Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. He is Vajra Master of Ka-Nying Shedrup Ling monastery, abbot of several monasteries in Nepal, and assists monasteries and practice centers in Tibet. In addition, he serves as Director of the Chokgyur Lingpa Foundation, a nonprofit organization engaged in a wide range of humanitarian projects.
Tsikey Chokling Rinpoche was a teacher, writer, religious ritual master, and meditation master of the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism.
Urgyen Tsomo (1897–1961) was a prominent Tibetan Buddhist female master who was known as the Great Dakini of Tsurphu. She was the consort of the Khakyab Dorje, 15th Karmapa Lama. She was considered by other masters to be the reincarnation (emanation) of Yeshe Tsogyal, the wife of Padmasambhava of the 8th century, who spread Buddhism in Tibet.
Trungram Gyalwa Rinpoche is the head of the Trungram descent, and one of the highest tulkus of the Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. He has received extensive transmissions of the Nyingma ancestry, and teaches in the spirit of the nonsectarian Rimé movement. He is also the first incarnate lama to earn a Ph.D. in the West, having completed a doctoral program in Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies at Harvard University. Gyalwa has founded organizations throughout Asia and United States which aims to modernize ancient Buddhist teachings.