Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche Offers Plenary Address
at Annual Meeting of the Association of Professional Chaplains

On April, 28, 2007 Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche offered the plenary address for the annual meeting of the Association of Professional Chaplains in San Francisco, CA. The audience included nearly 800 chaplains, a diverse group of professional spiritual caregivers, from around the United States. Rinpoche spoke on the topic of 'Facing Death - the Sacred Horizon,' which for many of the participants was their first introduction to a Buddhist perspective of death and dying.

Mark Power, a student of Ponlop Rinpoche and one of a few Board Certified Chaplains from the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, introduced Rinpoche to the gathering, highlighting the essential role that Rinpoche played in supporting his journey toward certification. Gaining professional credentials required ordination and endorsements, which are primarily vows for monastics in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Rinpoche initiated an innovative process which will support the integration of current and future Buddhist practitioners into the western profession of spiritual care. Mark's presence, both as a member of the Association of Professional Chaplains, and a student of Ponlop Rinpoche was a tangible illustration of Rinpoche's far reaching vision for transplanting the genuine dharma in western soil.

Rinpoche's address was dynamic and humorous; he brandished iconic western cultural symbols to illustrate important points of his presentation - when speaking about Siddhartha Gautama's life as a prince Rinpoche joked that with all the pleasures that Prince Siddhartha enjoyed, he never tasted "Coca Cola" so he never experienced the "real thing". The audience was taken by surprise, perhaps expecting that this exotic Buddhist teacher would hold a formal line in his presentation, and erupted in laughter. This was the first of several such surprises!

This was the first time a plenary speaker from the Buddhist tradition had been invited to address the conference and it seemed attendees were uncertain what to expect. Though the current membership of APC is spiritually diverse, historically it has been a dominantly Protestant Christian organization. Rinpoche's presentation was an unqualified success, bridging diverse faith traditions with open dialog and humor. The topic was accessible to persons of all levels of familiarity with the Buddhist teachings, and the message was made all the more immediate through the inclusion of active reflection on central themes such as impermanence and establishing life priorities. The question and answer period stimulated lively interaction and it felt as if the conversation was just getting started when the talk was called to a close. The presentation finished on an auspicious note with the assembly singing An Aspiration for the World, by His Holiness the Seventeenth Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje. Following the discussion Rinpoche signed copies of his book "Mind Beyond Death" for participants, and visited with members of the conference while enjoying a beverage at the host facility's Starbucks!

This unique event vividly highlighted The Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche's skill in communicating the essence of the Buddha's teachings with utter integrity. Equally, Rinpoche's humor and flexibility created easy entree for this diverse gathering to experience the genuine heart of these teachings.

CDs, DVDs and MP3 direct downloads of Rinpoche's address and other conference sessions are available for purchase at http://www.aven.com/conf.cfm/cid/987

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