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The following is the brief biography of Lama Thupten Phuntsok, the founder of Manjushree Vidyapith (Orphanage)
Lama Thupten was born in Dharma Gang village in Tawang district. He is the
scion of the family of Shri Sonam Wangchu, who is his father. Even though he was born in a peasant family, he had shown a promise to live for others right from his youth. Due to tremendous enthusiasm to adopt a life of a renunciation, he did wonderful small scale charitable works in his village during his teens.
While in pursuits of education in the village school, his brainchild vigorous social service and won the hearts of poor villagers. Born with zeal to serve the poor, he began to show an insatiable hunger for knowledge and skill. His father escorted him to Mysore for pursuit of best knowledge in Buddhist studies. He was selected after a gruelling test by Gyudmed Tantric University when he was still in his teens. Slowly but steadily, he was inducted in the high ideals of Buddhism. He was canonized as a monk ceremonially after the popular methods of adornment and investiture in the institution. Thus began a regiment of vigorous studies and practices quite keeping with the norms and regulation of the academy.
While in the thick of knowledge gathering, he went to various places in India to broaden his horizon in Buddhist studies. However, one aspect of his interest was also growing in parallel with his knowledge. This is his passion for ?SERVICE? to the populace. In his spare time and in the seclusion of his boarding life, he was getting tutored on how one can best utilize his entire life for the uplift of helpless and downtrodden. He began to nurture a wish to serve the poor who are struggling to survive in this world. In course of time, he made a mark and philanthropy distinguished him from other classmates in the sprawling institution, he was spotted by one great scholar of America, Dr. Richardson, who volunteered to sponsor his expenses for higher studies in the same university.
After his successful completion with distinction in Buddhist studies, he was appointed by the same university to serve as a lecturer in Tibetan Language and Buddhist Studies. While in lectureship, he visited his native place, Tawang, twice when he had the privilege to fathom the depth of poverty and hopelessness of the tribal children. He was constantly plagued by the idea of relentless struggle of the poor children of his place for a bare survival on this earth. It was a fixation with him since then to do something useful for these starving village urchins.
With a hope to get first hand knowledge of his native place, he took a job as a Tibetan Language teacher in Tawang Public School where he served from 15.02.1992 to 30.06.1998. While a teacher, he was successful in knowing the plight of the children from a close quarter.
And ardent zeal to serve the poor he started mobilizing the people to aid him in his plan to directly help out the poor through an orphanage. His tenure in Public School was adorned with tremendous recognition of his yeoman service for the children. He even held the chair of Headmastership of the school and functioned very successfully. He earned the laurels from parents and got an opportunity to interact with the Hoi- Polloi of the district and far a field.
Here he formed a notion to start an orphanage in this district. In 1998, he resigned from the Public School and opened one first orphanage in the name of Manjushree Vidyapith, which means the God of Learning or Wisdom. The Vidyapith started functioning from 30.10.1998.
Lama Thupten Phuntsok mobilized support from Army, District Administration, generous public and dignitaries by his unremitting travelling and visitations. He is door stepping village houses to get cash and kind. In this way he runs this orphanage single handedly.
Recently he has been accorded with the state?s highest award, a Gold Medal and a Citation, for social service in recognition of his untiring and relentless service to the society.
He is still marching ahead with full-fledged zeal to fulfil the only height of his life ? SERVICE TO MAN IS SERVICE TO GOD?; perhaps sky is the limit for him. |
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