Diamond Mountain River?

Well it's not exactly a river, more of a flood. As a result of the welcome rains we've had this past week the washes at DM have started to run and they seem to be running off with our roads! Venerable Elly took some photos of the raging water tearing done from the mountains. The water has done quite a bit of damage to the roads, but we might not know the extent for a day or two.

So the moral of the story is: rain; good, flooding; bad.


Link to more photos thanks to Ven. Elly who now seems to be stranded in her house.

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Work In Bowie, Nuts

For all you broke Diamond Mountain people (and I think there are quite a few), there is work right here in Bowie. The local pistachio orchard is looking for help during upcoming the harvest from mid-August to the end of September/early October. That's just in time for the fall term. The pay is from $8 - $10 per hour and it's 12 hours per day, 7 days a week. That's a lot of work and a good sum of cash too.

If you're interested contact Earle Birney at shunyata%vtc.net (the % to be replaced by a @ when emailing, I'm trying to keep Earle from getting spam). Or call John at the pistachio company at 520-847-2554.

Now maybe you'll have enough money for the premium powdered milk.

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Lots o' Taiwan Photos

A very motivated Taiwanese student has posted hundreds of images from the recent tour to Taipei. The images are of what seems to be every event that took place a couple months ago in Taiwan, such as; Enlightened Business Institute, Yoga Studies Institute, and general Buddhism classes.

Judging by pics it looks like things went wonderfully in the Republic of China and I hear some Diamond Mountaineers may be back there soon to continue the work.

Thank you Taiwan!

link to photos

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New Downloads at DiamondMtn.org

Some new and some previously hard-to-find downloads are now available through the official Diamond Moutain website's download page. Some of the additions include a smattering of mp3's from the Heart Yoga Tour, The Diamond Cutter Sutra from Bodh Gaya, How to Keep the Book, and the some recent teachings from Taipei, Hong Kong, and Shanghai.

You can find the links in the drop-down menu under "other teachings." I believe there are going to be even more additions soon including a Wheel of Life course from New York.

link

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India Blocking Blogs

I do realize this is not Diamond Mountain news. Consider it a technical post. As of this week all blogs hosted by numerous services, including this one (hosted by Blogspot), are completely becoming blocked in India. I'm not proposing any political activism I just want to let everyone know so you can tell your friends abroad, as we probably all have a few.

For more information on the sites posted and why check out this article.

Update: July 20: Looks like the above ban has been lifted (link to new article)

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Google Maps Photo Update

Ok, this may be exceedingly geeky for most, but I like maps and photos so I was happily surprised to see that Google Maps has updated their satellite photo of the DM area. The photo looks to be about a year old. The temple walls are there in part but no roof is present. Yurts are clearly visible and so is Jamyang House to the north and across the road from the parking lot. You can also explore south on the road and see Menla House, Ani Gonpa/Caretaker House and Lama House which is just south of the orchard.

Have fun traversing the land. Now you can do it with risking a run in with prickly pears.

Link to Google Maps of Diamond Mountain

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Drang Nge 3 Available

More Dharma for download! Isn't technology great? The internet offering this time is Geshe Michael and Lama Christie's teachings from India on Lama Tsongkapa's The Essence of Eloquence (Drang Nge Lekshe Nyingpo).

The topic covered is only the section of the book which discusses the Independent Middle Way school's view as mainly presented by Master Bhavaviveka and Master Shantirakshita as well as the tenets of the Mind-Only school. It's a mind twister and worth every moment of the profound confusions most experience while studying this text. So take a listen and make sure to look at the answer key. Then come to DM and we'll debate it.

Link to DMES

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His Holiness: VOD

For those not techy, VOD means video on demand. The most recent of His Holiness the Dalai Lama's teachings from Dharamsala are already available for viewing via RealPlayer! Check it out and enjoy.

Video on Demand - His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama

Thanks to Venerable Elly for the link.

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India Teachings Conclude

9 classes and 18 Indian bus rides later, the teachings have come to an end here near Dharamsala, India. Attendees have already begun disperse to where they are most helpful in the world. I'll be heading back state-side soon myself and I'll be sure to post updates from the AZ desert to let you know what's been happening back at Diamond Mountain.

We'll try to get the audio online as soon as we can. Stay tuned to DMES.org. It'll probably be in a little over a week from now.

Thanks to everyone who made these teachings possible, most especially Christine Sperber and Ben. They made miracles happen.

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From India, part 2

We're now well into the ten classes on Je Tsongkapa's The Essence of Eloquence and it seems that soon the adventure will come to an end. And it has been quite an adventure indeed. The classes alone are exceedingly challenging, not to mention that people are dropping like flies from various ailments. But we push on.

On the 3rd of July we were honored to have some special guests attend the class. Tulku Lode Rinpoche, from a great Nyingma monastery in South India, came to Pops Picnic Spot to check out and bless the action. That same night Venerable Thupten Chuyang from Gyutu Tantric College came bearing gifts. He brought holy water from His Holiness' Yamantaka retreat and distributed it to all. He also offered the group a beautiful tangka (pictures forthcoming) featuring Lord Buddha flanked by Arya Asanga and Arya Nagarjuna, the main proponents of the Mind-Only and Middle Way schools respectively (just by coincidence).

This has been a very special time for all involved.

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