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Compassion Rising Tour 2025: Benchen Karma Kamtsang Centre in Sopot

August 4: Sangha - Buddhist faith community

Today I visited the sangha of the Benchen Karma Kamtsang Buddhist Centre in Sopot, near Gdansk.
The headquarters of this tradition, equipped with a Dharma centre, temple, stupa and a large Buddha statue, is located in Grabnik, some 40 km outside Warsaw.
 
The components of the Buddha statue were manufactured in Nepal. A film was made of the installation of the statue:
 
The sangha in the beautiful coastal town of Sopot has about six regular members who meet twice a week in the flat of Wiktor. Wiktor has been practising the Dharma for more than 30 years. He has set up one room as a mini-gompa (temple) where the sanghal members hold pujas and practice meditation.
 

The sangha maintains good relations with other Vajrayāna Buddhist traditions such as Bon, Theravada and Gelukpa (Lama Desi Rinpoche).

During my visit, there were Piotr and Gosia, two still quite young practitioners, also attended. We did a Chenrezig Puja and meditation together under Wiktor's guidance.

Wiktor, Gosia and Piotr

Gosia also provided me with a link to a film on preparations for the 16th Kagyu Monlam in Grabnik in 2025. The Kagyu Monlam is a large annual mass gathering where prayers are offered for the welfare of all living beings:
 
After this session, Wiktor and his wife invited me to stay for dinner: the typical delicious Polish pierogis (dumplings) with a fresh salad. Gosia stayed too. Wiktor has travelled around Asia a lot, so we did not lack for conversation topics. It turned out to be a very pleasant and informative evening and it was already dusk when I started the 15-km drive back to Gdansk.
Thank you very much, Wiktor & company!
Photos Benchen Buddhist Center
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