Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche (Geshe-la) is a world-renowned meditation master who holds the very essence of Buddha’s teachings in his heart and transmits this profound wisdom and compassion to the people of the modern world in ways that are easy to understand and integrate into our busy lives.
Author of 23 widely acclaimed books on Buddhism and meditation, Venerable Geshe-la also established the New Kadampa Tradition – International Buddhist Union as well as Kadampa centres throughout the world, including the Buddhist Centre, Kadampa Meditation Centre Leeds.
Venerable Geshe-la’s message is as simple as it is profound – all the problems in this world originate in the mind, and the solutions to these problems and the causes of lasting peace and happiness are also to be found in the mind.
After engaging in the traditional trainings of a monk from a young age in Tibet, Venerable Geshe-la withdrew to remote areas in Tibet and India to engage in meditative retreats. During these retreats he received many signs and visions in which Je Tsongkhapa appeared to him and clarified all the essential teachings of Sutra and Tantra, and especially the Ganden Oral Lineage.
It was during these retreats that Venerable Geshe-la formed an especially close connection with the people of this world and made a lifelong dedication to helping us find lasting peace and happiness through the teachings of Buddha. Then in 1977 Venerable Geshe-la accepted an invitation to become the Resident Teacher at the fledgling Manjushri Centre in the Lake District, Cumbria.
On August 27, 1977 Venerable Geshe-la arrived in the west at the invitation of Manjushri KMC. His arrival heralded the dawn of Modern Buddhism and a new spirit of hope in this world.
Almost immediately, Venerable Geshe-la opened his first Dharma centre in the West, Madhyamaka KMC in Pocklington, York. He went on to establish literally hundreds of centres around the world.
In 1997, Venerable Geshe-la designed, blessed and opened the first Kadampa Temple for World Peace at Manjushri KMC. Later, he created five other such Temples.
Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche left an extraordinary legacy from his life’s work and inspired thousands of people of all nationalities to continue creating the conditions for pure Kadam Dharma to spread throughout the world.
Thanks to the extraordinary kindness of Venerable Geshe-la, the internal scientific methods to accomplish this inner peace are now available to everyone in the modern world.
Modern Kadampa Buddhism is a special practical presentation of Buddha’s teachings that is particularly suited to the modern day. It was introduced into contemporary society by the world-renowned meditation master and scholar Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche.
Modern Kadampa Buddhism preserves the meaning and intention of Buddha’s original teachings while presenting them in a clear and systematic way that anyone of any nationality, age or gender can easily understand and put into practice.
As a gift to the world, Geshe-la has made his book Modern Buddhism available to everyone as a free e-book download, available in many languages.
Modern Buddhism is perfectly suited for inspiring those seeking solutions within Buddhism to problems of everyday life, as well as for encouraging practitioners of all faiths to deepen their understanding and practice of the spiritual path.
This book reveals how to build a foundation for the spiritual path, how to progress on that path and how to complete it. With compassion and wisdom we can solve all our daily problems and accomplish the real meaning of our human life; and like two wings of a bird they will enable us to reach enlightenment quickly.