Rejoice in All Tushita’s Activities in the First Half of 2026!

July 2026

Hello & welcome to our (biannual) Rejoice Newsletter!

It is unbelievable that already half a year has passed and so many special events have happened here at Tushita!

We were so fortunate to receive teaching from special teachers like Yangten Rinpoche, Serkong Tsenshab Rinpoche, Geshe Lhakdor, Geshe Kelsang Wangmo, and to welcome so many students for our residential and non-residential courses!

We began the 2026 season on the 16th of February with drop-in guided meditation, followed by celebrations for Losar – Days of Miracles with 14 teachers offering Dharma (online and offline both), which were joined by 1170 students in total. We were very grateful to receive teachings from Yangten Rinpoche, Geshe Kelsang Wangmo, Ven Robina Courtin, Ven Thubten Chodron, and a Q&A session with Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo.

The first 10-day residential course of this year, led by our resident teacher Venerable Tenzin Thegchog, welcomed 83 students who braved the cold and rain. Over the ten days, they experienced nature in all its moods: sunshine, rain, hail, and even power cuts!

So far, we have offered 8 Introduction to Buddhism courses, 2 courses with special teachers, 1 intermediate course, 1 advanced course, 2 group practice retreats, and 6 short non-residential courses!

This year, Tushita also offered the annual Introduction to Buddhism Course (in Hindi) and sponsored 88 Indian students to meet the Dharma! The course was led by Kabir Saxena and Geshe Kailash Bauddha.

1045 students have joined us in residential courses/retreats and 469 in short courses until mid-July this year here at Tushita! Wow wow wow! Rejoice!

Below is an overview of all the events up till now!

Starting with Losar & Days of Miracles

February 18 – March 3, 2026

We celebrated Losar, the Tibetan New Year, on February 18. That was also the first day of the auspicious period of 15 Days of Miracles, which culminated on the full moon day of Chötrul Düchen, March 3.

Days of Miracles were Dedicated for the Quick Discovery & Recognition of the Unmistaken Return of our Most Precious Guru Lama Zopa Rinpoche

The Days of Miracles were so busy here at Tushita!

On Losar, we had a full-day program in person and online. We visited our teachers as well – His Eminence Ling Rinpoche, Yangten Rinpoche, Serkong Tsenshab Rinpoche, and Tulku of Choden Rinpoche. We started with drop-in meditation, and then our resident teacher, Venerable Tenzin Thegchog, gave a teaching on Beginning Anew – The Power of Motivation, followed by guru puja led by Venerable Thubten Wangdu, and then we started the online sessions of the Days of Miracles program with Venerable Robina Courtin!

Venerable Tenzin Thegchog gave a teaching on Beginning Anew – The Power of Motivation on Losar

For the Days of Miracles, we offered Guided Morning Meditation at 9 am every day except on Sundays and Dharma Movies on Monday and Friday. Alongside, we also hosted our First Introduction to Buddhism course led by Venerable Tenzin Thegchog, while continuing with the online teachings part of the Days of Miracles program – almost every day at a different hour due to the different time zones from where our teachers joined us.

Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo, Geshe Kelsang Wangmo, Venerable Thubten Chödron, Venerable Sangye Khadro, Venerable Robina Courtin, Venerable Tenzin Namjong, Venerable Lhundup Jamyang, Venerable Lozang Drolma, Venerable Thubten Drolkar, and Paula Chichester joined us online.

Whereas Yangten Rinpoche, Venerable Tenzin Thegchog, Venerable Thubten Wangdu, and Venerable Lozang Drolma taught both in person and online.

We also welcomed our visiting teachers, Ondy Willson and Venerable Gyalten Yarphel. Ondy guided – Introduction to Buddhism Course, Medicine Buddha Retreat, and Drop-in Morning Meditations with Teachings, whereas Venerable Yarphel guided one of our Introduction to Buddhism Courses in the months that followed.

Teachings from the Days of Miracles 2026

Watch on YouTube

Passing Away of Our Precious Lama Gyupa La

Gyudmed Ngarampa Venerable Thupten Dorje, Tushita’s Precious Lama Gyupa la, passed away peacefully on 11 March 2026 (23rd of the 1st Tibetan month in the Tibetan year 2153) at 10.47 am and remained in thukdam (a state of meditative absorption after clinical death) for one week (11 – 17 March 2026), where Gen la’s holy body remained fresh even in the heat of South India. When it was clear that Gen la had ended his meditation, the cremation took place the next day, on 18 March 2026.

Prayers for Our Precious Lama Gyupa La in Tushita – March 2026

We requested prayers from His Holiness the Dalai Lama and our lamas and different monasteries like Gyudmed Monastery in South of India, 18 monks of Gyudmed branch in McLeod Ganj, Kopan Monastery and Nunnery, Namgyel Monastery, Institute of Buddhist Dialectics, 28 meditators around Trijang Rinpoche stupa, many Tushita Sangha and light offerings at Tushita.

Our heartfelt gratitude especially to the Gyudmed monks of the McLeod Ganj branch, who made weekly prayers at Tushita, which concluded on the 49th day, Tuesday, 28 April 2026, with a Tsog offering.

Our precious Lama Gyupa la will be greatly missed! We cannot express how special Gen la was to us at Tushita. We had requested many times over the years for Lama Gyupa la to share his life story, which he always humbly declined. Three years ago, Gen la finally kindly agreed – we were astonished when Gen la recounted with such clarity and emphasis the importance of his time as a Gyudmed monk in Tibet, the discipline and austerities with which they abided in and recounted stories of serving at Pabongkha Labrang. He spoke with extraordinary humility as he delivered this historical account of the way things were in Tibet, and we have the pleasure of sharing the first video recording below with you.

We remember Lama Gyupa la doing koras every evening around Tushita’s main gompa, enjoying afternoon chai with our local staff in the kitchen, offering his daily tormas to our dear monkey friends and taking care of the doggies and other animals, always smiling and making everybody feel happy.

Highlights of Special Events in the First Half of 2026

3rd Anniversary of Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche Showing the Aspect of Passing Away

April 13, 2026, marked the third anniversary of Lama Zopa Rinpoche showing the aspect of passing away. We offered a movie screening of ‘Mystic Tibet’ followed by Guru Puja with Tsog led by Venerable Losang Drolma and recited ‘King of Prayers’ and ‘Chanting the Names of Noble Manjushri’.

Making offerings on the death anniversary of a guru is an incredible practice in that it brings about the greatest purification of negative karma and collects the most extensive merit.

^{Rinpoche explains in the foreword of the text Advice for the Anniversary of the Guru’s Passing Away}

Lama Zopa Rinpoche (1945-2023) was the spiritual director of the Foundation for the Preservation of Mahayana Tradition (FPMT), a Tibetan Buddhist organization dedicated to the transmission of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition and values worldwide through teaching, meditation and community service.

As a reminder, His Holiness recently confirmed that the reincarnation of Lama Zopa Rinpoche has been born and is living in Nepal. His Holiness has advised to continue reciting Chanting the Names of Noble Manjushri as well as Migtsema practice.

Screening of ‘Mystic Tibet’ on the 3rd Anniversary of Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Showing the Aspect of Passing Away

Guru Puja with Tsog led by Venerable Losang Drolma on the 3rd Anniversary of Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Showing the Aspect of Passing Away

Celebration of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama’s 91st Birthday

On July 6, the world celebrated His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s 91st birthday. Here at Tushita we screened the movie Mission: JOY – Finding Happiness in Troubled Times – a film that shares the humor and wisdom of two of the world’s most beloved icons, His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. These two Nobel Peace Prize Laureates united for one final mission: to show the world how to live with JOY, even in troubled times.

This was followed by a special puja to pray for His Holiness’ long life and success, as advised by Lama Zopa Rinpoche.

Pujas by Gyume Monks – For Lama Gyupa La, followed by Regular Monthly Pujas

Our heartfelt gratitude, especially to the Gyudmed monks of the McLeod Ganj branch, who made weekly prayers at Tushita for Lama Gyupa La, which concluded on the 49th day, Tuesday, 28 April 2026, with a Tsog offering.

We offered heartfelt prayers for Lama Gyupa la to return swiftly and continue his work for the Dharma and sentient beings. May we continue to be connected with Gen la life after life!

After this, the Gyudmed monks offered their regular monthly Pujas.

Monthly Pujas by the Gyudmed monks at Tushita in 2026

Celebrations During Saka Dawa

Changing prayer flags during the auspicious month of Saka Dawa is considered especially meaningful, and we finally replaced the old ones with beautiful new flags carrying prayers and blessings into the wind.

While changing them, we also tried our best to take care of all the tiny sentient beings living around the flag poles — including the little ladybug friends. And honestly, the old flags had already received a LOT of love from the Tushita monkeys, who seem to think prayer flags are also excellent jungle gyms and toys.

On the full moon day of Saka Dawa, May 31 2026, we offered a full-day program starting with drop-in morning meditation, followed by a Dharma movie titled “Life of Buddha”. In the afternoon, we also offered the reading of the Golden Light Sutra.

Sutra Reading on Saka Dawa joined by 40 people

After this, Venerable Thubten Wangdu gave a public teaching on ‘What the Buddha Taught’ – both online and offline.

Public Teaching by Venerable Thubten Wangdu on ‘What the Buddha Taught’ attended by 170 students

This was followed by him leading the Medicine Buddha Puja and Light Offering Ceremony with the Sangha.

Light Offering Ceremony with Sangha on Saka Dawa 2026

Fundraising for Wishlist Items and Sponsoring Indian Students to Meet the Dharma

At the beginning of the main season, we organised a fundraiser to fulfil our need for essential items to run the centre smoothly, especially with the unexpected storms and India’s struggle with gas supply.

We are incredibly grateful for the generosity of everyone who contributed. Your support helped us maintain and improve the facilities and resources that allow Tushita to continue serving students from India and around the world.

Items that were sponsored were blankets, refrigerator, camera, hard drive, laptops, projector, vacuum cleaner, and rice cookers. Our Wishlist fundraiser was complete, and all items on the list have been sponsored. Thank you so, so much!

Once a year (since 2023), Tushita offers an Introduction to Buddhism course in Hindi and sponsors Indian students who do not have the financial resources to come and take a 10-day course at Dharamsala to meet the Dharma. This year, 127 students joined the course from all over India, out of which 88 students were sponsored. We are very grateful to all of you who generously donated to make this possible. Thank you so much!

Peace Walk organised by Ayelet Lerman and Anat Har-Lev Or

On Friday, June 12, 2026, Ayelet Lerman and Anat Har-Lev Or, longtime Israeli peace activists working toward peace between Israelis and Palestinians, organised a Peace Walk starting from Tushita toward the centre of McLeod Ganj and continued to the Temple of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Kabir Saxena, a longtime teacher at Tushita, encouraged participants in the spirit of Buddhist teachings and compassion, and then joined for the entire walk.

Participants walked side by side in silence, embracing the tradition of nonviolent peace walks inspired by spiritual and moral leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Hanh, Martin Luther King Jr., and many others who dedicated their lives to reconciliation, compassion, and peace.

Peace Walk organised by Ayelet Lerman and Anat Har-Lev Or (longtime Israeli peace activists working toward peace between Israelis and Palestinians) on June 12, 2026

New Nationalities Visiting Tushita

Michael Moses from Trinidad & Tobago marked our 119th nationality during the first Introduction to Buddhism Course from Feb 23 to March 4. And, Lucia Amalia Estevez Valdez from the Dominican Republic marked our 120th nationality during the fourth Introduction to Buddhism Course from April 14 to April 23.

In Buddhism, the number 121 is very auspicious. Hence, we are very eagerly waiting for our 121st nationality to visit Tushita. If you or one of your friends is from the following countries, please visit us, we have a special surprise waiting for you:

Antigua & Barbuda, Armenia, Aruba, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Benin, Brunei, Burma, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Curacao, Djibouti, Dominica, East Timor, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Holy See, Honduras, Kiribati, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Macau, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Micronesia, Monaco, Mozambique, Nauru, Niger, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Qatar, Rwanda, Saint Kitts & Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Maarten, Samoa, Sao Tome & Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Sudan, St Vincent & Grenadines, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Tajikistan, Togo, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Zambia

Drop-in Guided Meditations and Teachings with Ondy Willson

From March 23 until May 8, our visiting teacher Ondy Willson offered daily one and a half hour sessions to equip attendees with the knowledge of Buddhist psychology and philosophy to traverse the path to enlightenment with confidence. Each session began with a half-hour meditation followed by teachings and an opportunity for question & answers that helped attendees both on and off “the cushion”.

Our visiting teacher Ondy Willson offered daily one and a half hour sessions of meditation followed by teachings

Volunteer Days after Courses

After the end of each course, Tushita invited day volunteers to help set up Tushita for the next course. Very lovely volunteers joined us very enthusiastically, even if sometimes the weather did not cooperate. As a token of thanks, we offered them lunch and screened a Dharma Movie.

Guru Puja (Lama Chöpa)

On the 10th & 25th of the Tibetan month, Tushita offered Guru Puja (Lama Chöpa) in the evening. We were joined by Sangha and regular members of the community.

Special Guest Teachers

Yangten Rinpoche

We feel so blessed that in the first half of the year, Yangten Rinpoche has visited Tushita four times already! Rejoice!

On March 2 2026, during the Days of Miracles, Rinpoche gave the teachings on 16 Aspects of the Four Noble Truths – both offline and online.

From March 28-29 2026, at the request of a Vietnamese group, Rinpoche offered three teaching sessions on Why Do We Need Meditation and Intelligence? – both offline and online. Rinpoche taught in Tibetan with translation in English by Venerable Lozang Drolma and Vietnamese.

On May 17th 2026, Yangten Rinpoche gave an inspirational teaching on the value of practice of compassion and conferred a Chenrezig Jenang (permission to practice) for our annual series of 8 Nyung Nay Retreats, which started on May 15th 2026. Rinpoche taught in Tibetan, and Geshema Kelsang Wangmo provided English translation.

Yangten Rinpoche conferred a Chenrezig Jenang (permission to practice) for our annual series of 8 Nyung Nay Retreats, which started on May 15th 2026.

On June 14th 2026, Yangten Rinpoche gave a special public teaching on How to Develop Bodhicitta. This teaching was primarily for the students attending our ongoing Introduction to Buddhism Course (in Hindi), but members of the public were also welcome to attend. The Hindi translation was provided in person by Geshe Kailash Bauddha and the English translation by Geshema Kelsang Wangmo via Zoom.

On June 14th, Yangten Rinpoche gave a special public teaching on How to Develop Bodhicitta primarily for the students attending our ongoing Introduction to Buddhism Course (in Hindi), but members of the public were also welcome to attend.

Yangten Rinpoche with part of the Tushita team and the teachers from the Introduction to Buddhism Course (in Hindi) – Kabir Saxena and Geshe Kailash Bauddha

Courses with Special Teachers

Geshe Lhakdor: Upgrade your Mind! Old Wisdom, New Perspective

April 4 – 10, 2026

We were delighted to have Geshe Lhakdor at Tushita with his annual signature course. With his inspiring, down-to-earth and humorous teaching style, Geshe la made these 7 days a wonderful experience for 80 students!

Geshe Lhakdor – Upgrade Your Mind! Old Wisdom New Perspective from 4-10 April, attended by 80 students

Serkong Tsenshab Rinpoche: How to Practice in Daily Life – A Guide to Infinite Happiness

27 April – 6 May 2026

We were extremely honoured and delighted that Serkong Tsenshab Rinpoche accepted our request to give His second 10-day course at Tushita! We were extremely fortunate to host Rinpoche for these ten days, during which he gave teachings to 83 students. Venerable Losang Drolma very kindly offered translations in English.

Welcoming Serkong Tsenshab Rinpoche to Tushita

We were deeply happy to gather in the presence of Rinpoche during the very auspicious occasion of Vesak / Buddha Purnima. In the morning, Rinpoche offered teachings for this precious day, and in the evening, we came together for Guru Puja with Tsog, followed by a beautiful light offering.

Rinpoche offered teachings for Vesak, and in the evening, we came together for Guru Puja with Tsog, followed by a beautiful light offering

We feel very fortunate that Rinpoche was here with us during this special time, and rejoice for all the students who could receive these teachings and blessings together.