Issue 48 (Fall/Winter 2021)

In this issue, we present teachings that relate to the practice of the transmission of Buddhism. As Buddhists, we are taught that enlightenment is not an idea or a philosophy but is instead a direct, living experience of the way things actually are. The sharing and passing on of this experience from teacher to student, beyond concepts and ideas, is called “transmission” and has characterized our Buddhist lineage for over 2,500 years. By identifying with a qualified teacher, we come to realize our own buddha nature: that our mind and the teacher’s mind are not separate. While we all have different appearances and ways of expressing ourselves, the realization passed from teacher to student is always the same. This is often symbolized on the refuge tree, where we see Diamond Holder in the center surrounded by the great Lamas of the Karma Kagyu lineage. We started this issue with an image of Diamond Holder to signify this connection.

For the last 1,000 years, the responsibility of maintaining and passing on the Kagyu transmission has been the responsibility of the Karmapas, and so we begin this issue with the continuation of His Holiness the 17th Karmapa Thaye Dorje’s commentary on the Shantideva’s Way of the Bodhisattvas.

Following this, Lama Ole Nydahl gives us a teaching on initiations, explaining the profound way that the experience of enlightenment is shared from teacher to student. He also shares an oral history of how Buddhism first arrived in Tibet and began to take root there.

Finally, we present two excellent histories, Wolfgang Poier on the life of the great 8th Karmapa and part two of Manfred Seegers’ article on the origins of the Karma Kagyu lineage.

We hope that you find these articles inspiring and thought-provoking and wish you joyful Fall and Winter seasons.

The Editors

Editorial Board

Editors
Jonathan Bradley, Blakesley Burkhart, Annik Foreman, Carola Lofton, Bruce Underhill

Art Director/Production
Anilou Price

Digital Director
Alex Katalkin

Copy Editors
Nancy Beall, Kathleen Dwyer, Annik Foreman, Joe Lyman, Catherine Walker

Graphic Designers
Anilou Price, Alex Katalkin

e-Publications Editor
Michal Moskal

Photography
Volker Anders, Matt Balara, Gergana Dermenska, Volen Evtimov, Xavier Hazenbosch, Tokpa Korlo, Marcin Muchalski, Ginger Neumann, Rafal Radeck

Circulation Manager
Benjamin Ritchey

Marketing and Subscriptions
Kathleen Dwyer, Jim Macur, Benjamin Ritchey, Jerome Sala

Finance
Benjamin Ritchey

Tech Support
Alex Katalkin, Jeremy Kunzinger

karmapa on adopting the bodhisattva mind

Karmapa on Adopting the Bodhisattva Mind – The Way of The Bodhisattvas (Teachings from Chapter 3 of the Bodhicaryavatara by Shantideva)

Karmapa on Adopting the Bodhisattva Mind – The Way of The Bodhisattvas (Teachings from Chapter 3 of the Bodhicaryavatara by Shantideva)By /

The Bodhicaryavatara, often translated as “The Way of the Bodhisattvas,” is one of the most famous texts of the Mahayana, or Great Way. Shantideva composed the text around 700 CE. The author was one of the 84 Mahasiddhas and lived at that time as a Buddhist monk in the Nalanda University in India. In 2014, Thaye Dorje, the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, began teaching this text, chapter by chapter, at his public courses at the Karmapa International Buddhist Institute in New Delhi, India. It was Karmapa’s suggestion that we publish these teachings in Buddhism Today. This excerpt from chapter three follows the second chapter published in Buddhism Today Issues 45 and 46 and the first chapter in issue 42.

Karmapa on Adopting the Bodhisattva Mind – The Way of The Bodhisattvas (Teachings from Chapter 3 of the Bodhicaryavatara by Shantideva) Read More »

the kagyu lineage, part 2 (indian origins and early tibetan master)

The Kagyu Lineage, Part 2 (Indian Origins and Early Tibetan Master)

The Kagyu Lineage, Part 2 (Indian Origins and Early Tibetan Master)By /

The following article is the second in a three-part series of articles, offering an outline of the origin and contents of the Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. The first article used the Kagyu lineage as an example to explain the roles of the Buddhist practitioners in Tibet and what actually constituted a lineage or tradition within Tibetan Buddhism precisely. This article provides a brief overview of the origins of the lineage and its historical development up to the time of the 3rd Karmapa, in the early fourteenth century. In our next edition, the third article will discuss the essential teachings of the Kagyu tradition, as handed down and practiced until today. All three articles are based on the 2009 Master of Philosophy thesis by the author and have been slightly worked over for this magazine.

The Kagyu Lineage, Part 2 (Indian Origins and Early Tibetan Master) Read More »