29 Facts About Tibetan Buddhism

1.

Tibetan Buddhism is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion.

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2.

Tibetan Buddhism evolved as a form of Mahayana Buddhism stemming from the latest stages of Indian Buddhism.

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3.

Apart from classical Mahayana Buddhist practices like the six perfections, Tibetan Buddhism includes tantric practices, such as deity yoga and the Six Dharmas of Naropa as well as methods which are seen as transcending tantra, like Dzogchen.

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4.

All the sub-schools of the Kagyu tradition of Tibetan Buddhism surviving today, including the Drikung Kagyu, the Drukpa Kagyu and the Karma Kagyu, are branches of the Dagpo Kagyu.

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5.

Tibetan Buddhism exerted a strong influence from the 11th century CE among the peoples of Inner Asia, especially the Mongols.

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6.

Tibetan Buddhism was adopted as the de facto state religion by the Mongol Yuan dynasty of Kublai Khan.

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7.

In China, Tibetan Buddhism continued to be patronized by the elites of the Ming Dynasty.

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8.

Tibetan Buddhism is an influential religion among Chinese people, and in Taiwan.

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9.

Today, Tibetan Buddhism is adhered to widely in the Tibetan Plateau, Mongolia, northern Nepal, Kalmykia, Siberia (Tuva and Buryatia), the Russian Far East and northeast China.

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10.

Some of these westerners went on to learn Tibetan Buddhism, undertake extensive training in the traditional practices and have been recognized as lamas.

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11.

Widely revered Bodhisattvas in Tibetan Buddhism include Avalokiteshvara, Manjushri, Vajrapani, and Tara.

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12.

Tantric texts generally affirm the use of sense pleasures and other defilements in Tantric ritual as a path to enlightenment, as opposed to non-Tantric Tibetan Buddhism which affirms that one must renounce all sense pleasures.

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13.

True to its roots in the Pala system of North India, however, Tibetan Buddhism carries on a tradition of eclectic accumulation and systematisation of diverse Buddhist elements, and pursues their synthesis.

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14.

In Tibetan Buddhism, practices are generally classified as either Sutra or Tantra (Vajrayana or Mantrayana), though exactly what constitutes each category and what is included and excluded in each is a matter of debate and differs among the various lineages.

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15.

In Vajrayana particularly, Tibetan Buddhism Buddhists subscribe to a voluntary code of self-censorship, whereby the uninitiated do not seek and are not provided with information about it.

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16.

Tibetan Buddhism has always had a taste for esotericism since its earliest period in India.

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17.

Traditionally Tibetan Buddhism lamas have tended to the lay populace by helping them with issues such as protection and prosperity.

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18.

Use of prayer formulas, incantations or phrases called mantras (Tibetan Buddhism: sngags) is another widespread feature of Tibetan Buddhism Buddhist practice.

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19.

In Tibetan Buddhism, it is important to have the proper intention, focus and faith when practicing mantras, if one does not, they will not work.

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20.

Deity Yoga is a fundamental practice of Vajrayana Buddhism involving visualization of mental images consisting mainly of Buddhist deities such as Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and fierce deities, along mantra repetition.

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21.

Visualizing one of these deities, or oneself identifying with one of them, is not, in Tibetan Buddhism Tantric thought, a technique to worship an external entity.

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22.

Women traditionally took many roles in Tibetan Buddhism, from lay supporters, to monastics, lamas and tantric practitioners.

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23.

Some Tibetan Buddhism women become lamas by being born in one of the hereditary lama families such as Mindrolling Jetsun Khandro Rinpoche and Sakya Jetsun Kushok Chimey Luding.

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24.

When Tibetan Buddhism traveled from India to Tibet, apparently the quorum of bhiksunis required for bestowing full ordination never reached Tibet.

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25.

Buddhist author Michaela Haas notes that Tibetan Buddhism is undergoing a sea change in the West, with women playing a much more central role.

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26.

Tibetan Buddhism's is the first westerner, male or female, to be installed as an abbot in the Drikung Kagyu lineage of Buddhism, having been installed as the abbot of the Vajra Dakini Nunnery in 2004.

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27.

In 2013 Tibetan Buddhism women were able to take the geshe exams for the first time.

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28.

Tibetan Buddhism's approach is not concerned with "schools" or sects, but rather focuses on the transmission of crucial meditation teachings.

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29.

Yungdrung Bon is closely related to Nyingma Tibetan Buddhism, and includes Dzogchen teachings, similar deities, rituals and forms of monasticism.

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