sign in sign up
<<
Home , Keith Dowman, Lhamo, Light of Truth Award, Sainkho Namtchylak, Surya Das

r* T . W43-

SnowSnawLion Lion Publications PO Box 6483, Ithaca, NY 14851 607-273-8519

ISSN 1059-3691 SUMMER 1998 NEWSLETTER Volume 13, Number 3 & CATALOG SUPPLEMENT

Wisdom and THE TIBETAN YOGAS Reconciliation OF DREAM AND SLEEP Tenzin Wangyal H.H. the Dalai talks about his new book in New York teaches A Tibetan Bon lama, Tenzin "In the Spirit ofManjushri" Wangyal Rinpoche was born in Amritsar, India, after his parents fled the Chinese invasion of . He re- ceived training from both Buddhist by Victoria Huckenpalder dia to China before traveling to Tibet, and devotion, it would not be as firm and Bon masters, attaining the degree In a historic event co-sponsored by he considered the Chinese as senior as when grounded in an understand- of , the highest academic degree Tibet House and the Drum Dharma brothers and sisters. ing of emptiness. Here he likened the of Tibet. Rinpoche has been in the Mountain Buddhist Association, H.H. In succeeding days, His Holiness highest form of to what he United States since 1991 and has the offered a three-day gave extensive commentary on the termed "cowherder's mentality," in taught widely here and in Europe and teaching (May 1-3) before a predomi- Tibetan Wisdom tradition, drawing on which like a herder who follows be- Mexico. He is the director and nantly Chinese audience on the Tra- the Fifth Dalai Lama's Lam Rim text, hind a flock, only after leading others founder of The Ligmincha Institute in dition of Transcendent Wisdom, con- and on Tsong Khapa's Three Pri.nci,- to enlightenment does one wish it for Charlottesville, Virginia, which is cluding with a dialogue between him- pal Elements of the Path which de- oneself. "Don't confuse compassion dedicated to the_ preservation of the self and Ven. Master Sheng-yen, a re- scribes the practices of renunciation, with pity," he warned. "There should teachings, transmissions and culture nowned scholar, author, and teacher bodhicitta, and insight into empti- be no sense of superiority. Authentic of Bon. ers, Lopon Sangye Tenzin and Lopon of Chinese . ness. Elaborating on each category, compassion means viewing its object Rinpoche is the only Bon master From the moment that the Master H.H. stated that renunciation can only as supreme. There should be a sense Tenzin Namdak. I have been practic- living in the United States; he is also ing more closely for the past 10 years. led His Holiness out by the hand onto be developed once one has a convic- of connectedness which cannot exist the author of Wonders of the Natural the stage of the Roseland Ballroom, tion that mental afflictions can be re- in the normal state in which we dis- C: Why should someone practice Mind. Rinpoche spoke about his new dream yoga? Why is it. important? while the ordained Chinese moved. Further, to realize that libera- criminate and fluctuate. Be universal book, The Tibetan Yogas of Dream, Rinpoche: Every practitioner is try- lormaily chanted an invitation accom- tion is possible we must recognize and unbiased." In words which are par- and Sleep with his student, Cindy ing to develop his or herself— to grow panied by delicate ringing bells and that the sense of self, which appears ticularly poignant given his own trials, Loew, on June 24, 1998. wafting incense, divine courtesy pre- so separate from body and mind as His Holiness went on to describe the more spiritually and finally to achieve vailed. Throughout the teachings, to be, in His Holiness's words "our correct posture to adopt toward en- Cindy: Why did you write this book? . One of the main diffi- Master Sheng-yen, tall, spare, and boss," is in fact illusory because even emies: "See enemies as critical to your Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche: Since I culties people face in the West is find- with robes elegantly draped around at the level of subtlest particles we well-being because without somebody was a little boy I have always been ing the time to practice. But no one him, gazed on the Dalai Lama with are in a continuous state of flux. "We provoking us we have no opportunity interested in dream and when I was ever says, I am too busy, I have ap- affectionate respect, took notes, and can't just ask ignorance to leave or to practice. For example, people who growing up I often heard my mother pointments, therefore I am not going in his concluding remarks called His pray that it goes away," he said. have had an easy childhood have little and my teachers talk about their to go to sleep tonight! Every human Holiness "my Dharma brother." The "Rather, we must cultivate an insight resilience. They are soft and unchal- dreams, the way they dreamed and being needs sleep. The time is free previous evening, His Holiness had into the selflessness of persons and lenged, whereas someone who has the way in which they related to their and it is a very good time to do prac- set the tone for the teachings when, phenomena. If there were no possi- met with challenge since childhood dreams. This fascinated me. When I tice. Also, we sleep one third of our at the Light of Truth Award, he re- bility of ending suffering, we might as develops a much stronger personality. came to the West, I realized that lifetime— that is twenty years for marked on the importance of the well indulge in drugs, wine, and ex- There is a big difference between the dream was also considered very im- someone who lives to be 60. It is very Dharma for the Chinese people, cessive sleep!" way the two types meet difficulties. I portant here, particularly dream important for a practitioner to under- stressing that it is for this reason in Commenting on the bodhicitta sec- respect the Kadampa masters who analysis. I knew that the Tibetan way stand what is going on during those part that it is unwise to isolate them. tion of the Fifth Dalai Lama's Lam value hardships. Tsong Khapa said in of looking at dream, understanding twenty years. Dream is important At Roseland he graciously said that Rim, His Holiness stressed that while a prayer: 'May I feel especially close dream, practicing dream was quite because it is one of the best ways to since Buddhism had spread from In- one could attain bodhicitta out of faith different and I thought it was impor- understand the deepest aspects of (Continued on page 4) tant that my Western friends—psy- ourselves. It is also one of the most chologists, therapists and my stu- important ways to heal. dents—learn these differences. So C: How is dream important in terms phy for her photographs of child la- that was really my reason for writing of healing? THE SPIRIT OF TIBET bor in Asia. Since then, she has lived this book. Rinpoche: Every dream is somehow PORTRAIT OF A CULTURE IN EXILE with exiled Tibetans in Nepal and In- C: Has this material been covered healing within itself as long as the dia for over a decade, recording their before? practitioner is not being distracted by culture and the challenges of exile. Rinpoche: There are a few books, but the appearance of the dream and its On the basis of this work, Alison I think this is probably the most de- images and the story of the dream. If returned to Berkeley University tailed book regarding Tibetan dream one is having a lucid dream, that is, a Photographs and text by where she created her own masters and sleep yoga. dream in which one is aware that one Alison Wright program in Visual Anthropology, and C: From whom did you learn dream is dreaming, one is naturally healing. helped instigate the opening of a vi- yoga and how long have you been C: Why? Foreword by H.H. the Dalai sual anthropology wing in the Phoebe practicing? Rinpoche: Because you are releas- Lama. 200 pages, 180 color Rinpoche: I learned from my teach- photos, 9.5" high x 10" wide (Continued on page 8) (Continued on page 2) $34.95 Snow Lion Publications Snow Lion Publications PO Box 6483 BULK RATE Ithaca, NY 14851 U.S. POSTAGE PAID The stunning color photographs in people as they struggle to preserve PERMIT NO. 100 this book display the spirit of the their unique culture on foreign soil. Address Correction Requested RIPON, WI living in exile in the Alison Wright, a San Francisco North Indian hill town of Dharamsala. based freelance photojournalism spe- Home to the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan cializes in documenting the traditions settlement there has grown up and changes of endangered cultures around the newly established Tibetan and people in remote areas around government in exile and the many the world. Based in Nepal for four cultural institutions that have been years while documenting the plight of created since the Dalai Lama was children for UNICEF and various forced to leave Tibet. Alison Wright's other aid organizations, Alison be- outstanding portraits capture the in- came the 1993 recipient of the domitable resiliency of the Tibetan Dorothea Lange Award in photogra- TENZIN WANGYAL RINPOCHE TALKS ABOUT HIS NEW BOOK as a dream. You say to yourself, "This something positive that everyone can Continued from page 1 is a dream." In this way a new ten- incorporate into daily life. In the book dency is created in the mind, to look I go into more detail about particular C: What are some of the most impor- at experience as insubstantial, tran- meditations one can do right before tant aspects of dream yoga for some- sient, and ultimately related to the going to sleep. one just starting the practice? mind's projections. As phenomena C: What are the main dream practices Rinpoche: I think one of the most im- are seen to be fleeting and essence- to focus on during sleep? portant things to do is not to just start less, grasping decreases. This will Rinpoche: The four main practices the dream practice when you go to help you do this when you are actu- of the dream yoga include a practice sleep, but to begin the dream yoga ally dreaming and will lead to the rec- to do while falling asleep and similar when you are awake. Try to be aware ognition of the dream state and the practices to be done during three pe- of your mind; try to realize how some- development of lucidity. There is no riods of waking during the night. times you can be powerless when the stronger method of bringing consis- These are outlined in detail in the emotion comes. Realizing this, it is tent lucidity to dream than by abid- book. Sleep is broken into roughly important to try to develop some sta- ing continuously in lucid presence two-hour segments. During each bility while you are awake. And that during the day. This is the first prepa- working period a particular position stability can be supported by the ex- ration—to see all of life as a dream. is taken, a particular breathing is per- perience of joy, you know, seeing the The second foundational practice formed, and the mind focuses on a gifts of life, the positive experiences works to further decrease grasping particular image in a particular around oneself. Also, with all the ex- and aversion while we are awake. As chakra. periences of the daytime, our mind the first foundational practice is ap- There are four tasks we need to ac- and all our soul experiences get scat- plied in the moment of encountering complish in order to fully develop the tered around everywhere. Somehow phenomena and before a reaction oc- dream practice: bringing the mind we become pieces before we go to curs, the second practice is engaged into the central channel, cultivating sleep. If we go to sleep as the pieces, after a reaction has arisen. Ideally the clear vision and experience, develop- we are not going to have a good sleep practice should be applied as soon as ing power and strength so that we will experience. So we need to try to have any grasping or aversion arises in re- not become lost, and developing our some awareness. Try to bring all sponse to any object or situation. The wrathful aspect in order to overcome those pieces together. Become one. grasping mind may manifest its reac- fear. These tasks correspond to the tion as desire, anger, jealousy, pride, C: And how does one do that? four qualities of dreams—peaceful, envy, grief, despair, joy, anxiety, de- Rinpoche: Try to feel those experi- joyful, powerful, and wrathful—and pression, fear, boredom and so on. to the four sections of the practice. ences of the day and try to dissolve When a reaction arises, remind your- them and then come together in that C: What do we do if we are having a self that you, the object, and your re- lucid dream? very moment—try to feel this before action to the object are all a dream. Rinpoche: In lucid dreams we prac- you go to sleep. The third foundational practice in- tice transforming whatever is encoun- C: So you try to dissolve and become volves reviewing the day before go- tered. There is no boundary to expe- peaceful? ing to sleep and strengthening the in- Top: Senior holders of the Tibetan Bon tradition (from left to right): rience that can't be broken in the Rinpoche: Yes, peaceful and then fo- tention to practice during the night. Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, Lopon TenzinNamdak Rinpoche, andLopon Tenpa dream; we can do whatever occurs to cus on the peaceful. And in order to As you prepare for sleep allow the Yungdrug Rinpoche. The Lopons have come to the United States from us to do. As we break habitual limita- memories of the day to arise. What- Kathmandu, Nepal, to teach at the Sante Fe retreat. tions of experience, the mind be- ever comes to mind recognize as a Bottom: Lopon Tenzin Namdak Rinpoche, senior lineage holder of the Bon comes increasingly supple and flex- dream. Then make the strong deter- ...we sleep one third of school and head of the Bon monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal, leaches from The ible. The teachings present us with mination that, just as you are recog- Six Lamps, a Bon text which focuses on the nature of mind. The new ideas, new possibilities and the our lifetime—that is nizing the dream-like nature of the teaching occurred at Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche's annual summer retreat in tools to realize those possibilities, and twenty years for some- day, you will also recognize the Sante Fe, Neiv Mexico this July. then it is up to us to manifest them in dreams of the night for what they are. one who lives to be 60. dreams and waking life. Make the strongest intention possible For instance, the teaching talks It is very important for a to know directly and vividly while about multiplying things in dream. dreaming that you are dreaming. The Finally, during the morning period practitioner to under- as much as possible before sleep, just Perhaps we are dreaming of three intention is like an arrow that aware- generate a strong intention to remain stand what is going on as we do before meditating, generates flowers. Because we are aware of ness can follow during the night, an consistent in the practice throughout more presence and positive qualities. being in a dream and the flexibility during those twenty arrow directed at lucidity in the the day. Don't forget to pray with your Rather than carrying negative emo- of dream, suddenly we can make a dream. Before you go to sleep pray full heart for success. Prayer is like a years. tions into the night, use whatever hundred flowers, a thousand flowers, that you may have a clear dream. magical power that we all have and skills you have to free yourself from unlimited flowers. But first we need The fourth foundational practice forget to use. them. If you know how to self- to recognize the potential. The Mother is to rejoice and'be thankful when you C: Do we need to do anything else to liberate the emotion do so. Try to con- lists eleven categories of ex- focus on the peaceful, one can pray. awake if you have been successful prepare for dream practice before we nect with the lama, yidam, and dakini, perience in which the mind is usually Use whatever spiritual tradition you and have had a lucid dream. You say, actually go to sleep? or generate compassion. Do what you bound by experience. All of these are practice. You can ask for help from "This is wonderful." If you are not suc- Rinpoche: Even for someone who can to rid yourself of the tension in to be challenged and transformed. the guardians, protectors and the an- cessful, you recognize this, but don't doesn't practice the dream or sleep your body and the negative attitudes They include: size, quantity, quality, gels. Whatever you believe in. get discouraged. Rather, you put yogas, it is good to prepare for sleep, of your mind. Even if you are unable C: So people who are not Buddhist stronger intention into your practice. to take it seriously. Purifying the mind to do the rest of the practice, this is can do this and put in their own dei- (Continued on page 3) ties? Rinpoche: Yes, definitely. No matter what belief a person comes from we are all sentient beings. Sentient being means the one who has a mind, and the one who has a mind always has difficulty controlling it when in samsara. So you should use whatever support works to help to bring the mind together and then one should practice. All people can try to work with their minds and try to develop the capacity to not always be driven by their emotion. Try to guide your emotion in daily life. This is impor- tant for developing the dream and sleep practices. C: So doing the dream yoga will help anyone improve their health, and to develop a sense of inner peace and calm and more clarity? Rinpoche: Yes. C: What specifically can we do dur- ing our waking hours to enhance our dream practice? Rinpoche: What you do while you are awake is very important. Dream prac- tice is not as much about what you do when you are sleeping and dream- ing as it is about how you use the mind when awake. If the day is spent spaced out and caught up in the elaboration of the conceptual mind, we are likely to be the same in dream. stagmo Gompa Pilgrimage to Traditional Ladakh Janice Whipple If we are more present in our life, we will also find that presence in dream. July 9 ~ 29,1999 There are four main foundational practices in dream yoga, which are led by Karma Lekshe Tsotno done while awake. The first one is scholar, explorer and author of Buddhism Through American Womens Eyes and Sakyadita: Daughters of the Buddha related to perception— that means Insight ^ravtl that everything that you see, you hear, (937) 767-1102 (800) 688-9851 you feel, you touch, you smell while you are awake, you experience them for our other pilgrimages, visit our website at www.insight-travel.com

2 SNOW UON SUMMER '98 NEWSLETTER TENZIN WANCYAL RINPOCHE takes practitioners make with regard TALKS ABOUT HIS NEW BOOK to dream and sleep yoga? Continued from page 2 Rinpoche: Too much expectations! People expect to have immediate re- speed, accomplishment, transforma- sults. You can make instant coffee, tion, emanation, journey, seeing or but not instant success with dream realizing, encounter and experiences. and sleep yoga. People want instant These are explained more fully in the dream and sleep yoga success. Also, book. anytime when you try to do the dream C: In the book you mention that in yoga before you go to sleep, you need order to become truly effective with to have joy about doing the dream the dream practice, it is best to get yoga practice. If you think of it as up two or three times during the night work, that is a very big mistake. and then start the practice again. This Sometimes people think, "Oh, I am THE is hard for Westerners, many of whom too exhausted." This is a mistake; we are already sleep-deprived. How im- need to view it as a joyful, relaxing portant is it to get up several times practice, like taking a warm shower TIBETAN YOGAS during the night? or lying in a comfortable bed and find- Rinpoche: It depends on how serious ing the right position before we go to the practitioner is. People who have sleep. We don't consider those things OF DREAM children, they often get up two or work. three times during the night. And C: Is there a difference in the dream people who need to go to the bath- and sleep practices described in your AND SLEEP room frequently get up more than book from other Buddhist dream and three times. So getting up for dream sleep yogas? practice is just anotherpoint of view. Rinpoche: The principles and essence It doesn't mean that you cannot do will be the same as dream and sleep the practice if you don't get up, but it practices from other Buddhist lin- is very helpful. The important point eages, but there might be slightly dif- is to bring greater awareness to the ferent methods which one should ex- dream and the rest of life, and this plore to determine which are the best anyone can do, whether or not they for oneself. are able to do the complete cycle of C: If we are having problems with our Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche the yoga. dream and/or sleep practices or we C: How do you know you are mak- just want more guidance, to whom ing progress with your dream prac- can we turn and where? tice? Ri.npoclie: People can contact our Rinpoche: You know because you are local practice groups where they will having more clear dreams, more com- find senior practitioners skilled in the plete dreams, you are remembering practices. We have Garuda Centers in them, you are having lucid dreams. San Francisco, Los Angeles, Houston, You can guide your dreams instead Mexico City and Warsaw, Poland. Our THE TIBETAN YOGAS of being dreamt! headquarters is located in Charlottes- C: What is sleep yoga? How does it ville. Also we have a website, which differ from dream yoga? includes information on upcoming OF DREAM AND SLEEP Rinpoche: Dream yoga is when you seminars and workshops. Also we have a six-tape audio program on the actually have dream images and by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche the West as the capacity to know that sleep yoga is before the images come dream practice. It was taped live at a 220 pp., 8 b&w' photos, #TIYODR one is dreaming during a dream, but or after the images dissolve. Do you six- week course I conducted at Rice $16.95 Snow Lion Publications in Tibetan dream yoga this is not an have any way of understanding your- University in Houston, Texas last end in itself. Rather it is the setting in self, your presence, your awareness year. This might prove helpful to "If we cannot carry our practice which one can then utilize more ad- when you are asleep, but not dream- those seeking more information. into sleep, if we lose ourselves every vanced practices. ing? These are all questions concern- C: Do you have any final thoughts night, what chance do we have to be Dream practices are followed by ing sleep yoga. you would like to share? Rinpociie: It is important to remem- aware when death comes? Look to sleep yoga, also known as the yoga C: Should you become proficient in your experience in dreams to know of clear light. This is considered a the dream yoga before you attempt ber that the dharma is really flexible and we need to remain flexible. Do how you will fare in death. Look to more advanced practice, closer in the sleep yoga? your experience of sleep to discover not allow yourself to become trapped method and result to the highest and Rinpociie: In the tradition it is said whether or not you are truly awake." most hidden of Tibetan practices. The that dream yoga is easier to do first by the practice. Experiment. This doesn't mean that you should throw With these words, Tenzin Wangyal practice and the goal is to stay aware and then sleep yoga. The reason is Rinpoche gives dharma students the during deep sleep, when the gross because dream yoga has images and out the tradition and make up your own. These practices are powerful means to measure their practice, and we feel more supported if we can hold with this book, he gives a path of and effective and they have been the onto something. When we have noth- practice to awaken from the sleep of vehicle for countless people to real- "A detailed guide to is the founder and director of The ing to hold onto, the average person ignorance and the long dreaminess of ize liberation. At death you reach the Ligmincha Institute, an organization feels supportless. samsaric life. using our night-lives dedicated to the study and practice C: How will people actually know borderline between samsara and —the intermediate state, the The yogas of dream and sleep are for awakening: thought- of the teachings of the Bon tradition. when they are doing sleep yoga? used in the Bon and Buddhist tradi- famous . The single essence is provoking, inspiring, and He was born in Amritsar, India, after Rinpoche: It is the same as being your passport that allows you to en- tions of Tibet to attain liberation. his parents fled the Chinese invasion aware of the gap between two lucid."-Stephen LaBerge ter nirvana. Without the passport you Practices applied during dream and of Tibet, and received training from thoughts when you are meditating. sleep are effective methods for chang- cannot leave samsara. If one has both Buddhist and Bon teachers, at- You are aware there are no thoughts. never had the experience of clear ing the practitioner's relationship to taining the degree of geshe, the It is the same with sleep yoga, there light during sleep it is difficult to pass experience, a retraining of cognitive conceptual mind and the operation of highest academic degree of tradi- are no images, no dreams, but you are from samsara in the bardo. If one can patterns that results in increasingly the senses cease. tional . He has been aware that this is happening. positive experiences of life and even- integrate with the clear light of sleep Tenzin Wangyal.Rinpoche, a lama in in the United States since 1991 and C: So people who are doing the sleep then one can integrate with the clear tually in lucid dreaming. Lucid dream- the Bon tradition of Tibet, presently has taught widely in Europe and ing has become quite well known in yoga successfully are going to know light of death. All the beings who resides in Charlottesville, Virginia. He America. ■ they, are doing it? achieved enlightenment and became Rinpoche: Yes, yes. If people have Buddhas crossed the border and en- some sense of awareness before they tered the clear light. We too, with dream they are doing it. Also one can great determination and joyful work, actually have awareness while one have the capacity to do the same. sleeps; they can have clear light ex- periences, but that is a very difficult For information on teachings and realization to have. I describe in the workshops of Tenzin Wangyal book how to recognize the clear light. Rinpoche, please contact: The C: Do we need any special initiations Ligmincha Institute at 804-977-6161; or transmissions for the dream and/ e-mail: [email protected]; fax: 804- or sleep yoga to be fully effective'? 977-7020; website: www.comet.net/ Rinpociie: If people want to get some Ligmincha; or write to: The THE NEWSMAGAZINE OF THE FOUNDATION awareness and develop some skills, Ligmincha Institute at P.O. Box 1892, it is not necessary. But if someone Charlottesville, VA, 22903. ■ FOR THE PRESERVATION wants to go into the teachings and practices in depth as delineated in the OF THE TRADITION book, then I think it is necessary to have transmission from a person who Snow Lion News A magazine of news, interviews, teachings, books, people, has experience or is holder of the for the Visually resources: featuring His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Lama Zopa transmission. Rinpoche, Jeffrey Hopkins, , Jonathan C: Does that necessarily need to be a Impaired Landaw, Betsy Napper, and others in the Buddhist world. Bon teacher or can it be any Buddhist master? One of our readers, Patrice ■ Published six times a year - Subscriptions $ 18 Rinpoche: Well if it is specifically McDonald, has kindly volunteered to related to the practices that I am talk- tape the news section of our news- Send check or credit card ing about, i.e., Mother Tantra, then it letter for people who cannot read it. information to: can be any qualified teacher who has If you need the same service, we MANDALA PO Box 800 ^ Soquel, CA 95073 ^ USA the Mother Tantra transmission. may be able to supply you a copy of C: What are the most common mis- the tape. Please contact us for Phone (408) 476 8435 • Fax (408) 476 4823 • Email: 73360:[email protected] availability. ■

SNOW LION 3 WISDOM & RECONCILIATION: your questions. Now that should be THE DALAI LAMA IN NEW YORK deducted from your time!" Continued from page 1 His Holiness's mentioned a recent Three new releases incident in Japan where he attended and dear to those who continue to in- a conference on diverse Buddhist tra- flict harm on me.'" ditions. There he was approached by from Snow Lion Throughout his exposition of a Theravadin monk who slightly re- Tsong Khapa's text, His Holiness proached him for engaging in more stressed the understanding of empti- dialogues with Christian spiritual CALM ABIDING ness as fundamental to all progress. leaders than with representatives of THE PRACTICE Knowledge "When I think of my own way of be- other Buddhist sects. His Holiness SPECIAL INSIGHT and ing," he said, "the little strength I have conceded that there is indeed need OF TRANQUILLITY Liberation comes not from being Dalai Lama or for change in this regard, otherwise AND INSIGHT a fully ordained monk, but from an sectarianism could increase. altruistic motivation and an aware- As usual, throughout the program ness of the validity of emptiness." As His Holiness encouraged questions a youth, he said,"when I began to from the audience, in particular from -.*, sense liberation was a real possibil- the Chinese community. When a par- ity, I had a strong desire to seek it ticipant asked why compassion and because I thought if I attained it I pain always go hand-in-hand, His Ho- could then take a long break! So my liness replied, "Compassion arises as wish was selfish." Commenting on a natural response out of empathy for the importance of time as a compo- beings. But the person having compas- nent of the path, he said, "Please sion experiences a different pain from

i Khenchen Thranjju don't think I am claiming I'm a the kind one suffers against one's wish. or that I've already real- There is a degree of voluntariness. ized emptiness. Part of the story is Pain here is taken on for a higher pur- that it takes time. Developing under- pose." When asked how the karmic standing is one thing, experience is continuum is carried over to the next something else. Don't be spoiled by lifetime, His Holiness advised that we THE PRACTICE OF CALM ABIDING AND KNOWLEDGE & the rhetoric in Tantra about attain- study how memory functions within TRANQUILLITY & SPECIAL INSIGHT LIBERATION ing liberation in one lifetime. When I this life. There is a time lapse between was young, I told my tutor that since by Anne Klein. 283 pp. #KNLIC an experience and our recollection of INSIGHT Achieving Spiritual the path is so long, maybe I'd $19.95, A Namgyal Institute Textbook. A Guide to Tibetan Transformation Through take Tantra. He pointed out that this Meditation "Anne Klein presents vividly and was the wrong motivation. True If someone is really by Geshe Gediln Lodro and Jeffrey intimately many concepts essential to Tantric practitioners have already by Khenchen a deeper understanding of Buddhist been working for aeons." 170 pp., b&w photo, 3 line drawings, Hopkins wrong, we shouldn't 334 pp., glossary, bibliography, index, philosophy and for realizing empti- One of the remarkable features of respond in a hateful 3 tables #PRTRIN $14.95 ness—the process of naming, positive the event was the moral strength that This is a practical manual to the #CAABSP $19.95 This manual presents a vivid pic- and negative phenomena, direct per- His Holiness projected from the manner, but at the same two types of meditation that form the ception, and more. I highly recom- stage. Abandoning all hint of anger core of Buddhist spiritual practice. ture of the intricacies of meditation, time patience should not drawing the reader into a Tibetan mend this book!"—Prof. Jeffrey or self-pity, he seems to have clearly After only a few pages of reading, Hopkins transmuted the formidable obstacles be confused with the anyone would know enough to prop- world-view of spiritual transforma- tion. Geshe Gedun Lodrb, one of the he has faced into occasions for prac- idea that we should put erly begin meditating. Tranquillity is concerned tice, a fact that was echoed in his trib- ( Yama tha) meditation aims at stilling foremost scholar-practitioners of Ti- with defining and overcoming the up with injustice. bet, presents a landscape of mental ute to Tsong Khapa for having valued the mind, while insight (vipa Yyan >) limitations and errors of perception. criticism because it showed him meditation produces clear vision, or development, revealing a living world To do this is essential to Buddhism's of mental therapy replete with re- where his weaknesses lay. Said His it, and a connection obviously exists insight into the nature of all phenom- purpose of establishing a method for Holiness: "This is called transform- between the two, but His Holiness ad- ena. With masterful scholarship and sources for describing, facing, and attaining liberation. Conceptual counteracting both superficial and ing adversity into favorable condi- mitted that it was philosophically dif- the ability to make subtle ideas easy thought, in this view, can lead to a lib- tions." ficult to say on what faculty karmic im- to understand and apply in practice, systemic disorders. With extraordi- erating understanding, a transforma- nary precision and detail, he de- On the final morning, His Holiness prints are stored. According to the Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche ex- tive religious experience. conferred the White initia- Mind-Only School, the basis is the plains this unified system of medita- scribes how to undermine distracting The author discusses the workings afflictive states, doubts, and distor- tion, commenting, "I cannot guaran- alaya vijnana (all-base mind), but not tion for students both beginning and of both direct and conceptual cogni- tee you will receive total wisdom all schools agree. When asked it the advanced. He explains what to do tions that must be removed for the tion, drawing on a variety of Tibetan mind to become stable, calm, alert, from this, but I can guarantee you faults we see in another person actu- and what to avoid, and explains the and Indian texts. This book is indis- won't become any dumber!" He also ally exist or if they are merely our pro- stages of deepening meditation so the and able to penetrate the false appear- pensable for anyone desiring a deeper ance of phenomena. stressed the importance of self- jection, His Holiness replied, "In lo practitioner can gauge progress. understanding of the fundamental is- reliance stating that while depen- jong (mind training) we operate from These teachings are based on the Geshe Gedun Lodro was born in sues in Buddhist philosophy. It is also the capital of Tibet, Hla-sa, in 1924. dence on the blessings of external the premise that there is a distinction eighth chapter of the Treasury of highly relevant to issues current in beings is part of the Buddhist tradi- between enemies and friends, so while Knowledge by the great nineteenth- He entered Dre-bung Monastic Uni- modern Western philosophy. versity at Hla-sa at the age of nine as tion, sometimes Tibetans take this to we often project characteristics that century master Jamgbn Kongtrul. The Gelukba interpretation of the extreme. * don't exist in a person, our perceptions With Thrangu Rinpoche's commen- a novice monk. He took basic exami- Dignaga and Dharmakirti is greatly at nations in 1940, received full ordina- The program concluded with a dia- are not always projections alone. But tary, this complex, encyclopedic variance with virtually all other schol- logue between himself and Master what is important is how we respond. work is made accessible to Western tion in 1947, and gained the degree of arship concerning these seminal Bud- ge-shay in 1961 in exile in India as the Sheng-yen which stressed the common If someone is really wrong, we students of meditation. dhist logicians. The author clarifies ground rather than the differences be- shouldn't respond in a hateful manner, Thrangu Rinpoche has been a first among three scholars who were these differences, considering both awarded the number one ranking in tween the Chinese and Tibetan tradi- but at the same time patience should practitioner of meditation for over traditional Buddhist and modern not be confused with the idea that we the highest class. A prodigious scholar, tions, and which was laced with mu- forty years. Famed as a scholar, he scholarship, thus establishing what is tual generosity and good humor. should put up with injustice." was asked to establish the Kagyu mo- he was famed for his wide learning unique to the Gelukba presentation and ability in debate. In 1967, the With his ever-lively intellect, His His Holiness's Wisdom Teachings nastic college in Rumtek for His Ho- and, in this light, examining reasons were so dense in their implications that Dalai Lama sent him to teach at the Holiness interrupted the Chinese liness the , head of the for the validity of this school's master with so many questions that any attempt to recount them is like cull- Kagyu lineage of . University of Hamburg, where he interpretation. ■ learned to speak German fluently and the latter jokingly said, "You have ing mere drops from a vast ocean. Born in eastern Tibet in 1933, caused me to run overtime with all Thrangu Rinpoche was recognized as become a tenured member of the fac- (Continued on page 10) the reincarnation of the great Thrangu ulty. He served as Visiting Professor . He pursued a traditional mo- at the University of Virginia in 1979, nastic education and received a geshe when he gave the lectures that com- degree with honors from the Dalai prise this book. He passed away later Lama at age 35. Thrangu Rinpoche in the same year. -one key to the success of Whitney Stewart's became the personal teacher of many Jeffrey Hopkins is Professor of Re- important . He has also engaged ligious Studies at the University of Vir- interesting biographies TOT Children lies in her in twenty years of teaching Western ginia, where he has taught Indo-Ti- students in seminars and retreats in betan Studies and Tibetan language personal interviews with their subjects." over a dozen countries. He is well- since 1973, and was Director of the Pegg Kohlepp, The Times-Picayune known for taking complex teachings University's Center for South Asian and making them understandable to Studies for twelve years. the practitioner. ■ This is a new completely revised edition of Walking Through Walls, m V^

TIBETAN LANGUAGE ^ CORRESPONDENCE COURSE -ijfir Home study program of colloquial and scriptural Tibetan emphasizing spoken Dharma. Text, tapes and ongoing help. All 1630 30th St.,Box 356 Aung Son Suit Kyi: Fearless Voice of Burma PfKe;■$ 1795 Boulder, CO 80301 The : Spiritual Leader ofTibet Price $17.95 (303) 499-3141 To order call Urner Publications: 1-800-328-4929 or fax: l-800-333tTfSP ih Trie /4th Dalai Lama: Spiritual Leader ofTibet is also available from the Snow Lion atalogue, 1-800-950-0313.

4 SNOW LION SUMMER '98 NEWSLETTER the years, he painted many works for ity safely houses a rare collection of Rinpoche who in turn advised him on 13,000 color slides and negatives of m——mmr m . m mm—r. the correct expressions, proportions Tibetan miniature paintings, and the details of iconography. Under and statues. The archives also contain Rinpoche's careful supervision, photographs and negatives of Dilgo Konchok painted the frescoes in Khyentse Rinpoche and other teach- Shechen Monastery, Nepal, that span ers, a collection of rare texts, and I Hb three long walls of the temple. both audio and visual records of Bud- The Tsering Art School provides dhist teachings. All these are stored an opportunity for this precious and in a climate controlled room. In the rare oral tradition to be passed on to archive office itself, rare works and others during Konchok's lifetime. The photographs are scanned and pre- full course is six years, with an ex- served on CDs. ception made for foreign students On December 6, 1997, under a who may study as day students on a clear blue Nepali sky, the inaugural TSERINQ short term basis. There are already ceremonies began for the newly con- three Western students enrolled in the structed building. A large audience of school. Buddhist teachers, guests, dignitar- The first year is devoted to learn- ies, and friends gathered to hear the ing the techniques of proportion and keynote address by drawing and the use of paints and and speeches by Thomas Derksen, colors. During the next four years, the the Honorary Dutch Consul in Nepal ART students study the detailed iconogra- and Gerold Muller of the European phy of different figures and work on Commission. The guests toured the specific projects. In the sixth year, building to see a photography exhi- they learn to draw and paint bition of works by Matthieu Ricard and write sacred script. and other photographers—rare black The student body is drawn from and white photographs of Khyentse the young monks of Shechen Monas- Rinpoche, delightful photos of SCHOOL tery, and lay men and women from Rabjam Rinpoche as a young boy, bril- the local community and Western liant scenes of Tibet and sacred danc- countries. A maximum of twenty-five ers. Many of the large black and white students will be accepted in order to prints were created from tattered old enable individual training. The school photographs that had been preserved 1 he Shechen Institute for Traditional the opportunity to learn traditional poorly executed. The tradition of would like to train women artists who and reprinted in the new Shechen Tibetan Arts is a three-storied build- painting methods and proper propor- Tibetan painting is degener- have not been given a chance to learn archive facility. ing located on the grounds of tions, and most of the new thangkas ating and in imminent danger. this skill in the past. There are cur- For further information about the Shechen Monastery in Baudha, flooding the market have incorrect The School's dean and painting rently three women students enrolled Tsering Art School and the Shechen Nepal. It is dedicated to the preser- iconography and are teacher is Konchok Lhadrepa, one of (two Westerners and one Nepali). The Institute of Traditional Tibetan Arts vation of Tibetan sacred arts and in- the best trained and most experi- School is not run on a commercial ba- please write to: cludes the Tsering Art School, enced thangka painters alive today. sis, but it will accept commissions an archive facility, work- He is among the last authentic hold- Shechen Monastery, from individuals and centers. In the shops for the manufac- ers of the Karma Gadri School of PO Box 136 future, courses on silk thangka weav- ture of incense, and stu- painting which prevailed in Eastern Katmandu, Nepal ing will be added to the curriculum. dios for carving wood Tibet. It is characterized by its use or email: Shechen has a weaver skilled in this masks and making cos- of spacious landscape, transparent [email protected] craft who has consented to teach this tumes for sacred dances. It hues, and a unique elegance rare traditional art form. Shechen's web page is: was built under the direc- combined with minute attention to To further preserve the tradition of www.fusebox.com/shechen ■ tion of Shechen Rabjam details. sacred arts, Shechen's archive facil- Rinpoche with the generous When Konchok was ten years old support of the Dutch Govern- he first met ment and a private donor. The Rinpoche, from whom he acquired goal of the Art School is to most of his vast knowledge. Over train a new generation of men and women from the Himalayan region and from Western coun- tries in the authentic tradition of Tibetan Buddhist painting. In Tibet, the only form of paint- ing was sacred art—thangkas (scrolls) and wall frescoes with Buddhist themes—most of which was housed in monasteries and temples. Tibetan thangkas are not merely works of art, but are means to convey information of iconography and lineage that is essential for a Bud- dhist practitioner. Accuracy as well as beauty of execution is of utmost importance. During the 1960s the an- cient traditional arts suffered irrepa- rable damage when over 6,000 mon- Left: Students at work asteries and the artwork they con- tained were destroyed in the Chinese Middle: The Tsering Art School building Cultural Revolution. Above: Konchok Lhadrepa, master In the last few years a number of thangka painter and dean of the Tsering artist studios have opened in the Art School Kathmandu Valley to produce (All photos by Vivian Kurtz) thangkas for tourists. Unfortunately, many of these artists have not had

T E N G A R < N P O C H S In this book Tenga Rinpoche, one of Transition the great teachers and meditation TIBET • NEPAL • BHI/ITAN • 5IKKIM & masters of our time, introduces the VISIT THROUGH US IN RELIGIOUS Liberation AND PILGRIMAGE SITES OR TREKS MM AttXttOHi six kinds of bardo, and gives TO OUT-OF-THE-WAY PLACES IN THE HIMALAYAS OR FOR instructions on how consciousness MOUNTAINEERING, WILDLIFE SAFARIS, AND WHITE can be guided through each of WATER RAFTING, PLEASE WRITE US. these phases and liberated. Vre SPECIALIZE IN ENVIRONMENTALLY \fbn 5-9805251-2-0 , SENSITIVE PROGRAMS 14 color pictures of the This teaching can be traced back to TAILORED TO YOUR INDIVIDUAL bardo-deities PREFERENCE. the Indian yogi , Hardcover 122pgs $16.95 ./hipping $2 Friends Guru Rinpoche, who brought yend cheque or money MUinrom Treks (P.) Ltd order to: P.O. Box: 5677, Kathmandu. Nepal. buddhism to Tibet. It is taken from /lamse bangdzo bookstore in tfie Tel./Fax: + 977-1-411088 Karma Lingpa's work, The Peaceful 552 Meads Mt Rd, E-mail: [email protected] Woodstock, ny 12498 IRl: !illp://wwn.catinai)(lo.co[ii/marron-lrck.s and Wrathful Deities. store^namsebanqdzo.com wilderness

SNOW LION 5 Tibetan Medicine The Tibetan Art of Healing, Program at At Tibet House, New York Meridian Medical

Nepal's traditional artist Romio Shrestha worked for seven years with 40 Nepali An affiliate of the Institute of East- emphasize the preservation and the and Tibetan artists to create a complete set of 79 paintings based on diagrams and West Medicine, Meridian Medical is a practice of the original traditional illustrations from the 17th century Tibetan medical texts, Blue Beryl. These beauti- non-profit organization dedicated to healing arts of Asia while integrating ful paintings of medicinal herbs, flowers and detailed anatomical portraits were cre- the rational integration of modern them with modern conventional ated using the age-old technique of painting with rich minerals such as powdered Western medicine and traditional medicine. gold, lapis and garnet. They are on display in the new Tibet House location until Asian healing arts. It is a modern For further information, please August 14th. medical practice which also offers contact Meridian Medical at (212) For more information contact Tibet House, 22 West 15th Street, NY, NY 10011, traditional Chinese medicine and acu- 683-1221 or Institute of East-West 212-807-0563. ■ puncture, Ayurveda, and authentic Ti- Medicine, 102 E. 30th St., New York, betan medicine consultations. They NY 10016 ■

THE DERVISH BROTHERS BOOKS Dharma TIBET: Out of print and Books in select new titles.

Spanish Catalogues on request. Spanish reading Tibetan Bud- dhists can contact the follow- ing publisher: Ediciones Post Office Box 43576 Dharma, Apartado 218, 03660 Tucson, Arizona 85733 • USA Novelda (Alicante) Spain. ■ (520) 326-7340 Finest Three Star Hotel in Kathmandu, Nepal 55 Rooms & Suites Take a look... Restaurant & Bar Centrally Located Walking distance to Thamel, and another, and another... Immigration Office, Banks, All major Airlines. Absolutely safe and clean Meditation Center For reservation please contact mmm Hotel Tibet (P) Ltd. P.O. Box: 7956, Lazimpat, Kathmandu, Nepal • Tel: 977-1-429085,429086, Fax: 977-1-410957 E-mail: [email protected] 8t Internet: http://www.catmando.com/hotel-tibet J£

Heron Dance is a journal of the search for meaning. We explore the territory where spirituality and work meet. It is a work of love abouf work of love Heron Dance contains stories of people trying to live their truth; some- times we succeed and sometimes we fail. Heron Dance profiles people working to save grizzly bear habitat, working in refugee camps, or with the homeless and addicted, as well as artists, ntroduction by writers, poets and adventurers. ROBERT A. F.THURMAN Heron Dance is a celebration of beauty — both the beauty inside our- selves, which we seek to find, to nurture BUDDHA BOOK: A MEETING OF IMAGES and offer the world, and the beauty of nature. Edited and designed by Frank Olinsky. The award- winning Tricycle cover designer presents over 90 images of the Buddha—from exquisite temple pieces in Japan, Tibet, India, and elsewhere, to modern HERON s) DANCE interpretations by Henri Matisse, David Byrne, PO Box 727 • Burlington • VT • 05402-0727 Bernardo Bertolucci, and others—inviting us to (Toil-Free: 1-888-304-3766; email: heron@ together.net) contemplate the ever changing face of enlightenment. Introductory offer, three issues, $9.50 □ Annual Subscription: 6 issues, $28 □

NAME : Hardcover. 96pp. $19.95 (US). $27.95 (Canada) ADDRESS. All subscriptions unconditionally guaranteed. Full refund if dissatisfied To order call Tricycle @ 1-800-950-7008 for any reason. Check, VISA or MasterCard accepted. If you are ordering by credit card, please include the expiry date and your phone number. or e-mail: [email protected]

6 SNOW UON SUMMER '98 NEWSLETTER Dodhgaya—the "diamond throne of The Monastery complex is located artists. The main figure is Lord Bud- with books in Western languages. daily program includes teaching on India"—is the center of the Buddhist a few minutes' walk from the great dha and on either side are statues of Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche says of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche's commen- world. There, under the Bodhi Tree, . Set off from the road, the beauty Guru Padmasambhava and Dilgo the library, "Many people come to tary on the text Heart Treasure of the the renunciate Prince Siddhartha be- and harmony of the buildings create a Khyentse Rinpoche. During the next Bodhgaya on pilgrimage. Yet not Enlightened Ones, as well as a came the Buddha Shakyamuni. It is feeling of a peaceful island. The main few years, frescoes depicting the life much information is available there Madhyamika course, meditation in- said that a thousand Buddhas have temple building is made of red stone. of the Buddha will be painted by for the study of Buddhism. So, we struction, and guided pilgrimages. attained and a thousand more will at- The design and shape of the golden Konchok Lhadrepa and the Tsering would like our library to be a place The price is $25 a day including food tain enlightenment in the future in roofs are based on the Potala in Lhasa. Art School students. where people can come to read and Bodhgaya. It is a pilgrimage place for Inside the Temple on a stone stage Another building houses residence study." Several publishers including people from all over the world, and carved by local Indian artisans are quarters for about 30 monks and a Shambhala, Snow Lion and Padma Bodhgaya is located in Bihar, many BvKldhist countries have three large statues made by Bhutanese reading room library well stocked Publishing have donated books on one of the poorest regions of temples there. Among these are Buddhism, philosophy and history. India. Shechen Institute is monasteries representing three of ;:*|J -I"'- ; :■ - :- Any donations of books are always " W^ planning to provide a "clinic the four principal schools of Tibetan # m appreciated. Buddhism. A third building is the Shechen In- on wheels" dedicated to The late Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche t, ' stitute—the International Center for bringing free and profes- : had expressed the wish to construct ■' sK li >■: ■*" J —which sional medical assistance a monastery for the Nyingma School : was founded by Shechen Rabjam ', ;'A ..... wMW pf :sffl| to the people of the in Bodhgaya so that its rich tradition g Rinpoche and inaugurated by Her Maj- ' ■ fg f : ■ ' -,