Diamond Way Buddhism Foundation

Preserving timeless wisdom

Welcome to the International Diamond Way Buddhism Foundation of the Karma Kagyu Lineage

The International Diamond Way Buddhism Foundation of the Karma Kagyu Lineage is an international non-profit organization dedicated to preserving Buddha's timeless wisdom in the West and making it accessible to modern people in their daily lives.

Based in Germany and operating worldwide, the Foundation brings the millennia-old teachings and culture of the Karma Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism to places near you. We develop meditation centers for lay Buddhist practitioners, organize cultural events and support academic activities.

The Foundation brings together an exceptional pool of experts in all aspects of the Karma Kagyu Lineage of Tibetan Buddhism, its teachings, art, and philosophy. In addition to providing financial support for Buddhist projects, the sharing of such expertise is the very cornerstone of its activities.

The Foundation and its international projects are based solely on idealism and voluntary work and are financed by donations.

 

Diamond Way Buddhism

Diamond Way Buddhism was taught by Buddha Shakyamuni to his close disciples. Passed down in small communities in northern India, it was transmitted across the Himalayas during the centuries when Buddhism was nearly extinct in India. In Tibet, Diamond Way Buddhism became the state religion and for a thousand years infused every sphere of social and personal activity with spiritual meaning. After the Chinese invasion, Tibetan Buddhism spread to every corner of the world.

Diamond Way is the translation of Vajrayana in Sanskrit, or Dorje thegpa in Tibetan. It is the level of Buddha's teachings that includes both the path of personal liberation and the path of attaining enlightenment for the sake of others, and uses direct, practical methods to allow practitioners to discover their own natural, beyond-personal qualities.

 

Securing the Life's Work of Hannah and Lama Ole Nydahl

Hannah and Lama Ole Nydahl have dedicated their lives to the transmission of traditional Buddhist teachings and meditation texts and methods to the West. Securing their immense life's work is a crucial function of the Diamond Way Buddhism Foundation. It manages their intellectual property, holding the worldwide legal rights to all of their written and audiovisual works, including translations of Lama Ole's books and other manuscripts into more than 20 languages.

 

Cultural, Art and Education Projects

In all cultures where Buddhism has flourished, it has lifted and inspired the existing art, culture, and education of its surroundings. Some of the finest art in the world is Buddhist art, and the International Diamond Way Buddhism Foundation is committed to collecting, preserving, and exhibiting high-quality art of Tibetan Buddhism. Accordingly, the Foundation supports various projects worldwide.

 

Developing Meditation Centers on five Continents

Each Diamond Way Buddhist Center is an offer to the local community. It is a friendly, open place where one can learn to meditate and get in contact with Buddha’s teachings and methods. Surprisingly practical in today’s world, these powerful tools, passed down in an unbroken line of transmission from the Buddha, enable people to see meaning and potential in all of life's situations and to experiencing them with greater ease and joy.

There are approx. 600 Diamond Way Buddhist Centers in more then 50 countries around the world. The Foundation wholly or partially owns about 8 of them, including the Europe Center, an international hub and the main seat of Diamond Way Buddhism.