Becoming a Student of the Mangala Shri Bhuti Lineage

We welcome your interest in finding out more about Kongtrul Rinpoche and Mangala Shri Bhuti. Rinpoche has kindly given the process of becoming a student a specific structure. This structure is intended to serve as a support and source of clarity to new and current students alike. Please incorporate the information presented below into your contemplations and please also download the MSB General Information Letter to get a sense of the different ways one can connect to the sangha and study Rinpoche's teachings. Contact us to get in touch with a "Study and Practice Representative," or SPR.

Sangha

A community based on Buddhist principles, a Sangha, is a tradition that dates back to the time of Shakyamuni Buddha. The purpose of sangha is to develop a culture that is in accord with the teachings and serves as a support to one another on the path. Such a culture evolves when we take the teachings to heart and let them permeate and transform our conventional beliefs, attitudes, and activities. Joining a sangha supports the deepening of our path, through study and teaching programs, offering our service, and through working with others. In fact, the path Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche teaches is as much about a life of service to others, as it is formal study and meditation.

One of the main reasons Rinpoche founded Mangala Shri Bhuti was to create such a culture of dharma in the West. Over the last twenty plus years, like a cloth soaked in colored dye, our community has absorbed this dharma culture from the teachings we have received and the practices we have done; through our relationships with the teacher, the lineage and each other; and through involving ourselves in the service and activities which support the organization. Kongtrul Rinpoche puts special emphasis on this approach, because working with others - with all its joys and challenges - is not only a way to gauge our progress on the path, but is an essential part of our growth as practitioners. It is a journey we take together and as Rinpoche often reminds us, puts us in the same boat; a boat aimed at crossing the ocean of samsara.

The process of becoming a student of the Mangala Shri Bhuti sangha has purposely kept our community small; MSB is composed of approximately 300 students world wide. Many live in and around the Boulder area, on the east coast near Pema Osel Do Ngak Choling in Vershire, VT, or in southern Colorado near our retreat center Samten Ling. Students also gather at city centers, or Mangalam Dharma Centers, in the United States, Asia, Europe, and Australia to practice and listen to the LINK teachings together on Sundays.

Becoming A Formal Student

We have defined three categories of students within Mangala Shri Bhuti. Each describes a different level of commitment to Kongtrul Rinpoche, the organization and sangha, and to one's path. These definitions are intended to serve as a support for new students to make an informed choice, and for current students to remain clear about their paths.

Category One

Students who see Kongtrul Rinpoche as their root guru, or primary teacher, and wish to devote their lives to the study and practice of the Longchen Nyingtik path, as well as to service and support of the Mangala Shri Bhuti, make up the first category. These students participate in the Sangha Ceremony and formally enter the sangha of MSB.

Category Two

Those practitioners who have studied seriously with another teacher and now wish to study in-depth with Kongtrul Rinpoche, while maintaining their connection with their previous teacher and community, make up the second category. Their level of commitment is the same as the first and they also participate in the Sangha Ceremony and formally enter the sangha of MSB.

Category Three

Those who wish to receive any of the public teachings offered by Rinpoche as part of the Mangala Shri Bhuti Buddhist Studies Program, and while participating fully or partially in these programs, they do not feel inclined to make a formal commitment to Rinpoche and MSB, form the third category. These students do not participate in the Sangha Ceremony.

Rinpoche offers us these three clear options for all levels of interest, inspiration and connection. This allows us to join in with confidence at our own personal level. Furthermore, one may also choose to move from one category to another at any time. All these options are open and welcome in MSB.

If you are curious about becoming a student of Kongtrul Rinpoche, or want to learn more, we invite you to attend one of his programs at our centers in Colorado or Vermont, and get to know the sangha as well. If you live in one of the cities or countries near a Mangalam Dharma Center, we can put you in touch with that group. Rinpoche also travels extensively throughout the year offering teaching programs hosted by other organizations and centers. You can find out more information about Rinpoche's yearly schedule here: Teaching Schedule.

Getting to Know MSB

If you feel an inspiration to pursue your path within Mangala Shri Bhuti, Rinpoche has asked that you spend about a year as a "prospective student", receiving teachings, mingling with the sangha, studying and practicing, and extending oneself through service. As this is a big step for the student and teacher alike, Rinpoche encourages us not to rush into this decision, but to take time and honestly examine if it is a good fit. After all, as the saying goes: until enlightenment the student and teacher are inseparable like a wick and its flame.

You can receive basic meditation instruction in the Four Immeasurables practice at one of our centers or in one at one of the city centers. Each of our communities now has a number of "Study and Practice Representatives" or SPRs, whose role is to disseminate the Four Immeasurables teachings and share their experience of these with newer students, as well as their understanding of the culture of Mangala Shri Bhuti. After a year, you can write a request letter to Rinpoche's secretary, Rebecca Zepp, in order to proceed further.