With sadness, Bodhi Path Buddhist Centers announced that founder and spiritual leader Shamar Rinpoche passed away suddenly on June 11, 2014, in Renchen-Ulm, Germany. Shamar Rinpoche, who was born in 1952, was the 14th Shamarpa, or Red Hat Lama of Tibet. Until his death, Shamar Rinpoche was the lineage holder of the Karma Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism, along with His Holiness Karmapa Trinlay Thaye Dorje.

In 1999, Shamar Rinpoche opened the Bodhi Path Buddhist Center on Martha’s Vineyard, which is presently located in West Tisbury. Bodhi Path centers provide a non-sectarian approach to Buddhism, and instruction in Buddhist meditation and philosophy, as well as offer guidance for practicing Buddhism.

Sharon Gamsby
West Tisbury