Published by: World Tibet Network News, Tuesday, July 9th 1996

A group of 6 Tibetan monks led by Geshe Kunchok Tsering from GADEN SHARTSE Monastery in Karnataka State, South India, are now on a 10 day visit in Panama as part of a group of 12 Monks on a World Tour for "WORLD PEACE AND HARMONY"

They were in Mexico for three and a half months, and in Costa Rica for ten days, After Panama, they will visit Colombia, 8 other countries in South America, Puerto Rico, the U.S.A etc.

The three main objectives of the tour are:

1) World Peace and Harmony

2) Create awareness about the real Tibetan Plight and conditions.

3) Collect some Donations for the poor monks of the monastery, most of them are orphans from poor family and escaped from Tibet.

The following is a list of some of the programmes to be conducted in each country :

Medicine Buddha Initiation

Green Tara Initiation

White Tara Long Life Empowerment

Vajravidaran Purifiation

Inter Faith Dialogue

Lectures on Buddhist Philosophy and Seminars

Exchange of Ideas concerning Tibet

Tibetan traditional dance performance

Creation of Sand Mandala

The Beginnings of GADEN SHARTSE MONASTERY

After the Chinese communist takeover in Tibet, one hundered thousand Tibetans followed His Holiness the Dalai Lama into India in 1959. In the transition for the Tibetan people, education for the children became a priority for the exiled Government, and schools were opened. Elder Tibetans observed that in the majority of schools the curriculum was strongly influenced by Indian life and a comprehensive Tibetan education was unintentionally ignored. This problem was compounded by the fact that the Cultural Revolution was simultaneously destroying all centers of Tibetan learning inside Tibet. These conditions led some refugees to pool their efforts together and with support and modest contributions from fellow Tibetans they established a small, modest center for Tibetan education and culture in South India. They named it Shartse to continue in the name of the famous center of learning near Lhasa in Tibet.

Gaden Shartse now has more than 1400 resident Tibetan scholars, writers, students and administrators.

Projects and Problems:

>From among many projects and problems like construcinga school building, improving the old existing library, health and hygiene and others, the gravest problem the monastery has been facing ever since it was reestablished in India is food for the 1400 monks. Apart from donations from well wishers, there is no other source of Income.

For more information write to: Educational Develpment Project

Gaden Shartse Monastery

Tibetan Colony

Mundgod 581-411

North Kanara

Karnataka State

India

Tel:91-8301-84542 fax: 91-8301-84529

Following is a list of contact telephone numbers for some of the countries the group will be visiting:

Argentina: Stela Mary Rodriguez, Buenos Aires Tel: (541)805-5342

Hugo , Buenos Aires: Tel (541)772-3879

Bolivia: Leonel Peralta, La Paz, Tel (591-2) 340-018

Brasil : Gabriela Priosky, Sao Paulo Tel : (55-11)262-9017

Elsa Tamas , Sao Paulo Tel: (55-11)820-2853/884-6125

Chile: Lila Poggio, Santiago

Colombia : Jose Vicente Marquez, Bogota Tel : (57-1)271-7504,342-2648,243-7710

Ecuador : Hernan Rios, Franz Rios, Quito : TEl (593-2)23-8315,86-2610

Peru : Orlando Garcia, Lima Tel : (51-14)49-4052 Fax 49-2279

Venezuela : Iris Hoogesteijn, Caracas : Tel: (58-2) 781-5984

Uruguay : Victor Sacco, Montevideo Tel: (598-2) 92-1117, Fax 92-1272