Yangsi Kalu Rinpoche's confessional video is starting to make its way around the internet already. It's remarkable how many people still cling to their fairy-tale view of monastic life, in spite of this insider's frank portrayal. I consider this video to be a major breakthrough. Maybe it will inspire others to speak out, or a journalistic expose of some sort.

[www.downthecrookedpath-meditation-gurus.blogspot.com]

Here is a post on one of Yangsi Kalu Rinpoche's blog sites that details his plans to revamp the monastic education to better prepare students for the real world should they opt out of the monastic system upon reaching their majority, and to provide a safe environment for novices.

[www.paldenshangpa.net] This sounds like an effort worth supporting. He may catch a lot of flack when the entrenched power structure finds out he's airing dirty laundery and moreover, is intent on creating a morally clean, healthy and constructive system of his own. He may well need a lot of moral, logistical and financial support. Not to mention legal assistance, possibly. He reports elsewhere on the same site that lamas in his own dharma centers (centers set up by the late Kalu Rinpoche) have hired lawyers to deny his legitimacy. See: [www.paldenshangpa.net]

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Blue Dakini
I am investigating reactions from the Kagyu hierachy -- I suspect they are very worried.

According to one post on Kalu Rinpoche's Facebook page, he got support from Tai Situ, one of the top Kagyu authorities, to remove the lamas from his main center in France, and to bring in a new crew, who, he says, disciples can feel safe studying with. The fact that he has at least Tai Situ's support is significant. [www.paldenshangpa.net] The background to this clean-up was given in one of the links is my post above. (http://www.paldenshangpa.net/2011/04/broken-hearted-in-france/)


This business of accusing anyone who would publicly raise the issue of corruption and abuse in TB of being an agent for the Chinese, as Blue Dakini and I have experienced, strikes me as ironically Stalinesque, and not in the best interests of Tibetan Buddhism. "If you're not with us, you're against us". Dare to suggest the system needs improvement, and off to the gulag you go, as an enemy of the people. The result of that policy was a society that cannibalized itself.

I'm heartened by the appearance on the scene of this young reincarnation, who has the courage and the integrity to speak out and to enact reforms. We'll see how the Tibetan community reacts to him, and how the religious power structure does. Undoubtedly, a few, like the ever-trendy filmmaker, Dzongsar Khentse Rinpoche, will pretend they were for reforms all along. Dare we hope that Yangsi Kalu Rinpoche's actions will start a trend? Is he Tibetan Buddhism's Gorbachev? Only time will tell.

I too think Yangsi Kalu is very good news. At the moment he is sowing wild oats. I think he needs to do that after his grotesque experiences in the monastery but I hope it does not continue for too long. He certainly earned considerable respect for sorting out the French dharma centres. He has a huge following worldwide -- so much responsibility and so much expectation rests on his young shoulders. Tai Situ did stand by Kalu over the dharma centres, but I'm pretty sure he is not happy about the confessional video or Kalu's personal FB page. Also -- its worth noting that Osel Hita Torres (Lama Thubten Yeshe's reincarnation) left Sera monastery and disrobed for the same reasons as Kalu did. Osel is 24 and also known as Ozzy Ibiza. He is a film maker and musician. However, despite their damaging experiences, both these young men remain faithful to Tibetan Buddhism. Amen.

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Blue Dakini
Also -- its worth noting that Osel Hita Torres (Lama Thubten Yeshe's reincarnation) left Sera monastery and disrobed for the same reasons as Kalu did.

O.H. Torres was sexually abused in his monastery? Could you give us more information about that? I know his mother visited him a few times in the monastery, but there was no mention of abuse. She had other complaints, but abuse wasn't among them.

Not sure about sex abuse -- there were rumours -- but certainly beatings. He is on record about his disenchantment with the monastic regime. You can probably find it if you search.

A little more inforation on young Kalu Rinpoche has been forthcoming. Apparently Tai Situ Rinpoche has invited him to visit and talk three times, and K.R. has declined. K.R. had been living with his family in Bhutan until his father died. Then his mentor, Bokar Rinpoche, offered him the option of staying with his family, or moving to Bokar Rinpoche's monastery. Kalu R. was 9 at the time. This source says he chose to go to the monastery. In his video, he sounds like it wasn't his choice, but still, it's a big decision for a 9 year old to make, especially one who has no idea what really goes on in a monastery.

Does anyone know if there's been an official response from the Kagyu leadership? I would love to see this problem tackled in a serious way, so that in the future, boys can live in a safer environment. Really, the whole child-recruitment custom in the Asian Buddhist countries needs to be eliminated.

Is there any way to get in touch with Kalu Rinpoche directly, without having to post publicly on his facebook sites?

Here are some thoughtful comments by a Sri Lankan anthropology professor at Harvard, who has published comments on this problem in his own country. [www.infolanka.com]

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Blue Dakini
I too think Yangsi Kalu is very good news. At the moment he is sowing wild oats. I think he needs to do that after his grotesque experiences in the monastery but I hope it does not continue for too long. He certainly earned considerable respect for sorting out the French dharma centres. He has a huge following worldwide -- so much responsibility and so much expectation rests on his young shoulders. Tai Situ did stand by Kalu over the dharma centres, but I'm pretty sure he is not happy about the confessional video or Kalu's personal FB page.

Overall, this is very good news. I agree that it may take YKR some time to recover from his traumatic experiences. Unfortunately, some on the internet are not so understanding or generous with Kalu Rinpoche. Already, there's a voice that's denying the attacks ever happened.


There is some interesting information forthcoming about YKR's parentage. It's said that he is the son of the Kyabje Kalu Rinpoche's nephew, Lama Gyaltsen. How interesting that a celibate monk would produce a child, and an important tulku, at that! They do tend to keep them in the family. This sounds like it could be the same nephew that Kalu Rinpoche required June Campbell to service sexually, in order to guarantee the nephew's silence about her visits to Kalu. It seems that K.Kalu Rinpoche and nephew had a pretty good deal for themselves. One "consort" bore them an heir!

here's some info from Lama Shree about Y. Kalu Rinpoche's father--business as usual at Sonada Monastery:
[lamashree.org]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/31/2011 10:45AM by Misstyk.

Here's an article journalist Mary Finnigan published recently about Yangsi Kalu Rinpoche's revelation of sexual abuse and a murder attempt he suffered as a child in the monastic environment:

[www.guardian.co.uk]

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Misstyk
Narcissistic leaders whose monastic upbringing lead to their desensitization to others' pain and suffering are a recipe for disaster when unleashed on a naive Western Buddhist community.

I think this says it all! It's a message that should be spread widely.

In Trungpa's autobiograpy he says when he was a child he was fed (and ate) the flesh of his deceased best friend. And this man was revered by the celebs and youth of the sixties in America and by many of them still to this day!