Ven. Lobsang Chukyi's blog

I am sitting now in a New York City apartment (Thank you Nancy Carin), nursing a cold and contemplating the work done by those who are not going into retreat, but who are pouring their energy out for those of us who are.

My job right now seems to be traveling the world with one of my Holy Angel Lamas, Lama Christie McNally.  I am out here trying to help drum up support for the three year retreat, and attempting to accumulate enough goodness to undertake the retreat myself.

But there are all these heros and heroines at Diamond Mountain building that retreat, one earth bag at a time, one straw bale at a time.  They are working in rough conditions (temperatures at Diamond Mountain vary from 120 degrees to 30 degrees depending on the season).  They are largely unsung, mostly unpaid, behind the scenes.   They just believe!  And support those who believe!  And they are incredible!

I want to sing a few of their names here (and I know I will miss hundreds).  Sing their names along with me.  Rejoice in their merit, peruse these pages, and know that the triumph of retreat is not just for those who enter the retreat, but for those who pour their lives into making dreams come true for others.

To:  Nicole Davis, Cortney Labbe, Grant Burns, John E. O., Bert Scott, Brian McMillian, Scott Vacek and his angel Orit, Rob Ruisinger, Becky Lyzen (and her angel Mark), Kelly Roadhouse, Angie Prewitt, Geoff Eddy, Jaret Scott, Doug Veenhof, Kevin Warren, Keith Emmons, Rebecca Vinacour, Ven. Jigme Palmo, Allison Dey, Suzy Newman, and a cast of hundreds, I bow at Your feet and hope that Your goodness ripens into a paradise.  And, yes, I cheated.  I didn't want to mention any of the retreaters here, because obviously we have a vested interest, but I chose to mention Grant Burns.  Grant is single handedly building Kristin Walsh's retreat house.  He also struggled to build paths that make impossible sites possible... and I mention him here because no one yet is helping him to build his own retreat house.  Want merit x 1000 anyone?  Help Grant!

For me, there is a miracle happening, and I'm not even there to see it.  But I can feel it... and rejoice in it, and bow with full heart to the "true" angels.

Love,

Chukyi

Hi my dears,

It is difficult for me to blog, so I thought I would just start.

I'm Chukyi.... or as our Irish friends sometimes say: "Chuckyi".  I've been a resident at Diamond Mountain since we first started... that would be the last three year retreat.  That retreat was out in the middle of the desert, no running water, no nothing, just a bunch of people determined to become the kind of people who could save the world.  Of course, I didn't have the goodness then to be one of the retreaters, but I had the chance to serve those who did, and it was awe-inspiring.

Imagine going into three years of silence, armed with your spiritual knowledge, completely dependent on the kindness of others for every meal, every personal item, every single thing you need, including water.  Nothing at your fingertips but sand.  Nothing in your heart but love and compassion.  Enough love and compassion that you are willing to be dead to the world for three years, three months and three days of solitary work--working to transform your own heart so that you can be someone able to transform the world.

Now to me, that is admirable.

So this time around, I hope to be on the inside of the retreat, rather than outside, with my nose pressed up to the window like a lost puppy, wishing that I had enough discipline to put my life where my mouth was.  I say I want to help others, but am I truly willing to do what needs to be done in order to be of help?

We will see... so stay tuned, and through this blog I'll try to bring you along on my journey of preparation...

If I am going to do this, I'm taking all of you with me!

With much love (and the capacity is growing!)
Chukyi