The Certosa is comprised of various structures: a church, chapter house, sacristy, refectory, cloisters, workshops, and residences for the monks and lay brothers. It was designed to accommodate a maximum of 18 cloistered monks and 5 lay brothers, as evident from the number of dwellings throughout the entire complex. The cloistered monks occupied rather spacious cells, as they were required to spend the majority of their existence in contemplation. They could only leave their cells on special occasions, such as Sundays, for meals, prayer, and the sole hour of weekly conversation. On all other days, the hermit monks remained within their cells. Only on Sundays and holidays did everyone gather to eat in silence while listening to the reading of the Gospels, sacred texts, and the Rule, which took place from a pulpit located in the refectory. On other days, meals were served by the lay brothers through a hatch next to the door of each cell. Space was crucial for the monks, given their condition of isolation; the only moments of congregation, apart from Sunday/holiday meals, were during church services and the weekly hour of conversation and recreation, held in the so-called “parlor.”

L’Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa è un centro di Buddhismo tibetano, di tradizione mahayana, ubicato in Toscana, nel paese di Pomaia, frazione del Comune di Santa Luce, in provincia di Pisa. Si trova in una zona collinare di grande pregio paesaggistico, a pochi chilometri dal mare.

L’associazione propone corsi di filosofia, psicologia e meditazione, tenuti da Maestri e studiosi qualificati che trasmettono gli insegnamenti orali di Buddha Shakyamuni (nato nel IV sec. A.C) secondo un lignaggio ininterrotto, oltre ad organizzare seminari altamente qualificati su altri argomenti affini e tecniche evolutive. I corsi sono di brevissima, media e lunga durata, rivolti a persone semplicemente interessate a conoscere i vari argomenti, oppure a praticanti buddhisti e studenti, principianti o avanzati.