The Shri Magal Dvip High School
In 1987, Thrangu Rinpoche founded the Mangal Dvip Primary School in Boudhanath, Nepal for boys and girls of the Himalayan Region in order to provide an education for children in a Buddhist School. As a boarding and day school it offers a comprehensive education of academics, languages and the Dharma according to the government standards of Nepal. It has grown considerably in the last few years and is now a high school offering all grades from nursery to class X.
The students are mainly Tibetan, or children from the Himalayan regions, where the people are mainly Buddhist and similar to Tibetans in race and culture. Rinpoche had the wish for these children to preserve their own religion and culture while being educated. Most of the schools in Nepal are Hindu oriented, or Catholic, with many Tibetan families sending their children to Catholic schools in India.The enrollment in Mangal Dvip has steadily increased from the original 30 children. Presently there are more than 250 students in attendance and nearly half of them are boarding students. Fees for almost 100 children are paid by their families and the rest are paid for by sponsorship and other donations.. Of the day students, 85 are young monks from Rinpoche's monastery, who all attend school full-time. Rinpoche feels this is very important because most monks do not have the opportunity for school, or if they do attend at a public school then they are not allowed to wear their robes and much of the monastic discipline is lost. In this way the monks can begin the school and monastery together and have a very good start.
The school has grown in other ways as well. There are more classrooms than when we first began, a new larger dining hall and kitchen, and a new playground and soccer field. New dormitories are also under construction.
There are 60 students who are sponsored through Himalayan Children's Project. They are children whose parents are unable to afford school fees. The project is non-profit and administered by Jane Lawless. A few children are also sponsored by the Rokpa Foundation and there are some private sponsors.
The children, in addition to receiving a general education, learn to read and write in Nepali, English, and Tibetan. There is also Sanskrit language, which is required in some grades. Everyone learns some Dharma as well as reciting Buddhist prayers and mantras before and after school each day.
The school goes up to 10th grade and at class 10 the students take final exams given, by the Ministry of Education. If they pass they may attend the university.
Two years ago the Swedish Tibet Society, with matching funds from the Swedish government, gave funds for a new playground and soccer field and this year a new dining room, a kitchen, and dormitories are being built.
The school also has a large shrine room and assembly hall where yearly Rinpoche and all his monks and nuns perform a mani puja which is attended by many of the parents, the local lay community, and some of Rinpoche's disciples. It is very heartwarming to hear everyone chanting "OM MANI PADME HUM" together.
The headmaster of the school is a Tibetan man named Tsewang Norbu. He has had many years of experience teaching school in India and is very respected in both the school and the community. The director of the school is Thrangu Rinpoche's brother-in-law, Tenzin Namgyal known at the school as "Pala" which means "father." Tenzin Namgyal was the secretary of the 16th Karmapa. His wife, Rinpoche's sister, Tsaya, also helps with the school and especially with the small children who are boarding, who often miss home. She is an immensely kind person. The administrator is Karma Wangdu, one of Thrangu Rinpoche's monks.
After exams, a Parent's Day is held each year where the children perform songs, dances, and plays. The performances are held on a platform outside with seating in the courtyard. They are so well attended that there is barely room to move. Rinpoche attended Parent's Day this year and gave a talk on his motivation for the school and his wishes for the future.
I asked Thrangu Rinpoche what he would like to say about the school for this article and he said, "The school is going very well these days. The sponsorship program has helped many children who are too poor to have a chance to become educated. That is very important for this country. If we can get more sponsors it will be a benefit for the poor. Also, in the school, children have the opportunity to learn to read and write Tibetan which helps to preserve the religion and culture."
(Compiled from information from Gloria Jones and Debra Ann Robinson.)
For more information contact:
Shirley Blair
Sponsorship Coordinator and Fundraiser for Shree Mangal Dvip School
sb@yeshe.wlink.com.np