The mission of the Tergar Meditation Community is to make the ancient practice of meditation accessible to the modern world. For centuries, the practice of meditation has been used by countless individuals to transform suffering into joy and confusion into wisdom. Tergar meditation and study programs are designed to facilitate this transformation. Under the guidance of Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, a remarkable teacher celebrated for his ability to make the practice of meditation accessible to people of all backgrounds, the Tergar community of meditation centers and practice groups provides a comprehensive course of meditation training and study, with programs for Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike.
The Tergar journey begins with the Joy of Living, a series of three seminars that present practical advice on how meditation can be used to calm the mind, open the heart, and develop insight. The Path of Liberation builds on the foundational teachings of the Joy of Living, presenting a series of meditative practices designed to strip away the causes of suffering and uncover the radiant awareness that underlies all experience.
Tergar International oversees the activities of Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche outside of Asia. Our activities include the creation of materials for practice and study, training programs for meditation instructors and facilitators, programs that serve the entire worldwide community of Mingyur Rinpoche's students, and the scheduling of Rinpoche's teaching tours.
Tergar Meditation Centers and Groups offer weekly meditation and study sessions, as well as regular seminars on meditation and the core principles of the Buddhist path. Contact a Center in your area.
Mingyur Rinpoche is a Tibetan meditation master celebrated for his ability to present the practice of meditation in a clear, accessible manner. Rinpoche himself used the practice of meditation to deal with a debilitating anxiety disorder as child. Later, he took part in a number of groundbreaking scientific studies concerning the effects of meditation on the brain. His teaching style reflects this unique background, combining the ancient wisdom of Tibet with the insights of modern science and practical advice on using meditation to deal with the challenges of daily life.
The Tergar Meditation Community has a number of senior teachers and instructors working under the direction of Yongey Mingyur RInpoche.
If you would like to learn more about meditation or find a program of study and practice in your area, join our email list or contact a community leader.
Mingyur Rinpoche
Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche possesses a rare ability to present the ancient wisdom of Tibet in a fresh, engaging manner. His profound yet accessible teachings and playful sense of humor have endeared him to students around the world. Most uniquely, Rinpoche’s teachings weave together his own personal experiences with modern scientific research, relating both to the practice of meditation.
Born in 1975 in the Himalayan border regions between Tibet and Nepal, Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche is a rising star among the new generation of Tibetan Buddhist masters. From a young age, Rinpoche was drawn to a life of contemplation. He spent many years of his childhood in strict retreat. At the age of seventeen, he was invited to be a teacher at his monastery’s three-year retreat center, a position rarely held by such a young lama. He also completed the traditional Buddhist training in philosophy and psychology, before founding a monastic college at his home monastery in north India.
In addition to extensive training in the meditative and philosophical traditions of Tibetan Buddhism, Mingyur Rinpoche has also had a lifelong interest in Western science and psychology. At an early age, he began a series of informal discussions with the famed neuroscientist Francisco Varela, who came to Nepal to learn meditation from his father, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche. Many years later, in 2002, Mingyur Rinpoche and a handful of other long-term meditators were invited to the Waisman Laboratory for Brain Imaging and Behavior at the University of Wisconsin, where Richard Davidson, Antoine Lutz, and other scientists examined the effects of meditation on the brains of advanced meditators. The results of this groundbreaking research were reported in many of the world’s most widely read publications, includingNational Geographic and Time.
Currently, Mingyur Rinpoche teaches throughout the world, with centers on four continents. His candid, often humorous accounts of his own personal difficulties have endeared him to thousands of students around the world. His best-selling book, The Joy of Living: Unlocking the Secret and Science of Happiness, debuted on the New York Times bestseller list and has been translated into over twenty languages. Rinpoche’s most recent books areJoyful Wisdom: Embracing Change and Finding Freedom and an illustrated children’s book entitled Ziji: The Puppy that Learned to Meditate.
TERGAR LAMAS
Khenpo Kunga
Khenpo Kunga became monk at a young age and began his education at Tergar monastery, where he studied the rituals, prayers, and other traditional practices of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. At fifteen, he entered an extended meditation retreat and spent three years mastering the profound contemplative practices of the Kagyü lineage. Following this period of intense meditation practice, he entered the renowned Dzongsar monastic college near Dharamsala in Northwest India. After studying there for eleven years and receiving his Khenpo degree (roughly equivalent to a PhD), he taught at Dzongsar college for three additional years. Khenpo Kunga's primary teacher is Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, though he has studied with many other revered masters as well. In recent years, Khenpo Kunga has taught in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and the United States as one of the main teachers for the worldwide network of Tergar Monasteries, Meditation Centers, and Meditation Groups.
Khenpo Gyurmé
Khenpo Gyurmé ordained as a monk at Tergar Monastery at a young age. There he studied the rituals, prayers, and other traditional practices of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Following his training at Tergar Monastery, he enrolled in the monastic college of Sherab Ling Monastery, the seat of Tai Situ Rinpoche. After completing his education, he taught for three additional years and received the title of Khenpo (roughly equivalent to a PhD). Khenpo Gyurmé has also studied meditation extensively with Tai Situ Rinpoche and Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche.
Lama Chhewang Thile (Lama Trinley)
Acharya Lama Chhewang Thile (Lama Trinley) has been the resident teacher at the Tergar Meditation Center of Phoenix since November, 2007. Lama Trinley began his education at Tergar Monastery, where he studied the rituals, prayers, and other traditional practices of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. He entered the traditional three-year retreat when he was seventeen years old, after which he spent six years training in the monastic college of Tergar Monastery, where he taught for three years as assistant professor. Lama Trinley is quickly mastering the English language and now leads meditation sessions in English.
TERGAR INSTRUCTORS
Cortland Dahl
Cortland began meditating in 1993 while a student at the University of Minnesota. In the years that followed, he practiced and studied a number of Buddhist traditions and traveled extensively throughout Asia, where he spent time on retreat in Japan, Burma, India, and Nepal. Following this period of travel, Cortland returned to the United States to pursue a master's degree in Buddhist Studies at Naropa University. He then lived in India and Nepal for seven years, which gave him the opportunity to immerse himself in the Tibetan language and spend more time in retreat.
Since 2003, Cortland has interpreted for various Tibetan lamas and taught courses on Buddhism and Tibetan language throughout the world. He founded the Rimé Foundation in 2004 and, under the direction of Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, started the Tergar Institute in 2006. As a translator, Cortland is a member of the Nitartha Translation Network and has worked extensively with the Dharmachakra Translation Committee. His publications include Entrance to the Great Perfection: A Guide to the Dzogchen Preliminaries; Great Perfection, Volumes I & II; and Deity, Mantra and Wisdom: Development Stage Meditation in Tibetan Buddhist Tantra.
Cortland has been a student of Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche since 2001 and currently serves as co-director of Tergar International. He lives with his wife and child in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Edwin Kelley
Edwin Kelley first became interested in Buddhism in 1975 when he attended a meditation retreat near Perth, Australia. He later pursued a career as a public accountant and 1992 went to Burma to undertake a six month period of intensive retreat with the renowned meditation master Chanmyay Sayadaw. While practicing in Burma he ordained temporarily as a Theravada Buddhist monk.
In 1994 he was hired as Director of Operations by one of America's best known meditation retreat centers, the Insight Meditation Society (IMS), in Barre, MA. Eighteen months later he was appointed Executive Director of IMS and served in that capacity until 2003 when he resigned to pursue further long-term intensive meditation practice.
Edwin first encountered Vajrayana Buddhism in Dharamsala, India in 1993 and became a student of Mingyur Rinpoche in 1998. He has attended numerous retreats with Rinpoche in North America and Asia and recently led the meditation class for Rinpoche's program on Shantideva's 'Way of the Bodhisattva' in Bodhgaya, India.
Edwin and his wife Myoshin, live in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has a post graduate diploma in Buddhist Studies from the University of Sunderland in the UK.
Myoshin Kelley
Myoshin Kelley attended her first meditation retreat in 1975 at the age of 20. Through the ensuing years she has received dharma instructions from several renowned Buddhist meditation masters in the Theravada, Zen and Vajrayana traditions. She has practiced extensively with the Burmese meditation masters Chanmyay Sayadaw, Sayadaw U Pandita, and Sayadaw U Tejaniya. In the early 1990s Myoshin received meditation instruction from the Soto Zen master Hogen Yamahata. Her desire for long-term meditation practice has taken her to Burma on several occasions.
In 1994 she accompanied her husband, Edwin, to the Insight Meditation Society (IMS) in Barre, MA, where she was trained as a meditation instructor by Joseph Goldstein and Sharon Salzburg. Since then she has been teaching meditation in a number of places throughout North America. In 2003 she was appointed the teacher in residence at the Forest Refuge, the long-term practice center at IMS.
Myoshin was introduced to Vajrayana teachings in 1993 and met Mingyur Rinpoche in 1998 when he first visited the US with his brother Tsoknyi Rinpoche. Since then she has practiced with Mingyur Rinpoche in North America and Asia benefiting from his skillful, lucid instructions on the profound teachings of Mahamudra.
Tim Olmsted
Tim began his Buddhist studies in 1977 under the late Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche in Boulder, Colorado. In 1981, Trungpa Rinpoche invited Mingyur Rinpoche's father, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, to teach in Boulder. Profoundly moved by him, Tim and his family moved just a few months later to Kathmandu to study with Tulku Urgyen and his sons. During the twelve years that he lived in Nepal, Tim studied with many of the older teachers living there and worked as a psychotherapist serving the international community. In 2000, Tim moved to Cape Breton, Nova Scotia where he served for three years as the director of Gampo Abbey, the largest residential Buddhist monastery in North America. He is presently the president of the Pema Chödrön Foundation, which supports Gampo Abbey. In 2003, after a visit by Mingyur Rinpoche to Gampo Abbey, Tim started the Yongey Foundation to support and promote Mingyur Rinpoche's activities in the West. Tim lives with his wife Glenna in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, where he leads an active community that follows Mingyur Rinpoche's teachings and those of his family lineage.
TERGAR FACILITATORS
Antonia Sumbundu
Antonia Sumbundu has been practicing meditation and receiving dharma teachings from renowned Tibetan Buddhist meditation masters since 1988 and she has been a student of Mingyur Rinpoche since 2002. She is a psychologist and psychotherapist specialized in clinical application of meditation, in which she has been teaching international since 2004. In 2010 Mingyur Rinpoche invited Antonia Sumbundu to begin facilitating Joy of Living workshops for the Tergar Meditation Community and she happily accepted.
Why Meditate?
Where can we find true happiness? In the modern world, we are surrounded by unparalleled levels of material wealth and comfort, yet our sophisticated exterior often masks feelings of dissatisfaction, anxiety, and depression. Ironically, it often seems that the more "progress" we see in the world around us, the less content we are with our lives.
Meditation shows us that true happiness is found within. The feelings of contentment and wholeness that we often seek outside ourselves are actually part of our basic nature. Unfortunately, we have become so habituated to looking outside of ourselves for happiness that we often do not know how to discover this "inner wealth." Though we all have the potential to find a deep and lasting happiness that does not depend on external circumstances, simply hearing that we already have what we need to be happy is not enough; we need practical methods to uncover our true nature, practices that will enable us to move beyond the cultural conditioning that perpetually tells us that we are incomplete.
The practice of meditation awakens us to the joy of the present moment. By cultivating attention and awareness, even challenging situations like chronic pain, destructive thought patterns, and difficult emotions can be transformed into sources of inner peace and joy. This inner transformation does not require us to retreat from the world. On the contrary, daily life is filled with endless opportunities to use the practice of mindfulness to find the preciousness of every moment. Meditation is not meant to remove us from the world, but to open our hearts and minds to the beauty of what we already have.
For centuries, various forms of meditation have been taught and practiced in virtually all of the world's religions. While there are important differences between the techniques found in each tradition, they share the belief that true happiness cannot be found in the shifting conditions of the external world, but rather by turning inward and exploring the landscape of the heart and mind.
In recent years, meditation has also received a great deal of attention from the scientific community. Researchers from Harvard, MIT, the University of Wisconsin, and many other renowned institutions have explored the effects of meditation on everything from high blood pressure to peak states of consciousness. Their research has shown not only the profound effects that meditation can have on the brains of advanced meditators, but also how practicing meditation for only a few minutes a day can create a dramatic increase in the parts of the brain associated with happiness and wellbeing. Meditation has also been shown to boost the body's immune system, to improve the brain's capacity to concentrate for extended periods of time, and to be an effective treatment for many psychological disorders.
What is Meditation?
Meditation is the art of cultivating awareness and insight. It can be used as a practical tool to undo destructive emotional patterns, to develop positive qualities like wisdom and compassion, and to access the mind’s fundamental nature of pure awareness. For centuries, meditation has been taught and practiced throughout the religions of the world.
There are two main forms of meditation: awareness and insight. Awareness meditation is used to calm the mind and to improve concentration. Rather than taking us away from the elements of our lives, awareness meditation allows us to experience what we have in the present moment more fully, using everything we encounter, including what we think and feel, as a way to deepen and expand our awareness. This expansion of awareness brings with it a stable feeling of peace and serenity that is not dependent on outer conditions.
Some of the more well-known forms of awareness meditation involve focusing on or counting the breath, paying attention to a visual object such as a candle flame, or repeating a sacred sound or prayer. Awareness can also be cultivated by focusing the mind on thoughts, emotions, or even by resting in a state of open presence, without focusing on anything at all. All of these techniques are designed to still the mind and increase the meditator’s ability to consciously direct his or her attention to a given object.
Insight meditation cuts through the deluded ideas we have that create suffering and allows for a flowering of wisdom. Once we have stabilized the mind in awareness meditation, attention can be directed to the workings of the mind and the natural world. This experiential inquiry enables us to see how thoughts and emotions shape perception, how our misguided ideas create suffering, and how our own basic nature is fundamentally good and pure. As a result of insight meditation, we will be able to see things as they truly are, rather than through the distorting lens of preconceived ideas and concepts. This insight into the nature of reality uproots the causes of suffering and puts us in touch with our own basic goodness.
Some forms of insight meditation employ the rational mind to analyze different experiences to discover their underlying reality. Certain techniques, for example, enable the meditator to discover that all phenomena are impermanent and devoid of any stable identity. Other forms of insight meditation do not use the conceptual mind to investigate the nature of reality. Instead, they take a more direct approach, allowing the meditator to directly experience the mind’s true nature of radiant clarity.
Tergar Meditation Training offers a systematic course of training in both awareness and insight meditation.
Tergar Meditation Training provides an in depth course of training in both awareness and insight meditation. The Tergar journey begins with the Joy of Living, a series of three seminars in which Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche presents practical advice on how we can use meditation to calm our minds, open our hearts, and develop insight into the true nature of reality. Emphasizing universal principles like inner peace, compassion, and wisdom, the Joy of Living teaches an approach to meditation that can be practiced by people of all faiths and belief systems.
The Path of Liberation builds on the foundational teachings of the Joy of Living, presenting a series of meditative practices designed to strip away the causes of suffering and uncover the radiant awareness that underlies all experience. This course of practice and study, based on the ancient Buddhist teachings of Tibet, addresses the fundamental confusion that lies at the root of all suffering, enabling us to uproot the distorted ideas and destructive behaviors that keep us trapped in a cycle of anxiety and dissatisfaction. This course of meditation training is recommended for those who feel inspired to make Buddhism their primary spiritual path.
Tergar's unique approach allows for the integration of theory and meditation. The most important principles of the spiritual path are presented in an experiential manner so that they can be directly applied in our day to day lives.
GENERAL QUESTIONS
Do I have to be Buddhist to meditate?
Meditation can be practiced by anyone. The practice of meditation is a process of turning inward to learn about the workings of the mind and how thoughts and emotions shape perception. It does not require one to believe any particular religious doctrine, though many of the world's greatest sages and saints have used meditation as a way to deepen their understanding and experience of their own faith. Currently, meditation is taught and practiced in health care settings to relieve stress and cope with chronic pain; in the corporate world to develop authentic, value-based leadership; and in the educational system to help students concentrate and center themselves.
What can I expect from meditation?
Meditation has many benefits. In a general sense, meditation allows us to access the mind's innate qualities of peace and serenity. Eventually, these experiences become a living reality and our happiness is no longer dependent on the fluctuating conditions of the world around us. Meditation can also be used to cultivate certain qualities, such as compassion or wisdom, and also to address specific problems, such as destructive emotional patterns, chronic illness, and challenging relationship issues. The point of meditation is not to escape such situations, but rather to see that everything we experience can be transformed into a source of joy through the practice of meditation.
What is the best way to learn how to meditate?
There is no one approach to meditation that works for everyone. Indeed, the "best" approach is simply the one that works best for you. Most people, however, find it useful to learn how to meditate from an experienced teacher. If you enjoy reading, books are a good place to start. Please take a look at our recommended reading list, which includes books on meditation from a variety of perspectives and traditions. If you are not much of a reader, or if you've already read extensively but haven't found something that clicks, you may want to visit some meditation centers in the area where you live to see what inspires you. There are also many meditation communities that have online programs and/or instructors that are available via email or phone calls.
If you feel drawn to our approach, then you're in the right place! Feel free to contact a community leader or send us an email via our contact page. We'd be happy to tell you more about our approach to meditation and help you get started in practice.
QUESTIONS ABOUT MEDITATION PRACTICE
Is it important to have a daily meditation practice?
The ultimate goal of meditation practice is to bring awareness to every moment of one's life, not just the time one spends in a formal meditation session. That said, setting aside time each day to cultivate awareness is an indispensable part of the process. Most people find that the more time they devote to meditation "on the cushion," the easier it is to bring awareness to their experiences "off the cushion."
How long should I meditate?
When beginning a daily meditation practice, it is important to meditate in short, frequent sessions. Twenty minutes a day, practiced over one or two sessions, is a good general guideline for beginning meditators. It is important to note, however, that you can and should practice anytime, anywhere. Once you know the key points of meditation, you will be able to use any experience or activity as a way to practice sustaining meditative awareness.
How do I know if I'm really meditating?
Meditation is a state of heightened awareness. When you try to meditate, there will likely be periods where you are lost in thought, and other times when you are fully aware in the present moment, meaning that you are fully conscious of what you are doing at that time. Whether you are focusing on your breath, observing thoughts, or simply resting in awareness, the sign of meditation is that you know what you are doing. In other words, you are not only watching the breath, but also aware that you are watching the breath. Meditative awareness can be practiced at all times. You simply need to be aware of whatever you are doing in the present moment. If you are driving to work, for example, you can pay attention to the road and your surroundings, but also maintain a heightened sense of awareness that you are driving. You can even do this while engaged in conversation, watching television, or working in front of a computer.
What do I do when thoughts come up?
Thinking is a natural function of the mind; there is no need to stop thoughts from occurring. When you are meditating and you realize that you have been lost in thought, simply return your awareness to the object of your meditation. There is nothing more to it than that. You may even take your thoughts as the object of meditation, or rest in open awareness, letting thoughts come and go without paying too much attention to them. The key point is that thoughts and distraction are a natural part of meditation. As you grow more and more familiar with meditative awareness, thoughts will bother you less and less. You may even find that thoughts actually help your meditation, insofar as they are one more experience that you can use to expand your awareness.
How does meditation relate to daily life?
Meditation allows us to be more aware and present in whatever activity we are doing. This has a beneficial impact on virtually every aspect of day to day life. In relationships, meditation will help us develop unconditional love that springs from a place of deep peace and serenity. At work, meditation will enable us to be more focused, creative, and efficient, while at the same time being emotionally balanced. In terms of health, meditation has been shown to have a dramatic impact on the physical body, including lowering stress levels, increasing immune system functioning, and increasing the capacity to cope with illness and chronic pain.
General Inquiries
Tergar International
810 S. 1st St., Suite 200
Minneapolis, MN 55343
(952) 232-0633
Practice Questions
Tim Olmsted
Curriculum & Study
Cortland Dahl
Program & Scheduling
Edwin Kelley
Press & Public Relations
Tim Olmsted
(970)-846-2699
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