AboutLaurie McLauglin Expertise I can answer certain questions about the Tibetan Mahayana path as well as many questions about basic Buddhism. If I do not know the answer chances are I can find out very quickly as I live in a Buddhist retreat center.
Experience I have been practicing Buddhism for over seven years and have had teachings from many very qualified Mahayana teachers such as Jon Landaw, Tubten Pende and Venerable Robina Courtin
Publications I have written articles on Buddhism for the on line magazine, Suite 101
Education/Credentials I have a BA in theatre from The Unversity of South Florida
I find the Buddhism very interesting. My knowledge of Buddhism is somewhat limited to what I've been able to find on the Internet and learn in my religion classes - but I feel that the classes only glanced at the surface of the teachings.
Therefore I was wondering if there were any retreat centers that you could recommend as well fitted for a newbie like me?
The Mahayana Buddhism is the path I find most interesting.
Thank you.
Nikolaj.
Answer Hello Nikolaj,
Thank you for letting me answer your questions.
I think it is great that you are interested in learning more about the Mahayana path.
I noticed that you are in Denmark. If that is true, there are two places I would suggest you check out for more in depth information on Buddhism.
The first is Diamond Way Buddhism which was founded by Hannah and Ole Nydahl. It is, from what I understand, primarily a Tibetan Mahayana Buddhist group. They follow the Karma Kagyu tradition. I am not very well versed in that tradition but I have heard many positive things about Ole Nydhal. I do know that they have greatly westernized the Buddhism they teach; that is they do not use very much of the Tibetan language or customs in their practice. So, you may want to check them out. The Kagyu is one of the four major Tibetan Buddhist traditions.
The tradition I follow is called the Gelugpa tradition. The name of the group I follow is the FPMT; the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition. The head of this group is Lama Zopa Rinpoche. We too are a Tibetan Mahayana tradition. We do preserve much of the Tibetan and Sanskrit culture in our tradition. The FPMT has at least one center in Denmark you might like to check out. Here is the website for it. http://www.fpmt.dk cvm@fpmt.dk
If after looking at the FPMT website, you might want to order some books from the Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archives to read and see if our particular tradition resonates with you. If it does and if the location of the center in Denmark is too far away from you, you can take online courses from FPMT on basic Buddhism.
If you have any further questions or any follow up questions on the information above, don’t hesitate to ask.
In the mean time, I wish you nothing but happiness in your pursuit of Buddhism.
