Tibetan Buddhism

By C. Fred Smith

Founders: Siddartha Gautama, the Buddha. The Tibetan form grew out of the teachings Kamalashila who defended traditional Indian Buddhism in Tibet against the Chinese form.

Date: Founded between 600 and 400 BC in Northern India; Buddhism influenced Tibetan religion as early as AD 200, but only began to take on its Tibetan character after 792 AD. Its full expression as a Lamaist religion (one dependent on lamas or gurus to guide meditation) began in the 1200s, with the institution of the Dalai Lama in the 1600s.

Key Words: Lama, Bon, Reincarnation, Dharma and Sangha

BACKGROUND Tibetan Buddhism focuses on disciplined meditation to achieve enlightenment, which is the

realization that life is impermanent, and the accompanying state of bliss. Its unusual character, different from other forms of Buddhism, lies in two facts. First, it traces its practices back to the earliest form of Buddhism from Northern India. Certain practices are similar to those of Hindu practitioners,1 and the meditative discipline is similar to that practiced in the first Buddhist Sanghas, or monastic communities. Second, its practices and “peculiar, even eerie character” are a result of its encounter with Bon, the older religion of Tibet, an animistic religion that emphasized shamans, rituals to invoke and appease spirits, and even sacrifices.2 Together, these produce a Buddhism centered on monks and monasteries that is “more colorful and supernatural”3 than other forms such as Zen.4

This form of Buddhism emphasizes the place of the lama, or teacher, who directs his charges in their meditation and ritual practices. The four main schools of Tibetan Buddhism (Gelug, Nyingma, Sakya, and Kagyu) each trace their origins back to a specific lama. In general, they are quite similar in beliefs and practices, though Gelug and Sakya focus more on scholarship and the study of Buddhist thought; the other two focus on rituals and meditation practices.5 This form often involves a conversation between the practitioner and the client, which allows a few different things to happen. The first one lets the client tell the practitioner why he or she is there, what is going on in his/her life, and what he or she is hoping to get out of the session(s). The second thing that happens during this conversation is that it gives the practitioner a chance to get a feel for the client's spiritual energies prior to starting the session and allows for even more insight into the client's current situation. The third thing that happens, and one of the most important, is that it gives the practitioner and client a chance to build a rapport. This allows the client to let go and open up more to the spiritual energies during the session.

Tibetan Buddhism has caught the imagination of many in the western world, partially due to attention given to it by Hollywood,6 and the efforts of the Dalai Lama to restore Tibetan independence.7 Many westerners are more attracted to the virtues emphasized in Tibetan Buddhism such as kindness and the experience of peacefulness, more than the disciplines and rituals. However, due to the secretive nature of some of its teachings, and because little has been written on a popular level about Tibet and its religious traditions, Tibetan Buddhism remains largely a mystery to many westerners, though awareness of it is growing.

HISTORY AND STRUCTURE Buddhism in Tibet is deeply embedded in the country’s history. Sometime after 600 AD, King

Songtsen Gampo unified the various provinces under one rule creating the nation of Tibet. He married two Buddhist women and made Buddhism the court religion. He sponsored the development of a written Tibetan language so that Indian texts could be translated and he had the first Buddhist temples built in Tibet. Later, a successor, Trisong Detsen, built the first Buddhist monastery in Tibet, known as Samye. It is a large complex, intricately designed, with a six-story

temple in the center. The third floor of the temple has the apartment of the Dalai Lama (now in exile).8

Samye was the site of the Great Debate that began in 792 and lasted for two years.9 The debate was quite a dramatic event, set to determine which type of Buddhism Tibet would embrace. Principles in the debate were the Indian scholar Kamalashila, who defended the “middle way” of Indian Buddhism, with its rigorous meditation practices and rituals, and Chinese meditation master Mahayana, who argued strongly for Chinese Ch’an Buddhism, a form of Zen, which held that enlightenment came in a sudden flash rather than after long years of rigorous study and practice.10 Monks from all over Tibet attended the proceedings, but the decision lay in the hand of King Khri-Srong who determined that Kamalashila had made the best case.11 Indian or “tantric” Buddhism therefore became the basis for Tibetan Buddhism, although teachings from broader Buddhism have been important in its development.12

Tibet has struggled to maintain independence; invaded, alternately by the Mongolians and the Chinese. Sometimes the country has dissolved into separate provinces. Buddhism has been a unifying factor through this period. Dalai Lamas were first instituted under Mongolian rule, in the 1500s. A regular succession of Dalai Lamas was recognized in 1642, when the King of Mongolia made the fifth Dalai Lama the political leader of Tibet. From that time until 1950, Tibet’s leaders have all been Dalai Lamas (or their regents while the Dalai Lama was a minor). Tibetan independence ended in 1950 when Communist China invaded and annexed Tibet. Buddhism has been devastated due to Chinese Communist restrictions on religious practices (and due to the exit of Buddhist teachers from Tibet after the takeover). For example, there were 2,700 temples in Tibet in 1959. A delegation visiting in 1978 found only eight temples remaining.13 In 1959, the current Dalai Lama went into exile in Dharmasala in Northern India.14 He maintains that Tibet is still a sovereign nation, under occupation by China, and has worked very hard to make public the situation in Tibet (which won him the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989). As a result, worldwide support for the restoration of Tibet to independence has increased greatly.15

Tibetan Buddhism has grown in the United States over the past generation, surpassing Zen in popularity and public awareness. It was during 1950s and 60s that the first important Tibetan Buddhist teacher arrived in the U.S. A man named Geshe Wayal, a Mongolian lama, opened a monastery in New Jersey in 1955. Later, two men, Tarthang Tulku and Chogyam Trungpa, came from Tibet and found ways to popularize Tibetan Buddhist practices. Trungpa especially found ways to make Tibetan Buddhism appealing. He created a syncretized, western style of Buddhism that combined other Asian religious practices into a form he called Shambala, a more accessible form of Buddhism. Early on, practitioners had been Tibetan or other Asian immigrants, but American converts to Tibetan Buddhism have increased in numbers, especially since the 1970s. These converts were less likely to embrace the monastic side of this religion, being more interested in the transformative promises of meditation.

DOCTRINE AND PRACTICES Buddhism, as practiced in Tibet, has a mixture of sources from India including Bon, which is

an older indigenous Tibetan religion. Traditional Indian Buddhism is the source for Tibetan Buddhist meditation practices (including verbal mantras and visualization exercises). Bon contributes the shamanistic practice of following a Lama, or Buddha, who teaches the Dharma (principle/law) to his community of followers (Sangha). Bon, originally an animistic religion, believes that spirits inhabit natural features in the landscape and other objects.16 Their shamans entered trances to receive messages from spirits in order to placate them when problems arise.17 Modern Bon has adopted so much from Buddhism that the two religions are difficult to distinguish.18

Tibetan Buddhism has always emphasized taking refuge in the Three Jewels, plus the Lama (the wise teacher or guru who founds and leads a monastery). The three Jewels are the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha (the monastic community which comes together to encourage each other in the disciplines of Buddhist meditation and practice). To this, Tibetan Buddhism adds the Lama or Guru. He is not the original Buddha, but as a Lama, he is “a” Buddha, and he lives out and teaches the Dharma, and draws around him the community to practice the teachings. The lama/disciple relationship is very important in Tibetan Buddhism, and the disciple must follow closely the spiritual guidance given to him by the lama.

While Tibetan Buddhism traces its roots directly back to India, and its practices are based on the older Theravada tradition. Its beliefs and goals are more similar to the wider Mahayana Buddhist teaching, which says that there are many Buddhas and that the goal (Nirvana) is to be understood as a state of enlightenment, or bliss wherein one can help lead all other living beings to enlightenment along with oneself.

Enlightenment begins with Bodhicitta —the desire to achieve enlightenment for the good of others.19 From this beginning, one seeks to develop the “Six Perfections,” or six paramitas, the

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“doors of action.” These six are generosity, training in mindfulness, “all embracing inclusiveness,” diligence, concentration, and finally wisdom and understanding.20 The cultivation of these begins with Bodhicitta, which is itself, an other-directed desire to make progress in Buddhist meditation, since it seeks to grow oneself for the benefit of others.

There are four schools of Tibetan Buddhism: Nyingma, Kagyu, Sakya, and Gelugpa (The oldest being Nyingma).21 Next, the Kagyu Buddhists founded by a Buddhist named Marpa, and his disciple, Milarepa, built numerous monasteries and carried Buddhist teachings across Tibet. The third school, Sakya was originally closely associated with Mongolia and thus became a very powerful sect.22 Gelug Buddhism focuses on developing virtue in one’s life. These are the Yellow Hat Buddhists,23 a sect that has been widely popular in Tibet and in Mongolia. It was founded by Rinpoche in the late 1300s. Its main center is the famous Ganden Monastery near the Tibetan capital of Lhasa.24 The four schools of thought explain the pluralist emphasis of the Dalai Lama so often emphasizes religious pluralism, the idea that all religions are more or less equally valid. The Dalai Lama, a Gelug Buddhist, focuses on the cultivation of virtue, and the six paramitas are universally recognized as positive qualities. The major difference lies in how they are obtained.

There is a tradition in Tibetan Buddhism that a Buddha’s soul never dies but reincarnates25 in each new generation. This belief motivated the followers to find the person who embodies that re-incarnation. This began when Dusum Chenpa in 1193 told his followers that he would re-incarnate and thus still be with them. After his death, his followers began searching for the infant whom they were sure would be the reincarnated Chenpa. Their success led to other sects following the same tradition. Adherents believe that the Dalai Lama, the highest leader in Tibet, is the reincarnation of all previous Dalai Lamas but each sect and many sub-groups are all led by supposedly reincarnated leaders.

A unique feature of Tibetan Buddhism is the Bardol Todol, the Tibetan Book of the Dead, which is available in English.26 It is unique in that it offers one of the most detailed descriptions of death and the afterlife found in any religion. It details the psychological experience of the moment of death and the appearance of “clear light” in the first two stages and how these are recognized.27 The book calls for the guru, or another proficient in the faith, to be present at the time of death, and says that, right after the last breath is taken, “the vital force being thrown backwards and flying downwards, through the right and left nerves, the intermediate state momentarily dawns.”28 After the two “clear lights” are perceived by the deceased there will be a whole series of “deities” appearing, first peaceful ones, then wrathful ones, over a period of two weeks.29 The second book of the Bardo describes life in the intermediate state, and the process of rebirth.

Tibetan Buddhism sees meditation and other disciplines as best practiced under the instruction of a lama. Lamas undergo rigorous training to qualify themselves as teachers.30 They teach, not their own ideas, but the teachings of their particular school. Each of the four major schools was founded by a lama and seek to preserve his teachings, the main differences being matters of emphasis. Meditation is enhanced by various practices. For example, mudras, or hand gestures are used to focus the mind.31 The most famous of these is the posture of the hands when sitting in meditation. The hands are held on the lap, palms facing up, fingers stretched out and touching. Other gestures indicate the taking in of knowledge, or renunciation of worldly pleasures.32 These are not exclusive to Tibetan Buddhism, but have been developed there.

Mandalas also enhance meditation. These are paintings, often in bright colors that depict Buddhist symbols and concepts. Often, especially in Tibet, mandalas are “painted” using colored sand. A sand mandala can take weeks to complete and be quite intricate in design. The mandala helps focus the mind on the concepts depicted, and because the mandala is quickly destroyed upon completion, the sand being deliberately scattered after the mandala is completed, it serves as a reminder of the Buddha’s teaching that all things are impermanent.33 This illustration is linked to the ancient Buddhist philosophy of Madyamika, which gives expression and shape to the idea that nothing in life is permanent. Mantras. Tibetan Buddhism shares with other forms of Buddhism, and with Hinduism, in the recitation of mantras (short sayings changed to aid in concentration and meditation). Prayer Wheels are unique to Tibetan Buddhism, being perhaps a holdover from the earlier Bon religion. These are revolving cylinders, on a stick, decorated with prayers; each revolution of the cylinder constitutes one repetition of the prayer. Sometimes prayers are written on paper and placed inside the cylinder. Prayer flags, are similar, flags covered with mantras, and hung to wave in the breeze outside. These are supposed to confer a blessing on whoever passes by.34

CHRISTIAN RESPONSE Meditation in Buddhism is distinctly different than the meditation spoken of in the Bible.

Many western practitioners of Buddhist meditation are attracted either to the peaceful experience of meditation, or to the virtues that are central to Buddhist belief. While the virtues are admirable, the effort is, in the end, impossible apart from the grace of God through Jesus Christ. As Paul said, by

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“works of the law shall no flesh be justified” (Gal. 2:16). Virtue is a good thing to cultivate, but the grace of God is essential if one is to live virtuously, in ways truly pleasing to God.

Peace. Many western practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism will describe the wonderful experience of peace that meditation brings. While the experience is certainly real to the adherents the problem is that the experience falls short of mans deepest need according to the Bible. Christianity teaches that the only path to peace and virtue is through Jesus Christ (Jn. 14:6; 2 Pt. 1:2). Thus self-effort of any kind, including meditation, will not bring a person to the peace that is only found in a relationship with God (Eph. 2:8-9; Jn. 14:27).

Madyamika. Christianity would agree to an extent that this world is passing away but contrasts this with the promise of eternity in heaven for those who follow God (1 Jn. 2:15-17; Rom. 6:23). Madyamika has come to be seen as a basis for relativism in a way similar to postmodernism. The teachings of Christianity are in opposition to this type of relativism because the Bible establishes the reality of God as an absolute truth (Matt. 7:21-23). The idea of moral absolutes (Rom. 2:14-15), avoiding cultural influences (Col. 2:8; Rom. 12:2), and accepting the absolute immutability of God (Heb. 13:8) establishes a framework that differs from Madyamkia.

Syncretism. Christianity differs dramatically from Buddhism. In Christianity, it is faith in Christ, whereas in Buddhism it is the end result of rigorous disciplined attention to meditation. The virtue lists in the New Testament, such as the fruit of the spirit (Gal. 5:22), often correlate with the Buddhist lists of virtues. Some Buddhists will claim that this demonstrates that they are on the same path as Christians or that Buddhism and Christianity hold to the same teachings; whereas Christians will say that self-effort, apart from Christ, is bound to fail (Rom 4).35 Christianity teaches that man has nothing good to offer on his own and the only hope for salvation is by the grace of God (Isa. 64:6; Rom. 3:23; Eph. 2:8-9).

Notes

1 Michael Burgan, Buddhist Faith in America, (New York: Facts on File, 2003), 18.

2 Noble Ross Reat, Buddhism: A History (Fremont CA: Jain Publishing, 1994), 221.

3 A separate 4-page Profile has been published on this subject: Jason Barker, “Zen Buddhism,” Profile Notebook (Arlington, Texas: Watchman Fellowship, Inc. 1994-2015). A complete collection of Profiles (over 450 pages) is available at www.watchman.org/notebook. This Profile is available at http://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/zenprofile.pdf

4 Burgan, 18. 5 Ibid. 6 Jean-Jaques Arnaud, director, Seven Years in Tibet. Story by

Heinrich Harrer, adapted from his memoir of the same name (Penguin, 2009); staring Brad Pitt and David Thewlis. Tristar Pictures, 1997.

7 “Tibet,” The Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, n.d. http://www.dalailama.com/messages/tibet, accessed 7/21/2015.

8 “Samye Monastery, China.” Sacred Destinations, n.d. http://www.sacred-destinations.com/tibet/samye-monastery, accessed July 20, 2015.

9 “Timeline of Tibetan Buddhism.” BuddhaNet, 2008, http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/history/tib_timeline.htm, accessed July 20, 2015.

10 “Great Samye Debate.” Chinese Buddhist Encyclopedia, March 8, 2015, http://www.chinabuddhismencyclopedia.com/en/index.php/Great_Samy%C3%A9_Debate, accessed July 20, 2015.

11 Ibid. 12 Stefon, Matt. “Samye Debate: Tibetan Buddhism,” October 20,

2009 Encyclopedia Birtannica, http://www.britannica.com/event/Samye-Debate, accessed July 20, 2015.

13 “Timeline of Tibetan Buddhism.” BuddhaNet, 2008. 14 Ibid. 15 “Intro to Tibetan Buddhism,” Sakya Monastery of Tibetan

Buddhism, n.d. http://www.sakya.org/introtibetanbuddhism.html, accessed July 28, 2015.

16 Noble Ross Reat, Buddhism: A History (Fremont CA: Jain Publishing, 1994), 221-223.

17John Vincent Bellezza, “gShen-rab Myi-Bo: His life and times according to Tibet’s earliest literary sources” in Revue d’Etudes

Tibetaines, no. 19, (Oct 2010), 51-52, http://himalaya.socanth.cam.ac.uk/collections/journals/ret/pdf/ret_19_03.pdf, accessed July 21, 2015.

18 Reat, 221. 19 Ven.Lobsang Gyatso, Bodhicitta: Cultivating the Compassionate Mind

of Enlightenment Trans. By Ven. Shrab Gyatso (Ithaca, NY: Snow Lion Publications, 1997), 11.

20 Thich Nhat Han, Opening the Heart of the Cosmos: Insights on the Lotus Sutra (Berkelly CA: Parallax Press: 2003), 175-176.

21 “The Four Principle Schools in Tibetan Buddhism.” BuddhaNet, 2008, http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhistworld/tibetsch.htm, accessed July 28, 2015.

22 Ibid. 23 Ibid. 24 Turell V. Wylie, “Monastic Patronage in Fifteenth Century Tibet” 267-

277 in The Tibetan History Reader Ed. Gray Tuttle and Curtis R. Schaeffer (New York: Columbia University Press, 2013), 267.

25 A separate 4-page Profile has been published on this subject: Eric Pement, “Reincarnation,” Profile Notebook (Arlington, Texas: Watchman Fellowship, Inc. 1994-2015). A complete collection of Profiles (over 450 pages) is available at www.watchman.org/notebook. This Profile is available at http://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/reincarnationprofile.pdf

26 W. Y. Evans-Wentz, Editor, The Tibetan Book of the Dead or The After-Death Experiences on the Bardo Plane, according to Lama Kazi Dawa-Samdup’s English Rendering (London: Oxford Univ. Press, 2000).

27 Ibid., 89-100. 28 Ibid., 90. 29 Ibid., 104-150. 30 “Intro to Tibetan Buddhism,” Sakya Monastery of Tibetan

Buddhism, n.d. 31 “Tibetan Buddhism,” ReligionFacts, n.d.

http://www.religionfacts.com/tibetan-buddhism, accessed July 28, 2015.

32 “Mudras,” Buddhas-online, n.d. http://www.buddhas-online.com/mudras.html, accessed July 28, 2015.

33 Michael Burgan, Buddhist Faith in America, (New York: Facts on File, 2003), 57-58.

34 Ibid, 56, 59. 35 For more information on the Dalai Lama’s thoughts related to

syncretism visit http://www.dalailama.com/messages/religious-harmony and http://hhdl.dharmakara.net/hhdlquotes2.html.

Profile is a regular publication of Watchman Fellowship, Inc. Readers are encouraged to begin their own religious research notebooks using these articles. Profiles are published by Watchman Fellowship approximately 6 times per year, covering subjects such as new religious movements, counterfeit Christianity, the occult, New Age Spirituality, and related doctrines and practices. Complete Profile Notebooks containing all Profiles published to date are available. Please contact Watchman Fellowship for current pricing and availability. Copyright © 2015 by Watchman Fellowship. All rights reserved.

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