- +34695435047
- Info@mahayana.es
- Carrer Músic Casanova 15, 46870 Ontinyent, Valencia, Spain
For the last almost forty years, we have worked to preserve the mahayana tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. We have also built a beautiful community of like-minded people who value growth, care, togetherness, peace, and happiness.
As followers of Tibetan Buddhism, His Holiness Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, is our ultimate spiritual leader. His Holiness inspires us to never give up in our strive for world peace, and to make of loving kindness our foremost value. As the Buddha of compassion, His Holiness endows us with many blessings that we receive with open hearts.
As members of the Foundation of the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (FPMT), Lama Yeshe and Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche are our direct spiritual leaders. In particular, the teachings of Lama Zopa Rinpoche inspire us to continue working tiredlessly for the benefit of all sentient beings. As a living example of the embodiment of bodhicitta, Rinpoche is our guide in the bodhisattva path.
We also receive teachings, guidance and inspiration from many other teachers and masters of Tibetan Buddhism.
Khadro-La is the Tibetan State Oracle, a highly realized practitioner, and a spiritual teacher. She is the physical basis for the Tenma Goddesses, Twelve Guardian Deities of Tibetan Buddhism, and provides guidance and counsel to the Fourteenth Dalai Lama and the Tibetan people. She is also known for giving teachings on various aspects of Tibetan Buddhism to audiences around the world.
As a friend, teacher and also student of Lama Zopa Rinpoche, she has a strong connection with the FPMT and its centers. At Mahayana Ontinyent, we regard her as one of our main teachers.
Lama Geshe Lamsang is our closest teacher. As the resident teacher of Nagarjuna Valencia, he visits us often. Since his arrival to Spain in November 2000, he as built a strong relationship with us. He knows the students at Mahayana Ontinyent very well, and provides teachings, guidance and general advice for the center. He is like a father for Mahayana Ontinyent.
Venerable Jesús Revert has a special place in our hearts at Mahayana Ontinyent. He is one of the few Spaniards to have obtained the Geshe title. He was born in Ontinyent and is intimately connected to the Mahayana Center.
Venerable Jesús spends eight or nine months a year in solitary retreat. When he is not in retreat, he tours around Spain, following the invitations he receives to teach in centers. Every time he visits us at Ontinyent, we feel extremely fortunate to host him and receive teachings and advice from him.
Our board of directors is composed of four people: Vicent Calabuig, Paloma Belda, Juan Bas and Rafa Conejero. They have all been actively involved in the renovation project of our center. They also hold other managing positions. Paloma is the center’s director. Juan is the center’s SPC. Rafa is the center’s secretary.
We keep the center running thanks to an amazing team of volunteers who have operational responsibilities. Chelo, a member of the center since its inception, runs the store and takes care of events and volunteers. Alejandro is the center’s accountant. Kelsang is assistant directar and helps with communication and marketing. Drolma teaches yoga and volunteers often. Fran, Elena, Enri, and Enrique are also key members of the team, and their effort and generosity keeps the center alive.
It was 1985 when a group of people from Ontinyent first met a Tibetan lama and experienced the Buddhist wisdom first-hand. They kept on attending this master’s teachings and investigating Buddhism, and a year later they decided to establish a more formal group for practicing Buddhism.
This was 1986, when Rafa Conejero, Paloma Belda and Juan Bas sat on the floor of an almost empty apartment and decided to officialy become a Buddhist Study Group. Vicent Calabuig and Chelo Belda, who had been closely connected to the group, joined soon after.
The Tibetan lama in question was Lama Geshe Lobsang Tsultrim, the first Tibetan master to settle in Spain. He was based in Barcelona but traveled around Spain offering teachings wherever people invited him. He became intimately connected to the students in Ontinyent, and became the center’s guide.
Once stablished as a formal Study Group in 1986, the center received its name from Lama Geshe Lobsan Tsultrim. The given name was ‘Tekchen Choeling’, which translates to “Place of the Mahayana Teachings” or “Place of the Mahayana Dharma”. The center has used its Tibetan name, Tekchen Choeling, for almost 40 years. Now, we are also using the sanskrit keyword “Mahayana” as part of our identity.
As a Study Group, the center was dependant on Valencia’s center, Nagarjuna Valencia, founded just a few years prior. Later on, in the 90s, Tekchen Choeling became its own independent center.
Our guru Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche visited Ontinyent in two ocasions. The first was in 1995, and the second in 2005. Both times, Rinpoche’s impact on us was paramount. He was incredibly inspiring, motivating us to continue with our work of expanding and preserving the dharma. He also gave us amazing advice for the center and personal advice for many of the members.
In 1995, Rinpoche gave teachings in our old location. In 2005, he offered teachins in the beautiful house of our director, Paloma Belda, and her husband and the center’s SPC, Juan Bas. The images of that event are beautiful.
In 2017 we asked Rinpoche whether it was a good idea to relocate the center. He indicated that the time was not right yet, and that we had to continue where we were. He also gave us instructions on how to run the center, and which practices to make.
Five years laters, after we completed his advice, we asked again. This time, Rinpoche indicated that the time was ripe for us to relocate the center. This news arrived to us in February of 2023. Since then, we’ve been implementing the many steps of relocating a dharma center.
You can read about it here.
You can also learn more about the current state of relocation project and our need for donations in the links below.
