Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Vietnam
This is the Vietnam production team (back row) Tú Oanh; Liên; Linh; Hang; Thao; (front row) Thúy; Hùng; Geshe Michael; Hai'; Huyen.
(Please note some accents are missing because they didn't show up in the font)
They managed some kind of amazing advanced publicity.
Monday, December 21, 2009
More media coverage and photos from the tour
Click here for Will Duncan's excellent video of the Hong Kong experience.
Click here for links to audio recordings of teachings, updated as we go.
Ramesh Iyer posted a lot of photos of the Singapore events on Facebook. Click here and here for the links.
Click here for a great article by Vicky Wong in "Holistic Asia" about the tour in Hong Kong.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Some of our Singapore crew
Click her to see the Diamond Wisdom Way website
Ramesh Ramachandran Iyer
Yat Peng, Jaki, and Tara
Jay Khialani
Tara leading meditation
Alvin Lee, Tzu Wong, and Yen Yu Chen
Alvin Lee and Yap Tee Peng
Shirley
Ramesh Ramachandran Iyer
Yat Peng, Jaki, and Tara
Jay Khialani
Tara leading meditation
Alvin Lee, Tzu Wong, and Yen Yu Chen
Alvin Lee and Yap Tee Peng
Shirley
Monday, December 14, 2009
Tour notes from Diamond Mountain teachers
"In Taipei, Elisha and I sat down with the retreatants, and we asked questions and were asked questions. We listened and connected to people while they expressed their problems in life and business. We tried our best to figure out the cause together, and make changes to eliminate the problems. People left with with a short list of dos, changes in behavior to improve their lives. It was really amazing to see..."
"For me, the highlight has been debating with GM on stage during the public talks; i love the photo Jamie has of GM in the air getting ready to clap. Priceless. :-) Also, i thought of one story... i was answering one woman's question at dinner during the retreat and after i gave her some advice, she said, "after I heard your answer I knew in my heart that it was true." I thought that was really beautiful. :-)"
"Traveling in Asia is, as usual, an exhilarating and wondrous experience. It is, however, not without its hazards. Should you ever find yourself at a table full of exuberant and open hearted Asian people, be very careful about what you say. Should you even accidentally mention that you like something, such as mochi, you will soon find yourself inundated in whatever it is you happen to like. Be especially careful of claiming to like things you aren't really all that interested in, as your refusal to publicly partake in the mountain of gifts you have now found yourself underneath, will not be taken lightly."
"The really cool thing here is that instead of the old format where the presenters just sit on stage and talk, Geshe la has completely turned it around. He started right off insisting on calling us DM Teachers, and putting all of us in the program. The new public talk consists of short segments with him talking, interspersed with DM Teachers debating about the pen, leading tonglen meditations, and answering questions. So the first day we were in Taiwan, we all had to perform in front of an audience of 1200 people, with only about 10 minutes advance notice. And what that does is that before you can even have time to get nervous, you've already done it, and after that, you can look back and say, 'Well, I was onstage in front of 1200 people, and it wasn't bad at all.' So that empowers all of us DM Teachers forever after this as well not to be afraid to get up and present what we already know so well.
"And since we're being treated as teachers, we're thinking like teachers, and acting like teachers. Some of us had many students before, but mostly we've been students, some of us for many years. We see each other every day and think of each other as peers, and so we have been missing the extraordinary potential that all of us have developed. We really are highly trained and uniquely qualified to do this work, and suddenly we're starting to recognize what we have to offer the world. And not only that, but we're seeing an amazing response, that people are recognizing the value of what we have to offer and clamoring for more."
Friday, December 4, 2009
Retreat at Great Roots Forestry Spa Resort, Taiwan
This is a beautiful place, with gushing hot springs and steep forested slopes, a perfect venue for a weekend retreat. 150 people have gathered here for a cram course in how to practice, and we're going to try to establish them in a daily practice of meditation, yoga, and ethical conduct. In the evenings, Geshe Michael is teaching Heart Sutra. It's a really packed schedule -- no time to sit in the spa.
Scott demonstrating postures for Jessica's yoga class.
Yoga class
Here is a link to Geshe la's explanation of the mantra Gate Gate Paragate Parasamgate Bodhi Soha, from the first talk.
The students wanted names, so Geshe la had Ven Nyingpo write them down as he thought of them.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
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