Photo: Karmapa on a golf cart at the Bronx Zoo. Achi Tsepal is walking on the right. Photo: Jeff Bloom.
Achi Tsepal: Karmapa in New York
In September, we went from Calcutta to London and from there to New York City. Karmapa traveled with twelve lamas and the English nun Sister Palmo, who was a disciple and benefactor to the Karmapa. Indeed, the reception was just amazing. Everything was very well-organized and His Holiness was received like a head of state, with receptions in the Plaza Hotel. Everything was prepared as you would prepare for a president. The explanation Chögyam Trungpa, who co-organized this trip, gave to his students was: “He is a Dharmarāja, a Dharma King, to the lineage” and for this he is offered so much respect. People at that time—unlike today—were less familiar with Tibet and the Vajrayana, but many Americans were very curious about Tibetan Buddhism. All the Vajra Crown Ceremonies were packed; there were two or three thousand people wherever he went. The publications and the introductions—every detail was remarkably well-organized.
Karmapa stayed on Long Island in the house of Dr. C. T. Shen, who was, I would say, among the most wonderful Buddhist benefactors I have ever met. He was a very successful businessman; he had made his money on the Great Lakes of the US in the shipping business and was one of the main patrons and president of a section of the Stony Brook University. He had a place called the Bodhi House, where there were conferences relating to the Buddhadharma, and at the same time he had Kyabje Dezhung Rinpoche there, one of the most learned scholars of the Sakya Order, one of the most learned Tibetans, and a great practitioner.
A great effort was being made at this time to capture and preserve the fragile Tibetan texts from the original wood blocks and Tibetan paper to more permanent and modern storage. Kyabje Dezhung Rinpoche was hired to transfer the Kangyur scripture (direct Buddha teachings) and Tengyur (sacred commentaries on the Three Yanas written over thousands of years) for preservation and storage on microfiche. Lobsang Lhalungpa worked on translations from Tibetan into English. Dr. C.T. Shen, I think, was a key figure in establishing Buddhism in America. He acquired the property to establish the Karma Triyana Center in Woodstock and at the same time he offered another 300 acres to Chinese Buddhists in the New York area. He was a truly extraordinary human being and a true disciple of the 16th Karmapa.
Q: How did His Holiness react to this new environment in the US? He had never seen anything like New York before.
A: The reception in the US was a great experience. His Holiness and the monks came from Sikkim, remote region, but they somehow felt much at home, even though the culture and the lifestyle were quite different. They didn’t feel out of place. They were rather like kids in a candy store, amazed, happy and curious, very open, tasting and soaking up the lifestyle. They seemed to take it all in.
Achi Tsepal: Karmapa in New York
In September, we went from Calcutta to London and from there to New York City. Karmapa traveled with twelve lamas and the English nun Sister Palmo, who was a disciple and benefactor to the Karmapa. Indeed, the reception was just amazing. Everything was very well-organized and His Holiness was received like a head of state, with receptions in the Plaza Hotel. Everything was prepared as you would prepare for a president. The explanation Chögyam Trungpa, who co-organized this trip, gave to his students was: “He is a Dharmarāja, a Dharma King, to the lineage” and for this he is offered so much respect. People at that time—unlike today—were less familiar with Tibet and the Vajrayana, but many Americans were very curious about Tibetan Buddhism. All the Vajra Crown Ceremonies were packed; there were two or three thousand people wherever he went. The publications and the introductions—every detail was remarkably well-organized.
Karmapa stayed on Long Island in the house of Dr. C. T. Shen, who was, I would say, among the most wonderful Buddhist benefactors I have ever met. He was a very successful businessman; he had made his money on the Great Lakes of the US in the shipping business and was one of the main patrons and president of a section of the Stony Brook University. He had a place called the Bodhi House, where there were conferences relating to the Buddhadharma, and at the same time he had Kyabje Dezhung Rinpoche there, one of the most learned scholars of the Sakya Order, one of the most learned Tibetans, and a great practitioner.
A great effort was being made at this time to capture and preserve the fragile Tibetan texts from the original wood blocks and Tibetan paper to more permanent and modern storage. Kyabje Dezhung Rinpoche was hired to transfer the Kangyur scripture (direct Buddha teachings) and Tengyur (sacred commentaries on the Three Yanas written over thousands of years) for preservation and storage on microfiche. Lobsang Lhalungpa worked on translations from Tibetan into English. Dr. C.T. Shen, I think, was a key figure in establishing Buddhism in America. He acquired the property to establish the Karma Triyana Center in Woodstock and at the same time he offered another 300 acres to Chinese Buddhists in the New York area. He was a truly extraordinary human being and a true disciple of the 16th Karmapa.
Q: How did His Holiness react to this new environment in the US? He had never seen anything like New York before.
A: The reception in the US was a great experience. His Holiness and the monks came from Sikkim, remote region, but they somehow felt much at home, even though the culture and the lifestyle were quite different. They didn’t feel out of place. They were rather like kids in a candy store, amazed, happy and curious, very open, tasting and soaking up the lifestyle. They seemed to take it all in.
