Today marks the celebration of Buddha’s birth, Enlightenment and death, sometimes referred to as Vesakh (or in the Tibetan tradition “Saga Dawa”, and Nepali tradition “Buddha Jayanthi”). In the spirit of promoting religious harmony and good relations between people of different faiths, we at Diamond Way Buddhism UK are happy to pass on the kind message we recently received from the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue marking the occasion.
Fish-eye view of the Beaufoy, including the course marquee, from the Bellway construction site
The first week of April 2014 was packed with activity and excitement as Lama Ole Nydahl and his team, followed by Lama Jigme Rinpoche arrived in London to stay at the London Diamond Way Buddhist Centre at the Beaufoy Institute. While we have previously recounted two important days (namely Lama Ole’s tour Reading, Oxford and St Albans and the public opening of the London Centre at the Beaufoy Institute), here we’d like to share some impressions of what went on during the rest of the time the two lamas were with us.
Erica Beaufoy, Jigme Rinpoche, Lama Ole Nydahl and Councillor Paul McGlone, cutting the ribbon to open the London Diamond Way Buddhist Centre at the Beaufoy, 5 April 2014
Saturday 5 April 2014 marked an important day in the history of Buddhism in London and the UK. After over a year of renovation works to prepare the Beaufoy Institute to host a regular programme of meditation and events, the London Diamond Way Buddhist Centre officially opened its doors to the public.
Lama Ole Nydahl in Oxford 1 April 2014
Having arrived in London for a week-long visit to the UK, on the first evening, Lama Ole Nydahl expressed the strong wish to make a spontaneous visit to as many as possible of the Diamond Way Buddhist groups in the close vicinity of London. A few phone calls later to discuss logistics, and a plan was made for the following day, Tuesday 1 April, to drive to Reading, Oxford and St Albans. The was the first time since Lama Ole Nydahl’s 2011 visit that he had visited groups outside the Capital.
Newcomers to our Buddhist centres often ask “What is Buddhism?“. Is it a religion? Is it a philosophy, or psychology? Buddhism goes beyond all of these disciplines. It is not only conceptual like philosophy, but changes the practitioner at a deep level through meditation. Buddhism also goes beyond everything personal, transcending psychology.
People often say that it is a religion, which in some ways is a valid answer. His Holiness the 17th Karmapa, Trinley Thaye Dorje, however, when asked “What is Buddhism?” said that Buddhism is rather a way of life, and that one can even think of it more like a science.
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4th Shamarpa, Chodrag Yeshe Palzang
The Himalayan Art Resource website recently added a page for Karma Gardri sculpture style. One can find beautiful examples of sculptures of previous incarnations of the Karmapa and Shamarpa. Some examples can be seen below (click to enlarge).
H.H. 16th Karmapa
“You would come in [to Rumtek Monastery], you would see H.H. the Sixteenth Karmapa. You would see a man who could laugh so that you could hear it five houses away. You’d see a house of power, something you’d never seen before. If he were here now, everybody would gradually vibrate against the walls. I promise you that, just from his power. I’ve never seen anybody like him. I’ve seen all the high Rinpoches, all the Holinesses, but I’ve never seen anybody like him – nobody with his power, nobody with his blessing, nobody with his energy, that I’ve never seen.”
– Lama Ole Nydahl, 30 March 1996 at the International Karma Kagyu Conference, Karmapa International Buddhist Institute, New Delhi
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