Update on Thrangu Monastery and Qinghai Earthquake

As the days pass, information from Tibet becomes more clear and detailed: twenty-three monks were killed; nine with serious injuries are in the hospital; around forty have a range of injuries that are being treated on site as best as possible. Structural damage on all the remaining buildings has been confirmed, so they will have to be taken down before reconstruction can begin.

The monks continue to search through the ruins. Many of the clay and wooden statues have collapsed but the seven large metal Buddhas reveal only minor damage. Texts are being retrieved from the institute for higher Buddhist studies, and the large Buddha statue there has been pulled out. As they move across the land of their former home, the monks walk carefully to avoid the fissures that have opened up in the earth.

In Hong Kong, Thrangu Rinpoche is conducting a course on the transference of consciousness at death and also discussing with his senior monks the next steps to take in Tibet. Under consideration is moving the monastery to a new and safer site. Whatever decision is made, financial support will be needed to reconstruct the monastery and any donations toward the project will be greatly appreciated.