December 23, 2013 11:22 am
His
Holiness the Dalai Lama arriving at the Kempinski Hotel at the start of
the second day of his teachings for a group of Russian Buddhists in New
Delhi, India on December 22, 2013. Photo/Kate Surzhok
(Dalai Lama.com)
New Delhi, India 22 December 2013
“The purpose of this kind of teaching is to understand the Dharma,
which can help us learn to transform our minds,” began His Holiness the
Dalai Lama this morning. “And this is a class or lecture I’m giving.
Listen, try to understand and then try to apply what you’ve understood.
I’m not here to give blessings! We’ll have a question and answer
session. Please don’t talk too long and try to frame your question
clearly. You have a right to ask what you like and I reserve the right
whether and how to answer.”
The first question was about Nikolas Roerich and agni yoga. His
Holiness said he was aware of Roerich because there is a gallery of his
paintings near Kullu, but he knew nothing about agni yoga. The next was
about how the emptiness of the five aggregates refers to the emptiness
of phenomena. His Holiness explained that of the aggregates, form is
physical, while feelings and so forth are mental. He remarked that we
can also talk about the emptiness of compounded and uncompounded
phenomena.
When a Ukrainian told him that yesterday he and 20 of his compatriots
had decided to become Buddhists, His Holiness said that he usually
draws a distinction between religion and culture. Belief in Buddhism is a
matter of individual choice, but Buddhist culture relates to a
community.
“Whether you follow the Buddhist path is up to you. If you feel it’s
useful to you, that’s fine. You don’t need a grand lama wearing a
peculiar hat to perform a ceremony to mark the occasion. If you feel
drawn to it, that’s sufficient. I often say that it is generally safer
if people follow the culture and religion they were born to. But
nevertheless, there seem to be many people who feel the Buddhist path
may be more effective. If you want to take up the practice of Buddhism,
that’s fine, but you should retain respect for your traditional
religion.”
03:32
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