Please help these three-year retreatants!

Please help the three-year retreatants
at Vadra Mountain Meditation Centre Bodh Ashram
in ALMORA, INDIA!!!

See appeal below from Lenny Lim:

Dear Dharma Friends,

TASHI DELEK!

We seek your help, your kind contribution towards the extension of VISA for 4 RETREATANTS, namely Grace Yeo, Foo Yam Koon, Toh Soo Ming & Chevy Tan.

They are now in their 3 YEARS SOLITARY RETREAT in Vadra Mountain Meditation Centre Bodh Ashram in ALMORA, INDIA, with effect from 15th January 2008 . Their daily schedule includes various practices starting 4am til 10pm.

For more info on the 3 years retreat they are in, please visit : http://drikung3yearretreat.com

Currently they are only granted with a 6 months tourist visa which will be expiring soon. They are trying various ways to get their VISA EXTENDED TO CONTINUE THEIR 3 YEARS RETREAT.

To do so, all of them needed a total of at least SGD $10,000, TEN THOUSAND DOLLARS. (about SGD $2, 5000 each)

It's quite difficult to obtain the student visa. Also, X visa which are only applicable to those doing social/religious work could be difficult to obtain and are subject to interview at the consulate in Nepal, especially with the unpredictable political climate now. Currently, the time left for the renewal of visa is very limited.

In addition, the chances of getting it approved if they don't know the inside people' is very very slim. Hence, they need to engage agent to get the deal done at the consulate, resulting in high cost involved in the extension of VISA. When all fails, they will have to return to SINGAPORE and their efforts would be fruitless.

Since they obtained the precious opportunity to practise Buddhadharma in soliditary retreat in a holy place, we would like to seek your help and support to create the conditions for them to complete their retreat. Please help for a good cause, a little support to those great retreatants. Their practice and completion of the 3 years retreat will be the greatest form of gratitude and repayment towards all kind Dharma friends and mother sentient beings.

We hope to raise the funds for them by 8 May 08 and transfer the money over as soon as possible.

FOR THOSE WHO WISH TO HELP, please forward your name, email & amount contributed, to:

Name: Lenny Lim
Mobile: 9799 8292
Email: bilberry@pacific.net.sg
Fund transfer to Acc No: POSB 050-10085-5

All funds collected will be accounted for and will be informed to all kind sponsors and the retreatants will be informed of your kindness. We thank you in advance for your kindness and generosity.

For any further enqueries or clarification, please feel free to contact Lenny Lim @ 9799 8292, or Kenneth Tan @ 9879 9380.

May all be blessed by the Triple Gems. Om Mani Padme Hung!

With Prayers
Lenny Lim

P.S. PLEASE DO NOT TRANSFER ANY FUND TO THE ACCOUNT NO. ABOVE AFTER 8TH MAY 08 TO AVOID COMPLICATION!


More details are as follows:

Dear Dharma Friends,

Through the many kind queries concerning about the retreatants and their visa issues, we hereby would like to share more about it to all kind Dharma friends who are keen to help, to the best of our knowledge.

VISA ISSUE
As they were granted only with a 6 month tourist Visa which is the usual maximum period that could be obtained here, the extension of their visa can only be done in India or Nepal. Application for a 3 years visa is not easily obtainable, reasons as follow. The retreat centre they are in is not a registered centre, hence application for student visa or spiritual social work visa are not applicable. As a result, they have to seek help from a recommended Agent, situated in Nepal who know people from the consulate who can get things done. Hence due to the agent fee, the extension for a 3 year visa are more costly. All of the retreatants including foreigners from other countries have to do their visa extension there through their own means. There are five retreatants from Singapore which one of them already have had his fund ready and that's why we are trying to raise fund only for the four of them. Once the fund are transferred over, they will travel down to Nepal to meet the agent and get their visa extended soonest they could.

MORE ABOUT THE RETREATANTS
For those questions about the retreatants, we would like to share a little more with our own findings and perception. They are namely Grace Yeo, Foo Yam Koon, Toh Soo Ming, Chevy Tan and Leslie Khoo. All of these 5 Great Retreatants have had attended many years of the 100 Million Mani Recitation Retreat in Singapore which was led by H.E. Drubwang Rinpoche, Tulku Rabsang Rinpoche, H.E. Thritsab Rinpoche & also the most recent one by H.E Garchen Rinpoche before they depart in January 2008. Most of them have had received many other Dharma teachings from many Great Vajra Masters from various lineage through the past many years, also have had done and or completed many other short retreats in Singapore and overseas. Also, most of them have had already completed and or started their Ngondro, the four foundation? or called the preliminary practices? Five Fold Mahamudra? Khandro Nyingthik? and so forth commitment? We have seen their faith and diligent effort in learning and practicing the Dharma through the years, also volunteered in many Dharma and care centres, leading a very simple life in accordance with the Dharma through the years.

3 YEARS RETREAT APPLICATION
As there are only limited vacancies for the 3 years solitary retreat conducted every 3 years, the application to be in the retreat wasn't an easy task itself. They have to do their application, being interviewed and checked on their past learning, their practices and masters before they are qualified for the retreat.

To the question of why not approaching their own family members for help as the reason could be :- They are supposed to leave some money for their dependant which was one of the requirement, especially for those retired parents. Also, it could be their family members who are not Buddhist and are of other religion and hence don't really understand what they are doing, or maybe their family have limited resources. Anyway, we are all from a big Buddhist family and are contributing for the sake of Dharma.

THEIR PRACTICES, OUTER AND MIND CONDITIONS IN THE RETREAT

Their good practices have left them with a good condition to be in such great solitary retreat, to condition themselves further and much closer towards enlightenment for the benefit of one's own parents, also past parents whom are sentient beings in the six realms.

Cutting themselves off from all worldly concerns and activities, leaving their career, close ones, family and friends, preparing and are going through the intensive practices in the retreat despite all mental, physical and emotional pains with true renunciation.

Their practices starts at 4am and end 10pm which they have to prepare their own simple meals, still maintaining and consume only self made vegetarian meal despite the strenuous practices engaged.

All activities will be done alone in their own room which include cooking, washings, daily practices and also bearing the pains from the change of climate as there isn't any warm heater during winter nor air-con and not even a fan during the hot summer. Our most simple plain vegetarian meal here are not what they can get to enjoy there.

CLARITY OF THE FUND RAISED
The funds received will all be accounted for and mail will be send to all kind Dharma friends with name and amount contributed while forwarding the mail to kind Venerable, to be name later after the fund are transferred.

Sorry as we have to keep these mails very transparent as we are not organisation but just Dharma Friends whom initiated this due to their URGENT NEED WITH LIMITED TIME and hence sorry for exposing all email addresses. We apologise should this cause you any inconvenience.

Also our apologies to them for disclosing their identities as we initiated this fund raising for them without having their approval as communication is very difficult due to their tight schedule and urgency but with the motivation of keeping them in the retreat, also a better peace of mind for a better concentration on their retreat.

So dear Dharma brothers and sisters, we do hope you have a better understanding after reading and can stretch out your compassionate hands spontaneously to help them clear this little obstacle, for a good cause wishing them also with our good prayers for them to continue and complete the retreat successfully.

With their appreciative mind, we are very sure they will receive any little contribution with much gratitude, also our good wishes will be great encouragement to them. Thank you for all the questions, time reading this mail and all your kindness too. Please help to forward out this mail as we are running short of time.

May all of us progress positively and swiftly with the blessings from all Gurus, the Triple Gem.

With Prayers and gratitude,
Lenny Lim & Kenneth Tan