It was a joy this morning to spend 45 minutes interviewing Tara Mandala Executive Director Cady Allione and Chögé Lisa Erickson about that worldwide organization, which was created by Lama Tsultrim Allione, who traveled to Nepal and India in 1967 hoping to learn to paint mandalas and ended up with that and much more. She was one of the early pioneers in bringing Buddhism to the West.
While Lama Tsultrim is on a solitary retreat, Cady and Lisa spoke with me about Tara Mandala, some of its programs, especially Feeding Your Demons, and its Yana social networking platform, which I find unique and encouraging for Buddhism in the West. Many Buddhist teachers, especially those trained in the East, tend to be cautious about providing space for students to freely share their lives and practices with each other. Oh, and did I mention they’re mostly men?
If Buddhism is to flourish in the West, it needs more opportunities for students to build communities. That’s why I think Yana is a model. It’s not only for those of us in the West, of course, but that’s where most of my readers and listeners are.
I could go on about Lama Tsutrim, Tara Mandala, and Yana… But Lisa and Cady do a better job than I could hope to, so I’ll stop typing and encourage you to watch or listen to the 45-minute recording. As a prelude or postlude, consider spending six minutes with Lama Tsultrim on the feminine and masculine in Buddhism:
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