Peter Young is as far as I remember is Malay Chinese. He came to the UK as a supposed mental health nurse/carer in the eighties. This was an easy entry route at the time. Get the right paperwork and you were granted entry. Of course he had bigger ideas than that. Someone needs to ask Lama Bigdong about his dodgy porno video rental shop. This was located on the Coast road (Newcastle upon-Tyne) and had a 'special room' for the porno collection . This was illegal, the shop raided and closed down. He reinvented himself as a kung-fu master (self taught from books and videos) and started his brainwashing journey with young victims who were just leaving home for their first year of university. He is a complete and utter charlatan. I was amazed to hear he is now a Lama! I am sure this thread will grow...

I’ve extracted relevant quotes from the other thread on Peter Young to give easier access.
The full thread can be found here:
[forum.culteducation.com]

Posted by: howi ()
Date: September 15, 2005 10:05PM
... [Peter Young]... runs this program ... Once I got up there it became clear that these people think he has supernatural abilities.
... He was certainly good at brainwashing his students. They worshipped the man.
He wore sunglasses all the time as he had "the eyes of a buddha" that would
be too much if people looked at them....
... The people who follow this guy seem to be in a state of trance and basically give up the rest of their life to follow and learn from him. ... Anyways, it just got too weird for me. ... It all turned into unleashing your Chi to amazing results to obtain powers of control and ability that you never could reach by yourself.


Posted by: paracelsus ()
Date: November 23, 2006 05:37AM
I know Peter Young. I'd be seriously worried about anybody close to me being part of his group.

He was kicked out of the Tai Chi Union of Great Britain several years ago for unethical conduct. He is a fairly accomplished liar and I'd check out any credentials he offers very carefully.
He has left a trail of burnt out and broken students behind him.
The ones that remain are, indeed, pretty much brainwashed and regard him as a Buddha. He has been charging top dollar for teaching Buddhism for nearly 10 years though from what I could divine this was contrary to the sect which he had joined.
He is superficially pleasant unless challenged and then can become exceptionally abusive and unpleasant. In altered states he gives the impression of actually not being completely all there. Stay away and hold on to your money. If you doubt this - get in contact with reputable members of the Tai Chi Union of Great Britain who will put you straight on Peter Young.


Posted by: karmabiting ()
Date: December 02, 2008 04:05AM
I have been a student of HH Penor Rinpoche's, for twelve years, and have attended the one month summer retreat every year since they began. Dr. Young, (honorary title) has spent a number of years at these retreats.
While Peter is a student of Rinpoche's, I would not say that he has any "special" endorsement from him.
If you read Dr. Young's website carefully, he skillfully manipulates the language to present a portrait of himself that inflates his standing.
While there are no blatant lies (as far as I know) in his statements about himself, there is a good deal of exageration and subtle massaging of the truth. For example, Dr. Young states that he has received all kinds of major empowerments and initiations. That is true, but so did anyone who paid for the retreats. He also lists his various dharma names and titles, and explains their meaning. They are quite impressive.
But anyone who has been on the Tibetan Buddhist path for long can reel out a hefty list of impressive titles and names. That is the custom.

Aside from his first name, the only thing I ever heard Penor Rinpoche call Peter was a liar. This was during the summer retreat, where Rinpoche said he did not "take money from liars", and refused Peter's monetary offering in front of the entire group of retreatants.

Dr. Young has taken to wearing the robes of a monk, and now usually sits with the ordained sangha during practice. I don't know if he has become a monk, but, if anyone knows if he is ordained, I would like to know when, where and by whom.

It is my personal observation that Dr. Young is working very hard to become a well-known teacher and master. However, his association with His Holiness Penor Rinpoche and the Palyul lineage in no way guarantees that his organization is not a cult. ...
... If I had a good friend or child who wanted to study Dharma, I would point them toward "the real thing", not a "wanna be".


Posted by: DrBill ()
Date: January 03, 2011 10:33PM
I knew Peter Young when he lived in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. In my experience and opinion, he was a technically competent martial artist, but he had a big ego, and was dogmatic and intolerant of criticism.
The "chi" demonstrations that you can see on YouTube are classic examples of a strange kind of mass delusion that is fairly common in the martial arts. ...

... How can one explain the evident fact that students are so often ready to let even manifestly fraudulent or ridiculous claims pass unchallenged?
Why go on handing over your money to someone who is clearly a charlatan?

The answer, I suggest, is partly that students are imbued from the first with an unduly deferential and unquestioning attitude to their teachers. ... I suspect also that their denial of the obvious arises from ego-needs of their own: from the wish to believe that they are the disciples of a wise master who can lead them to some cherished goal. It is natural enough to want to belong to an in-group or a “family.” It is natural also, at least for a certain type of personality, to want to place oneself in the hands of a trusted authority figure. This is precisely the kind of dependent and impressionable personality that makes “cults” possible.
... I have seen this kind of collective delusion many times, and it leads to a simple conclusion: that every dishonest teacher is sustained in his position by the suggestibility of students who allow themselves to be deluded.


Posted by: Hmm ()
Date: June 12, 2011 03:41AM
My Personal experience with Peter Young ("Lama Dondrup Dorje") is that he is highly manipulative and abusive. Apparently he gets a sense of pleasure by being in control of other people. He is not a real Lama. Demon would be a proper title for him. Stay away from him is my advice, he has nothing good to offer.

I was there when PY was given his PhD, which prompted him to call himself "Dr Young" for several years (as referred to in the above post), until he found himself a new title (Lama).

The PhD was given to him by a Chinese friend of his who ran some kind of education establishment in the USA.
If you know something about education in the USA you will know that these establishments basically only have satisfy financial criteria in order to award whatever certificates they want.
Needless to say this establishment had no real standing or recognition of any kind. I can't find any trace of it on the internet now.

This friend of his gave PY the PhD, because PY hosted this friend for a weekend in the UK.

That's it. That's the only reason he has a PhD.
PY hosted a friend for a weekend.

The PhD is not worth the paper it was printed on, and for PY to call himself "Dr" for many years as a result, once again shows how deceptive he is.

It also shows how little respect PY has for any title or honorific.
Many people work for years to get a PhD. He hosted a friend for the weekend, and had no shame in claiming the honour.
Amongst the military, this is called "stolen valour".

I saw this happen myself, directly, and was astonished when PY started to call himself "Dr" the following week, changing his business cards to relfect the new title.

PY's use of "Lama" and "Rinpoche" follow the same pattern.

To update a link that seems to have gone down, the reference to Pathgate and PY being recognised as:

"'maximum' on the Group Psychological Abuse Scale, characterized by absolutely indefensible misbehavior and violation of the common vows of Vajrayana Buddhism ... a clear and present danger to its membership, and to society at large. They are to be regarded as an openly notorious threat to His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and other individuals in a position to refute their claims."


Is now here: [tibetanaltar.blogspot.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/21/2018 08:38PM by anon27.

I represent a growing number of ex-students of Lama Dondrup Dorje (Peter Yeung / Young) from Pathgate Institute of Buddhist Studies headquartered in Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK. Some of us were long-time committed and devoted students who have left or forced out of his community due to his pattern of ethical misconduct over the past 30 years.

Following recent revelations about other teachers who were abusing Buddhism, lineage, and students, we feel very strongly that it is our duty to bring to public attention that Palyul’s, H.H. Penor Rinpoche’s and Namdroling’s reputation are being misused by this teacher. We wish to bring to light the real harm he has caused, and continues to cause, his students past and present.

Our concerns are as follows:

1. Peter Yeung’s aggressive, controlling, narcissistic and manipulative behaviour

a) He engages in verbal abuse such as shouting, shaming and humiliation of regular students, usually in public.

b) He inflicts emotional and psychological abuse by instilling guilt and fear in students, such as threatening them with karmic retribution.

c) His aggression even extends to instances of physical assaults on students.

d) He manipulates students into giving up their careers, family commitments and priorities, and devote themselves to him.

e) His teaching sessions usually degenerates into boasting about his abilities and accomplishments, and then denigrating his students.

f) He discourages his students from reading Buddhist texts, and having contact with or learning from other teachers.

g) Any student who does not conform to his will are indirectly forced out of the sangha by his verbal, emotional and psychological abuse.

2. The effects on his students and ex-students:

a) Instead of compassion and wisdom, there is an atmosphere of fear and confusion.

b) There is no real trust and openness amongst students.

c) Long-term brainwashing has disabled students’ capacity to think for themselves and function properly.

d) Students become more isolated from mainstream society, families and friends over time.

e) Many are manipulated into giving up their careers and depleted their financial resources. They are pressured into providing free labour for Pathgate and some are burnt out.

f) They become dependent on Peter Yeung who progressively controls more and more aspects of their lives.

g) Students who leave the sangha are often psychologically and emotionally traumatised and some have sought psychiatric treatment.

h) When students leave, Peter Yeung manipulates the sangha to treat the people who leave as being against the Dharma, even when there are long-term friendships involved and no actual wrong-doing.

i) Most found themselves alone with no support from other students because Peter Yeung specifically tells students not to keep in touch with them. Even now, we find it difficult to contact ex-students.

j) Ex-students whom we have managed to contact personally, have reported very negative experiences with him. The commonality of their experience is striking.

k) Most students who leave are often fearful of speaking up. Some are terrified of spiritual attack, and a few have reported such attacks after they exited Pathgate.

l) We have observed at least two students who had lost their sanity during their time with Pathgate.

3. Questionable qualifications and lack of accountability:

a) Peter Yeung claims to be a long-time disciple of the late Holiness Penor Rinpoche and therefore affiliated to the Palyul Lineage. However, the official website of the Palyul Lineage and its official list of affiliated global centres does not include Pathgate Institute’s centres. We also note that there is already a Palyul Centre in London, UK.

b) Previous emails to Palyul and Namdroling Monastery requesting for verification of Pathgate and Peter Yeung’s authenticity were unanswered.

c) Peter Yeung is a layperson but wears the Tibetan monastic robes, which he calls the “lama robes”. Eyewitnesses confirm Peter Yeung received these robes in an honorary capacity, and not after following the usual course of Buddhist study.

d) Peter Yeung also seems to have no letters or other certificates of lineage or authorisation to teach from H.H. Penor Rinpoche or Palyul. Yet he presents himself as having the ability to teach the highest forms of Buddhism.

e) Despite extensive research, we can find no evidence of Pathgate Institute being registered as a charity or religious organisation, yet it claims both affiliations.

f) There appear to be no real accountability as to where the monetary offerings of students go to.

We acknowledge that Peter Yeung has contributed resources to multiple Palyul projects over the years. Many students were also introduced to the Buddhadharma because of him. Unfortunately, we have also experienced and witnessed first-hand the suffering he has caused directly and indirectly to students and ex-students.

Peter Yeung is not currently teaching Vajrayana Buddhism to his students, and as far as we know, none of his student have taken any formal tantric vows (samaya). It is therefore our conclusion that we have been abused in the name of “Guru Yoga”.

To students and especially ex-students who have been isolated and remained silent till this point in time out of fear, we hope that you can reach out to us to share your story, be part of a growing movement to uncover the harm that Peter Yeung have caused, and to heal from the abuse. We are here to support you.

From the growing number of ex-students coming together, we have mounting testimonies and evidence on PY's misuse of Buddhism to advance his personal agenda and to abuse students.

We have set up a website to include information to educate everyone on Peter Yeung's (PY), and to provide resources to help ex-students recover from the their traumatic time in Pathgate.

[pathgatesurvivors.wordpress.com]

We would like to invite all ex-students to contact us at the website to provide your testimony; or you may email us at: pathgatesurvivors@gmail.com

We have created a facebook page to generate greater awareness;

[www.facebook.com]

We are appealing to ex-students from the 90s and 00s to reach out to us, to set the record straight on PY. Your testimonies would be helpful to educating the public and helping students and ex-students to free themselves of PY's brainwashing.

Misteaching the Middle Way

Peter Young openly reminds his students not to think, and not to read Buddhist texts. What we have come to realise as we free ourselves from his influence, is that if anyone actually utilised their critical minds, done their due diligence and investigated Buddha’s teachings, they would discover that PY does not have the deep understanding of Buddhism he claims to possess.

One of PY’s many distortions and misunderstanding of the Buddhist teachings is his misinterpretation of the Middle Way. He is the only “teacher” who teaches the Middle Way as "always moving forward". Compare that to these two definitions from Tibetan Buddhist sources:

[1] www.rigpawiki.org
Middle Way can refer specifically to the Madhyamika school or, more generally, to the Buddha's teachings as a whole, which present a path that avoids the two extremes of eternalism and nihilism.

Middle Way in the Sutrayana
In the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta in the Pali Canon, the first teaching the Buddha gave after his enlightenment which sets forth the four noble truths, he speaks of the Middle Way, the path of practice that avoids the two extremes of sensual indulgence on the one hand, and severe asceticism on the other. He identifies this way specifically as the noble eightfold path.

[2] www.lamayeshe.com
The view presented in Shakyamuni Buddha's prajñaparamita sutras and elucidated by Nagarjuna that all phenomena are dependent arisings, thereby avoiding the mistaken extremes of self-existence and non-existence, or eternalism and nihilism. Cf Madhyamaka.

[3] Or simply look up Wikipedia’s entry: [en.wikipedia.org]

So “always moving forward” is not what Buddha taught. It is actually a reflection of PY’s personality, worldview and method, and also indicates his ruthless and narcissistic tendencies. For PY, it is enlightenment at all costs — the end justifies the means — there is no compromise. This is why he leaves a trail of destruction in his wake, broken and damaged students, disharmony within his sangha, and isolation of students from families, friends and society. This is causing harm, it is not compassionate, and it is definitely not Buddhism.

Example: PY’s projecting his ruthlessness to distort Pureland Buddhism -- As long as you succeed in taking rebirth in Amitabha's Pureland, enlightenment is guaranteed; thereafter you can go back in time to liberate all your fathers and mothers; therefore it is important to distance yourself from your current relationships (especially family), attend as many teachings and retreats as you can, and totally depend on him as a teacher to guide you.

If students knew the widely accepted meaning of the Middle Way, they will understand that PY's way is not “middle”, it is in fact extreme and nihilistic, one of denial and self-mortification, no different from the Indian ascetic practices experienced and rejected by Buddha Shakyamuni.


Blog entry here: pathgatesurvivors.wordpress.com

The following is shared with us by an ex-student who Peter Yeung attempted to curse and destroy but ultimately failed. He has since went on to rebuild a happy life successfully.


A step-by-step guide on how Peter Yeung turns you into one of his believers

1. Appear friendly and approachable:

Jovial, adept at cracking jokes, and making fun of himself, Peter Yeoung will create an image that he's fun to be with, showing interest in your interests and becoming your best pal.

2. Display the image of a sage:

PY has his students around him behave with total obedience and submission. He will also repeatedly recount his encounters with the late H.H Penor Rinpoche and how supramundane their relationship is. Furthermore, we are constantly reminded on the seemingly supernatural events around him, implying his power and extraordinary status. The overall purpose is to instill awe and respect in you, so that you begin to believe how lucky you are to have the opportunity to meet such a “high Lama”.

3. Invite you to attend his “Dharma teachings”:

By this time, if you are still not in awe and respect of him, he would have most likely left you alone for you are not the “chosen one”. As you indeed attend his teaching, he will quote the Buddhist texts but based on his own interpretation. Prior to your arrival, information of you would have been gathered by asking your introducer. During his teaching he will give you the impression that he knows all about you without you telling him, so you feel that his teaching is great as it strikes a chord with your current life situation, and be be interested in going for more. And before you know it, you will be...

4. Taking refuge:

PY would use slogans such as “A human body is hard to attain, and the Buddhadharma is hard to come by" to imply how rare your encounter with him is, and how you should treasure this opportunity now. Should you stubbornly refuse to take refuge with him, he may flare up, but alas there's nothing more that he can do to you. Knowing that he shouldn't destroy the relationship he has with you as there's always another chance in future, he will try to loosen up the tension by being jovial or cracking some jokes.

5. Maintaining control over you and your loved ones:

As you become more involved with Pathgate, PY will use humiliation, induce shame, and remove your ability to make decisions as "Lama knows best". That in whatever you do, you should always first consult your root guru. He is very skilful in manipulating your emotions, rendering you helpless and tattered as you cling onto his very joy and anger. Total control over you is his way of ensuring the strength of his organisation and its financial sustenance.

Blog post: pathgatesurvivors.wordpress.com

Peter Young’s relationship with Palyul and H.H. Penor Rinpoche

Peter Young (PY) has no official connection to Nyingma, Palyul or Namdroling. Past emails to Namdroling verifying his authenticity were unanswered. This is the Tibetan way of saying "he is nothing to do with us". They refuse to acknowledge PY. I have never seen any real connection with Palyul. PY puts their name on the Pathgate website, and that's all.

I was there when he started to say he was part of Palyul, and it was like someone having been to a place a few times, then saying "oh I'm part of it". He is lying about this.

Another poster on this forum said he saw HH call PY a liar in front of a group of retreatants. Nowadays, PY simply tells his students that he was “scorned very badly” by HH. He claims he did not know why HH was scorning him, he believes that HH was purifying his karma and using him to teach the other students present.

Yet the truth is, HH was simply calling PY out for who he is, a liar. For PY to spin this event to paint himself in a good light shows the jaw-dropping lack of shame and remorse.

I was there when PY started his relationship with HH. PY boasted about how he forced himself into HH's inner circle by pretending to be a professional photographer who just wanted to take pictures (so he had to be allowed to be nearby at all times). I didn't just hear about it, I saw it happen. Also ask the senior student, he knows.

PY was not a professional photographer, so he was lying to HH and his circle of high lamas, so he could get close to them.

PY then wanted to self-publish a coffee-table book of HH in order to hide this lie, but since his photographs lacked quality (because he wasn’t a professional), he said that publishing a book like that was too expensive.

HH didn't like PY, and treated him with distain. I saw this myself when I was at Namdroling. The times I saw PY with HH, HH did not seem to hold PY in any kind of high regard. In fact, I'd say HH was very careful around PY, and very careful to keep distance from him.

In fact, I heard PY complain about the distance HH kept from him several times. Yes, PY spent time around HH, but I think PY has turned that into "I was his special student". He's lying. It's like someone going to a nightclub a few times with a celebrity, and turning that into "oh yeah we are super special friends".

HH had patience with PY because PY brought a lot of money to the monastery, and had developed political ties to influential people in the monastery (again through money and also by manipulating the monks’ awe at PY having so many Western students).

I saw HH give PY the lama robes ceremoniously, in return for a lot of money. It was not in recognition of PY's status. I don't believe PY when he says HH gave him authority to teach. In Tibetan Buddhism, that kind of authority is always backed up by a signed document from the high lama. The Rinpoche at the official Europe Palyul Centre has such a document. The Tibetans did this to stop fake gurus. PY does not have such a document from HH.

When I have seen PY interact with other Buddhists it is not positive. He is a constant state of agitation, and always trying to impress them.

PY also behaves generally in a way that is nothing like how I've experienced real Tibetan Buddhist Lamas behave. The only Buddhist teachers who behave like PY, are those who have since been exposed at fakes and abusers. This has been true since the 1970s, it's all documented.

The only teachers who talk about using "crazy wisdom" are the fakes - they use it as an excuse to act like arseholes. The real teachers who use crazy wisdom don't need to explain that is what they are doing, because even when "crazy", what they do is positive and effective.

PY is neither positive nor effective, so he has to tell people he's using "crazy wisdom" to explain his behaviour. He needs the excuse of "crazy wisdom", otherwise he's just an arsehole. If you take the excuse of "crazy wisdom" from PY, you see immediately who he really is, someone who is nasty to everyone around him, so he can exploit them, so he doesn't have to get a job.

Blog post: [pathgatesurvivors.com]



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/18/2019 02:32PM by karmicwind.