Anna Ko, a Taiwanese-Australian, came across Osel Ling monastery quite by chance last year. She was looking to learn more about meditation when she discovered Mingyur Rinpoche and his Buddhist Studies program at the Tergar Institute. Little did she know it would affect her life so deeply.

She’d never been to Nepal and, due to various circumstances, had only a week to prepare for her trip. She spent that week on the essentials of sorting out health insurance and getting a couple of vaccinations.

“When you arrive in Nepal, things tend to work out one way or another,” said Anna, a bubbly 33-year-old who makes her home in Melbourne.

In Nepal, it’s quite normal to encounter some inconveniences, such as power outages. She noted that a battery pack for her cell phone and headlamps were top items on her packing list. Other essentials were sturdy shoes, face masks, insect repellent, and a first aid kit.

“We are used to everything working all the time,” she said, adding that the helpfulness and the kindness of the people in Nepal make all the difference in sorting out any challenges.

Any challenges were negligible compared to what she gained. “In a way that I would never have imagined, the time in Nepal allowed me to connect so strongly and deeply with Rinpoche’s teaching, the lamas at the monastery, and the beautiful monastery itself. Now, for me, Tergar Osel Ling is my spiritual home.”

Anna spoke about the beauty of Osel Ling and the joy of doing kora, or circumambulating the monastery, and the sacred sites of Swayambhunath and Boudhanath. She particularly loved the monastic environment and sitting with 200-plus monks in the Osel Ling shrine hall during drupchen, a seven-day meditation retreat.

For Anna, the choice between attending teachings online or in person is clear — the latter offers an unparalleled depth of experience. “The experience is completely different from when you join online. It’s so inspiring to see all of the practitioners who have traveled from afar to receive Rinpoche’s teachings,” she said. “An opportunity like this is really precious.”

The Nepal trip has turned out to be life-changing for her: she recently quit her job in the financial sector and enrolled in a meditation teacher program in Australia. She is already making plans to return to Nepal.