If Nydahl is indeed changing his ways and encouraging his students to practice restraint with regards to alcohol intake then I applaud this change in direction.

Perhaps the criticism he has received on forums like this has reached his ears and he has also been made aware of the frankly very poor conduct of some of his students.

It will be interesting to see how this contunues after his death. But, I welcome the change. Perhaps he could also see fit to issue an apology to all those who have been scarred by him and his organisation.

Steve

Quote
anonym
Shamarpa's recent statement concerning Ole Nydahl:
[www.lama-ole-nydahl.de]

Indeed, the pdf link to this undated letter may be found in english - [www.lama-ole-nydahl.org]
and german - [lama-ole-nydahl.de]

Incredibly on both sites the date is given as 2013 and is nowhere to be found on Shamarpa's site.

I doubt very much if Shamarpa really knows what goes on in the centres, or even Nydahl himself for that matter; I can recall a huge cleaning effort prior to any visit in order to present an image far different to the everyday reality, and it seems that image is a major concern of Nydahl too.

I have direct experience of Nydahl taking the centre leaders' lies at face value, thereby encouraging dishonesty and malicious gossip, and I think its not dissimilar to the idea of taking sides and blaming the "other" found in Nydahl's own dualistic rants.

Few things about Shamar Rimpoche's letter. Somehow the statement is written in very simple way. Usually his statements are written in more sophisticated language , why would one write story about a crow which led their way out from rice fields? It is official letter to the public and story about the "miraculous bird" does not look very believable.
Usually on a official statements there is a date. the date on this statement is missing. 
I understand that someone's signature may change from time to time but Shamar Rimpoche's signature look a bit different from his previous statement, please check for your self.
This is his current statement
[www.lama-ole-nydahl.org]

and here His previous statement [www.lama-ole-nydahl.org]

I am not conspiracy theorist but everything about this letter seems a bit odd.
However the  news on alcohol consumption are welcome development . Hopefully wild party time is coming to the end in DW centres and wisdom and compassion time is coming there.  

I read the letters of Sharmapa, which you only can find on Nydahl´s homepage and of course not on Sharmapas. Nydahl stands so terribly in need of acknowledment by the so called "High Incarnations", that is part of his character. He wants to be loved despite everything he does, bad or good deeds. And Sharmapa did him the favour. Once his brother Jigme told, a Tibetan can´t say "No".

We should not forget Sharmapa is still working together with Nydahl. During his courses he gives lectures and inaugurations. In my eyes he never stopped supporting Nydahl´s work. His revolutionary doing was stopping to give tantric teachings.

It is so important to trust ourselfes, our own expieriences ad not to hang on to a statement of which authority ever.

What a good chance to bring in my Open Letter to Ole Nydahl:


Humanitarianism consists in never sacrificing a human being to a purpose.

Albert Schweitzer



So far I have not written on my blog that I accused you of an aggravated assault.

I have not written that there is an ongoing investigation based on very serious charges.

And I have not written that the investigation was reopened following my appeal to the Attorney General. Unlike the prosecutor who closed the case, Attorney General believes there is public interest in further investigation.

The outcome of the investigation is yet unknown. I do hope however that my allegations can be proven in the course of investigation. I do not hope so for personal reasons. Personally I have forgiven. I hope so for political, or let's call it sectarian – political reasons. I want the secret Tantric practices of Tibetan Lamaism to be justiciable if they have such devastating consequences as described here:

(Quote from Wikipedia) "The practice of the Six Yogas of Naropa requires a high degree of meditative ability and spiritual knowledge due to its intrinsinc effects like extremely powerful, energetic emanations and especially due to its far-reaching consequences.“

I had neither spiritual knowledge, nor had I advanced trained meditative skills. I was simply too lazy for the whole Nondro excercise and all the rest. Why someone like me should be tortured like that?

(Quote from Wikipedia) „An attempt to perform Six Yogas of Naropa fully or partially, while not being properly instructed or guided and without proper preparation is possible but sometimes it causes serious and potentially irreversible phisical and psychological complications.“

It is my mission to oppose it with all my strenght and perseverance. Let me openly speak about my case. Let me openly speak about how secret practices of Tibetan lamaism can cause damage to body and soul.

Our society is based on values of the Christian - Humanist tradition which culminated in the Age of Enlightenment and brought with it inalienable human rights.

You know that as well as I do. You grew up in this tradition but you have at once thrown it to the wind and turned to magic and mistery, when Lepön Tzechu became invisible in front of your eyes, when you met him first. You turned to the sexual promises of the Tantras, to the supposedly power, to the power over women. This is obviously rooted in your personality. You are a junkie of such drugs.

Do you want to bet which one of us will go to jail first? Just play with me a little! Just like in Leverkusen when you kissed me on the lips and said: „Well played, honey“. Those were the days! Yes, yes Maha Mudra. What has become of her?

I suppose I am at the risk of an arrest due to the interim injunction you have obtained against me. Your Solicitor or someone else in your team, must have studied my blog obssesively.

I am a woman who gives everyhing into what I believe. If the prison is the price I have to pay for writting my blog, let it be so, I feel fine everywhere. If this is what it takes to continue my blog, I will continue from behind the bars.

That should make the headlines. „Former Ole Nydahl's Student Jailed on Request of Her Ex-Spiritual Teacher and His Solicitor“. A sensational story full of piquant details, just right for tabloids like „Hallo“. And the most piquant of all, you will have to pay for my stay in prison yourself. The court will request an advanced payment of aproximately 100 Euro per day. I hope you will be paying from your own pocket rather than misusing donations from Diamond Way practicioners.

I find this all wonderful. Wonderful! Don't you? As the saying goes: „Try to see everything on a pure level“.

Love and greetings for the old, good times' sake. Good times I once had with you as a soulfull naive that I was.

Marte Micaela Riepe


[marte-micaela-riepe.blogspot.de]

Thank you for sharing that Michaela,

...as so often happens in the paradigm "we are good/innocent/blameless - they are evil/guilty and at fault" - the perceived evil turns out to be nothing more than one's own shadow.

How often has Nydahl voiced the need to protect women from the evils of religion? - this dualistic perception turns out to be nothing more than him seeing his own dark reflection and failing to recognise it or take responsibility for it.

Quote
suenam
Thank you for sharing that Michaela,

...as so often happens in the paradigm "we are good/innocent/blameless - they are evil/guilty and at fault" - the perceived evil turns out to be nothing more than one's own shadow.

How often has Nydahl voiced the need to protect women from the evils of religion? - this dualistic perception turns out to be nothing more than him seeing his own dark reflection and failing to recognise it or take responsibility for it.

You are speaking my mind Suenam. I came to the same conclusion. “Muslims” are Ole Nydahl’s projected shadow.

I have recently found Ken Wilber’s lecture on shadow – “Casting Shadow”.
[www.youtube.com]

Wilber: “Shadow follows you all the way up to enlightenment. And if you are not going to handle that on the relative side of the street, you are going to get slammed all the way up and down.
And then when you get this enlightened blast that will let you transcend the relative body – mind, which you have done. The relative body – mind is arising in emptiness and you are no longer identified with that, nonetheless in the relative body – mind there is a dissociation of rage.
So now you come back, all enlightened...
Enlightenment leaves everything exactly the way it finds it. The mirror mind leaves everything exactly the way it finds it. It doesn’t change anything. If it changed something it would mean going from the place where the spirit is not to the place where you think spirit is. The enlightened mind is the mirror mind. It leaves everything just as it is, including your dissociation of rage.
So now you come back, dissociated and happy about it. And now you are turned loose on the world and, excuse my French, you are a dickhead. And that’s what tends to happen if you don’t take care of the shadow.”

Quote
dariusb
Few things about Shamar Rimpoche's letter. Somehow the statement is written in very simple way. Usually his statements are written in more sophisticated language , why would one write story about a crow which led their way out from rice fields? It is official letter to the public and story about the "miraculous bird" does not look very believable.
Usually on a official statements there is a date. the date on this statement is missing. 
I understand that someone's signature may change from time to time but Shamar Rimpoche's signature look a bit different from his previous statement, please check for your self.
This is his current statement
[www.lama-ole-nydahl.org]

and here His previous statement [www.lama-ole-nydahl.org]

I am not conspiracy theorist but everything about this letter seems a bit odd.
However the  news on alcohol consumption are welcome development . Hopefully wild party time is coming to the end in DW centres and wisdom and compassion time is coming there.  

“In Lama Ole’s case however I see no misuse of the teacher’s position. The Diamond Way Buddhist centers are free from any scandals.” What a pathetic lie.

Dariusb you are right. The signature on the letter with no date is not the signature of Shamar Rinpoche. It would be interesting to know who really wrote this letter and how much he took for it.

I have attached two samples of Shamar Rinpoche’s original signature. They match the signature on the letter dated February 28, 2006.

A few years ago I was sponsoring a child for Himalaya Hilfe e.V. charity. When deciding whether to sponsor a child or not I was very specific and wanted to know who signs these children off. Both Sabine Wollmann and Ulli Göbel who are Himalaya Hilfe founders and managers told me that Shamar Rinpoche himself signs each child off individually. They said they worked very closely with Shamar Rinpoche and they were sure of that. They have shown me Shamar Rinpoche’s signatures on each application (in a top right corner). So I went on asking whether that was Shamar Rinpoche’s original signature and they very clearly said yes.

When you sponsor a child you actually get his/her apllication with the signature on. So I still have an application at home. A couple of days ago I was cleaning a house and I found it. I was just about to get rid of it altogether with my old papers but in the last moment I decided to keep it. I said to myself: „Keep it for posterity. After all it has Shamar Rinpoche’s signature on.“ And just few days latter I came across your post.

Attached please find two samples of Shamar Rinpoche signatures from Himalaya Hilfe applications.

Remember that Shamar relies heavily on Nydahl to bolster his Karmapa candidate Thaye Dorje who has little or no support among Tibetans - or indeed anyone much outside Shamar's family and students. Indeed the vast majority of Thaye Dorje supporters belong to Diamondway.

Shamar needs Nydahl on his side even though I suspect he does not have much time for him personally. Having watched him for nearly 20 years, it is my conclusion that Shamar is a highly political animal and his support of Nydahl suits his own ends. I think this outweighs any concerns he may have about any damage Nydahl may be doing to this students or the tradition to which he belongs.

Other Shamar Rinpoche’s Letters with two (or three) different signatures.

[www.kagyuoffice.org]

[www.karmapa-issue.org]

[www.karmapa-issue.org]

[www.bordo.org]
scroll down the page

[www.zhaxizhuoma.net]
You need to enlarge the letter in the bottom of the page