Statement by Chabje Jamgön Mipham Rinpoche on the occasion
of accepting the position of Tsenzin of the Mipham Institute
An event of considerable significance occurred yesterday
in the home of Jukunde, Mayor of Tawo, capital of Golok,
the former governor of Golok and relative of Mipham the
Great.
After a series of lengthy speeches, I, Chabje Jamgön Mipham
Rinpoche, was asked to accept the position of Tsenzin (supreme
head) of the Mipham Institute, based in Golok.
This request was made by the boards of directors and advisers
of the institute, consisting of high lamas, khenpos and
respected scholars from the areas of central Tibet, Kham,
Golok and Amdo. These boards represent all of Tibet, including
a group of more than 60 monasteries within Golok.
For several years these Buddhist leaders have wished to
establish an institute based on the writings and knowledge
of Mipham the Great who has become one of the main sources
of Tibetan culture, arts and sciences as well as of the
buddhadharma.
Mipham the Great was one of the rare figures in Tibetan
history who composed texts on such a wide range of subjects,
both spiritual and secular, that he is now a primary source
of education for the Tibetan people.
The creation of the Mipham Institute comes at a time when
the Tibetan people are reflecting on the question of how
best to preserve and develop their education, culture and
spirituality.
With the onslaught of modernization and materialism, there
is reason to fear that Tibetan culture and spirituality
will be eroded and its very survival endangered.
The Mipham Institute therefore aims to develop into an
educational complex that can embrace not only the Buddhist
teachings of Mipham the Great, but also provide a hospital
and research centres for the study of the many sciences
that are included in the full opus (kabum) of his teachings
as well as those of his disciples. Such a comprehensive
learning environment would not only consist of a university
but also offer primary and secondary education and centres
of excellence for painting, dance, poetry and other arts.
Over the past two years, the creation of the Mipham Institute
has been the subject of many meetings and dialogues ranging
from Lhasa to Beijing. These discussions have included
representatives from the areas of Jumang and Jungong in
the birthplace of Mipham the Great, and have involved Jigme
Phuntsok Rinpoche and his successors. These discussions
have been historic because they have included representatives
of the Chinese government, which has given its full support
to the establishment of the Mipham Institute and to my
holding the position of Tsenzin as the reincarnation of
Mipham the Great.
Since I hold a foreign passport and spend a great deal
of time travelling in the world outside China and Tibet,
it is not possible for me, in my capacity as Tsenzin, to
advise the institute on a day-to-day basis. Rather, my
role will be to serve as the source of inspiration and
guiding principles for this great undertaking.
A large tract of land has already been purchased in the
capital of Golok with the intention of building facilities
that can provide education in the five major and five minor
aspects of the teachings of Mipham the Great. The aim is
to have a campus open to Tibetans and non-Tibetans alike,
accessible both to monastics and to lay practitioners and
scholars. Thus it will become an international university
welcoming individuals the world over, eventually with branches
in other locations in Tibet. In this way, the Mipham Institute
will provide a continuing education and cultural basis
for the future of Tibetan culture and spirituality and,
in accordance with the aspiration of Mipham the Great,
for the benefit of the world as a whole.
9 October 2004 |
