Dalai Lama to choose reborn self
Maclean Kay
For The Calgary Herald
Sunday, December 02, 2007
CREDIT: Agence France-Presse, Getty Images
The Dalai Lama is considering choosing his "reincarnated" replacement.
Reincarnation is hard enough to grasp, but choosing your reincarnated self before you die? That's a really mind-melting concept.
To better ensure a worthy and politically independent successor, the Dalai Lama has suggested he might select his eventual replacement himself.
This is problematic, because according to Buddhist belief, each successive Dalai Lama is the reincarnation of the one before; His Holiness's idea of reincarnating before he actually dies is difficult to digest.
Traditionally, he would be chosen (or, if you prefer, found) among young boys born in Tibet shortly after the previous Dalai Lama dies. Lower-level lamas search Tibet, usually for a few years, seeking young male children who appear to be familiar with certain possessions of the previous Dalai Lama. (One can also be forgiven for thinking it's not hard to find two-year-olds who think everything is "mine.") Once discovered, the reincarnation is brought to Lhasa to be trained.
The reason for breaking with centuries of religious tradition is nakedly political.
Relations between the Dalai Lama and Beijing have seldom been worse. Beijing considers Tibet an integral part of China, and isn't shy about making it so: thousands of ethnic Han Chinese have been moved there, which the Dalai Lama has called "cultural genocide."
What's more, Beijing claims the next Dalai Lama will need its permission to be reincarnated. That is, the reincarnation of the Living Buddha would be selected by an officially atheist communist regime.
By seizing control of the selection process, Beijing hopes to co-opt a persistent irritant and quash not only Tibetan separatist sentiment, but considerable sympathy for it worldwide.
Did His Holiness overplay his hand? Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike may be forgiven for puzzling over the idea of reincarnating before death.
While wonder is a prerequisite for religion, can too much wonder lead to outright disbelief?
The truth is this is nothing new. Reactions to external or internal political pressures shape much (not all) of the doctrines and truths held dear by many mainstream religions.
For example, if you asked to meet "Jesus Christ" in first-century Galilee, you'd be met with a blank stare.
There is little historical doubt this man existed, but he certainly wasn't called Jesus, but Jeshua or Yahshua.
Why wouldn't he be referred to that today? Christians regard him as the Son of God and saviour of man, but don't even have his name right?
In the early years when Christians were still persecuted, a number of "apologists" wrote open letters defending Christianity, acting much like news pundits taking positions on current hot topics.
They all wrote in Greek, as was conventional at the time, and used Greek concepts and ideas to portray Christianity as more than a troublesome, breakaway Jewish sub-sect.
Much like Charles, Carlos and Karl are linguistic variations of the same name, when the apologists referred to the Big Man himself, they used the Hellenized version, Iesous. (The letter J wouldn't exist for another 1,300 years). According to the New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia, some even called him "Jason," phonetically similar, but more fashionably heroic.
We refer to the Son of God not by what he was called, but by what others felt was a more marketable, less Jewish name, just like Issur Danielovitch became Kirk Douglas.
A more recent and much more comparable example: the fourth president of the Church of Latter-day Saints, Wilford Woodruff, publicly declared the end of Mormon polygamy in 1890.
He wrote in his diary this was "for the temporal salvation of the Church," in the face of fierce American opposition to Mormons in general and statehood for Utah in particular. Perhaps not so coincidentally, Utah became a state of the union six years later. Woodruff overturned an institution that had been held as a revelation from God to the first Mormon prophet, Joseph Smith, and he did so for very worldly reasons: namely, statehood.
What appeared to have been cynical acts by the apologists and Woodruff didn't diminish the faith of their believers: both Christianity and its Mormon offshoot thrived afterwards.
That's the thing with faith and metaphysics: whatever the details, the core principles and beliefs are unaffected.
If Christians call the Son of God by something other than his name, if Mormon men marry but one woman despite the urgings of their first prophet, and if the Dalai Lama reincarnates before he dies, these are still just details.
Just like Boccaccio's Abraham, who witnesses the Roman clergy's depravity and converts to Catholicism, because only a true faith could survive such corruption, people who want to believe can rationalize just about anything. If the Living Buddha decides he can reincarnate before he dies, who am I to argue? Personally, I'm looking forward to seeing him shake hands with himself.
Maclean Kay is a regular Q blogger and frequent contributor to these pages.
© The Calgary Herald 2007
BUDHISM
It appears that the Dalai Lama may have to adopt a new practice similar to the Ismaili nass designation of a successor. Tho this will break tradition but may make the Dalai Lama succession a more stable one. I have heard rumors that the next one may be non-tibetan. BTW, outside of Tibet no other buddhist sect uses reincarnation as a form of succession. In Japan, temples are passed down thru the family line as the person property of the temple priests (who marry and have children).
jim
jim
Dalai Lama says successor could be a woman
by Richard Spencer ("Telegraph," December 7, 2007)
Beijing, China - The next Dalai Lama could be a woman, it emerged
yesterday.
Although there are female lamas, - or living Buddhas - men are predominant and it is rare for reincarnated lamas not to share the sex of their predecessors.
However, at the start of a 10-day visit to Italy, Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th and current Dalai Lama, said: "If a woman reveals herself as more useful the lama could very well be reincarnated in this form." The comment follows his surprising remarks last week that he might choose his successor before his death, or even hold a referendum on whether he should be reborn at all.
"If people feel that the institution of the Dalai Lama is still necessary, it will continue," he said.
Traditionally, the Dalai's successor is chosen by a committee of monks who find a young child born after his death, who is supposed to show a spark of the dead leader's spirit. The question of his succession is of increasing importance to the Dalai, who is 72.
There is a growing determination among the Chinese authorities to exert
their control over Tibetan Buddhism.
The Chinese will want to oversee the appointment of his successor, aware
that he is a figurehead for Tibetan aspirations for greater autonomy or even independence.
In the summer, they demanded that all reincarnations of lamas had to win
prior approval from the government's religious affairs bureau before being reborn. This is in line with the principle that all religions must
operate within a framework controlled by the Communist Party.
It had been expected that the Dalai Lama would meet the Pope during his
Italian visit, as he did last year.
But after it became clear that this would not happen, he said: "I'm sorry I won't meet him. Given that I'm here, I would like to have seen him."
There has been speculation that this was linked to the ordination last
week in Guangzhou, southern China, of a bishop who was first approved by the state.
The Holy See is recognised by China only as the spiritual head of the Catholic Church, and Beijing asserts the right to appoint all bishops.
Asked by Sky Italia TV if his presence in Italy appeared to be causing
embarrassment, the Dalai Lama insisted his visit was not political. "I'm only a visitor," he said.
Yesterday, Qin Gang, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said : "Wherever the Dalai Lama goes, or in what name, the issue is not
personal or religious.
"He represents a clique trying to split the country and seeking Tibetan
independence, to which the Chinese government and people are firmly
opposed."
In response, Tsering Tashi, a spokesman for the Tibetan government in
exile, said the Dalai wanted to give more freedom to people to choose,
adding. "He's saying it's up to the Tibetan people."
by Richard Spencer ("Telegraph," December 7, 2007)
Beijing, China - The next Dalai Lama could be a woman, it emerged
yesterday.
Although there are female lamas, - or living Buddhas - men are predominant and it is rare for reincarnated lamas not to share the sex of their predecessors.
However, at the start of a 10-day visit to Italy, Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th and current Dalai Lama, said: "If a woman reveals herself as more useful the lama could very well be reincarnated in this form." The comment follows his surprising remarks last week that he might choose his successor before his death, or even hold a referendum on whether he should be reborn at all.
"If people feel that the institution of the Dalai Lama is still necessary, it will continue," he said.
Traditionally, the Dalai's successor is chosen by a committee of monks who find a young child born after his death, who is supposed to show a spark of the dead leader's spirit. The question of his succession is of increasing importance to the Dalai, who is 72.
There is a growing determination among the Chinese authorities to exert
their control over Tibetan Buddhism.
The Chinese will want to oversee the appointment of his successor, aware
that he is a figurehead for Tibetan aspirations for greater autonomy or even independence.
In the summer, they demanded that all reincarnations of lamas had to win
prior approval from the government's religious affairs bureau before being reborn. This is in line with the principle that all religions must
operate within a framework controlled by the Communist Party.
It had been expected that the Dalai Lama would meet the Pope during his
Italian visit, as he did last year.
But after it became clear that this would not happen, he said: "I'm sorry I won't meet him. Given that I'm here, I would like to have seen him."
There has been speculation that this was linked to the ordination last
week in Guangzhou, southern China, of a bishop who was first approved by the state.
The Holy See is recognised by China only as the spiritual head of the Catholic Church, and Beijing asserts the right to appoint all bishops.
Asked by Sky Italia TV if his presence in Italy appeared to be causing
embarrassment, the Dalai Lama insisted his visit was not political. "I'm only a visitor," he said.
Yesterday, Qin Gang, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said : "Wherever the Dalai Lama goes, or in what name, the issue is not
personal or religious.
"He represents a clique trying to split the country and seeking Tibetan
independence, to which the Chinese government and people are firmly
opposed."
In response, Tsering Tashi, a spokesman for the Tibetan government in
exile, said the Dalai wanted to give more freedom to people to choose,
adding. "He's saying it's up to the Tibetan people."
'Goddess' back down to earth
Herald News Services
Monday, March 03, 2008
A controversial young Nepali girl worshipped by many Buddhists and Hindus as a Kumari, or "living goddess," has given up her divine position following a request from her family, an official said on Sunday.
The 11-year-old Sajani Shakya was revered for nine years as the Kumari of the ancient temple-town of Bhaktapur, near Kathmandu, in a centuries-old tradition.
"She is no more a Kumari," said Dipak Pandey, a senior official of the state-run Trust Corp. that oversees the cultural affairs in the deeply religious nation.
Pandey said Sajani's family wanted to perform their own religious rituals which required her to give up her divine position and rejoin her family.
Kumaris traditionally retire when they reach the age of menstruation.
Last year, Sajani made international headlines after she visited the United States to promote a film by a British company about the ancient practice.
Some religious authorities criticized the trip, saying it was against tradition.
© The Calgary Herald 2008
Herald News Services
Monday, March 03, 2008
A controversial young Nepali girl worshipped by many Buddhists and Hindus as a Kumari, or "living goddess," has given up her divine position following a request from her family, an official said on Sunday.
The 11-year-old Sajani Shakya was revered for nine years as the Kumari of the ancient temple-town of Bhaktapur, near Kathmandu, in a centuries-old tradition.
"She is no more a Kumari," said Dipak Pandey, a senior official of the state-run Trust Corp. that oversees the cultural affairs in the deeply religious nation.
Pandey said Sajani's family wanted to perform their own religious rituals which required her to give up her divine position and rejoin her family.
Kumaris traditionally retire when they reach the age of menstruation.
Last year, Sajani made international headlines after she visited the United States to promote a film by a British company about the ancient practice.
Some religious authorities criticized the trip, saying it was against tradition.
© The Calgary Herald 2008
July 14, 2008
In Japan, Buddhism May Be Dying Out
By NORIMITSU ONISHI
OGA, Japan — The Japanese have long taken an easygoing, buffetlike approach to religion, ringing out the old year at Buddhist temples and welcoming the new year, several hours later, at Shinto shrines. Weddings hew to Shinto rituals or, just as easily, to Christian ones.
When it comes to funerals, though, the Japanese have traditionally been inflexibly Buddhist — so much so that Buddhism in Japan is often called “funeral Buddhism,” a reference to the religion’s former near-monopoly on the elaborate, and lucrative, ceremonies surrounding deaths and memorial services.
But that expression also describes a religion that, by appearing to cater more to the needs of the dead than to those of the living, is losing its standing in Japanese society.
“That’s the image of funeral Buddhism: that it doesn’t meet people’s spiritual needs,” said Ryoko Mori, the chief priest at the 700-year-old Zuikoji Temple here in northern Japan. “In Islam or Christianity, they hold sermons on spiritual matters. But in Japan nowadays, very few Buddhist priests do that.”
Mr. Mori, 48, the 21st head priest of the temple, was unsure whether it would survive into the tenure of a 22nd.
“If Japanese Buddhism doesn’t act now, it will die out,” he said. “We can’t afford to wait. We have to do something.”
Across Japan, Buddhism faces a confluence of problems, some familiar to religions in other wealthy nations, others unique to the faith here.
The lack of successors to chief priests is jeopardizing family-run temples nationwide.
While interest in Buddhism is declining in urban areas, the religion’s rural strongholds are being depopulated, with older adherents dying and birthrates remaining low.
Perhaps most significantly, Buddhism is losing its grip on the funeral industry, as more and more Japanese are turning to funeral homes or choosing not to hold funerals at all.
Over the next generation, many temples in the countryside are expected to close, taking centuries of local history with them and adding to the demographic upheaval under way in rural Japan.
Here in Oga, on a peninsula of the same name that faces the Sea of Japan in Akita Prefecture, Buddhist priests are looking at the cold math of a population and local fishing industry in decline.
“It’s not an exaggeration to say that the population is about half of what it was at its peak and that all businesses have also been reduced by half,” said Giju Sakamoto, 74, the 91st head priest of Akita’s oldest temple, Chorakuji, which was founded around the year 860. “Given that reality, simply insisting that we’re a religion and have a long history — Akita’s longest, in fact — sounds like a fairy tale. It’s meaningless.
“That’s why I think this place is beyond hope,” Mr. Sakamoto said at his temple, which sits atop a promontory overlooking a seaside village.
To survive, Mr. Sakamoto has put his energies into managing a nursing home and a new temple in a growing suburb of Akita City. That temple, however, has drawn only 60 households as members since it opened a couple of years ago, far short of the 300 said to be necessary for a temple to remain financially viable.
For centuries, the average Buddhist temple, whose stewardship was handed down from father to eldest son, served a fixed membership, rarely, if ever, proselytizing. With some 300 households to cater to, the temple’s chief priest and his wife were kept fully occupied.
Not only has the number of temples in Japan been dipping — to 85,994 in 2006, from 86,586 in 2000, according to the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs — but membership at many temples has fallen.
“We have to find other jobs because the temple alone is not enough,” said Kyo Kon, 73, the head priest’s wife at Kogakuin, a temple here with 170 members. She used to work at a day care center while her husband was employed at a local land planning office.
Not far away at Doshoji, a temple whose membership has fallen to 85 elderly households, the chief priest, Jokan Takahashi, 59, was facing a problem familiar to most small family-run businesses in Japan: finding a successor.
His eldest son had undergone the training to become a Buddhist priest, but Mr. Takahashi was ambivalent about asking him to take over the temple.
“My son grew up knowing nothing but this world of the temple, and he told me he did not feel free,” he said, explaining that his son, now 28, was working at a company in a nearby city. “He asked me to let him be free as long as I was working, and said that he would come back and take over by the time he turned 35.
“But considering the future, pressuring a young person to take over a temple like this might be cruel,” Mr. Takahashi said, after giving visitors a tour of his temple’s most important room, an inner chamber with wooden, lockerlike cabinets where, it is said, the spirits of his members’ ancestors are kept.
On a recent morning, Mr. Mori, the priest of the 700-year-old temple, began the day with a visit to a rice farming household marking the 33rd anniversary of a grandfather’s death. Bowing before the home altar, Mr. Mori prayed and chanted sutras. Later, he repeated the rituals at another household, which was commemorating the seventh anniversary of a grandfather’s death.
Increasingly, many Japanese, especially those in urban areas, have eschewed those traditions. Many no longer belong to temples and rely instead on funeral homes when their relatives die. The funeral homes provide Buddhist priests for funerals. According to a 2007 report by the Japan Consumers’ Association, the average cost of a funeral, excluding the cemetery plot, was $21,500, of which $5,100 covered services performed by a Buddhist priest.
As recently as the mid-1980s, almost all Japanese held funerals at home or in temples, with the local Buddhist priest playing a prominent role.
But the move to funeral homes has sharply accelerated in the last decade. In 1999, 62 percent still held funerals at home or in temples, while 30 percent chose funeral homes, according to the Consumers’ Association. But in 2007, the preferences were reversed, with 28 percent selecting funerals at home or in temples, and 61 percent opting for funeral homes.
In addition, an increasing number of Japanese are deciding to have their loved ones cremated without any funeral at all, said Noriyuki Ueda, an anthropologist at the Tokyo Institute of Technology and an expert on Buddhism.
“Because of that, Buddhist priests and temples will no longer be involved in funerals,” Mr. Ueda said.
He said Japanese Buddhism had been sapped of its spiritual side in great part because it had compromised itself during World War II through its close ties with Japan’s military. After Buddhist priests had glorified fallen soldiers and given them special posthumous Buddhist names, talk of pacifism sounded hollow.
Mr. Mori, the priest here, said that after the war there was a desire for increasingly lavish funerals with prestigious Buddhist names. These names — with the highest ranks traditionally given to those who have led honorable lives — are routinely purchased now, regardless of a dead person’s conduct in life.
“Soldiers, who gave their lives for the country, were given special posthumous Buddhist names, so everybody wanted one after that, and prices went up dramatically,” Mr. Mori said. “Everyone was getting richer, so everyone wanted one.
“But that gave us a bad image,” he said, adding that the price of the top name in Akita was about $3,000 — though that was a small fraction of the price in Tokyo.
Indeed, that image is reinforced by the way the business of funerals and memorial services is conducted. Fees are not stated and are left to the family’s discretion, and the relatives generally feel an unspoken pressure to be quite generous. Money is handed over in envelopes, and receipts are not given. Temples, with their status as religious organizations, pay no taxes.
It was partly to dispel this bad image that Kazuma Hayashi, 41, a Buddhist priest without a temple of his own, said he founded a company, Obohsan.com (obohsan means priest), three years ago in a Tokyo suburb. The company dispatches freelance Buddhist priests to funerals and other services, cutting out funeral homes and other middlemen.
Prices, which are at least a third lower than the average, are listed clearly on the company’s Web site. A 10 percent discount is available for members.
“We even give out receipts,” Mr. Hayashi said.
Mr. Hayashi argued that instead of divorcing Japanese Buddhism further from its spiritual roots, his business attracted more people with its lower prices. The highest-ranking posthumous name went for about $1,500, a rock-bottom price.
“I know that, originally, that’s not what Buddhism was about,” Mr. Hayashi said of the top name. “But it’s a brand that our customers choose. Some really want it, so that means there’s a strong desire there, and we have to respond to it.”
After apologizing for straying from Buddhism’s ideals, Mr. Hayashi said he offered his customers the highest-ranking name, albeit with a warning: “In short, that this is different from going to a shop in town and buying a handbag, you know, a Gucci bag.”
In Japan, Buddhism May Be Dying Out
By NORIMITSU ONISHI
OGA, Japan — The Japanese have long taken an easygoing, buffetlike approach to religion, ringing out the old year at Buddhist temples and welcoming the new year, several hours later, at Shinto shrines. Weddings hew to Shinto rituals or, just as easily, to Christian ones.
When it comes to funerals, though, the Japanese have traditionally been inflexibly Buddhist — so much so that Buddhism in Japan is often called “funeral Buddhism,” a reference to the religion’s former near-monopoly on the elaborate, and lucrative, ceremonies surrounding deaths and memorial services.
But that expression also describes a religion that, by appearing to cater more to the needs of the dead than to those of the living, is losing its standing in Japanese society.
“That’s the image of funeral Buddhism: that it doesn’t meet people’s spiritual needs,” said Ryoko Mori, the chief priest at the 700-year-old Zuikoji Temple here in northern Japan. “In Islam or Christianity, they hold sermons on spiritual matters. But in Japan nowadays, very few Buddhist priests do that.”
Mr. Mori, 48, the 21st head priest of the temple, was unsure whether it would survive into the tenure of a 22nd.
“If Japanese Buddhism doesn’t act now, it will die out,” he said. “We can’t afford to wait. We have to do something.”
Across Japan, Buddhism faces a confluence of problems, some familiar to religions in other wealthy nations, others unique to the faith here.
The lack of successors to chief priests is jeopardizing family-run temples nationwide.
While interest in Buddhism is declining in urban areas, the religion’s rural strongholds are being depopulated, with older adherents dying and birthrates remaining low.
Perhaps most significantly, Buddhism is losing its grip on the funeral industry, as more and more Japanese are turning to funeral homes or choosing not to hold funerals at all.
Over the next generation, many temples in the countryside are expected to close, taking centuries of local history with them and adding to the demographic upheaval under way in rural Japan.
Here in Oga, on a peninsula of the same name that faces the Sea of Japan in Akita Prefecture, Buddhist priests are looking at the cold math of a population and local fishing industry in decline.
“It’s not an exaggeration to say that the population is about half of what it was at its peak and that all businesses have also been reduced by half,” said Giju Sakamoto, 74, the 91st head priest of Akita’s oldest temple, Chorakuji, which was founded around the year 860. “Given that reality, simply insisting that we’re a religion and have a long history — Akita’s longest, in fact — sounds like a fairy tale. It’s meaningless.
“That’s why I think this place is beyond hope,” Mr. Sakamoto said at his temple, which sits atop a promontory overlooking a seaside village.
To survive, Mr. Sakamoto has put his energies into managing a nursing home and a new temple in a growing suburb of Akita City. That temple, however, has drawn only 60 households as members since it opened a couple of years ago, far short of the 300 said to be necessary for a temple to remain financially viable.
For centuries, the average Buddhist temple, whose stewardship was handed down from father to eldest son, served a fixed membership, rarely, if ever, proselytizing. With some 300 households to cater to, the temple’s chief priest and his wife were kept fully occupied.
Not only has the number of temples in Japan been dipping — to 85,994 in 2006, from 86,586 in 2000, according to the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs — but membership at many temples has fallen.
“We have to find other jobs because the temple alone is not enough,” said Kyo Kon, 73, the head priest’s wife at Kogakuin, a temple here with 170 members. She used to work at a day care center while her husband was employed at a local land planning office.
Not far away at Doshoji, a temple whose membership has fallen to 85 elderly households, the chief priest, Jokan Takahashi, 59, was facing a problem familiar to most small family-run businesses in Japan: finding a successor.
His eldest son had undergone the training to become a Buddhist priest, but Mr. Takahashi was ambivalent about asking him to take over the temple.
“My son grew up knowing nothing but this world of the temple, and he told me he did not feel free,” he said, explaining that his son, now 28, was working at a company in a nearby city. “He asked me to let him be free as long as I was working, and said that he would come back and take over by the time he turned 35.
“But considering the future, pressuring a young person to take over a temple like this might be cruel,” Mr. Takahashi said, after giving visitors a tour of his temple’s most important room, an inner chamber with wooden, lockerlike cabinets where, it is said, the spirits of his members’ ancestors are kept.
On a recent morning, Mr. Mori, the priest of the 700-year-old temple, began the day with a visit to a rice farming household marking the 33rd anniversary of a grandfather’s death. Bowing before the home altar, Mr. Mori prayed and chanted sutras. Later, he repeated the rituals at another household, which was commemorating the seventh anniversary of a grandfather’s death.
Increasingly, many Japanese, especially those in urban areas, have eschewed those traditions. Many no longer belong to temples and rely instead on funeral homes when their relatives die. The funeral homes provide Buddhist priests for funerals. According to a 2007 report by the Japan Consumers’ Association, the average cost of a funeral, excluding the cemetery plot, was $21,500, of which $5,100 covered services performed by a Buddhist priest.
As recently as the mid-1980s, almost all Japanese held funerals at home or in temples, with the local Buddhist priest playing a prominent role.
But the move to funeral homes has sharply accelerated in the last decade. In 1999, 62 percent still held funerals at home or in temples, while 30 percent chose funeral homes, according to the Consumers’ Association. But in 2007, the preferences were reversed, with 28 percent selecting funerals at home or in temples, and 61 percent opting for funeral homes.
In addition, an increasing number of Japanese are deciding to have their loved ones cremated without any funeral at all, said Noriyuki Ueda, an anthropologist at the Tokyo Institute of Technology and an expert on Buddhism.
“Because of that, Buddhist priests and temples will no longer be involved in funerals,” Mr. Ueda said.
He said Japanese Buddhism had been sapped of its spiritual side in great part because it had compromised itself during World War II through its close ties with Japan’s military. After Buddhist priests had glorified fallen soldiers and given them special posthumous Buddhist names, talk of pacifism sounded hollow.
Mr. Mori, the priest here, said that after the war there was a desire for increasingly lavish funerals with prestigious Buddhist names. These names — with the highest ranks traditionally given to those who have led honorable lives — are routinely purchased now, regardless of a dead person’s conduct in life.
“Soldiers, who gave their lives for the country, were given special posthumous Buddhist names, so everybody wanted one after that, and prices went up dramatically,” Mr. Mori said. “Everyone was getting richer, so everyone wanted one.
“But that gave us a bad image,” he said, adding that the price of the top name in Akita was about $3,000 — though that was a small fraction of the price in Tokyo.
Indeed, that image is reinforced by the way the business of funerals and memorial services is conducted. Fees are not stated and are left to the family’s discretion, and the relatives generally feel an unspoken pressure to be quite generous. Money is handed over in envelopes, and receipts are not given. Temples, with their status as religious organizations, pay no taxes.
It was partly to dispel this bad image that Kazuma Hayashi, 41, a Buddhist priest without a temple of his own, said he founded a company, Obohsan.com (obohsan means priest), three years ago in a Tokyo suburb. The company dispatches freelance Buddhist priests to funerals and other services, cutting out funeral homes and other middlemen.
Prices, which are at least a third lower than the average, are listed clearly on the company’s Web site. A 10 percent discount is available for members.
“We even give out receipts,” Mr. Hayashi said.
Mr. Hayashi argued that instead of divorcing Japanese Buddhism further from its spiritual roots, his business attracted more people with its lower prices. The highest-ranking posthumous name went for about $1,500, a rock-bottom price.
“I know that, originally, that’s not what Buddhism was about,” Mr. Hayashi said of the top name. “But it’s a brand that our customers choose. Some really want it, so that means there’s a strong desire there, and we have to respond to it.”
After apologizing for straying from Buddhism’s ideals, Mr. Hayashi said he offered his customers the highest-ranking name, albeit with a warning: “In short, that this is different from going to a shop in town and buying a handbag, you know, a Gucci bag.”
-
From_Alamut
- Posts: 666
- Joined: Tue Jan 22, 2008 8:22 am
The Englightment Prince [Buddha]
I have found some videos on [Youtube] based on the life of the Enlightenment [Buddha] Prince Siddhartha Gautama. The movie calls "Little Buddha".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itOxdwvQ ... re=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JXvlED1KJ0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwM-u-ldPr0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTbVVbDpGzM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7inqtIX6-lM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e815MtNmmng
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itOxdwvQ ... re=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JXvlED1KJ0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwM-u-ldPr0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTbVVbDpGzM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7inqtIX6-lM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e815MtNmmng
-
From_Alamut
- Posts: 666
- Joined: Tue Jan 22, 2008 8:22 am
Re: The Englightment Prince [Buddha]
From_Alamut wrote:I have found some videos on [Youtube] based on the life of the Enlightenment [Buddha] Prince Siddhartha Gautama. The movie calls "Little Buddha".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itOxdwvQ ... re=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JXvlED1KJ0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwM-u-ldPr0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTbVVbDpGzM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7inqtIX6-lM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e815MtNmmng
Main article: Physical characteristics of the Buddha
Buddha is perhaps one of the few sages for whom we have mention of his rather impressive physical characteristics. A kshatriya by birth, he had military training in his upbringing, and by Shakyan tradition was required to pass tests to demonstrate his worthiness as a warrior in order to marry. He had a strong enough body to be noticed by one of the kings and was asked to join his army as a general. He is also believed by Buddhists to have "the 32 Signs of the Great Man".
The Brahmin Sonadanda described him as "handsome, good-looking, and pleasing to the eye, with a most beautiful complexion. He has a godlike form and countenance, he is by no means unattractive."(D,I:115).
"It is wonderful, truly marvellous, how serene is the good Gotama's appearance, how clear and radiant his complexion, just as the golden jujube in autumn is clear and radiant, just as a palm-tree fruit just loosened from the stalk is clear and radiant, just as an adornment of red gold wrought in a crucible by a skilled goldsmith, deftly beaten and laid on a yellow-cloth shines, blazes and glitters, even so, the good Gotama's senses are calmed, his complexion is clear and radiant." (A,I:181)
A disciple named Vakkali, who later became an Arahant, was so obsessed by Buddha's physical presence that Buddha has to tell him to stop and reminded Vakkali to know Buddha through the Dhamma and not physical appearances.
Although the Buddha was not represented in human form until around the 1st century CE (see Buddhist art), the physical characteristics of fully-enlightened Buddhas are described by the Buddha in the Digha Nikaya's Lakkhaṇa Sutta (D,I:142).[17] In addition, the Buddha's physical appearance is described by Yasodhara to their son Rahula upon the Buddha's first post-Enlightenment return to his former princely palace in the non-canonical Pali devotional hymn, Narasīha Gāthā ("The Lion of Men").[18]
Reference
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gautama_Buddha
Dalai Lama 'reincarnation' must have China's approval
Agence France-PresseMarch 13, 2009
China's communist government will decide on the reincarnated successor of the Dalai Lama when Tibetan Buddhism's highest spiritual leader passes away, state press said Thursday.
"Besides religious rites and historical conventions, there is also a very important condition for the reincarnation of the Dalai and that is the approval of the central government," top Tibetan legislator Legqoq told Xinhua news agency.
Legqoq said China's state religious affairs Commission issued regulations in 2007 that mandate government approval for all reincarnated "living Buddhas," or Lamas.
© Copyright (c) The Calgary Herald
Agence France-PresseMarch 13, 2009
China's communist government will decide on the reincarnated successor of the Dalai Lama when Tibetan Buddhism's highest spiritual leader passes away, state press said Thursday.
"Besides religious rites and historical conventions, there is also a very important condition for the reincarnation of the Dalai and that is the approval of the central government," top Tibetan legislator Legqoq told Xinhua news agency.
Legqoq said China's state religious affairs Commission issued regulations in 2007 that mandate government approval for all reincarnated "living Buddhas," or Lamas.
© Copyright (c) The Calgary Herald
Photo: Jacky Naegelen, Reuters
Exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama said Sunday the tradition of a Dalai Lama leading by divine right should end with him. "Today, it is clear to the whole world that democracy is the best system."
Dalai Lama calls for end to divine rule, touts democracy
BARNEY HENDERSON
THE TELEGRAPH' MUMBAI
The Dalai Lama said Sunday that the tradition of a monk leading Tibet's Buddhists by divine right should end with him.
He told fellow exiles in India that their next leader should be elected rather than chosen in a centuries-old ritual conducted by monks and shrouded by mystery. A new Dalai Lama is traditionally selected by monks seeking guidance at a sacred lake and travelling throughout Tibet with relics of the dead Dalai Lama.
The boy monk who recognizes the relics proves that he is the reincarnated soul of the Dalai Lama and assumes the position of leader.
However, China is claiming the right to appoint the 15th Dalai Lama in Tibet and the prospect of two duelling leaders would severely undermine the position.
The Nobel peace prizewinner said: "The Dalai Lamas held temporal and spiritual leadership over the last 400-500 years. It may have been quite useful. But that period is over. Today, it is clear to the whole world that democracy is the best system. That is why it is important that Tibetans also move with the larger world community."
In 2001, Tibetans elected a prime minister-in-exile, Samdhong Rinpoche, who assumed some of the Dalai Lama's responsibilities.
"The Dalai Lama believes that it would be better for the Tibetan people if the tradition of a Dalai Lama stops with him," said Tenzin Taklha, the joint secretary of the spiritual leader's office.
"It is an option that the parliament in exile will discuss, but ultimately the people will decide what happens after the current Dalai Lama.
"At the moment, I would say that the majority would want the tradition to continue."
The 14th Dalai Lama was selected at the age of two and has been the leader of Tibetan Buddhism spanning eight decades of turmoil. In 1959, he fled to India where he established the government in exile, following a failed uprising.
Published in today's Calgary Herald
Exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama said Sunday the tradition of a Dalai Lama leading by divine right should end with him. "Today, it is clear to the whole world that democracy is the best system."
Dalai Lama calls for end to divine rule, touts democracy
BARNEY HENDERSON
THE TELEGRAPH' MUMBAI
The Dalai Lama said Sunday that the tradition of a monk leading Tibet's Buddhists by divine right should end with him.
He told fellow exiles in India that their next leader should be elected rather than chosen in a centuries-old ritual conducted by monks and shrouded by mystery. A new Dalai Lama is traditionally selected by monks seeking guidance at a sacred lake and travelling throughout Tibet with relics of the dead Dalai Lama.
The boy monk who recognizes the relics proves that he is the reincarnated soul of the Dalai Lama and assumes the position of leader.
However, China is claiming the right to appoint the 15th Dalai Lama in Tibet and the prospect of two duelling leaders would severely undermine the position.
The Nobel peace prizewinner said: "The Dalai Lamas held temporal and spiritual leadership over the last 400-500 years. It may have been quite useful. But that period is over. Today, it is clear to the whole world that democracy is the best system. That is why it is important that Tibetans also move with the larger world community."
In 2001, Tibetans elected a prime minister-in-exile, Samdhong Rinpoche, who assumed some of the Dalai Lama's responsibilities.
"The Dalai Lama believes that it would be better for the Tibetan people if the tradition of a Dalai Lama stops with him," said Tenzin Taklha, the joint secretary of the spiritual leader's office.
"It is an option that the parliament in exile will discuss, but ultimately the people will decide what happens after the current Dalai Lama.
"At the moment, I would say that the majority would want the tradition to continue."
The 14th Dalai Lama was selected at the age of two and has been the leader of Tibetan Buddhism spanning eight decades of turmoil. In 1959, he fled to India where he established the government in exile, following a failed uprising.
Published in today's Calgary Herald
-
From_Alamut
- Posts: 666
- Joined: Tue Jan 22, 2008 8:22 am
Re: BUDHISM
Mysterious “Buddha Boy” Ram Bahadur Bomjan
Ram Bahadur Bomjam (Palden Dorje), 18, known as ‘Buddha Boy’ made news all around the world when he meditated motionless for months without water, food or sleep under a tree in a remote village of Nepal. Local and international scientists unsuccessfully tried to explain his unique meditation technique.
For the second time he made international headlines when he reappeared in the second week of November. It is told that he has resumed his mediation in unknown place late Friday, November 21, after blessing thousands of devotees for the last 10 days.
Some believe he is reincarnation of Buddha and others including the president of the Nepal Buddhist Council don’t think he can be a Buddha only by meditating. Buddha needs life experience and the young man doesn’t have it.
But still he is something not to be taken lightly. He has done something everybody else think is impossible. He did stay under a tree for months and nobody could question his credibility. National Geographic team filmed him for at least 10 days and they couldn’t find him taking food or water. Science can’t explain how he could survive that long without water. The teenager staying still for months in itself is strange. It is another thing that he was not allowed any medical tests to testify his genuineness.
He started his meditation on May 16, 2005 and he disappeared all of sudden on March 11, 2006. He reappeared on December 26 and left again on 8th March 2007. Nepali police found him on March 26, 2007, mediating in a bunker-like seven feet ditch prepared on his request. On 2 August 2007 Bomjan addressed a large crowd in Hallori jungle in Bara district of southern Nepal.
Reference: http://blog.xnepali.com/mysterious-budd ... ur-bomjam/
http://www.fractalenlightenment.com/200 ... -year.html
Buddha Boy with Divine Powers
We have written about the Buddha boy before, Ram Bahadur Bomjon who is trying to attain enlightenment by meditating without food or drink for six years. But there has been a lot of criticism, a lot of praise and some unbelievable achievements by this young lad.
One such ability is to alter his body temperature to suit the environment, its possible by a certain kind of meditation to keep oneself warm even though it could be freezing outside. Apart from that a channel has recorded him for four days and nights continuously without water or food.
Ram Bahadur had addressed a large crowd, this is part of his message, "Murder, violence, greed, anger and temptation have made the human world a desperate place. A terrible storm has descended upon the human world, and this is carrying the world towards destruction.
There is only one way to save the world and that is through dharma. When one doesn't walk the righteous path of spiritual practice, this desperate world will surely be destroyed. Therefore, follow the path of spirituality and spread this message to your fellows. Never put obstacles, anger and disbelief in the way of my meditation's mission. I am only showing you the way; you must seek it on your own.
What I will be, what I will do, the coming days will reveal. Human salvation, the salvation of all living beings, and peace in the world are my goal and my path. "Namo Buddha sangaya, Namo Buddha sangaya, namo sangaya."
I am contemplating on the release of this chaotic world from the ocean of emotion, on our detachment from anger and temptation, without straying from the path for even a moment, I am renouncing my own attachment to my life and my home forever, I am working to save all living beings. But in this undisciplined world, my life's practice is reduced to mere entertainment."
Reference:http://www.fractalenlightenment.com/200 ... owers.html
[[A NEW video on Introducing the Budda Boy]]A Journey through Aesthetic Realms
Ram Bahadur Bomjan: The Meditating "Buddha Boy" from Nepal
http://www.suprememastertv.com/bbs/boar ... =link2_0#v
[/b]
Ram Bahadur Bomjam (Palden Dorje), 18, known as ‘Buddha Boy’ made news all around the world when he meditated motionless for months without water, food or sleep under a tree in a remote village of Nepal. Local and international scientists unsuccessfully tried to explain his unique meditation technique.
For the second time he made international headlines when he reappeared in the second week of November. It is told that he has resumed his mediation in unknown place late Friday, November 21, after blessing thousands of devotees for the last 10 days.
Some believe he is reincarnation of Buddha and others including the president of the Nepal Buddhist Council don’t think he can be a Buddha only by meditating. Buddha needs life experience and the young man doesn’t have it.
But still he is something not to be taken lightly. He has done something everybody else think is impossible. He did stay under a tree for months and nobody could question his credibility. National Geographic team filmed him for at least 10 days and they couldn’t find him taking food or water. Science can’t explain how he could survive that long without water. The teenager staying still for months in itself is strange. It is another thing that he was not allowed any medical tests to testify his genuineness.
He started his meditation on May 16, 2005 and he disappeared all of sudden on March 11, 2006. He reappeared on December 26 and left again on 8th March 2007. Nepali police found him on March 26, 2007, mediating in a bunker-like seven feet ditch prepared on his request. On 2 August 2007 Bomjan addressed a large crowd in Hallori jungle in Bara district of southern Nepal.
Reference: http://blog.xnepali.com/mysterious-budd ... ur-bomjam/
http://www.fractalenlightenment.com/200 ... -year.html
Buddha Boy with Divine Powers
We have written about the Buddha boy before, Ram Bahadur Bomjon who is trying to attain enlightenment by meditating without food or drink for six years. But there has been a lot of criticism, a lot of praise and some unbelievable achievements by this young lad.
One such ability is to alter his body temperature to suit the environment, its possible by a certain kind of meditation to keep oneself warm even though it could be freezing outside. Apart from that a channel has recorded him for four days and nights continuously without water or food.
Ram Bahadur had addressed a large crowd, this is part of his message, "Murder, violence, greed, anger and temptation have made the human world a desperate place. A terrible storm has descended upon the human world, and this is carrying the world towards destruction.
There is only one way to save the world and that is through dharma. When one doesn't walk the righteous path of spiritual practice, this desperate world will surely be destroyed. Therefore, follow the path of spirituality and spread this message to your fellows. Never put obstacles, anger and disbelief in the way of my meditation's mission. I am only showing you the way; you must seek it on your own.
What I will be, what I will do, the coming days will reveal. Human salvation, the salvation of all living beings, and peace in the world are my goal and my path. "Namo Buddha sangaya, Namo Buddha sangaya, namo sangaya."
I am contemplating on the release of this chaotic world from the ocean of emotion, on our detachment from anger and temptation, without straying from the path for even a moment, I am renouncing my own attachment to my life and my home forever, I am working to save all living beings. But in this undisciplined world, my life's practice is reduced to mere entertainment."
Reference:http://www.fractalenlightenment.com/200 ... owers.html
[[A NEW video on Introducing the Budda Boy]]A Journey through Aesthetic Realms
Ram Bahadur Bomjan: The Meditating "Buddha Boy" from Nepal
http://www.suprememastertv.com/bbs/boar ... =link2_0#v
[/b]
-
shiraz.virani
- Posts: 1256
- Joined: Thu May 28, 2009 2:52 pm
BUDDHA BOY
After about ten months of meditation, Bomjon went missing on 11 March 2006. Due to his lack of explanation, some believed he was abducted. His followers theorized that he went deeper into the woods to look for a quieter place to meditate.[1] Police abandoned a search for him after the possibility of foul play was eliminated. Suspecting money laundering, the authorities froze the bank account of the local committee managing the crowds, which had gathered more than Rs. 600,000, but they failed to find evidence.[2]
On 19 March a group of Bomjon's followers met with him about 2 miles (3 kilometers) southwest of his meditation site. They say they spoke to him for thirty minutes, during which Bomjan said "there is no peace here" and that he would return in six years, or roughly 2011 or 2012. He left a message for his parents telling them not to worry.[3][4]
On 25 December 2006, villagers in Bara district spotted Bomjon meditating. He was carrying a sword for protection in the jungle, reminding reporters that "Even Gautama Buddha had to protect himself," and claimed to have eaten nothing but herbs in the interim. He reiterated his commitment to Buddhist devotion for six years and said he would allow people to come observe him as long as they remained at some distance and didn't bother him. When a reporter pointed out that pilgrims to his meditation site would be making donations in his name, he asked for the donations to not be abused or used for commercial purposes. A new wave of visitors came to see him and pray at his new meditation spot. On 8 March 2007 he left Bara district to again find a quieter place to meditate
On 26 March 2007 Inspector Rameshwor Yadav of the Area Police Post Nijgadh found Bomjon inside a bunker-like ditch seven feet square. A police team, under the command of Yadav, had gone to the place after word had spread through the area of Romjon meditating underground. "His face was clean and hair was combed well," Yadav said. According to him, the bunker had been cemented from all sides and outfitted with a tiled roof. Indra Lama, a local deployed as Bomjon's caretaker since the beginning of his intensive meditation, said the bunker was prepared per Bomjon's request. "After granting audience a week ago, he expressed his desire to meditate inside the ground; so we built it," he said
MUST READ FOR EVERYONE
On 2 August 2007 Bomjon addressed a large crowd in Hallori jungle in Bara district of southern Nepal. The Namo Buddha Tapoban Committee, which is devoted to looking after Bomjon, assembled the meeting. A notice about the boy's first-ever preaching was broadcast by a local FM radio station, and the committee also invited people by telephone. Around three thousand people gathered to listen to Bomjon's address. A video of the event has also surfaced.[11] According to Upendra Lamichhane, a blogger who wrote an article and took pictures of the meeting, Bomjon's message was "The only way we can save this nation is through spirituality".His speech was as follows:
Murder, violence, greed, anger and temptation have made the human world a desperate place. A terrible storm has descended upon the human world, and this is carrying the world towards destruction. There is only one way to save the world and that is through dharma. When one doesn't walk the righteous path of spiritual practice, this desperate world will surely be destroyed. Therefore, follow the path of spirituality and spread this message to your fellows. Never put obstacles, anger and disbelief in the way of my meditation's mission. I am only showing you the way; you must seek it on your own. What I will be, what I will do, the coming days will reveal. Human salvation, the salvation of all living beings, and peace in the world are my goal and my path. "Namo Buddha sangaya, Namo Buddha sangaya, namo sangaya." I am contemplating on the release of this chaotic world from the ocean of emotion, on our detachment from anger and temptation, without straying from the path for even a moment, I am renouncing my own attachment to my life and my home forever, I am working to save all living beings. But in this undisciplined world, my life's practice is reduced to mere entertainment.
The practice and devotion of many Buddhas is directed at the world's betterment and happiness. It is essential but very difficult to understand that practice and devotion. But though it is easy to lead this ignorant existence, human beings don't understand that one day we must leave this uncertain world and go with the Lord of Death. Our long attachments with friends and family will dissolve into nothingness. We have to leave behind the wealth and property we have accumulated. What's the use of my happiness, when those who have loved me from the beginning, my mother, father, brothers, relatives are all unhappy. Therefore, to rescue all sentient beings, I have to be Buddha-mind, and emerge from my underground cave to do vajra meditation. To do this I have to realize the right path and knowledge, so do not disturb my practice. My practice detaches me from my body, my soul and this existence. In this situation there will be 72 goddess Kalis. Different gods will be present, along with the sounds of thunder and of "tangur", and all the celestial gods and goddesses will be doing puja (worship). So until I have sent a message, do not come here, and please explain this to others. Spread spiritual knowledge and spiritual messages throughout the world. Spread the message of world peace to all. Seek a righteous path and wisdom will be yours.
Bomjon is a member of the Tamang community, of which a majority is Buddhist and practices Vajrayana Buddhism.[14]
Bomjon's story gained popularity because it resembled a Buddhist legend from the Jataka Nidanakatha about Gautama Buddha's enlightenment, so much so that some devotees claimed Ram was the reincarnation of a Buddha. However, on 8 November 2005 Dorje arose and said to the public, "Tell the people not to call me a Buddha. I don't have the Buddha's energy. I am at the level of a rimpoche." A rimpoche is the level of a teacher, which indicates he believes he has achieved a significant amount. He said that he will need six more years of meditation before he may become a Buddha.
According to his followers, Bomjon may have reached the stage of a bodhisattva[citation needed], a person on the path to attaining full enlightenment of buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient beings. According to the historical Buddha, Gautama Buddha, there were innumberable Buddhas before him and infinite Buddhas to come in future. Proponents also claim that Bomjon might also be the emanation of Maitreya Bodhisattva, the predicted successor to the historical Buddha.
It is reported that his mother fainted when she found out that her son meditated for an undefined period of time. His mother's name is Maya Devi Tamang, the same first name as Buddha's mother.
Criticisms on calling him the "reincarnation of Buddha" have emerged since according to Buddhist scripture Gautama Buddha taught that after nirvana there is no more rebirth, therefore it is impossible to be a "reincarnation of Buddha", since after parinirvana The Buddha cannot take birth again. It is possible to be another Buddha, another one who has attained enlightenment.
In 2007, the Discovery Channel produced a documentary titled The Boy With Divine Powers.[18] On their first, four-day attempt, the film crew was required to stay outside a guarded barbed-wire fence, and their camera's infrared capabilities did not pick up evidence of a body at the base of the tree where Bomjon sat during their non-stop recording. On a second attempt a few weeks later, however, the film crew was able to film Ram continuously for 96 hours, day and night, during which time he did not drink any fluids or eat any food. According to scientists on the documentary, an average person would be expected to die from kidney failure after four days without drinking any fluids. The boy showed no signs of classical physical deterioration caused by dehydration. After a close inspection conducted by the film crew of the area around the tree where Ram was sitting, no hidden food supply or water pipes were found.
After about ten months of meditation, Bomjon went missing on 11 March 2006. Due to his lack of explanation, some believed he was abducted. His followers theorized that he went deeper into the woods to look for a quieter place to meditate.[1] Police abandoned a search for him after the possibility of foul play was eliminated. Suspecting money laundering, the authorities froze the bank account of the local committee managing the crowds, which had gathered more than Rs. 600,000, but they failed to find evidence.[2]
On 19 March a group of Bomjon's followers met with him about 2 miles (3 kilometers) southwest of his meditation site. They say they spoke to him for thirty minutes, during which Bomjan said "there is no peace here" and that he would return in six years, or roughly 2011 or 2012. He left a message for his parents telling them not to worry.[3][4]
On 25 December 2006, villagers in Bara district spotted Bomjon meditating. He was carrying a sword for protection in the jungle, reminding reporters that "Even Gautama Buddha had to protect himself," and claimed to have eaten nothing but herbs in the interim. He reiterated his commitment to Buddhist devotion for six years and said he would allow people to come observe him as long as they remained at some distance and didn't bother him. When a reporter pointed out that pilgrims to his meditation site would be making donations in his name, he asked for the donations to not be abused or used for commercial purposes. A new wave of visitors came to see him and pray at his new meditation spot. On 8 March 2007 he left Bara district to again find a quieter place to meditate
On 26 March 2007 Inspector Rameshwor Yadav of the Area Police Post Nijgadh found Bomjon inside a bunker-like ditch seven feet square. A police team, under the command of Yadav, had gone to the place after word had spread through the area of Romjon meditating underground. "His face was clean and hair was combed well," Yadav said. According to him, the bunker had been cemented from all sides and outfitted with a tiled roof. Indra Lama, a local deployed as Bomjon's caretaker since the beginning of his intensive meditation, said the bunker was prepared per Bomjon's request. "After granting audience a week ago, he expressed his desire to meditate inside the ground; so we built it," he said
MUST READ FOR EVERYONE
On 2 August 2007 Bomjon addressed a large crowd in Hallori jungle in Bara district of southern Nepal. The Namo Buddha Tapoban Committee, which is devoted to looking after Bomjon, assembled the meeting. A notice about the boy's first-ever preaching was broadcast by a local FM radio station, and the committee also invited people by telephone. Around three thousand people gathered to listen to Bomjon's address. A video of the event has also surfaced.[11] According to Upendra Lamichhane, a blogger who wrote an article and took pictures of the meeting, Bomjon's message was "The only way we can save this nation is through spirituality".His speech was as follows:
Murder, violence, greed, anger and temptation have made the human world a desperate place. A terrible storm has descended upon the human world, and this is carrying the world towards destruction. There is only one way to save the world and that is through dharma. When one doesn't walk the righteous path of spiritual practice, this desperate world will surely be destroyed. Therefore, follow the path of spirituality and spread this message to your fellows. Never put obstacles, anger and disbelief in the way of my meditation's mission. I am only showing you the way; you must seek it on your own. What I will be, what I will do, the coming days will reveal. Human salvation, the salvation of all living beings, and peace in the world are my goal and my path. "Namo Buddha sangaya, Namo Buddha sangaya, namo sangaya." I am contemplating on the release of this chaotic world from the ocean of emotion, on our detachment from anger and temptation, without straying from the path for even a moment, I am renouncing my own attachment to my life and my home forever, I am working to save all living beings. But in this undisciplined world, my life's practice is reduced to mere entertainment.
The practice and devotion of many Buddhas is directed at the world's betterment and happiness. It is essential but very difficult to understand that practice and devotion. But though it is easy to lead this ignorant existence, human beings don't understand that one day we must leave this uncertain world and go with the Lord of Death. Our long attachments with friends and family will dissolve into nothingness. We have to leave behind the wealth and property we have accumulated. What's the use of my happiness, when those who have loved me from the beginning, my mother, father, brothers, relatives are all unhappy. Therefore, to rescue all sentient beings, I have to be Buddha-mind, and emerge from my underground cave to do vajra meditation. To do this I have to realize the right path and knowledge, so do not disturb my practice. My practice detaches me from my body, my soul and this existence. In this situation there will be 72 goddess Kalis. Different gods will be present, along with the sounds of thunder and of "tangur", and all the celestial gods and goddesses will be doing puja (worship). So until I have sent a message, do not come here, and please explain this to others. Spread spiritual knowledge and spiritual messages throughout the world. Spread the message of world peace to all. Seek a righteous path and wisdom will be yours.
Bomjon is a member of the Tamang community, of which a majority is Buddhist and practices Vajrayana Buddhism.[14]
Bomjon's story gained popularity because it resembled a Buddhist legend from the Jataka Nidanakatha about Gautama Buddha's enlightenment, so much so that some devotees claimed Ram was the reincarnation of a Buddha. However, on 8 November 2005 Dorje arose and said to the public, "Tell the people not to call me a Buddha. I don't have the Buddha's energy. I am at the level of a rimpoche." A rimpoche is the level of a teacher, which indicates he believes he has achieved a significant amount. He said that he will need six more years of meditation before he may become a Buddha.
According to his followers, Bomjon may have reached the stage of a bodhisattva[citation needed], a person on the path to attaining full enlightenment of buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient beings. According to the historical Buddha, Gautama Buddha, there were innumberable Buddhas before him and infinite Buddhas to come in future. Proponents also claim that Bomjon might also be the emanation of Maitreya Bodhisattva, the predicted successor to the historical Buddha.
It is reported that his mother fainted when she found out that her son meditated for an undefined period of time. His mother's name is Maya Devi Tamang, the same first name as Buddha's mother.
Criticisms on calling him the "reincarnation of Buddha" have emerged since according to Buddhist scripture Gautama Buddha taught that after nirvana there is no more rebirth, therefore it is impossible to be a "reincarnation of Buddha", since after parinirvana The Buddha cannot take birth again. It is possible to be another Buddha, another one who has attained enlightenment.
In 2007, the Discovery Channel produced a documentary titled The Boy With Divine Powers.[18] On their first, four-day attempt, the film crew was required to stay outside a guarded barbed-wire fence, and their camera's infrared capabilities did not pick up evidence of a body at the base of the tree where Bomjon sat during their non-stop recording. On a second attempt a few weeks later, however, the film crew was able to film Ram continuously for 96 hours, day and night, during which time he did not drink any fluids or eat any food. According to scientists on the documentary, an average person would be expected to die from kidney failure after four days without drinking any fluids. The boy showed no signs of classical physical deterioration caused by dehydration. After a close inspection conducted by the film crew of the area around the tree where Ram was sitting, no hidden food supply or water pipes were found.
Tibetans fear China's hand in Dalai Lama succession
By Ben Blanchard, ReutersMarch 28, 2010
Exiled Tibetan activists shout slogans as they are taken away in a police vehicle following a protest outside the Chinese embassy in New Delhi, India, earlier this month on the eve of anniversary of the Tibetan Uprising Day.
Photograph by: Manan Vatsyayana, AFP-Getty Images, Reuters
http://www.calgaryherald.com/story_prin ... 0&sponsor=
For Tibetans living near the birthplace of the Dalai Lama, one question is very much on their minds these days -- who will succeed the aging exiled spiritual leader once he dies?
The possibility that scares most of them, and is seen as the most likely to happen, is that the atheist Communist government in Beijing will simply appoint its own replacement, with a veneer of tradition and religion thrown in.
One of the few certainties about the political future of Tibet is that the death of the current Dalai Lama will cause major ructions in Tibet and overseas.
Some Tibetans fear a violent backlash in what is now called the Tibet Autonomous Region and surrounding provinces with large Tibetan populations, like Qinghai, Gansu and Sichuan, if Beijing unilaterally appointed the next Dalai Lama. There is precedent for that happening.
China chose a rival incarnation to succeed the late 10th Panchen Lama, Tibetan Buddhism's second-holiest position, shortly after the Dalai Lama announced his choice in 1995.
"We think China will try to appoint its own Dalai Lama, as it did with the Panchen Lama," said Jigme, a monk in the Tibetan region of Tongren in the arid northwestern province of Qinghai.
"If that happens, we will protest," he added, punching his fists into the freezing air. "The people will be very unhappy. This is a religious decision. There should be no politics."
The worry of violence is very real. Anti-Chinese protests erupted in March 2008, in which at least 19 people were killed in riots in Lhasa. Pro-Tibet groups say hundreds died in a subsequent crackdown in the region.
The Beijing-anointed Panchen Lama is spurned by most Tibetans as a fake. The whereabouts of the Dalai Lama-recognized Panchen Lama is one of China's most tightly guarded secrets. China has in the past insisted he is safe, healthy and wants his privacy.
"We will not believe in a Dalai Lama chosen by the government," said another Qinghai Tibetan, who gave his name as Jokhar. "Look what happened when they appointed their own Panchen Lama. We don't believe in that one, and never will."
Born in 1935 into a farming family in Qinghai, known to Tibetans as Amdo, Lhamo Thondup was discovered at the age of two to be the 14th reincarnation of the Dalai Lama. He fled to India in 1959 after a failed uprising against Communist Chinese rule.
The Dalai Lama has earned adulation from supporters in the West, including Hollywood celebrities, who see him as one of the world's most enduring symbols of peace.
China's Communist rulers view him as a political headache and hypocrite with "a human face and the heart of a beast." They say he foments violence and is a separatist. He denies both charges, pointing out that he wants more meaningful autonomy for Tibet.
For China, who becomes the next Dalai Lama is a heavily politicized issue. Beijing appears determined not to cede any kind of authority to a candidate beyond their control.
Last year, a top official warned that the central government must approve the Dalai Lama's reincarnation, and would not recognize any candidate that it had not endorsed.
"In terms of what has been flagged by China . . . no other option has emerged, no other even vague likelihood has emerged, except for China promoting its own candidate," said Robbie Barnett, a Tibet scholar at Columbia University in New York.
The Dalai Lama's succession has become a prickly issue, as the Nobel Prize winner's health declines, as witnessed by his recent hospital visits for trapped nerves, abdominal discomfort and gallstone surgery.
He has suggested that his incarnation might be found outside of Chinesecontrolled territory, or even that Tibetans themselves could order a vote on whether to continue an institution that once gave one monk both spiritual and temporal sway over Tibet.
"There definitely will be two," Khedroob Thondup, a member of the exiled Tibetan parliament, told Reuters when asked how he thought the succession would play out.
"It will depend on who's in power in Beijing. If it's the present regime, they will go out of their way to choose their own," said Khedroob Thondup, a nephew of the Dalai Lama.
Chinese officials have prevaricated when directly asked about how the succession could be handled.
"Chinese people have a custom of not asking when an aged person is going to pass away," Zhu Weiqun, a Communist Party vice-minister responsible for coopting Tibetans and other ethnic minorities, told a news conference last month.
"The Dalai Lama once met Chairman Mao. We hope he lives a long life, and we hope he can resolve the question of his succession while he is still with us," Zhu added.
Yet there is a level of worry in official circles about the potential for instability when the Dalai Lama passes away.
A book on the historical precedent for succession of living Buddhas published last year under the auspices of the Beijing-run Chinese Centre for Tibetan Studies warned about this possibility. "Only if the system used historically is employed during the reincarnation process for a living Buddha can it be completed smoothly, otherwise there will be disturbances and chaos," authors Chen Qingying and Chen Lijian wrote.
If the new Dalai Lama is just a child when chosen, exiled Tibetans could find it harder to have their voice represented on the world stage for years. Still, some people point to a younger generation of Tibetan leaders living in exile as a new hope for their movement once the current Dalai Lama dies.
© Copyright (c) The Calgary Herald
By Ben Blanchard, ReutersMarch 28, 2010
Exiled Tibetan activists shout slogans as they are taken away in a police vehicle following a protest outside the Chinese embassy in New Delhi, India, earlier this month on the eve of anniversary of the Tibetan Uprising Day.
Photograph by: Manan Vatsyayana, AFP-Getty Images, Reuters
http://www.calgaryherald.com/story_prin ... 0&sponsor=
For Tibetans living near the birthplace of the Dalai Lama, one question is very much on their minds these days -- who will succeed the aging exiled spiritual leader once he dies?
The possibility that scares most of them, and is seen as the most likely to happen, is that the atheist Communist government in Beijing will simply appoint its own replacement, with a veneer of tradition and religion thrown in.
One of the few certainties about the political future of Tibet is that the death of the current Dalai Lama will cause major ructions in Tibet and overseas.
Some Tibetans fear a violent backlash in what is now called the Tibet Autonomous Region and surrounding provinces with large Tibetan populations, like Qinghai, Gansu and Sichuan, if Beijing unilaterally appointed the next Dalai Lama. There is precedent for that happening.
China chose a rival incarnation to succeed the late 10th Panchen Lama, Tibetan Buddhism's second-holiest position, shortly after the Dalai Lama announced his choice in 1995.
"We think China will try to appoint its own Dalai Lama, as it did with the Panchen Lama," said Jigme, a monk in the Tibetan region of Tongren in the arid northwestern province of Qinghai.
"If that happens, we will protest," he added, punching his fists into the freezing air. "The people will be very unhappy. This is a religious decision. There should be no politics."
The worry of violence is very real. Anti-Chinese protests erupted in March 2008, in which at least 19 people were killed in riots in Lhasa. Pro-Tibet groups say hundreds died in a subsequent crackdown in the region.
The Beijing-anointed Panchen Lama is spurned by most Tibetans as a fake. The whereabouts of the Dalai Lama-recognized Panchen Lama is one of China's most tightly guarded secrets. China has in the past insisted he is safe, healthy and wants his privacy.
"We will not believe in a Dalai Lama chosen by the government," said another Qinghai Tibetan, who gave his name as Jokhar. "Look what happened when they appointed their own Panchen Lama. We don't believe in that one, and never will."
Born in 1935 into a farming family in Qinghai, known to Tibetans as Amdo, Lhamo Thondup was discovered at the age of two to be the 14th reincarnation of the Dalai Lama. He fled to India in 1959 after a failed uprising against Communist Chinese rule.
The Dalai Lama has earned adulation from supporters in the West, including Hollywood celebrities, who see him as one of the world's most enduring symbols of peace.
China's Communist rulers view him as a political headache and hypocrite with "a human face and the heart of a beast." They say he foments violence and is a separatist. He denies both charges, pointing out that he wants more meaningful autonomy for Tibet.
For China, who becomes the next Dalai Lama is a heavily politicized issue. Beijing appears determined not to cede any kind of authority to a candidate beyond their control.
Last year, a top official warned that the central government must approve the Dalai Lama's reincarnation, and would not recognize any candidate that it had not endorsed.
"In terms of what has been flagged by China . . . no other option has emerged, no other even vague likelihood has emerged, except for China promoting its own candidate," said Robbie Barnett, a Tibet scholar at Columbia University in New York.
The Dalai Lama's succession has become a prickly issue, as the Nobel Prize winner's health declines, as witnessed by his recent hospital visits for trapped nerves, abdominal discomfort and gallstone surgery.
He has suggested that his incarnation might be found outside of Chinesecontrolled territory, or even that Tibetans themselves could order a vote on whether to continue an institution that once gave one monk both spiritual and temporal sway over Tibet.
"There definitely will be two," Khedroob Thondup, a member of the exiled Tibetan parliament, told Reuters when asked how he thought the succession would play out.
"It will depend on who's in power in Beijing. If it's the present regime, they will go out of their way to choose their own," said Khedroob Thondup, a nephew of the Dalai Lama.
Chinese officials have prevaricated when directly asked about how the succession could be handled.
"Chinese people have a custom of not asking when an aged person is going to pass away," Zhu Weiqun, a Communist Party vice-minister responsible for coopting Tibetans and other ethnic minorities, told a news conference last month.
"The Dalai Lama once met Chairman Mao. We hope he lives a long life, and we hope he can resolve the question of his succession while he is still with us," Zhu added.
Yet there is a level of worry in official circles about the potential for instability when the Dalai Lama passes away.
A book on the historical precedent for succession of living Buddhas published last year under the auspices of the Beijing-run Chinese Centre for Tibetan Studies warned about this possibility. "Only if the system used historically is employed during the reincarnation process for a living Buddha can it be completed smoothly, otherwise there will be disturbances and chaos," authors Chen Qingying and Chen Lijian wrote.
If the new Dalai Lama is just a child when chosen, exiled Tibetans could find it harder to have their voice represented on the world stage for years. Still, some people point to a younger generation of Tibetan leaders living in exile as a new hope for their movement once the current Dalai Lama dies.
© Copyright (c) The Calgary Herald
ya ali madad everyone
these are my personal views. these are not to offend or attack anyone.
we all know buddism is idol worshippers. Why propagate practises , or fundemales of other fiaths . it is a faith considered in the islamic tariqah as idol worshippers , As ismailis being a part of the islamic ummah. The person who you are disscussing is playing a role which is or similar to the ismaili imamat.. There is only one imam in the world. How can ordainary man procalim a status which is similar to the imamat . I undrestand being open minded and respctuos of other faiths and practises but there is a limit . We being as ismailis with out any offense should seek to propagate our own faith.Have you seen a jew talking fair about the last prophet let alone accepting. to islam and ismailism , christains and the jews are the cliosest , this buddhist sect is way out of the way of islam. talking about this buddhist guy can be seen as propagation of an outside faith , which the intention might be the opposite.
we all know buddism is idol worshippers. Why propagate practises , or fundemales of other fiaths . it is a faith considered in the islamic tariqah as idol worshippers , As ismailis being a part of the islamic ummah. The person who you are disscussing is playing a role which is or similar to the ismaili imamat.. There is only one imam in the world. How can ordainary man procalim a status which is similar to the imamat . I undrestand being open minded and respctuos of other faiths and practises but there is a limit . We being as ismailis with out any offense should seek to propagate our own faith.Have you seen a jew talking fair about the last prophet let alone accepting. to islam and ismailism , christains and the jews are the cliosest , this buddhist sect is way out of the way of islam. talking about this buddhist guy can be seen as propagation of an outside faith , which the intention might be the opposite.
No offense taken. Most of us know that Buddhism is not an idol worshiping faith.
Calling Buddhism an idol worshiping faith is far fetched. it would be nice to be tolerant and study the subject before making comments that may offense some.
Usually we do not like pointing to outside links but this one is an appropriate answer to the previous post [and does not contain publicity
http://www.buddhanet.net/ans7.htm
Calling Buddhism an idol worshiping faith is far fetched. it would be nice to be tolerant and study the subject before making comments that may offense some.
Usually we do not like pointing to outside links but this one is an appropriate answer to the previous post [and does not contain publicity
http://www.buddhanet.net/ans7.htm
ya ali madad no offense to anyone
prostrating in front motionless idols is not called idol worshippers , i dont know what to call them.This is a worldwide fact that they have in their place of worship idols of some guy and alot of them , if thats not idol worshipping , then what is it . The whole idealogy of idolworshippping must be revisited . first of all budd means idol. buddhism people or cultures who adhere to budd or idol.if you are talking of krishna and brahma thats another case . there are sms farmans telling their status.
Yes.
And so do Christians facing/kissing the Cross and Muslims facing/kissing the Kaaba etc,
so does a mother kissing the photo of her child and a wife kissing the photo of her husband.
I kiss my Tasbih often, does it mean I am an idolater?
These are called expressions of faith, expressions of love, not idolatry
And so do Christians facing/kissing the Cross and Muslims facing/kissing the Kaaba etc,
so does a mother kissing the photo of her child and a wife kissing the photo of her husband.
I kiss my Tasbih often, does it mean I am an idolater?
These are called expressions of faith, expressions of love, not idolatry
ya ali madad
The cross represents a holy prophet which has brought down with him a divinley inspired book which is accepted and refered to by all the muslims a and the jews ,which are the people of the book.So to kiss or to face it means submitting infront of the divine which the prophet of the christains propagated.
Now the holy kabbah represent the house of allah where our first imam ali sa birth has taken place., so to kiss kabah face it there is no problem at all as it embodies the house of the divine which the holy quran testifys.kissing or facing kabbah shows submission to the divine.In the kabbah there were these kind of idols similar to the buddhist people why do you think they were destroyed by two divinely inspired prophets the abraham and his son and our own holy prophet. if the idolship is to accepted then why destroy all of them in house of kabbah , why not keep them. Tasbih is a praying remembering instrument of the divine so if you kiss it . you are showing respect to the divine. when you are talking of the statue of the vrgin and his son , you are talking of a holy prophet and his mother which the holy quran testifys .
Now tell which book has the buddist people has brought down which the people of the book refer to , i mean the jews , the christians and the muslims.
Now the holy kabbah represent the house of allah where our first imam ali sa birth has taken place., so to kiss kabah face it there is no problem at all as it embodies the house of the divine which the holy quran testifys.kissing or facing kabbah shows submission to the divine.In the kabbah there were these kind of idols similar to the buddhist people why do you think they were destroyed by two divinely inspired prophets the abraham and his son and our own holy prophet. if the idolship is to accepted then why destroy all of them in house of kabbah , why not keep them. Tasbih is a praying remembering instrument of the divine so if you kiss it . you are showing respect to the divine. when you are talking of the statue of the vrgin and his son , you are talking of a holy prophet and his mother which the holy quran testifys .
Now tell which book has the buddist people has brought down which the people of the book refer to , i mean the jews , the christians and the muslims.
Re: ya ali madad
Budhism is a practiced by a significant proportion of humanity. Therefore we need to be cognisant of the trends and changes in their institutions so as to better interact with them in a pluralistic world.change786 wrote: Now tell which book has the buddist people has brought down which the people of the book refer to , i mean the jews , the christians and the muslims.
MHI in one of his interviews (excerpt below) during his GJ visit to Portugal acknowledged non-believers as legitimate participants in the inter-faith dialogue. So what is wrong with Budhism?
In Lisbon , a couple of weeks ago, Rabi René Sirat suggested a sort of G8 of religious leaders. Could this be a good idea, for the progress of inter-religious dialogue?
Inter-religious dialogue, yes, but I would prefer that it be based upon a cosmopolitan ethic. It would have to include non-believers. Because I am talking about human society and I cannot judge an individual's belief at any given time, in his life or mine. My experience is that belief is not necessarily constant; it varies according to age, to one's circumstances and the family in which one was educated.
ya ali madad
I acknowledge your statement. Do you know what they think of ismailis. This dalai guy is having a role amongst his people like such of our imam. There is only one imam in the world. I do not accept the role that this guy dalai whatever is portraiting .
Re: ya ali madad
If a dog bites you, do you bend down and bite the dog back?change786 wrote:I acknowledge your statement. Do you know what they think of ismailis. This dalai guy is having a role amongst his people like such of our imam. There is only one imam in the world. I do not accept the role that this guy dalai whatever is portraiting .
remember the hadith of the prophet and the scorpion...the prophet kept rescuing the scorpion ...and the scorpion kept stinging him.....yet he kept on doing it.until..it was rescued...
when asked he said - to sting is in the scorpion's nature..to rescue it..is a part of mine...
everyone is entitled to follow whatever faith and path they choose - i have many buddhist friends..and have had the honor of meeting the dalai lama and receiving a scarf from him...the dalai lama is a representation of something - he doesn't claim to be an Imam or an incarnation...he doesn't tell his followers to blow themselves up or rebel...he is all about finding the middle way - which is what our faith espouses us to do.....look at his dealings with china.
we should first and foremost practice our own faith 100% before we start hacking away at other faiths.
shams.
ya ali madad
(If a dog bites you, do you bend down and bite the dog back?
remember the hadith of the prophet and the scorpion...the prophet kept rescuing the scorpion ...and the scorpion kept stinging him.....yet he kept on doing it.until..it was rescued...
when asked he said - to sting is in the scorpion's nature..to rescue it..is a part of mine...
everyone is entitled to follow whatever faith and path they choose - i have many buddhist friends..and have had the honor of meeting the dalai lama and receiving a scarf from him...the dalai lama is a representation of something - he doesn't claim to be an Imam or an incarnation...he doesn't tell his followers to blow themselves up or rebel...he is all about finding the middle way - which is what our faith espouses us to do.....look at his dealings with )
Shamsb , Where is the case of the dog and scorpion .it does not refer to this subject. if you go to wikipedia then you can see in the first page that the tibetian people think the dalai guy is the reincarnation of some buddvitha and is here to enlighthen others. i dont care what he does say or say not to his belivers.on wikipedia it clearly states what this guy represents and you are telling me he does not represnet an incarnation but he does.he does have a role which is similar to the imam we have , go to wikipedia and you will know.. from east to west muslim people beleive that buddhism is idolatory you can find that as well.
Everyone has to right to follow any path of religion they want to . i personally have no problem they can follow any guy they want. all iam concerned is that why we should post things which talking a guy a normal guy just like me and you who claims to have spritual powers and that too according to tibetians . on wikipedia it cleary states incarnation of buddvista and to enlighten others.
final point . buddhism is an idolship religion. this dalai guy is according to his people and many soucrces an spritual leader who chosen to reborn (incarnation) to enlighten others.
remember the hadith of the prophet and the scorpion...the prophet kept rescuing the scorpion ...and the scorpion kept stinging him.....yet he kept on doing it.until..it was rescued...
when asked he said - to sting is in the scorpion's nature..to rescue it..is a part of mine...
everyone is entitled to follow whatever faith and path they choose - i have many buddhist friends..and have had the honor of meeting the dalai lama and receiving a scarf from him...the dalai lama is a representation of something - he doesn't claim to be an Imam or an incarnation...he doesn't tell his followers to blow themselves up or rebel...he is all about finding the middle way - which is what our faith espouses us to do.....look at his dealings with )
Shamsb , Where is the case of the dog and scorpion .it does not refer to this subject. if you go to wikipedia then you can see in the first page that the tibetian people think the dalai guy is the reincarnation of some buddvitha and is here to enlighthen others. i dont care what he does say or say not to his belivers.on wikipedia it clearly states what this guy represents and you are telling me he does not represnet an incarnation but he does.he does have a role which is similar to the imam we have , go to wikipedia and you will know.. from east to west muslim people beleive that buddhism is idolatory you can find that as well.
Everyone has to right to follow any path of religion they want to . i personally have no problem they can follow any guy they want. all iam concerned is that why we should post things which talking a guy a normal guy just like me and you who claims to have spritual powers and that too according to tibetians . on wikipedia it cleary states incarnation of buddvista and to enlighten others.
final point . buddhism is an idolship religion. this dalai guy is according to his people and many soucrces an spritual leader who chosen to reborn (incarnation) to enlighten others.
Common Ground Between Islam and Buddhism: Spiritual and Ethical Affinities [Paperback] Newest Printing
Reza Shah Kazemi (Author), H. H. the Fourteenth Dalai Lama (Author), Hamza Yusuf Hanson (Author), H. R. H. Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad (Author), Prof. Mohammad Hashim Kamali (Author)
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Reza Shah Kazemi (Author), H. H. the Fourteenth Dalai Lama (Author), Hamza Yusuf Hanson (Author), H. R. H. Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad (Author), Prof. Mohammad Hashim Kamali (Author)
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Price: $11.53 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
You Save: $5.42 (32%)
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Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.
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New groundbreaking book by Dr. Reza Shah-Kazemi of the IIS - who was handpicked by the Dalai Lama and the Prince of Jordan to write the book.
http://www.islambuddhism.com/
Can be downloaded for free in PDF on the right side of the page.
http://www.islambuddhism.com/
Can be downloaded for free in PDF on the right side of the page.
August 6, 2011
China Hopes to Bolster the Credentials of a Handpicked Lama
By ANDREW JACOBS
XIAHE, China — His name is on the lips of the ruddy-cheeked monks, the anxious hotel owners and the intrepid tourists who make their way to this isolated and starkly beautiful town in the mountains of Gansu Province: will he come to Xiahe, as unverified reports suggest, and how long will he stay?
“He” is China’s handpicked Panchen Lama, the second-most important religious figure in Tibetan Buddhism, and despite his formidable rank, his presence is not universally welcomed by the faithful in and around the white-wall Labrang Monastery that sprawls into a cavernous valley here.
In recent weeks, as word has spread that he might be coming to study at the monastery, emotions have spiked, as have the numbers of police officers, both uniformed and in plain clothes, hoping to head off trouble in a place where ethnic Tibetans have been unafraid to express their enmity toward Chinese rule.
“Nobody wants him to come, and yet still he will come,” said one 26-year-old monk. “We feel powerless.”
The main problem is that this Panchen Lama, 21, is one of two young men with claims to the title. The one chosen by Communist Party officials in 1995, named Gyaltsen Norbu at birth, is often referred to by local residents as the “Chinese Panchen Lama.” The other is Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, who would now be 22, a herder’s son who was anointed that same year by the Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan leader.
Most Tibetans are still loyal to the memory of Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, even if he has been missing since Chinese authorities swept him and his family into “protective custody” more than 16 years ago.
“We just hope he is still alive,” said Tsering Woeser, a Tibetan essayist and blogger who noted that Gedhun Choekyi Nyima’s visage, frozen as a 5-year-old, hangs in many homes and temples. “We are waiting for him.”
As Gyaltsen Norbu moves from adolescence to adulthood, Chinese authorities are facing a quandary over how to burnish his bona fides: his standing will continue to suffer if he remains apart from Tibetan monks and the faithful, but officials risk inflaming passions by foisting him on a community that remains deeply suspicious.
In recent years, the Communist Party has tried other means to raise his profile. They named him vice president of the state-run Buddhist association and appointed him to the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, an advisory body that meets annually in Beijing.
But so far most of his public statements have left Tibetans unimpressed. In one typically stolid remark last March, he said, “We live in a society governed by law, while the religious practices fall into the category of social activity; therefore, only by administration according to law can we ensure a stable and harmonious development of religious affairs.”
The government bureaucrats who oversee Tibetan affairs have come to the conclusion, one rooted in history, that only a significant stint in a prominent monastery can bolster the Panchen Lama’s religious credentials, according to scholars and local religious figures.
“The Tibetans respect good Buddhist practice and accomplishment,” Hu Shisheng, a researcher at the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations, said in a telephone interview from Lhasa, Tibet’s capital.
The government’s struggle to legitimize the Panchen Lama among Tibetans foreshadows the deeper struggle Beijing will face upon the death of the Dalai Lama, when it has said it will name a successor. The Dalai Lama, 76, is still revered on the Tibetan plateau despite years of fierce propaganda that brands him as a troublemaking separatist, even as he insists that he is interested only in genuine autonomy for Tibetans.
Although officially atheist, the Communist Party asserts that only it has the authority to pick top spiritual leaders, who, according to Tibetan theology, are reincarnated from deceased religious figures.
A previous attempt to improve the Panchen Lama’s religious standing in 1998 did not end well. After officials sought to pair the boy with the abbot of Kumbum, a revered monastery in Qinghai Province, the abbot, Arjia Rinpoche, fled China and sought asylum in the United States. “It was a very difficult decision, but I did not want to be seen as a collaborator with the Chinese government,” Arjia Rinpoche said by telephone from Indiana, where he now lives.
According to several Tibetans, both in China and abroad, the antipathy has been strong enough that the authorities may have already scaled back their plans to have the Panchen Lama spend months studying at Labrang Monastery, one of the most important centers of Buddhist learning — and the scene of recent protests against Chinese rule that were prompted by much deadlier ethnic rioting in Lhasa.
One Qinghai-based scholar who said that he had spoken to senior lamas at Labrang in recent days noted that many rank-and-file monks had expressed concern that the Panchen Lama would bring with him security agents, surveillance cameras and even more restrictions than those that already govern the lives of the monastery’s more than 1,000 monks. “There is no historical precedent for installing a Panchen Lama at Labrang,” said the scholar, who asked for anonymity to shield himself from potential trouble. “But more importantly, they worry Labrang will become like a circus, not a monastery.”
He and others said Xiahe was most likely selected because the region's most senior religious figure has been especially cooperative with Beijing. Another factor may be that one of the tutors who teaches the Panchen Lama at his home in Beijing hails from Labrang.
But the monastery also includes a coterie of fiercely independent monks who could make things uncomfortable for the Panchen Lama.
A few months after violent protests that jolted the Tibetan plateau in 2008, 15 monks rushed out of the monastery waving the banned Tibetan flag during a government-arranged visit for foreign journalists. “We have no human rights now,” they told reporters before older monks dispersed them. (Three of them later escaped to India to avoid punishment.) Another senior monk was later jailed for six months after posting a video online that described his torture during a previous detention.
Despite what might seem like insurmountable obstacles to the Panchen Lama’s legitimacy, a number of experts said the government’s long-term strategy might give him at least some credibility. Even if they are unhappy with the arrangement, Tibetans understand the necessary bargain that their spiritual leaders must make with the authorities. Arjia Rinpoche, the exiled former abbot, said that if the Panchen Lama one day showed a hint of independence, Tibetans could come to respect him.
“People say that even if he’s not a real reincarnation, at least he’s a real Tibetan, and maybe when he grows up he can believe in the Dalai Lama and do something good for Tibet,” he said.
More immediately, however, the prospect of a visit to Xiahe is causing consternation, and not only among the monks. Several government workers who are ethnic Tibetans have in recent days said they were threatened with wage cuts or dismissal if they did greet the Panchen Lama with open arms.
Before he was interrupted by a Han Chinese business owner, one middle-age monk who spoke to a foreign visitor acknowledged the widespread discontent but said he was resigned to the Panchen Lama’s arrival. “I will not allow it to impact me,” he said. “I will continue to pray and be fully observant.”
Adam Century and Edy Yin contributed research.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/07/world ... &emc=tha22
China Hopes to Bolster the Credentials of a Handpicked Lama
By ANDREW JACOBS
XIAHE, China — His name is on the lips of the ruddy-cheeked monks, the anxious hotel owners and the intrepid tourists who make their way to this isolated and starkly beautiful town in the mountains of Gansu Province: will he come to Xiahe, as unverified reports suggest, and how long will he stay?
“He” is China’s handpicked Panchen Lama, the second-most important religious figure in Tibetan Buddhism, and despite his formidable rank, his presence is not universally welcomed by the faithful in and around the white-wall Labrang Monastery that sprawls into a cavernous valley here.
In recent weeks, as word has spread that he might be coming to study at the monastery, emotions have spiked, as have the numbers of police officers, both uniformed and in plain clothes, hoping to head off trouble in a place where ethnic Tibetans have been unafraid to express their enmity toward Chinese rule.
“Nobody wants him to come, and yet still he will come,” said one 26-year-old monk. “We feel powerless.”
The main problem is that this Panchen Lama, 21, is one of two young men with claims to the title. The one chosen by Communist Party officials in 1995, named Gyaltsen Norbu at birth, is often referred to by local residents as the “Chinese Panchen Lama.” The other is Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, who would now be 22, a herder’s son who was anointed that same year by the Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan leader.
Most Tibetans are still loyal to the memory of Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, even if he has been missing since Chinese authorities swept him and his family into “protective custody” more than 16 years ago.
“We just hope he is still alive,” said Tsering Woeser, a Tibetan essayist and blogger who noted that Gedhun Choekyi Nyima’s visage, frozen as a 5-year-old, hangs in many homes and temples. “We are waiting for him.”
As Gyaltsen Norbu moves from adolescence to adulthood, Chinese authorities are facing a quandary over how to burnish his bona fides: his standing will continue to suffer if he remains apart from Tibetan monks and the faithful, but officials risk inflaming passions by foisting him on a community that remains deeply suspicious.
In recent years, the Communist Party has tried other means to raise his profile. They named him vice president of the state-run Buddhist association and appointed him to the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, an advisory body that meets annually in Beijing.
But so far most of his public statements have left Tibetans unimpressed. In one typically stolid remark last March, he said, “We live in a society governed by law, while the religious practices fall into the category of social activity; therefore, only by administration according to law can we ensure a stable and harmonious development of religious affairs.”
The government bureaucrats who oversee Tibetan affairs have come to the conclusion, one rooted in history, that only a significant stint in a prominent monastery can bolster the Panchen Lama’s religious credentials, according to scholars and local religious figures.
“The Tibetans respect good Buddhist practice and accomplishment,” Hu Shisheng, a researcher at the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations, said in a telephone interview from Lhasa, Tibet’s capital.
The government’s struggle to legitimize the Panchen Lama among Tibetans foreshadows the deeper struggle Beijing will face upon the death of the Dalai Lama, when it has said it will name a successor. The Dalai Lama, 76, is still revered on the Tibetan plateau despite years of fierce propaganda that brands him as a troublemaking separatist, even as he insists that he is interested only in genuine autonomy for Tibetans.
Although officially atheist, the Communist Party asserts that only it has the authority to pick top spiritual leaders, who, according to Tibetan theology, are reincarnated from deceased religious figures.
A previous attempt to improve the Panchen Lama’s religious standing in 1998 did not end well. After officials sought to pair the boy with the abbot of Kumbum, a revered monastery in Qinghai Province, the abbot, Arjia Rinpoche, fled China and sought asylum in the United States. “It was a very difficult decision, but I did not want to be seen as a collaborator with the Chinese government,” Arjia Rinpoche said by telephone from Indiana, where he now lives.
According to several Tibetans, both in China and abroad, the antipathy has been strong enough that the authorities may have already scaled back their plans to have the Panchen Lama spend months studying at Labrang Monastery, one of the most important centers of Buddhist learning — and the scene of recent protests against Chinese rule that were prompted by much deadlier ethnic rioting in Lhasa.
One Qinghai-based scholar who said that he had spoken to senior lamas at Labrang in recent days noted that many rank-and-file monks had expressed concern that the Panchen Lama would bring with him security agents, surveillance cameras and even more restrictions than those that already govern the lives of the monastery’s more than 1,000 monks. “There is no historical precedent for installing a Panchen Lama at Labrang,” said the scholar, who asked for anonymity to shield himself from potential trouble. “But more importantly, they worry Labrang will become like a circus, not a monastery.”
He and others said Xiahe was most likely selected because the region's most senior religious figure has been especially cooperative with Beijing. Another factor may be that one of the tutors who teaches the Panchen Lama at his home in Beijing hails from Labrang.
But the monastery also includes a coterie of fiercely independent monks who could make things uncomfortable for the Panchen Lama.
A few months after violent protests that jolted the Tibetan plateau in 2008, 15 monks rushed out of the monastery waving the banned Tibetan flag during a government-arranged visit for foreign journalists. “We have no human rights now,” they told reporters before older monks dispersed them. (Three of them later escaped to India to avoid punishment.) Another senior monk was later jailed for six months after posting a video online that described his torture during a previous detention.
Despite what might seem like insurmountable obstacles to the Panchen Lama’s legitimacy, a number of experts said the government’s long-term strategy might give him at least some credibility. Even if they are unhappy with the arrangement, Tibetans understand the necessary bargain that their spiritual leaders must make with the authorities. Arjia Rinpoche, the exiled former abbot, said that if the Panchen Lama one day showed a hint of independence, Tibetans could come to respect him.
“People say that even if he’s not a real reincarnation, at least he’s a real Tibetan, and maybe when he grows up he can believe in the Dalai Lama and do something good for Tibet,” he said.
More immediately, however, the prospect of a visit to Xiahe is causing consternation, and not only among the monks. Several government workers who are ethnic Tibetans have in recent days said they were threatened with wage cuts or dismissal if they did greet the Panchen Lama with open arms.
Before he was interrupted by a Han Chinese business owner, one middle-age monk who spoke to a foreign visitor acknowledged the widespread discontent but said he was resigned to the Panchen Lama’s arrival. “I will not allow it to impact me,” he said. “I will continue to pray and be fully observant.”
Adam Century and Edy Yin contributed research.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/07/world ... &emc=tha22
China’s Tensions With Dalai Lama Spill Into the Afterlife
HONG KONG — Chinese Communist Party leaders are afraid that the Dalai Lama will not have an afterlife. Worried enough that this week, officials repeatedly warned that he must reincarnate, and on their terms.
Tensions over what will happen when the 14th Dalai Lama, who is 79, dies, and particularly over who decides who will succeed him as the most prominent leader in Tibetan Buddhism, have ignited at the annual gathering of China’s legislators in Beijing.
Officials have amplified their argument that the Communist government is the proper guardian of the Dalai Lama’s succession through an intricate process of reincarnation that has involved lamas, or senior monks, visiting a sacred lake and divining dreams.
Party functionaries were incensed by the exiled Dalai Lama’s recent speculation that he might end his spiritual lineage and not reincarnate. That would confound the Chinese government’s plans to engineer a succession that would produce a putative 15th Dalai Lama who accepts China’s presence and policies in Tibet. Their anger welled up on Wednesday, as it had a day earlier.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/12/world ... 05309&_r=0
HONG KONG — Chinese Communist Party leaders are afraid that the Dalai Lama will not have an afterlife. Worried enough that this week, officials repeatedly warned that he must reincarnate, and on their terms.
Tensions over what will happen when the 14th Dalai Lama, who is 79, dies, and particularly over who decides who will succeed him as the most prominent leader in Tibetan Buddhism, have ignited at the annual gathering of China’s legislators in Beijing.
Officials have amplified their argument that the Communist government is the proper guardian of the Dalai Lama’s succession through an intricate process of reincarnation that has involved lamas, or senior monks, visiting a sacred lake and divining dreams.
Party functionaries were incensed by the exiled Dalai Lama’s recent speculation that he might end his spiritual lineage and not reincarnate. That would confound the Chinese government’s plans to engineer a succession that would produce a putative 15th Dalai Lama who accepts China’s presence and policies in Tibet. Their anger welled up on Wednesday, as it had a day earlier.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/12/world ... 05309&_r=0
The darker side of Buddhism
The principle of non-violence is central to Buddhist teachings, but in Sri Lanka some Buddhist monks are being accused of stirring up hostility towards other faiths and ethnic minorities. Their hard line is causing increasing concern.
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-32929855
Why are Buddhist monks attacking Muslims?
Of all the moral precepts instilled in Buddhist monks the promise not to kill comes first, and the principle of non-violence is arguably more central to Buddhism than any other major religion. So why have monks been using hate speech against Muslims and joining mobs that have left dozens dead?
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-22356306
The principle of non-violence is central to Buddhist teachings, but in Sri Lanka some Buddhist monks are being accused of stirring up hostility towards other faiths and ethnic minorities. Their hard line is causing increasing concern.
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-32929855
Why are Buddhist monks attacking Muslims?
Of all the moral precepts instilled in Buddhist monks the promise not to kill comes first, and the principle of non-violence is arguably more central to Buddhism than any other major religion. So why have monks been using hate speech against Muslims and joining mobs that have left dozens dead?
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-22356306
Dalai Lama Gets Mischievous
The Dalai Lama, who may be the only octogenarian spiritual leader with a profoundly mischievous streak, has a suggestion for China’s Communist leaders: Take up reincarnation.
I’m interviewing him in his hotel room in Manhattan, at the end of an overseas tour marking his 80th birthday, and we’re talking about what happens after he dies. He is the 14th Dalai Lama, each considered a reincarnation of the previous one, and usually after one has died a search is undertaken for an infant to become the next. But he has said that he may be the last of the line, or that the next Dalai Lama might emerge outside Tibet — or might even be a girl.
This talk infuriates Beijing, which is determined to choose the next Dalai Lama (to use as a tool to control Tibet). So, startlingly, the atheists in the Chinese Communist Party have been insisting that Buddhist reincarnation must continue.
“The Chinese Communist Party is pretending that they know more about the reincarnation system than the Dalai Lama,” said the Dalai Lama, laughing. “The Chinese Communists should accept the concept of rebirth. Then they should recognize the reincarnation of Chairman Mao Zedong, then Deng Xiaoping. Then they have the right to involve themselves in the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation.”
The Dalai Lama hinted that he would hold some kind of referendum among Tibetan exiles, and consultations among Tibetans within China, about whether a new Dalai Lama should succeed him. The issue will be formally resolved around his 90th birthday, he said.
One reason to end the line, he suggested, is that a future Dalai Lama might be “naughty” and diminish the position. His biggest concern seems to be that after he dies, China will select a new pet Dalai Lama who may act as a quisling to help the Chinese control Tibet and to give legitimacy to their policies there.
“Sadly, the precedent has been set,” he said, referring to the Panchen Lama, the second most important reincarnated lama in Tibetan Buddhism. After the 10th Panchen Lama died in 1989, China kidnapped the baby chosen by Tibetans as his successor and helped anoint a different child as the 11th Panchen Lama. Nobody knows what happened to the real Panchen Lama.
I admire the Dalai Lama enormously, and in 2007 he bravely used my column to send an important olive branch to Beijing — only to be criticized by fellow Tibetans as too conciliatory, and rejected as insincere by China. But I told him that I also thought there were times when he had been too cautious and had missed opportunities for rapprochement with Beijing. My examples: In the 1980s, when the leaders Hu Yaobang and Zhao Ziyang sought compromise on Tibet; after the 10th Panchen Lama died; and in the run-up to the Beijing Olympics.
The Dalai Lama was having none of that — he doesn’t think he missed opportunities. But he acknowledged that Zhao had been sympathetic and added that if Zhao and Hu had not been ousted, “the Tibetan issue would already be solved, no question.”
To my surprise, the Dalai Lama was also enthusiastic about Xi Jinping, the current Chinese leader. He spoke admiringly of Xi’s anticorruption campaign, said Xi’s mother was “very religious, a very devout Buddhist,” and noted Xi himself had spoken positively of Buddhism.
So, President Xi, if you’re reading this, the Dalai Lama would like to visit China. How about an invitation?
I had asked my followers on Twitter and Facebook to suggest questions for the Dalai Lama, and here are his responses to some of the issues they raised:
• On the Myanmar Buddhists who have murdered, raped and oppressed Muslims: As he has before, the Dalai Lama strongly condemned the violence. He added: “If Buddha would come at that moment, he definitely would save or protect those Muslims.”
• On eating meat: The Dalai Lama said he had been a pure vegetarian for 20 months but then developed jaundice, so his doctors told him to start eating meat again. He now eats meat twice a week and is vegetarian the rest of the week, he said, but added that he thinks vegetarianism is preferable.
• On Pope Francis: “I admire his stance,” the Dalai Lama said. “He dismissed one German bishop [for too luxurious living]. I was so impressed. I wrote a letter to him. I expressed my admiration.”
• On gender: The Dalai Lama says he considers himself a feminist and would like to see more women leaders because he thinks women are often innately more sensitive and peaceful. “I insist that women should carry a more active role,” he said. “If eventually most of the leaders of different nations are female, maybe we’ll be safer.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/16/opini ... d=71987722
The Dalai Lama, who may be the only octogenarian spiritual leader with a profoundly mischievous streak, has a suggestion for China’s Communist leaders: Take up reincarnation.
I’m interviewing him in his hotel room in Manhattan, at the end of an overseas tour marking his 80th birthday, and we’re talking about what happens after he dies. He is the 14th Dalai Lama, each considered a reincarnation of the previous one, and usually after one has died a search is undertaken for an infant to become the next. But he has said that he may be the last of the line, or that the next Dalai Lama might emerge outside Tibet — or might even be a girl.
This talk infuriates Beijing, which is determined to choose the next Dalai Lama (to use as a tool to control Tibet). So, startlingly, the atheists in the Chinese Communist Party have been insisting that Buddhist reincarnation must continue.
“The Chinese Communist Party is pretending that they know more about the reincarnation system than the Dalai Lama,” said the Dalai Lama, laughing. “The Chinese Communists should accept the concept of rebirth. Then they should recognize the reincarnation of Chairman Mao Zedong, then Deng Xiaoping. Then they have the right to involve themselves in the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation.”
The Dalai Lama hinted that he would hold some kind of referendum among Tibetan exiles, and consultations among Tibetans within China, about whether a new Dalai Lama should succeed him. The issue will be formally resolved around his 90th birthday, he said.
One reason to end the line, he suggested, is that a future Dalai Lama might be “naughty” and diminish the position. His biggest concern seems to be that after he dies, China will select a new pet Dalai Lama who may act as a quisling to help the Chinese control Tibet and to give legitimacy to their policies there.
“Sadly, the precedent has been set,” he said, referring to the Panchen Lama, the second most important reincarnated lama in Tibetan Buddhism. After the 10th Panchen Lama died in 1989, China kidnapped the baby chosen by Tibetans as his successor and helped anoint a different child as the 11th Panchen Lama. Nobody knows what happened to the real Panchen Lama.
I admire the Dalai Lama enormously, and in 2007 he bravely used my column to send an important olive branch to Beijing — only to be criticized by fellow Tibetans as too conciliatory, and rejected as insincere by China. But I told him that I also thought there were times when he had been too cautious and had missed opportunities for rapprochement with Beijing. My examples: In the 1980s, when the leaders Hu Yaobang and Zhao Ziyang sought compromise on Tibet; after the 10th Panchen Lama died; and in the run-up to the Beijing Olympics.
The Dalai Lama was having none of that — he doesn’t think he missed opportunities. But he acknowledged that Zhao had been sympathetic and added that if Zhao and Hu had not been ousted, “the Tibetan issue would already be solved, no question.”
To my surprise, the Dalai Lama was also enthusiastic about Xi Jinping, the current Chinese leader. He spoke admiringly of Xi’s anticorruption campaign, said Xi’s mother was “very religious, a very devout Buddhist,” and noted Xi himself had spoken positively of Buddhism.
So, President Xi, if you’re reading this, the Dalai Lama would like to visit China. How about an invitation?
I had asked my followers on Twitter and Facebook to suggest questions for the Dalai Lama, and here are his responses to some of the issues they raised:
• On the Myanmar Buddhists who have murdered, raped and oppressed Muslims: As he has before, the Dalai Lama strongly condemned the violence. He added: “If Buddha would come at that moment, he definitely would save or protect those Muslims.”
• On eating meat: The Dalai Lama said he had been a pure vegetarian for 20 months but then developed jaundice, so his doctors told him to start eating meat again. He now eats meat twice a week and is vegetarian the rest of the week, he said, but added that he thinks vegetarianism is preferable.
• On Pope Francis: “I admire his stance,” the Dalai Lama said. “He dismissed one German bishop [for too luxurious living]. I was so impressed. I wrote a letter to him. I expressed my admiration.”
• On gender: The Dalai Lama says he considers himself a feminist and would like to see more women leaders because he thinks women are often innately more sensitive and peaceful. “I insist that women should carry a more active role,” he said. “If eventually most of the leaders of different nations are female, maybe we’ll be safer.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/16/opini ... d=71987722
Musings From the Dalai Lama: Mosquitoes Are Ungrateful, for Starters
Extract:
"That the institution of the Dalai Lama is outdated, and emerged from the feudal system, and that he is proud to have “ended” it (debatable whether this has really happened). He criticized Sharia law, which he said was created for a nomadic civilization. He said the same thing about the Hindu caste system — that it was a remnant of a different age that must be abandoned, left behind.
He said the next Dalai Lama could be a woman (and that physical attractiveness serves dharma, which in Buddhism means “cosmic law and order”). He said China is modernizing and many Chinese support the Middle Way, a policy that softened Tibetan demands, calling for self-governance within China. He criticized Chinese hard-liners, saying they are missing that part of the brain that controls common sense."
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/09/world ... d=45305309
Extract:
"That the institution of the Dalai Lama is outdated, and emerged from the feudal system, and that he is proud to have “ended” it (debatable whether this has really happened). He criticized Sharia law, which he said was created for a nomadic civilization. He said the same thing about the Hindu caste system — that it was a remnant of a different age that must be abandoned, left behind.
He said the next Dalai Lama could be a woman (and that physical attractiveness serves dharma, which in Buddhism means “cosmic law and order”). He said China is modernizing and many Chinese support the Middle Way, a policy that softened Tibetan demands, calling for self-governance within China. He criticized Chinese hard-liners, saying they are missing that part of the brain that controls common sense."
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/09/world ... d=45305309
60 landmarks you must see before you die
Borobudur Temple (Magelang, Indonesia)
Another UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Buddhist temple date from the 8th and 9th centuries—it is 300 years older than Angkor Wat in Cambodia. More than 500 Buddha statues are perched around the temple.
http://www.msn.com/en-ca/travel/tripide ... 9#image=14
Borobudur Temple (Magelang, Indonesia)
Another UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Buddhist temple date from the 8th and 9th centuries—it is 300 years older than Angkor Wat in Cambodia. More than 500 Buddha statues are perched around the temple.
http://www.msn.com/en-ca/travel/tripide ... 9#image=14