our budget
Living Expenses
Annual expenses for entire community:
$10,200
Housing $150
per
month
$1,800 per year
We
rent three rooms on one floor of a quiet and sunny house, next door to
Drolmaling
Nunnery near Dharamsala, India. The owners are Tibetans living in New
York who plan
to retire here one day. The other floors of the house are vacant, asnd
pur
s[pace includes a large open roof space and several terraces.
Food $150
per month $1,800 per year
We
take turns cooking simple but nutritious vegetarian meals. For
breakfast we
have Indian porridge (upama) or oatmeal. Lunch is
usually rice,
vegetables and either dal, beans or a tofu dish. We fast in the
evenings.
Communication $90
per month $1080
per year
We
are committed to remaining connected to others, even as our life as
Buddhist
monastics entails renouncing ordinary social and family life. We
maintain
blogs, such as the one you are now reading, and remain in touch by
phone or
e-mail when possible.
Transportation $75 per month $900
per year
We
travel twice a month up to His Holiness the Dalai Lama's temple in
McLeod Ganj
for monastic confession ceremony, and twice weekly to Gyuto Monastery,
the
residence of our main teacher His Holiness the 17th Karmapa, for
teachings and
public audiences.
Health
Care
$1240
per year
Our
estimated medical costs assume no major health issues, but medical,
gynecological and dental exams annually and new eyeglasses as needed.
Fairly
high-quality health care is available in India at far lower costs than
in the
West, but not in the area we live, so this budget includes as well the
cost of
travel by overnight bus to Delhi, where such care is available.
This includes vitamins and medicine for the ongoing
health
glitches that are part of our life in India.
One-Time
Annual Costs
Apart
from our
recurring monthly expenses, we have a number of annual events that we
consider
important and valuable but that (unlike our food, housing etc.) are
optional,
and thus could be skipped if we do not receive support for these
activities.
Pilgrimage,
Winter Debate and Monlam Prayer Festival
$1,500
per year
Every
winter in the most sacred Buddhist site of Bodhgaya, Buddhists gather
from
around the world for all-day prayers, teaching and initiations called
the Kagyu
Monlam. The event is preceded by a winter debate session with teachings
on such
topics as philosophy and monastic training (vinaya),
also led by His
Holiness the 17th Karmapa. We find this to be an important way to
connect with
the larger Buddhist community and to offer our prayers, presence and
translation services to support its aspirations.
Special
Teaching Events
$500 per year
Several times a year, His Holiness the Dalai Lama gives public lecture series on various subjects in his monastery in Dharamsala, India. Our costs are approximately $10 per day for all of us to attend these teachings. In addition, several high lamas give annual public teachings in various locations around India. As and when other important teachings take place in India, this fund would allow us to take advantage of those opportunities. Although admission to such events is free of cost for monastics, we must cover our own travel, lodging and food costs.
Visa Renewal
$1200 per year
Several of our community members are able only to receive short-term visas for India, and most leave the country one to three times a year, to Nepal or other country, to apply for new Indian visas. This is an unavoidable and costly part of our community life.
Total
Recurring and One-Time Expenses for Our Community's
Life
$10,020
per year
To donate by credit card or Paypal, please follow the link to the right of this page.
Checks in US$ payable to Diana Finnegan may be sent to:
Nuns Community
PO Box 1651
Studio City, CA 91614-0651.
You may also contact us for other payment
Thank you so
very much.