Impressively, Bhutan, a devoutly Buddhist country, is determined to preserve its traditional way of life in the face of globalisation.
The surprises began the moment my friend and I landed in Bhutan’s Paro airport.
The fresh, soothing air lifted my spirits. I felt light-hearted. Whisked through immigration by a government official dressed in traditional gho, we were in the backseat of a Hyundai 4WD within minutes and on our way to the capital, Thimphu.
As the vehicle wound its way through the mountain passes, past lush valleys, streams and terraces planted with rice, barley, potatoes, mustard, chillies and vegetables, I felt relaxed.The blue skies and natural greens exuded a calming and soothing effect. The brown made me feel warm and grounded. The furry threads of parasitical plants blowing in the wind and clinging to the pine trees, forming a mesh web, reminded me of the interdependence between man and nature and how our sanity could be destroyed by clinging to samsara’s (earthly life) delights.
A snow-capped peak loomed in the horizon, and we saw a family of very rare vultures, the Himalayan Griffons, appear out of nowhere to feast on the carcass of a horse — a stark reminder of life’s impermanence.
Bhutan, a small independent Buddhist kingdom about the size of Switzerland, sits on the roof of the world. It has a population of around 670,000 who mainly live in remote villages inland. The government adopts a policy of high-value and low-volume tourism to safeguard the country’s environment and way of life.
Visitors have to pay a minimum tariff of US$200 (RM632) per day to cover meals, accommodation, guide and travel.
Shambala — pure land
As I travelled though this land of deep contrasts, I felt myself going back in time to the legendary kingdom of Shambala — a pure land ruled by benevolent Buddhist kings. I was captivated by the majestic dzong or fortresses, which are stunning examples of Bhutanese architecture.
Numerous monasteries, stupa and temples built centuries ago dot the landscape, inspiring and titillating the imagination of the spiritual seeker. The prayer flags fluttering in the wind on trees, stupa and many a roof-top sent forth messages of hope and peace.
One of Bhutan’s national treasures, which is also a World Heritage Site, is the famous Taktsang Monastery or Tiger’s Nest. This Buddhist monastery is perched precariously on the sheer craggy cliff of a copper-coloured mountain 900m above the Paro valley. The hermitages built into the cliff faces here provide shelter for meditation practitioners who come to contemplate life’s meaning on top of the world.
Taktsang blew my mind when I finally got there after an arduous three-hour climb on foot and horseback. The cooling sprays of a breathtaking waterfall cascading down the hidden mountainside welcomed me to the tiger’s lair.
What an awesome sight to behold!
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Friday, August 6, 2010
Buddhists Hip to the Technology
In their traditional grey monk suits with shaved heads and wearing iPods, they've walked Park Avenue, listened to the concerts in Lincoln Park and played football in Lyndhurst—a part of their introduction in the Western world. The monks are a group of three Korean monks and four nuns from Donguk University in South Korea, and are staying at Felician College in Rutherford while studying English as a Second Language and learning about Buddhism in the Western world.They live under a rule of 250 precepts. And on a typical day, they're up at 4 a.m. for meditation, have breakfast at 6 a.m., and have university studies, chant three times a day and do agricultural work until sundown. While staying mentally and spiritually active, they also stay physically active and technologically savvy.
"I like football and soccer," says Sung Cheol Lee a.k.a. "Great Wisdom." Their trip to the fields in Lyndhurst was also their introduction to the American game of football.
"And I use Twitter for journals and chants. I have iPhone apps for chanting, 'I Need Coffee,' painting and a dictionary," says Heyjun Changeon Kim, a.k.a. "Blue River."
Lee, 19, and Blue River, 42, noted that it is customary in Korea not to use your birth name when you become a monk. At times, they spoke through a translator. Blue River has been a monk for 12 years. Lee is two years into the five-year journey.
"I like football and soccer," says Sung Cheol Lee a.k.a. "Great Wisdom." Their trip to the fields in Lyndhurst was also their introduction to the American game of football.
"And I use Twitter for journals and chants. I have iPhone apps for chanting, 'I Need Coffee,' painting and a dictionary," says Heyjun Changeon Kim, a.k.a. "Blue River."
Lee, 19, and Blue River, 42, noted that it is customary in Korea not to use your birth name when you become a monk. At times, they spoke through a translator. Blue River has been a monk for 12 years. Lee is two years into the five-year journey.
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Vietnam and their Buddhist Temples
HCM CITY — Ha Noi has the largest number of Buddhist pagodas and temples in Viet Nam.
This and six other new records related to Buddhism and the capital city have been listed in the Viet Nam Book of Records (Vietbooks) on the occasion of a celebration last week by Buddhists to mark the 1,000th founding anniversary of the city.
The capital, which was recently expanded and now includes Ha Tay Province and some districts of Hoa Binh Province, has 2,050 pagodas and temples.
Others include the largest bronze Buddha statue – made in 1952 – at Ngu Xa Pagoda, Ba Dinh District and the tower decorated with the most Buddha statues at Bang Pagoda, Hoang Mai District.
The 10-tonne statue is 3.95m high and 3.6m wide, and sits on a 3.9-tonne, 1.45m lotus-shaped Pedestal.
The 54m Bao An Tower in Bang Pagoda has 104 bronze Buddha statues, 40 of them 1.55m tall.
Vietbooks lists Huong Hai Pagoda as Viet Nam's first Buddhism institute for nuns while Nguyen Van Yen of Hoai Duc District is credited with making the largest incense roll, one measuring 2.1m in diameter.
Vietbooks co-operated with the Viet Nam Buddhist Sangha to create the list. — VNS
This and six other new records related to Buddhism and the capital city have been listed in the Viet Nam Book of Records (Vietbooks) on the occasion of a celebration last week by Buddhists to mark the 1,000th founding anniversary of the city.
The capital, which was recently expanded and now includes Ha Tay Province and some districts of Hoa Binh Province, has 2,050 pagodas and temples.
Others include the largest bronze Buddha statue – made in 1952 – at Ngu Xa Pagoda, Ba Dinh District and the tower decorated with the most Buddha statues at Bang Pagoda, Hoang Mai District.
The 10-tonne statue is 3.95m high and 3.6m wide, and sits on a 3.9-tonne, 1.45m lotus-shaped Pedestal.
The 54m Bao An Tower in Bang Pagoda has 104 bronze Buddha statues, 40 of them 1.55m tall.
Vietbooks lists Huong Hai Pagoda as Viet Nam's first Buddhism institute for nuns while Nguyen Van Yen of Hoai Duc District is credited with making the largest incense roll, one measuring 2.1m in diameter.
Vietbooks co-operated with the Viet Nam Buddhist Sangha to create the list. — VNS
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
August 24 is Hindu Celebration Day
Noted Hindu statesman Rajan Zed has sent greetings to Hindu communities world over on upcoming Raksha Bandhan festival, which falls on August 24 this year.
Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, in a release in Nevada (USA) today, expressed warmest greetings on this festival; when sisters tie a sacramental thread on the wrist of their brothers; wishing happiness, peace, love and joy to all the Hindus.
Rajan Zed urged Hindus to try to do some charity on this day as charity was a duty in Hinduism.
Raksha Bandhan festival, whose legends go as far back as Indra (first among the Vedic deities), is a celebration of sacred bond of love between a brother and a sister. It is held on the full-moon day in the month of Shravan. "Raksha" means "protection" and "Bandhan" means "bond".
Hinduism, oldest and third largest religion of the world, has about one billion adherents and moksha (liberation) is its ultimate goal. (ANI)
Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, in a release in Nevada (USA) today, expressed warmest greetings on this festival; when sisters tie a sacramental thread on the wrist of their brothers; wishing happiness, peace, love and joy to all the Hindus.
Rajan Zed urged Hindus to try to do some charity on this day as charity was a duty in Hinduism.
Raksha Bandhan festival, whose legends go as far back as Indra (first among the Vedic deities), is a celebration of sacred bond of love between a brother and a sister. It is held on the full-moon day in the month of Shravan. "Raksha" means "protection" and "Bandhan" means "bond".
Hinduism, oldest and third largest religion of the world, has about one billion adherents and moksha (liberation) is its ultimate goal. (ANI)
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Kung Fu Temple Honored by United Nations
Shaolin temple, the Buddhist monastery that’s also the birthplace of kung fu, has been added to the United Nations’ list of World Heritage Sites.
The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization named historical monuments near Dengfeng city, including the Shaolin, to its list of heritage sites yesterday, according to a statement on the group’s website.
Dengfeng is the 40th site in China to be added to the Unesco heritage list, which may help boost tourism to the city in Henan province. Local authorities had applied for the Unesco designation for nine years, Xinhua News Agency reported. China is also ‘ready’ to apply next year for West Lake in the eastern city of Hangzhou to be added, according to Xinhua.
The Dengfeng site in central China includes eight clusters of structures at the foot of the 1,500 meter-high Songshan mountain. In addition to Shaolin temple, the site also includes three Han Que gates, which are the remains of the oldest religious edifices in China, according to Unesco.
Unesco has named 910 locations to its World Heritage Sites list, which includes 704 cultural sites, 179 natural heritage sites and 27 mixed properties.
--Penny Peng in Beijing. Editors: John Liu, Eugene Tang.
To contact Bloomberg News staff on this story: Penny Peng in Beijing at +86-10-6649-7504 or ppeng14@bloomberg.net
The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization named historical monuments near Dengfeng city, including the Shaolin, to its list of heritage sites yesterday, according to a statement on the group’s website.
Dengfeng is the 40th site in China to be added to the Unesco heritage list, which may help boost tourism to the city in Henan province. Local authorities had applied for the Unesco designation for nine years, Xinhua News Agency reported. China is also ‘ready’ to apply next year for West Lake in the eastern city of Hangzhou to be added, according to Xinhua.
The Dengfeng site in central China includes eight clusters of structures at the foot of the 1,500 meter-high Songshan mountain. In addition to Shaolin temple, the site also includes three Han Que gates, which are the remains of the oldest religious edifices in China, according to Unesco.
Unesco has named 910 locations to its World Heritage Sites list, which includes 704 cultural sites, 179 natural heritage sites and 27 mixed properties.
--Penny Peng in Beijing. Editors: John Liu, Eugene Tang.
To contact Bloomberg News staff on this story: Penny Peng in Beijing at +86-10-6649-7504 or ppeng14@bloomberg.net
Monday, August 2, 2010
Obon Festival Coming to Palo Alto
Japanese culture will be celebrated and explored through food, music and dance at the Palo Alto Buddhist Temple's 62nd annual Obon Festival this weekend.
Obon commemorates ancestors and deceased loved ones, and takes place during July or August in towns and cities throughout Japan. Palo Alto's annual celebration, which started in 1948, will be held Saturday and Sunday; festivities begin at 5 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday. Thousands of people are expected at the temple at 2751 Louis Road.
"It's gotten bigger, bigger and bigger," said temple member Sally Barlow-Perez, adding that the festival originally involved just members of the temple community.
Attendees can expect a variety of music and dance performances by groups from throughout the Bay Area, and a wide selection of Japanese cuisine. The event kicks off with the tolling of the temple's giant bell and a performance by the temple's taiko drum group.
The free event features carnival booths for children, vendors, speeches and martial arts performances. Visitors are invited to learn about Buddhism by touring and meeting with guides inside the temple's Hondo, or sanctuary.
The festival will end with Bon Odori, a participatory circular folk dance.
Traditionally, at the end of Obon, floating lanterns are released into rivers or other bodies of water to symbolically guide spirits back to their world. Palo Alto's celebration does not involve a lantern release; instead,hey are hung inside the sanctuary.
"We're more Americanized," Barlow-Perez said, adding that there are "not too many rivers nearby."
For more information about the festival, call the temple at 650-856-0123 between 9:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. on weekdays or visit www.pabt.org.
Obon commemorates ancestors and deceased loved ones, and takes place during July or August in towns and cities throughout Japan. Palo Alto's annual celebration, which started in 1948, will be held Saturday and Sunday; festivities begin at 5 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday. Thousands of people are expected at the temple at 2751 Louis Road.
"It's gotten bigger, bigger and bigger," said temple member Sally Barlow-Perez, adding that the festival originally involved just members of the temple community.
Attendees can expect a variety of music and dance performances by groups from throughout the Bay Area, and a wide selection of Japanese cuisine. The event kicks off with the tolling of the temple's giant bell and a performance by the temple's taiko drum group.
The free event features carnival booths for children, vendors, speeches and martial arts performances. Visitors are invited to learn about Buddhism by touring and meeting with guides inside the temple's Hondo, or sanctuary.
The festival will end with Bon Odori, a participatory circular folk dance.
Traditionally, at the end of Obon, floating lanterns are released into rivers or other bodies of water to symbolically guide spirits back to their world. Palo Alto's celebration does not involve a lantern release; instead,hey are hung inside the sanctuary.
"We're more Americanized," Barlow-Perez said, adding that there are "not too many rivers nearby."
For more information about the festival, call the temple at 650-856-0123 between 9:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. on weekdays or visit www.pabt.org.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Enlightenment in a Book
NORFOLK, Va., July 30 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) -- The research article "Privatizing Enlightenment in the Re-Emergence of Religion" and studies exploring similarities between writings of Eckhart Tolle (2005) and Belzebuub (2001, 2002) reveal new insights about contemporary spirituality. Author, Dr. Gabrielle Wood will release the research online starting today July 30.
"Privatizing Enlightenment in the Re-Emergence of Religion" was published in the latest issue of the Journal of Dharma (Dec.2009, 431-444). It will be available online for the first time on July 30. The article explores the impact of spiritual leaders regulating access to spiritual teachings and guidance.
"It is increasingly common for spiritual leaders to charge money for teachings or to reserve special teachings for the elite," explains Dr. Wood. "Interestingly, this international trend is occurring during a time in which progressively more people are seeking spiritual guidance."
The implications of privatization are illustrated through in-depth comparisons of Eckhart Tolle and Mark H. Pritchard "Belzebuub." "The two were chosen because one could argue that they have strikingly similar teachings, but that they differ with regard to privatization," explains Dr. Wood in the article.
Readers will also be able to view the studies, which were cited in the article, on the similarities between Eckhart Tolle's (2005) "A New Earth" and Belzebuub's (2001, 2002) "Searching Within: A Nine Week Course" and "The Journey to Enlightenment: A Nine Week Course."
In addition to the contemporary examples of Tolle and Belzebuub, the article examines examples from Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, and other religions. "Examples of well-known figures such as Jesus Christ and Buddha indicate that spiritual teachings are divinely inspired, given for the sake of all humanity, rather than for just the wealthy or elite," says Dr. Wood.
The article concludes by considering the practical implications of this trend and by addressing questions such as the following:
* Is there justification for privatizing spiritual teachings?
* Does the choice to privatize affect how spiritual leaders present their teachings?
* Is it accurate to call privatized teachings "spiritual?"
Starting July 30, 2010 the full-text article will be available online, courtesy of the Journal of Dharma. Readers can also view the studies comparing Tolle and Belzebuub on the website: sites.google.com/a/cnu.edu/gabrielle-wood/.
More Information:
Dr. Gabrielle Wood, psychologist, lectures on leadership studies at Christopher Newport University. Her research focuses on positive leadership approaches, with an emphasis on authentic and spiritual leadership. More information can be found here: sites.google.com/a/cnu.edu/gabrielle-wood/researcherprofile.
The Journal of Dharma is an international, peer-reviewed Journal of Religions and Philosophies, published by the Centre for the Study of World Religions of the Dharmaram Vidya Kshetram, Bangalore, India.
NEWS SOURCE: Dr. Gabrielle M. Wood
"Privatizing Enlightenment in the Re-Emergence of Religion" was published in the latest issue of the Journal of Dharma (Dec.2009, 431-444). It will be available online for the first time on July 30. The article explores the impact of spiritual leaders regulating access to spiritual teachings and guidance.
"It is increasingly common for spiritual leaders to charge money for teachings or to reserve special teachings for the elite," explains Dr. Wood. "Interestingly, this international trend is occurring during a time in which progressively more people are seeking spiritual guidance."
The implications of privatization are illustrated through in-depth comparisons of Eckhart Tolle and Mark H. Pritchard "Belzebuub." "The two were chosen because one could argue that they have strikingly similar teachings, but that they differ with regard to privatization," explains Dr. Wood in the article.
Readers will also be able to view the studies, which were cited in the article, on the similarities between Eckhart Tolle's (2005) "A New Earth" and Belzebuub's (2001, 2002) "Searching Within: A Nine Week Course" and "The Journey to Enlightenment: A Nine Week Course."
In addition to the contemporary examples of Tolle and Belzebuub, the article examines examples from Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, and other religions. "Examples of well-known figures such as Jesus Christ and Buddha indicate that spiritual teachings are divinely inspired, given for the sake of all humanity, rather than for just the wealthy or elite," says Dr. Wood.
The article concludes by considering the practical implications of this trend and by addressing questions such as the following:
* Is there justification for privatizing spiritual teachings?
* Does the choice to privatize affect how spiritual leaders present their teachings?
* Is it accurate to call privatized teachings "spiritual?"
Starting July 30, 2010 the full-text article will be available online, courtesy of the Journal of Dharma. Readers can also view the studies comparing Tolle and Belzebuub on the website: sites.google.com/a/cnu.edu/gabrielle-wood/.
More Information:
Dr. Gabrielle Wood, psychologist, lectures on leadership studies at Christopher Newport University. Her research focuses on positive leadership approaches, with an emphasis on authentic and spiritual leadership. More information can be found here: sites.google.com/a/cnu.edu/gabrielle-wood/researcherprofile.
The Journal of Dharma is an international, peer-reviewed Journal of Religions and Philosophies, published by the Centre for the Study of World Religions of the Dharmaram Vidya Kshetram, Bangalore, India.
NEWS SOURCE: Dr. Gabrielle M. Wood
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)