I am so very, very pleased to see increasing notice of Theos Casimir Bernard (1908-1947), whose life's work so profoundly changed my life, and the lives of so many others. The books he collected in Tibet, in 1937, are now housed (in the main) at Yale and U.C. Berkeley. I cannot overstate the importance of these, nor of what he attempted. If you are ever in Santa Barbara, be sure to visit Lotusland (once intended as Tibetland). If you are ever in Berkeley, visit here.
Here is an interesting Tibetan calligraphy exhibition, and site. You can also find a thoroughly entertaining and informative discussion of 'Phags-pa script by clicking here.
I enjoy 'Phags-pa because it lends itself to carving seals.107th Congress, 2nd Session: House Resolution 1646. January 23rd, 2002
An Act
To authorize appropriations for the Department of State for fiscal year 2003, to authorize appropriations under the Arms Export Control Act and the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 for security assistance for fiscal year 2003, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled
Section 1. Short Title.
This Act may be cited as the 'Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2003'.
Sec. 115. Migration and Refugee Assistance
(c) Tibetan Refugees in India and Nepal - Of the amount authorized to be appropriated by subsection (a), $2,000,000 for the fiscal year 2003 is authorized to be available for humanitarian assistance, including food, medicine, clothing, and medical and vocational training, to Tibetan refugees in India and Nepal who have fled Chinese-occupied Tibet.
Sec. 222. Extension of Requirement for Scholarships for Tibetans and Burmese.
Section 103(b)(1) of the Human Rights, Refugee, and Other Foreign Relations Provisions Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-319; 22 U.S.C. 2151 note) is amended by striking 'for the fiscal year 2000' and inserting 'for the fiscal year 2003'.Title VI - Miscellaneous Provisions
Subtitle B - Tibet Policy
Sec. 611. Short Title.
This subtitle may be cited as "Tibetan Policy Act of 2002".
Sec. 612. Statement of Purpose.
The purpose of this subtitle is to support the aspirations of the Tibetan people to safeguard their distinct identity.
Sec. 613. Tibet Negotiations.
Sec. 614. Reporting On Tibet.
Whenever a report is transmitted to Congress under section 116 or 502B of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151m, 2304) or under section 102(b) of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6412(b)), Tibet shall be included in such report as a separate section.
Sec. 615. Congressional-Executive Commission On The People's Republic of China.
Section 302(h) of the U.S.-China Relations Act of 2000 (Public Law 106-286), relating to the Congressional-Executive Commission on the People's Republic of China, is amended--
Sec. 616. Economic Development In Tibet.
Sec. 617. Release of Prisoners and Access to Prisons.
The President and the Secretary, in meetings with representatives of the Government of the People's Republic of China, should--
Sec. 618. Establishment of a United States Branch Office In Lhasa, Tibet.
The Secretary should make best efforts to establish an office in Lhasa, Tibet, to monitor political, economic, and cultural developments in Tibet.
Sec. 619. Requirement For Tibetan Language Training.
The Secretary shall ensure that Tibetan language training is available to Foreign Service officers, and that every effort is made to ensure that a Tibetan-speaking Foreign Service officer is assigned to a United States post in the People's Republic of China responsible for monitoring developments in Tibet.
Sec. 620. Religious Persecution In Tibet.
Sec. 621. United States Special Coordinator For Tibetan Issues.
Well, according to greatfirewallofchina.org, my sites are blocked in China, which I find strange, because site statistics show regular visits from China, such as this visit to http://www.nyingmapa.us from Beijing on July 12th.
I finished my new White Mahakala practice text and commentary back in May, and we staggered on the Chinese translation, so the decision now is to publish in English only, for release later this year. Hopefully, this one will be available by December 2007.
We are making a huge line of prayer flags, to hang from one peak to another around here, and received this nice block from a friend overseas. Unfortunately, the wood was not well seasoned (it was in fact still damp), and in the 19% humidity here, a crack developed. This did not, however, detract from the resulting image, so we keep working.
You can just barely see a Gesar flag in the background. From the foreground flag to the background flag is a distance of about 300 feet, and that is where we will string the new prayer flags. We print them one at a time, on unbleached cotton, and then sew them on cotton clothesline.
Dodrupchen Monastery
Just a reminder that we still have a couple of things available for download at: 
This is a fifteen foot flag, just received from a Tibetan lady from Dolpo who lives hereabouts. We have been enjoying unusually windy weather lately.
H.H. Dudjom Rinpoche passed away in 1987, followed by Dilgo Khyentse, in 1991. Here is a photograph of H.H. Mindrolling Trichen, who is the actual Supreme Head of the Nyingmapa Sect, following the agreement of 1962 between H.H. Dudjom Rinpoche, and H.H. Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche. H.H. Penor Rinpoche, who most assume to be Supreme Head of the sect is actually the head of the Palyul lineage. Penor Rinpoche nominally succeeded Dilgo Khyentse as head of the sect in 1992, but resigned in 2003. To his credit, H.H. Mindrolling Trichen has never cared much for sectarian politics.
Many people have written to ask about these beads. Yes, it is true, they are listed in the materia medica of Tibetan traditional medicine. No, they are not petrified worms from outer space. They are etched agates, ultimately of Mesopotamian origin. You can find authoritative information about them in Etched Carnelian Beads by Horace Beck (1933), Etched Beads in India by M.G. Dikshit (1949), and Etched Beads and dZi Beads by Peter Francis, Jr.
His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche (1910-1991) wore these beads on a necklace.
River Sky is back, in limited operation. Make appointments here.
People are fanning the flames of the Samye statue controversy, but it would be useful to ask ourselves what--if any--benefit would come of this. Basically, two Chinese down around Guangzhou (if I am not mistaken) raised 800,000 RMB (roughly USD $106,000) to install a large statue of Padmasambhava near Samye, but did not make the proper local government relationships in Tibet. Construction began (see above), and then suddenly, the statue was removed. On 1 January 2007, a new "Measures for the 'Regulation on Religious Affairs'" with 56 articles, issued by the 11th Standing Committee of the "TAR" People's Government on 19 September 2006, entered into force.
Article 13 of the new "Measures for the Regulation on Religious Affairs", states that, "Religious organizations or venues for religious activities that plan to build a religious structure such as an open-air religious statue, stupa, or Mani Lhakhang [Prayer (wheel) Temple] outside a venue for religious activities petition the Autonomous Region's government religious affairs department for examination and approval after receiving consent from the prefectural (city) administrative office (people's government) religious affairs department where the venue is located. The autonomous region's people's government religious affairs department shall put forth its decision on whether to grant approval within 30 days of receiving it.
Religious organizations and venues for religious activities that plan to build a large-scale, open-air religious statue outside a venue for religious activities handle [the matter] in accordance with the provisions in the State Council "Regulation on Religious Affairs." No group or individual outside of religious organizations and venues for religious activities may build religious structures such as a large-scale open-air religious statue or mani lhakhang [prayer (wheel) temple]"
As a reinforcement, Article 48 states that, "Where, in violation of provisions in Article 13 of these measures, a religious structure such as an outdoor religious statue, stupa, or mani lhakhang [prayer (wheel) temple] is built without authorization outside of a venue for religious activity, the people's government religious affairs department at the county level or above orders redress, suspension of construction, and demolition within a specified time limit, in accordance with relevant laws and regulations."
Before we start shouting slogans, we need to remember the concept of Skillful Means. Perhaps if the people in China had researched a bit more carefully, the statue would still be in place.
Samye Monastery made bold to erect a copper statue of Buddha Padmasambhava in the open air donated by a related enterprise's principal, which disobeyed the Law of the People's Republic of China on Protection of Cultural and the Notice of Illegally Building Open Statue of Buddha jointly issued by the State Administration for Religious Affairs of People's Republic of China, Ministry of Construction of the People's Republic of China and China National Tourism Administration.Relics Samye Monastery then self moved the open-air statue forwardly.
Democratic Management Committee of Samye Monastery,
Lhoka Prefecture,
Tibet Autonomous Region, China
June 8th, 2007
Here is the other version.
I do not want to comment on the concept of "illegally building open statue of Buddha" beyond stating that even in the U.S., you would still need to observe certain laws before erecting a large statue of this type.
If they need a place to put the statue they "self moved forwardly," they can send it here. We'll pull the permits.
You can obtain further information by following this link.
The colorful Gesar flags are produced and sold by my friend in Taiwan, who then donates half of everything he makes to the support of over 3,000 monks in the care of Penor Rinpoche.
I completed my short book about releasing animals. We have an electronic review version on the web (for a limited time), and you can download this here.
Somebody who knows my unreasonable fondness for rabbits sent me this picture of the 13th Karmapa and his rabbit (lower right corner). So, I did what anybody would do. I printed out this picture and gave it to my rabbits---who last night listened so lovingly and attentively to the puja.
Jade Grace, 11, is visiting for the summer--as is her custom--and last evening, decided she wanted to fly one of the kites. Near sunset, the line became entangled in a creosote bush. We tried, for awhile, to disentangle it but then just gave up. The creosote bush proceeded to fly the kite without any further assistance from us. Three in the morning, and the kite was still aloft.
Everybody who follows this site knows we are quite fond of flags. Here is a photo of the often rumored but rarely encountered Mahakala flag (top), and a mounted "Thousand Eyes" flag (bottom), which is the companion to one we had made for our Lion City friend, Lotus Lake. That is a Hilleberg Keron GT3 expedition tent in the background --- still going strong after 80 mph winds.
Today we are printing prayer flags, and sending luck to you on the winds.
The most remarkable visual resource treating Tibet in the first half of the twentieth century may be visited by clicking here.
Happy Birthday to His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama, who was 72 (73 Tibetan) yesterday.
The temperatures are approaching 126 degrees, the winds are regularly 60 mph or better, and then---in the middle of a clear day---lightning struck, touching off a 400 acre wildfire. Shades of last summer! The flagpole on the left in the above picture snapped off in the wind, so now we have another repair.
