Yulo Koepa Nunnery began as the Tara Temple, a project of the Universal Education School in Sarnath, India. It was founded by a student of Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Valentino Giacomo, as a special place of worship of the Mother Goddess Tara.

In early 2010 the Tara Temple together with the property and service buildings was offered to Khachoe Ghakyil Ling Nunnery and was renamed by Lama Zopa Rinpoche Yulo Koepa, Tara Pure Land. Twenty nuns from Khachoe Ghakyil Ling Nunnery in Nepal live and study there all year round under the care of the manager, Venerable Dekyi.

Read more about Yulo Koepa - Tara Pure Land here.

The nunnery is located on the outskirts of the holy place of Sarnath,near Varanasi, where Shakyamuni Buddha gave his first teaching.  The buildings are situated amongst beautiful flowers, trees and a vegetable garden. The main purpose of the nunnery is the invocation and praise of Mother Tara, the female Buddha that has vowed to come to the quick aid of all who invoke her. The 21 praises of Mother Tara are continuously recited in the gompa of the nunnery every day, 24 hours a day. Additonally. every day extensive prayers are made for world peace and special prayers for the Long Life of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, who tirelessly works for the benefit of all.  The school children of the Universal Education Project next door also participate in these 24 hour prayers.

Groups of nuns from Khachoe Ghakil Ling nunnery take turns of one year stays at Yulo Koepa, then returning to Nepal while another group of nuns takes over.  While staying at the nunnery, the nuns continue their studies under the care of a resident geshe, so they don't miss out on their philosophical studies while in Sarnath.

Last year, a new kitchen was built to allow for a more hygienic food preparation, and a generator has been installed to make the electric supply more reliable. The meals are simple and healthy, mostly rice, dhal and some vegetables, while in the evening they have some soup, or bread and tea. A real treat is something like an omelet, or bread with peanut butter and jam. This usually is only offered when someone sponsors a puja.

Lack of proper accommodation is a big problem at the nunnery. Most of the nuns stay in one big dormitory under the roof of the main building. In this part of India it is very hot in the summer months and the nuns from Nepal are not used to this. This makes live in the nunnery very difficult and they suffer a lot. Due to the kind donation of a sponsor, the building of a new  an accommodation block with eight double rooms has been started. The first floor of the building will be completed within the next six months. However, there are not enough funds to complete the second floor.

Please help with this project.

Future plans for the nunnery envisage creating a more beautiful spacious area around the gompa, which involves demolishing the old building right in front of the temple. This building is old, with many problems such as a leaking roof. it will be replaced by another building sitting further in the back, where land is available.. As soon as the funds for this are available, the work will start.

How does the nunnery finance itself

The nunnery receives occasional offerings from visitors, but it is primarily dependent on donations  of benefactors who are devoted to Tara, and wish to encourage this wonderful and rare activity.

At the moment, there are a few simple rooms where visitors to the nunnery can stay, specially during the busy season in winter. Once the new rooms are completed, there will be some extra income from guests staying at the nunnery.

The daily pujas of the nuns are open for sponsorships through the 'Gift of Prayer' where sponsors can choose one of three pujas, which will be dedicated to them or the people of their choosing for one year. The proceeds from these puja sponsorships help with the food cost

YOU CAN SUPPORT THE YULO KOEPA NUNS IN THEIR VIRTUOUS ACTIVITY

• Make a donation towards the building of the new rooms for the nuns - any amount
• Sponsor the living cost of a nun - suggested donation 30 US$ for one month
• Make a donation to the running cost of the nunnery  - any amount
• Offer a meal to the nuns on a special day - suggested donation 20 US$ per meal for all

• Request a  Gift of Prayer from Yulo Koepa - the proceeds will benefit the nunnery