Thursday, April 15, 2010

Surmang Monastery and Trungpa XII Following Quake: UPDATED

This in from the Ocean of Dharma list:

"A huge earthquake struck Jyekundo yesterday, the closest city to the Surmang Dutsi Til monastery, where Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche was the supreme abbot before leaving Tibet. The initial quake of 7.1 magnitude was followed by several aftershocks of magnitude 5 or more. Most communications with Jyekundo are now down but first reports indicate heavy damage and large numbers of people killed or injured. Reports say that possibly as many as 90% of the homes in the city have been destroyed. Trungpa Rinpoche's brother, Damcho Tenphel Rinpoche, often resides in Jyekundo. It is not known if he was in Jyekundo at the time of the quake. He was not living in the city a month ago. At this time, it is unknown how the monastery itself has been affected. There are confirmed reports that buildings at nearby Thrangu Monastery have collapsed, and several people have died there.

"The Konchok Foundation -- started by Chogyam Trungpa's eldest son, Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, his widow, Lady Diana Mukpo, and others to rebuild the monastic college at Surmang and provide support there -- is gathering information on the disaster. Also working to gather information is the Surmang Foundation, of which Lee Weingrad, a senior student of Chogyam Trungpa, is the director, which provides medical care in the region. Both organizations are setting up funds for disaster relief and will work closely with people in the region. For information or to give:

Konchok Foundation http://www.konchok.org /
Surmang Foundation http://www.surmang.org /

UPDATED: Report in that Trungpa XII is safe at Derge and Surmang escaped significant damage. However, Jyekundo is reported "95% destroyed" with at least 1,000 dead.

Note: We are continuously updating links to earthquake coverage at our consolidation page, here.

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