Tibetan Aid Project
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The Tibetan Aid Project (TAP) is an operation of the Tibetan Nyingma Relief Foundation. TAP was founded in 1969 by
Tarthang Tulku Tarthang Tulku () (born 1934) is a Tibetan teacher ( lama) who introduced the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism into the United States, where he works to preserve the art and culture of Tibet. He oversees various projects including Dharma P ...
—a leading Tibetan master and teacher—to support the efforts of
Tibetans The Tibetan people (; ) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Tibet. Their current population is estimated to be around 6.7 million. In addition to the majority living in Tibet Autonomous Region of China, significant numbers of Tibetans live ...
to survive in exile and re-establish their cultural heritage. It is a 501 c (3) non-profit organization that primarily focuses on raising funds for the production, shipment and distribution of sacred texts, art and prayer wheels for the World Peace Ceremony in
Bodh Gaya Bodh Gaya is a religious site and place of pilgrimage associated with the Mahabodhi Temple Complex in Gaya district in the Indian state of Bihar. It is famous as it is the place where Gautama Buddha is said to have attained Enlightenment ( pi, ...
, India. During the Chinese invasion of 1959, more than 1 million Tibetans were killed and 6,237 monasteries were destroyed along with their libraries. Over the years, TAP has filled hundreds of libraries with Tibetan books, stimulated education in the
Himalayan region The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...
, fostered literacy across Tibetan society, improved the economy of
Bodh Gaya Bodh Gaya is a religious site and place of pilgrimage associated with the Mahabodhi Temple Complex in Gaya district in the Indian state of Bihar. It is famous as it is the place where Gautama Buddha is said to have attained Enlightenment ( pi, ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, and enabled nuns—who were traditionally limited to non-scholastic activities—to study texts and earn advanced degrees.


Monastic importance in Tibet

The monastic tradition was and still is uniquely strong for Tibetans. In 1951,
monasteries A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...
had access to and occupied between 37 and 50 percent of the best, most fertile land in
Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...
. In addition, the government strongly supported the monasteries, providing money for prayer ceremonies and other religious activities. In the three largest monasteries around
Lhasa Lhasa (; Lhasa dialect: ; bo, text=ལྷ་ས, translation=Place of Gods) is the urban center of the prefecture-level city, prefecture-level Lhasa (prefecture-level city), Lhasa City and the administrative capital of Tibet Autonomous Regio ...
, there alone were twenty thousand monks. Before the Chinese takeover, between 10 and 20 percent of males in Tibet were monks. This is a much higher percentage compared to other Buddhist countries. In
Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
, for example, only 1-2 percent of its males were monks in the mid-1900s. According to Melvyn C. Goldstein, the large number of monasteries was a result from the Tibetans' belief that "Tibet's greatness lay in its development of a system wherein tens of thousands of young boys were constantly being taken away from the mundane world of inevitable suffering and thrust into a purer alternative culture—the organized community of celibate monks." When
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
invaded Tibet in 1959, thousands of these monasteries were destroyed along with their
libraries A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...
, marking the beginning of a precarious time for Tibetans and their culture.


The founder of TAP

In 1959, with around 100,000 of his followers, the
Dalai Lama Dalai Lama (, ; ) is a title given by the Tibetan people to the foremost spiritual leader of the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest and most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The 14th and current Dal ...
fled from Chinese persecution. Prior to that Tarthang (Tar-tung) Tulku, a Tibetan lama, had traveled to study in
Sikkim Sikkim (; ) is a state in Northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Province No. 1 of Nepal in the west and West Bengal in the south. Sikkim is also close to the Siligur ...
, India with his primary teacher, Khentse Rinpoche. Later settling in India on a scholastic fellowship, Tarthang Rinpoche spent six years teaching Buddhist philosophy at Sanskrit University in Benares, India. He also began a small Tibetan-language publishing company. After years of witnessing the decline of his culture and the living conditions of his fellow refugees, Tarthang traveled to
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
in 1968. In
Berkeley Berkeley most often refers to: *Berkeley, California, a city in the United States **University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California * George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher Berkeley may also refer ...
—where there was already a flourishing array of East-meets-West, his desire to help the Tibetans and all humanity had a place to grow. Later, he would establish Dharma Publishing and the Tibetan Aid Project.


The books

When
Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...
came to Tibet from India in the 7th century, the religion thrived and a steady flow of the Buddha's teachings were translated from
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
to
Tibetan Tibetan may mean: * of, from, or related to Tibet * Tibetan people, an ethnic group * Tibetan language: ** Classical Tibetan, the classical language used also as a contemporary written standard ** Standard Tibetan, the most widely used spoken dial ...
. These texts were canonized as the
Kanjur The Tibetan Buddhist canon is a loosely defined collection of sacred texts recognized by various schools of Tibetan Buddhism, comprising the Kangyur or Kanjur ('Translation of the Word') and the Tengyur or Tanjur (Tengyur) ('Translation of Treat ...
and the
Tanjur The Tengyur or Tanjur or Bstan-’gyur (Tibetan: "Translation of Teachings") is the Tibetan collection of commentaries to the Buddhist teachings, or "Translated Treatises". The Buddhist Canon To the Tengyur were assigned commentaries to b ...
. The Kanjur is the sacred teachings of the Buddha and the Tanjur, a large collection of commentary on the teachings. With the desire to publish these Tibetan texts, Tarthang searched everywhere for the
Kanjur The Tibetan Buddhist canon is a loosely defined collection of sacred texts recognized by various schools of Tibetan Buddhism, comprising the Kangyur or Kanjur ('Translation of the Word') and the Tengyur or Tanjur (Tengyur) ('Translation of Treat ...
and the
Tanjur The Tengyur or Tanjur or Bstan-’gyur (Tibetan: "Translation of Teachings") is the Tibetan collection of commentaries to the Buddhist teachings, or "Translated Treatises". The Buddhist Canon To the Tengyur were assigned commentaries to b ...
. However, there were very few copies to be found. Empty-handed, Tarthang spread the word to the Tibetan refugees, some of whom had carried books instead of food with them during the mass exodus of 1959. Many Tibetan refugees responded to Tarthang's search, and as a result, in 1982 Dharma Publishing was able to put together a complete canonical collection of the texts based on the Derge Edition and other editions, including nine texts from the Chinese Canon. Containing 5,109 texts and totaling 65,160 pages, the Canon also includes traditional
Tibetan art The vast majority of surviving Tibetan art created before the mid-20th century is religious, with the main forms being thangka, paintings on cloth, mostly in a technique described as gouache or distemper, Tibetan Buddhist wall paintings, and sma ...
and is the most complete collection of the Kanjur and Tanjur ever assembled. Besides the
Kanjur The Tibetan Buddhist canon is a loosely defined collection of sacred texts recognized by various schools of Tibetan Buddhism, comprising the Kangyur or Kanjur ('Translation of the Word') and the Tengyur or Tanjur (Tengyur) ('Translation of Treat ...
and the
Tanjur The Tengyur or Tanjur or Bstan-’gyur (Tibetan: "Translation of Teachings") is the Tibetan collection of commentaries to the Buddhist teachings, or "Translated Treatises". The Buddhist Canon To the Tengyur were assigned commentaries to b ...
, Tarthang oversaw the production of other sacred Tibetan texts written by numerous great teachers and philosophers, such as
Dudjom Rinpoche Kyabje Dudjom Jigdral Yeshe Dorje (, THL ''Düjom Jikdrel Yéshé Dorjé'') was known as Terchen Drodül Lingpa and as Dudjom Rinpoche (10 June 1904 – 17 January 1987). He is considered by many Tibetan Buddhists to be from a line of importan ...
,
Jigme Lingpa Jigme Lingpa (1730–1798) was a Tibetan ''tertön'' of the Nyingma lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. He was the promulgator of the Longchen Nyingthig, the Heart Essence teachings of Longchenpa, from whom, according to tradition, he received a vis ...
and
Patrul Rinpoche Patrul Rinpoche ( Wylie: ''dpal sprul rin po che'') (1808–1887) was a teacher and author from the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism. Biography Patrul Rinpoche was born in Dzachukha, a nomadic area of Golok Dzachukha, Eastern Tibet in 1808, a ...
, to name a few.


World Peace Ceremony

In 1989, Tarthang organized an annual ceremony in order to pray for world peace at
Bodh Gaya Bodh Gaya is a religious site and place of pilgrimage associated with the Mahabodhi Temple Complex in Gaya district in the Indian state of Bihar. It is famous as it is the place where Gautama Buddha is said to have attained Enlightenment ( pi, ...
in
Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...
, India—the site of Buddha's enlightenment. The Ceremony takes place in January and lasts for 10 days. During the World Peace Ceremony, the Tibetan Aid Project distributes thousands of books to Tibetans. Over the span of 22 years, TAP has helped give away more than three million books and sacred art prints and over 140,000 prayer wheels, preserving the Tibetan teachings of wisdom and compassion for generations to come.


Taste & Tribute San Francisco: a benefit dinner gala

In 2001, Chef
Laurent Manrique Laurent Manrique (born March 30, 1966) is a French restaurateur and Michelin-starred chef. He currently owns establishments in San Francisco. He was the Corporate Executive Chef of Aqua, an upscale seafood restaurant in San Francisco, where he e ...
proposed to the Tibetan Aid Project of doing a charity dinner to which he would invite some of his other chef friends to join in. Over the years, it has grown into the main fundraiser for the Tibetan Aid Project. During the event, more than 20 of the Bay Area's best chefs work in pairs to prepare exquisite meals for 220 guests at the
Four Seasons Hotel Four Seasons Hotels Limited, trading as Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, is an international luxury hotel and resort company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Four Seasons currently operates more than 100 hotels and resorts worldwide.D ...
in
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
.


Sister sites and organizations

In addition to the Tibetan Aid Project, Tarthang established several other organizations. * The Nyingma Institute was founded in 1972. It offers lectures, classes and retreats on Buddhist studies, meditation, yoga, Nyingma psychology and other classes. Since its beginning, over 150,000 students have attended the Nyingma Institute in Berkeley, California. * The Dharma Publishing Company was moved to the United States from India. It began its operations in 1971 with the goal to preserve Tibetan culture by keeping important books in print. Every year, Dharma Publishing publishes and distributes thousands of Tibetan texts around the world. It also publishes books by Tarthang Tulku, such as Time, Space and Knowledge, Gesture of Balance, and Skillful Means. * The Mangalam Research Center for Buddhist Languages, founded in 2008, is the center where scholars come to study Buddhism, its written tradition, and its sacred texts. In its library, it holds a large collection of Tibetan texts. * Dharma College will eventually offer noontime and evening lectures for the community in addition to college and graduate-level classes for students of Tibetan Buddhism. * The Yeshe De Text Program or the Tibetan Book Project preserves Tibetan texts for distribution. * The Guna Foundation began in 2009 to preserve archival pictures and footage of Tarthang Tulku and his organizations. The foundation currently finished the documentary Light of the Valley, which is about the 15th renovation of the Swayambhu Stupa in Kathmandu, Nepal. The foundation also funds Yak Liberation, a group that releases yaks back into the wild. * The Light of Buddhadharma Foundation raises funds to preserve and restore shrines and cultural artifacts in India, pay for religious ceremonies at holy places in India and buy robes for monks. * Odiyan Retreat Center, located on 1,000 acres of land in a remote part of Northwestern Sonoma County, this retreat center was founded in 1975. At Odiyan, scholars and practitioners can immerse themselves in meditation and Nyingma training. * The Ratna Ling Retreat Center began in 2004 near Cazadero, California. Dharma Press was relocated to Ratna Ling shortly after the acquisition. Ratna Ling is a retreat, education and spiritual center geared towards operating the presses by uncompensated retreatants.


References


External links


Tibetan Aid Project website
{{Authority control Organizations based in Berkeley, California 501(c)(3) organizations Tibetan culture Tibetan diaspora