Huy Schoten Brussels
Support our Lama Funds
Our roots
Kagyu Yeunten Gyamtso Ling (Ocean of Qualities) is the name given by the late Kyabdje Kalu Rinpoche when creating our center in Huy in 1983. It became the umbrella name for the three institutions that have developed throughout our history, in Schoten (Antwerp 1976), in Huy 1983 and in Brussels 2001.
Without interruption, these centers were run and supported by Lama’s trained by Kalu Rinpoche (deceased in 1989) in his monastery at Sonada near Darjeeling: until 1990 by Lama Ogyen, until 2013 by Lama Karta in collaboration with Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima, to date by these last two Lamas. The growth of our sangha is due to the presence of knowledgeable and loving teachers who are constantly at the service of this precious heritage.
The status of our Lamas has evolved over the years. Lama Ogyen fl ed Tibet to India at the age of 20 and obtained a residence permit in Belgium based on his Tibetan refugee passport. Lama Karta was able to come to Belgium via France and received the status of a Buddhist teacher. In 1997 he was granted a work permit and a salary in this capacity. He shared this minimum allowance with the two Lama’s who assisted him as teachers and spiritual guides of our three centers. From 2013, Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima were also o cially granted employee status. In the meantime, legislation in Belgium had evolved to such an extent that our teachers had to be o cially employed in order to keep their residence permit and thus secure their future.
The Belgian government does not provide any compensation for our teachers as yet, as Buddhism is not recognized to date, unlike teachers of other religious institutions or philosophies who are paid directly by the federal government.
The present
Two Lamas to supervise three centers is quite a task. Our Lamas can only be in one place at a time. This weighs on their many activities: providing expert teaching, responding to the requests of students and participants, taking care of the daily rituals, leading ceremonies on special occasions and so much more. In addition, our precious Lamas are not getting any younger.
Meanwhile, a young generation of teachers is growing up in the Sonada Monastery, still the precious cradle of the late Kalu Rinpoche’s transmission. Our close involvement in the fl ourishing of our mother monastery gives us the opportunity to expand our teachings and ensure the succession with authentically trained Lamas, thus ensuring our future. This is our aim and that of our Lamas.
The revenues from our Dharma teachings and retreats mainly cover the various organizational costs for the operation of our activities and the investments for the maintenance of the temples and stupas, the castle, the various buildings and the park. Unfortunately, however, we fi nd that our Institute does not generate enough income to ensure the remuneration of our Lamas with peace of mind, as well as to meet the need of succession and to train a younger generation of Lamas in our centers.
If we fail to secure su cient funding to ensure our spiritual guidance, our centers risk missing the invaluable presence of future generations of young Lamas.
All the Buddhist lineages and monasteries that have survived for centuries are those who have successfully built adequate funding for their spiritual and material needs.
This commitment is di cult every year.
Taking inspiration from an age-old tradition of dana
From the earliest stages of Buddhism, This exchange in which the practitioners the dana model has developed. acquire merit is known as dana This model is so fundamental (Pali: generosity). to the spiritual transmission that it can be seen as the classical Buddhist Buddhists say, “No Buddhism without relationship between the Sangha teachers. No Buddhism without dana of teachers and practitioners. The driving or generosity.” force of this model is merit (Tibetan: seunam). Regular donations are the fi nancial lifeline of any Buddhist school. Merit works in a way that is natural and direct, even if its operation is often hidden.
AN OVERVIEW OF THE ESTIMATED INCOME AND EXPENDITURE OF YEUNTEN LING IN 2020 Figures in 2020 signifi cantly a ected by impact of covid-19 sanitary crisis
15% 60,000 € 2% SHOP 8,000 € VARIOUS INCOME
6% 25,000 € MEMBER CONTRIBUTIONS
72% 4% 280,000 € REVENUE 17,000 € TEACHINGS GIFTS AND RETREATS
3% 12,000 € INVESTMENT RESERVE 54% 210,000 € PURCHASES 7% AND GENERAL 26,000 € EXPENSES CAPITAL REPAYMENT EXPENDITURES AND 6% INVESTMENTS 25,000 € INTEREST AND TAXES 4% 15,000 € 26% VARIOUS 102,000 € COSTS AND REMUNERATION CONTRIBUTIONS AND SOCIAL CHARGES (4 pers.)
Why a Lama Fund?
As already mentioned, the revenues of our center are insu cient to ensure the continuity of our teaching in the future. It is our duty to secure the succession of our Lamas. That is why a young generation of teachers is currently being trained in our mother monastery in Sonada, India. It is the intention of Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima to regularly invite some of these young Lama’s to Yeunten Ling and thus continue their practical training in Belgium.
These young teachers will also be o cially employed by us to make it possible for them to obtain an o cial residence permit in Belgium.
All the e orts of our centers are aimed at expanding and anchoring the potential of our teachings. Lately, we are increasingly being asked to also sporadically address the more philosophical approach to Buddhism in our programs. While we will continue to focus on the practical approach to Buddhism, Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima have expressed the wish to gradually and occasionally incorporate also the study element into our future activities. This will be done mainly with the help of highly qualifi ed external teachers. Consequently, we hope to meet our goal of teaching Buddhist wisdom to the highest standards and for the widest possible audience.
For this we need your fi nancial support! Your fi nancial contributions will be used exclusively to ensure the continuity and development of our teaching.
Support us by making a regular donation stating “Lama Fund” on the following account number:
IBAN: BE63 2200 4930 2308 - BIC GEBA BE BB
By clicking on the link below you will be directed to our webpage with the account number and recommended communication. The tax certifi cate will be sent at the end of February 2021.
Support us
Important! From 40 € in donations per year you are entitled to a tax deduction of 60% in 2020!
Thanks to your donation, small or large, you are helping to perpetuate the late Kalu Rinpoche’s lineage.
We hope to count on your support and thank you very much for your generosity and for helping us continue to support the Dharma and its deep wisdom in these di cult times. Huy Schoten Brussels
Support our Lama Funds
Our roots
Kagyu Yeunten Gyamtso Ling (Ocean of Qualities) is the name given by the late Kyabdje Kalu Rinpoche when creating our center in Huy in 1983. It became the umbrella name for the three institutions that have developed throughout our history, in Schoten (Antwerp 1976), in Huy 1983 and in Brussels 2001.
Without interruption, these centers were run and supported by Lama’s trained by Kalu Rinpoche (deceased in 1989) in his monastery at Sonada near Darjeeling: until 1990 by Lama Ogyen, until 2013 by Lama Karta in collaboration with Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima, to date by these last two Lamas. The growth of our sangha is due to the presence of knowledgeable and loving teachers who are constantly at the service of this precious heritage.
The status of our Lamas has evolved over the years. Lama Ogyen fl ed Tibet to India at the age of 20 and obtained a residence permit in Belgium based on his Tibetan refugee passport. Lama Karta was able to come to Belgium via France and received the status of a Buddhist teacher. In 1997 he was granted a work permit and a salary in this capacity. He shared this minimum allowance with the two Lama’s who assisted him as teachers and spiritual guides of our three centers. From 2013, Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima were also o cially granted employee status. In the meantime, legislation in Belgium had evolved to such an extent that our teachers had to be o cially employed in order to keep their residence permit and thus secure their future.
The Belgian government does not provide any compensation for our teachers as yet, as Buddhism is not recognized to date, unlike teachers of other religious institutions or philosophies who are paid directly by the federal government.
The present
Two Lamas to supervise three centers is quite a task. Our Lamas can only be in one place at a time. This weighs on their many activities: providing expert teaching, responding to the requests of students and participants, taking care of the daily rituals, leading ceremonies on special occasions and so much more. In addition, our precious Lamas are not getting any younger.
Meanwhile, a young generation of teachers is growing up in the Sonada Monastery, still the precious cradle of the late Kalu Rinpoche’s transmission. Our close involvement in the fl ourishing of our mother monastery gives us the opportunity to expand our teachings and ensure the succession with authentically trained Lamas, thus ensuring our future. This is our aim and that of our Lamas.
The revenues from our Dharma teachings and retreats mainly cover the various organizational costs for the operation of our activities and the investments for the maintenance of the temples and stupas, the castle, the various buildings and the park. Unfortunately, however, we fi nd that our Institute does not generate enough income to ensure the remuneration of our Lamas with peace of mind, as well as to meet the need of succession and to train a younger generation of Lamas in our centers.
If we fail to secure su cient funding to ensure our spiritual guidance, our centers risk missing the invaluable presence of future generations of young Lamas.
All the Buddhist lineages and monasteries that have survived for centuries are those who have successfully built adequate funding for their spiritual and material needs.
This commitment is di cult every year.
Taking inspiration from an age-old tradition of dana
From the earliest stages of Buddhism, This exchange in which the practitioners the dana model has developed. acquire merit is known as dana This model is so fundamental (Pali: generosity). to the spiritual transmission that it can be seen as the classical Buddhist Buddhists say, “No Buddhism without relationship between the Sangha teachers. No Buddhism without dana of teachers and practitioners. The driving or generosity.” force of this model is merit (Tibetan: seunam). Regular donations are the fi nancial lifeline of any Buddhist school. Merit works in a way that is natural and direct, even if its operation is often hidden.
AN OVERVIEW OF THE ESTIMATED INCOME AND EXPENDITURE OF YEUNTEN LING IN 2020 Figures in 2020 signifi cantly a ected by impact of covid-19 sanitary crisis
15% 60,000 € 2% SHOP 8,000 € VARIOUS INCOME
6% 25,000 € MEMBER CONTRIBUTIONS
72% 4% 280,000 € REVENUE 17,000 € TEACHINGS GIFTS AND RETREATS
3% 12,000 € INVESTMENT RESERVE 54% 210,000 € PURCHASES 7% AND GENERAL 26,000 € EXPENSES CAPITAL REPAYMENT EXPENDITURES AND 6% INVESTMENTS 25,000 € INTEREST AND TAXES 4% 15,000 € 26% VARIOUS 102,000 € COSTS AND REMUNERATION CONTRIBUTIONS AND SOCIAL CHARGES (4 pers.)
Why a Lama Fund?
As already mentioned, the revenues of our center are insu cient to ensure the continuity of our teaching in the future. It is our duty to secure the succession of our Lamas. That is why a young generation of teachers is currently being trained in our mother monastery in Sonada, India. It is the intention of Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima to regularly invite some of these young Lama’s to Yeunten Ling and thus continue their practical training in Belgium.
These young teachers will also be o cially employed by us to make it possible for them to obtain an o cial residence permit in Belgium.
All the e orts of our centers are aimed at expanding and anchoring the potential of our teachings. Lately, we are increasingly being asked to also sporadically address the more philosophical approach to Buddhism in our programs. While we will continue to focus on the practical approach to Buddhism, Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima have expressed the wish to gradually and occasionally incorporate also the study element into our future activities. This will be done mainly with the help of highly qualifi ed external teachers. Consequently, we hope to meet our goal of teaching Buddhist wisdom to the highest standards and for the widest possible audience.
For this we need your fi nancial support! Your fi nancial contributions will be used exclusively to ensure the continuity and development of our teaching.
Support us by making a regular donation stating “Lama Fund” on the following account number:
IBAN: BE63 2200 4930 2308 - BIC GEBA BE BB
By clicking on the link below you will be directed to our webpage with the account number and recommended communication. The tax certifi cate will be sent at the end of February 2021.
Support us
Important! From 40 € in donations per year you are entitled to a tax deduction of 60% in 2020!
Thanks to your donation, small or large, you are helping to perpetuate the late Kalu Rinpoche’s lineage.
We hope to count on your support and thank you very much for your generosity and for helping us continue to support the Dharma and its deep wisdom in these di cult times. Huy Schoten Brussels
Support our Lama Funds
Our roots
Kagyu Yeunten Gyamtso Ling (Ocean of Qualities) is the name given by the late Kyabdje Kalu Rinpoche when creating our center in Huy in 1983. It became the umbrella name for the three institutions that have developed throughout our history, in Schoten (Antwerp 1976), in Huy 1983 and in Brussels 2001.
Without interruption, these centers were run and supported by Lama’s trained by Kalu Rinpoche (deceased in 1989) in his monastery at Sonada near Darjeeling: until 1990 by Lama Ogyen, until 2013 by Lama Karta in collaboration with Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima, to date by these last two Lamas. The growth of our sangha is due to the presence of knowledgeable and loving teachers who are constantly at the service of this precious heritage.
The status of our Lamas has evolved over the years. Lama Ogyen fl ed Tibet to India at the age of 20 and obtained a residence permit in Belgium based on his Tibetan refugee passport. Lama Karta was able to come to Belgium via France and received the status of a Buddhist teacher. In 1997 he was granted a work permit and a salary in this capacity. He shared this minimum allowance with the two Lama’s who assisted him as teachers and spiritual guides of our three centers. From 2013, Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima were also o cially granted employee status. In the meantime, legislation in Belgium had evolved to such an extent that our teachers had to be o cially employed in order to keep their residence permit and thus secure their future.
The Belgian government does not provide any compensation for our teachers as yet, as Buddhism is not recognized to date, unlike teachers of other religious institutions or philosophies who are paid directly by the federal government.
The present
Two Lamas to supervise three centers is quite a task. Our Lamas can only be in one place at a time. This weighs on their many activities: providing expert teaching, responding to the requests of students and participants, taking care of the daily rituals, leading ceremonies on special occasions and so much more. In addition, our precious Lamas are not getting any younger.
Meanwhile, a young generation of teachers is growing up in the Sonada Monastery, still the precious cradle of the late Kalu Rinpoche’s transmission. Our close involvement in the fl ourishing of our mother monastery gives us the opportunity to expand our teachings and ensure the succession with authentically trained Lamas, thus ensuring our future. This is our aim and that of our Lamas.
The revenues from our Dharma teachings and retreats mainly cover the various organizational costs for the operation of our activities and the investments for the maintenance of the temples and stupas, the castle, the various buildings and the park. Unfortunately, however, we fi nd that our Institute does not generate enough income to ensure the remuneration of our Lamas with peace of mind, as well as to meet the need of succession and to train a younger generation of Lamas in our centers.
If we fail to secure su cient funding to ensure our spiritual guidance, our centers risk missing the invaluable presence of future generations of young Lamas.
All the Buddhist lineages and monasteries that have survived for centuries are those who have successfully built adequate funding for their spiritual and material needs.
This commitment is di cult every year.
Taking inspiration from an age-old tradition of dana
From the earliest stages of Buddhism, This exchange in which the practitioners the dana model has developed. acquire merit is known as dana This model is so fundamental (Pali: generosity). to the spiritual transmission that it can be seen as the classical Buddhist Buddhists say, “No Buddhism without relationship between the Sangha teachers. No Buddhism without dana of teachers and practitioners. The driving or generosity.” force of this model is merit (Tibetan: seunam). Regular donations are the fi nancial lifeline of any Buddhist school. Merit works in a way that is natural and direct, even if its operation is often hidden.
AN OVERVIEW OF THE ESTIMATED INCOME AND EXPENDITURE OF YEUNTEN LING IN 2020 Figures in 2020 signifi cantly a ected by impact of covid-19 sanitary crisis
15% 60,000 € 2% SHOP 8,000 € VARIOUS INCOME
6% 25,000 € MEMBER CONTRIBUTIONS
72% 4% 280,000 € REVENUE 17,000 € TEACHINGS GIFTS AND RETREATS
3% 12,000 € INVESTMENT RESERVE 54% 210,000 € PURCHASES 7% AND GENERAL 26,000 € EXPENSES CAPITAL REPAYMENT EXPENDITURES AND 6% INVESTMENTS 25,000 € INTEREST AND TAXES 4% 15,000 € 26% VARIOUS 102,000 € COSTS AND REMUNERATION CONTRIBUTIONS AND SOCIAL CHARGES (4 pers.)
Why a Lama Fund?
As already mentioned, the revenues of our center are insu cient to ensure the continuity of our teaching in the future. It is our duty to secure the succession of our Lamas. That is why a young generation of teachers is currently being trained in our mother monastery in Sonada, India. It is the intention of Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima to regularly invite some of these young Lama’s to Yeunten Ling and thus continue their practical training in Belgium.
These young teachers will also be o cially employed by us to make it possible for them to obtain an o cial residence permit in Belgium.
All the e orts of our centers are aimed at expanding and anchoring the potential of our teachings. Lately, we are increasingly being asked to also sporadically address the more philosophical approach to Buddhism in our programs. While we will continue to focus on the practical approach to Buddhism, Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima have expressed the wish to gradually and occasionally incorporate also the study element into our future activities. This will be done mainly with the help of highly qualifi ed external teachers. Consequently, we hope to meet our goal of teaching Buddhist wisdom to the highest standards and for the widest possible audience.
For this we need your fi nancial support! Your fi nancial contributions will be used exclusively to ensure the continuity and development of our teaching.
Support us by making a regular donation stating “Lama Fund” on the following account number:
IBAN: BE63 2200 4930 2308 - BIC GEBA BE BB
By clicking on the link below you will be directed to our webpage with the account number and recommended communication. The tax certifi cate will be sent at the end of February 2021.
Support us
Important! From 40 € in donations per year you are entitled to a tax deduction of 60% in 2020!
Thanks to your donation, small or large, you are helping to perpetuate the late Kalu Rinpoche’s lineage.
We hope to count on your support and thank you very much for your generosity and for helping us continue to support the Dharma and its deep wisdom in these di cult times. Huy Schoten Brussels
Support our Lama Funds
Our roots
Kagyu Yeunten Gyamtso Ling (Ocean of Qualities) is the name given by the late Kyabdje Kalu Rinpoche when creating our center in Huy in 1983. It became the umbrella name for the three institutions that have developed throughout our history, in Schoten (Antwerp 1976), in Huy 1983 and in Brussels 2001.
Without interruption, these centers were run and supported by Lama’s trained by Kalu Rinpoche (deceased in 1989) in his monastery at Sonada near Darjeeling: until 1990 by Lama Ogyen, until 2013 by Lama Karta in collaboration with Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima, to date by these last two Lamas. The growth of our sangha is due to the presence of knowledgeable and loving teachers who are constantly at the service of this precious heritage.
The status of our Lamas has evolved over the years. Lama Ogyen fl ed Tibet to India at the age of 20 and obtained a residence permit in Belgium based on his Tibetan refugee passport. Lama Karta was able to come to Belgium via France and received the status of a Buddhist teacher. In 1997 he was granted a work permit and a salary in this capacity. He shared this minimum allowance with the two Lama’s who assisted him as teachers and spiritual guides of our three centers. From 2013, Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima were also o cially granted employee status. In the meantime, legislation in Belgium had evolved to such an extent that our teachers had to be o cially employed in order to keep their residence permit and thus secure their future.
The Belgian government does not provide any compensation for our teachers as yet, as Buddhism is not recognized to date, unlike teachers of other religious institutions or philosophies who are paid directly by the federal government.
The present
Two Lamas to supervise three centers is quite a task. Our Lamas can only be in one place at a time. This weighs on their many activities: providing expert teaching, responding to the requests of students and participants, taking care of the daily rituals, leading ceremonies on special occasions and so much more. In addition, our precious Lamas are not getting any younger.
Meanwhile, a young generation of teachers is growing up in the Sonada Monastery, still the precious cradle of the late Kalu Rinpoche’s transmission. Our close involvement in the fl ourishing of our mother monastery gives us the opportunity to expand our teachings and ensure the succession with authentically trained Lamas, thus ensuring our future. This is our aim and that of our Lamas.
The revenues from our Dharma teachings and retreats mainly cover the various organizational costs for the operation of our activities and the investments for the maintenance of the temples and stupas, the castle, the various buildings and the park. Unfortunately, however, we fi nd that our Institute does not generate enough income to ensure the remuneration of our Lamas with peace of mind, as well as to meet the need of succession and to train a younger generation of Lamas in our centers.
If we fail to secure su cient funding to ensure our spiritual guidance, our centers risk missing the invaluable presence of future generations of young Lamas.
All the Buddhist lineages and monasteries that have survived for centuries are those who have successfully built adequate funding for their spiritual and material needs.
This commitment is di cult every year.
Taking inspiration from an age-old tradition of dana
From the earliest stages of Buddhism, This exchange in which the practitioners the dana model has developed. acquire merit is known as dana This model is so fundamental (Pali: generosity). to the spiritual transmission that it can be seen as the classical Buddhist Buddhists say, “No Buddhism without relationship between the Sangha teachers. No Buddhism without dana of teachers and practitioners. The driving or generosity.” force of this model is merit (Tibetan: seunam). Regular donations are the fi nancial lifeline of any Buddhist school. Merit works in a way that is natural and direct, even if its operation is often hidden.
AN OVERVIEW OF THE ESTIMATED INCOME AND EXPENDITURE OF YEUNTEN LING IN 2020 Figures in 2020 signifi cantly a ected by impact of covid-19 sanitary crisis
15% 60,000 € 2% SHOP 8,000 € VARIOUS INCOME
6% 25,000 € MEMBER CONTRIBUTIONS
72% 4% 280,000 € REVENUE 17,000 € TEACHINGS GIFTS AND RETREATS
3% 12,000 € INVESTMENT RESERVE 54% 210,000 € PURCHASES 7% AND GENERAL 26,000 € EXPENSES CAPITAL REPAYMENT EXPENDITURES AND 6% INVESTMENTS 25,000 € INTEREST AND TAXES 4% 15,000 € 26% VARIOUS 102,000 € COSTS AND REMUNERATION CONTRIBUTIONS AND SOCIAL CHARGES (4 pers.)
Why a Lama Fund?
As already mentioned, the revenues of our center are insu cient to ensure the continuity of our teaching in the future. It is our duty to secure the succession of our Lamas. That is why a young generation of teachers is currently being trained in our mother monastery in Sonada, India. It is the intention of Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima to regularly invite some of these young Lama’s to Yeunten Ling and thus continue their practical training in Belgium.
These young teachers will also be o cially employed by us to make it possible for them to obtain an o cial residence permit in Belgium.
All the e orts of our centers are aimed at expanding and anchoring the potential of our teachings. Lately, we are increasingly being asked to also sporadically address the more philosophical approach to Buddhism in our programs. While we will continue to focus on the practical approach to Buddhism, Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima have expressed the wish to gradually and occasionally incorporate also the study element into our future activities. This will be done mainly with the help of highly qualifi ed external teachers. Consequently, we hope to meet our goal of teaching Buddhist wisdom to the highest standards and for the widest possible audience.
For this we need your fi nancial support! Your fi nancial contributions will be used exclusively to ensure the continuity and development of our teaching.
Support us by making a regular donation stating “Lama Fund” on the following account number:
IBAN: BE63 2200 4930 2308 - BIC GEBA BE BB
By clicking on the link below you will be directed to our webpage with the account number and recommended communication. The tax certifi cate will be sent at the end of February 2021.
Support us
Important! From 40 € in donations per year you are entitled to a tax deduction of 60% in 2020!
Thanks to your donation, small or large, you are helping to perpetuate the late Kalu Rinpoche’s lineage.
We hope to count on your support and thank you very much for your generosity and for helping us continue to support the Dharma and its deep wisdom in these di cult times. Huy Schoten Brussels
Support our Lama Funds
Our roots
Kagyu Yeunten Gyamtso Ling (Ocean of Qualities) is the name given by the late Kyabdje Kalu Rinpoche when creating our center in Huy in 1983. It became the umbrella name for the three institutions that have developed throughout our history, in Schoten (Antwerp 1976), in Huy 1983 and in Brussels 2001.
Without interruption, these centers were run and supported by Lama’s trained by Kalu Rinpoche (deceased in 1989) in his monastery at Sonada near Darjeeling: until 1990 by Lama Ogyen, until 2013 by Lama Karta in collaboration with Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima, to date by these last two Lamas. The growth of our sangha is due to the presence of knowledgeable and loving teachers who are constantly at the service of this precious heritage.
The status of our Lamas has evolved over the years. Lama Ogyen fl ed Tibet to India at the age of 20 and obtained a residence permit in Belgium based on his Tibetan refugee passport. Lama Karta was able to come to Belgium via France and received the status of a Buddhist teacher. In 1997 he was granted a work permit and a salary in this capacity. He shared this minimum allowance with the two Lama’s who assisted him as teachers and spiritual guides of our three centers. From 2013, Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima were also o cially granted employee status. In the meantime, legislation in Belgium had evolved to such an extent that our teachers had to be o cially employed in order to keep their residence permit and thus secure their future.
The Belgian government does not provide any compensation for our teachers as yet, as Buddhism is not recognized to date, unlike teachers of other religious institutions or philosophies who are paid directly by the federal government.
The present
Two Lamas to supervise three centers is quite a task. Our Lamas can only be in one place at a time. This weighs on their many activities: providing expert teaching, responding to the requests of students and participants, taking care of the daily rituals, leading ceremonies on special occasions and so much more. In addition, our precious Lamas are not getting any younger.
Meanwhile, a young generation of teachers is growing up in the Sonada Monastery, still the precious cradle of the late Kalu Rinpoche’s transmission. Our close involvement in the fl ourishing of our mother monastery gives us the opportunity to expand our teachings and ensure the succession with authentically trained Lamas, thus ensuring our future. This is our aim and that of our Lamas.
The revenues from our Dharma teachings and retreats mainly cover the various organizational costs for the operation of our activities and the investments for the maintenance of the temples and stupas, the castle, the various buildings and the park. Unfortunately, however, we fi nd that our Institute does not generate enough income to ensure the remuneration of our Lamas with peace of mind, as well as to meet the need of succession and to train a younger generation of Lamas in our centers.
If we fail to secure su cient funding to ensure our spiritual guidance, our centers risk missing the invaluable presence of future generations of young Lamas.
All the Buddhist lineages and monasteries that have survived for centuries are those who have successfully built adequate funding for their spiritual and material needs.
This commitment is di cult every year.
Taking inspiration from an age-old tradition of dana
From the earliest stages of Buddhism, This exchange in which the practitioners the dana model has developed. acquire merit is known as dana This model is so fundamental (Pali: generosity). to the spiritual transmission that it can be seen as the classical Buddhist Buddhists say, “No Buddhism without relationship between the Sangha teachers. No Buddhism without dana of teachers and practitioners. The driving or generosity.” force of this model is merit (Tibetan: seunam). Regular donations are the fi nancial lifeline of any Buddhist school. Merit works in a way that is natural and direct, even if its operation is often hidden.
AN OVERVIEW OF THE ESTIMATED INCOME AND EXPENDITURE OF YEUNTEN LING IN 2020 Figures in 2020 signifi cantly a ected by impact of covid-19 sanitary crisis
15% 60,000 € 2% SHOP 8,000 € VARIOUS INCOME
6% 25,000 € MEMBER CONTRIBUTIONS
72% 4% 280,000 € REVENUE 17,000 € TEACHINGS GIFTS AND RETREATS
3% 12,000 € INVESTMENT RESERVE 54% 210,000 € PURCHASES 7% AND GENERAL 26,000 € EXPENSES CAPITAL REPAYMENT EXPENDITURES AND 6% INVESTMENTS 25,000 € INTEREST AND TAXES 4% 15,000 € 26% VARIOUS 102,000 € COSTS AND REMUNERATION CONTRIBUTIONS AND SOCIAL CHARGES (4 pers.)
Why a Lama Fund?
As already mentioned, the revenues of our center are insu cient to ensure the continuity of our teaching in the future. It is our duty to secure the succession of our Lamas. That is why a young generation of teachers is currently being trained in our mother monastery in Sonada, India. It is the intention of Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima to regularly invite some of these young Lama’s to Yeunten Ling and thus continue their practical training in Belgium.
These young teachers will also be o cially employed by us to make it possible for them to obtain an o cial residence permit in Belgium.
All the e orts of our centers are aimed at expanding and anchoring the potential of our teachings. Lately, we are increasingly being asked to also sporadically address the more philosophical approach to Buddhism in our programs. While we will continue to focus on the practical approach to Buddhism, Lama Zeupa and Lama Tashi Nyima have expressed the wish to gradually and occasionally incorporate also the study element into our future activities. This will be done mainly with the help of highly qualifi ed external teachers. Consequently, we hope to meet our goal of teaching Buddhist wisdom to the highest standards and for the widest possible audience.
For this we need your fi nancial support! Your fi nancial contributions will be used exclusively to ensure the continuity and development of our teaching.
Support us by making a regular donation stating “Lama Fund” on the following account number:
IBAN: BE63 2200 4930 2308 - BIC GEBA BE BB
By clicking on the link below you will be directed to our webpage with the account number and recommended communication. The tax certifi cate will be sent at the end of February 2021.
Support us
Important! From 40 € in donations per year you are entitled to a tax deduction of 60% in 2020!
Thanks to your donation, small or large, you are helping to perpetuate the late Kalu Rinpoche’s lineage.
We hope to count on your support and thank you very much for your generosity and for helping us continue to support the Dharma and its deep wisdom in these di cult times.