The Sacred Stupa of Vishuda

Following the sutras and having relied on authentic sources, researchers have identified most of the sacred sites where the Buddha performed various extraordinary deeds. Yet, the sacred stupa of Vishuda—erected at the place where the Buddha renounced all his worldly belongings—held a controversy among the researchers about where the actual site is located. Some pilgrims believed that the site was…

A Jataka Story of the Buddha: Dzawoi Bumo

In Jeta’s Grove near Shravasti, when the Buddha was giving profound and vast teachings to his retinue, he spoke this brief narration: “There is no greater master than the father who raised us in our life and there is no more superior god than our mother, for she carried us in her womb. Therefore, our parents are like our masters,…

The Pratimoksha Precept Lineage in the Palyul Tradition

In Buddhism, precepts are the most significant, basic aspect of practising dharma. There is immense benefit in accumulating virtue with purely-observed vows and so these precepts are the ground of all sources of knowledge. They have been passed down from the Buddha to our own root guru in an unbroken lineage. The precepts are of three kinds, namely: pratimokshasamvara, bodhisattvasamvara…

Six Ornaments of the World Biography of Acharya Dignaga

Acharya Dignaga was born to the Brahmin caste in Simhavakta near Kanchipuram district in present day Tamil Nadu, south India. He took his monastic vows from Abbot Nagadatta, the holder of the Vatsiputriya School, who was very skilled in all the tirthika tenets. Having mastered the three pitakas of the Shravakas, Dignaga requested the abbot for instruction. As per his…

A Brief Introduction to the Three Kayas

All of the Buddhist teachings can be explained in terms of ground, path and fruition. In the general concept of Mahayana Buddhism, ground is referred to as Buddha nature, where it is explained that all sentient beings have the potential to become Buddha, or have the seed of enlightenment within their mindstreams. Due to constant afflictive emotions, this innate Buddha…

Choosing a Spiritual Master

The teacher, or guru (Tib: lama), occupies a central position within all the schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The Buddha said, “Without a guru there would be no Buddhas and not even a concept of Enlightenment would exist.” All spiritual methods starting from the initial steps of taking refuge to the Bodhisattva vows come from the guru. In scriptures, the guru…

The Fourth Throne Holder of the Palyul Tradition: Karma Tashi (The First Karma Kuchen Rinpoche)

The first Karma Kuchen Rinpoche, Karma Tashi, recalled that he was a manifestation of Terton Migyur Dorje. In some prophecies, Karma Tashi was predicted as the incarnation of the condensed essence of Sangdag Dorje Cho, Kungawo, Lotsawa Vairotsana, Shudpu Palkyi Senge, the Yogi of Riwo Palbar, Minling Terchen, Gaden Tripa, the Throne Holder of Gaden, Ngawang Chogden, the tutor to…

Entrance to the Middle Way (Madhyamakavatara)

The author of this profound teaching on emptiness and the vast teaching on the qualities of the path and fruition popularly known as Madhyamakavatara (Tib: Uma-La-Jugpa) is the great Buddhist adept-scholar known as Chandrakirti, who was born in the land of Samanta in India in about the seventh century. He was an extraordinary person deeply immersed in the truth of…

The Description of Rosary as Mentioned in the Commentary of Embodiment of Realization

The descriptions of rosary are divided into the following eight sections: The origin of rosaryThe enumerationThe rosary stringThe mode to string the rosaryThe counter beads of rosaryThe blessingThe counting methodThe samaya The origin of rosary The origin of rosary can be divided into four categories: I. Identity II. Etymology III. Category IV. Purpose I. The identity of rosaryThe lamp of…

Brief Introduction to the Eight Great Schools that Flourished in Tibet

Ngagyur Nyingma Tradition Ngagyur Nyingma, the pinnacle of all the dharma traditions, is considered to be the foremost tradition that prevailed in Tibet. An enormous effort was made to bring the teachings from India to Tibet by the dharma king Trisong Deutsen. He invited many scholars from India including Guru Padmasambhava and Abbot Shantarakshita. Since then, Nyingma teachings have been…