Juniper Smoke and Prayer Blessings at Dragon Seat/ Pemo Karpo
Source: Drukden Gompa website
As beings in the Tibetan Buddhist worldview cycle through numerous (perhaps at times, countless) incarnations, so too do buildings. Even in fledgling existence, many centers have already held a myriad of incarnations in the forms of different names as well as storied pasts attributed to a building's historic uses.
Pema Karpo Meditation Center in Memphis, Tennessee was established recently, in 2005 yet has already existed also under another name in it's history- Dragon Seat Meditation Center (Drukden Gompa). Pema Karpo Meditation Center, like dharma centers worldwide, hosts regular classes, talks, meditation, retreats and celebrations.
Like many dharma centers in the U.S., Pema Karpo was made possible by the collaborative and dedicated efforts of Tibetans and Americans working in concert to bring the vision to life. In this particular story of a dharma center's beginnings, it is the figures of Candia Ludy and Khenpo Gawang Rinpoche who drive much of the tale.
It appears as well that the center serves a historical role in another way- that of being the first Tibetan Buddhist Center established in Tennessee. Referring to Khenpo Gawang Rinpoche's sentiments regarding a center here and decision to relocate to Memphis, the center's website notes:
"Because there were Western students sincerely interested in studying Tibetan Buddhism but no center and no dharma teacher, Rinpoche felt he would be the most beneficial in the Tri-State area."
Stupa of Enlightenment
Next to neighboring Vietnamese Temple, Chua Pho Da
Constructed in 2003 by Ludy's coordination
Source: Drukden Gompa website
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