8th Global Conference on Buddhism passed resolutions against violence in Buddhist countries and bombing in India

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Singapore -- Delegates from Singapore and overseas attended the two-day 8th Global Conference on Buddhism, held in Singapore on 6 and 7 July 2013. Drawing on the presence of 1,200 delegates from the various Buddhist traditions, the Conference culminated in the passing of two resolutions concerning the on-going violence against Muslims in Buddhist countries, and the bombing of the MahaBodhi Temple in Bodhgaya, India on 7 July 2013.

The resolutions were a response from the Buddhist community towards these international incidents, and passed with an overwhelming majority of more than 95% voting in favour.

Resolution on the violence against Muslims in Buddhist countries

“We hereby wish to inform our Muslim brothers and sisters that as Buddhists, we are deeply concerned by the violent treatment of Muslims at the hands of people claiming to be Buddhists.

Islam is a religion of peace and Buddhism a religion of non-violence. These are ideals for all mankind, regardless of differences in beliefs and customs. We call upon the leaders of the Buddhist and Muslim communities to condemn all acts of violence and to use their influence to encourage all to be gentle and act with compassion. We also call on governments to take firm measures against murder, assault, arson, rape and other acts of violence and incitement to violence, and take the appropriate action against offenders, whatever their social status.”

Resolution on the bombing in India

“We are deeply saddened but we forgive those responsible for bombing the Mahabodhi Temple in Bodhgaya.

You may damage the most important temple in Buddhism but you will not destroy our faith in forgiveness and compassion. “

“Buddhism is a religion of compassion and wisdom,” said Ms Angie Chew Monksfield, organising chairperson of the Global Conference on Buddhism and President of Buddhist Fellowship, said: “While we are saddened by the violence in Myanmar and the bombings in
India, we recognise that the only lasting solution towards such acts of violence is forgiveness. The resolutions are a concrete way of demonstrating our commitment to peace. We hope that these resolutions will contribute towards resolving the conflicts in a
peaceful and effective manner.”

Datuk Dr Victor Wee, President of Buddhist Gem Fellowship Malaysia, said: “I am heartened to see Buddhists from all traditions using this opportunity to engage each other on current issues of critical importance. We have discussed and passed public
resolutions on these two issues, based on the Buddhist principles of kindness and wisdom.”

The Conference included topics and presenters such as “Search Inside Yourself” by Mr Tan Chade-Meng of Google, “Challenges to Buddhism: Taking the Buddha Seriously” by Professor Richard Gombrich of Oxford University, and “Buddhist Bioethics in Medicine and Research” by Dr Ho Eu Chin.

About the Organiser of the Conference - Buddhist Fellowship

Buddhist Fellowship is a non-sectarian English speaking Buddhist group that focuses on the learning of the Buddha’s Teachings and the practice of meditation. It has over 5,000 members and has been a dynamic force in the Buddhist community in advocating modernization and bringing issues into the open for discussion and resolution.

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Pay more attention to Buddhists, Rinpoche tells India

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Leh, Ladakh (India) -- Buddhist spiritual leader Kyabje Thuksey Rinpoche has said the government should give more attention to Buddhism as its followers are along the international borders and are crucial for national security.

<< Kyabje Thuksey Rinpoche was receiving the trophy of Green Hero from the Honourable 12th President of India, Pratibha Patil in Hong Kong, 2010 (File pic)

“I feel the (Indian) government pays less attention to Buddhism as compared to others. We always pray for the country and its borders are protected by the followers of Drukpa Order of Buddhism, who are settled along the international boundaries,” the Rinpoche said during an interaction with a group of visiting reporters.

Rinpoche is ranked second in the Drukpa lineage hierarchy of Tibetan Buddhism, which is the most predominant Order of Buddhism in India and has a large number of followers in Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, and along the Tibetan border. He is also the chairperson of Druk Padma Karpo Educational Society which runs the famous Druk Padma Karpo School of the Hindi film ‘3 Idiots’ fame.

“During the recent Chinese incursion, we prayed for the country,” the Rinpoche said.

Born in Chushul in Ladakh, the Rinpoche was recognised as the reincarnation of 1st Thuksey Rinpoche (Drukchen Dungse Rinpoche) by the 14th Dalai Lama and the 12th Gyalwang Drukpa in July 1987. In June 1988, he was taken, first to Chemday monastery and then to Druk Sanga Choeling monastery for enthronement. Until 18 years of age, he studied at his own monastery in Darjeeling. For higher studies, he went to Bhutan where he spent nine years. He graduated from Tango Buddhist University in March 2013.

The Drukpa Order flourished in Ladakh because it received royal patronage and 70 per cent of the Buddhist followers owe allegiance to this lineage. Founded in the 17th Century, the Hemis Monastery is the oldest monastery of the Drukpa Order in Ladakh. According to the Rinpoche, the Hemis Gompa (monastery) has some of the most famous holy relics which are thousands of years old.

“We have a hand written manuscript of Jesus Christ in our secret library but we have not yet got the opportunity to make it public to the world,” he said.The Hemis Monastery organises the famous yearly Hemis Festival, which is a reflection of the rich traditional and cultural heritage of the Drukpa Buddhism. For the past four years, it has been organising the Annual Drukpa Council which is a congregation of leaders of Drukpa Order from across the world. The Council deliberates on the challenges of the present day.

Serious challenge

“Modernisation is a serious challenge for us as people are showing lesser interest in religion, but there still are people wanting to become monks and nuns,” he said. Environmental degradation is another issue that will be discussed at the Council to be held in August.

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India, Thailand maps Buddhist historical sites

The map would not only contain Buddhist archaeological sites but also detailed information which tourists usually seek such as accessibility, visiting times, nearby accommodations, and relevant historical information.

In addition, the map would also enable users to discover lesser-known archaeological sites spread across South East Asia.

Some of the historical sites which will be included in the map are: Bodh Gaya, Sarnath, Sanchi, Ajanta in India, Lumbini in Nepal, Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa in Sri Lanka, Ayutthaya in Thailand, Ankor Thom in Cambodia, Borobudur in Indonesia, Nara in Japan and Lung-men caves in China.

According to Baisakhi Sarkar, Deputy Director at the National Atlas & Thematic Mapping Organisation in Kolkata, the agency has formally started working on the map a month ago after receiving approval from the office of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

With 11 nations contributing data to the joint initiative, Sarkar estimated that project to be completed within two years.

?While eight countries including Vietnam, Thailand and Myanmar have already joined the league, others would join in soon. The issue is being discussed at the government level with those countries,? Sarkar said.

To prepare the map, experts are taking the help of satellite images from Cartosat - an Indian earth observation satellite.

?Even though we are now including only the existing archaeological sites, in the future, new sites which are being excavated and discovered by archaeologists would be included in the map,? he said.

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Save Pali, ancient classical Indian language of Buddhism in India

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New Delhi, India -- The Government of India has recently removed Pali - an ancient classical language - as a subject from the main examination of the Civil Services (popularly known as Indian Administrative Services i.e. IAS) of India, 2013, which were  under the purview of the UPSC (Union Public service Commission).

The presence of Pali in this competitive examination was one of the major reasons that attracted many youngsters to opt for Pali and Buddhist Studies. The examination was touted as a major lifeline of the language, and was credited to have played an important role in stemming the decline of Buddhism in its homeland.

Most Indian Buddhist scholars are not aware that the Government of India does not consider Pali as a classical language of India.

In a 2006 press release, Minister of Tourism & Culture Ambika Soni told the Rajya Sabha (upper house of the Indian Parliament) the criteria which were laid down to determine the eligibility of languages to be considered for classification as a "Classical
Language":

“High antiquity of its early texts/recorded history over a period of 1500-2000 years; A body of ancient literature/texts, which is considered a valuable heritage by generations of speakers; The literary tradition be original and not borrowed from another speech community; The classical language and literature being distinct from modern, there may also be a discontinuity between the classical language and its later forms or its offshoots.”

Activists have argued that the Pali language and literature fulfils the above criteria. Pali, the language used to encapsulate the Buddha’s teachings as contained in the Tipitaka, is a treasure trove of Buddhist knowledge and has become an important carrier of Buddhist propagation throughout the world. The latest setback has the potential of suffocating Buddhist growth in its own homeland.

Activists contend that the standpoint of the Indian government is illogical, unjustified and reflects ignorance of the Indian bureaucratic system and political leadership towards its own heritage.

The removal of Pali by UPSC and non-recognition of Pali as an Indian classical language calls for strong protests not only by those who are related with Pali and Buddhist Studies but also by all those who study, respect or relate themselves with Indology or Buddhism in whatever ways.

A petition has been organised to mount pressure on the Government of India to take the following actions:

Include Pali as a classical language of IndiaWithdraw the decision of removing Pali Language & Literature from the Civil Services Examination conducted by Union Public service Commission (UPSC) of India.

Supporters of the Pali language are urged to write to Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India. His address is as follows:

South Block, Raisina Hill,
New Delhi.
India-110011.
Telephone: 91-11-23012312.
Fax: 91-11-23019545 / 91-11-23016857
Email: http://pmindia.gov.in/feedback.php

A Facebook Page entitled “Save Pali and Buddhist Studies in India” can be viewed here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/586673281343224/?ref=ts&fref=ts

An online petition entitled “Save Pali, ancient classical Indian language of Buddhism in India” has been setup:
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/979/079/931/save-pali-ancient-classical-indian-language-of-buddhism-in-india/.

All Buddhists are urged to support this cause as the death of Pali Language and Buddhist Studies in its motherland would be disastrous, not only for India but also for the entire World.

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India Taps Potential of Rich Buddhist Heritage

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NEW DELHI, India -- India is tapping the potential of its rich Buddhist heritage by wooing more tourists from East and South East Asian countries. Buddhism originated in India but went on to gain more popularity in other Asian countries.

From a rail station in New Delhi the luxury train, the Mahaparinirvan Express, begins its winding, eight-day journey through three Indian states -- Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Orissa.
The passengers on board include a group of tourists from Thailand, who are greeted with garlands and music. At daytime, the train stops at some of Buddhism’s most sacred sites such as Bodh Gaya where Buddha obtained enlightenment, Sarnath, where he gave his first sermon, Varanasi, where he preached and Kusinagar, where he died. 
The train is sometimes delayed by dense winter fog, but the visitors from Thailand say they are satisfied with their spiritual encounter.

Buddha began preaching Buddhism in India more than 2,500 years ago. As a result, some of Buddhism’s most sacred sites - places where he lived and preached are located in India -- although the religion went on became more popular elsewhere in Asia.
Many of these holy spots lie in India’s poorest states which were not easy to access for decades. As a result only the most committed religious tourists made the effort to reach the sites, resulting in relatively few foreign visitors. 
But in recent years, India has been trying to attract more tourists from countries such with sizeable Buddhist populations such as Japan and Thailand and develop what it calls spiritual tourism. 
It has connected key Buddhist heritage sites through a rail network on which the Mahaparinirvan Express plies. And it is trying to improve other infrastructure such as highways and airports for those who want to plan their own visits. 
The head of India’s Association of Tour Operators, Subhash Goyal says the process has begun, but much more needs to be done. “In a lot of areas where hotels and other things need to come up and second is road connectivity, and there needs to be air connectivity connecting all these places with small planes or with helicopters," he said. "If the facilities improve and infrastructure improves, I am sure we can have two to three million tourists, just Buddhist tourists coming to India.”
The government recognizes the need to invest more funds to develop what it calls the “Buddhist circuit.” 
Tourism Minister, K.Cheeranjivi on a recent visit to Tokyo, said India needs more quality, budget accommodation close to prominent Buddhist sites and called on Japan to invest in the hospitality sector.   

It is not just India that is hoping to draw in Buddhist tourists. Passengers aboard the Buddhist pilgrim train are taken via bus across the border to the tiny town of Lumbini in Nepal. 
This town, where Gautam Buddha was born, has been getting a makeover for many years to provide amenities for tourists.

Sharad Pradhan at Nepal’s Tourist Board says so far most of the overseas tourists come via India, but they hope to change that. “We have many tourists coming from Sri Lanka also, there are so many tourists coming from Thailand, Japan also. Now the government of Nepal is opening airport at Lumbini," he added. "So that will be complete within two years so that tourists can directly come to Lumbini.”
In India, states rich in Buddhist heritage have begun reaping a dividend from Buddhist tourism. A decade ago, virtually no foreign tourists went to Bihar, which is among India’s poorest and least developed areas, but also the area where most Buddhist sites are located. Today, Bihar hosts nearly half a million overseas visitors.

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Dalai Lama hails secularism practised in India

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Patna, India -- Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama Saturday praised secularism practised in India and emphasised that the message of peaceful existence of different religions in the country should be taken all over the world.

"India is a symbol of secularism. It shows how different religions coexist in harmony in the country," the Noble laureate said in his inaugural speech at the International Buddhist Sangh Conference.

The Tibetan monk praised Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar for promoting Buddhism and also for development in the state.

"Bihar is moving ahead under dynamic leadership of Nitish Kumar," he said and thanked him for initiatives for promoting Buddhism.

He referred to establishment of new Nalanda university and converting old jail building into a Buddha Smriti park to drive home his point.

The Dalai Lama stressed on mental peace along with scientific development. He also stressed on converting Buddhist stupas and libraries besides places of religion as a seat of learning.

The Tibetan leader also spoke against change of religion and appealed to people to spread goodness of ones religion to the world.

The three-day Buddhist conference which started on Saturday is being attended by over 200 delegates from 17 countries including the US, UK, France, Japan, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Thailand, Mynamar, Nepal and Bangladesh in addition to India.

Welcoming the delegates, the chief minister said that his government was trying to move ahead in accordance with the teachings of Lord Buddha that power should not come into ones head.

He said besides the Centre, the state government has also decided to excavate sites related to Buddhism which is not known to the world so far.

The Bihar CM said the state government has taken steps for developing Buddhist circuit to attract visitors, including those from around the world.

He said Bihar has derived its name from the Buddhist viharas and the state would work hard to live upto this.

Kumar thanked the Dalai Lama for his love and affection for Bihar and sought his constant guidance for strengthening peace and harmony in the state.

Kumar said Buddhism precepts were still relevant in the contemporary world and stressed on spreading the message of Buddha.

Deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi said Patliputra (ancient name of Patna) was capital of King Ashoka and the city would do everything to maintain its past glory.

The Buddhist meet was hosted by Bodh Gaya Temple Management Committee with the assistance of state government's Art and culture department.

Minister for art and culture Sukhda Pandey said that the state government was taking effective steps to preserve and conserve everything related to Buddhism, which has its origin in Bihar.

The meet at the Buddha Smriti park began with utterance of Buddhist hymns and key note addressed by senior monks -- Ven Somdet Prawannarat from Thailand, Khinin Da Thar Sayadaw from Myanmar and Ryojun Sato from Japan.

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China and India use Buddha for regional Karma

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The two would-be superpowers are using their Buddhist prestige to exert influence in Nepal, Myanmar and Sri Lanka.

New Delhi, India -- As part of their growing competition for influence in Asia, China and India are using the Buddha as weapon: sponsoring conferences, financing religious sites, and displaying relics in countries where the religion is widely adhered to.

<< India donated a five-metre statue of the Buddha to the glittering Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar [Reuters]

In December, India and Myanmar co-sponsored a three-day conference of Buddhist scholars at the Sitagu International Buddhist Academy in Yangon. India's Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid joined Myanmar's vice-president U Sai Mauk to inaugurate the conference, which brought together people from across southeast Asia.

"As the international community watches Myanmar with renewed interest, it is only apt that this important meeting of scholars - designed to provide us with a better understanding of the depth and global spread of Buddhist influences - is being organised in this golden land, Suvarnabhumi," Khurshid said in his speech.

Khurshid also attended a ceremony to mark the unveiling of a five-metre statue of the Buddha in Yangon's glittering Shwedagon Pagoda, Myanmar's most revered Buddhist shrine. The statue had been announced by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during his visit to Myanmar in May.

Myanmar melee

Using the Buddha to culturally engage Myanmar makes sense, as nearly 90 percent of its people practice the religion. But India's actions are also seen as a response to recent, similar Chinese moves.

In November 2011, China sent a Buddha tooth relic on a mobile display to several cities in Myanmar, including former capital Yangon and present capital Naypyidaw. This relic had been preserved in Beijing's Lingguang Si Temple and it drew huge crowds of prayerful worshippers. The event was widely reported in Chinese media, and was followed by an agreement between the Lingguang Si Temple and Shwedagon Pagoda to promote religious ties between the two nations.

Myanmar is a growing focus of China-India competition. New Delhi is seeking to build roads, modernise ports and build dams to counter China's already impressive array of infrastructure projects in the country.

India is trying to improve access to its remote northeastern region by modernising the Sittwe port in Myanmar's troubled Rakhine state and dredging the Kaladan River that forms part of the border between Myanmar and India. Meanwhile, China is constructing a deep port at Kyaukpyu, also in Myanmar's Rakhine state. It is also building an oil-gas pipeline from near the new port to China's Yunnan Province to transport fuel from the Middle East, while avoiding the Malacca Straits between Malaysia and Indonesia, which Chinese strategists see as a choke point. 

Diplomats say India can use its soft power in this jockeying for influence. "Buddhism in Asia is one of our greatest assets, a definite element in our soft power. And being home to the Dalai Lama, who is the acknowledged leader of a large section of the Buddhist community, gives us a major advantage," said former Indian foreign secretary Krishnan Srinivasan.

Srinivasan said China now accepts Buddhism along with other religions, and is promoting its civilisational traditions abroad. "But it has a long way to go to match India," he said, while conceding Beijing also "has far greater financial resources to deploy".

China has projected its culture through the ever-increasing number of "Confucius centres" worldwide, but has lately turned to using Buddhism.

"This is not just a defensive move by Beijing to counter global criticisms of its policy in Tibet, where more and monks are self-immolating in protest against persecution," international relations expert Sabyasachi Basu Roy Chaudhuri told Al Jazeera.

"It is also to play on religious and cultural feelings to connect to countries which are largely Buddhist. This is diplomatic pragmatism unexpected of a communist country but not unexpected of today's China."

Renovating Buddha's birthplace

In Nepal, China is financing a $3bn project to develop Lumbini, the birthplace of the Buddha, with a new airport, a connecting highway, hotels, convention centres, temples and a Buddhist university. In 2011, the Beijing-based Asia Pacific Exchange and Cooperation Foundation signed a memorandum of understanding with the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation to develop the project.

A few months after the China-financed Lumbini project was announced, India promptly organised a Global Buddhist Congregation through the Delhi-based Ashoka Mission. The congregation brought together top monks and nuns from across the world, and ended up endorsing the Dalai Lama, Beijing's bete noire, as Buddhists' global leader - emphasising India's central role in preserving Buddhism's ancient heritage.

The International Buddhist Confederation that emerged from this congregation, which envisaged a central role for the Dalai Lama, could act as a lever for India to counter China's moves in the Buddhist world.

In fact, Beijing raised objections to the Dalai Lama's participation in the Global Buddhist Congregation and was upset when Delhi refused to stop him from addressing its valedictory session. It angered Chinese officials enough that they delayed a round of border negotiations. The dialogue to settle the Sino-Indian border later resumed, but Beijing had made clear its displeasure.

Some see a long-term vision in the inception of the International Buddhist Confederation.

"This has been set up with much more strategic foresight than just a reaction to China's action on Lumbini," said China-watcher Binoda Mishra, head of the Calcutta-based Centre for Studies in International Relations and Development.

"It aims at nullifying Chinese future plans of securing the right to interfere in the selection of future Dalai Lamas, because Beijing wants to be the sole authority on the selection of [the] Dalai Lama in the future."

Nepal is an important buffer between India and China, and New Delhi is as uncomfortable with Beijing's growing influence there as in Myanmar.

'Strategic encirclement'

In August, India took the "Kapilavastu Relics" to Sri Lanka, which had been preserved in the National Museum in New Delhi. The relics were taken around the island nation, drawing large number of Buddhists who prayed before them.

Growing Chinese influence in Sri Lanka is also worrying India.

Indian planners worry about a "strategic encirclement" by China, which has steadily improved relations with almost all of India's neighbours: Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Myanmar, a set some have called the Chinese "string of pearls".

For its part, China is worried by India's growing ties with countries such as Japan, Vietnam, Australia and others. Its strategists are concerned that the US is seeking to bring India together with these countries in order to contain China.

Beijing has asked New Delhi to back off from hydrocarbon exploration in the hotly disputed South China Sea.

With no end to the tension in site, Buddhism could well continue to be an important element of soft power that both India and China are likely to use in the years ahead to win hearts and minds across the vast continent.

But some wish the two Asian giants would work together rather than compete. "It would be good to see India and China act co-operatively to protect Asian religious heritage," said former foreign secretary Srinivasan. "But that is still some way ahead for the future."

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Russian Buddhists' Newly Found Link with Tibet and India

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New Delhi, India -- The brand new, upmarket Hotel Kempinsky in East Delhi has suddenly morphed into a Buddhist monastery -- though temporarily for four days this week. Its lobbies and convention halls are reverberating with Buddhist mantras, teachings and laughter of the most celebrated man of our era -- Dalai Lama. Over 800 Buddhist devotees from the three republics of Russia namely Kalmykia, Buryatia and Tuva are here to have teachings from their supreme spiritual Guru. Over a hundred more from other parts of the world too have joined in.

To the politically uninitiated, this gathering of Russian Buddhists might look like an advance party of President Vladimir Putin whose two-day visit falls precisely in the middle of these teachings. However, the reality is that the Buddhist Russians have travelled all the distance to India for Dalai Lama's teachings because Putin's government has been persistently shying away from issuing visa to the Tibetan leader for past ten years just to ensure that Beijing leaders are not enraged.

Dalai Lama has been to Russia five times since 1979. In 1992 he went to all the three Buddhist republics. But in 1991 he could go only to Buryatia. In 1996 he could visit Kalmykia only on a transit visit while flying to Mongolia. In 2004 too he could visit Kalmykia only for a day and half. On one occasion all Russian flights were cancelled just to ensure that Dalai Lama could not stop in Russia on his way to Mongolia. Changed status of Russia vis-a-vis China in the post USSR period has obliged Kremlin to keep the Chinese sensitivities on Tibet and Dalai Lama at top priority.

In current political scenario when economic depression in Europe has taken its toll on European governments along with the US pressure, Russia has lost a huge business in supply of oil to Western Europe. China's emergence as a major buyer of Russian oil, gas and military equipment has pushed Kremlin further at the mercy of Beijing. With Syria and Iran being on hot pursuit of the US and its western allies, Russia finds itself badly squeezed with China in a tight corner. All this has left hardly any elbow room for Russia to take any independent step which China does not approve of. That explains Putin's predicament with the three Buddhist republics.

This keenness of the Russian Buddhists to receive blessings and teachings from the Dalai Lama can be fathomed from the fact that following persistent denial of visa to him by their government, they have, of late, started an annual pilgrimage to India. In 2009 about 800 Russian Buddhist devotees came to India to seek blessings and teachings from Dalai Lama. This number increased to 1300 in 2010 and to 1600 in 2011. Erdne Ombadykow (39) the energetic Head of Buddhism in the Republic of Kalmyikia has played important role in this new movement of reviving Buddhism in Kalmykia. In Mahayana Buddhist parlance he is popularly known as Telo Rinpoche as he was recognized as the reincarnation of Telopa, a great Indian Buddhist scholar of 11th century.

Telo Rinpoche had planned to meet President Putin during his Delhi visit and to present him a jointly signed petition from the Russian Buddhists. This petition calls upon the President to review his government's decision on the issue of visa to the Dalai Lama. President Putin had recently indicated in a youth camp in at Lake Seliger in Tver region of Russia, that his government intended to do something in this direction.

Answering a question from a Kalmykian youth during his question-answer session with the participants of the camp on 31st July this year, President Putin made it clear that it was the Chinese pressure which was stopping the Kremlin government from letting Dalai Lama visit Russia. “For those who are not familiar with the details of this issue, I can say that this problem is related to the fact that the Dalai Lama is viewed more as a political leader than a religious one,” Putin said.

Outgoing and pro-active in his approach, Telo Rinpoche is at the forefront of reviving and rehabilitating Buddhism to its past glory of days before Communists destroyed Buddhism and the Kalmykian identity. He presents an interesting mix of traits which reflect his multi coloured background. He was born to a Kalmykian refugee couple in Philadelphia, who had settled in USA after being uprooted from the erstwhile USSR in post-second World War months. In 1979 when the Dalai Lama visited Philadelphia, he came across this 7-year-old baby who had walked into his lap during a public audience. Later Dalai Lama recognised him as the reincarnation of Telopa.

The previous incarnation of Telopa was a Mongolian who played an important political role in resisting the Bolsheviks who destroyed over 2000 Buddhist temples and killed about 30,000 Buddhist monks in Mongolia in 1939. Following the failed Mongolian resistance, he had migrated to the USA and later established a Buddhist temple in Philadelphia where he died in 1965.

Following his recognition as an incarnate Tulku, Telo Rinpoche was sent to the Tibetan monastery Drepung in Mundgod town of Karnataka in Southern India where he studied Buddhism. Later following the fall of communism and disintegration of USSR, he decided to work in Mongolia and Kalmykia to revive Buddhism on the advice of the Dalai Lama.

Telo Tulku Rinpoche
"Before the communists occupied Kalmykia, there were over 100 monasteries and about 7000 monks. They destroyed everything and we lost most of it during 70 years of communist rule. Buddhism met same fate in Buryatia and Tuva. In past 20 years we have rebuilt 27 monasteries and revived Buddhism to a good extent in Kalmykia. Same process has been going on in the other two Buddhist republics," says Telo Rinpoche.

Buddhism arrived in these three republics of Russia 400 years ago from Tibet via Mongolia. Most of these followers are of Mongolian origin. Today there are about 1.5 million Buddhists in the three republics. New opportunities to travel abroad and international exposure has attracted millions of Russians towards many new spiritual ideas and philosophies. The number of neo-Buddhists among Russians today is estimated around 0.5 million. Buddhism is a constitutionally recognised religion along with the Orthodox Christian church, Islam and Judaism.

"We have all freedoms and liberties in practicing Buddhism provided we don't mix religion and politics," says Telo Rinpoche. Other Buddhists communities of Buryatia and Tuva too have common motivations as the Kalmykians. A new surge of Buddhist temples, learning centres and visits of Tibetan Buddhist scholars from India reflects this enthusiasm.

Kalmykian experience during the communist days in USSR, especially under Joseph Stalin, has so many parallels like the Nazi holocaust which now work as a motivator. Nazis invaded USSR from the Caspian Sea direction. Kalmykia was the first region to fall. Nazis enrolled the Kalmykians and Chechens to fight the Russian communists. There was no shortage of enthusiasts among the two races who took it as a chance to get rid of the communist occupation and slavery. But following the fall of Germany, Stalin branded the Kalmykians as 'traitors' and ordered entire Kalmykian population to be deported to distant labour camps of Siberia. Over a million Kalmykians were pushed into railway cattle wagons to be further tortured in Siberian labour camps.

"About half of our population died in the process. All this happened within thirteen years. Following the death of Stalin, Khrushchev ordered repatriation of Kalmykians to their homeland. But all good lands, houses and jobs had since been occupied by the Russian communists in our homeland. Ban on our language and religious practices almost finished our identity until the USSR collapsed in early 1990s," says Telo Rinpoche.

Newly established link with the Mongolians and Tibetans has helped the three Russian republics in a big way to revive and rehabilitate their lost Buddhist identity. Underling the significance of this relationship, Telo Rinpoche says, "Kalmykians and Tibetans have a lot to learn from each other. We lost our language but Tibetan refugees still read and speak their language even fifty years after their exile to India. We have to learn in this field from them. But we saved our determination to save our identity despite 70 years of ruthless communist rule. I am sure Tibetans can learn from us."

No doubt, the process of learning from each other is already on the rails. Buddhists of the three Russian Buddhist republics now keenly took towards Mr. Putin to allow Dalai Lama to visit their republics.

-----
The author is a New Delhi based senior Indian journalist and well known Tibetologist. He can be contacted at v.kranti@gmail.com. Website & Blog : www.vijaykranti.com

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India bars Tai Situ from attending World Buddhist Conference in Malaysia

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Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia -- India has denied H.E. The 12th Tai Situ Rinpoche Pema Tönyö Nyinje a travel visa to attend the World Buddhist Conference (WBC), currently held in Kuala Lumpur. The Tai Situpa was scheduled to give a keynote address at the conference.  No reasons were given by Indian immigration why the visa was rejected.

<< H.E. The 12th Tai Situ Rinpoche, Pema Tönyö Nyinje, in his pre-recorded video address at the World Buddhist Conference in Kuala Lumpur

The theme for the conference is “Trancending Negative Emotions”, and speakers as well as participants are expected to exchange ideas and experiences in issues and ways to create happiness and well being in our lives.

In his pre-recorded video address, the Tai Situpa expressed his bewilderment why he was denied physical presence in Kuala Lumpur, as he said “I myself cannot understand why this is happening.”

The presence of Tai Situpa was the key highlight of this edition of the WBC, which was last held in 2010. In that edition, Ven. Thich Nhat Hahn gave the keynote address.

In Tibetan Buddhism the Tai Situpa is one of the oldest lineages of tulkus (said to be reincarnated lamas) in the Kagyu school. The Tai Situpa is considered to be one of the highest ranking lamas of the Karma Kagyu lineage.

Expectations for the 2nd WBC were heightened as the present  12th Kenting Tai Situpa, H.E. Rinpoche Pema Tönyö Nyinje is a renowned Buddhist master. On a more personal level the present 12th Tai Situpa is a scholar, poet, calligrapher, artist, author, architect and geomancer.

The 12th Tai Situpa was instrumental in recognizing H.H. the 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, one of the two candidates claimed to be the 17th Karmapa, whom he coronated at Tsurphu Monastery outside Lhasa in August 1992. He is the main Guru of Orgyen Trinlay in Mahamudra and training in turn the next generation of Buddhist masters.

In his video address, the Tai Situ advised the audience to learn "how to balance emotions, as negative emotions are the cause of suffering". He said that "if we cannot improve ourselves and find a balance to counter negative emotions, the world can only get worse”.

The Tai Situpa outlined the vast changes the world have undergone in the last 50 years and concluded that much is not good. The advent of overt greed, environmental degradation and unsustainable development are the result of mindsets grounded on being too selfish, greedy and overly aggressive in wealth accumulation.

He cautioned that hope for a better future in the next 50 years can only happen if we persist to make positive changes to our current mindsets and to take steps to improve existing difficulties.

This would include the development of different levels of awareness and values, driven by a change in simple personal attitude, which includes making the following as living principles in our lives, that is, to embed compassion, love, wisdom and care in the way we function day to day, moment to moment.

The Tai Situpa said that as human beings we have to keep faith in the ultimate goodness of human nature, and that our primordial essence has always been to do good.

The WBC has attracted speakers from Australia, the USA, Nepal, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and India. 500 participants are attending the two days conference from Nov 3-4, 2012.

Held bi-annually, the conference attracts renowned Dharma teachers from all over the world. It is co-organised by the Young Buddhist Association of Malaysia, The Buddhist Gem Fellowship and The Buddhist Missionary Society of Malaysia. The conference is also supported by eight others Buddhist organizations.

More information on The 12th Tai Situpa
http://www.palpung.org/english/taisitupa/brief_brief.htm

The World Buddhist Conference on the web: www.wbc.my

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Tour operators target india boom

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Tourism sector leaders say the birthplace of Buddhism could attract many Thai pilgrims and tourists, but New Delhi needs to clean up its act first

Bangkok, Thailand -- Thai tour operators view Buddhist tourism in India as a potential boom market if the country's Ministry of Tourism improves tourist facilities in destinations that are of interest to Thai-Buddhist tourists.

<< RITE OF PASSAGE: Novice monks line up for prayers.

At the second International Buddhist Conclave held in Varanasi at the end of last month, Thai tourist operators highlighted problems that needed to be addressed. Among these were the relatively tight immigration laws, shortcomings in public infrastructure and the quality of food and hotels.

The conclave was held to showcase India's Buddhist heritage in order to attract Buddhist pilgrims and tourists around the world.

Sarnath, a deer park northeast of the holy city of Varanasi, is where Lord Buddha delivered his first sermon after attaining enlightenment, more than 2,500 years ago.

Kushinagar, a principal centre of the Buddhist pilgrimage, is where Lord Buddha left his corporeal self and attained Mahaparinirvana.

Supriya Boonyagate, a tour operator with Two by Four Travel Ltd, has promoted Thai-Buddhist pilgrimages to India for more than a decade. She said she has has submitted a three-point proposal to the Ministry of Tourism of India. First, she said the Indian government should abolish its immigration policy, which is too tight and undermines opportunities for Thai tour operators to bring tourists to visit Buddhist destinations in India.

Ms Supriya was referring to an Indian immigration regulation which prevents foreigners from returning to the country within two months of a previous trip.

"This immigration regulation has become a growing headache for all Thai tour operators who can't send their experienced Thai tourist guides to lead new groups of Thai-Buddhist pilgrims and tourists if those guides have made a previous trip to India within the past two months," she said.

Second, the Indian government should improve its highways in areas housing major Buddhist tourist attractions to ease the currently time-consuming travel experience.

For example, Ms Supriya said, the 300km highway linking Varanasi with Kushinagar should be extended and paved with asphalt.

"It takes us about seven to eight hours [to make the trip] which is really incredible," she said. "And many more public toilets need to be built along a Buddhist tourist trail."

Finally, Ms Supriya said she wanted India to improve the quality of food and hotels in Buddhist destinations.

There needs to be a variety of international food on offer, she said, because most Thais will not be able to eat Indian food every day.

Nuanchan Pientam, chairwoman of NC Tour and Enterprise Co Ltd, said she also submitted a letter addressing problems faced by Thai tourists to Shri Subodh Kant Sahai, India's tourism minister.

Ms Nuanchan, who has operated Thai-Buddhist pilgrimage tours to India for more than three decades, said she wanted Indian authorities to take action to promote the sector, especially in relation to Buddhist attractions in the subcontinent.

She said India needed to improve the condition of its national highways in Buddhist destinations and also needed to install public toilets that adhere to international standards.

She said there are also few trains and limited seats available during the peak tourism season between October to March, so she wanted India to provide more trains with more seats for Thai-Buddhist pilgrims and tourists.

"We believe many more Thai-Buddhist pilgrims and tourists will visit India if the country acts on our proposals," she said.

Mr Sahai, the tourism chief, said the origins of Buddhism are in India and the country is the main attraction for Buddhist tourists from around the world.

Mr Sahai said his ministry is drawing up plans to attract more tourists from Buddhist countries by providing them with special facilities.

He said India has tried to improve its public infrastructure by building roads and airports that can better promote the travel of Buddhist tourists from around the world.

"Buddhism is a world religion now, so its sites hold a great attraction for tourists from the world over. The Ministry of Tourism is continuing with its efforts to identify more Buddhist tourist circuits and develop them in holistic and integrated manner," he said.

To promote Buddhist tourism in India, tourists from countries which have a large Buddhist population, such as Thailand and Malaysia, will soon be provided with the option of getting a visa on arrival, he said.

He said the Ministry of Tourism plans to develop a ghat [set of stairs descending into a river] on the bank of the Ganges River in the holy city of Varanasi in the name of Lord Buddha, and he pledged to keep Varanasi and the river clean.

The International Buddhist Conclave in India is being held after two years. The last conclave was held in 2010.

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Buddhist lama leads contemplative life in India

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Atlanta, GA (USA) -- Chungtsang Rinpoche, 47, is a senior lama at the Tibetan Buddhists’ Drepung Loseling Monastery, in Mundgod, in southern India. He is originally from the Kham region of Tibet, and has been on a cultural tour of the United States with the Mystical Arts of Tibet program.

<< Chungtsang Rinpoche, 47, is a senior lama at the Tibetan Buddhists’ Drepung Loseling Monastery, in Mundgod, in southern India. ADAM JENNINGS

In September, the group spent a week in North Carolina at Wingate University. The tour was arranged by the Drepung Loseling Monastery in Atlanta.

We spoke through an interpreter.

Q: What is the daily routine where you live?

At the monastery, people take classes and study. I completed mine; it took 25 years.

I teach in the morning, and meditate and pray. I also join in the debate about the study of Buddhist philosophy.

Q: At Christian monasteries, members often live apart from the world. Is it like that in Mundgod?

It’s like that. We are separated from the town. The monastery becomes home for the monks, who receive an education there – philosophy, the science of the mind and emotion – to learn to deal with the positive side of things.

Where monasteries can be located is slightly different in Tibet. In India, the government chooses the location. Some monasteries are inside or within sight of a town.

The monastery buildings are the same as in America, in that there are huge halls for group prayers. At our monastery in India we have 3,000 monks. The monastery has 25 chapels in separate buildings. The monks have their own rooms where they eat or sleep. The entire monastery is very large.

Q: What do they eat at the monastery?

It depends on what is farmed. The Indian government gave us huge fields for crops like rice. The diet is also based on donations from people. Because of the weather – like if there isn’t good rain – there can be problems with what is raised in the area. Then we get help from the Tibetan government in exile.

We are vegetarian. The food is rice and maize (corn) and vegetables.

Q: Do you have visitors there?

Yes. They come to see friends and relatives. Some come to pray and meditate. Our monks originally from Tibet have fewer visitors than those born in India.

We also have many visitors from the United States and Europe. Tourists come to see what we look like. American Buddhists come to study and train in our meditation method.

Q: How old were you when you left Tibet?

I was 13. The culture, the language, the food, the climate and the land are all different. Some who escaped from Tibet deal with health problems and difficulty getting used to the climate and have to return to Tibet.

Q: Do India and especially the United States strike you as exotic?

There is a huge difference between living in Tibet and the United States. In Tibet there is no freedom. In India and the United States, you can use your freedom.

There are other differences between India and America. The first time I came to the United States, I didn’t see anyone outside – which is very much unlike India. I saw the shopping malls and thought no one was allowed to go outside! Now I am used to them.

Q: Right now, you’re wearing a sleeveless, collarless maroon cassock. Is that what you ordinarily wear?

Yes. It is part of being a monk.

Q: You’re also wearing eyeglasses and a wristwatch. Do you wear these at the monastery?

I didn’t wear glasses before; now I always do because I have eye problems. I wear this watch because I have to know the time.

Source: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/09/28/3562784/buddhist-lama-leads-contemplative.html#storylink=cpy

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India plans to promote Buddhist sites as new tourist hotspots

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VARANASI, India -- In an effort to attract at least half of the total Buddhist population spread in 35 countries by promoting Buddhist pilgrimage sites, is the new mantra of the ministry of tourism, Government of India and the states enshrining the Buddhist pilgrimage sites.

The call was given during the inauguration of the three-day International Buddhist Conclave (IBC)-2012 at a hotel compound in Nadesar area on Saturday. Due to the last-minute cancellation of chief minister Akhilesh Yadav's visit, Union minister of state for tourism Subodh Kant Sahai, along with the ministers of tourism of UP, Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha inaugurated the conclave. Apart from 133 delegates from 30 countries, who are mainly tour operators, opinion leaders and travel writers, delegates from 16 states are also taking part in the conclave.

In his address, UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) executive director Marcio Favilla said that "while the number of international tourists last year was one billion, next year this figure can touch the mark of 1.8 billion".

"During the G-20 summit held in June, the tourism sector was approved as an important economic activity. It's for the first time that the tourism has been included in G-20 declaration. Focus should be on sustainable tourism to generate employment. Similarly, religious tourism would play a key role in increasing the number of international tourists."

The Union minister of state for tourism said: "The ministry is aiming at promoting religious tourism on the line of the Muslim religious shrines in Saudi Arabia. Even if half of the Buddhist population (out of a total of 50 lakh) visits the Buddhist pilgrim centres in the country annually, the goal of the ministry would be achieved. This would also help in generating employment for three crore people."

The minister also highlighted the measures initiated by the Central government regarding visa issues.

The tourism ministers of participating states, including Jammu and Kashmir, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, left no opportunity to promote the Buddhist sites of their states. However, the main competition between UP and Bihar to woo the delegates for attracting more and more tourists was quite evident.

Bihars minister for tourism Sunil Kumar Pintu highlighted how improvement in basic infrastructure, especially roads, had help in attracting a large number of tourists to the Buddhist sites in Bihar. However, UP minister of state for tourism M C Chauhan had no concrete plans to disclose except expecting that the chief minister would do some miracle to change the fate of tourism industry in UP.

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India: Visa on Arrival facility likely for Thailand, Malaysia

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New Delhi, India -- Government is planning to extend Visa-on-Arrival facility to nationals from countries having sizable Buddhist population such as Thailand and Malayasia.

Inaugurating a two-day International Buddhist Conclave in Varanasi on Saturday, Tourism Minister Subodh Kant Sahai said his Ministry had also decided to develop a Ghat in the temple town in the name of Lord Buddha on the bank of river Ganga.
"India, being the land of origin of Buddhism, is the main attraction for Buddhist tourists from across the globe. We are drawing up plans to attract more tourists from Buddhist countries like Thailand and Malayasia by providing them special facilities like Visa-on-Arrival (VoA)," Sahai said.

Currently, India extends VoA facility to 11 countries including Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, Vietnam, Cambodia, the Philippines and Myanmar.

Sahai said three circuits have been identified to be developed as part of Buddhist Circuits during the 12th Five Year Plan. The three circuits are (1) Dharmayatra or the sacred circuit, (2) retracing Buddha's footsteps and (3) heritage trails covering all Buddhist sites including Gaya, Varanasi, Kushinagar, Bodhagaya, Patna, Piparva, Dharamshala, Ladakh, Spiti and Lumbini.

Referring to Keep India Clean Mission, he said efforts are on to keep clean the cities, particularly tourist places, across the country to attract maximum tourists.

The conclave is being held with a view to showcasing and projecting the Buddhist heritage of India. The delegates at the conclave include the international Buddhist scholars and tour operators.

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Little to cheer for Chakma refugees in India

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Nearly 35,000 Chakmas migrated to Arunachal Pradesh after being persecuted in both Bangladesh and Pakistan. However, Chakma refugees have no rights in India and are unable to vote or call themselves citizens.

Arunachal Pradesh, India -- Villagers in Diyun, a farming hamlet in India's remote northeast state of Arunachal Pradesh, wake up to the crack of dawn. They peep out of their huts and look at the sky. With clear weather, they set out for work.

<< Chakma children

It's just another routine day for the villagers -- tilling on their farms and running household chores. Not many are aware of the fact that it is World Refugee Day. That's ironic because 80 percent of this village, which houses 500 families, belongs to a refugee community, the Chakmas.

Since 2001, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has marked World Refugee Day on June 20 to draw attention to the plight of all those forced to leave home. According to the UN refugee agency, there are 42.5 million refugees in the world. The Chakmas of Arunachal Pradesh make up only a tiny percentage of that figure -- which is perhaps the reason why their story is forgotten.

According to the East-West Center Washington, about 100,000 Chakmas, a tribal group from the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh, fled erstwhile East Pakistan between 1964 and 1969 for two reasons -- communal violence and displacement.

A minority Buddhist tribe, they faced oppression on grounds of religion and ethnicity at the hands of the East Pakistan government. (Religious and ethnic persecution of tribal groups in the Chittagong Hill Tracts continues to this day.) Secondly, the construction of the Kaptai hydroelectric dam rendered many thousands of Chakmas landless.

As a result, 35,000 Chakmas migrated to Arunachal Pradesh that borders China and Myanmar. Hemantolal Chakma's family was among those who left in search of refuge. The 48-year-old farmer from Diyun was a toddler when he undertook the arduous journey.

"I don't remember anything from those days. But my mother and father told me that it was very tough. Our land had submerged under water because of the dam. We were stranded without any possessions and had to leave. We entered India through Mizoram and settled here in Arunachal Pradesh. I hear it was very difficult in those days. No food to eat, no shelter," he says.

Hemantolal lives with his wife in a thatched hut. There's no furniture in their dimly-lit home. One corner of their single-room hut functions as a kitchen and another as sleeping area. "This is how a poor person's house looks," he apologizes.

Although he's lived most of his life within these four walls, Hemantolal doesn't feel at home here. "It's a sorry state of affairs. I don't have any rights in this place. I can't vote, I can't call myself a citizen," he explains.

Like Hemantolal, most Chakmas in Arunachal Pradesh have been denied Indian citizenship or refugee status despite having migrated legally, with valid migration certificates issued by the government of India. Moreover, after signing an agreement with Bangladesh in 1972, the government of India accepted all responsibility for the Chakmas who migrated before March 1971.

Twenty years later, the central government declared that the Chakmas have a legitimate claim to Indian citizenship. However, in April 2004, the state government granted voting rights only to 1,500 Chakmas, leaving 50-60,000 of them still stranded.

Apart from the lack of legal rights, the Chakmas also face discrimination on a daily basis. Sanjay Chakma, 35, who was born in India, regrets belonging to his tribe. "Sometimes I am sad that I was born a Chakma. I wonder why I am one. The other tribes in the region view us with such disdain. We are humans too, but we are denied the rights of humans," he says.

Sanjay says that many of his friends and acquaintances have been assaulted in broad daylight by members of other tribes. "You will hear cases of Chakmas being beaten up in public places. There is an image of Chakmas being criminals, doing wrong things. There's not always an element of truth in it. We don't get respect at work place. We have no other option but to endure how we are treated," he says.

The South Asia Human Rights Documentation Centre (SAHRDC) has not only accused the state government of Arunachal Pradesh of human rights abuses against the Chakmas but also of denying educational and employment opportunities to them.

"In September 1994 the Government began a campaign of school closings, burnings, and relocations which has effectively denied the Chakmas their right to education under international law," the SAHDRC says. Even today, studies point out that schools in Chakma-dominated areas have an abysmal student-teacher ratio of 300:1.

Sanjay lives with his wife and three kids. Five-month-old Joshua is Sanjay's youngest son. It's a lazy afternoon and Joshua is crawling on the floor. Sanjay points to him worriedly and says he isn't sure of what his son's future has in store. "I haven't been able to get a birth certificate for him. The authorities make it very difficult to legally register newborn Chakmas," he says.

Sanjay claims to have made repeated rounds to the local registration office in Diyun district to acquire a birth certificate for Joshua. "There are two days in the week to register for birth certificates. Every time I went to the office on these days, they would send me back and ask me to return again. After many attempts, I got tired of it," he says.

Sanjay thinks it is a deliberate attempt by the state government to deny the Chakmas an identity. "Most of us have no proof that we exist. Isn't it easy to erase records that never existed?" he says, adding, "I'm surprised you know about us. Nobody has bothered to find out."

Members belonging to other tribes in the region accuse Chakmas of criminal activities. Shivumso Chikro, who belongs to the Mishmi tribe, is an assistant professor of history at a college in the state's capital of Itanagar. He believes that the Chakmas should have legal rights but also expresses his apprehensions.

"The Chakmas are involved in a lot of criminal activities. They have expanded their territories. They have taken over land that belongs to other tribes and inhabited them. They should live in the land that has been allotted to them and not take over other people's land," Shivumso says.

He goes on to cite a close encounter: "Where my grandmother lives, there are also some Chakmas residing. One night she got looted by some Chakma miscreants who took away her traditional silver jewelry and everything she had. How do you justify that?" he asks, agitated.

The state government of Arunachal Pradesh seems to share Shivumso's fears. An academic paper published in 1996 says: "The government officially notes the Chakmas' 'propensity towards crimes and other anti-social activities.'

The Chakmas are still hopeful of a better future. Two years ago, a parliamentary committee set up by the Indian government vowed to look into their citizenship issue. Bimal Kanthi Chakma, an executive member of the Committee for Citizenship Rights of Chakmas of Arunachal Pradesh (CCRCAP), says they are now in negotiations with the state and central governments.

"I hope that the dialogue will be fruitful. Right now only a very few of us have voting rights. But this right has to cover many more people. We are also fighting to have the right to contest elections here," Bimal Kanthi says. He refrains from sharing more thoughts on the issue, fearing it will affect the outcome of the negotiations.

On being asked by Al Jazeera what progress had been made on the Chakma citizenship issue in the past 60 years, the state government gave no comments. It therefore remains unclear when the negotiations will have an outcome that will decide the fate of thousands of Chakmas.

As part of its World Refugee Day project, the UNHCR is running a campaign titled "No one chooses to be a refugee". The Chakmas in Arunachal Pradesh know little about the campaign, but there's no doubt that it matches their sentiment.

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Arunchal Pradesh gets fourth Buddhist center in India from government

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Arunchal Pradesh, India -- After Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir, Arunchal Pradesh becomes the fourth state in India to receive the next fully fledged Buddhist Center by the allocation of funds by the  Central government of India.

Its founder Tsona Gontse Rinpoche announced The Central Institute of Himalayan Culture Studies at Dahung in West Kameng District will now attain the status due to New Delhi’s recognition.

In the West Kameng District, where the institute is located, the majority of people, and 13 percent of the population of the people of Arunchal Pradesh follow Buddhism. India’s largest monastery Tawang is also in Arunchal Pradesh.

The institute, conceived by Rinpoche in 2000, had received the approval of the Union Cabinet on May 26, 2010 with a project cost estimated at Rs 9 crore and recurring annual cost of Rs 124.86 lakh.

"It began with a central government grant of Rs 97 lakh and has since grown into a good institute to fill the vacuum in imparting education on Buddhism," Rinpoche said.

"I had pursued the Centre to establish such an institute considering the large number of Buddhist population residing in the Northeast," he said.

He pointed out that with only 25 faculty members and limited infrastructures, the institute has so far produced two batches (18 each) of Shastri (equivalent to BA in Buddhist Philosophy) degree holders.

Besides teaching arts and crafts for self-sufficiency and sustainable development and preservation of ethnic identity to foster national integrity, the institute has been inculcating an awareness on the ecological balance and preservation of natural resources, he said.

He said the other three institutes are: Nava Nalanda Mahavihara, a deemed university, Central University for Tibetan Studies, Sarnath, Varanasi, and Central Institute for Higher Buddhist Studies, Leh.

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Why Buddhism prospered in Asia but died in India

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New Delhi, India -- Undoubtedly, the philosophy of Buddhism is one of the greatest gifts to mankind. Its peaceful concepts have distanced its followers from wars, crusades and is a binding formula for the entire South/South Eastern/Central/East Asian region of the world of which most nations are Buddhist countries whilst others including India are not.

The Buddha was not interested in numbers nor was he interested in the lay deity having a distinct identity. There were no social codes, modes of worship…in other words adherence to the Buddhist faith was not obligatory unlike other religions of the world. Anyone, irrespective of caste, creed was welcome to take refuge in the teachings of Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha. There was no exclusive allegiance nor was lay deity required to perform regular religious service – essentially everything was voluntary. Only those that understood the philosophy behind Buddhism would be able to cherish its value.

With time the Brahminical Social Order began to secure greater advantage over Buddhism and with royal patronage shifting from Buddhism to Hinduism, the fate of Buddhism was sealed and the great philosophy all but disappeared from India with little help of revival even from State Governments.

Why India chose to forget Buddhism

A puzzle to most is how Buddhism disappeared in the land of its birth. Was it because people became absorbed in Hindu practices, rituals, and mythology and caste supremacy or, was it the Moghul invasions, or could it have been the failure of Bhikkus to sustain the great philosophy itself?

Needless to say for whatever reasons, Buddhism did decline and disappeared in India.

Historian S. R. Goyal has attributed the decline and disappearance of Buddhism from India to the hostility of the Brahmanas. An incident oft cited is the destruction of the Bo Tree and Buddhist images by Saivite King, Shashanka, persecution by Pusyamitra Sunga (185 BC to 151 BC) who detested the Law of the Buddha had set fire to the Sutras, destroyed Stupas, razed Samgharamas and massacred Bhikkus and even killed the deity of the Bodhi tree. There is also mention of the Huna onslaught on Taxila (in Pakistan), the persecution of Buddhist monks by Mihirkula.

Incidentally, though Moghuls are accused of destroying Hindu temples, most of these temples were actually built on Buddhist shrine sites. Results of Moghul invasions were many too - Somapura Mahavihara (now in Bangladesh) was set ablaze. Odantapuri Mahavihara close to Nalanda was razed to the ground in 1199 CE after killing all the monks and Bodhgaya was attacked as well. Though there is evidence that even a century beyond the Muslim conquest Buddhism remained in places like Gaya till the end of the 14th century which disproves the notion that Muslim conquest was not singularly responsible for the decline of Buddhism in India.

Thus the inability to gage a particular time period for the process of decline until Buddhism collapsed towards the end of the 12th century. Yet, the question remains if Jainism survived why Buddhism didn’t? The Bengal Puranas depict the Buddhists as being mocked and subject to verbal chiding.

Yet persecutions may suppress but it does not kill a religion! So what really happened to Buddhism in India?

No Hindu civilization before Buddhism

There is no mention of “Hindu” in ancient Aryan literature nullifying the belief that a Hindu nation existed. Hindus profess to be Aryans citing the Rigveda as the oldest literature in the world. However, Rigveda was written in Sanskrit and contains references to Prakrit language (600 BCE to 1000 CE) and Prakrit was associated with Buddhism. The Rigveda also contains Vaidik prayer to God Indra to kill Dasas. Dr. Ambedkar claims Dasas and Nagas were the same people and were rulers of India when the Rigveda was written. The Rigveda also mentions Rishis like Bharadwaj, Vasistha, Bhrigu, Viswamitra etc – Buddhist literature mentions these are Buddha’s contemporary so the Rigveda could not have been the oldest document in the world.

There is neither archeological evidence nor literary evidence that Sanskrit is anterior to Buddhism? Hindu historian Dr. Majumdar claims that 75% of Hindu culture derives from Dravidian culture. According to Brahminical literature the Chaturvarna (Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Sudras), the Kshatriyas were exterminated by Brahmin leader Parasuram. The Brahim text the Gita mentions Vaishyas, Sudras and women as belonging to papyoni – in other words they were non-Hindus. We also know that the Vaishyas and the Sudras were disallowed to hear or recite the Vedas. Moreover, the science of medicine – Ayurveda was the profession of the Sudras and Charak Samhita the father of Ayurveda was not only a Buddhist but also the physician of Buddhist emperor Kanishka.

The truth remains that there is nothing like Aryan civilization and Vedic period in Indian history anterior to Buddhism. Prakrit the language of the indigenous people was associated with Buddhism in ancient times. In reality, the Buddhist language is associated with the Harappan culture as inscriptions used by Buddhist emperor Ashoka to propagate his message to the people were derived from the language of the Harappan people. Aryan is a distortion of the word Iranian.

In all probability the Vaidiks falsely inserted the myth that “Aryan culture” and “Vedic period” in the historical sequence anterior to Buddhism because they did not want to disclose that the Brahminical culture came after Buddhism. It was essentially an inferiority issue.

It is clear that there was no “Hindu civilization” before Buddhism, there was no “Vedic” period before Buddhism because Sanskrit developed after Buddhism and it was during the Buddhist period that the Vedas were manufactured. Not wanting to give due place to Buddhism it is often argued that the Vedas were not written and were merely passed down over generations through oral scriptures (Shruties). If so, then why were they not called Vedas instead of shruties? If Sanskrit did not exist before Buddhism in what language were the Vedas or shruties passed down from generation to generation?

The Hindu era

We all agree that the history of all religions began from their leaders – the Buddhist era began with Lord Buddha, the Christian era began with Jesus Christ...etc. The Hindu era begins from Vikrami Samvat (from Hindu king Chandra Gupta Vikramaditya) and Shaka Samvat which are 2055 and 1922 years old respectively. Yet, there cannot be two eras for Hindus – the Shaka era started from 78AD related to Kanishka, a Buddhist emperor of the Kushan dynasty.

Hindu Brahminisation began with the Shaka era and continued to the Vikram era. The first archaeological evidence of Sanskrit (language of Hindu Brahmins) called Rudra Danam inscriptions belong to the period of the Shaka rulers (Mathura, Nasik and Ujjain their capitals).

Shaka era actually started from Kanishka, a Buddhist emperor of Kushan dynasty. Instead of Shaka era it should be called Kushan era. Another question seeks to ask why Vikram era associated with Chandra Gupta 11 was made anterior to Shaka era? What is the relationship of the Hindus with the Shakas and Chandra Gupta? Kanishka was associated with Buddhism while Chandra Gupta was associated with Hindu Brahmanism. The only possible conclusion we can derive is that Vikram era was made anterior to Shaka era to make Buddhism inferior to Hinduism.

It was during the Shaka era that Buddhism came to be divided into Mahayana and Hinayana. It was during the Vikram era that Pali, the language of the Buddhists was exterminated.

Hindu history is perhaps just 2055 years old but in order to show its superiority it exterminated Pali and destroyed the cultural and religious identity of Buddhism. There sealed the fate of Buddhism in India.

Buddhism in Asia

Buddhism has strong foundations in Thailand, Burma and Sri Lanka whilst in other parts of South/South East Asia it is facing difficulties. The countries ruled by colonists resulted in persecution of Buddhist through missionary Christian/Catholic schools. Undoubtedly, there is a resurgence to revive Buddhism and to bring all Buddhist nations together.

South/South East Asia Theravada Buddhism - Indonesia, Malaysia, Burma, Thailand, Bangladesh, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Sri Lanka.

In India it was only after Ambedkar started a neo-Buddhist movement among the untouchables in the 1950s that Buddhism came to be somewhat revived. In India it is mostly the Indian “untouchables” who are embracing Buddhism. There are 300m Dalits who to survive caste discrimination are turning to different faiths. We may recall how 50,000 Indian dalits converted to Buddhism. Out of 28 Indian states and 7 union territories Buddhism’s reach has become minimal. It is in the state of Maharashtra that 74% of total Indian Buddhists reside followed by Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Karnataka, UP, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh.

East Asian/Central Asian Mahayana Buddhism – Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, Nepal and Bhutan, Ladakh, Russia and China (non-Han regions – Tibet, Inner Mongolia and Xinjian (East Turkistan). Han Chinese in inner China have also developed an interest in Buddhism.

It goes without saying that for a very peaceful practicing philosophy the currents that Buddhism and Buddhists have faced over ancient times and even towards contemporary times will never find answers as to why Buddhism has faced the challenges it weathered. There is no streak of violence in Buddhism. It is only about one’s own journey towards salvation along a middle path that espouses to refrain from either extremes to finding the Truth for oneself. That Truth is not the same for any of us, yet it is the Truth nevertheless.

Similarly in the West too, the people have found Buddhism to be an easy philosophy to understand and follow. Thus, in the US, Europe, Australia, Canada and even South America plenty of “Dharma centers” have emerged in over 90 countries.

Undoubtedly, we must mention Indo-Sri Lanka relationship and make special mention that there has never been a period of cordiality as that which existed during the time of King Asoka of India and King Devanampiyatiss of Sri Lanka. Regrettably, India has chosen to treat Sri Lanka as a quasi-enemy and has continued to carry out destabilizing operations against Sri Lanka. India’s present overtures towards aligning with Sri Lanka through Buddhism shows clear signs of seeking to be a partner of the Asian block through Buddhism since India has antagonized enough of its neighbors already.

While India plays no role in the future of Buddhism except its treatment along scholarly lines devoid of emotional attachment, it is the practice, the understanding, the reverence given to Buddhism that is seeing a revival and a greater binding amongst South/South East/Central/East Asian countries of the world and Sri Lanka should take a lead to create greater binding.

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Beijing orders Tibetan detentions after India pilgrimage

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Beijing, China -- HUNDREDS of Tibetans who attended an important Buddhist ceremony earlier this year in India have been detained without charge by Chinese security officers on their return to Tibet.

<< Exiled Tibetans attend a religious ceremony at the Chime Gatsal Ling monastery in Dharamsala, India. Photo: AP

According to family members and human rights groups, this is the first time that Chinese authorities have detained large numbers of Tibetan pilgrims returning from the January ceremony, held every year in northern India.

Many of the pilgrims are elderly and have been detained for more than two months in central Tibet, or what China calls the Tibet Autonomous Region. The detainees are being interrogated and undergoing patriotic re-education classes, and have been ordered to denounce the Dalai Lama, who presided over the ceremony, known as the Kalachakra, say people who have researched the detentions.

The detainees are being held at hotels, schools and military training centres or bases; some are being forced to pay for their lodging and meals.

The detentions are expected to stoke resentment among Tibetans towards the Chinese government at a time when tensions across the Tibetan plateau are at the highest in years.

The pilgrims were detained at checkpoints while returning overland via Nepal or while flying into Lhasa, the Tibetan capital. Some have been released, and many who were held in central Tibet but are registered as residents in other regions have been sent to those areas, according to researchers, who interviewed released detainees and their friends and relatives.

The Kalachakra ceremony, an important teaching ritual in Tibetan Buddhism, takes place every winter in Bodh Gaya, the site in the Indian state of Bihar where the Buddha is believed to have attained enlightenment.

The Dalai Lama travels there from his home in the Himalayan hill town of Dharamsala to give teachings, and Tibetans and other Buddhists from around the world attend.

Human Rights Watch said it was unclear how long the detainees were being held, and that there had been no reports of any of the 700 Han who attended the Kalachakra being detained. The Han are the dominant ethnic group in China,

Calls to Chinese authorities in Beijing went unanswered.

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Letter: Wrong depiction of Buddhist history in India

Mr. Sharma has changed history of Buddhist India by writing this article without any evidence or supporting data. Mr. Sharma (being ?Brahmin?) is trying to protect his Brahmin ancestor who destroyed Buddhism in India.

The Prince Brahdrad ( the grand-son of King Ashoka) was killed by Brahmin Leader Pushyamitra Shung in a conspiracy and these Brahmins destroyed the monasteries and massacred Buddhist monks. (Reference, see ?Saha Soneri Pane? ? book written by Brahmin scholar Shri. V D Sawarkar).

The Brahmins claims that they are ?Aryans?, people with origins from the North Pole in Europe. They migrated to india and ruled by creating a caste system to maintain their supremacy (Reference, see ?Artic home of theVedas? book by Brahmin scholar Lokmanya Tilak. (available on Wikipedia) .

Let Mr. Sharma give proof of ancient texts where the word ?Hindu? appears. Nowhere in Brahmins religious text book i.e. Vedas, Upanishdas, Manusmruti, etc does the word "Hindu" is written.

The people residing at the banks of the Indus river were called ?Sindhu ? but were pronounced as Hindu by Turkish rulers because they could not pronounce ?S? (accent ?H? instead of ?S?).

In the 16th century when the British came and ruled India they officially recognized these people (OBC, SC & ST) as Hindus. The ?Vedic? is a religion of the Brahmins, which basically is a veil of the Hindus. This is what is called Hindu religion.

Brahmins are always priest of the their gods and non-Brahmins (OBC, SC, ST) were made to worship Brahmins and their gods. Non-brahmins are not allowed to be priest nor given religious privileges.

It is true that Arab, Turk, Afgani, etc came and ruled India but they did not destroy Buddhist temples/monasteries. The Mahabodhi temple is still there in Bihar and Ajantha & Yellora, Sarnath, Sanchi and stupas and chaityas are still existing in India.

It is a fact that Brahmins themselves destroyed ancient Buddhist Universities such as Nalanda ,Takshashila, Vikramshila . Surviving Buddhist monks ran off to Myanmar with a few texts, thus preserving whatever that was left.

Brahmins converted famous Buddhist temple such as Vithoba (Pandharpur), Balaji, Mahabalipuram , Somnath, Jagganath Puri into so called Hindu temples (reference; see ?History of Buddhism? by Brahmin scholar Mr.Apte)

Before the British came, India was ruled by Muslim rulers such as Aurangzeb and Tipu Sultan. Mr. Sharma has written false article stating that Hindu king resisted Muslim ruler and Hinduism could not be wiped out.

There are evidence that Hindus (OBC, SC, ST) converted to Islam because they were being discriminated in the caste system introduced by Brahmins through their religious text ?manusmruti? (Reference, see ?Gulamgiri? by scholar and social reformer Shri Jyotirao Phule).

May I request that the editorial team from Buddhist Channel to refrain from publishing such misleadings articles with regards to the true history of Buddhist India.

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Note: OBC (other backward classes) , SC (scheduled caste) ST (scheduled tribes). These so called Hindus have now begun to follow Buddhism after knowing their past history . Recently 1.5 million from the "Maratha" community in Maharashtra State, India converted to a new movement called "Shivdharma". The founder Dr. A H Salunke of this new religion and who has written book "The great son of soil - Lord Buddha" said that once their people come out from the mindset of Hinduism under the new religion, then they will further convert them into Buddhism.

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Hindu Survival and Buddhist Disappearance During Medieval India

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New Delhi, India -- No less a person than Mahatma Gandhi once estimated that nearly a quarter of Hindus had converted to Islam over the past on thousand years. How true is this statement ?

<< Buddhist temples span across India

Hinduism has been associated with the Indian subcontinent since time immemorial. The teachings of the sages of the Vedas emanate from the mists of the past with a chain of Gurus and Saints stretching to the modern day. Amongst the myriad of thoughts coming from this ‘land of saints’ range from the pure stream of Vedanta to the mystical experiences of a Mirabai and to the compassion of Guatam Buddha.

By the dawn of the first millennia CE the Hindu world straddled across the same contiguous region as the Buddhist world. Stretching from the islands of the Indonesian archipelago to the wild regions of Central Asia. The Buddhists with an organized priesthood had ranged furthest with missions to the island of the Indian Ocean and across the Himalayas into China and beyond.

A happy coexistence with little conflict to the point where it was common for people of the same region, tribes and even families to be both Hindu and Buddhist. The kings of the nations under Dharma or Dhamma would donate equally to both religious centres and preachers without distinction.

This however all began to change in the seventh century. The Arab tribes erupted from their desert homes armed with the zeal of a new faith Islam burst into the lands of these ancient faiths. The age old faith of Zoarasterism and Eastern Christianity was almost obliterated within a generation up to and including the venerable Persian lands.

After reaching Sindh a decisive repulse from a coalition of Hindu kings in the battle of Rajasthan in 738 AD the Arabs turned their attention to the north. The Chinese empire was defeated in the Battle of Talas in 751 AD and the field of Central Asia with its patchwork of predominantly Buddhist kingdoms was laid open.

What followed was a relentless pressure of Islamisation which lasted for the next two centuries. In this time with the tides of warfare ever changing the Buddhist kingdoms began to fall one by one.

The destruction of the monasteries and murders of their priests led to a leaderless Buddhist community being unable to resist the pressures of the Islamic missionaries and soldiers. A stream of refuges and priests began to head for the spiritual homeland of India lending vigour to the infancy of the much acclaimed bhakti movement. By the end of the millennia the Buddhists had almost been wiped of the map of Central Asia to the borders of India and Tibet and the newly Islamised Turk tribes now eyed the vast Indian subcontinent.

Here meeting sterner resistance after a wave of incursions on an around 1000 AD the Turks eventually broke into the subcontinents around 1200AD leading to a tidal wave of bloodletting that has scarce comparison in human history. The Buddhist regions of Afghanistan and Western Punjab fell rapidly to the Islamic crusaders as did the far flung regions of predominantly Buddhist East Bengal. The same story of Central Asia was repeated with the destruction of the great Buddhist centres like at Nalanda and the slaying of their organised priesthood leaving a confused and leaderless populace.

The Hindus however reacted differently. The existence of numerous tribes and clans and religious groupings led to a deficiency in common action. However each region and tribe despite the destruction of many temples and slaughter of holy men managed to maintain its viability. The absence of an organized priesthood and single doctrine foiled the Turk and Afghan attempted to obliterate the Hindu religion. The defeat of a single Hindu clan in a particular region was quickly replaced by another Hindu tribe/warrior community to fill the vacuum almost instantly. After overwhelming the mainly Buddhist regions the Turks found themselves holding certain urban centres in a sea of Hindu resistance.

The burgeoning bhakti movement helped by the headlong demise of Buddhism, though no Buddhist ideas expanded to cover the entire subcontinent in a challenge to the nascent Islamistation in many regions.

The bloodletting continued. The Muslims historian Firishta in his book Tarikh i Farishta talks of tens and thousands of Muslim solders having to immigrate to India each year to cover the losses in the endless wars with the Hindus. The Hindu kings being pushed back by the heavy Turk Cavalry which had defeated the Crusaders of Western Europe adopted tactics to harry and punish Muslim warriors at each and every opportunity. A bloody stalemate was reached in which it began to dawn on the Muslim armies that the Hindus could not be wiped out in the same manner as the Jews, Zoroastrians, Pharsees, and the erstwhile Buddhists of west and South Asia.

What happened was a regeneration of Hindu thought. A reaction based on dogged resistance backed by religious inspiration. The inspiration allowed the Hindus to stop the Arabic Jihad in its tracks after overwhelming all resistance from the border of India to Spain. It foiled the Turks for three hundred years whilst they beat back the combined might of the Europe in the Crusades. The waves of attacks emanating from central Asia were beaten back on numerous occasions and eve after the plundering and penetrative raids of Mahmud Ghaznnavi and two centuries later of Mohammed Ghori the fighting did not end. Indeed whilst the hapless Buddhists of South Asia were almost wiped from the face of the subcontinent with a large number falling under the flag of the ummah the Hindus crucially proved the ability to regenerate.

The open system of worship without a central authority and a defined priest hood or single place of pilgrimage allowed Hinduism to resist, adapt, regenerate and eventually thrive in the face of genocidal attack. The Muslim historians whilst lauding the achievements of their kings in entering and establishing rule in India lamented their failure to convert the land into the land of Islam. Eventually realising the futility of their operations we have the sight of the Mughal emperor , Akbar renouncing traditional Islam and establishing his own Din i Ilahi in line with the syncretic traditions of the people. When his successor broke this tenuous compromise the Empire was broken into pieces with predominantly Hindu warrior lands rising over its ruins and obliterating the Islamic rule. Indeed by the time of the advent of the British the surviving Muslims kings either had folded to the new Hindu revival or ran into the waiting arms of the British Empire for protection.

Buddhism is happily making a return to India, the land of its origin. Pilgrims from East Asia and the Americas now make pious journeys to the land of Buddha’s Birth. It is however a sober reminder to humanity of the need to preserve an ethos of toleration and acceptance and resistance in the face of genocidal terror. It is the lesson of the history of Hinduism.

The truths of conversion are far more complicated than envisaged by modern day self proclaimed scholars. The idea of a mono religious India prior to the Islamic invasions defies historical truth. A multi cultural, multi religious India was assailed by the determined forces of monotheistic jihad. The end of a millennia of attack saw nearly a quarter of the subcontinent embrace the middle eastern faith but the concept that a uniformly Hindu nation became in part Muslim is a falsehood. The very word for ‘idol breaker’ is but shikan – (lit- breaker of the Buddha) a tragic reference to the obliteration of the once widespread Buddhist faith from the lands of its birth and beyond. In contrast – though suffering terrible pain the Hindus resisted, regenerated and in parts expanded showing clearly that the values of Dharma are essential not only for survival but for the very future of mankind

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India allows 17th Karmapa to travel to US

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Shimla, India -- Amidst hectic lobbying by his followers in the corridors of power, government has finally Ogyen Trinley Dorje- 17th Karmapa, who is parallel head of powerful Kagyu karma sect of Tibetan Buddhist to travel to United States to attend Kalchakra.

Under scanner of investigating agencies for huge stacks of foreign currency recovered from his monastery, Ogyen Trinley Dorje had earlier expressed his desire to visit United States along with Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader the – Dalai Lama for Kalchakra which commences from July 6th in Washington D.C.

According to Buddhist beliefs, the Kalachakra was first given by Shakyamuni Buddha, in ancient India. The Kalchakra in Washington will last for 11 days. During the first three days of the Kalachakra, from July 6 through 8, the Dalai Lama, along with the monks of Namgyal Monastery and senior lamas, will conduct rituals, which prepare and consecrate the venue.

Karmapa’s administration - Tsurphu Labrang in Dharamsala had written to the ministry of home affairs seeking permission to travel abroad.  It was late in the afternoon on Tuesday that Karmapa’s administration received intimation about the clearance given by home ministry. “ We have got clearance from the Indian government. We are extremely grateful to the Indian authorities” Sonam, Karmapa aides in Delhi told Hindustan Times.

Twenty-six year – old monk - 17th Karmapa himself  had been camping in Delhi since  past one week.  Karmapa’s high profile followers hectically lobbied in New Delhi to ensure that   spiritual leader is allowed to go abroad. This will be Karmapa second visit abroad ever since he escaped from Tsurphu in   China controlled Tibet a decade ago. Karmapa is likely to stay in United States for over two weeks and would return back to Dharamsala on July 25.

Looked with suspicion, Karmapa lives under the watchful eyes of the Indian agencies in the backside of  Gyuto Tantric monastery in Dharamsala. His movements within the country remains restricted his travel schedule is cleared by the home ministry. Karmapa made his maiden trip to United States in the 2008. He had visited the seat of his predecessor 16th Karmapa the 16th Karmapa Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, who is largely credited for introducing Tibetan Buddhism in western countries. Rigpe Dorje had escaped to Bhutan in 1959 along with 150 of his students later he set up a monastery in Rumtek in Sikkim Rigpe Dorje who lived in United states died of cancer in Chigao in 1981 he was cremated at the rumtek monastery, that remains forbidden for the two claimants Ogyen Trinley Dorje and Shamar Rinpoche enthrone parallel Karmapa- Thaye Dorje.

Ogyen Trinley Dorje had made nations headline in January, since police during the raid in the monastery had recovered Rs 6.5 crore from the possession of   Rabjey Choesang treasurer of Karmapa headed Karmae Garchen Trust.  What surprised the investigating agencies was the recovery of   12 lakh Chinese Yuan. Karmapa’s followers denied   spiritual leader had anything to do with the money, which claimed was donated by devotees.

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