SMD Branch School For Young Monks at Namo Buddha
A Request from Thrangu Rinpoche
Rinpoche strongly requests support for his school-going monks, in particular for the monks at SMD Branch School. He points out that the more monks who get a secular as well as the traditional monastic education, the more they will be able to benefit Dharma activities and all sentient beings.
In 2000, Rinpoche opened SMD Branch School for young monks at Namo Buddha (about 2 hours away from the main school). There are about 70 monks at SMDBS, under the capable guidance of Principal Khenpo Chonyi Rangdrol, who is also Principal at the main school. Karma Samdup is teh Vice Principal at SMDBS.
SMDBS was established to relieve overcrowding in the main school, and to give the young monks a wholesome atmosphere in which to live. The Branch School runs from Nursery up to Class 9. Rinpoche sends his more able monks down to the main school from Classes 6 to 10, with the intent that, when they graduate, they can become junior 'gegens' (teachers) at SMDBS. The reason for sending these monks to the main school is because the secular curriculum is more advanced, and so future gegens can be exposed to modern teaching methods.
All the children who are put into Thrangu Rinpoche's care are given a secular education whether they are nuns, monks or lay children. When the monks and nuns reach the age of consent, the can then take full ordination if it is their wish. If not, they can leave the monastery or nunnery. With a secular education they are able to make their ways in life and the choice of full ordination thus remains a fairly pure choice.
The monks at the Branch School follow a modified curriculum with a heavier emphasis on Tibetan language, calligraphy and grammar, along with practice in ritual. However, their days are a little more rigorous than kids' at the main school; the Branch School monks have classes 6 days a week. Class times are from 8:30 AM until 3 PM, but they also study in the morning before classes start and they study Dharma texts in the late afternoons. They do a cycle of pujas, one a day. (Chenrezig, Green Tara, Mahakala, Guru Rinpoche, Medicine Buddha, White Tara and on special <auspicious days, like Guru Rinpoche Day> they also do pujas). They dedicate the merit to all sentient beings, especially to their sponsors.
Thrangu Rinpoche has asked me to point out that the monastics' lives are not as settled as the lay childrens'. Monastics are moved around more. After they finish Class 6, Rinpoche moves them to the nunnery or monastery to study texts and learn rituals. Generally they are in their early teens by the time they get to Class 6. It is a delicate time, when worldly temptations (fashion! technology! etc.) are particularly attractive to youngsters. Rinpoche has found that it is better to move them into a monastic setting and give them some training along those lines. They don’t drift away so easily.
After a year of refreshing their motivation, Rinpoche may send them back into school, or if they show no interest or ability in their studies, Rinpoche may give them some job to do, like working in one of the offices, working on a construction or publishing project, or driving. After they've finished that work for some years, they will be moved on to another job or another learning situation.
Those who have shown exceptional ability may go into “shedra”, a monastic college of higher Buddhist study where they study the sutras, commentaries, logic, rhetoric and where they take part in lively debates. Upon successful graduation from shedra, and at Rinpoche’s discretion and wisdom, a shedra graduate may win the title “khenpo”, which is akin to a Master’s degree in advanced philosophy. Rinpoche’s nuns have the same education opportunities as the monks.
After many years of service, a nun or monk may go into the traditional 3-year, 3-month, 3-week retreat. This is seen as a great reward. One who has successfully completed the 3 year retreat (again at Rinpoche’s discretion) may be awarded the title “lama”.
As you can understand, this training is also a form of education, and it is very important for the future of Rinpoche's activities. The more monks and nuns who are trained in western education and in life skills, the more benefit will come to all beings.
Lives of the Young Monks
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SPONSOR A YOUNG MONK'S EDUCATION
All the photos and bios for SMD Branch School for monks were done by an SMD graduate, Chaynga Sherpa B021. Chaynga is one of this year's Class 10 graduates. He is outstanding having scored 'With Distinction' (A+) in the national exams this spring. Chaynga volunteered to help the monks at the Branch School, and spent several weeks working on photos and bios as well as helping in the classrooms.
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| M18 Wangdue Norbu Wangdue Norbu is 13 years old from Dolokha, a district which is in the north of Nepal in the Himalayas. It lies on the Tibetan borderlands. There are seven members in his family, Wangdue is the youngest. He thinks his family is involved in farming, but isn’t sure, “…I don’t really know about their work because I cannot meet them frequently”. |
Boy 13 years Sangye Rinchen comes from a much undeveloped area called Mugu. Among the Himalayan regions the place is one of the poorest. There are no infrastructures like electricity, transportation, health post, education centre etc as it takes a month of hard trekking to reach his village. Sangye Rinchen’s village is very remote and it has one of the highest child mortality rates in Nepal. His parents are uneducated. Both of them are simple farmers who work on a small piece of land. The soil in the Himalayan region isn’t particularly fertile thus it doesn’t produce abundant harvest. Sometimes snowfalls destroy all the crops which is the biggest curse of any local family. The majority of the Himalayan people don’t know much about family planning therefore big families is a norm. The survival of a large family is complicated by the lack of basic facilities and hard living conditions in the region. Sangye Rinchen’s family has nine members. The weather in the Himalayan region is extremely cold. In the cold temperature the Himalayan people have little warm clothes to put on. Some babies die of cold. The villagers have to walk down for two days to get a treatment in the local hospital which is often very expensive. During his time in the village Sangye Rinchen used to be a shepherd, he also collected firewood and foddered for the domestic animals. Attaining a primary school education was something he could only dream about. Sangye Rinchen survived all the hardships and at the age of 12 was brought to the capital to become a monk. He feels extremely happy to be a monk. He likes reading Buddhist text books, learning English and wishes to spread the teachings of Lord Buddha in his village after he completes his monastic education. By Chaynga Sherpa B021 |
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| Boy 13 years Karma Chodrak became monk at the age of 9 at Thrangu Monastery located nearby his village in Bhutan. The monastery has a little number of young monks with just a few monk teachers. He began his monastic education at the age of seven. In his village only few people own land. Though there are health facilities many villagers fall ill with diseases like malaria, chicken pox, dysentery etc. The village also has a school nevertheless many people are illiterate and superstitious. Karma Chodrak's parents have a small piece of land where his mother works. His father used to work in the fields as well but now he is a local micro bus driver. His mother takes care of household chores such as cooking, washing, feeding animals etc. Karma Chodrak used to help his mother when he was a lay boy: he would carry water, collect fodder for domestic animal and sometimes shepherd animals. Both of his parents are uneducated; there are five children in the family thus providing for food, clothing and education etc is a struggle. Karma feels very fortunate to be a monk at Thrangu Rinpoche's Monastery where both modern and monastic education is offered to the students. He is a very talented and outgoing boy, one of the high performers in his class. He likes to play soccer and volleyball and has a deep interest in Dharma and Buddhist philosophy. His dream is to become a senior monk and serve Rinpoche by becoming a school teacher. |
Boy 14 years Dorje Dhakpa is from a remote village called Tintale which lies in the Bojpur district in Himalayan side of Nepal. His village is poorly developed and deprived of such infrastructures as electricity, roads, clean drinking water, a health centre etc. Because of limited food supply in Tintale, only 1 out of 4 children survives to his fifth birthday. It takes five to six days of hard trekking to reach the village. On their way people usually sleep under trees at night and need to carry their own food as there are no shops on the way. There is no health centre or educational institution in his village. Many children are struck by polio disease which makes their childhood life miserable. Moreover, people of the village do not know much about the family planning thus big families are common. Dorje Dhakpa's parents are farmers. They own a small patch of land where they grow crops, mostly potatoes. Besides farming, his father is compelled to work as a woodcutter to make both ends meet. Dorje’s mother looks after the house and the potato field. The harvest they get in one season is hardly enough to feed the family. There are eight members in the family; parents need to provide for Dorje, his three younger brothers and two elder sisters. To survive his father has to either take a small loan or go to India to work. Dorje Dhakpa is interested in reading text books, holy books, drawing and painting etc. His aim is to join Shedra. Shedra is a higher level of study in Buddhist education. After finishing Shedra Dorje would like to help Rinpoche by teaching what he learned to others. |
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| Boy 15 years Nyima Wangyal comes from a high altitude Himalayan region called Tatopani, from a village called Bokchen which is right at border with Tibet. Bokchen is a small village of Sherpa community. Sherpa community here is disadvantaged and neglected by the government because of its Tibetan way of life. Electricity supply is limited and the only health centre poorly equipped. There is no road. Most of Sherpa are illiterate and live below the poverty line. Small children of Bokchen are often struck by such communicable diseases as common cold, chicken pox and tuberculosis etc. Nyima Wangyal became monk at the age of 12 when he left the village. Both of his parents are famers. His father is also a wood cutter. If heavy snow falls destroys crops he has to collect wood and sell in a town to survive. The family has own patch of land where they cultivate different types of crops in different seasons. Nyima Wangyal used to be a shepherd before he became a monk. He’d also help his mother to fetch water, collect firewood, fodder for animals, and wash dishes. There are six members in the family. Nyima didn't attend primary school in his village when he was a lay boy because he had to help his parents around the house. Nyima was referred to the monastery by one of his cousins. Since then his life has changed. He can learn English and receive modern and monastic education at Thrangu Rinpoche's Monastery. He feels fortunate to be a monk and study Dharma. He is an outgoing and talented boy with good leadership skills. |
Boy 14 years Phurpa was born in India, in Arunachal Pradesh which lies in northeast of India. His parents are migrant workers from Nepal, Helambu district. The family owns a small shop in India and lives in a rented apartment. There are four family members: mother, father, Phurba and his older sister. Phurpa’s mother looks after the shop and the household; father is a business man. After Phurpa moved to Nepal, the family remained in India. Phurpa Wanchen received primary education in an Indian school and at the age of 13 became a monk at Thrangu Monastery. Phurpa has good leadership skills thus he is often entrusted to supervise his classmates and roommates. He is an outgoing, talented and hard working boy. At the monastery each and every monk are abided by certain rules and regulations and Phurpa follows this discipline diligently. After finishing his studies, Phurpa would like to help Rinpoche by becoming a teacher at school. Currently at his school subjects like English, Nepali, Tibetan grammar and literature, math are taught by monks and volunteers. Phurpa's aim is to become a senior monk in his latter life. |
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| Boy 12 years Jigme Topden comes from a remote area called Yolmo. Yolmo people are mostly Sherpas. Jigme's parents migrated to Katmandu when he was a child. He was raised in the city. He studied in a Tibetan government school in Boudhanath, Kathmandu. Jigme’s family has family three members; he is the only child. His father migrated to America when Jigme was a baby but now he is back at home. Jigme became a monk because of his keen interest in exploring Dharma. He likes reading story books, Buddhist texts and magazines in his spare time. Jigme has good leadership skills and is in charge of his class and room. As a class captain Jigme helps and supports his classmates. He is an outgoing, talented and hard working boy who also diligently follows the monastery rules and discipline. In Jigme’s school subjects like English, Nepali, Tibetan grammar and literature as well as math are taught by monk teachers and volunteers. After finishing his studies, he would like to help Rinpoche by becoming a school teacher. Jigme's aim is to become a senior monk in the future. |
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