FOOD AND MEDICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
RATO DRATSANG HEALTH CARE INITIATIVE
JUNE 2025
Starting Spring of 2025, The Rato Dratsang Foundation has instituted a new health care initiative for the monks who live and study at the re-established Rato monastery in the State of Karnataka, Mundgod, India.
All young and new monks will receive annual medical checkups and vaccinations and all monks 35 years and older will receive checkups and vaccinations every 3 years and sooner if needed.
This new healthcare initiative has been made possible by the generous support of friends and funders of RDF. Health coverage had been provided to Rato for many years but the new initiative creates a more disciplined structure and healthy environment conducive to study and spiritual development for the over 140 monastics at Rato Dratsang.
We are so grateful to all those who support the Rato Dratsang Foundation and The Tibet Center.
The program feeds each Rato monk three times daily, provides access to clean drinkable water and supplements medical assistance when needed. RDF’s Food and Medical Assistance 2020 seeks to create a healthy environment for the monastics at Rato.
Rato Dratsang Foundation’s Food and Medical Assistance program strives to house, feed and subsidize medical assistance to the monastics who live and study at the re-established Rato Dratsang in Karnataka, India. RDF’s mission is to cultivate continued support in order to sustain monthly disbursements to the monastery to provide for the ever increasing monastic population at Rato.
There are approximately *130 monks currently living and studying at Rato Dratsang who benefit from RDF’s Food and Medical Assistance Program. The program strives to offer and provide each monk three meals a day, tea several times a day and access to clean drinkable water. The program also provides assistance in partially supplementing health care when possible.
FOOD PROVIDED TO RATO MONASTICS ~
Morning; Jipati with jam; yogurt; fruit or peanut butter; Tibetan butter tea or coffee. Afternoon and Evening: fresh vegetables; rice or pasta and occasionally meat. The program also wishes to provide a sufficient supply of bottled water necessary for hydration.
6am Breakfast - Rato monks are provided breakfast - Atta (Wheat) bread, tea and alternative days egg. 11am Lunch - Atta (Wheat) bread or Rice and minimum two vegetables/dal and curd.
2pm Afternoon serving tea.
5pm Dinner - Rice with vegetables/noodles and alternative days fruits.