Lama Thupten Phuntsok: Tibetan Monk’s Life Outside Monastery

Tawang, India. Born in Tawang, the middle of three sons, Lama Thupten was by tradition placed by his parents in a Tibetan monastery here. By this tradition here, the first son inherits the family’s wealth, the second son becomes a Buddhist monk, and the third son marries and devotes his life to his wife and her family.

Photo: Stewardship Report.

In 1959, His Holiness the Dalai Lama fled occupied Tibet into exile across the Himalayan Mountains into India; 85,000 of his adherents followed him. They settled largely into Dharamshala, the capital of the Government-in-Exile, but many were scattered across Tibetan settlements in South India. Hundreds landed in Tawang, a part of Historic Tibet that after a border war with China came under India jurisdiction. 20,000 Indian troops on the border in Tawang keep it Indian.

PHOTO: xxx

Photo: Stewardship Report.

This socially-engaged monk told me:

After I graduated, I was asked by His Holiness the Dalai Lama to return to my community in Tawang and engage in supporting the children. I began with 18 who were either orphaned or disadvantaged, and soon opened a home for them. At first, we were in a shack with a tin roof, but we kept going – through TB and lice – as we raised funds to build new facilities and improve the orphanage.

Lama Thupten was asked by His Holiness to return to Tawang

and help destitute children. Photo: Stewardship Report.

Lama Thupten gave me a personal tour of the Shrine of the Fifth Dalai Lama, the leader who united Historic (Greater) Tibet. The monastery there is where Lama Thupten had grown up. The Fifth Dalai Lama had received Genghis Khan from Mongolia at the end of his life. The Mongolian was repentant for all of the bloodshed he had caused and the Dalai Lama welcomed him. In fact, the temple here has a large painting of Genghis Khan on its wall.

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Photo: Stewardship Report.

On the two-day ride from Guwahati over the 14,000-foot Se La Pass to Tawang, Lama Thupten had told me about his own amazing life. He expounded on how the overarching theme of all faiths was Kindness and Compassion. We chatted about how in my own life, working with orphaned children from Buddhist, Christian, Hindu and Muslim backgrounds, the central theme for all was Kindness and Compassion.

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Photo: Stewardship Report.

Paragraph on Manjushree #1

Paragraph on Manjushree #2

PHOTO:

Old picture of Lama Phuten and Dr. K and Helicopter

Photo: Stewardship Report.

It is my understanding that Lama Thupten is either the first or certainly among the first to leave the Tibetan monastery and engage in, as charged by the Dalai Lama, serving the community. This is very much in the footsteps of the Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Than, who walked with Martin Luther King, espousing social engagement not detachment. Like Gandhi, serving good by serving the poor.

PHOTO: xxx

Photo: Stewardship Report.

In Protestant tradition, this would be considered engaging in the Social Gospel. In Catholicism, it could be likened to Liberation Theology, such as preached by Bishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador. In Christianity, there are those who preach about Christ, and those who walk barefoot down the dirt road with Jesus.

PHOTO: xxx

Photo: Stewardship Report.

Lama Thupten, Tibetan monk, is clearly walking in the path of Buddha. Not devoting his life to worshiping Buddha as God, but following the Buddha’s own words to become Buddha-like himself. Through his selfless service to humanity.

Series On Pilgrimage: Following the Footsteps of Buddha Across N.E. India in 15 Parts

#1: On Pilgrimage: Following the Footsteps of Buddha Across N.E. India

#2: Under the Bodhi Tree in Bodh Gaya Where the Prince Became The Buddha

#3: Photo Essay of Bodh Gaya, Where Buddha Became Enlightened

#4: Next Step of Indian Pilgrimage: Vultures’ Peak Where Buddha Preached

#5: Touching the Untouchable in a Rural Indian Village

#6: Rediscovering the World’s First Great University in Buddhist India

#7: Buddhism for Beginners: Insights from a Non-Buddhist

#8: Buddhism and the Universal Concept of Social Responsibility

#9: Help Me to Support Education & Orphan Care in Bihar, India

#10: Most-Photographed Man in the World Prepares to Retire

#11: Yoshimitsu Nagasaka Photo Exclusive: The Dalai Lama in Bodh Gaya

#12: Varanasi: Holy City of Buddhists – As Well as Hindus, Jainists, Jews

#13: On the Banks of the Ganges: Reflections of a Journey in Time

#14: My Pilgrimage Complete: Life Continues Like a Wheel

#15: Pilgrimage Postscript: Pneumonia and Possible T.B.

Series on Tibet in India, September 2019 in 15 parts

The Dalai Lama & Dr. Kazuko: A 47-Year Friendship

Tibetan Children’s Village: Step One to Success

India: Great Protector of the Tibetan People

With Incredible Tibetan Orphans, Reflecting on How I Got Here

Meet Japanese Grandmother of Tibetan Orphanage in India

Lama Thupten Phuntsok: Tibetan Monk’s Life Outside Monastery

First Trip to Manjushree Tibetan Orphanage High in Himalayas

Dharamshala for Americans: Dalai Lama’s Hometown

Himalayas for Americans: From India/Pakistan to Bhutan & Nepal – plus Chinese Tibet

Himalayas: Once Great Tibet, Now Divided

Meet American Lobsang Sangay, President of Tibet

Kazuko: Planning Nine Orphanages Globally

Whatever Faith Tradition, It’s All About Kindness

Orphanage Burns; Matt Luce Pledges to Rebuild It

At 50, I Gave Away My Wealth, at 60, My Possessions

Lama Thupten Phuntsok: Tibetan Monk’s Life Outside Monastery

About Jim Luce