On the 18th of June 2016 Latvian Peace Pagoda was visited by Lama Rinchen who has given teachings on ancient Eastern methods of calming the mind and developing meditative concentration. 

Our life is abundant with all kinds of stress – home, family, work commitments strain our minds 24 hours a day 365 days a year. Lama Rinchen originally comes from Poland and as a representative of Western culture he knows first hand about our daily emotional challenges. Therefore, Lama Rinchen shared some knowledge on how our perception works and how it is related to our senses, the meaning of meditation in Eastern philosophy and practice, as well as the possibility to change our view of the world so that the stressful situation would not affect us so greatly and destructively.

About 100 guests from Baltic countries and Russia have attended the teachings of Lama Rinchen. Some of them were already familiar with the methods of Eastern meditation, others heard the term ‘shiney’ (‘śamatha’) for the very first time. During the teachings Lama explained that the syllable ‘shi’ means calmness or serenity and ‘ney’ – to remain or abide in a certain place. As a result, the basis of meditation is nothing else but the training of our mind to remain calm under any circumstances. Knowing these basics and training for only 30-60 seconds at a time several times a day should transform our ordinary perception of the world to more positive one and this, in turn, should help us cope with emotional challenges.

Lama Rinchen has been practicing ancient Eastern teachings for over 35 years of his life. He was a monk for 10 years 4,5 of which he spent in individual retreat with the aim of calming his own mind and obtain meditative experience and knowledge. According to the wishes of his Teachers His Eminance Tenga Rinpoche and His Eminence Senge Nyenpa Rinpoche  for many years Lama Rinchen has been sharing his knowledge and experience with European students.

Lama Rinchen’s teaching on meditation on the territory of the Latvian Peace Pagodas was held in an open and friendly atmosphere. During the event guests had the opportunity to ask questions, as well as have a personal consultation with the Lama.