Politics of Reincarnation

(This article was published in a re-edited form in Jane’s Intelligence Review as an analysis of the implications of the Dalai Lama’s recent statements on the question of how his immediate successor will be chosen. What follows is the original text of the article. Elliot Sperling It is somewhat unusual for an incarnate Tibetan lama to reincarnate prior to his passing, to emanate into another body, so to speak. There are instances in Tibetan history where that is said to have been the case, but they are not all that common. Thus, when the present Dalai Lama, now 72 years old, announced during a visit to Japan in November that he might very well choose his successor while he was still alive he stirred up a good deal of talk among Tibetans. But he did not stop there. A referendum on the succession, a popular election of the Dalai Lama: these too have been mentioned by him as possible ways of choosing his successor. In further remarks in December, he acknowledged that he and his exile government actually had come to no real decision about any specific method for managing the search for and recognition of the next Dalai Lama. Coming months after the September 1st adoption of strict new governmental controls over the recognition of incarnations by China’s State Administration of Religious Affairs, and years after it became known that China was specifically preparing to manage the selection process of the next Dalai Lama on its own terms, the Dalai Lama’s indefinite response about exactly how his successor would be chosen reflects the continuing flat footedness of his exile administration in the face of a concerted and skillful Chinese diplomatic strategy that has not simply marginalized and isolated the Tibetan issue, but has done so through the nimble manipulation of the Dalai Lama himself. China’s intentions regarding the next Dalai Lama have been known for over a decade, long enough for the Tibetan leader and his exile government to have formulated a clear and decisive plan for the succession. That they still remain undecided about how specifically to counter China’s plans at this late stage is symptomatic of the almost wholly reactive nature of their strategy towards China. And this is essentially what China has counted on from the Dalai Lama: having successfully sized up his strengths and weaknesses and those of his officials, and their administration, China has long remained several steps ahead of them at almost every stage. While all this may seem like a muddle over so much arcane religious ritual, it represents an important step—indeed, perhaps the penultimate step—in the larger Chinese policy for dealing with the Tibet issue. And it follows logically from China’s success in undermining any effective claims by Tibetans and Tibet supporters that Tibet was and by rights ought to be an independent state, by extending the unambiguous recognition of its authority in Tibet to the selection process for the Dalai Lama. Although no government recognizes Tibet as an independent state, there has long lingered in the international air a sense that China’s presence in Tibet has not been wholly legitimate. This position has always had a strong foundation in arguments drawn from the historical record or from the principles of human rights and self-determination. At the same time, assertions by Chinese officials that Tibet has always been by rights an inalienable part of China have long tended to be regarded as little more than boilerplate. Given the prospect of the Tibet issue bringing pressure to bear against China—especially after a series of anti-China demonstrations in Lhasa in the late 1980s and the Dalai Lama’s elevation to the ranks of Nobel Peace Prize Laureates in 1989—China set out to find and use a better—no doubt the best,—spokesman against Tibetan independence: the Dalai Lama himself. Where many people had for decades considered the Tibetan struggle to be a national struggle for independence, the Dalai Lama had actually given up on Tibetan independence in the early 1970s. But only in 1988 did he publicly announce that he was seeking a solution to the Tibet issue that would maintain Tibet as a part of China, albeit with what he later came to describe as “real autonomy.” Still, the facts of the Tibet case, as well as popular Tibetan sentiment, worked to maintain the Tibet issue, perceived internationally as a nationalist issue, as a visible thorn in China’s side. Playing upon the Dalai Lama’s political naiveté and his desperation to resolve the Tibet issue, China acted to insure that the Tibetan position lost its legitimacy by patiently and shrewdly insisting that he be more and more vocal about accepting Tibet as a part of China. What ensued over the 1990s and into the present decade was clever and effective statecraft. With every pronouncement from the Dalai Lama articulating his opposition to an independent Tibet China countered that he was insincere and actually seeking disguised independence. It demanded louder and repeated declarations from the Dalai Lama that indeed he wasn’t pursuing such a path. And he obliged, reiterating to presidents and prime ministers that he wanted only autonomy, not independence, all the while explaining to the international press that China’s insistence on his repeated affirmations was the result of the Chinese leadership’s lack of understanding of his position. On the face of it this is laughable. With thousands of people in China’s nationality affairs commission and ministry of foreign affairs one can be certain that China parses every word of his: China knows what the meaning of the word “is” is when it comes to the Dalai Lama. The lack of understanding comes from his side, where he presides over an exile bureaucracy with no equivalent resources or expertise in Chinese politics. And they have let the Chinese foreign policy establishment run rings around them. Having taken the major step of ceding Tibet’s independence (and in 1997 going so far as to describe independence for Tibet as “a disaster”), the Dalai Lama is in a difficult position. He and his circle have imposed their idea of a Tibet within China on the larger Tibetan exile community by dint of his place as a religious leader possessed of transcendent wisdom. In the face of dissenting exile intellectuals and activists who for years have pointed out the total ineffectiveness of this policy, the Dalai Lama’s political establishment has had no choice but to buttress itself with the Tibetan leader’s esoteric religious authority. Admitting that the dissenters have had better insight into the state of affairs than the Dalai Lama is something his political circle (and he himself) cannot do. They have become effectively wedded to the position that Tibet’s proper place is in China, a position they have held for more than three decades. The Dalai Lama is trapped and China, having played its hand exceedingly well and gotten what it wanted, understands that the game is effectively over. As if to underscore this state of affairs, with no reciprocity from China on the horizon the Dalai Lama has further scaled back his position: he now seeks only cultural rights relating to religion and language and calls upon Tibetan exiles to refrain from demonstrations and other activities that would embarrass the Chinese government or people. But China neither needs nor wants the Dalai Lama back within its borders, as any settlement with him would entail. His presence in Tibet would be volatile and any agreement reached with him now, when he’s at an advanced age, could only be temporary. And this naturally leads back to the question of the Dalai Lama’s successor. Having skillfully managed the larger political issue of Tibet to its advantage, China is now biding its time and preparing for the Dalai Lama’s passing, at which point it will oversee the recognition, training and education of his successor. The Chinese government had trial runs with two other Tibetan incarnations: the Karma-pa, who was recognized in 1992 and the Panchen Lama, who was recognized in 1995. Both cases were problematic. In the former, in spite of state-mandated political education the young lama ultimately opted to flee Tibet for India, where he is close to the Dalai Lama. In the latter, a candidate was first recognized by the Dalai Lama (also in 1995) and then placed incommunicado by an angered Chinese government, which then orchestrated a hasty and coerced recognition of an alternate child who is considered illegitimate by most Tibetans. In spite of these embarrassments, the case of the Panchen Lama demonstrated to the Chinese government’s satisfaction that it could maintain adequate control over the reincarnation process even in the face of widespread Tibetan hostility to its choice. The selection of the next Dalai Lama is therefore just a matter of time as far as the Chinese government is concerned. The failure of the Dalai Lama to have come up with a well-formulated and considered response to China’s announcement about new measures for the recognition of religious incarnations—an announcement whose coming was long expected and whose primary target was no mystery—is but one more demonstration of China’s ability to consistently outmaneuver him. It has used him adroitly to defuse questions of legitimacy regarding Tibet’s incorporation into the PRC and now it is working to ensure that he will be no effective obstacle to the further consolidation of its position in his homeland. And not just in this lifetime. The writer is a professor at the Indiana University, and has authored: "Tibet," in John Block Friedman and Kristen Mossler Figg, eds., Medieval Trade, Travel, and Explorations: An Encyclopedia (New York, 2000); "Exile and Dissent: The Historical and Cultural Context," in Tibet Since 1950, (New York, 2000); and "Awe and Submission: A Tibetan Aristocrat at the Court of Qianlong," International Review of History, 20 (1998).

Urgyen Tulku

Tomorrow, January 31, 2008, is Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche's anniversary day. A good way to begin is with a visit to the Blazing Splendor blog site.

Adopt A Rescued Rabbit Month

The House Rabbit Society (HRS) has designated February 2008 as "Adopt A Rescued Rabbit Month." To find out more about adopting a rabbit, contact your local shelter or your your nearest HRS chapter. For more information on House Rabbit Society's rescue and education work in your area, please call House Rabbit Society at (510) 970-7575. Pictured above is "Bamboo Rabbit," a young Belgian under the protection of Tenpa Rinpoche's daughter and friends. Rinpoche was always extremely fond of rabbits, and kept them off and on for over 50 years. One of the funniest and bittersweet things anybody ever heard was Tenpa Rinpoche attempting to explain the "Easter Bunny" to Ogyen Rinpoche. "They're like us," he said. "Everybody wants one for a little while, but later, when they find out they actually have to care for them, they let them go to wander around alone." Rinpoche often spoke about how much he would've liked to build a rabbit sanctuary.

Eclipse

It seems we will have both a solar and lunar eclipse during February 2008, the former directly proximate to the New Year. These charts, from the U.S. Naval Observatory, give the details. As Buddhists, we understand the practice implications, so keep these dates in mind.

Original Purposes

When Tenpa Rinpoche originally began this blog, it was for the purpose of keeping notes handy. With that original purpose in mind, here are notes on the Atiyoga Samaya, supplementary to our previous post, below:

Twenty Adjunct Vows:

1. Do not destroy the throne of the king of wild animals.
2. Do not pour poison on the rare Zamatok flower.
3. Do not cut down a precious new bush.
4. Do not drink boiling lava.
5. Do not expose the pollen heart of a lotus flower.
6. Do not pour the essence into a bottomless pot.
7. Do not rely on meaningless substances.
8. Do not insert a crystal into mud.
9. An impure vessel is not to be considered pure.
10. Do not cut a wish-fulfilling jewel.
11. Do not separate the wings of a garuda.
12. Do not strike with a sharp meteorite weapon.
13. Do not eat the leftovers of wild animals.
14. Do not destroy a great vajra rock.
15. Do not cross the boundary of the corral.
16. The wind cannot extinguish a butter lamp.
17. Abandon cutting off the flowing river of primordial wisdom.
18. Do not openly disclose the utterances, indications, and mudras.
19. Do not destroy the diamond house.
20. Do not bring the wish-fulfilling crown down to a low place.

NB: If you want the commentary on the above, go ahead and buy the book.

Swimming in the Mirage

One of our favorite blogs is earlytibet.com, where there is currently learned discussion on the hermeneutic evidence of early Dzogchen in Tibet. It seems we have mentioned this discussion here on our own blog, before.

In the context of this discussion, the author raises the issue of the Nyingma Great Perfection samaya, consisting of three and twenty-five words of honor, and some really rather disingenuous person has written in to us, to ask for "clarification."

The definitive clarification in the English language is the translated work entitled Perfect Conduct, published by Wisdom Books. This is actually Panchen Pema Wangyal's 16th century work Ascertaining the Three Vows, together with His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche's commentary.

The clarification requested is with reference to the twenty-five words of honor, expressed at earlytibet.com thusly:

"The other 25 vows are placed in four groups: (i) The five to be accepted (ii) The five not to be rejected (iii) The five to be practised (iv) The five to be known (v) The five to be accomplished"

In proper order, these would ordinarily be expressed as the five to practice (liberating, union, stealing, speaking untrue words, and idle speech); the five not to be rejected (desire-attachment, hatred, delusion, pride, and jealousy); the five to accept (urine, feces, menstrual blood, marrow, and semen); the five to recognize (five aggregates, five elements, five objects, five organs, and five colors); the five to accomplish (the buddha, vajra, ratna, padma, and karma families).

So, in Tenpa Rinpoche's words, "what do you know now that you didn't know before, and how is it you think you have helped yourself by selfishly acquiring this knowledge?" You cannot, you see, take these things at face value, without clarification. A confused person would immediately ask, "What do you mean! Somebody should practice speaking untrue words?" In this instance, it is an intellectual artifice which refers to constructing explanations according to relative truth in order to avoid inculcating extreme views of nihilism. Similarly, "idle speech" means open talk about inexpressible realization, such as saying: "inexpressible realization," in order to point to that which cannot be narrowed.

Maybe, as Rinpoche also likes to say, we "don't need to put 'Keep Out of the Water' signs around a mirage."

Actually, the samaya of the Great Perfection is of two sorts: that of "nothing to guard," and that to be maintained. With respect to the latter, there are twenty-seven words of honor: nine each of the body, speech, and mind., further divided into three each outer, inner, and secret. If we want to take an example, then the nine of the speech are the three outer (to avoid lying, slander, and harsh words), the three inner (never verbally disrespect a Dharma teacher, anyone who contemplates the meaning, or anyone who meditates upon the fundamental nature), and the three secret (never to disrespect the speech of the vajra family, speaking negative words about the conduct of the lama, and disregarding any of the lama's teachings or advice whether given by him or members of his immediate mandala). The others follow similar concordances.

Tenpa Rinpoche once explained this to me as follows:

"We can say that the first task is to acquire basic information about the dharma, the next task is to enter into the practices, and the lifelong task is to keep the samaya. Keeping samaya is what allows us to actually accomplish the practices. Doing practices is really rather easy, but keeping samaya is actually challenging: a sort of chicken and egg type thing, because the more you understand, the easier it gets, but understanding is difficult without the samaya. It is symbiotic, you know? Maybe you could say that in Great Perfection it is particularly challenging, especially when we deal with the vows about taming wild beings and so forth. It isn't always easy in this society, and sometimes entails great personal cost. Since we need to remain flexible in order to deal with circumstances as they arise, and we can't always stop to read the rule book, the main thing is to proceed from an absolute tenderness, or kindness, in each and every situation, even if you have to become overtly wild in order to dance with the energies. It is actually difficult to break samaya if you have a loving heart. If you honestly have a loving heart, then I could even say it is almost impossible to break samaya. Since Buddha honestly has a loving heart, it is possible to repair broken samaya. All sorts of methods are used, and we of course immediately think of Vajrasattva in that regard, but what makes the repair possible and what accomplishes the repair is none other than an honest, loving heart. What goes on outside is less important than what goes on inside. Rescue workers smash down doors, tear down walls, jump through ceilings, and throw people out of windows."

Buddhist Modern Dance

Tenpa Rinpoche is a big fan of classical ballet, religious dance, interpretive dance, and art "outside the lines." He observes, "Dancers make offering of their bodies by means of the dance," and has also discussed the relationship between Chinese medical exercises and dance. So, when notice came to us from his friend in Portugal of this duende dance vision, we thought we would pass it along. If I understand correctly, this is a fusion of Shambala teachings with expressionistic dance. Interesting, quite beautifully done, multi-lingual site.

Fifty Verses of Guru Devotion

Here is a useful link to Asvaghosa's Fifty Verses of Guru Devotion, also known as Fifty Stanzas of Guru Devotion, with oral commentary by Geshe Ngawang Dhargey. Tenpa Rinpoche strongly believes that it is necessary to memorize this work, and adds that at least one can read this work at regular intervals.

Also, please note the rabbit in the above photograph, taken at a temple in Burma. We shall have more to say about this rabbit, but unfortunately technical difficulties at Google have caused us some problems, and we must resolve these.

Update: We wished to publish an extensive commentary on the Śaśajâtaka, relating the story of the rabbit who threw himself into a fire in order to provide food for someone, but the machines confounded us and the commentary is now lost. You can check here for a version of the story, while we figure out a way to get our pixels back from the digital trolls.

The Lake Dakini's Lasting Admonition

"Like drapes, suddenly pulled back and a startled window thrown wide, the bright morning promises only an immediate moment, opening into brilliantly basic space. The market and fair sounds of tradesmen, and dancing children laughing across the valley augur continuity: inherent music as close to immortality as birdsongs. Reacquainted with sunlight, remembered languages, endlessly whispered prayers of effortless character: one promise leads to another, and again we come to wander, once more here beguiled, in empty dependence upon the decisions habit makes, and that other arising from old vows."

So begins the opening chapter of Tenpa Rinpoche's last book, which he was working on when he fell ill. It is very difficult to describe this book, or to categorize Rinpoche's writing. One way to explain it would be to say it is an inner dialogue that he allows us to watch: he lets us witness the exact processes of his view, so that we can make comparison with our own experiences. I do not know if that is an accurate assessment or not, but that is how I feel.

Tenpa Rinpoche's writing is so difficult to translate into other Western languages, and only a little less so in Asian languages. I know, because I have tried to translate him into Vietnamese several times. Everything he writes is simultaneously operating on three different levels. In the above passage, for example, there is the strange beauty of the English just as he uses it: a window thrown open, the sounds one hears, and the feelings this invokes. Then there is the expression of awakened mind, or watchfulness, where we see the world through the eyes of someone who knows how to see, and who inspires us with his vision. Finally, there is what I call the "secret" level, which in the above paragraph is Tenpa Rinpoche's commentary on the moment following rebirth in the human realm, when one realizes one's human status. I call it his "secret" level because of something a lama who came to visit once said: "If Tenpa Rinpoche writes a shopping list before he goes to the store, that list will have an outer, inner, and secret meaning."

I do not think it is any mystery that Rinpoche's writing is most frequently compared to the writings of those teachers who had or have the greatest command of the English language. There seems to come a point where expressions of realization composed in English flow together, and become almost interchangeable. Again, I do not know if that is accurate, but it accurately states my own idea.

Here we are struggling to prepare a number of Rinpoche's books for publication, including his commentaries originally scheduled for release in 2007, his compositions Eastern Fortress of Evident Treasure, and Lake Dakini's Lasting Admonitions, and one absolutely stunning composition I am not yet at liberty to discuss. Susan Nevis was handling most of the editorial work, along with writing Rinpoche's biography, and I will be working on a small collection of his writings treating South East Asia. In this last case, we are hopeful that 2008 will see the publication of his masterpiece of historical writing, Investigation at Seven Mountains, which was briefly released in limited edition in the 1990s, and then withdrawn.

Before we proceed, we'll be taking time off to celebrate the New Year -- not far away, on February 7th. We hope that your new year will be filled with light and beauty: that your mind be easy, and your heart stay strong.

Copyright (c) 2008 by Tulku Urgyan Tenpa Rinpoche. All rights reserved.

Konchok Norbu

We receive late word that the great Drikung Kagyu yogi Drubwang Konchok Norbu Rinpoche (1921-2007) left his body around ten in the evening of December 25th, in Singapore. Drubwang Rinpoche visited the United States in the summer of 2000, for the consecration of the Garchen Institute near Prescott, Arizona, and made an immediate and lasting impression upon everyone who met him.

Baby Sambhota

Click here for a really splendid effort to provide Tibetan educational films and children's items. If you have small children, perhaps the kindest thing you could do would be to introduce them to the Tibetan language.

Longchenpa Anniversary

Today is the anniversary of Longchen Rabjam, who would be 700 years old this year. It would seem the party is at Lotsawa House, and everyone is invited. They're giving out free mp3 audio as party favors, so get yours before they're all gone.

Non-negotiable Dharma

Photo of Rawak Stupa from Don Croner. Click here for more information.

Following is excerpted from a presentation Tenpa Rinpoche gave to some very good friends of his, who are students of another teacher. While not entirely out of context, I want to remember that he is very specific: what he says to one group is expressly for that group. Still, it seems there is something here for everybody:

Sometimes, it seems we bring a component of self-deceit to our relationship with the teacher. This self-deceit is characterized by a process of negotiation. I want to briefly examine this in a way that I hope will be useful to us all.

When I was still a teenager, I once had an emotional exchange with my teacher. It appeared to me, that despite all best efforts, he was still rather dissatisfied with me. I worried that he misunderstood me, so I told him, "Rinpoche... don't you understand I will do whatever you say? Don't you understand that I love you?"

His response was immediate, like a shot from a gun: "It isn't enough."

I think I was around seventeen years old, and I admit this was confusing to me. I recall feeling a little wounded by his remarks; a bit startled, actually. I remember asking, incredulously, "It isn't enough if I love you with all my heart?"

"If you love me, that is fine for me, but it doesn't do you any good," he answered.

So a fairly confused and dejected, teenaged boy went slowly walking down the alley, fighting back tears, contemplating all this Lama Drama, because I had absolutely no idea what he meant. It felt like a rejection, you know? It felt cold. I took the long way home that night, and when I arrived, I sat down and tried to decipher the day's events. While I was sitting there, the solution suddenly came to me, and I have carried it around ever since. I have so many things like that, in so many pockets, that if I ever fall in the river I will drown. Maybe I should take these things out and give them away.

Sometimes, we try to barter our delusions; to make them into a kind of currency we can spend with the teacher to buy his or her approval. As an example: perhaps we have a certain skill with painting. So, whenever our teacher needs some painting done, we do the painting. We become the "teacher's official painter," and this becomes a status thing, you know? Anybody else tries to paint for the teacher we immediately become territorial. We become jealous.

We also become negotiators.

If, for example, we haven't finished ngondro, it is because we were painting. If we put off doing 100, or 1,000 mantras in the morning, it is because we have to go painting. If we fail to make them up in the evening, it is because we are tired from painting all day. It doesn't have to be painting. We can be the teacher's driver, or the accounting person who pays the teacher's bills, or maybe even the teacher's personal friend (!) No matter what it is, we are using this as an excuse for our failure to discharge the most basic obligation we have to the teacher and hence, to ourselves. This is the fundamental obligation to practice, gain the results of the practice, and put these results into the discharge of our ultimate obligation, which is the welfare of all sentient beings. Maybe we are big sponsors, you know? Maybe we are trying to buy our way through the spiderweb? It isn't exactly fair to go to somebody and say, "Hey! I'm crazy! Help me stop crazy!" and then resist the process when our crazy perceptions don't let us see that this somebody is actually taking us on.

It isn't exactly fair to negotiate. This is actually quite common, and the master of transforming this was Trungpa Rinpoche. He organized his students according to their fundamental poisons. For example: he made the people with anger and aggression into his guards. He made the people with grasping and greed into his business managers. He gave very specific injunctions. To the guards he would teach tenderness. To the business people he would teach generosity. So, there was the poison, the antidote, and the transformation.

What we need to do now is wander down the alley, kick a few cans, take the long way home, and take a naughty little inventory to discover precisely how we are bartering and negotiating with the teacher -- how we are evading our basic obligations to our own lives and the lives of others. This is the way we deceive ourselves, do you see? This is just one more example of self-deception. There comes a point when being the court painter or the perfect butler becomes a kind of self-cherishing perpetuation of our own bewilderment. This becomes a very ornate portrait of all the things we are doing wrong. How about we learn to really love the teacher? How about we learn what devotion really means? How about we learn what service really means? How about we open up our stingy little paws and actually give? You know, if you say to westerners, "Go empty out the bank account and dump it all in a pile in front of your teacher," they will get a rope, form a posse, and ride out to the lynching. They'll be looking for the swindle. On the best day, maybe they'll be cajoled into paying monthly dues at some miserable "center." Marpa didn't do that when he was hopping around India, dumping out bags of gold, but then I guess maybe Marpa was gullible, eh?

The bottom line is simple: how about we take all the neurotic energy, and the sociopathic charm, and pour it into taking our lives on real terms and practicing the dharma according to the dharma, without any ancillary bartering or negotiating.

Do you think the teacher will be pleased?

I need my room painted yellow, or maybe a nice warm orange. Anybody know how to do that without getting drops on the floor?

Chewing on the Cannibals

Chinese ostentation is not something we usually think about. It hides in our consciousness behind the gauze screen of quaint visage. We summon up images of a million imperial drones attending the Forbidden City easily enough, and for some strange reason we think it harmless: an artifact of the past. Yet, we somehow miss entirely the ten million commune-capitalist drones making poison toys, quivering in expectation of yet another fat fish dinner. Anyone who spends any time whatsoever in the "new" China will walk away impressed by the sheer weight of swaggering Chinese arrogance.

The latest example is of course China's new "tulku law." We have previously posted the complete, authoritative text of this regulation in translation. You can read it for your own interpretation of what it actually means. According to the Reuters item we reprinted yesterday, "The new rules, which went into force on Sept. 1, bar any Buddhist monk living outside China from seeking reincarnation for himself or recognising a 'living Buddha'."

We thought it would be entertaining to collect the reactions of Western tulkus to this assertion. First, we interviewed Alyce Zeoli:

DTBA: What can you say about western tulkus, just from your own perspective, and in light of the new Chinese regulations?

ALYCE: One can only state the patently obvious: That the boundless compassionate intention of the Bodhisattvas cannot be contained by man-made borders, by time or by space. Nor can Bodhicitta be limited in it's capacity by ignorant opinions. Beyond that, what can one say to such fixed ideation?

DTBA: Should we even enter into a dialogue about this?

ALYCE: [W]e just jump in the viper pit with them. Why should we do that? It is just more war.

Next, we visited an interview Tenpa Rinpoche gave on the subject late last year, with a broadcast journalist from Great Britain:

INT: How do the Chinese regulations touch you personally?

TENPA: I already have Chinese documentation that acknowledges whatever arbitrary status it is that some people may believe I have, and some other people may believe I don't have, and I myself could care less about, and I received this in advance of the new regulations. I telephoned the Chinese Consulate and asked them what obligations, if any, I have under the new regulations and they told me that they didn't know; they had no instructions on how to implement these. Other than that, these regulations don't have any bearing on me as a person. They may impact my travel in the region, that sort of thing, but I never really have any problems in that regard.

INT: Do the Chinese make you sign the "promise not to preach" the way they typically do? And have you ever been asked to make a statement against His Holiness?

TENPA: I have never been asked to sign that, but I know many people who have. Neither has anyone ever asked me to say or sign anything against His Holiness. My activities on the Mainland are completely apolitical, and this to the extent that I have personal friends who are well-placed government officials. They visit me to get away from politics, I visit them to talk about hobbies, that sort of thing, and they clearly understand I do not involve myself in China's internal politics. I have opinions, like everybody else, but there is no law against having opinions. The thing to remember is that there is public diplomacy and then there is the reality of what people actually believe. The issue of Tibetan Buddhism in China is far, far different from that which is portrayed in the West by activists and so forth.

INT: How is that?

TENPA: Nobody in China believes for five seconds that the government can control how or where a tulku chooses to manifest. They understand that the government can show up with tanks, but they harbor no illusions the government can do anything else. So, it is a non-issue. Really, it is something like a joke the government played on itself. People all over the world are just laughing.

So here are two not entirely dissimilar opinions that seem to dismiss the issue out of hand. The Dalai Lama's spokesmen, in contrast, meet the issue directly and isn't that what gives it velocity? They state it is directed squarely at His Holiness, in a ham-fisted attempt to control who will be the Fifteenth Dalai Lama, as if this were possible. The identity of the Fifteenth Dalai Lama is decided by the Fourteenth Dalai Lama, and this is something extraordinary that the entire world will get to witness. Can you imagine the impact on the countless beings of this world when the Fifteenth Dalai Lama gives unmistakable evidence that yes, indeed, he is back again in a new envelope? I hope you will not think me silly, but the issue of recognizing the 15th is moot: what would it be like if you met the 14th, and then you met the 15th, and he recognized you?

Clearly, the impact of the new regulations goes far beyond His Holiness, because it reaches into the lives of all other tulkus. It will be most keenly felt in Tibet, of course, but in the West -- in the new home of the Dharma in the 21st century -- it would seem that China's bluster will have absolutely no impact at all.

Isn't that why there are Western tulkus?

Mind's Ultimate Nature

Mind's ultimate nature, emptiness endowed with vividness,
I was told is the real Buddha.
Recognizing this should help me
Not to be stuck with thoughts of hierarchy.

Mind's ultimate nature, its emptiness aspect,
I was told is the real Dharma.
Recognizing this should help me
Not to be stuck with thoughts of political correctness.

Mind's ultimate nature, its vivid aspect,
I was told is the real Sangha
Recognizing this should help me
Not to be stuck with thoughts of equal rights.

One cannot disassociate emptiness from vividness.
This inseparability I was told is the Guru.
Recognizing this should help me
Not to be stuck with depending on chauvinist lamas.

This nature of mind has never been stained by duality,
This stainlessness I was told is the deity.
Recognizing this should help me
Not to be stuck with the categories of "gender" or "culture."

This nature of mind is spontaneously present.
That spontaneity I was told is the dakini aspect.
Recognizing this should help me
Not to be stuck with fear of being sued.

—Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

This bit of verse was published in 1997, in an epistle entitled "Distortion," which appeared in a magazine. To re-read Dzongsar Khyentse's remarks after an interval of ten years is quite an exercise. One wonders what, if anything, has changed. To read the entire article, click here.

If you don't wish to read the entire article, then at least consider his poem, above, and the following remarks:

"It is important to remember that a thorough transplantation of dharma cannot be accomplished within a single generation. It is not an easy process, and as when Buddhism was brought from India to Tibet, it will undoubtedly take time. There are enormous differences between the attitudes of various cultures and different interpretations of similar phenomena. It is easy to forget that such supposedly universal notions as "ego," "freedom," "equality," "power," and the implications of "gender" and "secrecy," are all constructions that are culture-specific and differ radically when seen through different perspectives. The innuendoes surrounding a certain issue in one culture might not even occur to those of another culture, where the practice in question is taken for granted."

Tulkus In Trouble, Reincarnation Politics Redux

This Associated Press photograph from Beijing, showing the level of pollution in China, suggests that the "Dirty Olympics" will be far from the showcase China's Communist leadership intends.

BEIJING, Jan 23 (Reuters) - A senior Tibetan lama and Chinese government advisers have spoken out in defence of contentious rules apparently aimed at empowering China to name the next Dalai Lama in the event Tibet's exiled spiritual leader dies.

China's State Administration of Religious Affairs issued regulations in July banning reincarnations of "living Buddhas", or holy monks, that fail to seek government approval, ostensibly to manipulate the centuries-old practice and legitimise future appointments by the atheist Communist Party.

Tubdain Kaizhub, himself a living Buddha and vice-chairman of Tibet's Political Consultative Conference, an advisory body to the regional parliament, affirmed the regulations on Monday, China's official Xinhua news agency said in an overnight report.

Xinhua quoted Soi'ham Rinzin, a member of the advisory body, as saying the 14th Dalai Lama ignored religious ritual and historical convention to unilaterally decide reincarnations, disturbing religious order.

The Dalai Lama, 72, fled into exile in India in 1959 after an abortive uprising against Communist rule, but remains the single most important influence in Tibetan life.

China's presence in Tibet has become yet more controversial ahead of this year's Beijing Olympics, which activists hope to use to draw global attention to the plight of the region.

The Dalai Lama told Britain's ITV in an interview that Tibet supporters should protest peacefully in China during the Olympics to highlight their cause, the Free Tibet Group said in a statement.

"(In) the eyes of millions of Chinese I think (it) worthwhile to remind them there's a problem. That I think is very important," the group quoted him as saying.

Critics say China continues to repress Tibetans' religious aspirations, especially their veneration for the Dalai Lama, the Nobel Peace Prize winner whom China denounces as a "separatist".

The new rules, which went into force on Sept. 1, bar any Buddhist monk living outside China from seeking reincarnation for himself or recognising a "living Buddha".

Reincarnations of about 1,000 living Buddhas have been approved in Tibet and Tibetan populated areas of Sichuan, Qinghai, Gansu and Yunnan since 1991, according to a government Web site.

In 1995, the Dalai Lama and China's Communist authorities chose rival reincarnations of the 10th Panchen Lama, who died in 1989. The Panchen Lama is the second-highest figure in Tibet's spiritual hierarchy.

The boy anointed by the Dalai Lama, then aged 6, swiftly disappeared from public view, prompting international rights groups to call him the "world's youngest political prisoner". (Reporting by Benjamin Kang Lim, additional reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Nick Macfie)

Introductions, and How to Use This Blog

In the upper left corner of the page, you will see the search function. By entering your search criteria, you will be able to sample this web log's rich treasury of commentary on topics of continuing interest.

In the meantime, let me introduce myself. My name is Trinh, and I'll be helping with editing and posting chores while Rinpoche is convalescing. I might disclose that I am related to Rinpoche, and have known him all of my life. I was born in America and attended university in Massachusetts. I am recently married.

We're in the process of lining up some guest authors to contribute to this web log, and we're also busily editing some of Rinpoche's heretofore unpublished writings. We have much material to go through, and will publish this as it becomes available. If you have specific requests for things you'd like to see, please take a minute to leave a comment, below.

UPDATED 5/27/09 by Tenpa: Some mean-spirited people have floated the rumor that Trinh and Tenpa are one and the same. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Trinh is Tenpa's niece and doesn't post in here anymore because Tenpa thinks sicko cult monkeys will almost certainly try to harm her.

Eighteen Root Bodhisattva Vows

The eighteen root vows require that you abandon the below actions of body, speech, and mind:

1. Praising yourself and denigrating others.
You must avoid praising yourself and, with delusion, criticising and denigrating others through wanting to gain offerings, respect or some sort of profit. Praising yourself and criticising, denigrating or complaining about others creates heavy negative karma as well as breaking this root bodhicitta vow.

2. Not giving wealth and Dharma.
If you refuse to help others with financial assistance or Dharma teachings when you are able to do so in response to their requests, you will break this root vow. You must practise generosity of material things and generosity of Dharma to those who are suffering, confused and dissatisfied. You should teach those who want teachings and show them how to meditate and remove their suffering. This root vow is part of the perfection of generosity

3. Not forgiving though someone apologises.
Refusing to accept the apology of someone who wrongs you and then apologises, breaks this root vow. Also, if someone breaks vows or precepts and confesses that negative action to you, you must be prepared to accept their confession.

4. Abandoning the Mahayana.
If you reject the Mahayana, or any part of it, saying that it is not the teaching of the Buddha, you will break this root vow. To some, the Mahayana seems complicated and overly mystical. The teachings assert the existence of countless manifestations of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Some people are unable to come to grips with this vast scope and such things as the sophisticated tantric methods contained in the Mahayana. They may come to think, or even say to others, 'The Mahayana is mixed with non-Buddhist practices. It is not a pure teaching of the Buddha as is the Hinayana.' By thinking in this way you abandon the Mahayana and break this vow

5. Stealing offerings to the Three Jewels. ("Kings vow")
You break this root vow if you steal anything that was offered, or intended to be offered, to the Three Jewels. Even stealing from others or taking things intended for others will break this vow.

6. Abandoning the Dharma. ("Kings vow")
Criticising or claiming that any part of the Hinayana, Mahayana or Vajrayana is not part of the Buddha's teachings will incur this root downfall. You should not criticise or denigrate a teaching from the Vinaya, sutra or Abhidharma baskets of the Dharma.

7. Disrobing monks or nuns. ("Kings vow")
If you force monks or nuns to give up their ordination by disrobing, or force them to do actions which break their ordination, you break this root vow. Harming the Sangha must be avoided as they are essential to the continuation of Buddhist teachings.

8. Committing the five heinous crimes. ("Kings vow")
The five heinous karmas are killing one's father, killing one's mother, killing a Foe Destroyer (Arhat), wounding a Buddha and creating a schism in the Sangha. Doing any of these very heavy negative actions will break this root vow.

9. Holding wrong views.
Wrong views are such as denying the existence of the Three Jewels, the law of cause and effect, the conventional and ultimate truths, the four noble truths, the twelve links of Dependent Origination and so on. Holding such wrong views will break this root vow because you will be unable even to benefit yourself, let alone others. For example, by denying karma you will not be concerned about the consequences of your actions and, with such carelessness, will continue to create negative karma and hurt others.

10. Destroying towns and so on. ("Kings vow")
If you completely destroy any place inhabited by living beings, you will break this root vow. Destroying a city or country habitat, whether by means of fire, bombs, black magic or any other means, will kill many living beings.

11. Teaching emptiness to the untrained. ("Minister vow")
If you teach the profound subject of emptiness to those who are not able to interpret it properly, or perhaps do not wish to practise it anyway, you will break this root vow. The danger is that some may misinterpret emptiness to mean nothingness, or non-existence, and fall to the nihilist extreme denying the relationship of cause and effect. The true meaning of the emptiness of inherent existence of self and phenomena is very profound and difficult to understand. Many believe that the great Acharya Nagarjuna, who strongly propagated this system, was a nihilist, but this was because they missed the brilliant subtlety of his thought. You should therefore only teach the final view of the nature of phenomenon to those who are ripe to understand it.

12. Reversing others' aspiration for complete enlightenment.
Inducing someone who is practising the Mahayana into the Hinayana path will break this root vow. If you were to tell someone that the six perfections are beyond his capacity and suggest that, since he will never attain enlightenment, it is better to practise the Hinayana - whereby liberation is attained quickly. You will then lead him or her from a greater goal into a lesser one and break this root vow.

13. Causing someone to abandon individual liberation.
You must not cause others to abandon their individual liberation vows, whether they be the two hundred and fifty three precepts of a monk, the thirty-six precepts of a novice, the eight or five precepts of a layman, or the practice of the ten virtues. You should never suggest that these are part of the lesser vehicle and not important for the Mahayanist. Neither should you encourage someone to ignore their vow not to drink alcohol, or other vows, by implying that such vows are of a lower level than the Vajrayana vows and therefore not important. If you cause others to abandon their individual liberation vows, you will break this root vow

14. Denigrating the Hinayana.
If you disparage the Hinayana with a negative mind, especially in the presence of a Hinayanist, you break this root bodhichitta vow. Some say that the Hinayana is a very low vehicle and it takes a long time to traverse that path, and therefore it is better that to practise the great Mahayana and rapid Vajrayana. This is not a suitable attitude because both the Hearer and Solitary Realiser paths lead to liberation and to the realisation of renunciation, which are fundamental to the Mahayana path.

15. Falsely claiming to have realised emptiness.
Falsely claiming to have the full realisation of the emptiness of inherent existence of self and phenomena breaks this root vow. It is a specific form of lying, whereby you deceive others into believing that you have special attainments. It is not necessary to claim explicitly that you have high realisations to break this vow. Just implying that you have high realisations also incurs the downfall.

16. Receiving the property of the Three Jewels.
If you accept things that were originally offered to the Three Jewels, then stolen or misappropriated and given to you, you will break this root vow. It also refers to people such as kings or government ministers who use their position of power to unjustly acquire wealth and then pass some or all of it on to you. Accepting such gifts is a form of wrong livelihood.

17. The person practising concentration giving his belongings to others.
Where a yogi, engaged in a concentration retreat, reluctantly accepts the offerings of a benefactor and then with some anger gives the offerings to others who are not seriously engaged in Dharma practice, he will incur this root downfall.

18. Giving up bodhichitta.
If you give up your aspiration to attain enlightenment, or your determination to benefit all living beings, or any single living being for that matter, you will incur this downfall. Having taken a vow to benefit all living beings, to give up this purpose is to abandon them and doing so cheats all living beings. You destroy the very basis of your Mahayana practice.

The Tempest

Now my charms are all o'erthrown,
And what strength I have's mine own,
Which is most faint: now, 'tis true,
I must be here confined by you,
Or sent to Naples. Let me not,
Since I have my dukedom got
And pardon'd the deceiver, dwell
In this bare island by your spell;
But release me from my bands
With the help of your good hands:
Gentle breath of yours my sails
Must fill, or else my project fails,
Which was to please. Now I want
Spirits to enforce, art to enchant,
And my ending is despair,
Unless I be relieved by prayer,
Which pierces so that it assaults
Mercy itself and frees all faults.
As you from crimes would pardon'd be,
Let your indulgence set me free.

THIS BLOG STARTS TOMORROW

It seems a shame to do away with this blog, doesn't it? Maybe we can keep the spirit of the thing going forward somehow, with new authors. Stay tuned while we try to work out something with special friends.