Mahasiddha Kadampa Buddhist Center

Welcoming. Peaceful. Comfortable. Children friendly.
The Sunday teaching consisted of a guided meditation, prayer, a thoughtful lesson and a closing meditation. The session closed with the attending children giving a brief presentation about what they learned while they sat and played with a second teacher in the nearby children’s room.
I was welcomed by a friendly lady who gave me a quick orientation. I immediately felt welcomed and comfortable as it was my first time. It will not be my last.

It’s important to note bluntly and fully that the so-​called New Kadampa Tradition is NOT a tradition since it was founded only in 1991, nor is it particularly Kadampa since its proclamation was made without approval or oversight by Gelugpa authorities who actually have the claim to the term, and finally it’s not really that new since jealousy, avarice, and arrogance have been plaguing humans since we started existing.
«Geshe Kelsang Gyatso» is the founder of the NKT sect and you’ll find their recruitment intake centers all over the world. Invariably, they’re web-​addressed as www. meditatein[fill-in-the-blanks].org and I’ve warned people off as a public service against cults in general and as someone with considerable experience and respect in Kagyu, Nyingma, and Gelugpa traditions. It is this last school, historically associated with the Dalai Lamas and the most recent of the primary schools of Tibetan Buddhism to come on the scene, that is referenced in the «Kadampa» reference, and the very name «Kelsang Gyatso» was the name of the seventh of the Dalai Lamas, widely considered one of the most influential of the incarnations.
Let’s leave aside the «main issue,» the rather odd insistence to continue promoting the worship and propitiation of Dorje Shugden, in direct contradiction and challenge to the prevailing practice of shunning the deity, one specifically given negative sanction by the Tibetan Administration, the Dalai Lama, and the overwhelming majority of Vajrayana practitioners in Tibet, Nepal, India, and globally — almost all of whom agree to eschew the Shugden practice. No, let’s go directly to the cray where this formerly reasonable monastic abandoned his lineage (really NOT okay in Vajrayana traditions, moreso even than other Buddhist schools) and proclaimed a «new» one with the precisely identical claim to Gelug tradition/​authority. This from a man who fronts about with a spiritual name of a major incarnation of the Dalai Lamas as he spews contempt and falsehood about the size of his organization, the qualification of his teachings (to say nothing about the monks he’s created to staff his cult-​donation magnet). Notably, he has accused the Dalai Lama himself of being a communist plant or spy and suggested that he, Kelsang, is the savior of Tibetan forms of spiritual practice and that he, the Dalai Lama threatens it. You know what, Kelsang? Sod off.
Wake up, Portland. This city is a Buddhist crossroads. The Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition and Wisdom Publications are located right here in town. There is a very very well regarded Kagyu Temple in NE. If you want to step apart from the Vajrayana, there is a formidable Zen presence in town and the city even has a healthy smattering of Theravada temples in the Lao, Burmese, Thai, Cambodian, and Sinhalese traditions as well as a handful of «secular» meditation groups that are directly formed by contact with authentically honed and ancient traditions. Get a little out of town and you can go to an excellent Goenka center in Washington State and learn vipassana on a ten day retreat for free or step up to Seattle where the head of the Sakya lineage (one of the other major schools of Tibetan Buddhism) has been living for decades continuing his work in the tradition and maintaining the rank of one of the three most important Tibetan lamas after the current Dalai Lama. Surely all of these things are more auspiciously productive for your spiritual growth than throwing money into a cult, right?
Most disturbingly, the hodgepodge of declarations and the lack of skill at actually holding discipline and teaching as more important than cash flow is a foundational stain on NKT pseudo-​lineage, and one that you’d do better to avoid. More than most other spiritual traditions that Westerners have likely had contact with before, the guru-​disciple relationship in Tibetan traditions is magnified and defining. It is said that choosing a bad guru will result in the student being reborn in the lowest levels of the hell realms time and time again to purge the karma from the defiled state that results from giving one’s spiritual direction over to a rube.
It is a very odd thing that Unilocal hands over «reviews» to the responsibility of randomly unqualified scribblers to judge (try to think about most faiths from the outside and you can find something to giggle at and/​or embrace as either «primitive» or «exotic» depending on your filters) or, in this case from reading the reviews otherwise, to stack the deck with people who have not attained Nirvana but certainly seem to have a lot of sunyata in their minds (not to say any form of awareness of it at all…). Stay away from NKT cults for your own well-​being, to support authentic Tibetan traditions and spiritual practices whether you join or simply admire, and don’t prop up another predatory financial scam cloaking itself falsely in religion (I’m looking at YOU, Scientology) when enough is enough.

I wasn’t raised religious. For the majority of my life, I’ve never understood the need for faith or spirituality. Boy, my younger self was ignorant (but also carefree, I suppose). Life is hard. Everyone experiences strife in their lives. You need to be able to be at peace with yourself and come to terms with various situations.
I’ve heard a lot about meditation over the years and decided to give it a try. I took a class through PCC and learned a lot about meditation and Buddhist teachings. The class I took was a 5 or 6 week course taught by Heather Rocklin (she’s fantastic).
Don’t get me wrong, there were plenty of times where I fell asleep during meditation and I felt bored out of my mind, but you have to know that MEDITATION IS HARD. REALLY HARD. Really hard to get into and really hard to stick to, but the benefits of meditation are amazing. I’m not at the point where meditation is strictly a part of my routine, but I can already feel the emotional and mental benefits.
If you’re curious about Buddhist teachings, looking for some peace, or trying to get into meditation, check them out.
(click on their calendar to see current classes and drop-​in options)

My husband and I stopped in here two Sundays ago for the first time and we absolutely loved it! This is a wonderful temple for people that are new to Buddhism and may be a little timid. They start their service with a guided meditation and we both left feeling so incredibly peaceful and refreshed!

I went to a morning drop-​in meditation class last Sunday. The place and the people are peaceful and welcoming, as they should be. One can sit on a chair during the presentation, or make use of the cushions on the floor up front, which is what I did.
The guided meditation was very good. The presenter, who I believe was filling in for the usual one, was warm, intelligent, and seemed quite grounded. She read from a book written by the temple’s founder (a Tibetan Buddhist), and was frank about how different the ideas are from what we are used to here in the West.
I checked out the temple with the idea of possibly frequenting it, but I will most likely rededicate my self to my solo studies instead. I’ve been a student of Buddhism for ages, although I don’t call myself Buddhist. The drop-​in course is truly for beginners, and while the temple offers more in-​depth courses, they are based on the books of the temple’s founder. I already have several Buddhist texts and will simply get back to the ones I haven’t finished.
Drop-​in meditation is by donation. I pitched in $ 5, but if you are broke I can’t imagine anyone would look at you sideways if you didn’t put money in. The basket is at the podium inside the entrance; they don’t pass it; which is nice. I never did like the pass-​the-​basket approach at church, etc. It’s just too obvious if you don’t contribute, for whatever reason.
Cookies and tea and fellowship are available after the class, just like church. I skipped it.

What a wonderful welcoming environment! This place is great!

Sundays are pretty easy on new comers. Set up: guided meditation, a teaching, ending meditation. Its a great way to get your feet wet, keep in touch with your practice, or explore some new ideas.

When people ask me about my religion, I often tell them I’m a recovering Catholic. I was raised Catholic but I think my progressive parents were more inclined to be a part of the community than had a true belief in the Catholic doctrine. Unless it was the 9am Sunday mass with stellar music, I found myself just praying that the 45 minute deal would be over and I could hit up the donut table for my weekly allowance of one maple bar. While I recognize that the teachings of any religion affect millions, Catholicism never did it for me, save for the fact that I should feel guilty for just about everything I do. After 15 years of questioning, reading the likes of Hitchens and Dawkins, claiming my agnostic status and giving my other standard response of «I’m spiritual, not religious,» I think I may have found a path, dare I say religion, that makes sense to me.
The general program class at the Mahasiddha Buddhist Center consists of an initial 25 minute meditation, a dharma teaching followed by an additional 10 minute meditation. Kadam Heather Rocklin is so warm and welcoming and her teachings are given with such a sincere, genuine and honest presence. She emanates a happiness and inner peace that I can only fantasize about at this point. The community (anywhere from a handful to 15-​ish people) reflects this same warmth. The center is run completely by volunteers and is humble in its presence but mighty in what it has to offer — a small bookstore with books written by the founder, Geyshe Kelsang Gyatso, and the meditation space where the teachings are held. The classes are $ 10 ($ 5 for students) but they won’t turn anyone away for not having money. Attending the Mahasiddha Buddhist Center is perhaps the best choice I’ve made for myself in years. A fantastic and thought-​provoking way to spend 90 minutes each week.