RYI STUDENT BLOG

Buddha Lotus Painting Contrary to common outsider conceptions of monastic life, the place held by meditative practices (here defined as practices involving states of absorbed concentration) within the everyday practices of the average Tibetan Buddhist monk is quite minimal. Indeed, the majority of monks within the Tibetan tradition we are primarily exposed to at the shedra do not or rarely practise meditation of this kind, instead spending the bulk of their monastic time studying different Buddhist texts and engaging in different ritualistic practices. Certainly this revelation serves as a source of surprise for many of us that held rather romanticised ideas of monks and monastic life prior to being exposed to the reality of the tradition. One then has to question the importance of the study of texts and rituals as compared to practising meditation (if a distinction is to be drawn between these kinds of practices). Buddha and afflictions      ...

There are many stories in Nepal. Because these stories are very interesting-- as last time I had shared the story about the Jacket from the Naga land -- I would like to introduce the story of the Golden Temple in Patan at this time.   When people talk about Patan, the Golden Temple will show up in everyone’s mind. The Golden Temple is one of the famous Buddhist temples in Patan. However, few people know that there was a love story, which was between a king and a queen, behind the holy Golden Temple . Once upon a time, there was a king called Marwad and he had a lovely queen called Pingala. They loved each other very much. As a return for his lovely queen, King Marwad planned to make an image of Shakyamuni as a gift to her. When the image had been finished, another king, from other country, asked for a gift as a sign of good relations with King Marwad’s kingdom. For the people’s safety in the country, Queen Pingala chose to give up the image for the peaceful relationshi...