Tea House: Interviews, Commentary, Reviews, Poetry
About Chögyam Trungpa
Chögyam Trungpa was a Buddhist meditation master and holder of both the Kagyu and Nyingma lineages, the eleventh Trungpa tülku, a tertön, supreme abbot of the Surmang monasteries, scholar, teacher, poet, artist, and originator of a radical re-presentation of Shambhala vision.
Akong Tulku Rinpoche
Choje Akong Tulku Rinpoche was a unique figure in the recent history of Buddhism. Along with Chogyam Trungpa, he founded Kagyu Samye Ling in Scotland, the first Tibetan Buddhist monastery in the West. When Trungpa Rinpoche left for America it was Akong Rinpoche who oversaw the construction of the temple and monastic complex at Samye Ling which has grown into one of the foremost Centres of Buddhist study and practice in Europe.
Early Life of Akong .
Termas & Tertöns – Padmasambhava & Yeshe Tsogyal’s succession
Tertön is a term within Tibetan Buddhism meaning a person who is a discoverer of ancient hidden texts or terma.
Origin of the Tertöns
Many tertöns are considered to be incarnations of the twenty five main disciples of Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche), who foresaw a dark time in Tibet.
Padmasambhava and his consort Yeshe Tsogyal hid teachings to be found in the future to benefit beings.
According to generally accepted history, the rediscovering of terma began with the first .
Nyingma Lamas – The decentralized network of practitioners
Nyingma traditional histories consider their teachings to trace back to the first Buddha Samantabhadra (Güntu Sangpo) and Indian mahasiddhas such as Garab Dorjé, Śrī Siṃha and Jñānasūtra.
Traditional sources trace the origin of the Nyingma order in Tibet to figures associated with the initial introduction of Buddhism in the 8th century, such as Padmasambhava, Yeshe Tsogyal, Vimalamitra, Vairotsana, Buddhaguhya and Shantaraksita.
Nyingma teachings are also known for having been passed down through networks of lay practitioners .
Buddhist artists – The creative Buddha Mind
During the Pre-iconic phase (5th–1st century BCE) artists were reluctant to depict the Buddha anthropomorphically, and developed sophisticated aniconic symbols to avoid doing so (even in narrative scenes where other human figures would appear).
This tendency remained as late as the 2nd century CE in the southern parts of India, in the art of the Amaravati School.
In Tibet the vast majority of surviving artworks created before the mid-20th century are dedicated to the depiction .
List of Tibetan Rinpoches
Rinpoche, also spelled Rimboche and Rinboku, is an honorific term used in the Tibetan language.
It literally means "precious one", and may refer to a person, place, or thing—like the words "gem" or "jewel".
The word consists of rin (value), po (nominalizing suffix) and chen (big).
The word is used in the context of Tibetan Buddhism as a way of showing respect when addressing those recognized as reincarnated, older, respected, notable, learned and/or an accomplished Lamas .
