For information about membership, contact: membership@nalandabodhi.org
These are students who have developed a connection to our sangha and teachers through studying and participating in classes, practice, and special programs -- and wish to make a monthly contribution to support these activities. Many of these members will become formal students (full members) of The Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche.
This category of membership is only for formal students of Rinpoche as it requires a deeper commitment to Nalandabodhi. To become a formal student means that you have asked Rinpoche to be your teacher and Rinpoche has accepted you as his student. Being accepted as a formal student by Rinpoche offers many opportunities to deepen and enrich our practice, study, and activity within the sangha. When we become students of a teacher, we take refuge in the teacher as a representative of the Buddha, in his teachings as genuine instructions leading us on the spiritual path, and in his community of students, or sangha, as partners in this journey. The relationship between a teacher and his sangha is also reciprocal. Rinpoche often tells us that he needs his students' feedback as well as participation and support to develop a Buddhadharma effective for western students. Working together with each other in the sangha also provides spiritual support and feedback. It offers an opportunity to work through and transform obstacles with fellow travelers. As members, we share a commitment to establishing harmonious relationships with other members as part of the sangha discipline of loving kindness and compassion. Sangha provides a vital aspect of our practice. It is meditation in action and interaction. Some members become formal students of Rinpoche without having been Contributing Members first. In this situation, Rinpoche suggests that there be a 'transitional' period of six months allowing the new member time to gradually commit to full membership status.
If you wish to become a Nalandabodhi member, you should join the Nalandabodhi Center in or near the city where you live. There is a list of our centers on this website. If you are not near any Nalandabodhi Center, it is possible to become a At Large Center Member. Thank you again for your interest.
