You already know that Maitripa College hosts graduate-level degree programs, amazing public teaching programs, visiting teachers, and weekend workshops. But did you ever wonder why we do it?
Maitripa College is a Tibetan Buddhist graduate school in Southeast Portland, and we believe in the power of education to cultivate our potential to lead a meaningful life.
As human beings, we suffer. There is no way around that very salient point. Our lineage of Buddhist teachings is very clear that this suffering is endemic and that it has causes. The power of education at Maitripa lies in understanding the nature of suffering and how to transform it.
As College President Yangsi Rinpoche says, “Education at Maitripa College is about trying to understand reality, internal and external. What is the fundamental nature of our existence?”
In seeking to understand reality, within ourselves and in the world, we can more readily and accurately address the root causes of suffering and develop solutions. Maitripa College graduates are prepared through our three pillars pedagogy with tools that empower them in to be of their service in the world, with wisdom and compassion.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama shared during the 2013 Maitripa College Environmental Summit, “The way to build this 21st century into a century of dialogue, a century of peace, a century of compassion [is] through education, not through prayer.”
He also stresses that “there are now people elsewhere who are taking an interest in Buddhist logic and science of mind from an academic viewpoint….Today, although America is not traditionally a Buddhist country, because more and more people are showing interest in Buddhist philosophy and science of mind, [it would be] better if [there] were not only temples for worship, but [also] centers of learning.”(1)
Maitripa College is committed to education as a means to benefit and develop our Portland community and the world. Thank you for your partnership in our efforts.
(1) for more on this advice, visit the following link: http://www.dalailama.com/news/post/1374-his-holiness-the-dalai-lama-talks-to-the-deer-park-community. March 8, 2016.
