Retreat Center 'Tarini Dvori' for Mahayana Buddhist Studies, Meditation and Retreat
The Croatian Buddhist Society Padmasana holds its activities on a spacious estate in a peaceful, tranquil and forested environment, at the location of Marija Magdalena, a settlement near the town of Zaprešić.
The estate is used with spacious buildings adapted for staying in quiet retreat, for meditation practices, spiritual teachings and Tibetan medical yoga.
The estate provides opportunities for various activities in nature, participation in outdoor workshops accompanied by the sound of birdsong and periodic seminars in which members spontaneously socialize.
The estate is surrounded by forest land which will be arranged for further dharma activities aimed at awakening the dormant sense for nature and the spontaneity of life.
Activities at the center 'Tarini Dvori' with a weekly program under the guidance of resident teachers:
- buddhist study of Mahayana Sutra texts together with practice in the preliminaries
- recitation of Sutrayana texts
- practice in Buddhist tantra of the generation stage
- annual retreat for permanent members
- weekend physical activities in maintaining the center and clearing the forest terrain
Occasional activities:
- visits and teachings by eminent teachers from the Mahayana tradition
- departure of society members on pilgrimage to sacred places and hidden caves of secret hermits (siddhas) in the Himalayan massif of India and Nepal
CROATIAN BUDDHIST SOCIETY "PADMASANA" – CENTER FOR BUDDHIST CULTURE OF WISDOM, ART AND SPIRITUALITY OF THE HIMALAYAS
Dear friends, we are pleased to share with you the goals and intentions that guided us in establishing the Croatian Buddhist Society 'Padmasana'. The fundamental goal of the Croatian Buddhist Society "Padmasana" is to promote the precious treasury of Buddhist cultural heritage and wisdom, which through its practical content can enrich the life of modern people and help in advancing the often-forgotten timeless values of inner spiritual life. By cultivating this wisdom of the heart, many human virtues develop: peace, non-violence, compassion and true love for others. This also develops awareness of the unity and interdependence of everything, of the whole of which we became a part at the very moment of birth. The goal of promoting the values of this ancient life wisdom, which does not suffer transience, is to remind us of the similarities among us and the good within us, and to reconcile the experience of diversity and difference as something foreign and alien. It would be worthwhile to persevere in this direction in the new millennium. The promotion of the values of Buddhist culture and wisdom in our Croatia does not aim to change the rich heritage of our fathers or the spirituality present for centuries, but rather to enrich and give meaning to that heritage and spirituality with new insights, directed toward awakening awareness of the existing values of one's own tradition and culture of the spirit. Buddhist thought has shone with inspiration through millennia, has been an inspiration and a way of life for many generations in building personal peace and happiness. The promotion of Buddhist culture and wisdom as a complete, gradual path toward discovering and understanding the world and life, the teaching that the great teacher Gautama Buddha taught and left as a legacy, has become necessary even within Buddhist traditions, due to the fragmentation and distancing of individual Buddhist schools, their institutions and individuals, and sometimes the weakening of the strength of Buddhist thought. The program of the Croatian Buddhist Society 'Padmasana' within the framework of promoting Buddhist culture, wisdom and spirituality is based on a holistic approach to the study and practice of the wisdom of the heart, which does not restrict the cultivation of complete compassion, selfless love, inner peace and happiness. As such, the Society C.B.S. 'Padmasana' serves as an example of non-sectarianism in Mahayana, the only correct path in spiritual growth toward complete knowledge of humanity and its nature. The C.B.S. 'Padmasana' bases its activities on authentic teachings of the Mahayana Buddhist spiritual tradition. This encompasses the following: Buddhist study, meditation, spiritual art, ancient Tibetan medicine, Himalayan culture, study trips and pilgrimages to the high Asian plateau. The study content depends on authentic visiting teachers and realized Himalayan spiritual masters with rich experience who come from mountain meditation hermitages and Buddhist universities in the Indian Himalayas, so that their words can be heard in the direct transmission of their knowledge and wisdom to students in Croatia. The Society was founded by Buddhist teacher Gen. Lobsang Norbu (Dragutin Šmalcelj), the spiritual mentor of the Society who directs the programmatic work for the purpose of promoting the values of Buddhist philosophy and meditation in everyday life on a non-sectarian basis. The Croatian Buddhist Society and the project of the center for Buddhist studies, contemplation and meditation operate with the direct blessing of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, the head of Tibetan spiritual traditions. The 17th Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje also gave his blessing and support to C.B.S. Padmasana for work on the four schools project. Direct support and instructions for the non-sectarian spreading of the authentic word of Buddha in Croatia were given to Dragutin Šmalcelj as founder of the Society during his Buddhist study in India by: H.H. Penor Rinpoche, H.H. Sakya Trizin, H.E. Garje Khamtrul Rinpoche, Kyabje Garchen Rinpoche, Kyabje Ayang Rinpoche, Lama Geshe Alak Tsawa Rinpoche and others. The Croatian Buddhist Society 'Padmasana' is part of the working body of the International Buddhist Association 'Prajnadeep', headquartered in Bodh Gaya, India, established for the protection and preservation of Buddhist thought, culture, art and ancient holistic healing knowledge, for the benefit of future generations. The Buddhist Association 'Prajnadeep' is a member of the International Buddhist Council – India, which includes 36 members – Buddhist monastic institutions, schools, spiritual lineages and associations from around the world.
Activites from 2001. to 2013.
Public presentations of the C.B.S. 'Padmasana' in Croatia:
Since 2001, in addition to organizing teachings, seminars and workshops for its members, the Society has successfully organized events for the public:
-during Tibet Culture Week in Zagreb 24. to 30. 09. 2001, participated in organizing the creation of a large sand mandala of the bodhisattva of compassion Avalokiteshvara.
-from 30. 10. to 07. 11. 2006, organized an exhibition of an authentic large three-dimensional mandala of the Medicine Buddha at the Meštrović Pavilion (Croatian Association of Fine Artists) in Zagreb. This mandala belongs to the Tibetan spiritual treasury of the 9th century, and it was constructed in Zagreb by a team of specially trained Tibetan monks for the creation of this mandala, from the Gyume Tantric University in India. During its creation, the mandala was visited by more than 14,000 visitors from various parts of the country and the world.
-in the period from 2001. to 2009., in addition to its internal program, the Society organized a series of open teachings in Zagreb by authentic Tibetan spiritual masters: K.C. Ayang Rinpoche (Phowa seminar on Sljeme), Alak Tsawa Rinpoche, H.E. Gangteng Tulku Rinpoche, Ganor Dzogchen Rinpoche, Garchen Rinpoche and others.
-during 2008. , members of the Society made pilgrimages to sacred places in the Himalayas. (web. under link 'journeys and pilgrimages')
-during 2010. , the Society also launched the 'Padmasana' library and began publishing books. To date, two books have been published: "Dijamantni put" (The Diamond Path) and "Nebeska glazba" (Celestial Music).
-in 2011. , the Society was the organizer for Croatia (Zagreb) of an exceptional exhibition of world spiritual heritage of sacred Buddhist relics 2,600 years old. The exhibition was dedicated to peace and non-violence. More about this event can be read on the website under 'exhibition of relics in Zagreb'. (Croatian Association of Fine Artists - Meštrović Pavilion)
-in 2012. , the Society organized for the public 'Himalayan Culture Week in Zagreb' in which thousands of visitors could experience the beauty and feel the inner power of love and compassion in an encounter with a 3-D sand mandala from the 11th century, representing cosmic unity, universality and the interdependence of life on the planet (a valuable Buddhist spiritual treasure of Bakula Rinpoche was opened to the public in a performance by monks from Spituk Monastery in the western Himalayas). On this occasion, a great prayer for the healing of humanity and the earth was also held). Published on the website under 'Creation of the sand mandala of Shri Vajra Bhairava' at the Croatian Association of Fine Artists - Meštrović Pavilion.
-in 2013. , the Society brought an international exhibition of ancient Buddhist relics to the city of Split and delighted the population of Dalmatia with the exhibited artifacts and the atmosphere in which messages of peace, love, tolerance and non-violence from different religious groups and spiritual groups from that area could be heard (exhibition in the old city hall - People's Square, Split). In October, a Buddhist seminar was organized with Lama Alak Tsawa Rinpoche from the Sera Jhe Buddhist University in India.
Internal program of the H.B.D. Padmasana:
Study group: The teaching is based on authentic Mahayana sutras and an expert scholarly approach to mind training. Commentaries on root texts by: Acharya Nagarjuna, Asanga, Dignaga, Aryadeva, Chandrakirti, Chandragomin, Atisha, Shantideva and other great spiritual teachers of ancient Indian Buddhism. In addition, texts on the gradual path of the four Tibetan Buddhist traditions are also studied. The Society 'Padmasana' is the only one in Croatia that preserves and cultivates the tradition of oral transmission of special tantric teachings from the tradition of living tertons 'terma', especially in the lineages of the Medicine Buddha, Avalokiteshvara, White Tara, Amitabha, Shemara, Yamantaka.
Meditation group: In addition to weekly gatherings for meditation at the center, the society also organizes an annual meditation retreat only for those who have completed study training and received tantric empowerment for a particular spiritual practice.
Permanent spiritual teachers at the center: Genla Lobsang Norbu, Lhamo Ozer Chenma.
Visiting spiritual teachers: meditation masters from the Himalayas, incarnate lamas and academically educated experts of 'geshe' degree from the four Tibetan spiritual traditions.
The C.B.S. Padmasana in its activities within the framework of human spiritual culture wishes to expand its scope of action with the purpose of raising general awareness about life in the new millennium. In addition to the continuity of teaching and meditation for its existing members, it will establish beginner and advanced groups for those who are willing to learn about themselves, change for the better and thereby develop wisdom in achieving inner happiness, and in this way best help others, being light in the community in which they live. For this, prior Buddhist knowledge is not necessary. What is sufficient is a sincere and strong desire for personal positive change, enthusiasm, determination and perseverance, an open heart and a spark of faith that everything in life can change for the better only if personal habits and way of acting are changed.
HOW TO BECOME A MEMBER:
All those who are interested in joining the society 'Padmasana' will be registered and included in the teaching and meditation program and will be able to acquire the right to regular membership based on the existing ethical code and enrollment criteria of the C.B.S. 'Padmasana'. Within the program there is also a Himalayan cultural section open only to members of the study-meditation group: the program includes watching films, listening to lectures from travels and organizing occasional special trips to the high parts of the Himalayas with the aim of cultural, sociological, anthropological and spiritual acquaintance with existing sources. For this, it is necessary to first enter your information and include your email address in our 'contact' link and briefly state the reasons and desire to join the Society and send us an inquiry to our e-mail padmasana@live.in or contact us by mobile at 098/175 38 59. May all living beings attain lasting happiness, develop inner peace and be forever freed from suffering and its causes! Board of Directors of the C.B.S. Padmasana