Tibeto-logic

Itches & Scratches: Part Two

2009-07-13T14:55:00.016+01:00

There is a widely shared attitude in many parts of the Buddhist world, and not only among Tibetan Buddhists, that monks should attend to their monastic business and lay people should generally not involve themselves in it, at least not very closely. Once I was visiting a major printer of Tibetan texts done by using the traditional woodblock printing method. I expressed an interest in the small

Itches & Scratches: Part One

2009-07-05T10:20:00.016+01:00

I just finished reading a funny book, and for that reason it's much recommended, even if I fear it may be out of print far ahead of its time. It's called The Hotel on the Roof of the World: From Miss Tibet to Shangri-La. It was written by Alec Le Sueur (b. 1963), a hotel sales manager. It has nothing whatsoever to do with today's blog attempt, which if all goes as planned ought to be about

Bell Envy

2009-06-15T16:58:00.040+01:00

This engraving is from the German-born Jesuit Athanasius Kircher's ground-breaking book in oriental studies entitled China Illustrata. It was first published in Amsterdam in 1667 CE in Latin, and almost immediately translated into Dutch, French and English. In its day, it was a publishing success story. It exerted a significant influence on people's ideas all over Europe.When I look at this

A Prayer for the Happiness of Tibet

2009-06-04T13:58:00.029+01:00

A change of pace... For today I have nothing to offer apart from a small aspiration prayer. The important Buddhist holy day Saga Dawa is approaching in just a few days accompanied by the full moon, but still no signs in sight that would augur well for the future happiness of Tibetans in Tibet. Under these circumstances a religious people are bound to feel inspired to pray.(As their special

Tibet Mirror Revivified

2009-05-11T13:37:00.026+01:00

Photo by Lobsang Wangyal, permission pending.For the full-sized photo, have a look here. "In the middle of the Tibetan quarter [of Kalimpong] stands a corrugated-iron shed, from which a steep flight of steps runs up to a small stone building. The two buildings house the editorial offices and press of the oddest newspaper in the world. This is the Mirror of News from All

The Rubin's Situ Panchen Lectures

2009-05-03T18:01:00.019+01:00

Some of us had the misfortune of dwelling on a totally different continent when the Rubin Museum had its Situ Panchen conference. I've heard from more than one Tibetanist that it was a huge success. And even if many may want to, most of us can't find let alone afford apartments in New York City, so we haven't been able to see the Rubin's amazing art exhibit. It's bound to please a much wider

Death, Rebirth and Being Human in Tibetan Buddhism

2009-04-28T11:34:00.018+01:00

Our in-built bodily reproductive functions along with our tendency to waste away and die are two of the topics that interest us the most, or bother us the most, as you will. The concern with eros and thanatos is one academics share with everybody else, and not only the ones who work in Italy. I tried, but failed, to think of anyone I know who isn't the least bit concerned about reproduction and

An Inaugural Lecture on Tibet's (Creative) Dark Age

2009-04-21T22:29:00.008+01:00

Rethinking Tibet’s Dark Age: Demons, Tantras, and the Formation of Tibetan BuddhismOctober 21, 2008 in Heyns Room Faculty Club Speaker:Jacob DaltonGo to this link — as soon as you have an hour to spare — to hear and see Jacob Dalton talk about Vajrayana manuscripts found in Dunhuang. I was intrigued to learn that there are Earth Rites (Sa Chog) to be found in them. The speaker is introduced by

Men of Stone

2009-04-11T10:54:00.020+01:00

I keep finding more to say and more and more sources about the Man of Wood. That's why today I decided to blog about the Man of Stone (rdo'i mi) instead. I'll begin by just giving the sources, since I'm not sure if I'll write any conclusion at all today. To do that I would first have to get into some new... to me... and interesting... well, to myself at least... insights that cover both the

Do Dampa's Droids Dare Dream of Desire?

2009-03-05T14:43:00.026Z

Since phenomena are ultimately without essence, distinctions are only conventional and hence contingent. — Georges DreyfusIn view of Small Person's queries, which I'm afraid I haven't been entirely able to answer to either of our satisfactions, about Padampa's degree of "ruthlessness," I'd like to devote today's longish blog to two particular images used by Padampa. Both images seem

The Chinese Mask Trick

2009-02-08T12:13:00.018Z

I'm no expert in the Chinese dramatic art of sudden mask changes. I can tell you that some Tibetans were familiar with it nearly a thousand years ago. This video of the Singapore-based artist "Alex the Magician" is placed here as a footnote and an introduction to a relatively short compilation of Padampa's pieces of advice, given to a select group of individuals, called "White Conch Fragments."

Losar eCard

2009-01-28T17:45:00.016Z

What makes this year different from other years?By now it would appear that the movement to give up Losar — Tibetan New Year — celebrations has gained considerable momentum among Tibetans everywhere. Some may see contradictions in today's blog, or even reactionary impulses. I fail to see any. Losar observances will without doubt be carried out in every Tibetan home this year more or less as they

Black Bodhisattvas

2009-01-20T18:23:00.025Z

Two Mahāmudrā teachers. From a small 14th-century painting once in the Jucker Collection, presently in the collection of the Rubin Museum. Vairocanarakṣita, an important Indian teacher from Orissa, best known for his single-handed translations of Dohā (‘couplet’) songs of the Mahāsiddhas, is on your left, with Padampa on your right. They are identified beyond any possibility for doubt by

Tibschol Downloadable

2008-12-19T15:30:00.007Z

This is just a brief message to announce Tibschol (Tibetan Scholarship Bibliography) has today been made available to the public for the first time ever. This is a bibliography of works (primarily journal articles, but also books, etc.) about Tibet primarily in English (and Western European languages). What that means is that it will probably be of use to a larger number of persons than the more

The Tingri Hundred

2008-12-09T19:43:00.023Z

Padampa in his Zhijé form (and not the 'Cutting' or Chö form) is, in recent times, mainly depicted with the very interesting gesture shown above. It seems to be unique to him, and I've never been able to locate a reasonable explanation for it that carries with it much conviction. If it was made with the right hand alone it would be the ubiquitous Teaching Gesture. (I think the gesture actually

Leeches & Prapañcas

2008-11-20T10:31:00.021Z

Yes, I know, it's not a leech. It's a centipede. Wondering why? OK, keep wondering.In the comments section there was a discussion on the subject of metaphor no. 2 of Padampa's Root Text. I have now changed my translation, following Early Tibet's correction, to read as follows:The leech, satiated with blood, doesn't go after meat that is in the water.The Commentary on no. 2 reads (also changed

The Question of Indianness

2008-11-18T21:25:00.008Z

Photo taken by Aryeh Sorek, at Kushinagara, India, 2008Today's blog entry exists for no other purpose than to direct you to another website where you can download a copy of a paper originally written for the 11th International Association of Tibetan Studies held in August of 2006 at Königswinter, Germany, where a more primitive version of it was delivered aloud. The title of this paper is, "

Unpacking a Few Animal Metaphors

2008-11-05T15:04:00.061Z

A Robin Red breast in a CagePuts all Heaven in a Rage.— William BlakeI've been keeping J. Bronowski's published lectures, The Visionary Eye, next to my bed and taking it in a chapter at a time or until my eyelids get too heavy. After approaching it with much good will, I have to say that I don't find very much inspiring in his ideas. Mind you this is not to say that I don't find it interesting to

Padampa's Animal Kingdom — Part Two

2008-10-20T11:00:00.031+01:00

As promised in the previous blog, here at last I present to you the only source known to me that goes anywhere near to explaining Padampa's animal metaphors. It may be the case that Buddhism has a lot to say or suggest about animal rights or human ecological responsibilities. Certainly all Buddhists agree that animals are 'sentient,' capable of thought, aware of their surroundings, and that

Padampa's Animal Kingdom — Part One

2008-10-10T23:20:00.024+01:00

In this and upcoming blogs, I will attempt what I'm hoping will be an interesting experiment. No, I mean for you, not for me. Yes, of course I have been interested in Padampa and the Peacemaking Collection* for about 25 years. When I first saw those five volumes on the library shelves I wanted more than anything to read and understand what was written in them. But my attempts failed rather

The Tibetan Olympics of 1695. The Nine Men's Sporting Events

2008-05-03T16:27:00.049+01:00

A famous 1900 photo of the Potala Palace, Lhasa, by the Kalmuck Buddhist Ovshe Norzunov. The darker building in the center is the Red Palace, which contains among many other things the funerary chorten of the Great Fifth Dalai Lama. This is one of the very earliest photographs taken in Lhasa. (Double click on the picture for more detail.)It's an Olympic year, in case anyone has noticed. Please,

What Do Tibetans Want?

2008-04-28T14:01:00.034+01:00

What if someone held a protest and nobody could be there to report it? And even if they could, what if nobody heard what the protesters were saying? Or if they heard, what if they didn't understand? Or what if the things they were saying got hijacked or drowned out by other people with their own very different concerns? Could such a protest be said to have taken place at all?In recent weeks news

Tibetan Independence: Testimonies from Two Professors & a Bird

2008-04-15T14:18:00.035+01:00

Let's try and be brief, because frankly I'm in a hurry. And I fear you may not be ready to give me much of your time, either. With the Tibet issue proving it's not going away, there are a lot of people eager to think with their feet, which is understandable given the deep investments we have and have had in Tibet for a very long time. (Don't have the slightest what that talk about 'trendiness'

Three Tibetan Voices to Hear

2008-04-12T18:56:00.047+01:00

Today I'm blogging for no good reason except to send you off to read a newspaper interview with an extremely intelligent person working in Tibetan studies in Georgia these days. Although he has accomplished many other things, and I mentioned his book about Tibetan festivals in an earlier blog, Tsepak Rigzin (Tshe-dpag-rig-'dzin, born in western Tibet in 1957) is perhaps best known for compiling

Hearing Disabilities?

2008-04-01T10:38:00.010+01:00

Not at all in an April Fools mood, I was doing a little bouncing about in the blogosphere this morning trying to land outside my accustomed blogspots. In recent days there have been a couple of what can only be described as pro-Chinese patriotic anti-Tibetan anti-press demonstrations (although they had to be called "concerts" since they evidently couldn't get demonstration permits in time) in