UNDERSTANDING RELIGIONS AROUND THE WORLD....buckle up here we go..Part 1

Tibet Religion:

The Tibetan Buddhism is Great Vehicle (Mahayana) Buddhism. There are two parts of it: the Exoteric and the Esoteric Buddhisms. The Tibetan Exoteric Buddhism is based on Madhyamika (dBu-ma, `middle way'> of Nagarjuna. The Tibetan Esoteric Buddhism, which is different from all other Esoteric Buddhisms, makes the Tibetan Buddhism unique. The Tibetan Buddhism requests the study of the Exoteric Buddhism as the foundation and puts the Tibetan Esoteric Buddhism as the most advanced form of Buddhism. We assume that our visitors have a basic knowledge of the Exoteric Buddhism. The doctrine of the Tibetan Esoteric (i.e. Tantric) Buddhism is based on `Mahavairocana-sutra', and `Kalacakraindriya-sutra'. Its theory may be summarized as follows: "taking the six elements as essence", "five Buddhas and five wisdoms", "taking the four mandalas as appearance", "taking the three secrets as means", "cause, base, final means" and "anger and fear". "Taking the six elements as essence" is the Esoteric interpretation of the origin of the cosmos. According to the Esoteric Buddhism, the six elements, the earth, water, fire, wind, air and ether ( consciousness), make up the dhamakaya (cosmic body) of the Mahavairocana. They provide the nature of all creation and are at once the source and the foundation of the existence of all phenomena. As they are possessed by all beings in the universe, they exist in the mind of the laity. This is the something Buddha shares with the layman. However, according to the Esoteric Buddhism, the laity are incapable of recognizing the nature of cosmic beings, "unless they are aided by the supreme benevolent power of the Tathagata", which means the practice of "the three secrets" is necessity if one wishes to purify one's mind and recognize the nature of all cosmic beings. he three secrets are: body secret, speech secret and mind secret. The follower must conform his body, speech and mind to those of the Buddha. "Taking the three secrets as means" refers to a form of meditation during which the meditator, with specified gestures and in specified sitting posture, recites the true teaching of the Satyadevata or yidam (the most honoured of all Buddhas) while concentrating on evoking the deity's image before his inward eye. For the follower, it is not enough to do no evil, for he must impress the image of Satyadevata deeply in his mind. It is not enough to not use any coarse and foul language, for he must recite the deity's true teaching: it is not enough to entertain no wicked ideas, for he must never forget the vows and wishes of the Satyadevata. By doing so, he will eventually be "purified", achieve "the perfect body of the Buddha", and "reach the Buddhahood in the resent body". "The four mandalas" refers to the different types of mandala. The mandala in Sanskrit (Tibetan: dkyil-vkhor) means "rostrum" or "rostrum ground". In ancient India, the mandala was a round or square mud platform at a meditation site erected to ward off "demons" during meditation sessions of the Esoteric Buddhists. When a king ascended to the throne, or when a monk was ordained, the ceremony would take place on a mandala. To these ceremonies, all the deities representing the past, present and the future from all the cosmic compass points (east, west, south, north, northeast, northwest, southeast and southwest from high above and down below) would be invited as witnesses to these occasions, and on the platform their images would be drawn. Later on, different types of mandala were developed, of which the following four are the most common:

1. The Great Mandala, at which the presence of the deities from their respective areas are drawn in green, yellow, red, white and black to represent "the earth, water, fire, wind and air".

2. The Samadhi mandala, at which the presence of the deities is shown not by the drawings of their images, but by those of the pearls, swords or wheels they carry so that the meditators may associates these objects with the images of the deities and practise visionary meditation.

3. The Dhama Mandala, at which the deities are not represented by the drawings of their images, or those of the objects they carry, for it is believed that the sight of the initial syllables in Sanskrit of their titles will invoke their images in meditators.

4. The Karma Mandala, where carved, sculptureed or cast figures of the deities are set up to impress the meditators with the vivid, life-like sight of these deities.

Please move on to part 2, Please remain seated and keep both arms and feet inside until the ride has come to a complete stop.Thank you...dalphine:-)

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