Karuna Finds A Way
Who doesn’t love comics? Comics are great in many ways — they’re a great way to tell a story, they’re a great form of artistic expression and most of all, comics provide great entertainment! There aren’t many people in this world who have not encountered comics — and almost everyone has a favourite comic, whether it’s a superhero comic series or a funnies strip in the newspaper. Basically, these hand-drawn stories have a way of capturing the imagination and the hearts of everyone who lays eyes on them.
For example, although Charles M. Schulz, the creator of the acclaimed Peanuts comic strip once declared it was ‘about nothing’ and made up only of ‘little incidents’, this comic strip that made its debut on 2nd October 1950 depicted the ups and downs of life in a way that profoundly influenced the minds of people, culture and society.
Detail of Peanuts 22.09.63. Image credit: Peanuts Worldwide. Click on image to enlarge.
Although most of us first encounter comics as children, comics and their characters stay with us throughout our entire life. And just like many of us, Tsem Rinpoche also loves comics. When Rinpoche recalls his childhood years growing up in Howell, New Jersey, some of his favourite memories are happy times with his adoptive mother at the comic book rack in the neighbourhood convenience store, picking out the latest arrivals. As Rinpoche fondly recalls,
“In the evenings, I would make and serve my mother tea, then we would read our comics together. She would be reading the comics in bed, and I’d be sitting beside her on the floor reading mine.”
After going to India to be ordained into monkhood and joining Gaden Shartse Monastery, Rinpoche discovered how India’s largest and most famous comic book publisher — Amar Chitra Katha — made complex Hindu and Buddhist biographies, fables and epics into comic book stories that everyone could understand. Amar Chitra Katha comics have been around since the 1960s and they can be found all over India, from big book shops to little roadside stalls. Seeing how popular those comics were, Rinpoche always wanted to make Amar Chitra Katha style comics of Dorje Shugden available for all.
Not only does Tsem Rinpoche love reading comics, but on the rare occasions when he has free time, Rinpoche loves drawing them too! Click on image to enlarge.
Kechara Comics
“Comics are not heavy thick books that can frighten people away, which is why they are a wonderful educational medium to bring people deep Dharma and Dorje Shugden in a simple, easy to understand and enjoyable way.” ~ Tsem Rinpoche
With their attractive illustrations and concise speech bubbles, comic books have become a direct and powerful tool of communication and education. Rinpoche has always appreciated this aspect of comics which is why Kechara Media & Publications, the publishing arm of Kechara has created original comics from time to time. Comic books such as The Illustrated Life Story of Lama Tsongkhapa in English and Chinese have been in print since 2009!
The Illustrated Life Story of Lama Tsongkhapa was published in 2009. Dorje Shugden’s origin story in graphic novel format is also very popular.
In line with Rinpoche’s vision, Kechara is taking the platform of comic storytelling to the next level with the launch of Kechara Comics. Inspired by India’s Amar Chitra Katha, Kechara Comics brings inspirational and heartwarming tales to life in a light-hearted and fun way. From traditional folk tales to biographies of past Buddhist masters and real-life stories of people who have found new meaning and purpose through spirituality, Kechara Comics is for people of all ages.
Our comics are mostly distributed for free in both print and digital formats, thanks to the generosity of kind sponsors. So do come back to this blog from time to time to read our new releases. We hope you’ll enjoy our stories and that you too can discover how the Buddhist way of life can help you develop inner peace, love, wisdom and happiness.
The first title published by Kechara Comics is Karuna Finds A Way. It tells the tale of high-school sweethearts Karuna and Adam who had what some would call the dream life. Everything was going great for them until one day when reality came knocking on their door. Caught in a surprise swindle, this loving family who never harmed anyone found themselves out of luck and down on their fortune. Determined to save her family, Karuna goes all out to find a way.
Read the full comic book below or download the PDF to read at your leisure. Share it with your friends too, it’s all free!
Read ‘Karuna Finds A Way’ in Flipbook Format
- Use the arrow keys, arrow buttons or click and drag to flip between pages.
- Use the zoom buttons to zoom in and out on a single page
- For the best viewing experience, use full screen mode.
- Share with your friends!
Read ‘Karuna Finds A Way’ in Image Gallery Format
Front cover
Credits
pg 1
pg 2
pg 3
pg 4
pg 5
pg 6
pg 7
pg 8
pg 9
pg 10
pg 11
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pg 14
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Back cover
Support Kechara Comics!
We hope you’ve enjoyed reading Karuna Finds A Way.
Click to enlarge
Just like the printing of Sutras & traditional Dharma texts, modern publications such as these comics also generate vast merits and create the causes for Dorje Shugden’s lineage to grow.
To continue creating more of these comics, we need all the help we can get. We’re fully dependent on generous donations from kind sponsors to cover production costs.
If you can and would like to help by becoming a sponsor, you can contribute any amount to our Kechara Comics fund. To help or know more, visit vajrasecrets.com/dharma-publishing-fund or get in touch at care@kechara.com.
Thank you for your support.
For more interesting information:
- Dorje Shugden illustrated story and graphic novel
- Buddha Shakyamuni COMIC BOOK!
- Buddha’s Life Story Beautifully Painted
- An Exquisite Pictorial Biography of Buddha Shakyamuni
- My Favourite Cartoons by Gary Larson
- Tsem Rinpoche draws cartoons
- Miracles of Tsem Rinpoche: The true story of Chin Wei | 詹仁波切的奇迹：张峻玮的真实故事
- Miracles of Tsem Rinpoche: The true story of Su Ming’s nephew | 詹仁波切的奇迹：诗明侄儿的真实故事
- Miracles of Tsem Rinpoche: The true story of Jie | 詹仁波切的奇迹：欧勇杰的真实故事
- The Promise – Tsem Rinpoche’s inspiring biography now in ebook format!!
Please support us so that we can continue to bring you more Dharma:
If you are in the United States, please note that your offerings and contributions are tax deductible. ~ the tsemrinpoche.com blog team
Dear Rinpoche,
I was ordering some items over the summer, some protections items, as well as blessed mani pills, and also a mala from Mount Wu Tai. Some incense which I really enjoyed too.
They helped me get through some times during the summer when I was experiencing my negative karma acutely and would fall asleep with blessed items in my hands clutching them for protection, so I appreciate them…
I have been visiting your site lately often and I saw this post advertised on the sidebar, and I wanted to share how touched I was when I received this comic in the mail from the order that I had bought, even though it wasn’t a part of my order it came with it.
I think that the magazine is pretty cute, but really I like it. I like how her name is Karuna.
I don’t have any friends currently that practice Dorge Shugden, but if I did it would make a great gift for them to pass along too! (actually one person told me she was not sure it was a good practice when I showed her a postcard that I got, but I don’t think so…..)
Thank you
May the dharma teachings flourish.
?
Thank you, Rinpoche and the team for this amazing comic that depicts the power of Dorje Shugden. it is easier for people to understand Dorje Shugden when they read the comic. This comic is also suitable for children and they will be able to learn about Dorje Shugden too!
Thank you, Rinpoche again for coming up with this brilliant idea to spread Dharma. There are many people out there that totally dislikes reading. It will be difficult to get them to read about Dorje Shugden and the benefits of His practice. Hence, comic will be a good choice for those people.
A very interesting coming depicting the powerful and benefit of Dorje Shugden practice. Comic is a great form of reading and sharing message in a fun and easy manner. Thank you Rinpoche and team for this wonderful comic that brings our the benefit of Dorje Shugden, Vajrasecrets and Kechara team who provide services to many.
Comics storytelling is the only art form in which words and pictures are blended together in an integral way to tell a story. Rejoice Kechara has taken the platform of comic storytelling to the next level with its launching of Kechara Comics. From traditional folk tales to biographies of past Buddhist masters and real-life stories of people , all in comics. That’s wonderful bringing more and more people closer to understand better of Dorje Shugden and dharma.
Congrats to the writers team for coming out with the first publication of Kechara Comics title “Karuna Find A Way”. I did enjoyed reading this comic . Its fantastic I could only say.
Thank you Rinpoche and writers for this wonderful sharing .
It is true that comics are not heavy thick books but they are a wonderful educational medium to bring people deep into teaching of Dharma . Thank you for sharing the first publication of Kechara Comics title “Karuna Find A Way”. Wonderful and a great idea to deliver a beautiful message which is easy to understand and enjoy reading by many level of people.
Hi all, this is a nice email received from the Mayor of Berlin in response to receiving a copy of Karuna Finds A Way. I thought it would be nice to share this with everyone who has contributed towards the creation of this comic in one way or another.
Nice to have these cool comics published by Kechara. I’m sure this will be a great sell out! Thank you Rinpoche and blog team for this wonderful update!???????