Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Live for it – Epic Journey

Live for it – Epic Journey 

In order to live for it , we must go for it.

Life is a journey that one should paying a notable heed to how extreme and outrageous the path could be. 

Sometimes uneventful will reliably be a serendipitous and astounding us completely, yet on the other hand when so frequently in the event that we have everything under an extensive measure of control, we are literally and essentially can't move rapidly and swiftly.
Do whatever it takes not to judge others how they have chosen their journey, in the event that you haven’t walked the comparative way yourself. 

Thank you for reading, may you find peace and great bliss. With your support it helps to spread the Buddha’s precious teachings and turning the Dharma wheels in the world.

Aspiration For Bodhichitta
For those in whom the precious Bodhichitta has not arisen
May it arise and not decrease
But increase further and further.

Dedication of Merit
By this merit may we obtain omniscience then.
Having defeated the enemies wrong-doings.
May we liberate migratory from the ocean of existence.
With its stormy waves of birth, old age, sickness and death.

*Note
I do not own or infringe any copyright of the picture(s).
Picture(s) courtesy and credit to the rightful distributors and or studios.
Picture(s) is/are intended for editorial use only.

Sunday, July 16, 2017

What does a routine day meant to His Holiness The 14th Dalai Lama?

* What does a routine day meant to His Holiness The 14th Dalai Lama?

His Holiness The 14th  Dalai Lama , when he was asked by many individual how he sees himself?

He replies that he is just an ordinary Buddhist monk. Even in his daily life, His Holiness remarks that he spends 80% of his time on spiritual activities and the remaining on other issues pertaining to the welfare and development of Tibet.
When His Holiness is often away from the Dharamsala, India on travels both with India and aboard. During his extensive traveling , His Holiness ‘s daily routine varies depending on his engagement  schedule. His Holiness is an early riser  and tries as far as possible to retire early in the evening.
When His Holiness is at home in Dharamsala, he wakes up at 3.30am. After a morning bath, His Holiness begins the day with prayers, meditation and prostration until 5am. After the prostration, His Holiness will take a morning walk around the resident garden. If it’s a morning raining day, His Holiness will instead walk with the treadmill. Breakfast will be served at about 5.30am or 6,00am.
His Holiness his breakfast , is usually a hot porridge, tsampa (barley powder) bread with preserves and tea. His Holiness will tunes to radio for domestic and international news in English. When 6.00am to 8.30am His Holiness continues his meditation and prayers. From 9.00am to 11.30am His Holiness will studies various Buddhist texts. 

Then vegetarian lunch is served from 11.30am to 12.30pm. In Dharamsala, His Holiness’s kitchen is served only vegetarian, however, when His Holiness visit , His Holiness is not necessarily on vegetarian.  As an ordained Buddhist monk, His Holiness does not have dinner.
His Holiness will visit his office for several audiences both Tibetan and non-Tibetan. His Holiness will return to his residence for evening tea by 6.00pm and later for his evening prayers and meditation until 8.30pm and he will retires at bed by 9.00pm.

[ * Note -  His Holiness's regular routine and schedule may, subject to change ]

Thank you for reading, may you find peace and great bliss. With your support it helps to spread the Buddha’s precious teachings and turning the Dharma wheels in the world.

Aspiration For Bodhichitta
For those in whom the precious Bodhichitta has not arisen
May it arise and not decrease
But increase further and further.

Dedication of Merit
By this merit may we obtain omniscience then.
Having defeated the enemies wrong-doings.
May we liberate migratory from the ocean of existence.
With its stormy waves of birth, old age, sickness and death.

*Note
I do not own or infringe any copyright of the picture(s).
Picture(s) courtesy and credit to the rightful distributors and or studios.
Picture(s) is/are intended for editorial use only.


Saturday, July 8, 2017

The Myth and Mystery of The Tibetan Dzi Beads

To the Tibetans and other Himalayan people, the Tibetan Dzi bead is well known by its myth and mystery of its natural energy. The Tibetan Dzi bead is a "precious jewel of supernatural origin" with great power to protect its wearer from disaster. 

The Dzi beads are perhaps one of the most powerful, expensive, and sought after of all talismans. Dzi beads have been known to sell for as much as several million dollars. For many Tibetans, the Dzi are sacred heirlooms; the beads will often be passed from generation to generation. 
The Tibetan people believe Dzi beads are spiritual stones fallen from Heaven, which bring good karma to those who own them. The ancient Dzi absorbs cosmic energy from the universe. Tibetans generally believe that Dzi beads are of divine origin and therefore not created by human hands. Some say they were dropped by the Heavenly beings to benefit those who have the good fortune to find them. 

Since they are believed to have a divine source, they are considered to be a very precious and powerful amulet. Beads can often be seen in Tibetan temples adorns the most revered statues and sacred relics.  They are thought to bring good fortune, ward off evil, and protect the wearer from physical harm and illness. It has even been claimed by Tibetan refugees,

The meaning of the  Tibetan word "Dzi" literally means to "shine, brightness, clearness, splendor". The beads originate in the Tibetan cultural sphere and can command high prices and are difficult to come by. 
It’s said to possess mysterious powers and bring good fortune to the wearer. Ancient and pure dZi beads of Tibet are extremely precious and rare. No matter how many or how few eyes, they bear, all dZi beads possess the mystic power of bringing luck, warding off evil, stabilizing blood pressure, guarding against apoplexy and enhancing body strength.  

Owners and wearers of these beads are blessed with unexpected credit, luck and perfection They are found primarily in Tibet, but also in neighboring Bhutan, Ladakh and Sikkim. Shepherds and farmers pick them up in the grasslands or while cultivating fields. Because Dzi are found in the earth, Tibetans cannot conceive of them as man-made. 
Since knowledge of the bead is derived from oral traditions, few beads have provoked more controversy concerning their source, method of manufacture and even more precise definition. This all contributes to making them the most sought after and collectable beads on earth. The most prized pure Dzi, are generally beads with eyes or unusual decorations. 

A pure Dzi may or may not have eyes. It can be opaque or partially translucent (In Tibet, translucent beads are usually valued lower). The most sought after base color is an opaque dark brown to black.
Legend has it, about three to four thousand years ago, a meteor traveled from the distant planet crashed into the Himalayas. This led to the 14 different types of meteorological elements in Dzi beads, with the element ytterbium possessing the strong magnetic field. This is what gave rise to the mystical power of Dzi beads. Wearing Dzi beads in the long run can enhance our blood circulation and metabolism. It also improves our quality of sleep, revitalizes our body and balances foreign magnetic fields which may be harmful to us.

Thank you for reading, may you find peace and great bliss. With your support it helps to spread the Buddha’s precious teachings and turning the Dharma wheels in the world.

Aspiration For Bodhichitta
For those in whom the precious Bodhichitta has not arisen
May it arise and not decrease
But increase further and further.

Dedication of Merit
By this merit may we obtain omniscience then.
Having defeated the enemies wrong-doings.
May we liberate migratory from the ocean of existence.
With its stormy waves of birth, old age, sickness and death.

*Note
I do not own or infringe any copyright of the picture(s).
Picture(s) courtesy and credit to the rightful distributors and or studios.
Picture(s) is/are intended for editorial use only.

Saturday, July 1, 2017

Tibetan Buddhism And Cultism

Tibetan Buddhism is a religion in exile, forced from its homeland when Tibet was conquered by the Chinese. At one time it was believed that 1 in 6 Tibetan men were Buddhist monks.
The best known face of Tibetan Buddhism is the 14th Dalai Lama, who has lived in a state of exile in India since he fled the Chinese occupation of his country in 1959.

Tibetan Buddhism consolidates the essential teachings of Mahayana Buddhism with Tantric and Shamanic, and material from an ancient Tibetan religion called Bon. Although Tibetan Buddhism is Vajrayana thought to be indistinguishable with Vajrayana Buddhism, they are not identical - Vajrayana is educated in Tibetan Buddhism together with the other vehicles.
History

Buddhism turned into a major presence in Tibet towards the end of the 8th century CE. It was brought from India at the invitation of the Tibetan ruler, Trisong Detsen, who welcomed two Buddhist masters to Tibet and had imperative Buddhist texts converted into Tibetan.

First to come was Shantarakshita, abbot of Nalanda in India, who built the first monastery in Tibet. He was followed by Padmasambhava, who came to use his wisdom and power to overcome " otherworldly spiritual" forces that were stopping work on the new monastery. 
The four lineages of  Tibetan Buddhism
  1. Nyingmapa: Founded by Padmasambhava, this is oldest sect, noted in the West for the teachings of the Tibetan Book of the Dead.
  2. Kagyupa: Founded by Tilopa (988-1069), the Kagyupa tradition is headed by the Karmapa Lama. Important Kagyupa teachers include Naropa, Marpa, and Milarepa.
  3. Sakyapa: Created by Gonchok Gyelpo (1034-1102) and his son Gunga Nyingpo (1092-1158).
  4. Gelugpa: (The Virtuous School) Founded by Tsong Khapa Lobsang Drakpa (also called Je Rinpoche) (1357 - 1419), this tradition is headed by the Dalai Lama.
Sectarian and Cultism 

New Kadampa Tradition [ NKT ]  one of the major Buddhist schools in the UK, established by the Tibetan-born Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. Tibetan Buddhists are viewed and regarded the NKT as a Sectarian, denoting or concerning a sect or cultism and which is outside the mainstream tradition. 

The New Kadampa Tradition in the West and conflict  and disagreement with the Dalai Lama
In 1976 Geshe Kelsang was invited to teach in the UK by Lama Yeshe, the head instructor of the FPMT, Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition. 
In the late 1970s Geshe Kelsang took the controversial decision of opening his own particular Buddhist Centre in York. He was asked to resign his post Priory but resisted pressure to leave after a group of his closest students pleaded with him to stay.

Critics claim this was the beginning of a rift between Kelsang and the FPMT. They additionally accuse Kelsang of starting a breakaway movement and argue that the New Kadampa Tradition, as it is known today, is not part of the ancient Kadampa Tradition but a split from the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism.
Disagreement and conflict with His Holiness The 14th Dalai Lama

Despite the popularity of the New Kadampa NKT Tradition - the organization was involved in a public dispute with the Dalai Lama which began in 1996. The problem focuses on the accentuation placed on the Dharma Protector (* D.S ) by Kelsang. 

The NKT venerates (* D. S )as its protector deity. The Dalai Lama, however, has rejected and spoken out against this practice. He has described (*D.S )  as an evil and malevolent force, and argued that other Lamas before him had also placed restrictions on worship of this spirit.
After the Lama made these statements public in 1996 some followers of (*D.S ) protested against the Dalai Lama in London, blaming him of suppressing their religious freedom. 

Today members of the New Kadampa Tradition continue to worship (* D.S )

Thank you for reading, may you find peace and great bliss. With your support it helps to spread the Buddha’s precious teachings and turning the Dharma wheels in the world.

Aspiration For Bodhichitta
For those in whom the precious Bodhichitta has not arisen
May it arise and not decrease
But increase further and further.

Dedication of Merit
By this merit may we obtain omniscience then.
Having defeated the enemies wrong-doings.
May we liberate migratory from the ocean of existence.
With its stormy waves of birth, old age, sickness and death.

*Note
I do not own or infringe any copyright of the picture(s).
Picture(s) courtesy and credit to the rightful distributors and or studios.
Picture(s) is/are intended for editorial use only.