Pungent, earthy juniper smoke and strands of multicolored prayer flags overhead were clear signs I’d made it to the Tibetan Association of Santa Fe—but I was late.
Weeks before, local resident Tsering Choney and vice president of the TASF had invited me to the Sunday, July 6 celebration in honor of His Holiness, the 14th Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday.
Not only is 90 years an impressive number worth celebrating in itself, but the Central Tibetan Administration—the government-in-exile of Tibet based in Dharamshala, India, where the Dalai Lama resides—officially declared July 6, 2025-July 5, 2026 the “Year of Compassion.” So, there was much to be celebrated and discovered, with the question in mind: what exactly does a “Year of Compassion” mean for the Tibetan community and for a Santa Fean like myself?
The day’s schedule was included in the invitation, showing the event began at 9 am sharp. Getting anywhere by 9 am on a Sunday is never ideal, however, a month of mental preparation would surely get me out the door on time.
It didn’t. The clock showed 9:35 am by the time I arrived. Panic began to build. I did not want to miss the prayers for the Dalai Lama and according to the schedule, I was late. But when I entered the center, a sense of calm swept away any uneasiness. TASF president Tashi Dolkar Gyalkhar immediately greeted me with a warm smile as she extended a hand.
“Welcome. Please come in. Would you like some butter tea? Sweet Tea? Water?”
1 of 5
Adam Ferguson
2 of 5
Adam Ferguson
3 of 5
Adam Ferguson
4 of 5
Adam Ferguson
5 of 5
Adam Ferguson
Gyalkhar led me down the hall towards a pile of shoes and the sound of chanting and reverbating drums filling the air indicated the temple’s entrance. I found an empty cushion on the floor and began taking in the strong energy.
The space emanated a luminous glow, adorned with golden Buddhist statues, framed photos of the ever-smiling Dalai Lama, Tibetan flags, vibrant thangka wall hangings framed in blue, red and gold silk, bowls of fruit, burning incense and bouquets of colorful flowers. People from all walks of life gathered. Families and individuals sat on cushions in rows or seats lining the walls. Many were Tibetan families, dressed in traditional attire. However, a substantial number of non-Tibetans, including Mayor Alan Webber and his wife Frances Diemoz, attended.
The monotone chanting resonated into my being as the sweet, floral aroma of incense wafted through the air. While I couldn’t understand the words of the prayers being recited, more importantly was the feeling and energy that filled the room. There was a strong sense of peace, acceptance and oneness. I caught eyes and traded smiles with Choney as he entered the room with a giant thermos to replenish people’s cups of tea. Gyalkhar and fellow TASF member Tenzin Tsechok followed carrying trays with bowls of sweet rice, cashews and raisins they passed out to everyone.
The prayers and drumming faded and Gyalkhar took to the podium at the front of the room. After welcoming all the guests, her main objective was to share the Dalai Lama’s thoughts on the celebration of his birthday.
“I’m just a simple Buddhist monk. I don’t normally engage in birthday celebrations. However, since you are organizing events focused on my birthday, I wish to share some thoughts,” Gyalkhar recited. “It is vital to focus on achieving peace of mind by being compassionate, not just toward near and dear ones, but towards anyone and everyone. Through this, you will contribute to making the world a better place.”
Gyalkhar expressed gratitude for those attending before welcoming Mayor Webber to the podium.
“We are so fortunate to be a city where the people from Tibet are making Santa Fe their home and are bringing so much warmth, spirit and participation to the community,” Webber shared. “So the day we celebrate the Dalai Lama’s birthday is also a day we celebrate the Tibetan community.” Webber went on to remember the Dalai Lama’s visit to Santa Fe in 1991, with hopes to make this happen again one day.
1 of 6
Adam Ferguson
2 of 6
Adam Ferguson
3 of 6
Adam Ferguson
4 of 6
Adam Ferguson
5 of 6
Adam Ferguson
6 of 6
Adam Ferguson
If he did return, the family of Sangye Phuntsog, a Santa Fe resident who works at the city’s only not-for-profit organization serving older adults, Coming Home Connection, would likely have a hand in it. Her great uncle, Paljor Thondup, founded the local nonprofit Project Tibet back in 1980 and played a crucial role in organizing the Dalai Lama’s visit to Santa Fe.
Thondup, who served as a freedom fighter in Tibet was among the 80,000 individuals, along with Phuntsog’s grandparents, who escaped Tibet during the invasion, fleeing to Nepal and India. Her mother, born in Nepal, and father, born in India, both attended boarding schools developed for Tibetan children refugees so they could learn Tibetan culture and traditions. It was many years later her parents separately found their way to Santa Fe where they met through the Tibetan community.
“My parents were drawn to Santa Fe because of how much it reminded them of Tibet and where they lived in Nepal and India,” Phuntsog explained. “The mountains. The spiritual feeling. It made them feel at home.”
The celebration honored recent high school and college graduates before traditional white silk scarves, representing goodwill and auspiciousness, were placed before a framed photo of the Dalai Lama by each guest. Gyalkhar welcomed a group of performers that included Phuntsog to the front for a traditional dance.
Three women joined Phuntsog for the dance, bringing bright smiles to everyone’s faces and even inspired subsequent dances and songs from other members in the audience. A full-on celebration of joy, connection and community commenced. Together, we made our way outside where we formed a circle under the waving prayer flags and a bright blue sky. A woman milled through the crowd with a bag of barley flour, each person taking a healthy pinch. Gyalkhar approached me, as I clearly had a look of wonder on my face as I took a pinch of the flour.
“Barley is one of the most important crops and foods in Tibetan culture. During celebrations, we throw the flour into the air as an offering and it serves as a symbol of letting go, new beginnings, celebration and joy,” Gyalkhar explained.
1 of 5
Adam Ferguson
2 of 5
Adam Ferguson
3 of 5
Adam Ferguson
4 of 5
Adam Ferguson
5 of 5
Adam Ferguson
We held out our arms with barley flour in hand. On Gyalkhar’s cue, we released the flour into the sky. Drums pounded and dancing commenced in the traditional Buddhist gyration. I caught eyes with Choney, who had just returned from a month-long trip to India in which he visited important Buddhist sites such as Bodhgaya, the place Buddha attained enlightenment. The trip included a pilgrimage to other sacred sites in Nepal in which his family scattered the ashes of his late father-in-law. So I was curious to hear his thoughts on the “Year of Compassion.”
“There is much suffering in the world, so being compassionate is always important. As humans, we are interdependent and the world is losing that,” Choney shared. “It’s not about religion. His Holiness has always emphasized that. It’s a human-to-human connection that is built through developing love, kindness and an understanding for one another’s suffering and that is what the Tibetan Community wants to spread here in Santa Fe.”
Dancing continued as trays of food arrived. An extravagant spread of classic Indian and New Mexican dishes were laid out for lunch. The convergence of culture and cuisine helped create meaningful dialogue with new people, further deepening the experience.
The gathering sent me home feeling gratitude and a sense of peace, tolerance and patience for everyone I interacted with that day. The amazing sense of community and oneness we created together made it feel like it will be a little easier to bring some compassion out with me into the world—hopefully beyond just this one year.
Local Tibetan Culture and the Dalai Lama in Santa Fe
The Tibetan community has roots in Santa Fe dating back to the 1970s, which has grown multiple lineages of Tibetan Buddhism, including Nyingma, Kagyu, Sakya, and Gelug. The Dalai Lama has visited Santa Fe twice.
If ever Santa Fe had a Tibetan pioneer, it was Paljor Thondup. After escaping Eastern Tibet to Nepal with his family in 1959 at the age of 12, Thondup grew up in England and came to Santa Fe in the mid-1970s on a scholarship to the College of Santa Fe.
In 1980, he founded Project Tibet as an import company featuring Tibetan textiles and rugs. Thondup supported fellow refugees in the U.S. and abroad into the 1990s after Congress made 1,000 visas available to Tibetan refugees. He also founded the Friends of Tibet New Mexico before he passed away in 2020. Thondup was among those who helped orchestrate the Dalai Lama’s second trip to Santa Fe.
On his first trip to North America in 1979, Santa Fe was where the Dalai Lama met Hopi Elders from Arizona and other Indigenous peoples. His return trip came April 1, 1990, when he spent a week in Northern New Mexico. He met with Yogi Bhajan, who settled here in 1969 and founded Sikh Dharma International and rode a ski lift in Taos where he was bowled over by teenage girls. We know this because the Lama was squired around town during that trip by novelist-to-be Douglas Preston, who lived in Santa Fe at the time. Preston wrote an insightful and hilarious account of his time as the Dalai Lama’s temporary press secretary for Slate in 2014.
A month of celebrating the Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday and Tibetan culture in Santa Fe culminates with a special Santa Fe City Blessing on July 27 at noon at Aspen Lookout in Hyde Park.
Tibetan Association of Santa Fe
The association was officially founded in 1997 to support the growing community and maintain cultural identity. The association actively preserves Tibetan culture through language classes, religious teachings, and celebrations like those honoring the Dalai Lama's birthday and the Tibetan Uprising.
This Kagyu Buddhist center in Santa Fe features a prominent stupa and is dedicated to the practice of Avalokiteśvara and Tara.
(Dave Cathey)
