“If you think having uncomfortable conversations is difficult, wait until you see the results of NOT having them.”
“The guru whom we should consider to be so important, is not just anyone who’s given the name guru/lama. It is not someone who is famous in the world as being a great lama. It’s something you have to look and check with your own intelligence. You have to get some knowledge about them to see if are they good or not. You need to really hone your understanding and get to an appropriate level of understanding. That is what we mean as a guru. You should not just follow anyone who calls themselves that.” –17th Gyalwang Karmapa (2024)
“Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon and the truth”
Introduction/Summary
After a recent suicide of a British woman, I received information from reliable sources (such as former retreatants and residents/volunteers of Samye Ling and Samye Dzong) with more detailed information regarding the prior complaints against Drupon Karma Lhabu (also called Drupon Khen Rinpoche), Lama Katen and other teachers (or men with positions of responsibility) connected to Samye Ling. This article gives an introduction of these prior issues, and in the Appendix below that are the detailed accounts for the record.
These complaints were sent to Rokpa/Samye Ling/Dzong trustees and resident Lama Zangmo, and police reports were also made, with one woman informed that criminal acts were committed, according to her statement. It is a significant list of complaints about sexual harassment, sexual assault/coercion, “false imprisonment” i.e. refusing to allow people to leave the retreat for urgent matters, such as medical diagnosis and treatment or due to psychological breakdowns, emotional bullying, insistence on signing non-disclosure legal agreements, refusal to provide proper aid to those in physical pain or serious sickness. It was reported that women who had requested to leave the retreat for the above reasons were responded to with threats that they would go to hell, smiling when women broke down in tears, and telling them they would have short lives, terrible sicknesses and their family members would die and get sick too. The female retreat supervisor, nun Lama Rinchen was reported as also not wanting to allow the women to leave the retreats either.
In particular, and definitely not understandable, are the allegations of a persistent (and not loving or kind) misuse of tantric rituals to “force” consorts to engage in “subtle body energy” unions without appropriate consent/devotion or even pre-requisite qualifications of the guru or consort for such a relation. It was also reported that confiscation of passports before people enter the retreats in Nepal is now done (see below).
It was also clarified that none of the women were paid any “hush money” after some kind of legal settlement, but had gone silent after a complete failure of the Samye Ling trustees (and administrators) to act on their complaints and start an independent, objective investigation. Also sources say there are still no adequate safeguards for women in place at Holy Isle retreats either.
Serious commitment to a long retreat but necessity for a reasonable (and fair) screening procedure and “get out” clause in certain situations?
On the one hand, to be fair and balanced in this report, commitment to doing a long retreat in the Vajrayana context, is considered to be very serious and should not be undertaken lightly. It is thus understandable that in general, teachers and retreat leaders would not want people leaving the retreat because they no longer “like or enjoy it”, or due to minor physical ailments and sicknesses, or because they feel emotional or hurt feelings and so on. As that could disrupt the purpose of the retreat and disturb the minds of other retreatants and the whole purpose of such a retreat is to “destroy one’s ego” with love and compassion at the basis. I was informed that it costs 16 000 GBP to enter the long retreat (although some people had sponsors), which is a major financial commitment too, but there does not seem to have been any substantive prior screening of retreatants in terms of their psychological or physical health (other than a brief appointment with a doctor for a physical check-up), nor of thorough examination by Drupon and other lamas for the pre-requisite qualities needed for a student to be ready to engage in such a closed, long retreat.
However, even if that happened, on the other hand, there should surely be some kind of clear “get out” clause when a male teacher is acting in ways contrary to general ethics towards women, breaching the main Buddhist vows and appears to be bullying and harassing women with “unions” they do not consent to or want,to the Vajrayana consort relation. As I have written about before, such consort relations should only be undertaken with full consent, love, compassion, devotion and respect for the woman, who should be considered a divine equal and the source of wisdom. When the women object to such unions or “invasions”, they are swiftly shunned, excluded and “demonised” as bad people and “enemies”, without any mature, calm, discussion aimed at mending misunderstandings or reconciliation.
One of the survivors, A, reported to me that “Drupon Karma Lhabu told her (when the continual forced “energetic invasions” were taking place without proper consent) that he was “practicing with bliss to get enlightened in one lifetime. But that she felt it involved using women as nothing more than mere objects for his gain”. Exactly. It is indeed sad, unwise and unloving that any man, let alone a monk would think that using women as consorts in such a forceful, disrespectful was a way to a) experience bliss and b) get enlightened!
In fact, from my own personal experience, such forced unions are the complete opposite of the giving-taking equal loving (and wrathful-lust) energy flow of bliss-wisdom energy union of the divine male-female energies becoming an indivisible one.
Thus it seems that none of these women had spent any significant personal time with Drupon Karma Lhabu or Lama Katen before the retreat and vice versa. If they had done so, they would have been able to examine him properly, and vice versa, to ensure both he (and they) had the pre-requisite qualifications for such a Vajrayana retreat and that he was a qualified Vajrayana teacher, with all the essential qualities (such as love and compassion) from their perspective. Examination of student and teacher is essential in such a context, as the 17th Karmapa recently gave several teachings on (see video clip here).
In any case, the 17th Karmapa recently taught last year (see video clip here), it is not acceptable for teachers to treat students badly anymore, and then claim is it a Marpa-Milarepa relationship which was a very unique and rare case of student-master devotion and examination of the guru’s qualities etc. In addition, denigrating or insulting a woman (or women as a group) is a root downfall of Vajrayana and forcing a consent is too. Rechungpa the yogi master, even took a beating from his own consort, rather than get angry or raise a fist at her, as the 17th Karmapa explained because he said she was his wisdom consort and he should never get angry with a consort or retaliate.
All these prior complaints against Drupon Karma Lhabu, Lama Katen, Sean McGovern, Lama Ganga and others also (according to witnesses and complainants) seem to have been ignored and covered up for several years because the women felt unable/unwilling to expose it publicly, especially as they had been effectively ignored, and excluded by those in charge of Rokpa and Samye Ling. The English police told one woman that according to her allegations, laws had been broken and they would prosecute, but for some reason the Scottish police said they would not take action unless there were more witnesses. Yet these “crimes” are often without witnesses, so why would a woman’s first hand testimony not be considered clear prima facie evidence (together with corroboratory conduct taken by the woman) is strange indeed?
One female retreatant whose serious concerns were reported (and repeatedly ignored by the Samye Ling trustees, see details below), states that:
“There is a systemic covering up of abuse within the Samye-Ling organisation and a lack of effective policies and procedures to ensure safety and legality. There is also a gross conflict of interests in who the Trustees are and how they respond to complaints. Many of those abused are ostracised and made to leave Samye-Ling, often being publicly shamed or blamed. That in all the cases reported, there has been a cover up for abuse they experienced from others within the organisation.”
She (and others) want an independent investigation of all the grievances and also for new, independent and objective UK trustees to be appointed (see details of the trustees below) [2].
The next one year retreat on Holy Isle is due to start on 11 November 2025, but it seems that trustees have not offered any support or guidance following these prior complaints, or the British woman’s alleged suicide.
Continuing concerns about bullying, non-disclosure agreements, wrongful imprisonment and misconduct during retreats led by Drupon Karma Lhabu at Thrangu Sekhar retreat centre
It was reported to me that on being made aware of these issues, at the time, the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa told Drupon Karma Lhabu to immediately stop giving empowerments at Samye Ling. Although he did continue to teach there, I was told he stopped giving empowerments, and has not done so in the years since. Yet one of the women informed me, Drupon also dismissed the 17th Karmapa’s valid concerns and said that he “was too young and did not know what he was talking about.” If true, this means he may also have broken samaya with the 17th Karmapa too?
Whatever the case may be, there are said to be reports of such bullying and misconduct even during the retreats he now leads at Thrangu Sekhar centre, Namo Buddha, Nepal. The retreat centre publicly announced earlier this year (probably as a result of the various allegations by women at Samye Ling) that they will bar anyone who has “prior samaya issues with any teachers” and retreatants have to sign non-disclosure agreements before entering, and have their passports taken away from them.
Yet these strict rules have allegedly led to some women (and it is always women, right?) having no option but escape from the Nepal retreat centre (said to be in distress), to then inform their country embassies to apply for new passports, because their passports had not been returned to them. If any of this is true, and I have no reason to doubt the reliability or sincerity of these women, then it is shocking indeed and should not be allowed to continue. There is also a concern that there are children who have been taken from developing countries who are also now under the personal care of Drupon Karma Lhabu with no adequate safeguards.
Prior complaints by women against Thubten Kunsel, who went on to murder Akong Rinpoche
One of the most shocking aspects of this list of prior incidents connected to male teachers at Samye Ling, was how there also had been a few complaints by women of attempted rape, physical assaults and verbal abuse by a Tibetan man, Thubten Kunsel, who went on to murder the co-founder of Samye Ling and Dzong, Akong Ripoche, who was stabbed to death in Chengdu, in October 2013 along with his nephew, Loga, and his assistant, Chime Wangyal. For more details about that case, and the crime, see below. The womens’ concerns and incidents are alleged to have been ignored and enabled by the trustees and other staff members, and instead of removing Thubten Kunsel from all such Dharma centres, he was moved to Samye Dzong in London. Yet again showing that men’s status and voices are privileged above those of women in such matters. Yet, tragically, perhaps if the trustees and administrators had listened to and taken those concerns seriously, HE Akong Rinpoche would still be alive today? [1]
One thing is clear in all these reports, is that men are being protected and allowed to maintain their roles and positions in Dharma centres and communities, despite the fact it is predominantly women feeling harassed, abused, aggrieved and denigrated by male teachers and staff with the power and influence within the organisation. Thus these cases are not just isolated one-offs, or personal incidents etc, but reveal a clear and sustained pattern of conduct of gender-based violence, discrimination, sexism, misogyny and male entitlement to women’s bodies, minds and energy without those teachers having “earned” that respect, devotion etc. to be called a qualified guru by such women, and without them having properly examined the women as qualified consorts either.
As these are serious prior allegations, by several women, although some may find them distressing and upsetting to read, it is in nonetheless in the public interest to now reveal these complaints and incidents, not only to expose the grievances already made by several women, whose voices and experiences have been ignored, but also to warn other women(men) who may be considering entering into a retreat or attending courses with these teachers about the importance of prior examination of the retreat master and what they might be signing up to. Interestingly, the complaints are all by women, not men. This also shows that on women’s retreats perhaps it would be better and less risky for female teachers and nuns to be leading them, and not men (even if they are wearing monastic robes)?
May this report bring about a much needed light of exposure on this “darkness” and healing and hope to the survivors and all involved, and prevent and protect others from future harm.
Reported and compiled by Adele Tomlin, 7th November 2025. All content is from named, identifiable reliable sources.
APPENDIX: Details of the complaints/allegations related to teachers or men in positions of responsibility at Samye Ling
Several complaints against Drupon Karma Lhabu, Lama Khaten and others during long retreat on Holy Isle in the women’s retreat
In addition, other complaints of sexual assault, violence, sexual, psychological and verbal abuse were reported to the trustees by a few women on the women´s retreat on Holy Isle 2010-2013.
One female retreatant, A reported sustaining acute injuries and suffering complex post traumatic stress as a direct result of the abuse she experienced from Lama Katen and Drupon Karma Lhabu. As a result, A now reports that she suffers from acute physical pain 10 years on and has been diagnosed as having post traumatic stress disorder as a direct result of the retreat “experience”. She has been given no other mental health diagnosis apart from this. A also reported being under extreme duress, sexual harassment and coercion from Lama Katen during the retreat too.
She also witnessed other female retreatants being sexually groomed, coerced, verbally and emotionally abused in similar ways, to the point of psychological and physical breakdowns, with attempted suicide (of at least one) woman.
A reported these concerns to Samye-Ling Trustees in June 2019 and their response was minimal to nothing. She also wrote to the Charity commission to outline her complaints and police report reference number but received no response about any actions they will take or any relevant acknowledgement of what she complained about.
The woman also reported these incidents to the police in 2019 and in 2020 in England. The police informed her that three UK laws had been broken of sexual assault, false imprisonment and not being given necessary help in a public place for medical and comfort needs- medical attention, basic needs of food and warmth and communication with outside resources to bring this in. The video statement was forwarded to the Scottish police who bizarrely informed her they would not prosecute unless more people come forward as survivors or witnesses. Yet why would they need more witnesses to a first hand testimony of a female survivor? Surely that should be left for a judge and jury to decide the reliability of the accused and survivor and any corroborating evidence?
A informed me that Drupon Karma Lhabu aggressively shouted at one nun and told her she was going to hell´ for requesting to leave the retreat, and also repeatedly shouted at them that they would die, get sick and have a short life if they left or spoke about his conduct. He also threatened our families well being. She described how such an atmosphere of terror and dependence on being accepted by the teacher and other community members are reluctant to support anyone who makes a complaint or allegation of abuse about the teacher because they know they will be ostracised next. She stated that she is still recovering from this trauma and suffers from intense fear, nightmares and flashbacks.
It is also reported that many previous funders of Samye Ling withdrew their financial support on learning about these serious concerns related to the treatment of women.
Doctor’s report to survivor of rape of a western nun by a western monk at Samye Ling
In 2015, one of the survivors, A who shared the abuses she went through in the women´s retreat with a doctor there was told by the doctor that a western nun had been raped by a western monk at Samye-Ling and had recently gone to her as a patient. The doctor appeared to indicate no legal actions had been taken by Samye-Ling other than their telling the woman to leave the centre. The survivor believes the doctor had told her this to show her she was not the only one and this was how Samye-Ling functioned.
Other reports of abuse within the Holy Isle women´s retreat 2010-2013
1) Woman prevented from getting tests and treatment for cancer, threatened and bullied not to leave the retreat
As an example of several such cases, one woman, J had recovered from cancer twice before entering retreat. Drupon Karma Lhabu increasingly regularly until it was daily within the 3 months he was there in 2013 would very aggressively shout and threaten us about not leaving the retreat or speaking about his conduct as our teacher. He would say that if we left the retreat ´even for medical tests for illnesses we did not have´ that “we would have short lives or our family would get sick and that we could die”. J reportedly told one of the women she was scared but stopped going for her routine blood tests for cancer. She died of cancer the following year.
2) Nun refused to sign a legal agreement when getting sick so that she would be unable to ask for any help or support for sickness during 4 months silent retreat and that her family would be unable to sue them
Another nun developed a potentially life threatening condition whilst in the retreat. Lama Yeshe had told her to see him and Lama Rinchen shouting so loudly that others heard it in another room asked her to write a legally binding contract that she was not allowed to ask for any help whatsoever in the 4 month silent part (Dorje Phagmo) of the retreat and that her family could not sue if anything happened to her. She refused. The other female retreatant, A, reports that she was also asked in the same way to sign a contract that she could not receive or ask for any help and that if she died her family could not sue them. She reported that she burst into tears and left the room.
Lama Ganga was a Tibetan teacher who ran the very first traditional three year 3 months retreat at Purelands Samye-Ling, Eskdalemuir and led several three- or four-year retreats at Samye Ling. He was originally from Thrangu Monastery in Tibet and was a long-time associate of Thrangu Rinpoche. While associated with Samye Ling in Scotland, he was primarily based in California (Los Angeles area) at the time he gave teachings there. He was the spiritual director of the KTC Kagyu center in San Diego.
According to reliable sources, it was known that he had sexual relations with two of the women in the retreat even though he is perceived of as a monk and the women were nuns.
One nun reported being sexually harrassed by Lama Ganga when she was a laywoman as he wanted her to have sex with him. She asked a male staff member to help her, and he told Lama Ganga to leave her alone or he would tell Akong Rinpoche. Lama Ganga never approached the nun again. It is said that Lama Ganga had at least two children in New York whilst appearing as a monk.
A informed me that after the female retreatants’ complaints were sent to Samye-Ling in 2019 all traces of Lama Ganga have disappeared from the internet. He used to have a profile on the Rumtek website and the Tsurphu website. It was reported that Lama Ganga died within a year of that retreat of unconfirmed causes that seem to be connected to a sexually transmitted sickness.
The Trustees of Samye Ling and Lama Yeshe’s insistence that all retreatants sign a legal non-disclosure agreement before entering retreat, and that the women were just going “crazy”
Although Lama Yeshe Losal Rinpoche has not been accused of engaging himself in sexually abusive or inappropriate conduct towards women, he is accused being aware of it, and enabling it. The trustees are a few individuals, some of whom are family-related to Lama Yeshe. A informed me that:
“Lama Yeshe´s biological daughter whom Akong Rinpoche adopted is one of the trustees, Cami Cosgove. She is a law professional. The other trustees are Ani Lhamo his secretary, Lama Katen his nephew, Lama Zangmo his student and John Maxwell his student and a retired judge.”
Maxwell is accused of using his position as a retired judge to ignore, cover up and enable the conduct. He has not asked any of the women for feedback or further information, which considering he is a judge would be considered fair in the interests of justice.
A reported that:
“These are the only people you have within the organisation to report any kind of abuse to. Lama Yeshe told us all to sign contracts before we went into the retreat stating we could not sue Samye-Ling for anything we experienced during the retreat. No rights or basic explanation was explained to us of what we could expect in terms of a duty of care or ability to leave, instead we were told that Drupon Karma Lhabu was ´the best´ and to trust him. It has been alleged that Lama Yeshe used his own style of threatening people into signing contracts so that they could not sue or complain about Samye-Ling to another long term resident who was traumatised into leaving after dedicating decades of his life to Samye-Ling.
When a friend went to talk to Lama Yeshe about the abuse A had experienced in retreat he replied that ´it is all in her mind´. I have heard that he has stated ´the women went mad in the retreat´. No investigation or inquiry has been done to see what happened or how safety can be ensured for the next retreat. Instead the women are ostracised who have made complaints and allegations.”
A has also contacted Brion Sweeney, a trustee of Tara Rokpa about her own abuse and that of others, but has had no response from Brion either.
Sean McGovern secretary for Lama Katen and trustees’ complaints: sexual relationships with female students, including while a monk, and actively ignoring/discrediting women’s complaints at Samye Ling
Sean Mcgovern (Choden- the secretary for Lama Katen and trustees complaints) is reported to have ha a sexual relationship with a Mindfulness masters student whilst he was her teacher. She is alleged to have written a letter of complaint about his conduct to Aberdeen university which runs the Mindfulness masters. It is also reported that Sean has had many sexual relations with women at Samye-Ling over many decades. Whilst these are said to have been consensual, other women have reported feeling uncomfortable with his sexual advances. Others have reported that he also had sex on Holy Isle whilst he was a monk with a woman.
Importantly, Sean is also the person that deals with the complaints to Samye-Ling. One survivor told me that the use of obtaining witness statements from other members of the Samye-Ling community to discredit the one making the allegation is systematically used.
The complainant states that not one of the retreatents has been asked for feedback of their retreat experience and knows of others being threatened with being ostracised when they asked ´what happened to the women in retreat?´.
Prior complaints about Thubten Kunsel of attempted rape and physical violence by women that were ignored/enabled, who then went on to murder HE Akong Rinpoche in Chengdu, China.
Akong Rinpoche was stabbed to death on Oct. 8, 2013 in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan, for what many termed a ‘dispute over money’. Thubten Kunsel and Tsering Paljor reportedly killed the deceased, his nephew and his driver for refusing to pay over GBP 250 000 in wages for statues Thubten had made for more than five years in Samye Ling. The monastery released a statement earlier that denied claims that the perpetrators were owed any money by Akong Rinpoche. HE Choke Akong Rinpoche was murdered in October 2013, while in Chengdu, China. Thubten Kunsal, and his nephew were convicted of intentional homicide. Friends of the victims who attended the trial at Chengdu intermediate people’s court said the main defendant had not denied the charge, but claimed that the lama had owed him 2.7m yuan (£265,000) for his work as a sculptor. Ciren Banyue retracted an initial confession to police and said he played no part in the deaths, merely accompanying his uncle to the scene.
Thubten Kunsel was a sculptor and artist who came from Tibet to Samye- Ling to create statues for Samye-Ling, Holy Isle and London Samye-Dzong. However, what the public were never informed about it seems, was that a Tibetan woman living at Samye-Ling reported the attempted rape of herself and possibly two other women by Thubten Kunsel to a woman who spoke with Lama Yeshe and was dismissed in terms of reporting the abuse to the authorities. The only action being taken was that Thubten Kunsel was due to be transferred to the London Samye Dzong centre.
Another female resident of Samye-Ling who assisted Thubten Kunsel in the artworks reported that she was physically assaulted by Thubten Kunsel in the Chenrezig shrine room. Another female resident of Samye-Ling was informed about the physical and verbal abuse and reported that people were notably shocked but that she had not seen the woman since. It was also reported that the same woman was racially insulted by Thubten Kunsel and was asked to leave Samye-Ling by someone in authority. Other residents reported that this woman was troubled to hear about the subsequent murder of Akong Rinpoche by the person who had abused her and that more had not been done to prevent Thubten Kunsel. Residents of Samye Ling report that Lama Zangmo of Samye Dzong was fully aware of these assaults before he was transferred to Samye Dzong.
The Tibetan exile online news source, Phayul.com, reported the murders and convictions, stating that it:
“was met with skepticism as to what truly transpired during the time with many exiles pointing to ‘foul play’ and lack of transparency in the proceedings. A report in August last year by Reuters quoted activist and writer Tsering Woeser as saying, “Perhaps it is the fear that this could spark something else. But now we don’t know anything and we would very much like to know the truth.”
Perhaps now, with these prior allegations of sexual and physical assault by Thubten Kunsel towards women at Samye Ling coming to light, the Tibetan exile community might also be less doubtful about the perpetrator too, although it is not clear he had a transparent or fair trial.
Tashi Mannox, well-known calligrapher and former head monk of Samye Ling, sexually harassed and molested young men
It was also reported in the British newspaper, The Independent, that Tashi Mannox a former head monk of Samye-Ling had sexually harassed and molested several young adult men.
One woman reported witnessing this on two occasions with two male friends staying at Samye Ling who reported to her (independently of each other) that Mannox was making sexual advances towards them and making them uncomfortable. The woman also heard many accounts since of young men feeling intimidated and sexually assaulted whilst in Mannox’s room. She believes that the organisation Samye-Ling must have been aware of this before it went to court or there should have been a procedure in place to allow the young men to come forward and report and not to just leave to never return to Samye-Ling.
Other Published Sources
It was drawn to my attention that a book by Dr. Uma Dinsmore called Yoni Shakti: A Woman’s Guide to Power and Freedom through Yoga and Tantra, also refers to testimonies of nuns who reported abuse by Drupon Karma Lhabu and Lama Katen and others at Samye Ling and Samye Dzong:
I have not personally read this book, but was sent this screenshot of the page in it (and was told Uma had given her permission for it to be re-published here:
Endnotes
[1] One insider of Samye Ling told me that Akong Rinpoche was aware of the assaults and violence by Thubten Kunsel, yet he was moved from Samye Ling to Samye Dzong. And that Rinpoche had even had a prophecy that he would be murdered in a mo divination. Nonetheless, it is still hard to understand how and why the administrators effectively enabled and ignored the violent tendencies of Thubten Kunsel and instead treated the female “survivors” as the issue. A pattern that seems to be repeating itself again with Drupon Karma Lhabu and others.
[2] One of the survivors told me that the actions that need to be taken in relation to Samye Ling teachers and staff are:
“An independent investigation by an organisation specialised in investigating Buddhist centres is conducted….Everyone needs to be heard, people who have made allegations, trustees, people who have been asked to make witness statements about the people who have made allegations. This would give a clear evaluation of all the evidence to be assessed and a way forward for Samye-Ling to become a safe, ethical and legal institution.
There also needs to be a new set of Trustees who are legally trained in safe guarding and who do not have bias. Lama Khaten and Drupon Karma Lhabu are dangerous pathological people and should not be in a position of authority but should be accountable for the abuses they have committed.”
Why should any woman trust any Tibetan Buddhist male teacher after all of the repeated news of sexual misconduct over the last 50 years? Thank you for sharing this information. It is very thorough. A few things stood out to me besides the horrific conduct of so many people involved in this. One is that women in the retreat had their passports taken and not returned to them when they asked for them. That by itself is a crime. Never surrender your passport to anyone other than a law enforcement agency and even after that get it back because it is the property of the country who issues it and is your lifeline back to your government who is there to protect you. Another thing that stood out is that the this was reported to the 17th Karmapa. There are several other teachers in this lineage over the years who have been exposed for sexual misconduct. It was my understanding that a group of female Western students banded together to approach the Dalai Lama about the abuse that has been happening. What ever happened to create a safety net up for women and men who are entering into the path where these jackals are operating? All of the money in these multiple settlements are connected to donations of peoples time and energy to the Dharma and wasting those offerings is a spiritual crime as well. Did anyone ever investigate the accusations that Akong Rinpoche’s murderer made about having been cheated out of a payment for his art? That is a lot of money to be owed and it would make sense that someone would be violently upset about being ripped off. All this is very discouraging news. There are far to few women of power represented in Tibetan Buddhism and those Western women who do have some power and recognition have organizations they need to run, their own Sangha to attend to, and still need to operate inside of a patriarchal system that has been entrenched for centuries so it is only through courageous writers like you that we can see these crimes exposed and then be forewarned.
The point is thet Thubten Kunsel was already showing violent tendencies to women and others before he left the UK. It seems to have been his personality. But they did not do anything to stop him it seems. Nothing excuses stabbing or murdering a great Buddhist teacher (or ordinary being), whether owed money or not. Samye Dzong stated they did not owe him any money. But whether they did or not, the point is they knew he had violent tendencies.
As a woman, as soon as she does or says anything people do not like, or challenges them on dishonesty/hypocrisy, they are swiftly removed or shunned etc. The point here is that even when a man shows violent and sexually aggressive acts and tendencies it is enabled, glossed over and ignored.
As for your suggestion that the Dalai Lama is a source of change and refuge for women and survivors, that is not true. He has done little, if anything to change the situation of male patriarchy, nor has he ever really spoken out about well-known male teachers with several complaints against them. In fact, he has actually continued supporting them.
Hello, I am the uncle of the woman who took her own life six weeks ago, having left early from the Holy Isle Retreat with severe physical and psychological damage.
There is, of course, an Inquest being held (in March next year) and I am gathering Witness Statements regarding the culture within Rokpa Trust in general, and the Holy Isle Retreat in particular. The Coroner has asked for more evidence, and has already written to Rokpa Trust regarding the Holy Isle.
As you know, Witness Statements cannot be anonymous, so I need some brave souls to come forward to give me the first-hand accounts that I need. No hearsay.
I am determined that something good will come out of my niece’s death, so please help.
Thank you.
Paul
Thank you for bringing all of this to light. The acts you describe are criminal and need to be prosecuted in the criminal and civil systems. It’s far too easy for abusers to hide behind a fake version of “religion.” It is also clear that the people on the boards of these organizations either ignore the wellbeing of the victims or are themselves complicit in the abuse.
Steve Lebo
(Phuntsok Dorje)
Toronto
For those affected by this article who are also survivors of abuse or find it traumatic to hear there has been abuse and it’s many cover ups, you are not alone and there is support.
Project Truth- for Healing and Justice for survivors of abuse within the Samye-Ling organisation has an email of support and resources.
The isolation, confusion and trauma about these abuses has affected many people.
There is much support and you are not alone.
Please email projectthj@yahoo.com for a list of support and resources.
Please also be in touch if you would like to support the campaign and to take action.
Dharma means Truth. Buddhism is a religion of Compassion and wisdom- the abuse needs to stop.