The last sect of Buddhism that I will be writing about is Vajrayana Buddhism. This school of thought is predominantly found within Tibet and seems almost synonymous with Tibetan Buddhism, so I will be treating the two as pretty much the same. It is similar to Mahayana Buddhism in its rich rituals and symbolism, but differs because of its origins in Tibetan culture. Vajrayana bills itself as the fastest path to enlightenment, so for all those wishing to find themselves a diamond in the rough, better brush up on your Tibetan (and your Chinese, really).

Tibetan religion in pre-Buddhist days was centered around shamanic rituals and offerings to keep the powers of nature appeased. A great emphasis was placed on magic and incantations, which must have meshed well with Tantric Buddhism as it moved into the region in the 7th century BC. The Tantric school came out of Northeast India and was centered around key texts (tantras) which opposed the the usual Buddhist status-quo of avoiding bodily pleasures and sexual acts, and also gave magical words and phrases that helped the Tantric practitioner. Tantric Buddhism saw the body as an aide in one’s quest for enlightenment instead of a hindrance, and the sexual union of the opposites of male and female was seen as an example of unity instead of a taboo.

The Yellow Hats

This ‘free pass’ on sexual union soon unlocked other previous taboos and Vajrayana Buddhism was soon a practice of trying to overcome the passions by exhausting them, by indulging in them until you found them to be distasteful. Monks could marry, and would often pass on their large, castle-like monasteries onto their sons. But strict reforms eventually put the Vajrayana school of Buddhism back on track with more traditional verison of Buddhism, and the resulting sect became known as the Yellow Hat sect on account of their… well, large yellow hats. Duh.

The head of this sect became known as His Holiness (HH) the Dalai Lama- an emanation of a previous Buddha or Bodhisattva (specifically Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of compassion), a reincarnation of a previous Lama, as well as the head of the Tibetan state. When one Dalai Lama dies, a group of monks searches for the next reincarnation by, among other tests, showing potentials a group of objects. The true reincarnation is able to select those objects used by the previous Dalai Lama.

The Panshen Lama, the second-highest ranking lama after the Dalai Lama, usually plays a key role in finding and selecting the next Dalai Lama. Recently however, when the current Dalai Lama found the most recent Panshen Lama, Gedun Choekyi Nyima, the Chinese government imprisoned the six year-old and refuses to disclose his current location. They have, however, put forward their own Panshen Lama in his place- Gyancain Norbu, who most Tibetan Buddhists, including the Dalai Lama, do not see as the true successor.

It seems obvious that the Chinese government hopes to gain control of Tibetan Buddhism and its critical perspective on the government’s actions by controlling the lama responsible for choosing the Dalai Lama’s next reincarnation. However, much to my surprise, the current Dalai Lama has said that he may not even be reincarnated, that the role of the Dalai Lama is coming to an end. He has also said that if the situation between Tibet and China is not resolved, then he might chose to be reincarnated, but certainly not within China’s new borders.

Whatever the case, Tibet’s independence seems to be a dream that is floating further and further away from actuality. I will post more about this issue later on, as it is something that has held my concern and attention for some time.

The Red Hats

The other sect of Tibetan Buddhism, cleverly dubbed The Red Hats are best known for their views concerning death, and their text, The Tibetan Book of the Dead. This book details what happens to our consciousness after we die, and the variables that determine whether or not we will enter Nirvana or undergo rebirth. The state that we inhabit after death is called the Bardo, and our time there is important in deciding our ultimate fate. To this end, Tibetan Buddhist monks perform ceremonies and rituals meant to help the dying deal with their death and passing into the Bardo.

Om Mani Padme Hum

One well known feature of Vajrayana Buddhism is the popular mantra “Om mani padme hum,” which can be translated in many different ways. Some of the ones I found where:

  • Om- the jewel- the lotus- ah!
  • The Jewel is in the Lotus
  • The Jewel is the Lotus
  • Om, the jewel in the lotus, hum

There are various ways to interpret the meaning of this mantra. Some see it as a prayer to Avalokiteshvara, a way to seek guidance in everyday life. The recent Dalai Lama interprets each syllable as addressing one of the aspects of Buddhism, things to overcome and the ends of Buddhism itself. Om (sometimes spelled ‘aum’) represents the impure, assertive self at the beginning of the Buddhists. The syllables in between (ma, ne, pad, and me) symbolize compassion, wisdom, and the other traits that will get you to that final state, hum- the purity achieved by the combination of your cumulative wisdom and your practiced actions.

In my not-quite-so-never-ending quest to collect a piece of jewelry to represent every religion I will be practicing, I purchased a bracelet with the om mani padme hum mantra inscribed in it in Tibetan. I was looking for something like a dharma wheel or a set of prayer beads, but after fidning this bracelet and studying the mantra, I feel it really summarizes what Buddhism is all about.

And that is all for the various paths of Buddhism. There are other sects which I did not get into, such as Zen, but that school of thought is pretty easy to explain.

I’m thinking of doing two more posts and then my final thoughts on Buddhism, that should do it for May! Paganism, here I come.