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Hsuan Hua (Chinese: 宣化; pinyin: Xuānhuà; lit. 'proclaim and transform'; April 16, 1918 – June 7, 1995), also known as An Tzu, Tu Lun and Master Hua by his Western disciples, was a Chinese monk of Chan Buddhism and a contributing figure in bringing Chinese Buddhism to the United States in the late 20th century.
Hsuan Hua founded several institutions in the US. The Dharma Realm Buddhist Association[1] (DRBA) is a Buddhist organization with chapters in North America, Australia and Asia. The City of Ten Thousand Buddhas (CTTB) in Ukiah, California, is one of the first Chan Buddhist monasteries in America. Venerable Master Hsuan Hua founded Dharma Realm Buddhist University at CTTB. The Buddhist Text Translation Society works on the phonetics and translation of Buddhist scriptures from Chinese into English, Vietnamese, Spanish, and many other languages. ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hsuan_Hua Source Accessed June 3, 2021]) +
Venerable Jamyang Khedrup is a Canadian Buddhist monk who serves as the resident Tibetan-English interpreter at Lama Yeshe Ling Centre in Ontario, Canada, where he has been interpreting for Geshe Sonam since 2011. He frequently goes by the name Venerable Khedrup. +
Venerable Khenpo Kalsang Gyaltsen is the spiritual director of Sakya Phuntsok Ling Centers for Tibetan Buddhist Study and Meditation. He is a widely recognized and accomplished teacher and translator of Buddhism. His Holiness Sakya Trizin and other high lamas of the Sakya Order have repeatedly praised his Dharma activities as exemplary.</br>
Training and Dharma Work:</br>
As a youth, Khenpo Kalsang met his first teacher, Venerable Tharig Tulku Rinpoche, and from him received novice ordination and monastic and religious training. He received full ordination and advanced religious training from His Eminence Luding Khenchen Rinpoche.
After assisting Venerable Tharig Tulku Rinpoche in building the first Sakya monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal, Khenpo Kalsang served as assistant abbot, teacher of young monks, disciplinarian and also held other religious offices. He continued to pursue advanced Dharma study, requesting and receiving many special teachings in both sutra and tantra from His Holiness the Sakya Trizin, His Eminence Luding Khenchen Rinpoche, His Eminence Chogye Trichen Rinpoche, Venerable Khenpo Appey Rinpoche and Venerable Khenpo Rinchen. From His Eminence Dezhung Rinpoche, he also received many special Sakya oral instructions.
In recognition of his accomplishment of study and meditation, His Holiness the Sakya Trizin requested Khenpo Kalsang to lead the meditation training sessions during His Holiness’ bestowal of the precious Lam Dre teaching cycle in Friday Harbor, Washington in 1995.
At the request of His Holiness the Sakya Trizin and his own students, Venerable Khenpo Kalsang Gyaltsen has translated numerous major Sakya texts into English. These include His Holiness’ autobiography, the Hevajra Cause and Path Initiations, the Anatomy of the Lam Dre Teaching and numerous other tantric texts, sadhanas and prayers. His Holiness the Sakya Trizin chose Khenpo Kalsang to provide simultaneous English interpretation when he bestowed the Collection of All the Sadhanas teaching cycle in Kathmandu in 1994. Khenpo Kalsang has also served as interpreter for the teaching tours of His Eminence Luding Khen Rinpoche, His Eminence Dezhung Rinpoche and Venerable Tharig Tulku Rinpoche.
Founding Sakya Phuntsok Ling
In 1986, at the request of students in the Washington, D.C. area, Venerable Khenpo Kalsang Gyaltsen established Sakya Phuntsok Ling Center for Tibetan Buddhist Studies and Meditation.
With the blessings of His Holiness the Sakya Trizin and His Eminence Dezhung Rinpoche and the expert teaching and wise guidance of Venerable Khenpo Kalsang Gyaltsen, Sakya Phuntsok Ling has flourished, and the Center’s activities have been praised by His Holiness and other high lamas of the Sakya Order.
Venerable Khenpo Kalsang Gyaltsen continues to teach and guide students at Sakya Phuntsok Ling, in Silver Spring, Maryland, near Washington D.C. He is active in translation of Sakya texts and travels regularly to give teachings at Sakya centers in the United States. (Source: [http://sakyaphuntsokling.org/khenpo-kalsang-gyaltsen/ Sakya Puntsok Ling Official Website])
Venerable Khenpo Tenzin was born near Gargon Monastery in the Nagchen Tibet, 1990. Coming from a very large family, Khenpo had a very strong inclination to study Dharma. His wish to enter the spiritual life was so strong that he taught himself to play the trumpet and learned many of the Lamas dances himself simply by observing and acting them out.
When Khenpo turned 9 years of age his family honored his wishes and allowed him to enter Gargon Monastery. During this time he attended the general courses of study for new monastics and completed his 5 fold path Mahamudra Ngondro practice.
Khenpo received recognition for his studies and his ability to quickly memorize long dharma text, and he was one of eight promising monks to travel to Sertar Monastery (Jigme Phuntsok’s massive learning center in Sichuan, housing at times over 10,000 monks and nuns) and continue their studies at this prestigious place of learning.
Subsequently Khenpo Tenzin studied at Dzongsar Shedra in Sichuan and when he finally arrived in India he studied at the famous Gelug center, Sera Jey Monastic Universtiy.
In 2015 at the urging of Garchen Rinpoche, arrangements were made to have Khenpo Tenzin come to the U.S. and in early 2016 Khenpo was made the resident teacher at the Garchen Buddhist Institute.
Khenpo Tenzin has also studied and completed certified courses in English as a Second Language & American Culture at the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque.
In front of a large assembly during the recent visit of H.H. Kyabgon Chetsang Rinpoche for the 4th annual Drikung Kagyu Monlam, Lama Tenzin was recognized and awarded the title Khenpo, by both H.H. Chetsang Rinpoche and by H.E. Garchen Rinpoche. ([https://garchen.net/teachers-2/ Source Accessed Sep 27, 2024]) +
Venerable Phramaha Anon Anando is a faculty member at International Buddhist Studies College, Mahachulalongkornrajaviyalaya University, Thailand. ([https://www.ibsc.mcu.ac.th/phramaha-anon Source Accessed Jan 13, 2025]) +
Venerable Sarah Thresher (Tenzin Yiwong) was born in London, England in 1960, and earned her Bachelor's degree in 1982. Shortly afterwards, she met the Buddha's teachings at Kopan Monastery, Nepal, where she took refuge with Lama Thubten Yeshe. Since then, she has studied with many great masters and was ordained by His Holiness the Dalai Lama in 1986.
After working as an editor for Wisdom Publications for nine years, she began teaching in 1992 and since then has taught in countries around the world. More recently, as Resident Teacher of Land of Medicine Buddha, she helped organize the highly successful visit of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Mountain View, California in 2001. At the request of her teacher, Kyabje Zopa Rinpoche, she now travels and teaches full-time throughout the world.
Ven. Sarah's experiential way of presenting the Buddhist path stimulates inward reflection and introduces new ways of perceiving that can guite literally revolutionize our lives. The goal is a deepening of wisdom and compassion, a relaxed open heart, a peaceful mind, and a more realistic view of ourselves.
Ven. Sarah is currently teaching in Mongolia. ([https://lamrim.com/vensarah/ultimatehealing.html Source Accessed Jan 16, 2025]) +
Venerable Tenzin Tsepal was a student of Venerable Chodron’s in Seattle from 1995 to 1999 and attended the Life as a Western Buddhist Nun conference in Bodhgaya as a lay supporter. Her interest in ordination surfaced after she completed a three-month Vajrasattva retreat in 1998.
She then lived in India for two years while continuing to explore monastic life. In 2001, Ven. Tsepal received sramanerika ordination from His Holiness the Dalai Lama. She received bhikshuni ordination at Fu En Si Temple in Taiwan in 2019.
While Venerable Tsepal was in India, some Australian friends introduced her to the five-year Buddhist Studies Program at Chenrezig Institute (CI), an FPMT center north of Brisbane, Queensland where she subsequently lived and engaged in intensive residential study from 2002-2015. As the Western Teacher at CI, she tutored weekend teachings and retreats, and taught the Discovering Buddhism courses, but always had her eye on what was happening at the Abbey.
In January 2016, Venerable Tsepal returned to the U.S. to participate in Sravasti Abbey’s winter retreat, and subsequently joined the community the following September.
Prior to ordaining, Ven. Tsepal completed a degree in Dental Hygiene, and then pursued graduate school in hospital administration at the University of Washington. Not finding happiness in 60 hour work weeks, she was self-employed for 10 years as a Reiki teacher and practitioner.
At the Abbey, Venerable Tsepal leads the Guest Care team. She is also compiling and editing the many years of Venerable Chodron’s teachings on monastic training, and leads reviews of philosophical tenets for the community. She helps out with painting and forest work too. ([https://sravastiabbey.org/community-member/venerable-tenzin-tsepal/ Source Accessed May 16, 2023]) +
Ven. Thubten Chonyi began attending classes with Venerable Thubten Chodron at Dharma Friendship Foundation in Seattle in 1996 and has practiced steadily under Venerable’s guidance ever since.
She was a founder of Friends of Sravasti Abbey, which formed in 2003 to support Ven. Chodron’s dream to start a monastery. She moved to the Abbey in 2007 and took śrāmaṇerikā and śikṣamāṇā precepts in May 2008. See photos of her ordination.
Along with Ven. Jigme, Ven. Chonyi received bhikshuni (full) ordination at Fo Guang Shan temple in Taiwan in 2011. See the photos.
At the Abbey, Ven. Chonyi is involved with publicity and inviting generosity. She also shares Buddha’s teachings at the Abbey, online, and, occasionally, at Buddhist centers in the US and abroad. She has co-taught meditation and Buddhist ideas at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Spokane for 13 years, and especially enjoys interfaith exchange and bringing Buddhist values into social justice issues.
Ven. Chonyi’s formal education was in theatre at Wesleyan College in Macon, GA. She worked for many years as a performer, publicist, fundraiser, and producer in the performing arts. As a Reiki teacher and practitioner for 19 years, she co-founded two Reiki centers and the Reiki AIDS Project, and led classes and workshops in Europe and North America. She was communications director for the international The Reiki Alliance and served eight years as Managing Editor for ''Reiki Magazine International''. ([https://sravastiabbey.org/community-member/thubten-chonyi/ Source Accessed May 16, 2023]) +
Venerable Jigme met Venerable Chodron in 1998 at Cloud Mountain Retreat Center. She took refuge in 1999 and attended Dharma Friendship Foundation in Seattle, where Ven. Chodron was the resident teacher. She moved to the Abbey in 2008 and took śrāmaṇerikā and śikṣamāṇā vows with Venerable Chodron as her preceptor in March 2009. In 2011, along with Ven. Chonyi, she received bhikshuni ordination at Fo Guang Shan in Taiwan.
Before moving to Sravasti Abbey, Venerable Jigme worked as a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner in private practice in Seattle. In her career as a nurse, she worked in hospitals, clinics and educational settings.
At the Abbey, Ven. Jigme manages the prison outreach program and support the health of the community. In addition, she is a photographer, technical consultant, thanks donors, and creates flyers and other graphics. ([https://sravastiabbey.org/community-member/ven-thubten-jigme/ Source Accessed May 17, 2023]) +
Venerable Thubten Kunga grew up bi-culturally as the daughter of a Filipino immigrant in Alexandria, Virginia, just outside Washington, DC.
She received a BA in Sociology from the University of Virginia and an MA from George Mason University in Public Administration before working for the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Refugees, Population, and Migration for seven years. She also worked in a psychologist’s office and a community-building non-profit organization.
Venerable Kunga met Buddhism in college during an anthropology course and knew it was the path she had been looking for, but did not begin seriously practicing until 2014. She was affiliated with the Insight Meditation Community of Washington and the Guyhasamaja FPMT center in Fairfax, VA.
Realizing that the peace of mind experienced in meditation was the true happiness she was looking for, she traveled to Nepal in 2016 to teach English and took refuge at Kopan Monastery.
Shortly thereafter she attended the Exploring Monastic Life retreat at the Abbey and felt she had found a new home, returning a few months later to stay as a long-term guest, followed by anagarika (trainee) ordination in July 2017 and novice ordination in May 2019. ([https://sravastiabbey.org/community-member/venerable-thubten-kunga/ Source Accessed May 17, 2023]) +
Ven. Thubten Lamsel began studying the Dharma in 2011 at The Dhargyey Buddhist Centre in Dunedin, New Zealand. When she began exploring the possibility of ordination in 2014, a friend referred her to the Preparing for Ordination booklet by Venerable Thubten Chodron.
Soon after, Ven. Lamsel made contact with the Abbey, tuning in weekly for the livestreamed teachings and offering service from afar. In 2016 she visited for the month-long Winter Retreat. Feeling like she had found the supportive monastic environment she had been looking for, under the close guidance of her spiritual mentor, she requested to come back for training.
Returning in January 2017, Ven. Lamsel took anagarika precepts on March 31st. In the most fantastic circumstances, she was able to take her sramaneri and shikshamana vows during the Living Vinaya in the West course on February 4, 2018.
Ven. Lamsel previously worked as a university-based public health researcher and health promoter at a small non-governmental organization.
At the Abbey she is part of the video recording/editing team, helps with inmate outreach, and enjoys making creations in the kitchen. ([https://sravastiabbey.org/community-member/venerable-thubten-lamsel/ Source Accessed May 16, 2023]) +
Thubten Losang became interested in Buddhism during the 1990s and sporadically read books on Buddhism and practiced sitting meditation. He first came to Sravasti Abbey in April 2013 for a Sharing the Dharma Day. After that, he began to visit the Abbey almost every month.
In the summer of 2014, he spent 10 days of every month at the Abbey to work in the forest and joined in the Exploring Monastic Life program. Receiving teachings from a qualified teacher (Ven. Chodron), being around other practitioners, being guided and inspired by the monastic community, and establishing a regular meditation schedule turned his sporadic and confused spiritual seeking into a serious and consistent practice.
Ven. Losang moved to the Abbey in December 2014 and took the anagarika precepts the following month. He received śrāmaṇera (novice) ordination on August 10, 2015. See his ordination photos. He received full ordination in Taiwan in 2017. ([https://sravastiabbey.org/community-member/sramanera-thubten-losang/ Source Accessed May 17, 2023]) +
Originally from Florida, Venerable Thubten Ngawang met the Dharma in 2012 when a friend gave him Venerable Chodron’s book, Open Heart, Clear Mind. After exploring Buddhism online for awhile, he began to attend talks at Drepung Loseling Monastery’s Center for Tibetan Studies in Atlanta, where he took refuge.
He first visited the Abbey in 2014 and then spent extensive time here in 2015 and 2016. After about six months of training as an anagarika, he decided to remain as a lay person to reassess his spiritual aspirations and moved to Spokane in early 2017.
During his time in Spokane, Ven. Ngawang worked at a non-profit in the affordable housing industry, facilitated classes on Nonviolent Communication at the local prison, and attended the weekly meditation class offered by Abbey monastics at the Unitarian Universalist Church. Coming up to the Abbey frequently to attend retreats and offer service sustained and increased his Dharma practice.
In 2020, with the pandemic interrupting many of these activities, Ven. Ngawang moved to Tara’s Refuge, a small house on the Abbey property, to focus more on Dharma. This situation proved very supportive and eventually led to him moving up to the Abbey in the summer of 2021.
After reflecting on the distractions of lay life and the disadvantages of following attachment, Ven. Ngawang resumed anagarika training in August, 2021. With more confidence in his ability to work with afflictions, and recognition of his improved ability to live happily in community, he requested ordination ten months later. He was ordained as a sramanera (novice monk) in September 2022.
Currently, Ven. Ngawang is a part of the Abbey’s prison program; facilitates SAFE and offering service; supports the grounds team and utilizes his architectural design background where needed. ([https://sravastiabbey.org/community-member/venerable-thubten-ngawang/ Source Accessed May 17, 2023]) +
Ven. Samten met Ven. Chodron in 1996 when the future Ven. Chonyi, took the future Ven. Samten to a Dharma talk at Dharma Friendship Foundation in Seattle. The talk on the kindness of others and the way it was presented is deeply etched in her mind. Four Cloud Mountain retreats with Ven. Chodron, eight months in India and Nepal studying the Dharma, one month of offering service at Sravasti Abbey, and a two month retreat at the Abbey in 2008 fueled the fire to ordain on August 26, 2010.
Ven. Samten’s full ordination took place in Taiwan in March 2012, when she became the Abbey’s sixth bhikshuni.
Right after finishing a Bachelor of Music degree, Ven. Samten moved to Edmonton, Canada to pursue training as a corporeal mime artist. Five years later, a return to university to obtain a Bachelor of Education degree opened the door to becoming a music teacher for the Edmonton Public School board. Concurrently, Ven. Samten became a founding member and performer with Kita No Taiko, Alberta’s first Japanese drum group.
Ven. Samten is responsible for thanking donors who make offerings online, assisting Ven. Tarpa with developing and facilitating the SAFE online learning courses, assisting with the forest thinning project, tracking down knapweed, maintaining the database, answering email questions, and photographing the amazing moments that are constantly happening at the Abbey. ([https://sravastiabbey.org/community-member/ven-thubten-samten/ Source Accessed May 17, 2023]) +
Ven. Thubten Semkye was [Sravasti] Abbey’s first lay resident. She met Venerable Chodron at the Dharma Friendship Foundation in Seattle in 1996 and took refuge with her in 1999. When the land was acquired for the Abbey in 2003, Ven. Semkye coordinated volunteers for the initial move-in and early remodeling.
A founder of Friends of Sravasti Abbey, she accepted the position of chairperson to provide the four requisites for the monastic community. Realizing that was a difficult task to do from 350 miles away, she moved to the Abbey in spring 2004.
Although she didn’t originally see ordination in her future, after the 2006 Chenrezig retreat when she spent half of her meditation time reflecting on death and impermanence, Ven. Semkye realized that ordaining would be the wisest, most compassionate use of her life. She became the Abbey’s third nun in 2007. See her ordination photos. In 2010 she received bhikshuni ordination at Miao Fa Chan Temple in Taiwan. See photos.
Ven. Semkye draws on her extensive experience in landscaping and horticulture to manage the Abbey’s forests and gardens. She is an offering service coordinator and helps to oversees Offering Service Saturdays during which volunteers help with construction, gardening, and forest stewardship. ([https://sravastiabbey.org/community-member/semkye/ Source Accessed Nov 1, 2021]) +
Ven. Thubten Tarpa is an American practicing in the Tibetan tradition since 2000 when she took formal refuge. She has lived at Sravasti Abbey under the guidance of Ven. Thubten Chodron since May 2005. The first person to ordain at the Abbey, Ven. Tarpa took her śrāmaṇerikā and śikṣamāṇā ordinations with Ven. Chodron as her preceptor in 2006. See photos.
On December 20, 2008 Ven. Tarpa traveled to Hsi Lai Temple in Hacienda Heights California to receive bhikshuni ordination. The temple is affiliated with Taiwan’s Fo Guang Shan Buddhist order.
Ven. Tarpa’s other main teachers are the late H.H. Jigdal Dagchen Sakya and H.E. Dagmo Kusho. She has had the good fortune to receive teachings from some of Ven. Chodron’s teachers as well.
Before moving to the Abbey, Ven. Tarpa worked as a physical therapist/athletic trainer for 30 years in colleges, hospital clinics, and private practice settings. In this career she had the very rewarding opportunity to help patients and teach students and colleagues. She has B.S. degrees from Michigan State University and the University of Washington and an M.S. degree from the University of Oregon. Among many other Abbey responsibilities, Ven. Tarpa coordinates the Abbey’s building projects. ([https://sravastiabbey.org/community-member/thubten-tarpa/ Source Accessed Nov 1, 2021]) +
Ven. Thubten Tsewang, known as Baling Lama, was a disciple of and attendant to the Indian Buddhist master Khunu Lama Tenzin Gyaltsen Rinpoche (1894-1977). He worked in radio broadcasting in Ladakh, India, before meeting Khunu Lama in 1954. After meeting Khunu Lama, Baling Lama ordained and became a devoted disciple for six years. He then became Khunu Lama’s attendant in 1960. +
Vesna A. Wallace is a senior Professor of Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Her fields of specialization are Indian Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna Buddhist traditions and Mongolian Buddhism. She has authored and translated four books related to Indian Buddhism, three of which pertain to the Kālacakra tantric tradition in India, published an edited on Mongolian Buddhism titled Buddhism in Mongolian History, Culture and Society and more than seventy articles on Indian and Mongolian forms of Buddhism. Her most recent book, which is currently in press by Oxford University Press, is an edited volume titled Sources of Mongolian Buddhism, and her forthcoming, co-authored book is ''The Text, Image, and Imagination in Mongolian Buddhist Rituals'', which will be published by Columbia University Press. ([https://retreat.guru/teachers/1047-12/vesna-wallace Source Accessed Jan 7, 2021]) +
Born Tony McMahon in London in 1950, he gained an MA in English at the University of Cambridge. He became interested in Buddhism in his teens, and first had direct contact with Buddhist teachers in 1971. In 1974 he was ordained into the Triratna Buddhist Order and given the name Vessantara, which means ‘universe within’. A year later he gave up a career in social work to become more involved with the development of Buddhism in the West. Since then, he has divided his time between meditating (including years in intensive retreat), studying, and assisting the development of several Buddhist centres, including retreat centres in England, Wales, and Spain. +
A 12th to 13th century Indian scholar that, like his teacher Śākyaśrībhadra, was active in Tibet. He wrote several works that are preserved in Tibetan translation, including a commentary on the ''Bodhicaryāvatāra'' in which he is also recorded as the translator. +
