Founder

Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso

The Founder of the New Kadampa Tradition and Compassion Buddhist Centre is Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. He is the inspiration behind the revival of Kadampa Buddhism in our time.

Geshe-la as he is affectionately called by his students, is a fully accomplished meditation master and internationally renowned teacher of Buddhism.

Out of loving kindness and compassion he has devoted his life to making Buddha's pure teachings accessible to the modern world.

From the age of eight Geshe-la studied extensively in the great monastic universities of Tibet and earned the title 'Geshe', which literally means 'spiritual friend'. Under the guidance of Trijang Rinpoche, his Spiritual Guide he then spent the next eighteen years in meditation retreats in the Himalayas.

In 1977 he was invited to teach in England. Since arriving in the West, Geshe-la has given immaculate teachings on Kadampa Buddhism in Europe and North America, and published a series of remarkable books on Buddhist thought and meditation.

He has established three unique study programs and over 1000 Kadampa Centres and Groups world wide, trained qualified western teachers and a flourishing ordained community, and created a project to build Buddhist temples in every major city in the world.

In his teachings Geshe Kelsang emphasises the importance of meditation and how to apply it in daily life, the need to develop inner peace if we are to be truly happy, and how to cultivate a good heart to help others. He demonstrates perfectly these qualities in his own life.

This remarkable teacher inspires so many people from so many different countries because he teaches from example.

He is a humble Buddhist monk dedicated to helping people throughout the world find true happiness in their hearts.

You can read more about Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso at the main website for Kadampa Buddhism.

Spiritual Director

Gen-la Kelsang Dekyong, the General Spiritual Director of NKT-IKBU and Principal Resident Teacher at Manjushri KMC, is a modern Buddhist nun dedicated to helping people from all walks of life attain lasting happiness through developing inner mental peace.

She has been a student of Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso for thirty years, during which time she has inspired thousands of people around the world through her sincere reliance on her Spiritual Guide, taking his teachings to heart and putting them into practice in every aspect of her life.

Gen-la Dekyong is a highly experienced Buddhist Teacher who has taught at many different centres internationally.

Before her appointment as General Spiritual Director she was the National Spiritual Director of the USA. She is a very powerful Teacher able to make Buddha's teachings easily accessible and to show through her example how to integrate these teachings into our daily life.

Gen-la has dedicated her life to helping spread Kadampa Buddhism throughout the world by developing meditation centres and Temples in as many countries as possible, and she provides enthusiastic support and encouragement to everyone engaged in these projects.

But busy as she is, she never loses her connection with the people she is dedicated to helping and always has a kind word and wise counsel for whoever she meets.