Dharamshala: - For the past three days, the Main Tibetan Temple (Tib: Tsuglagkhang) in McLeod Ganj, the seat of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in exile, has been abuzz with activity. From the 23rd- 25th of this month, the spiritual leader of Tibet has been offering teachings twice a day at the request of a group of Korean devotees.
The teachings were based on the serenity (shiney) and insight (lhaktong) sections of Je Tsongkhapa's "The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment".
Barring entry to none, the three-day teachings saw flocks of devotees in attendance from more than 50 countries including Taiwan, US and Europe. One need not have been a Buddhist devotee or a monk in order to listen in on the lectures; the audience consisted of a wide array of people, with varying degrees of knowledge about Buddhism. Some attended to gain insight into the spiritual philosophy, while others simply came to bask in the hallowed presence of His Holiness.
Je Tsongkhapa (1357-1419),one of the principal figures of Buddhism in his time, composed the Lamrim Chenpo as a lucid, insightful directive towards enlightenment. It went on to become one of the cornerstone pieces of Buddhist literature, followed extensively by devotees world-wide.
Giving insights into the Lamrim Chenpo, His Holiness the Dalai Lama said: "What distinguishes it as one of the principal texts of Mahayana Buddhism is its scope and clarity...the various stages of the path are presented so clearly and systematically that they can be easily understood and are inspiring to put into practice."
Today marked the last day of the teachings at Tsuglagkhang, after which His Holiness the Dalai Lama is scheduled to visit Japan, to offer prayers and condolences to the areas ravaged by the tsunami that hit in March this year.
