World Oneness Center
The word Monlam means Aspiration. Monlam is a grand ceremony during
which auspicious prayers of aspiration is recited by a congregation of the
most noble Maha Sangha representative of that particular tradition of Tibetan
Buddhism. It is the chance to perform prayers with them for the benefit of the
entire world in the very place where the Buddha Shakyamuni attained
Enlightenment, a place where the results of any action are greatly multiplied.
To see photos from past events ...
which auspicious prayers of aspiration is recited by a congregation of the
most noble Maha Sangha representative of that particular tradition of Tibetan
Buddhism. It is the chance to perform prayers with them for the benefit of the
entire world in the very place where the Buddha Shakyamuni attained
Enlightenment, a place where the results of any action are greatly multiplied.
To see photos from past events ...
Special Events in Bodhgaya with H.H. The 17th Karmapa
Kagyu Monlam
H.H.The Gyalwang Karmapa will continue his teaching on "The
Life of Milarepa¨ and will also teach The Fivefold Mahamudra
Practice to foreign students at Tergar Manastery. In addition, Pal
Gyalwang Karmapa will perform the complete nyen-drub-ley-sum
Purification Puja of Buddha Akshobhya for the deceased and
burn their names on paper. On the first day of the Medicine
Buddha Puja, Pal Gyalwang Karmapa will give teachings related
to Medicine Buddha and confer the empowerment. To see the
complete daily schedule..from 2007...
Life of Milarepa¨ and will also teach The Fivefold Mahamudra
Practice to foreign students at Tergar Manastery. In addition, Pal
Gyalwang Karmapa will perform the complete nyen-drub-ley-sum
Purification Puja of Buddha Akshobhya for the deceased and
burn their names on paper. On the first day of the Medicine
Buddha Puja, Pal Gyalwang Karmapa will give teachings related
to Medicine Buddha and confer the empowerment. To see the
complete daily schedule..from 2007...
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the Kagyu Monlam at the Buddhist holy site of Bodhgaya. This is a small milestone in the Kagyu lineage¡¦s
activities for the benefit of sentient beings, but a big step forward for world peace and well-being. So, first of all, I would like to thank all staff members,
participants, and those who have supported and been involved in the Monlam over the last 25 years. Because of the power of your aspirations and
long-standing support and diligence, I sincerely hope that the Kagyu Monlam will not remain static but will flourish until peace and well-being permeate
every corner of the world.
Looking back over the last century, we can see that wars and violence have plagued the world everywhere, causing many kinds of suffering. As a
consequence, the Buddha dharma has diminished in many places. However, at the same time, it has spread, and begun to germinate and take root in
different places. When we consider the trials and tribulations of our times, it becomes all the more evident that the essence of buddhist loving kindness
and pure motivation cannot be shaken by either suffering or happiness. Life devoid of love and compassion is like a chariot without wheels, or an
airplane without engines: neither has any real value, nor can be of true benefit. The purpose of the Kagyu Monlam is to spread the seeds of loving
kindness and pure motivation, to activate their power, and hence bring about genuine peace, love, happiness and well-being in the world.
We can say that the name "Kagyu Monlam¨ came from a gradual development within the tradition. Some five hundred years ago in Tibet, the Seventh
Karmapa initiated Monlam Chenmo every year, in the months commemorating Buddha activities, in order to tighten the Vinaya discipline after it had
become lax. The purpose was to promote a correct sense of joy and appropriate esteem towards the Buddha, the qualities of Buddha's teaching and
towards their own qualities. Many thousands of monks gathered together to participate in the Monlam Chenmo by reciting the text that the Seventh
Karmapa had compiled, the Twenty-Branch Kagyu Monlam Chenmo, and he presided over a ceremony to pray for the removal of obstacles and the
accumulation of merit for all beings. The aspiration was to create a harmonious world free of suffering. From then on, in general, the Monlam continued
without interruption.
In 1983, in Bodhgaya, Kalu Rinpoche organised a one hundred thousand repetition recitation of the Samantabhadra Aspiration Prayer, thus planting the
seed of the Kagyu Monlam in India. Over the past 25 years, it has undergone a series of changes to become the world gathering we know today. Every
year now, practitioners and dharma friends from all over the world gather in Bodhgaya. Regardless of differences in tradition and lineage, they pray with
one-pointed sincerity and devotion, perceiving the suffering and happiness of all sentient beings as if it were their own. Each drop of their merit comes
together to form an ocean, sending a powerful current of well-being into the world.
In the Buddhist year 2548, 2004 C.E., I assumed responsibility for the Kagyu Monlam. Following the example of the dharma activities of the great beings
who have gone before us, I began to restructure the event and to compile a new prayer text, reflecting the splendour of this timeless tradition, making the
Monlam ever more glorious, meeting the needs of today's international Buddhist community as much as possible, and benefitting an even greater
number of people.
It is my sincere, continuous aspiration that the blessings from Lord Buddha and his uninterrupted lineage spread to fill infinite space. May all sentient
beings, while enjoying peace and harmony, enter the perfect celestial palace of enlightenment.
Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje
2007 C.E.
activities for the benefit of sentient beings, but a big step forward for world peace and well-being. So, first of all, I would like to thank all staff members,
participants, and those who have supported and been involved in the Monlam over the last 25 years. Because of the power of your aspirations and
long-standing support and diligence, I sincerely hope that the Kagyu Monlam will not remain static but will flourish until peace and well-being permeate
every corner of the world.
Looking back over the last century, we can see that wars and violence have plagued the world everywhere, causing many kinds of suffering. As a
consequence, the Buddha dharma has diminished in many places. However, at the same time, it has spread, and begun to germinate and take root in
different places. When we consider the trials and tribulations of our times, it becomes all the more evident that the essence of buddhist loving kindness
and pure motivation cannot be shaken by either suffering or happiness. Life devoid of love and compassion is like a chariot without wheels, or an
airplane without engines: neither has any real value, nor can be of true benefit. The purpose of the Kagyu Monlam is to spread the seeds of loving
kindness and pure motivation, to activate their power, and hence bring about genuine peace, love, happiness and well-being in the world.
We can say that the name "Kagyu Monlam¨ came from a gradual development within the tradition. Some five hundred years ago in Tibet, the Seventh
Karmapa initiated Monlam Chenmo every year, in the months commemorating Buddha activities, in order to tighten the Vinaya discipline after it had
become lax. The purpose was to promote a correct sense of joy and appropriate esteem towards the Buddha, the qualities of Buddha's teaching and
towards their own qualities. Many thousands of monks gathered together to participate in the Monlam Chenmo by reciting the text that the Seventh
Karmapa had compiled, the Twenty-Branch Kagyu Monlam Chenmo, and he presided over a ceremony to pray for the removal of obstacles and the
accumulation of merit for all beings. The aspiration was to create a harmonious world free of suffering. From then on, in general, the Monlam continued
without interruption.
In 1983, in Bodhgaya, Kalu Rinpoche organised a one hundred thousand repetition recitation of the Samantabhadra Aspiration Prayer, thus planting the
seed of the Kagyu Monlam in India. Over the past 25 years, it has undergone a series of changes to become the world gathering we know today. Every
year now, practitioners and dharma friends from all over the world gather in Bodhgaya. Regardless of differences in tradition and lineage, they pray with
one-pointed sincerity and devotion, perceiving the suffering and happiness of all sentient beings as if it were their own. Each drop of their merit comes
together to form an ocean, sending a powerful current of well-being into the world.
In the Buddhist year 2548, 2004 C.E., I assumed responsibility for the Kagyu Monlam. Following the example of the dharma activities of the great beings
who have gone before us, I began to restructure the event and to compile a new prayer text, reflecting the splendour of this timeless tradition, making the
Monlam ever more glorious, meeting the needs of today's international Buddhist community as much as possible, and benefitting an even greater
number of people.
It is my sincere, continuous aspiration that the blessings from Lord Buddha and his uninterrupted lineage spread to fill infinite space. May all sentient
beings, while enjoying peace and harmony, enter the perfect celestial palace of enlightenment.
Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje
2007 C.E.
January 4th ~ 11th 2009
A Message from H.H. The Gyalwang Karmapa
for the 25th Monlam
for the 25th Monlam
| The 26th Kagyu Monlam will be held from in Bodh Gaya, India. H.H. The 17th Gyalwang Karmapa will preside over the assembly. Kyabje Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche and Kyabje Gyaltsab Rinpoche along with many other senior lamas and trulkus will attend. |
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