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E-mailing the Lamas from Afar

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Ngak’chang Rinpoche

Lineage Holder
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Khandro Déchen

Lineage Holder

Aro gTér lamas reply to the e-mail questions of their students, questions which concern the full range of the students' lies, from the fine points of Buddhist teachings to the nitty-gritty details of relationship, work, family life and interpersonal conflict. They demonstrate, through concrete examples, the unconditional applicability of Vajrayana Buddhist teachings and practice to all realms of experience.

For more Q&As, please see:

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E-mailing the Lamas from Afar

Heart Advice from Two Buddhist Teachers to Their Students

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen This book carries into the 21st century the teachings of an ancient spiritual tradition, non-monastic Vajrayana Buddhism, the vehicle of …
Ngakchang-Rinpoche-and-Khandro-Dechen-are-the-lineage-holders-and-principal-lamas-of-the-Aro-gTer-tradition.-From-Sang-ngak-cho-dzong

The hell of being a practitioner

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Apprentice Why is it that I can see, in my practice of shi-nè, exactly how my mind works, but I …
Ngakchang-Rinpoche-and-Khandro-Dechen-are-the-lineage-holders-and-principal-lamas-of-the-Aro-gTer-tradition.-From-Sang-ngak-cho-dzong

Just a nyam?

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Apprentice I had an interesting experience recently. I sat in our dining room looking out into a glowering dark blue …
Khandro-Dechen

A blind alley

Khandro Déchen Apprentice: Recently I’ve begun to struggle with anything other than shi-nè (which has also become more inconsistent). I’ve also been …
Ngakchang-Rinpoche-and-Khandro-Dechen-are-the-lineage-holders-and-principal-lamas-of-the-Aro-gTer-tradition.-From-Sang-ngak-cho-dzong

Strange and unbelievable

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Apprentice Why does enthusiasm come and go? It is not that I am not enthusiastic as an apprentice—it’s the best …
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Sudden enlightenment

Ngak’chang Rinpoche Apprentice People talk about satori, sudden enlightenment, glimpses of enlightenment. I tend to be a bit suspicious of these things—what …
Khandro-Dechen

The ‘ten second problem’

Khandro Déchen Apprentice I would like to ask you about practice. Why is it that my practice is often such a contrast …
Ngakma Shardröl Du-nyam Wangmo

there you have it

Shardröl Du-nyam Wangmo Apprentice I can see all my ‘bad’ habits happening quite frequently. Several times a day, in fact. It is excessively …
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when we forget to ‘do samsara’

Ngak’chang Rinpoche Apprentice Rinpoche, when you were teaching at Pema ’ö-Sel Ling, you said that one could be inspired by natural phenomena …
Khandro-Dechen

motivation is always mixed

Khandro Déchen Apprentice Could you say something about finding a balance between perfectionism in Dharma projects on one extreme, and on the …
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a rabid domestic terrorist

Ngak’chang Rinpoche Apprentice I have been thinking a lot about the subject of—I do not really know what to call it now—of …
Vajrayana Arts and Crafts
Khandro-Dechen

you are braver than you think you are

Khandro Déchen Apprentice I would like some advice about how I deal with my emotions, and the conceptual disarray that has comes …
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some of them should be manacled

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Prospective apprentice There is an impression I have from being around your sangha that I have not found elsewhere – …
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“I do” – one way or another

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Apprentice A man at the recent public retreat asked me about who authorises or vouches for Lamas in the Nyingma …
Khandro-Dechen

trust in the humor of the situation

Khandro Déchen Apprentice When you’re in a situation where you’re experiencing ambivalence or resistance . . . you said that I should …
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personal magic

Ngak’chang Rinpoche Apprentice Can I ask a question about magic and what is meant by magic? People seem to use the word …
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the surrogate compassion of an arrogant dharmite

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Apprentice I am used to hearing teachings which continually emphasise compassion—and since I became an apprentice I have been aware …
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a conduit of transmission

Ngak’chang Rinpoche Apprentice I have noticed that you get onto apprentices about small particulars and wondered why? I’m not complaining or anything, …
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we thought we had no spare time left

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Prospective apprentice Is it feasible for a man or woman with a career, children, and family obligations to practise Vajrayana? …
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being touched by poignancy

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Apprentice Sometimes there is something almost unbearable about it. The poignancy of human life. So many things. The sadness of …
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career Buddhists

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Apprentice I think something strange happens to people when they become involved with religions. I have this feeling because I …
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shifting experiential norms

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Apprentice You mentioned, in relation to compassion, the concept of ‘shifting experiential norms’. Would you explain how that functions?
Lamas It …
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some sort of syrupy saint

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Apprentice I have read books by Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche where he mentions ‘idiot compassion’. Can you say something about that? …
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Calamity Jane

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Apprentice I am aware that I am not very brave – but I would like to be brave. I seem …
Khandro-Dechen

cheerfully and without resenting yourself

Khandro Déchen Apprentice . . . You are right. I am going through a lot of conflict. It was just that I …
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King Kong

Ngak’chang Rinpoche Apprentice At the last apprentice retreat you spoke of ‘daring’ and how it was a quality that was needed in …
Ngakchang-Rinpoche-and-Khandro-Dechen-are-the-lineage-holders-and-principal-lamas-of-the-Aro-gTer-tradition.-From-Sang-ngak-cho-dzong

spurn dejection at every turn

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Apprentice I had been expecting a telephone call this week—a call which had not arrived—until I suddenly realised that they …
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demented delight

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Apprentice When I told you that I was sad but that maybe I understood something – i.e. I’m sad because …
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it’s not British, you know

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Apprentice I get a bit worried sometimes—not all the time—by what is said of the Mahasiddhas. Whenever I read about …
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naturalness is relaxing into the present moment

Ngak’chang Rinpoche Apprentice Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche spoke often about ‘now’ and ‘nowness’ – and he brought it into many different contexts. Is …
Ngakchang-Rinpoche-and-Khandro-Dechen-are-the-lineage-holders-and-principal-lamas-of-the-Aro-gTer-tradition.-From-Sang-ngak-cho-dzong

sequentiality still exists, simply of itself

Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen Prosepective apprentice The Lama at the centre feels that his real rôle is to help students recognise what their path …

Forthcoming events with Ngak’chang Rinpoche or Khandro Déchen:

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Embracing Emotions as the Path

Teaching with Ngak’chang Rinpoche & Khandro Déchen.

In-person only

Sat Sept. 6, 2025, 1PM UTC - 9PM UTC
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Spacious Passion

The geography of the elements and emotions - a portal of possibility

Retreat with Khandro Déchen & Ngak’chang Rinpoche.

Lam Rim Buddhist Centre In-person only

Fri Oct. 17, 2025 - Sun Oct. 19, 2025
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Thangka Painting Retreat

Retreat with Khandro Déchen & Ngak’chang Rinpoche.

UK In-person only

Tue April 21, 2026 - Tue April 28, 2026

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More pages by Ngak’chang Rinpoche or Khandro Déchen:

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Embracing Emotions as the Path

Colours and Elements in Tantric Psychology
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Empowerment and the four kayas
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Empowerment & Transmission

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Books by Ngak’chang Rinpoche or Khandro Déchen:

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E-mailing the Lamas from Afar

Heart Advice from Two Buddhist Teachers to Their Students
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Entering the Heart of the Sun and Moon
Goodbye Forever 1

Goodbye Forever - Volume 1

Miscellaneous Memoirs of an English Lama

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