By Laura Hoxworth

Special to The Herald-Sun

CARRBORO -- Nestled in a small space above Carrburritos on West Rosemary Street in Carrboro, the Kosala Buddhist Center is easy to overlook.

It is a small, unassuming place, and many Carrburritos customers probably have no idea that anything exists above the Mexican restaurant. But take a walk up a flight of stairs, turn left -- don't forget to slip off your shoes -- and you feel as if you have entered another world.

One wall of the room is lined with books and statues of Buddha, which face a few rows of inviting maroon pillows arranged on the wooden floor. Soft lighting illuminates the warm yellow walls, and the air smells slightly of incense.

Here, people from the Chapel Hill and Carrboro area gather weekly to learn and practice Kadampa Buddhism.

The Kosala Buddhist Center in Carrboro is a member of the New Kadampa Tradition -- International Kadampa Buddhist Union, an association of study and meditation centers that follows the Kadampa Buddhist tradition.

Kadhampa Buddhism is a type of Mahayana Buddhism founded in the 11th century in India. The NKT-IKBU was founded in 1991 by Buddhist monk Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso as a way to spread Kadampa Buddhism to the West.

The teachings of Kadampa Buddhism emphasize the importance of meditation and how to apply it in daily life, the need to be truly happy and how to cultivate a good heart to help others.

The Carrboro center is one of about 1,100 Kadampa centers in 40 countries around the world. Four are in North Carolina.

While the center has existed in the area for about six years, it did not have a permanent location until it bought the West Rosemary Street space three years ago.

David Rademacher, educational program coordinator for the center, is a Chapel Hill resident who has been studying Buddhism for several years. He started attending classes at the center about four years ago.

He likes the center because it is local and the wide variety of classes, which are all taught in English, are clear and easy to understand, he said.

Although Rademacher has been studying Buddhism since he took a trip to Nepal in college several years ago, the center has helped him develop a more grounded and broad spiritual intention beyond the personal aspects of Buddhism, he said.

"It's a very intellectually satisfying tradition," he said. "I feel like I am really understanding Buddhism better than I ever have."

Resident Teacher Gen Kelsang Tilopa, a fully ordained monk who was born and educated in Scotland, leads the services each Wednesday.

He leads each Wednesday class through several short meditations as well as a discussion on Buddhist teachings.

Tilopa has a soothing voice that brings a sense of calm into the room as he speaks conversationally about the core beliefs of Buddhism. Tilopa invites a dialogue with his students as he relates Buddhist teachings to everyday life in a clear, often humorous, way.

"The mind is like a traveler, moving from body to body as if each one were a different hotel," he said of the Buddhist belief in re-incarnation.

This September, Tilopa led a series of services on "The Four Noble Truths," which lay out the foundation of Buddhism from Buddha's original teachings, Rademacher said.

The first truth is about understanding what true suffering is -- anger, jealousy and other negative mind- sets that block the path to enlightenment and peace.

The second truth is about discovering causes of true suffering, such as delusions, wrong views and not having the wisdom to see things as they truly are.

The third truth is about the realization that true liberty -- the ability to emerge from true suffering -- exists and is attainable.

The fourth truth is about paths out of suffering and how to follow those paths through meditation and the practice of Buddhism.

Rademacher said the center draws about 50 people each week who range from young, idealistic college students to a strong contingency of local middle-aged residents looking to find new direction in their lives.

Carol Ripple, a Chapel Hill resident, recently began attending meditation classes at the center with her husband after finding out about it online.

"I was interested in developing mindfulness and compassion," said Ripple, who had never studied Buddhism before attending her first class at the center. She said she has enjoyed the meditation classes and plans to continue attending.

Monica Heiser, a freshman at UNC-CH who grew up in Chapel Hill, started attending classes after Tilopa spoke in her comparative religions class in high school.

She said his visit sparked her curiosity and led her to the center, where she has been attending classes and studying Buddhism for a year and a half.

"I was just profoundly touched by what he said," Heisner said. "It's a great resource to practice and study Buddhism."

The center offers two programs: the general program on Wednesdays from 7:00-8:30 p.m,, which is a basic introduction to Buddhism and meditation for beginners, and the foundation program on Thursdays from 7:00-9:00 p.m. for more advanced students with some background in Buddhism.

The center also offers meditation classes on Sundays and hosts several retreats each year, including a monthly half-day retreat with Tilopa.

The general program costs $10 a class and the foundation program is $35 a month. Meditation classes are $8 a class. Students and seniors can attend any class for $4 and regular students can purchase packages for discounted rates.

The center is a registered non-profit organization funded primarily by student class fees, donations and fundraising.