The teachers of the Sakya Ngon Ga Ling Center
The center is led by Jessica Martensson Ngawang Dolker and Bert D'Arragon Thogme Kunga. Meetings and retreats are led by them or one of them, unless otherwise indicated.
Jessica Martensson Ngawang Dolker
Born in Sweden, she graduated in History and Psychology of Art with a specialization in the culture of childhood, at the University of Stockholm. She has been working as an artist since the 80s, first as a painter and sculptress, later she is interested in developing the Art of Living… WELL.
He studied Yoga and Meditation, in the Viniyoga tradition, and later in the Yogarmonia tradition, by Shri Raja Guru Yogi Lehari, Mario Attombri.
For 8 years he studied the Dharma with Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh and finally found his own Guru, SS Sakya Trizin in 1998, with him he continued his studies of Buddhism in general and Tibetan tantra in particular. He teaches Dharma courses and translates teachings from English.
Jessica has done many personal yoga and meditation retreats, even for several months in a row.
He studied various other meditation disciplines, and with shamans of various traditions, in recent years he has traveled with the shaman Nadia Stepanova from Lake Baikal in Siberia.
In 2002 he created the Soleluna Association. For 15 years he participated in the activities of "A Temple for Peace" as part of the board of directors, where he organized various events and retreats with Masters such as HH the Dalai Lama, TKV Desikachar, Swami Veda and Thich Nhat Hanh, an experience that culminated in great Kalachakra event Florence 2007 with the initiation of Kalachakra by HH Sakya Trizin and an interreligious meeting in which many exponents of the spiritual life in Italy from almost all the spiritual traditions in the area participated.
2003 SS Sakya Trizin consecrated the Sakya Ngon Ga Ling Center, in Jessica's house, the center was moved to Castello di Cireglio (PT) in 2008 and then brought back to its new home in Tresanti, Montespertoli (FI).
Jessica teaches Yoga and Meditation to adults and children, in the center and in many other places, even abroad. She is a SICOOL certified Holistic Counselor (Italian Society of Counselor and Holistic Operator) with a specialization in Yoga, Meditation and Astrology (which she uses above all in the psychological-evolutionary field). He is also representative of the Living Values for Tuscany project, it is an educational project for teachers, educators, parents and children, on universal values.
For more info: http://jessicamartensson.com
Bert d'Arragon - Thogme Kunga
Born in Westphalia, in northern Germany, he has lived in Florence since 1986 where he studied History of Religions with Maurilio Adriani and graduated in Ancient Sciences with a thesis on prehistoric cults. At the same time he began a path of study of Tibetan Meditation following the teachings of Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche of the Kagyu-pa school, and of practicing Yoga with the school of BKS Iyengar. Since 1999 he has held introductory courses to Buddhist philosophy on aspects of Sutrayana and Abidharma, directing through the “Vasubandhu” Association also international cooperation projects in Tibet for the construction of schools, aqueducts and for the active support of the Tibetan population. Also in his work as a fiction writer, after two novels against violence, discrimination and civil rights "La Libellula" (2009) and "Ichnusa" (2012), he deals with spiritual and religious issues with "Il Bimbo e la Quercia ”(2014) which speaks of Christian mysticism.
After meeting and taking refuge with His Holiness Sakya Trizin, he follows the Sakya school and since 2008 he has directed, together with Jessica Martensson, the Sakya Ngon Ga Ling center, of which he currently manages the retreat house in the center on the Pistoia Apennines .
