Other major celebrations included Padmaloka’s 50^th anniversary retreat, which was an abundant occasion with incredible talks, rituals and a delightful atmosphere. We had a tea party to celebrate Aloka, Surata and Padmavajra’s 50^th anniversary in the Order. We welcomed back Moksamati from his Ordination Course and most recently, the final panel, a beautiful image of Padmasambhava’s birth, was put up in the shrine room. How amazing that this shrine has been completed! So much gratitude and appreciation to Aloka and previous communities who have made this happen.

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Emiliano and Maitridasa have spent 5-months staying as working guests and enriched the community a great deal. Emiliano, a 22-year-old from Mexico, had this to say about his stay:

When I arrived in Padmaloka, I could not believe I had decided to come and live on the other side of the world for half a year, with eighteen strangers. Slowly, those strangers turned into familiar faces, then friends, then really good friends, and some, I’d say, companions for life. I recall Padmaloka as a place of kindness and love, where I learned to relax and truly trust and rely on my friends.

It’s a space that allowed me to grow in ways I did not expect. Meditating together, eating together, studying together, working together—basically, sharing a whole life with friends on the path, many of whom had much more experience than me, shaped me. I feel like it shaped me into something higher and nobler, beyond what I had known or been. In a very positive way, I became more like them, and at the same time, paradoxically, I became more myself. I recall Padmaloka as a place of endless nourishment. Wherever you look, wherever you go, whoever you meet, there’s always an opportunity to grow and to help others grow.

Padmaloka, I’d say, is also a place of mystery. It has an atmosphere of depth, beauty, self-discovery, and exploration. I especially felt this during a two-week meditation retreat. When you become quiet, the whole place reveals its mythical, ungraspable nature. In that sense, I recall Padmaloka as a place of wonder. It is an adventure, a challenge, an opening, an invitation to meet what is sacred and enter into a new and beautiful world.

At the project level, we've put a lot of energy into beautifying the garden. As you may remember, we commissioned some garden designers to produce a whole site design, which we are gradually implementing. The Piazza (the area leading up to the dining room) and Rose Alley have been the first areas to concentrate on. James has worked exceptionally hard to ensure these plants survive the very dry summer.

During friends and guests week in April, a major accomplishment was the renovation of the dinning room. The sound of the sanding machine probably haunted the men who manned it for weeks afterwards. It made a tremendous sound as it removed the rough paint from the floor. We’re left with a gorgeous finish both on the floor and a lovely aesthetic on the walls. In time, more acoustic panels will go in to reduce the volume and we hope to put in some new furniture.

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