Erica Krug
Gen Kelsang Gomlam: “We need hope.”
Buddhism is increasingly becoming mainstream, says Gen Kelsang Gomlam, resident teacher at Kadampa Meditation Center Madison, 1825 S. Park St.
The group’s Madison’s center, one of the largest in the Midwest, opened in 1999 and is a welcoming place for people to learn more about Buddhism.
Although the religion once was only for Buddhist monks, Gomlam says that modern Kadampa Buddhism is a way for people to address human problems, including anger, anxiety and worry, through meditation. She says that people often seek happiness from external things, like a new car or job, but that “happiness comes from inside your mind.” Even 15 minutes a day spent meditating can make a big difference in learning to focus and finding inner peace, Gomlam says.
Kadampa meditation centers, found in 48 countries, strive to present Buddhism in a way that is accessible to everyone. The centers also support the idea that people don’t need to become Buddhist to benefit from the practice of meditation.
Kadampa Meditation Center Madison offers classes for all levels of experience, including a free noontime meditation and such classes as “Unwind your Mind,” an after-work meditation. Many sessions are free; most others are low-cost, from $4 to $10.
“Everyone is welcome to come in and learn to meditate,” Gomlam says.
The center has been in its current location on South Park Street for over a year, but it will celebrate a new meditation space there as part of its grand opening Oct. 14-16.
The choice of busy South Park Street was deliberate; Gomlam says that the centers are located in populated areas so they can be where the people are. But the initial space for meditation was noisy, due to traffic. “We’ve had that karma for a while,” Gomlam says, with a smile.
The new meditation space, with room for 100, is at the back of the center and is much quieter. The carpeted space will have beautiful new Buddha statues, too, because “everyone can receive benefit from seeing representations of something they can’t see directly,” Gomlam says.
The theme of the grand opening weekend will be “Happiness and Our Human Potential.” Gen-la Kelsang Jampa, deputy spiritual director of the New Kadampa Tradition, will visit for the weekend. Saturday’s events include a talk about how to be a happy human, and Sunday’s talk will give people confidence that we can create world peace.
“We need hope,” Gomlam says.
More information about classes and events are at meditationinmadison.org.
