Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche
World-renowned meditation master
The Founder of Modern Kadampa Buddhism is Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche, a fully-accomplished meditation master and internationally-renowned teacher who holds the very essence of Buddha’s teachings in his heart.
Venerable Geshe-la transmits this profound wisdom and compassion to the people of the modern world in very practical ways through the extremely accessible methods of Modern Kadampa Buddhism.
A life of dedication
From the age of eight, Geshe-la, as he is affectionately called by his students, studied extensively in the great monastic universities of Tibet and earned the title ‘Geshe’, which literally means ‘spiritual friend’. Under the guidance of his Spiritual Guide, Trijang Dorjechang Rinpoche, he then spent the next 18 years in meditation retreat in the Himalayas.
In 1977 he accepted an invitation to teach at Manjushri Kadampa Meditation Centre in England, where he lived and taught for many years, giving teachings and guidance to an ever-growing number of students, including at many International Festivals.
Since coming to the West, he worked very hard to create a modern presentation of the Kadampa lineage of teachings, through writing 24 books, giving thousands of teachings, establishing over 1400 centers and temples world-wide, training hundreds of Buddhist teachers, and developing practical study and meditation programs to suit the needs of the modern world.
Through his great kindness, everyone – regardless of nationality, culture, age or gender – now has the opportunity to practice these time-tested methods for solving the problems of daily life that ultimately lead to true and lasting happiness.
Our Founder, Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche
Our General Spiritual Director, Gen-la Kelsang Dekyong
Our Deputy Spiritual Director, Gen-la Kelsang Jampa
Our Eastern US Spiritual Director, Kadam Morten Clausen
Kadampa Buddhism
Kadampa Buddhism is a Mahayana Buddhist school founded by the great Indian Buddhist Master, Atisha (AD 982-1054). His followers are known as “Kadampas.” “Ka” refers to Buddha’s teachings and “dam” to Atisha’s special Lamrim instructions known as “the stages of the path to enlightenment.” After Atisha, the Kadampa lineage was passed down through a succession of great Teachers including Dromtönpa, Geshe Potowa, Geshe Sharawa, and Geshe Chekhawa. These Teachers were not only great scholars but also spiritual practitioners of immense skill and sincerity.
The Kadampa lineage passed from generation to generation until the fourteenth century when it reached the great Buddhist Master Je Tsongkhapa. Je Tsongkhapa clarified all the teachings of Kadam Dharma and made them very accessible to the people of that time. In particular, he showed how to combine Lamrim, and Lojong with Mahamudra Tantra in a unified daily practice. Just as the union of study and practice was a hallmark of the early Kadampas, so the union of Sutra and Tantra was to become a hallmark of the New Kadampas, as the followers of Je Tsongkhapa became known. After Je Tsongkhapa, the New Kadampa lineage flourished for hundreds of years, to the present day.
In recent years, it has been shared widely by the contemporary Buddhist Master, Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. He is primarily responsible for the worldwide revival of Kadampa Buddhism in our time. By founding the New Kadampa Tradition, the International Kadampa Buddhist Union, Geshe Kelsang has created a global infrastructure to preserve and share Kadampa Buddhism for many generations to come.
Our Lineage
New Kadampa Buddhism is a special presentation of Buddha's teachings designed especially for the people of the modern world. All the practices come from Buddha Shakyamuni and have been preserved over the centuries by an unbroken lineage of fully realized Teachers.
Venerable Geshe-la’s presentation retains all the meanings and insights of Buddha’s original teachings, while offering them in a fashion that is accessible and suitable for modern-day practitioners. Through this great kindness everyone – regardless of nationality, culture, age or gender – now has the opportunity to follow practice scientifically proven methods for solving the problems of daily life that ultimately lead to true and lasting happiness.
Please visit our World Peace Temple in the Western Catskills: https://www.kadampanewyork.org