The magnificent Jetavanaramaya Stupa in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka is considered as one of the most sacred pilgrimage places in Sri Lanka. The stupa was built on the ground where the legendary Mahinda Maha Thero gave a seven-day discourse on Buddhism. Mahinda Maha Thero was the son of the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka and a great...
Posted in Art, Architecture & Culture, Asia, Travel | 48 Comments »
Interviewing Most Venerable Geshe Namgyal Wangchen of Drepung Loseling Monastery about H.E. the 25th Tsem Rinpoche Interview Transcript Drepung Loseling Monastery (November 2007) So to start off with maybe, if possible, you can recollect about how it all first began, how did Rinpoche first come to know about you. If...
Posted in Great Lamas & Masters, བོད་ཡིག | 37 Comments »
Kiri Vehera Stupa (Kiri Vehera) in Kataragama is one of the sixteen sacred places in Sri Lanka that have been visited by Buddha Shakyamuni (Solosmasthana). Kiri Vehera is unique because it facilitates a close and beautiful relationship between Buddhism and Hinduism. In the 6th century BC, King Mahasena, the previous incarnation of the celebrated...
Posted in Art, Architecture & Culture, Asia, Inspiration & Worthy Words, Travel | 9 Comments »
(By Tsem Rinpoche) Geshe Ngawang Dhargyey (1921 – 1995) was a great Buddhist master who founded Dhargyey Buddhist Centre in Dunedin, New Zealand in 1984. During his lifetime, Geshe Ngawang Dhargyey had invited his close students and high incarnate lamas, Venerable Jampa Thupten Rinpoche (Thupten Rinpoche) (1941 – 2011) and Venerable Lhagon Rinpoche (Lhagon...
Posted in Audio Teachings, Buddhas, Dharma & Practice, Downloads, Great Lamas & Masters, Videos | 3 Comments »
(By Tsem Rinpoche) Brief Garden is a hidden paradise in Kalawila Village, located approximately 10 km (6.2 mi) from the resort town of Bentota in Sri Lanka. The garden and the house on the estate was the residence of the famous architect and landscape designer, Bevis William Frederick Bawa (Bevis Bawa) (1909 – 1992)....
Posted in Art, Architecture & Culture, Asia, Travel | 10 Comments »
(By Tsem Rinpoche) Dear friends around the world, I had a friend that lived down the street from where I lived in Howell, New Jersey, USA, and she had a pretty big library of spiritual books, especially books on Buddhism. Back in the 70’s many of the local libraries did not carry many books...
Posted in Art, Architecture & Culture, Books & Poetry, Buddhas, Dharma & Practice, Downloads, Explorers, Travel | 33 Comments »
(By Tsem Rinpoche and Joy Kam) Gal Vihara, also known as Gal Viharaya, means stone or rock temple in Sinhalese. It is a Buddhist temple situated in the second largest ancient city of Sri Lanka, in the Northern Central Province of Polonnaruwa. The Buddha images at Gal Vihara are known to be very sacred...
Posted in Art, Architecture & Culture, Guest Contributors, Inspiration & Worthy Words | 13 Comments »
(By Tsem Rinpoche) Sri Lanka is a beautiful country where the majority (70%) of the population are Buddhists of Theravadan tradition. However, Sri Lankan Buddhism is unique because, in addition to focusing on the practice of attaining self-liberation through one’s own effort, they adopt the practice of Bodhisattva of Compassion, Avalokiteshvara. Within the Sri...
Posted in Asia, Downloads, Travel | 10 Comments »
Dear respected friends around the world, I have read several inspirational accounts of Kyabje Pabongka Rinpoche from various high lamas and somehow this one always seems to stick out the most. Needless to say, this is one of my favourite accounts of this great lama. It is warm, intimate, inviting and it draws you...
Posted in Downloads, Great Lamas & Masters, H.H. Kyabje Pabongka Rinpoche, Inspiration & Worthy Words | 25 Comments »
The great Master Shantideva (who expounded on Lord Buddha’s teachings on Compassion in his famous book on the development of Bodhicitta – a text called “Bodhicharyavatara”) said: “All worldly happiness to be found Comes from wishing others to be happy” In “Compassion Conquers All”, Tsem Rinpoche shows how through the practice of “The Eight...
Posted in Books & Poetry, Guest Contributors, Inspiration & Worthy Words | 4 Comments »
Dear friends around the world, I am very happy to share some thoughts I had with you. Sometimes when I am doing my mantras, walking, speaking, sharing dharma, eating or just having tea, different thoughts arise. These have been placed into wonderful picture memes by our team here. Picture memes help people to remember...
Posted in Inspiration & Worthy Words | 11 Comments »
(By Tsem Rinpoche) Buddhism is a religion that stresses compassion towards everyone and this is clearly evident with the growth of the world-wide trend of Buddhist pastors, ministers and chaplains. Practitioners are becoming more and more aware that they can help others by training in pastoral care and fulfilling the roles of a pastor...
Posted in Buddhas, Dharma & Practice, Inspiration & Worthy Words | 21 Comments »
(By Tsem Rinpoche) Early Years Bill Porter was born on 3 October 1943 in Los Angeles, California. His father, William A. Porter, was a convicted bank robber who was sentenced to 20 years in prison in Michigan in the 1920s. During this unfavourable time, William’s sisters Pearlie and Pauline moved to Michigan to be...
Posted in Books & Poetry, Celebrities & People, China, China 中国, Explorers | 39 Comments »
(By Tsem Rinpoche) Dear friends around the world, It is with great sadness that I have learned of the passing of such a learned master and close friend of mine, His Eminence Kensur Konchok Tsering Rinpoche. We had been friends for many years and it was truly my honour. He was not my teacher...
Posted in Buddhas, Dharma & Practice, Great Lamas & Masters, Inspiration & Worthy Words, Prayers and Sadhanas | 29 Comments »
I have always admired Chenrezig (Tibetan) or Guan Yin in all her manifestations in Buddhism because of what she represents. When I was younger, I meditated a lot on compassion and recited a lot of mantras, and I can say that Chenrezig is one of the few Buddhas that I always prayed to and...
Posted in Art, Architecture & Culture, Asia, Malaysia, Travel | 36 Comments »
Dear friends around the world, I have lived in Malaysia for over 20 years. During this time, I have developed a great appreciation for the cultures and customs that exist in Malaysia, which has inspired me to write more about the aspects of Malaysia that enrich its culture. Here is another interesting post to...
Posted in Asia, Celebrities & People, Malaysia, Travel | 6 Comments »
(By Tsem Rinpoche) I am writing a series of articles on various holy sites such as Mount Wutai in China, the Temple of the Tooth in the city of Kandi, Sri Lanka and several holy places in India such as Bodhgaya, Lumbini, Varanasi and Kushinagar. The objective of writing these articles is to provide...
Posted in Asia, Buddhas, Dharma & Practice, Guest Contributors, Inspiration & Worthy Words, Travel | 17 Comments »
Dear friends, The Lantern Festival, more widely known as the Mid-Autumn Festival, falls on the 15th day of the eighth month of the lunar calendar, with a full moon at night. During the Lantern Festival, children celebrate with processions of paper lanterns while the adults enjoy mooncakes with their friends and families. In ancient times, the festival celebrated...
Posted in Art, Architecture & Culture, Current Affairs & News, Guest Contributors, Kechara - 13 Depts | 10 Comments »
Dear friends around the world, We are very honoured to have been given this opportunity to write on His Eminence the 25th Tsem Rinpoche’s blog. We wanted to get this information out to create more awareness on basic human rights that are denied to ‘minorities’ within society, such as widows. We wanted to educate...
Posted in Celebrities & People, Current Affairs & News, Guest Contributors, Inspiration & Worthy Words | 41 Comments »
I was online when day when I came across a book about the 5th Noyon Hutagt, Danzan Ravjaa (1803 – 1856). Titled Lama of the Gobi: How Mongolia’s Mystic Monk Spread Tibetan Buddhism in the World’s Harshest Desert, it is authored by Michael Kohn and when I read it, I found Danzan Ravjaa’s personality...
Posted in Explorers, Great Lamas & Masters | 20 Comments »