A DAY IN THE LIFE OF AN FPMT LAMA

Ven. Siliana Bosa finds out from Geshe Jampa Gyatso how he spends a typical day at Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa in Italy, where he has been the resident lama since 1980. Geshe-la was an old friend of Lama Yeshe at Sera Monastery in Tibet, and taught at Kopan in Nepal. At the institute he teaches the Masters Program of Buddhist Studies devised by Lama.

First I asked Geshe-la what time he gets up. He answered, laughing – Geshe-la is always laughing – “Well, I usually get up at six o’clock, or five thirty, sometimes seven. Then I go to the toilet, wash my face, like that.”

When do you like to do your practice, I asked him. He said he likes to do it in the morning. After washing himself he then offers the water bowls. “Immediately I do three prostrations and begin my prayers.

“First I do some mantras for blessing the speech. Then I do Six Session Guru Yoga and Lama Chöpa. Then I do some sadhanas, White Heruka and Amitayus. The Avalokitesvara guru yoga and an Avalokitesvara sadhana with recitation of one thousand om mani padme hum. Then I do Vajrapani Hayagriva Garuda sadhana with some mantra. After that I do the Chakrasamvara Body Mandala sadhana and recitation. Then I recite different prayers, the Seven Point Mind Training and the Eight Verse Mind Training. Then I offer tormas to the protectors. Then more sadhanas, White Tara, Medicine Buddha, Kalachakra guru yoga, Samayavajra. Then some mantra recitation, Chakrasamvara, Yamantaka, Guhyasamaja, and the Guru Avalokitesvara long life prayers and recitation of the names of Manjushri. Then Tara Cittamani’s short sadhana, recitation of Rinjung Gyatsa and Sukha Gyatsa mantras, and offering torma to some protectors. Then I do the sadhana of Yamantaka with protector Kalarupa, and Vajrayogini. Then I recite The Heart Sutra, and so forth.”

So it will take you all morning? “Yes, all morning, four, five hours.” In between all this Geshe-la has his breakfast: he takes tea and dried bread and cheese.

After his practice, he starts to see people. Generally they go to see Geshe-la for their problems, and Geshe-la says that many, many women come to see him because they can’t find a boyfriend. Geshe-la is so skillful. He says he tells them to pray to Tara to find a boyfriend. More than once I have met people who have had a successful result after Geshe-la told them to pray to Tara. Also people go to see Geshe-la for advice about their business – and of course they see him for practice. He’s a great psychologist and really is able to understand exactly what people need.

After Geshe-la sees people he eats lunch. “I like very much all Italian food: pasta, pizza, tortellino.” Again much laughter. Now he has a Tibetan cook who takes care of him very nicely.

Generally, when he has the time off, he goes for a walk in the forest nearby. “And I like very much to go around the institute, to watch the people, to see what they do. I go into the office, into the kitchen, wherever people are.”

A peculiarity of Geshe Jampa Gyatso is that whenever anyone needs to see him for any problem, he will just appear in front of you, and he talks exactly about your problem without you even asking. Sometimes he also sees people privately in the afternoon after four o’clock.

Generally, he teaches in the afternoon from five thirty or six o’clock for one and a half or two hours. The students are quite impressed with the study program but there are only a few who follow it regularly. The majority of the people like teachings on meditation, and they like very much to meditate with the lama.

When he teaches, Geshe-la has the ability to see when the people are getting tired, so he starts to tell stories. And often you laugh so much because he has the kind of humor that really attracts you and makes you happy when you listen to him. At his teachings you have this feeling of light and space in the mind. He teaches in English generally, and sometimes he uses some Italian words with English pronunciation, and it quite funny. And he’s very direct.

Generally Geshe-la takes dinner about seven thirty or eight o’clock. He eats some light food or some soup. He likes to watch television, mainly the news. He is well informed about the political situation in Italy, and he knows what’s happening all over the world.

“And then I go to bed about eleven thirty, midnight.” And then, next morning, when Geshe Jampa Gyatso wakes up …