photo by Allison Wright

In 1987 the Tibetan Nuns Project was founded to provide basic humanitarian aide to refugee nuns from Tibet. Food, clothing, housing, and basic medical care were organized. A sponsorship program was set up which allows donors from around the world to contribute to the effort. Now, nuns in five different nunneries -- each from a different Tibetan Buddhist tradition -- receive support through the Project. Many of the nuns arrive in India unable to read or write in any language so in 1992 the Project also began to build the first institute ever devoted to the education of nuns. More than a decade later, the Project has established two nunneries: Shugsep and Dolma Ling and assists three other nunneries. The sponsorship program has grown to support over 500 nuns. The nunneries they support are the following: Dolma Ling is open to all schools of Tibetan Buddhism and is the first of its kind to offer this level of education to Tibetan women... Shugsep, a Nyingma nunnery, traces its ritual and practice to some of the most illustrious female practitioners in Tibetan history... Geden Choeling is the oldest nunnery in Dharamsala... Tilokpur, of the Kagyu tradition, was established in the 1960's by a student of the previous Karmapa Rinpoche, Mrs. Freda Bedi... Others include Sakya Nunnery in Rajpur, Dramo in the Theme Valley of eastern Nepal. Some nuns prefer to live alone or on retreat in the hills of Dharamsala.