Building the Temple
Ireland’s first Tibetan Buddhist Temple.
A Beacon of Wisdom and Compassion
Every Temple donor’s personal connection with this historic project is honoured by the inclusion of their name on a scroll which will be enshrined in the Temple when it is complete.
If you would like to make a donation to the Temple you can do so in your name, the name of a loved one, or of somebody who has passed away.The Dzogchen Beara Temple was built in the style of a traditional Tibetan monastery with innovative features such as floor-to-ceiling windows that make the most of expansive ocean views. The temple opened in the summer of 2024, which was also our 5oth anniversary.
This Temple will be a place for the study and practice of Tibetan Buddhism and in particular for the Dzogchen Longchen Nyingtik lineage. We will also host teachers from other wisdom traditions and extend an open-hearted welcome to all through a programme of public retreats and seminars.
The Temple is being built to a monumental standard to last for centuries. The roofs are made of copper alloy resistant to the salty air. The interior is being decorated and adorned to inspire a meditative experience when visitors enter the Temple.
The Buddhist teachings say that helping the building of a Temple in any way – which will help so many people find their way to peace and understanding – is one of the most spiritually meritorious acts we can do.
A Power Place
The Temple site and building has been blessed by many great Tibetan Buddhist Masters including Dodrupchen Rinpoche IV, HE Mindrolling Jetsun Khandro Rinpoche, Chokling Rinpoche, Tsoknyi Rinpoche, Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche, Khadro Tsering Chodron, Ringu Tulku Rinpoche, Garchen Rinpoche, Alak Zenkar Rinpoche, Mayum Tsering Wangmo and others.
Sogyal Rinpoche (our Spiritual Director at the time) invited Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche, a uniquely qualified Tibetan master, to advise on the temple design, location and orientation and the design was undertaken by architect Giles Oliver, a student of Tibetan Buddhism since the 1970’s.
In 2015 when at Dzogchen Beara to bless the site of the Temple. Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche said that, according to the ancient science of geomancy, this location at the south-western tip of Europe is a “power place” and building a temple here, at this specific time, will bring renewal and healing to Ireland as well as benefitting the whole world.
“If you build this temple here in Dzogchen Beara, and inside erect representations of the enlightened body, speech and mind, and have practitioners practise there, then this will be the cause for the teachings of the Buddha to remain for long and will have enormous benefit for the world at large; protecting against famine, against war and epidemics and so on.”
Become a Temple Sponsor
We are still fundraising for sacred items for the temple.
All funds go to the Temple and every sponsors name is included on the honour scroll of donors to be enshrined in the Temple when it is complete. Join the Temple Sponsors here.
For enquiries please contact us.
Temple History
In 2023, at the request of Tulku Rigdzin Pema, Lama Yonten spent a week supervising the filling of the Buddha, Guru Rinpoche and Tara statues.
Watch a short video about the filling and mounting of the statues. (It’s well worth watching!)
Filling, Raising and Blessing the Statues
First, Sok shying ‘life-force trees’ (carved wooden staffs inscribed with mantras) were placed inside the Buddha, Guru Rinpoche and Tara statues. Then they were filled with zung (millions of mantras, prayers and mandalas), blessed substances and many precious relics, from Longchenpa, Jigme Lingpa and all the great lineage masters, including Sogyal Rinpoche, Nyoshul Khenpo, Khandro Tsering Chodron, Mayumla and many others.
We are immensely grateful to Tenpa, Ane Tsultrim, Mark Holgate and their team of enthusiastic volunteers who spent months preparing the zung at Lerab Ling so that everything was ready in time.
On November 20th a double-rainbow graced the sky as the statues were mounted on the shrine.
Another rainbow appeared over the Temple when the Dzogchen Beara community did a rabné practice, invoking the blessings of all the buddhas and enlightened masters to merge inseparably with the statues, so they become powerful sources of blessing and merit.
Next, the Buddha was gilded and then painted. The shrine adorned with symbols including double-vajras, snow-lions and peacocks. The team were busy painting ‘flaming norbus’ – wish-fulfilling jewels – and Kirtimukhas – ‘faces of glory’ – the fearsome guardians of the Temple, before they are attached with cloud-brackets to the pillars. Work later proceeded on lighting and electrical fittings and plumbing, followed by the acoustic ceiling, carpentry and an oak floor.
