Venerable Thubten Konchog

Sramanera

In 2015, Ven. Thubten Konchog bought a ticket to Nepal where he had planned to stay for 3 months. Alone with his backpack in this strange country, he only knew that he wanted to meet the Tibetan people and learn about Buddhism. Having signed up for a one week retreat at Kopan monastery, he climbed up the monastery’s hill on a beautiful sunny day of February unaware that his life was about to take a major turn.

Meeting Lama Zopa Rinpoche and being surrounded by monastics had a very strong impact on his mind. A strong wish to pursue the ordained life arose in him. He took refuge and then traveled in Nepal for a while, but his heart kept bringing him back to Kopan monastery where he would spend most of his time.

He finally came back to Québec where he started studying the FPMT Basic Program Online and kept exploring Buddhism through Dharma books.

Years later, on the FPMT Online forum he was told about Sravasti Abbey. Intrigued, Venerable Konchog started listening to the teachings and BBCs and was struck by the clarity and accessibility of Venerable Chodron and by the authenticity and transparency of this community.

In November 2021 he came for a 3 months visit that turned into 5 months. At the end of that first visit he asked to come back for training. The 3 months he had spent with Vajrasattva gave him a lot of clarity and he knew without a doubt that Sravasti Abbey was where he wanted to train and ordain.

In June 2022, Ven. Konchog moved to the Abbey. In August, at the end of Exploring Monastic Life, he was ordained as an Anagarika (under the name of Donyo). See photos here.

By the end of 2022 he followed and assisted Venerable Chodron for 6 weeks during her teaching tour in Singapore and was very moved to see the incredible positive impact his teacher had on people. Read more about that here.

The tour ended in Bodh Gaya where they attended His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s teachings. He made his request to be ordained to Venerable Thubten Chodron at the Mahabodhi temple in January 2023. Read more about that here.

On May 20th 2023, he was ordained as a novice monk (Sramanera). Venerable Master Jian Hu was his preceptor on this most joyful occasion. See photos here.

In his “previous life” before going forth, Ven. Konchog was a musician and worked as a soundman and lighting technician for theaters, music bands, and circuses. He’s now happy to use his expertise to help spread the Dharma.

At the abbey, he finds a lot of joy in balancing his time between his practice and caring for the 375 acres of the Abbey’s forest (another of his passions), producing videos, and using technology to help in whatever way he can.

Ven. Konchog as a child