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Click above to make a Donation via PayPal All donations are tax deductible
and deeply appreciated. |
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Since I started traveling through Asia in the mid 70’s I have heard about the mystical land of Bhutan, a tiny Himalayan Kingdom, closed to casual exploration. A permit to enter was hard to acquire and expensive.
In the past few years Bhutan has opened it’s doors a bit. Small tour groups offer a glimpse of the untouched Buddhist culture. Now we have an opportunity to experience this land of wonder as Dancing Taras.
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Last year a dear friend on Maui, Kutira Decosterd of Kahua Institute called us about an amazing opportunity that had fallen into her lap. She had met two of the queens of Bhutan (there are four) and became friends. Through this friendship she visited the country and the Queen Mother - Her Majesty Tsering Yangdon, inspired her to help them improve the conditions of their nuns.
They need higher education. There is no female lineage and no institution to train the women. The queen is determined to change this situation.
When Kutira returned from her first trip she called us. Kutira is a Tara Dancer and has on occasion offered her beautiful Bamboo Sanctuary for Tara Dance retreats. We spoke about our program of we spoke with her about our programs of teaching the nuns in Nepal the Tara Dance.
Kutira was off to Bhutan soon after our conversation so we gave her a DVD and other materials about the Tara Dance and I wrote a proposal.
Read more of "Kutira Meets The Queen" story.
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I propose that we help the nuns to develop a Tara Monlom (Prayer Festival) every year. Tara Dhatu would bring a group of dancers from outside of Bhutan and some of the senior teachers would stay on and work within the different nunneries teaching the Tara Dance and other relevant dances. In this way we would have an ongoing source of income for the nuns.
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These festivals bring in a great deal of support from the local community as well as from foreign visitors. And we would be generating tremendous merit by focusing our prayers and offerings to the Great Goddess, Tara.
Kutira discussed the proposal with the queen. When she placed the papers on the table the most wondrous bird appeared in the window behind them. The queen was astonished. In all her years she had never seen a bird like that and she considered it a very auspicious sign. Her small dog jumped onto Kutira’s lap, uncommon behavior for her furry friend, and from the queen’s point of view all is favorable for us to proceed to make plans.
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In November Kutira and her husband Raphael plan to go to several of Bhutan’s nunneries to record the nuns chanting their Tara prayers and practices. They have invited me and Robin Mazor from Kauai, to accompany them.
Robin will be doing the videography and photography of the journey. Donations to Robin will also help finance a simple edit of the material for distribution.
They will be making a CD of the nuns in preparation for an exhibition on Bhutan showing in many of the large USA cities that will be attracting a great deal of attention. This is one way they hope to gather funds for the teaching facility for the nuns.
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It is the perfect time to see the lay of the land, to make preparations for our first delegation of dancers and to set a date for the first Monlom.
In order for us to be able to accompany Kutira and Raphael this fall we will need to raise money for the expenses of travel. I invite you to help support this project by making a donation.
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Click above to make a Donation via PayPal |
Donations of $50 or more will receive a copy of the completed CD. |
Donations of $150 or more will receive a DVD from footage we will take of our journey. |
Donations of $500/$1000 or more will receive the DVD and CD and be listed as benefactors on a plaque to be placed inside the Institute. |
To view more photos illustrating this article please visit:
Our Photo Album:
May our sincere aspirations to share the blessing of the Dharma Teachings and the joy of Tara’s Dances bring benefit to all beings.
Prema, Anahata and the Tara Dhatu Council of Trustees
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Please Make a Donation to this Inspiring Project:
Cheques may be made out to
Tara Dhatu
1936 Highway 26
Elton LA 70532
USA
If you have any trouble making Credit Card Donations through Paypal, you can pay directly by contacting our Central Co-Ordinator:
Contact: Lilliha Nancy Herington:
Ph: (USA) 337 584 2119
Email:
for instructions on making credit card donations
Or simiply Click on the graphic below to make
an Easy Donation via our Paypal Service.
Click above to make a Donation via PayPal All donations are tax deductible
and deeply appreciated.
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Many of the nuns do not have suitable footwear. They trek for hours through the snow in sandals. One of our goals is to bring a suitcase of warm “wool or synthetic” socks with us this November. If you would like to donate a pair of warm socks (red only) you can send them to
Prema Dasara
P O Box 504
Kula, HI 96790
We are also hoping to bring in much needed medical supplies. If you would like to donate specifically to this need please indicate when you write your check or make your paypal payment. Please: DO NOT mail medical supplies. We want to know what they need and at present awaiting final details. |
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