Tenzin Tsapel

Tenzin Tsapel, originally from Melbourne Australia, was inspired to become a Buddhist when she met Lama Yeshe and Lama Zopa Rinpoche in 1979 at her first Buddhist course at Chenrezig Institute in Queensland. The Lamas made a big impact with their humor, and extraordinary kindness backed up by a deep dharma wisdom that seemed to explain their engaging personalities.

In 1982 she spent a year in India, attending the first FPMT Enlightened Experience Celebration and followed by a three month group retreat and one month solitary retreat. That year laid the foundation for her return, two years later, to take ordination with His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

Tsapel has worked as Regional Coordinator for the Australian and New Zealand centers, including computer account keeping for FPMT Central Office in Melbourne and briefly in Soquel, California.

When Tsapel joined the nuns community at Chenrezig, in 1991she was able utilize her previous training in architectual drafting, and experience on tools building a mud brick home with friends in Daylesford, in country Victoria. (It was in Daylesford that she met a student of the Lamas and was inspired to attend Rinpoche’s course at Chenrezig). at Chenrezig Tsapel became the project manager for several residential cabins, and a facility building for the nuns and a teacher’s house for the Institute.

Later in ’97, inspired by Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s encouragement for center’s to introduce higher studies, Tsapel requested Geshe Tashi Tsering to teach the Budhist Studies Program at Chenrezig and became it’s first co-ordinator, and later tutor for a few modules in the second round. Geshe Tashi Tsering is now teaching the third round of the BSP, with the help of a second Geshe Geshe Jamyang and attended by most of the sangha community of 20 nuns and 4 monks. Tsapel has also taught a full round of Discovering Buddhism, and other teachings and lead a number of group retreats in Australia and New Zealand.

Tsapel is joining the team at Chandrakirti Centre, as resident teacher, in June 2007