Heartfelt request from monks in Mundgod
At this very difficult period of our life, we have decided to face any difficulties, even to place our own life, if necessary, as a target, to safeguard the precious lineage of teaching and practice of the Dharma [Buddhism]. Declaration and Request by Dokhang Kamtsen/Hostel, 14th February 2008. To the attention of all the most…
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso’s Open Letter
The following Open Letter was posted on Dec 9th 1997 to the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala and to the Office of Tibet in London. This and many other private and public letters and petitions never received a reply. Your Holiness, For over eighteen years you have been continually speaking out against the practice of Dorje…
Shugden Ban is Illegal and Unconstitutional
Legal References to support why the ban is unconstitutional TIBETAN GOVERNMENT IN EXILE CONSTITUTION ARTICLE 17. Every Tibetan shall have the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. The right includes freedom to openly believe, practise, worship and observe any religion either alone or in community with others. GOVERNMENT OF INDIA CONSTITUTION Adopted on:…
Very Good Commentary by TK
Only Dorje Shugden CAN HANDLE SUCH A BURDEN! Why Shugden has to be the bad guy! • May 14, 1995 – Tsangpa Oracle Prophesy I Prophesy (kha.lung) through the Tsangpa Oracle requested by the Private Office of the Dalai Lama, Prophesies of the Tibetan Government Oracles, published by the Department of Religion and Culture of…
The Dorje Shugden – Dalai Lama Conflict (INTRODUCTION: EXPLORING THE PE.BUM SOURCES)
(extracted from research of Ursula Bernis) http://www.shugdensociety.info/Bernis2EN.html EXPLORING THE PE.BUM SOURCES In this section I will present the documentation for the interviews of Part I. It is not a history, since that would require a different kind of research possible here, which would have to include Tibetan texts, both published and unpublished. A uniquely Tibetan…
The Dorje Shugden – Dalai Lama Conflict (PART 1: HISTORICAL BACKGROUND TO THE EVENTS OF 1996 )
(extracted from research of Ursula Bernis) http://www.shugdensociety.info/Bernis2EN.html HISTORICAL BACKGROUND TO THE EVENTS OF 1996 Continuing the work of his predecessors? His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama has said on many occasions Numerous times to Tibetans. For example, “I have come to be counted among the line of the Fifth Dalai Lama. I feel a definite…
The Dorje Shugden – Dalai Lama Conflict (PART 2: Origins of Dorje Shugden: arisal as a protector during the time of the 5th Dalai Lama)
(extracted from research of Ursula Bernis) http://www.shugdensociety.info/Bernis2EN.html ORIGIN OF DORJE SHUGDEN: ARISAL AS A PROTECTOR DURING THE TIME OF THE 5TH DALAI LAMA How did Tulku Dragpa Gyeltsen’s became a protector? It is believed that Dorje Shugden arose in the form of a Dharma protector after his immediate predecessor, believed to have been the most…
The Dorje Shugden – Dalai Lama Conflict (PART 3: Dorje Shugden after the time of the 5th Dalai Lama)
(extracted from research of Ursula Bernis) http://www.shugdensociety.info/Bernis2EN.html DORJE SHUGDEN AFTER THE TIME OF THE 5TH DALAI LAMA • Two hundred years later after the time of the 5th Dalai Lama During this time there seems to have been no record of much conflict surrounding Dorje Shugden. Its practice was not very public. It is difficult…
Dorje Shugden – Dalai Lama conflict (PART 4: THE CONFLICT IN 1996 )
(extracted from research of Ursula Bernis) http://www.shugdensociety.info/Bernis2EN.html THE CONFLICT IN 1996 The Dalai Lama’s statements during his public teachings March 10th and 21st, 1996 (excerpts quoted below) mark the beginning of what commonly was called “the ban.” In the course of 1996, all governmental, regional and social groups passed resolutions which amounted to a creed-like…
Letter to Robert A. F. Thurman by Shamar Rinpoche
Dr. Robert A. F. Thurman Professor of Indo-Tibetan Studies Columbia University Chair, Department of Religion Kent Hall Room 617, Mail code 3949 1140 Amsterdam Ave. New York , NY 10027 Dear Robert A. F. Thurman, I am writing in response to your letter, dated September 21, 2004. In that letter, you voluntarily enter into the…
Trichen Ngawang Chokdhen (1677-1751)
From page 67 of the biography of Trichen Ngawang Chokdhen (1677–1751) composed by Changkya Rolpai Dorje (1717–1786): Previously, a very vicious and evil spirit [1] possessed a man at Draksep. Some unstable lamas, former abbots, and monastic hostels (khangtsens) did practice in relation to it simply by invoking and propitiating it. A cairn for invoking…
Tales of Intrigue from Tibet’s Holy City
THE HISTORICAL UNDERPINNINGS OF A MODERN BUDDHIST CRISIS by LINDSAY G. McCUNE LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS 5DLPT = Blo bzang rgya mtsho. 1991-1995. “Thogs med drag rtsal nus stobs ldan pa’i dam can chos srung rgya mtsho’i mngon rtogs mchod ‘bul bskyang bshags bstod tsogs sogs ‘phrin las rnam zhi lhun drub ces bya ba bzhugs…
TWO SIDES OF THE SAME GOD by Donald S. Lopez, Jr.
Tricycle : The Buddhist Review: Spring 1998 edition To understand both sides ofthe Shugden debtate, Donald Lopez interviewed Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, founder of the New Kadampa Tradition, an advocate of Dorje Shugden worship, and the author of fifteen books, including Universal Compassion and Essence of Vajrayana; and Tibetan Jigme Norbu, who opposes Shugden worship. Jigme…
LETTING DAYLIGHT INTO MAGIC – The Life and Times of Dorje Shugden
Tricycle : The Buddhist Review, Spring 1998 edition by Stephen Batchelor Praise to you, violent god of the Yellow Hat teachings, Who reduces to particles of dust Great beings, high officials, and ordinary people Who pollute and corrupt the Gelugpa doctrine. – From “Praise to Dorje Shugden”, quoted by Zemey Rinpoche (1927-1996) The so-called Drakpa…
Newsweek article – “Did an obscure Tibetan sect murder three monks close to the Dalai Lama?”
© Newsweek April 28 1997 – Posted on May 6, 1997 by World Tibet News Did an obscure Tibetan sect murder three monks close to the Dalai Lama? BY TONY CLIFTON This murder mystery seems earthly to be set in the monastic palace of the God King of Tibet. Yet the facts are inescapable. Three…
Resolution adopted by consensus at the Tibetan general convention
(Translation of Tibetan original. Brackets and footnotes provided by the translator.) Resolution adopted by consensus at the Tibetan general convention of more than 750 ordained and lay Tibetans, at the auditorium of Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts (T.I.P.A.) in Dharamshala, from August 27-31 corresponding to day 5 of the 7th Tibetan lunar month, Earth Tiger…
AN INTERVIEW WITH THUBTEN JIGME NORBU – The elder brother of His Holiness the Dalai Lama discusses Dorje Shugden as a hungry ghost
Thubten Jigme Norbu spoke with Donald S. Lopez, Jr., last summer at Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana. LOPEZ: What is the role of “protector deities” in Tibetan Buddhism? NORBU: There are two kinds: transcendent protectors and worldly protectors. Among the transcendent protectors, you will have Mahakala and many others. These are considered fierce forms of enlightened…
Deity or Demon? The Controversy over Tibet’s Dorje Shugden
The Controversy over Tibet’s Dorje Shugden Tricycle : The Buddhist Review, Spring 1998 Edition The Controversy over Tibet’s Dorje Shugden TIBETAN BUDDHISTS OF THE GELUGPA LINEAGE have been battling over a protector god named Dorje Shugden –and whether this spirit is a benevolent deity or an agent of evil. The conflict remainedlargely unknown to Westerners…
PRINCIPAL POINTS OF THE KASHAGʹS STATEMENT CONCERNING DOLGYAL
(English Translation, commented by the Tibetan Studies Press Office) After nearly forty years in exile under the leadership of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the chances of achieving our goal of freedom for Tibet continues to improve. Tibetans stand out among all the refugees in the world for their unique achievements. This is no doubt…
Extract from Pg 208 of The Fourteen Dalai Lamas: A Sacred Legacy of Reincarnation by Glenn H. Mullin
Another controversy surrounding the Great Fifth concerns the details of the death of Tulku Drakpa Gyaltsen, a famous Gelugpa lama of the period. He was one of the most prominent lamas of his day, and in fact in some circles was held in even higher regard than was the Great Fifth, for the Fifth at…
Tibet in Exile
In March 1959, the Dalai Lama, together with his two teachers and family, succeeded in escaping from the besieged Summer Palace in Lhasa. The escape route was secured by the guerrilla organization of the Khampas (East Tibetans), who suffered severe losses in the process. Approximately 100,000 Tibetans followed the Dalai Lama to India, and about…
Does the Minister of the Tibetan Exile Government Lie?
PRESS RELEASE Ref.: Triple murder in Dharamsala, India, February 1997 Murder of the abbot Losang Gyatso, friend of the Dalai Lama by Helmut Gassner ([email protected]) On January 25th, the Swiss Television DRS reported on a murder-case in Dharamsala, India, in its broadcast called Sternstunde. An interview with the police chief of Dharamsala presented the leaders…
Dalai Lama – Dorje Shugden by Helmut Gassner
Friedrich-Naumann-Foundation, Hamburg, on March 26th 1999 by Dipl.Ing. Helmut Gassner Letzehof 6800 Feldkirch, Austria ([email protected]) Download the article in PDF or Word docx. How a runaway Austrian gets to meet the Dalai Lama is a story most of us probably know from the wonderful account of “Seven Years in Tibet.” But how a run-of-the-mill…
Advice from Dorje Shugden that His Holiness should leave and that He guarantees H.H. safety
Leave and I guarantee your safety… Excerpt from the autobiography of Kyabje Trijang Dorjechang regarding the advice from Dorje Shugden that His Holiness should leave and that He guarantees H.H. safety When I was fifty-nine, in the year of the earth boar, on the first day of the year, I performed elaborate fulfillment offerings before…
Gelug Conference
Speech by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama to the Second Gelug Conference (Dharamsala, 6 Dec 2000) We meet here today with Ganden Tri Rinpoche, the representative of Jamgön Gyalwa (Lama Tsong Khapa), chiefly gracing us with his presence. The abbots representing the three seats of Sera, Drepung, Ganden, as well as those of Tashi…
Concerning Dholgyal with reference to the views of past masters and other related matters
A talk on Dholgyal by H.H. the Dalai Lama during the course of religious teachings in Dharamsala, October 1997 There may be many among you who have never been involved in the practice of Dholgyal at all. In many other cases, you may have practised it in the past, but have later given it up….
Spirits in Dharamsala
As you can see this history of Pehar’s previous lives do not point to actions of higher level being. Part 2 of the video: According to Tibetan Buddhist myth, Gyalpo Pehar is a spirit belonging to the gyalpo class. When Padmasambhava arrived in Tibet in the eighth century, he subdued all gyalpo spirits and put…
Ban on Dorje Shugden comes from Dalai Lama Directly
Speeches on the Ban Speeches on the ban of the Gelugpa Protector Dorje Shugden by the Dalai Lama and the minister of the Gov’t of Tibet in Exile. Further Evidence on Dalai Lama’s Ban Further evidence on the Dalai Lama’s ban of Gelugpa protector Dorje Shugden. And in particular, the persecution he created through the…
101st Ganden Tripa Leaves Ganden Shartse to Join Dorje Shugden Monastery
In a shocking move, the most recent head of the Ganden tradition along with his Labrang, or office, has joined them. The Ganden Trisur’s personal assistant related that, in the words of one member of the Dorje Shugden Forum…
Buddha’s Warriors
Dalai Lama, believed to be the human manifestation of the Buddha of Compassion Dalai Lama’s Reliance on State Oracle for Tibetans Monk Fugitives in Burma Persecuted Monks from Burma Flee to Thailand Tibetans in Exile Demanding for Independence not Autonomy Yearly Marches Challenges China and Dalai Lama Videos by CNN not to be missed. There is…
The 100th Gaden Tripa with controversial Master Loo Sheng-yan together in Kurukule Puja
Master Loo Sheng-yan is a controversial monk based in USA originally from Taiwan. He openly claims he is an enlightened Buddha, that he had tea with Shakyamuni, and many other controversial statements. The 100th Gaden Tripa Lobsang Nyima was from Drepung Loseling. This Tripa openly discouraged and criticized Dorje Shugden s practice. He was not…
Black Magic Indeed!
November 11, 2009 by truthaboutshugden (extracted from http://truthaboutshugden.wordpress.com) “Later, on another occasion, we were performing a ritual of Hayagriva. It was not particularly aimed at Dholgyal. The aim was to destroy anything, be it human,non-human, a lama, a deity or a ghost, that harms the Dharma and the just cause of Tibet. Whatever it is,…
Not Afraid of Spirits
November 10, 2009 by truthaboutshugden (extracted from http://truthaboutshugden.wordpress.com) “That’s why, as I just mentioned, when it is said that (my opponents) have been doing lots of black magic, I just have to laugh. I don’t do anything about it, I don’t even visualise the protection wheel(…) I really have true faith. I told the government…
The End of the Vajrayana
November 2, 2009 by truthaboutshugden (extracted from http://truthaboutshugden.wordpress.com) “…Then I thought of taking the Secret Essence Tantra from (Kunnu Lama Tenzin Gyaltsen) as well. I happened to mention this to Ling Rinpoche one day, but he discouraged me. He told me that it was rather controversial and that it would be better not to take…
Ganden Tripa Authorizes Dorje Shugden Practitioners to represent the Gelugpa tradition
July 11, 2009 by truthaboutshugden (extracted from http://truthaboutshugden.wordpress.com) I confer upon Trijang Buddhist Institute the authority to represent and transmit the teachings of the Gelug order of Tibetan Buddhism in the United States. In April of this Year, the Ganden Tripa, spiritual head of the Gelugpa tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, wrote a letter authorizing Trijang…
The Dalai Lama’s Question Answered….
December 20, 2008 by truthaboutshugden (extracted from http://truthaboutshugden.wordpress.com) In his speech to the Gelug council, the Dalai Lama asked: “Who originally bestowed the title ‘Protector of the teachings of Je Tsongkhapa’ upon Dorje Shugden?” Answer: The Dalai Lama! The eleventh Dalai lama that is. This is clearly detailed in he writings of The fourteenth Dalai Lama’s…
Some Thoughts on the History of a Practice
December 11, 2008 by truthaboutshugden (http://truthaboutshugden.wordpress.com) I was recently contemplating the excellent good qualities of the tradition protected by Dharmapala Dorje Shugden, and a great reverence for “Manjushri in a terrifying, wrathful form” rose up in my heart. Shortly on the heels of this, I was struck dumb with the perverse audacity of our present…
Some Good Advice from Lama Zopa…..
December 20, 2008 by truthaboutshugden (http://truthaboutshugden.wordpress.com) One of the main aims of my having created this blog is to help people to see that the situation around the practice of Dorje Shugden is much more nuanced than the Tibetan Government in Exile lets on. People who know little about Dharma and the historical situation around…