The Padma Mani Translation Committee (PMTC)
The new academic session of the PMTC this year started on 19th April, 2015, with classes conducted by Ven. Konchog Norbu who was formerly introduced to us by Khenpo Sonam Tsewang. Since last year, Ven. Konchog has been teaching English language to all the budding translators of Namdroling and also helping the Ngagyur Rigzod Editorial Committee in editing their books and magazine articles. The three translation classes of Namdroling—two from NNI and one from the nunnery—consist of more than thirty students.
Based on a grammar book series called ‘American Headway’, both the senior and junior classes studied phrasal verbs, tenses, verb forms and tense reviews. Beside this, the latest mode of learning practice was on sounds and spellings. Every evening between 8:30 and 9:30, we had reading practice and every Saturday from 8:30 to 10:30 A.M., our regular class practice was on developing the skill of verbal translation.
At the request of our Khenpo, Mr. Girish Deshpande, an old student of His Holiness Penor Rinpoche from Pune, arrived on Thursday, 9th June and taught us basic grammar, ‘writing bursts’ and public speaking. Among these, the writing bursts were a huge hit, as it was a new method for all of us to improve our writing skills, vocabulary and grammar. Mr. Deshpande was kind enough to devote two weeks of his precious time. At the earnest request from all the students, he returned to our monastery in October for a week to teach us again.
On 25th July, at the sincere invitation of our Khenpo, Professor Dorji Wangchuk from Hamburg University spoke on the techniques of translating Buddhadharma from Tibetan to English, which all of us found informative and helpful.
Subsequently, the senior class students contributed individual articles on personal accounts and also collective articles on the Drepung Stupa and the Fundamental Treatise on the Middle Way called “Root of Wisdom” for the Palyul Times magazine. Beside this, the nuns translated the Prayer of Praise to the Twenty-one Taras, heart advice of a master, the biography of Dharmakirti and a Jataka Tale for the upcoming Palyul Times.
At present, the senior students are compiling English translations of the daily prayers conducted every year at Nyingma Monlam Chenmo (Great Prayer Ceremony for World Peace) held at Bodh Gaya. The project was undertaken with the direction of H.E. Gyang Khang Khentrul Rinpoche for NMCIF (Nyingma Monlam Chenmo International Foundation). The junior class students and the nuns worked on the translation of the benefits of reciting the six-syllable Mani mantra as a translation drill. In addition, the nun translators and the junior class monks regularly practice oral translation, public speaking, reading exercises and memorizing dharma terms with the assistance of Lama Sangay Rabten.
Reported by Sangay Tenzin
Padma Mani Translation Committee
