Tag Archives: Jang Gonchoe

Report on the 2014 Jang Gonchoe Annual Inter-Nunnery Debate

2013 Milestone: Geshema Exams for the Tibetan Nuns

May 2013 marked the beginning of the first ever Geshema examinations. After years of rigorous study, 27 nuns from 5 nunneries – 6 from Jangchub Choeling, 7 from Jamyang Choeling, 2 from Geden Choeling, 2 from Khacho Gakyiling (Kopan) and 10 from Dolma Ling Nunnery and Institute – gathered at Jamyang Choeling near Dharamsala, India, to complete the first round of a four-year examination process.

The nuns were tested on a variety of areas of study, including the Perfection of Wisdom, the Middle Way, and other subjects such as Tibetan grammar and science through both written examination and demonstration of their debating skills.

In July, just in time for the celebrations of His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s birthday, the examination results for the first round of examinations were released with the very good news that 25 of the 27 candidates successfully passed the first round. If these nuns can continue to successfully demonstrate their knowledge over the next three years, they will be awarded the prestigious Geshema degree.

The Geshema degree will be the highest degree in Buddhist philosophy for nuns. A basic requirement for the nuns to take the exams is to have completed the full 17-year course of study with average marks of 75% or higher.

The opportunity to take the examinations to earn this degree has been made available especially by the continuous support of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the dedication of the nuns, and the Department of Religion and Culture of the Kasur Rinchen Khando la meeting with the nuns Central Tibetan Administration. The Tibetan Nuns Project and its supporters have also played a significant role in making this landmark achievement possible, working over the past 25 years to increase the educational level of the nuns.

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Rinchen Khando Choegyal, the founder of the Tibetan Nuns Project, addresses the nuns at the Geshema exams.

The higher-level educational opportunities that nuns have today were not always available, creating a gap between the education of monks and nuns. The Tibetan Nuns Project has worked to close this gap and prepare the nuns to demonstrate their skills and learning. The debating practice that nuns undertake daily, as well as at the annual Jang Gönchoe inter-nunnery debate, have been highly beneficial to the nuns, expanding their understanding of the Buddhist philosophical texts and allowing them to develop the debating skills that are tested during the Geshema exams.

Congratulations to all the nuns who have successfully completed the first round of exams!

Established in 1987, the Tibetan Nuns Project provides education and support to more than 700 nuns in northern India.

A Message from the Directors of the Tibetan Nuns Project

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Thank you for being a supporter of the Tibetan Nuns Project.

You are part of a community of compassionate people who care deeply about providing equal access to education for ordained Buddhist women, about the Dharma, and about preserving Tibet’s unique culture.

We wanted to share with you some of our achievements this year that you’ve helped make possible:

23 nuns reached an historic milestone when they sat the first part of the Geshema exam in May, like a PhD in Tibetan Buddhism;
8 retreat huts at Dolma Ling Nunnery have been built and furnished. Now, for the first time, the nuns of Dolma Ling can go on retreat;
Over 400 nuns from 8 nunneries in India and Nepal have participated in the month-long Jang Gonchoe debate session in October, a special step in their learning;
Over 700 nuns living in exile have been provided with food, shelter, education and health care.

We still need your help urgently.

Within Tibet the situation is truly dire. There is no real freedom for the nuns there to practice their religion. They, like their sisters in India, wish nothing more than to live, study, practice, and teach in accordance with their spiritual beliefs. With your help we can ensure the survival of Tibet’s religion and culture and we can offer refuge to those who have escaped and help heal their trauma.

Inflation and rising food prices in India are stressing all of the nunneries. With hundreds of mouths to feed each day, you can imagine the effect of skyrocketing food and fuel prices. Sponsorship dollars were only meeting about 2/3rd of the daily needs of the nuns so we did a big sponsorship push this summer. We are incredibly grateful to everyone who signed up as a sponsor, who renewed a past sponsorship, or who generously agreed to increase their sponsorship contribution.

HERE ARE 7 WAYS YOU CAN HELP THE NUNS:

1. SPONSOR A NUN
For $1 a day you can sponsor a nun and help provide her with food, shelter, education and health care. 100% of the funds go directly to India and you will receive updates about the impact of your gifts.

2. MAKE A SINGLE DONATION
We have a number of current projects where you can direct your gifts or you can make an undesignated gift and we will direct the funds where they are needed most.

3. LEAVE A LEGACY OF COMPASSION
By including a gift in your will to the Tibetan Nuns Project, you will be leaving a legacy of compassion that will have a ripple effect for generations to come.

4. GIVE A GIFT IN HONOR OF SOMEONE
Celebrate a loved one this holiday season, thank a spiritual teacher, or honor the memory of someone with a gift. When you make a tribute gift, we can send a beautiful card to the person being honored.

5. BUY TNP PRODUCTS
We always have a range of products available through our online shop or by calling the office. Our products include the 2014 Calendar, malas, prayer flags, TNP sweatshirts, and much more. Many of the products are made by the nuns to generate income for the nunneries.

6. DEDICATE PRAYERS
Through our online shop you can request that the nuns say prayers or perform special pujas for you or for someone dear to you who may need spiritual help.

7. DO YOUR OWN THING!
Explore your own creative idea for helping the nuns. Every little bit helps. Whether it’s hosting a house party using our kit or coming up with your own idea, like New York artist Miya Ando who created a series of glowing “Prayer Flag” paintings and auctioned them off raising over $4,000 to help with the nuns Media Center and Café at Dolma Ling.

We’re going to give the last word to one of our supporters who wrote to tell us why the Tibetan Nuns Project was important to her:

“Each aspect you are addressing is important not just to these women, but to women, refugees, Buddhists and non-Buddhist religious women EVERYWHERE. This is a model for the future for any group of displaced, religiously persecuted, and in-need-of-support-to-sustain-themselves group. I applaud the efforts of your organization very highly.”
Linda Anne, Idyllwild CA

With our deepest thanks for your compassion and generosity,

Rinchen Khando Choegyal, Director
Elizabeth Napper, Co-Director

208 Tibetan Buddhist Nuns Gather For Debate

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On October 4th, 208 Tibetan Buddhist nuns from 8 nunneries in India and Nepal gathered at Dolma Ling Nunnery and Institute near Dharamsala, India for the start of the month-long Jang Gonchoe debate session.

The nuns have just sent the following photographs showing the start of the event.

The nuns have come from the following nunneries:

Khachoe Gakyi Ling Nunnery in Nepal
Thukje Choling Nunnery in Nepal
Nangchoe Teney Nunnery in Kinnaur, northern India
Dhongyue Gatseling in Tashi Jong, India
Jamyang Choeling Nunnery in Dharamsala, India
Jangchub Choeling Nunnery in Mundgod, south India
Geden Choeling Nunnery in McLeod Ganj, Dharamsala, India and
Dolma Ling Nunnery and Institute, near Dharamsala, which is the host nunnery for this year’s annual Jang Gonchoe debate session.

This brings the number of nuns at Dolma Ling Nunnery to over 450 for this very special month-long event.

The chief guest for the Jang Gonchoe is Mr. Pema Chonjor, Kalon (Minister) of the Department of Religion for the Tibetan Government.

Monastic debate is of critical importance in traditional Tibetan Buddhist learning. Through debate, the nuns test and consolidate their classroom learning with the motivation of ending suffering for all sentient beings.

The Jang Gonchoe debate session provides a tremendous opportunity for the nuns to practice this ancient form of learning and for many, it an essential component of working towards their Geshema degree, equivalent to a PhD in Tibetan Buddhism.

As you can see from the photos, the debate courtyard at Dolma Ling nunnery is a wonderful space where the nuns can debate year-round, regardless of the weather and the season. The photos clearly show the new metal roof that will protect the nuns from the hot Indian sun, the torrential monsoon rains and the other extreme weather in the region.

The Tibetan Nuns Project is extremely grateful to all our supporters who have helped make this event possible through the funding of scholarships to enable nuns to attend, the funding of the creation of the debate courtyard space and also the funders for the debate courtyard roof.

The former soft-cover roof for the courtyard was destroyed in extreme weather. In order to have a new roof in place in time for the start of this event, the Tibetan Nuns Project took out a loan and rushed to create a permanent metal roof for the courtyard.

Tibetan Buddhist nuns at Dolma Ling working to build the new roof for the debate courtyard. Tibetan Nuns Project

As with all the construction projects at Dolma Ling Nunnery, such as the retreat huts and the roof of the debate courtyard, the nuns themselves work tirelessly. This is one of many photos showing the nuns working to get the new permanent roof ready for the start of the Jang Gonchoe debate session on October 4th.

We are still seeking support for both scholarships and the roof fund.

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A Tibetan Buddhist nun helps build roof for debate courtyard at Dolma Ling Nunnery Tibetan Nuns Project

A Tibetan Buddhist nun helps build roof for debate courtyard at Dolma Ling Nunnery. To complete the project in time for the annual debate event, the Tibetan Nuns Project had to take a loan. We are seeking donations to help with our roof fund.

Background:
The Tibetan Nuns Project was established over 2 decades ago to support a tremendous influx of nuns escaping from Tibet in search of religious and educational freedom. Ranging in age from early teens to mid-80s, they come from all parts of Tibet and from many different backgrounds. Many nuns suffered severely from their long, arduous and often dangerous escape to India. In most cases, the nuns have arrived without money or possessions to a community already struggling to support itself. These women wish nothing more than to live, study, practice, and teach in accordance with their spiritual beliefs.

The debating courtyard needs a roof