Norbulingka’s New Year Message

It has been an extraordinary year, shaken by a wave of change that caught us all unaware, and shook us to the core. Norbulingka is reliant on visitors for its income and committed to the support of 360 employees and trainees, and the pandemic tested our resolve and challenged our wits. We reached out for support, and the overwhelming response from our friends brought us both backing and comfort. We no longer felt alone, and were encouraged to tackle the challenge of using our existing resources to turn the tide and secure our future.

The pandemic made us adapt and the Norbulingka store went online, bringing our products to our friend’s doorsteps all over the world. This move was a success and gave us a lifeline, enabling us to continue supporting our artisans.

The pandemic has also heightened our awareness on the importance of sharing what we have. Over the last twenty-five years, we have created a vast treasury of religious pieces, thangkas, appliques and statues that are now in temples, centers and the homes of individuals across the globe, all of which have been carefully photographed and archived. We also have a body of work from our research department that include an encyclopedia, a vast project chronicling the life and history around the 14th Dalai lama, as well as numerous research papers in both Tibetan and English. Our archive of films and photographs is both rich and extensive. We now wish to share these with the world and are working on creating a website that will enable us to do so.

Like everyone, we look towards 2021 for the end of Covid and a return to normal. Despite the hardship our community has endured, we feel that this experience has not been in vain. Rather, it enriched our vision to new possibilities for pursuing our mission of preserving Tibetan culture and sharing it with the world.

We offer our thanks you to all our friends, for your sympathy and support, and wish all a Happy New year, praying that it will be one to bring all good health and happiness.