Tibetan Buddhism is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion. It also has adherents in the regions surrounding the Himalayas, in much of Central Asia, in the Southern Siberian regions such as Tuva, and in Mongolia.
Vajrayāna along with Mantrayāna, Guhyamantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism are names referring to Buddhist traditions associated with Tantra and "Secret Mantra", which developed in the medieval Indian subcontinent and spread to Tibet, East Asia, Mongolia and other Himalayan states.
The Gelug is the newest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It was founded by Je Tsongkhapa (1357–1419), a Tibetan philosopher, tantric yogi and lama and further expanded and developed by his disciples.
Nyingma is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It is also often referred to as Ngangyur, "order of the ancient translations". The Nyingma school is founded on the first lineages and translations of Buddhist scriptures from Sanskrit into Tibetan in the eighth century, during the reign of King Trisong Detsen.
Namkhai Norbu was a Tibetan Buddhist master of Dzogchen and a professor of Tibetan and Mongolian language and literature at Naples Eastern University. He was a leading authority on Tibetan culture, particularly in the fields of history, literature, traditional religions, and Traditional Tibetan medicine, having written numerous books and scholarly articles on these subjects.
Butter tea, also known as po cha, cha süma, Mandarin Chinese: sūyóu chá or gur gur cha in the Ladakhi language, is a drink of the people in the Himalayan regions of Nepal, Bhutan, India, Pakistan especially in Gilgit-Baltistan, Tibet and Western regions of modern-day China and the Caribbean. Traditionally, it is made from tea leaves, yak butter, water, and salt, although butter made from cow's milk is increasingly used, given its wider availability and lower cost.
A diya, diyo, deya, deeya, dia, divaa, deepa, deepam, deep, deepak or saki is an oil lamp made from clay or mud with a cotton wick dipped in ghee. Diyas are native to the Indian subcontinent and they hold sacred prominence in Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist and Jain prayers as well as religious rituals, ceremonies and festivals including Diwali.
Traditional Tibetan medicine, also known as Sowa-Rigpa medicine, is a centuries-old traditional medical system that employs a complex approach to diagnosis, incorporating techniques such as pulse analysis and urinalysis, and utilizes behavior and dietary modification, medicines composed of natural materials and physical therapies to treat illness.
Dark retreat is a spiritual retreat in a space that is completely absent of light, which is an advanced practice in the Dzogchen and Kalachakra lineages of Tibetan Buddhism and Bön.
Vajrayoginī is a Tantric Buddhist female Buddha and a ḍākiṇī. Vajrayoginī's essence is "great passion" (maharaga), a transcendent passion that is free of selfishness and illusion—she intensely works for the well-being of others and for the destruction of ego clinging. She is seen as being ideally suited for people with strong passions, providing the way to transform those passions into enlightened virtues.
Chötrul Düchen, also known as Chonga Choepa or the Butter Lamp Festival, is one of the four Buddhist festivals commemorating four events in the life of the Buddha, according to Tibetan traditions. Chötrul Düchen closely follows Losar, the Tibetan New Year. It takes place on the fifteenth day of the first month in the Tibetan calendar during the full moon. The first fifteen days of the year celebrate the fifteen days during which the Buddha displayed miracles for his disciples so as to increase their devotion. During Chötrul Düchen, it is believed that the effects of both positive and negative actions are multiplied ten million times.
Monlam also known as The Great Prayer Festival, falls on 4th–11th day of the 1st Tibetan month in Tibetan Buddhism.
Tibetan tantric practice, also known as "the practice of secret mantra", and "tantric techniques", refers to the main tantric practices in Tibetan Buddhism. The great Rime scholar Jamgön Kongtrül refers to this as "the Process of Meditation in the Indestructible Way of Secret Mantra" and also as "the way of mantra," "way of method" and "the secret way" in his Treasury of Knowledge. These Vajrayāna Buddhist practices are mainly drawn from the Buddhist tantras and are generally not found in "common" Mahayana. These practices are seen by Tibetan Buddhists as the fastest and most powerful path to Buddhahood.
Kumbum Monastery, also called Ta'er Temple, is a Tibetan gompa in Lusar, Huangzhong County, Xining, Qinghai, China. It was founded in 1583 in a narrow valley close to the village of Lusar in the historical Tibetan region of Amdo. Its superior monastery is Drepung Monastery, immediately to the west of Lhasa. It is ranked in importance as second only to Lhasa.
Marry girl cake or dowry cake is a traditional Chinese cake that was once a ceremonial cake used as a wedding gift in the traditional Chinese wedding ceremony, hence the name. Today, this cake is known more as a classic Chinese pastry rather than a wedding gift because it has lost most of its original significance due to cultural change. It can be found in Hong Kong and in some Chinatowns overseas.
The Seventeen Tantras of the Esoteric Instruction Series or the Seventeen tantras of the Ancients are an important collection of tantras in the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism. They comprise the core scriptures of the "esoteric instruction series" (Menngagde) of Dzogchen teachings and are its most authoritative scriptures.
The Reverberation of Sound Tantra, is considered to be the root tantra of the seventeen tantras of the Menngagde class of the Tibetan Buddhist Dzogchen tradition.
The Guhyasamāja Tantra is one of the most important scriptures of Tantric Buddhism, written in Sanskrit. In its fullest form, it consists of seventeen chapters, though a separate "explanatory tantra" (vyākhyātantra) known as the Later Tantra is sometimes considered to be its eighteenth chapter. Many scholars believe that the original core of the work consisted of the first twelve chapters, with chapters thirteen to seventeen being added later as explanatory material.
Yak butter is butter made from the milk of the domestic yak. Many herder communities in China, India, Mongolia, Nepal, Gilgit-Baltistan Pakistan and Tibet produce and consume dairy products made from yak's milk, including butter. Whole yak's milk has about twice the fat content of whole cow's milk, producing a butter with a texture closer to cheese. It is a staple food product and trade item for herder communities in south Central Asia and the Tibetan Plateau.
Butter Lamp is a 2013 Chinese-French short drama film directed by Hu Wei. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film at the 87th Academy Awards. The film was shot in a single location and with an entire cast of non-professional actors.
