As Dalai Lama Marks 75th Birthday, A Look at His Views on the Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Tibet
As Dalai Lama Marks 75th Birthday, A Look at His Views on the Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Tibet
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The exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama turned 75 years old yesterday. The Nobel Peace Prize winner addressed a crowd of thousands gathered to celebrate the occasion at a temple in the Indian Himalayas where he as lived since fleeing Chinese rule in Tibet in 1959. At a recent event in New York, Amy Goodman asked him his thoughts on the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the status of Tibet. We also speak with Dr. Robert Thurman, professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist studies at Columbia University and president of Tibet House US.
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The Actual Body of the Medicine Buddha
Visualization : About four inches above the crown of my head. In the center of the lotus is a white moon disk and seated on the moon disk i my root guru-the dharmakaya essence of all the buddhas- in the form of the medicine buddha. He is blue in the color and his body radiates blue light. His right hand, in the Mudra of granting sublime realizations, rests on his right knee and hols the stem of the ARURA plant between thumb and first finger. His left hand is in the mudra of concentration and holds a lapislazuli bowl filled with nectar. He is seated in the full vajara position and is wearing the three red colored robes of a monk. He has all signs and qualities of a buddha.
Taking refuge and generating Bodhichitta : I go for refuge until I am enlightened. To the Buddha, Dharma, and the supreme assembly. By my practice of giving and other perfections, may I become a buddha in order to benefit all sentient beings. ( 3 times )
The four immeasurable thoughts : May all sentient beings have happiness and the causes of happiness. May all sentient beings be free from suffering and the causes of suffering. May all sentient beings never be separated from the happiness that is without suffering. May all sentient beings abide in equanimity, free from both attachment and hatred, holding some close and others distant.
Cultivating Special Bodhichitta : Especially for the benefit of all sentient beings, I will quickly, very quickly, attain the precious state of perfeect and complete buddhahood. For this reason I will practice the yoga methode of Guru Medicine Buddha.
