13 Sunday May 2012
Posted in Tantra, Tibetan Buddhism, Vajrayana
Om Mani Padme Hum: The mantra of Chenrezig, the Buddha of Compassion
It occurred to me that people who practice outside of the Tibetan tradition and who are used to following the breathe, may wonder, why do these Tibetan Buddhists recite so much mantra? I’m sure even within the Tibetan tradition, people eventually have to wonder this too. Continue reading »
16 Thursday Feb 2012
Posted in Ngondro Preliminary Practices, Tantra, Tibetan Buddhism, Vajrayana
Vajrasattva ngondro is one of the preliminary practices of ngondro, where one does a minimum of 100,000 repetitions of an item (a mantra, prayer, prostrations, etc). An extra 11% are added to account for mistakes. Vajrasattva ngondro has to be completed on consecutive days. If a day is skipped, someone has to start over. Continue reading »
27 Friday Jan 2012
Posted in Tantra, Tsem Tulku, Vajrayana, Videos
Puja is a ritualized offerings or pujas are often common in Tibetan Buddhism in order to dispel obstacles and to create auspicious conditions for someone else. While this is common in Tibetan Buddhism, its also something that is commonly done in Hinduism and other religions from India. I’m not very familiar with how they’re done in these traditions, but effectiveness of pujas are heavily dependent on the intention behind it.
Common pujas within the Tibetan tradition include Medicine Buddha pujas, Green Tara Pujas, protector pujas, etc.
Here’s a video of a talk that Tsem Tulku did about the reason behind doing pujas.
05 Thursday Jan 2012
Posted in HH Dalai Lama, Tantra, Tibetan Buddhism, Vajrayana
I saw the above photo the other day of HH the Dalai Lama, beginning the mandala for the Kalachakra initiation. I know not everyone is going to be able to make it to the initiation, so I thought I would share this photo for those of us who might not get a chance, but would be otherwise happy to know its happening.
The last time HH gave the Kalachakra in India was in 2006, and the last time he gave it specifically in Bodh Gaya (as he is doing this year), it was 2003. Continue reading »
