Tashi Choling Shrine Room

The Temple

Located in the secluded Colestin Valley south of Ashland, Oregon, Tashi Chöling’s traditional Tibetan temple faces south on an open hillside, much as monasteries once stood on the mountains and cliffs of Tibet. The 4-story temple, with its colorful roofs, ornaments, red pillars and fluttering prayer flags, sparkles like a jewel amidst the rugged Siskiyou Mountains.

The temple’s interior presents a vivid display of traditional Tibetan sacred art and architecture. A complete scriptural library and eight larger-than-life-sized statues fill the long altar. Thangka paintings depicting the life of the Buddha and other enlightened masters hang on its saffron colored walls. This rich contemplative art, along with the butterlamps, incense, flowers, water bowls, and other offerings, combine to create an atmosphere of joyful tranquility within the temple.

Garden with large statue of Vajrasattva

The Mandala Garden

Visitors to Tashi Chöling arrive first at the Mandala Garden, set in a meadow below the temple. The garden is a very peaceful place to meditate and pray. In the spring and summer, its flowers, shrubs and trees bloom in a resplendent display of color and form.

Entering the front gate, one walks down a pathway lined with beautifully painted prayer wheels. Prayer wheels completed in 2009 also surround three sides of the Vajrasattva statue.

The garden is also home to a 35-foot high statue of Vajrasattva, set in the center, and 20-foot high statues of White Tara and Green Tara to either side. Vajrasattva, known as the Buddha of Primordial Purity, is dedicated to purification of negativity. The Green and White Tara statues represent two aspects of Tara, the female Buddha. Green Tara is dedicated to the pacification of obstacles and White Tara is for long life.The garden also contains a beautiful Long Life Shrine dedicated to the longevity of our teacher, Venerable Gyatrul Rinpoche. The shrine is filled with exquisite frescos and a large prayer wheel.

Two story wing that extends from temple

The East Wing

The East Wing is a 2-story structure adjacent to the temple. The ground floor of the East Wing houses the center’s kitchen, dining and assembly hall, bookstore, public restrooms, and laundry facilities. An archival library, lama’s quarters and retreat rooms are on the second floor. The East Wing provides accommodation for retreat participants and also provides a warm environment where Sangha can gather to share meals, study, converse and accomplish Dharma projects. The bookstore located in the East Wing contains a wonderful array of books, CDs, paintings, practice articles, calendars, brocade wall hangings and book covers and other interesting materials.

Statues of Chenrezig, Amitabha and Vajrapani

Amitabha Site

The Amitabha Shrine can be seen on a hill to the west of the temple. The shrine contains three beautiful statues as well as sacred texts. The life-sized statue of the red Buddha Amitabha in the center of the shrine is flanked by statues of the bodhisattvas Chenrezig and Vajrapani.

In the Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions, practitioners rely upon Amitabha, the Buddha of Limitless Light, at the time of death. The shrine is dedicated for prayer offerings on behalf of the deceased. It is the first of its kind in the West.

Statues of Chenrezig, Amitabha and Vajrapani

Parinirvana Stupa

The Parinirvana Stupa is located near the Amitabha Pavilion. The stupa was built through dedicated volunteer work, finished in late 2006 and consecrated in a ceremony led by Tulku Sang-Ngak Rinpoche. As Venerable Gyatrul Rinpoche noted, “In general, the presence of stupas and statues act to pacify war, famine, disease, natural disasters and the devastating effects of global warming, which is a big concern to many people nowadays.”