Jewel Heart to celebrate Tibetan Buddhist master Gelek Rimpoche's 70th birthday
Gelek Rimpoche is one of the foremost Tibetan Buddhist masters alive today. He is truly a rare treasure in the world today yet he has chosen Ann Arbor for his home for over 30 years. All who meet him are instantly delighted by his warm, wise and fun-loving personality.
Rimpoche received his spiritual education in the old Tibet, prior to the Chinese Communist invasion when he fled to India as a refugee in 1959. He first came to Michigan in the mid-80s on the invitation of two Ann Arbor women he met in India, Sandy Finkel and Aura Glaser (Aura opened well known local bookstore Crazy Wisdom after returning from India).
Together they founded Jewel Heart in 1988, which over the years has become quite a presence, recently hosting His Holiness the Dalai Lama in April of 2008. Ann Arbor’s Jewel Heart Tibetan Buddhist Learning Center is the international headquarters and locally hosts two weeklong retreats a year, a number of long weekend retreats and regular ongoing teachings by Gelek Rimpoche as well as courses and workshops.
The birthday celebrations will begin on Saturday with the Not Yet Ready for Enlightenment Players giving a musical comedy performance at the Lydia Mendelssohn Theatre at the University of Michigan at 7:30 pm. This highly talented and energetic comedy troupe has delighted many over the years with their witty skits and musical interludes, typically offered at special events and Jewel Heart retreats. We anticipate this performance will be its most audacious and ambitious yet.
Then on Sunday from 3-6 pm Gelek Rimpoche and Colleen Smiley have extended an invitation to an afternoon tea party at Jewel Heart's home, 1129 Oak Valley Drive. There will be appetizers, tea, music and many old and new friends getting together. Music will feature Ann Arbor’s John Madison (viola) of Cassini String Quartet, Amy Hertz (flute) flying in from New York, Johnny Evans (sax) of the Howling Diablos, and more.
The space will be transformed with a wall of photos capturing people's favorite memories of moments with Rimpoche as well as an impressive exhibition highlighting just a portion of over 200 published works of Rimpoche's— both Tibetan and English. Many Tibetan texts were saved through Rimpoche’s efforts of publication following the destructive activities of the Communist Chinese. We are honored to celebrate Gelek Rimpoche’s 70 years dedicated to bringing compassion and wisdom into the world, both today and in the future to come.
If you appreciate the serenity and profound spiritual atmosphere of an authentic Tibetan Buddhist ritual, the birthday celebrations include a long life ceremony - a Tenzhuk - for Gelek Rimpoche on Monday, Oct. 26th at Jewel Heart from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Guests may wish to join in the Tibetan chanting or share meditatively in the wish for Rimpoche’s long and healthy life.
We hope to see you at any or all of these events in celebration of the life and life-works of our beloved spiritual master, Gelek Rimpoche. For more details on this weekend’s activities, visit our Web site www.jewelheart.org.
Kathy Laritz is the Program Director at Jewel Heart.