Venerable Rinpoche gave a long-life initiation of White Tara at Kunchab Jampa Ling Asral. Ven. Rinpoche conducted the preparatory practices for the initiation early that morning. Over two hundred people came to get the initiation and the teachings. Ven. Rinpoche taught on the importance of living a healthy and meaningful life and urged everyone to take good care of their physical and mental wellbeing. He gave a personal blessing to everyone along with long-life pills and blessed nectar.
Ven. Rinpoche’s visit to Gachuurt, a former commune during the Soviet times, is 30 kilometres north east of Ulaanbaatar. Asral has a centre there which supports the local community. The main focus of the Centre is training families in vegetable growing. Asral renovated the local kindergarten, increasing the capacity from 166 places to 220 and provided two primary school gers (Mongolian tents) for herders’ children. The children’s hostel was provided with 60 new beds and bedding and kitchen equipment. The local hospital was refurbished with modern cooking facilities. This year Ven. Rinpoche visited the local hospital and donated vitamin C and D to the most disadvantaged patients of the hospital. He was requested to give a blessing to the hospital staff.
Later Ven. Rinpoche met with the District Governor. He personally thanked the Governor for all their help. The Governor thanked Ven. Rinpoche on behalf of the local people for his humanitarian work in his district over the years.
Ven. Rinpoche visited the gardening project. At present 26 families are supported with seeds and training in gardening provided by Asral. This year saw sufficient precipitation, which in turn had a positive effect on the growth of the crops. The gardeners brought some fresh vegetables from their own gardens and offered them to Ven. Rinpoche. Ven. Rinpcohe distributed clothes and biscuits to children from disadvantaged families in the village.
Ven. Rinpoche met with representatives of many Buddhist NGOs (non-governmental organisations) in Ulaanbaatar. He personally thanked everyone for their support of his humanitarian work and for their work in promoting the Buddha’s teaching and organising important Buddhist festivals and prayer ceremonies. Ven. Rinpoche requested that they continue working together and support each other in the future.
Ven. Rinpoche spent time meeting and listening to children, many of whom are getting sponsorship from Ireland and are in receipt of the Hot Meal Project and other support from Asral. He provided help to those in immediate need of assistance with their education and health. Ven. Rinpoche met also with many of his Dharma students and offered them guidance, prayed for them and gave them blessings.
