Benchen Monastery Community - Europe Benchen Phuntsok Ling, Belgium

surrounding area

Benchen Phuntsok Ling is a Buddhist Dharma center of His Eminence Sangye Nyenpa Rinpoche and Very Venerable Tenga Rinpoche in Europe. It was Sangye Nyenpa Rinpoche who chose the name "Benchen Phuntsok Ling" for this place to indicate the close connection to the Benchen Phuntsok Dargyeling monastery in Kathmandu.

In a letter to his disciples from 1998 Tenga Rinpoche describes his vision of Benchen Phuntsok Ling:

"… this shall be a place for all of you where you can practice the Dharma, for some weeks, some months or any length of time. It has the goal of creating a permanent location for summer courses …"

General Information Summer Course 2025

Even in summer, it can be chilly in the evenings and at night.

Things to bring: warm sleeping bag and warm clothes, rain gear, rubber boots, comfortable cushions, blankets, and torches.

Accommodation in BPL in your own tent. It is also possible to bring a camper van or caravan to pitch in the designated areas. It is necessary to inform us in advance. Information about private accommodation:

Eifel Info

Tourist Info Hellenthal

For hygienic and legal reasons, pets are not allowed in the entire property.

Vegetarian Meals are available from Tuesday evening, 22 July to Saturday midday, 9 August.

Child Care: Only if there are enough bookings by 1 July. Please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. no later than 1 July with the names and ages of your children and the exact length of your stay. We will check if it is possible to organise childcare.

Assistance: At registration, you will be assigned to a job according to your personal skills. It is much easier for everyone if the work is done by many people. Our low costs depend heavily on this. We are also looking for people who are willing to take responsibility as coordinators during the summer course.

Video recording is only allowed with prior written permission from the Benchen Phuntsok Ling Trust. All publications (text, picture, sound, internet etc.) require the explicit written permission of the Benchen Phuntsok Ling Trust.

Parking: Only in the designated parking areas so that the local farmers have their way.

Sewage Plant: Benchen Phuntsok Ling has a modern biological treatment plant. Its bio-organisms are very fragile and no chemicals, camping toilet waste or similar items should be discharged into the sewage system. The resulting damage is approximately €30,000.

Drug use of any kind is strictly forbidden throughout the property.

Respect the bedtime of 22:30. No music or noise, especially.

Don’t forget that Benchen Phuntsok Ling is a meditation centre.

Glimpses of meetings with Edward Henning (1949 - 2016)

November 14, 2016, Edward Henning died, 67 years old.

Our precious translator who opened the doors to Tenga Rinpoche's teachings has left us behind with grateful minds. Vivid memories appear effortlessly.

Pictures of him as a young man meeting the 16th Karmapa in Rumtek, published in the "DHARMA KING" , a mighty volume dedicated to the memory of HH the 16th Karmapa, early witnesses of Edward's decisiveness to cross the cultural borders of his British education. By his decision to learn Tibetan and act as an interpreter he became one of these early translators almost miraculously appearing when they are needed most.

Farewell Hanne

Hanne

After a long illness, Hanne Pohlmann passed away on February 20, 2023.

She was a close disciple of venerable Tenga Rinpoche since the late 1970s.
As chairperson of Lotus Direkthilfe e.V. she actively supported the Benchen Phuntsok Dargyeling Monastery in Kathmandu until her last days.

Most of you know Hanne from many years of summer course in Allmuthen.

We will miss you!

Consecration of Kyabje Tenga Rinpoche's relic stupa

On the 31. October 2015 in Allmuthen, a wonderful day, Kyabje Tenga Rinpoche's nicely built relic stupa that had been constructed at Benchen Phuntsok Ling was consecrated by Drubwang Sangye Nyenpa Rinpoche. Many people have gathered on this beautiful occasion. On the following Sunday morning Rinpoche continued the weekend course by giving teachings and in the afternoon concluded it by bestowing the Thousand-Armed Chenresig empowerment. The weekend course has been wonderful and all the participants enjoyed it very much.

Stupa Allmuthen

After a longer period of waiting the building permission for the Stupa in Allmuthen was finally given. The actual construction work started just prior to the summer course 2014. However, due to the construction company's annual holiday break there was a four week building break until mid August 2014.
Simultaneously all the necessary rituals were performed by our resident lamas recently with the support of Khenpo Gawe Nyima and Drubpön Döndrub Tashi when the two mandalas etc. were placed in the Stupa.

During the summer course 2014 some Sangha members carved the so called "Sogshing", the approx. 5 m long center pole, which will be core of the Stupa and will be placed in the center of it. The wood was obtained from the Thuja tree which grew next to the Stupa building site in our garden. It was beautifully ornamented and prepared according to the traditional procedures by our resident lamas.

Building a Stupa

stupa

To enshrine Kyabje Tenga Rinpoche's relics we will be building a stupa at Benchen Phuntsok Ling, Allmuthen. It will have the form and the structure of the "Enlightenment Stupa".
H.H. Karmapa sent a personally signed construction drawing to Benchen Monastery in Nepal indicating that this type of stupa should be constructed for Kyabje Tenga Rinpoche's relics. This particular drawing of the Enlightenment Stupa is based on instructions by the 15th Karmapa, Khakyab Dorje, contained in his collected works, the 'Khakyab Dorje Khabum'.
The location for the stupa in Benchen Phuntsok Ling has been decided and Drubwang Sangye Nyenpa Rinpoche will perform all the necessary rituals preceding the actual building process during this year's summer course. (Dimensions of the stupa will follow).
The costs are estimated to be some 35.000 Euro. We aim to begin with the construction this year and ask all of you to support this project financially.

For any contribution please use the bank account here.
Please mention the purpose: Stupa
Thank you!

The Buddhist Stupa

The origin of the stupa (tib. Chörten mChod rten) can be traced to ancient Vedic India. It was customary to put the ashes of cremated bodies into tumuli.
The Buddhist stupas, however, are not mere elaborations of the burial mounds. They function as a symbolic representation containing relics, not as a container of relics that has symbolism. The relics sanctify the structure endowing it with the consecrated quality that the living being (of whose these are the relics) possessed. Some Buddhist texts refer to stupas built containing the relics of past Buddhas. So one can assume that stupas existed already during Shakyamuni Buddha's life, although in much more simple forms than we know today.

Consecration of the Place

On August 3, 2013 during the summer course Drubwang Sangye Nyenpa Rinpoche performed a ritual for the consecration of the place where the stupa is going to be build in Allmuthen. Now we are waiting for the building permission to start the construcution. Please click on the pictures to enlarge.

Tsa Tsa Workshops in Allmuthen

As you all know a stupa to enshrine the precious relics of Kyabje Tenga Rinpoche will be build in Benchen Phuntsok Ling, Allmuthen.

It is necessary to fill such a stupa with a lot of tsa tsas, mantra rolls and other objects. During two weekends at the end of 2013 during a workshop with Lama Ngawang Tsultrim 216 (2*108) tsa tsas together with a lot mantra rolls were prepared to fill the stupa.

Everybody was welcomed to join these workshops.

Accumulation of 10 Million Medicine Buddha Mantras - completed

=> The Mantra accumulation is completed now. 10,627,180 Mantras have been recited until October 25, 2020 😄 Great, thank you all very much!

For the health and long life of all lineage lamas, especially for our highly esteemed teacher Drubwang Sangye Nyenpa Rinpoche, we want to accumulate 10 million Medicine Buddha mantras from the bottom of our hearts:

TEYATHA OM BEKANDSE BEKANDSE MAHA BEKANDSE RADSA SAMUTGATE SOHA

You are invited to join this recitation.
An important prerequisite for participation in this practice is the presence of an empowerment in the practice of Medicine Buddha.

Please let us kindly know the amount of Mantras you accumulated each month and send the number to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Thank you!

Europe Benchen Phuntsok Ling, Belgium