Lamaist
Tibetan Buddhism, also called Lamaism (for a religious master is called a lama), is the body of religious Buddhist doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet, technically known as Vajrayana or Tantrayana. Tibetan Buddhism includes elements of Theravada, Mahayana and Vajrayana.
Buddhism came from India into Tibet in 173 AD during the reign of Lha Thothori Nyantsen. However, Buddhism did not take a strong foothold until the 9th century.
Introduced to Tibet in the 7th century, it married to both the Shamanistic Bön Religion (see Shamanism), and Tantric elements from Hinduism. The original Bön was a religion of magical and exorcist practices, which influence is said to have made Lamaism more prone to emphasis on the use of mantras, elaborate ritual, and the worship of guardian deities as well as the doctrine of Lamas as living incarnations of Buddhas or Bodhisattvas than other schools. Lamaism exerted a strong influence from the 11th century AD among the peoples of Central Asia, especially in Mongolia and Manchuria. It was adopted as an official state religion by the Mongol Yuan dynasty and the Manchu Qing dynasty of China.
Schools
Tibetan Buddhism has five main schools:
- Nyingma
- Kadam: presumed extinct, efforts to revitalize it are present in the Buddhist community
- Kagyu
- Sakya
- Geluk: though the most influential, it is the latest, hence not a part of "The Four Great Schools" traditionally.
An one minor one:
- Jonang: presumed extinct, survived in Eastern Tibet.
There is also an ecumenical movement known as Rime (alternative spelling: Rimed).
Famous and popular teachings of Tibetan Buddhism are mahamudra, 6 yogas of Naropa, dzogchen.
See also: prayer wheel, Dalai Lama, dorje
External links
Referenced By
Lama glama | Llama
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