On June 28 and 29, 2012, His Holiness held two sessions of teachings and questions and answers in Becske, Hungary.

Before inviting the more than three thousand assembled devotees to ask their questions he reminded everyone present of the preciousness of the positive conditions which had to come together in order to make it possible for everyone to meet and share the Buddha dharma.

On June 25, on his way from Stupkalnis to the next big programme in Becske, Hungary, His Holiness the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa paid a visit to the Diamond Way Karma Kagyu centre in Riga, the capital of Latvia.

On Sunday, June 24, His Holiness gave the empowerment of Avalokiteshvara (tib. Chenresig), the aspect representing the enlightened compassion of all Buddhas, to the gathered devotees, who were by now well prepared for the occasion thanks to the transmissions of the two previous days.

On the morning of June 23 His Holiness met with the different sanghas from the Baltic area in the shrine room located in his house, next to his living quarters – incidentally, this was the first time this room was used for any official purpose.
In the afternoon His Holiness Gyalwa Karmapa transmitted the Bodhisattva Vows to the devotees who had gathered in the big tent which was the venue of the three-day event.

Stupkalnis Retreat Center is the main center of the Diamond Way network of the Karma Kagyu Lineage in Lithuania and the biggest one in the Baltic States. It is located in a secluded spot surrounded by fields and forests, far off the hustle and bustle of our modern world, and thus ideally suited for short or long meditation retreats.