Buddhist monk and scholar Telo Tulku Rinpoche. Telo Tulku Rinpoche and Tenzin Priyadarshi
Hello, now for my part I welcome you very warmly. We are very happy that we were all able to come to you to complete the sand mandala. You can’t even imagine how lucky you are today that, in addition to this delegation of monks from the Drepung Gaman Monastery, you have such amazing, truly amazing guests in your city today. It is with great joy that I give the floor to Tel Tulku Rinpoche, the head of the Buddhists of Kalmykia, who for us Russians is a connecting thread with His Holiness the Dalai Lama. At the request and thanks to the great efforts of Rinpoche, today Russians have the opportunity to go to India and receive teachings from His Holiness the Dalai Lama and, taking this opportunity, I would like to say that the next teachings of the Dalai Lama in India will be this year in December. And I know that many residents of Krasnodar have already attended the teachings organized by Telo Tulku Rinpoche in India. We invite everyone, we are very glad, regardless of what religion you belong to and what views you hold. It is with great joy that I give the floor to Telo Tulku Rinpoche and hope that he will share his wise thoughts with you.
First of all, let me convey my warmest wishes on this festive occasion, this great day. It is a great joy and honor for me to welcome you on this day, when the exhibition, which lasted for a week or more, ends. Several years ago we already held a similar exhibition in your city. I have been very closely following the reports on how your program “Days of Tibetan Culture” took place in Krasnodar over the past few days. And because I have seen, read and heard, I understand that the interest in our culture in the city is quite high and this is very joyful. But what I want to especially emphasize is that this event, this exhibition and our visit to you should not be considered as some kind of missionary action. We have no desire to convert anyone to our faith. We did not come to preach our tradition, our religion, but I am deeply convinced that if we communicate with each other, if we rely on art, on exhibitions, on these kinds of cultural events, then we can truly achieve constructive dialogue between us. Today the whole world is crying out for peace, today the whole world wants harmony. But can we create peace and harmony without disseminating our knowledge and educating people? Therefore, the purpose of our exhibition is educational. For us, this exhibition also allows and gives us the opportunity to learn more about you, about your culture, about your traditions. In fact, Buddhism as a religion has existed in Russia for the last four centuries. But, unfortunately, not many Russians know about this. Therefore, we feel that it is very important to convey our tradition, our history, how we existed on the territory of Russia and other countries for the last centuries, and this is one of the goals why we are holding an exhibition in Krasnodar. I know that similar exhibitions have already been held in Krasnodar in previous years, but, probably, if you look at the number of people who came today, this program was the most successful. I sincerely hope that these days passed with some meaning for you, that by coming to the walls of this museum, getting acquainted with the exhibits of the exhibition, you learned something useful for yourself, learned something, learned something.
Over the previous days, the head of this group of monks, Geshe Lobsang, gave lectures on various aspects of philosophy, and I know that a Tibetan doctor who was part of this group also gave a lecture on Tibetan medicine. You also had the opportunity to watch several films. And today it is a special pleasure for me to introduce Tenzin Priyadarshi, who has a very unusual experience behind him. He is an Indian by origin, born into a Hindu family with very strict traditions, his father is an intellectual figure. And perhaps I will be right if I say that at a very early age, despite all these strict customs of his family, Tenzin Priyadarshi ran away from home, despite the prohibitions of his parents, in order to begin his own spiritual quest. And his own determination to deeply study not only Buddhism, but also the most diverse religious traditions that exist in the world, to comprehend them deeply, this desire of his has turned him today into one of the leading scientists of our time. Last year he came to Russia for the first time at our invitation. On his last visit, he gave a number of lectures in Kalmykia for scientists, school teachers, and students, and I was very much asked to invite him to Russia again, he also gave lectures in Moscow and it just so happened that the day of his arrival turned out to be the day of the destruction of the mandala in Krasnodar. And we decided at the very last moment to change our plans and come to you. Today's topic that we will ask our guest to talk about is the topic of happiness, how to become happy. Tenzin Priyadarshi will tell you how to become happy, how to find happiness. I personally won’t talk to you about happiness because I don’t want to take responsibility, what if you follow my method and don’t achieve happiness, what then? Tenzin Priyadarshi and I have different situations, I am very close to you, only five hundred kilometers. Tenzin Priyadarshi will spend only a few days with you and fly away to distant lands, it will be much more difficult for you to reach him.
But still, what is the meaning of human life? I think that every person asks himself this question at least once in his life, and probably many times. I communicate a lot with the younger generation and I always ask them: what is the purpose of life? And what answers do I get to this question? Basically, they are very interesting, but these answers are endless. I ask the student: what is the purpose of your life? Answer: get a good education. Fine. I answer: great, you got a good education, but what next? They say: the next goal is to find a good job. I answer: great, you found a good job, what next? The next answer is: find a husband or wife, start a family, then I ask: what next? Have children and then raise them. Okay, the kids are grown, what next? Then - to become a grandfather, grandmother, And after? You see, this is such an endless story. How can we conclude that these people never achieve real achievement? Because we simply move step by step from one stage to the next. I ask: in the end, what is the main achievement of your life? When you went through all these steps and got an education, a good job, bought yourself the most wonderful, most expensive things, so what? And often the answer I get is: yes, probably, in the end, there is nothing left. What, is this our purpose in life? As a result, be left with zero? After all, everyone wants to achieve some kind of achievement. We need to clearly understand what exactly we want to get and how to get there. Someone says: I’ll get married, I’ll be happy, well, you’ll probably be happy. But what kind of happiness is this, is it relative happiness or is it the highest happiness, permanent happiness that will not disappear anywhere? Are you happy now? And the happiness that you experience constantly, will it always be with you? How can one still achieve this constant, indestructible happiness? Human nature is such that the only time when we think about some philosophical views, about some religion, or turn our gaze to the creator God or to the prophets, is the time when we suffer. This is human nature. Suffering and happiness go hand in hand, as we are programmed by our very nature. Of all living beings, humans are the most intelligent, but at the same time, the human race is the most stupid of all beings. Because we ourselves create the life that we live day by day. We created this table, ourselves, this building, this mandala. The unique quality of Buddhism is that we believe that man himself is the creator. Man gives birth to good, man gives birth to bad. We are born with a whole bunch of positive and negative qualities. When a baby is born and is only a few weeks old, do you think it comes into the world with compassion? If you think not, do you think he is born with anger in his heart? Why do you think that he is born with anger in his heart, but not born with compassion? Do you think that there is no balance in the world, no equilibrium? In fact, these qualities are love, compassion and any other virtues; we come into the world with them. But on the other hand, we also have attachment, greed and anger. If we are parents, then we must show the child the path of compassion, love, the ability to forgive, that is, make a choice in favor of positive qualities. When a child is only a couple of weeks old, he can show anger, affection, disappointment, even if the child cannot pronounce it, express it in words, he still feels it. When a child is hungry, he gets upset when his mother does not feed him on time, and he cries with such aggression, it turns out that these negative traits are inherent in him from birth. But to exactly the same extent he is characterized by love, the ability to forgive, and compassion. We simply forget to cherish and develop the qualities inherent in us from birth, and at the same time we all want to be happy. How can we become happy if we do not cultivate in ourselves these qualities of love, compassion, the ability to forgive, the ability to endure. Tenzin Priyadarshi will tell you his thoughts on this topic, but I want to emphasize now that Buddhism is a teaching that has three categories. For some, Buddhism is a religion, a faith; you can look at Buddhism as a philosophy and you can look at Buddhism as a science. What kind of science is this? This is the science of how our consciousness functions, this is the science that tells how our emotions work, how our consciousness works. I am a person who was born into a Buddhist family, of course, for me Buddhism is all three components together. I never welcome people switching from one faith to another so that they all become Buddhists. Because converting to another faith is a very serious matter. Our ancestors chose one or another spiritual path for themselves, which could have been influenced by external conditions, environment, psychological characteristics, Russians chose Orthodoxy for themselves for these numerous reasons. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, doors opened and people began to get acquainted with a variety of teachings, different traditions, a lot of people began to come to me and say: I want to become a Buddhist or I have already become a Buddhist. Of course, as a Buddhist I cannot say that I am upset when someone says that they have become a Buddhist, I do not feel sad. But I always encourage such people to go step by step and to comprehend and think about each step very deeply. And what I’m saying is that if you are interested in Buddhism, if it seems attractive to you, this does not mean at all that you should take Buddhism as your faith, your religion. I am a deep supporter and admirer of the philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi, who preached the path of non-violence, but if I adopt the non-violent path of Mahatma Gandhi, do I become a Hindu the same as he is. I borrow from Mahatma Gandhi precisely his path of non-violence, despite the fact that this path of non-violence was drawn by Mahatma Gandhi from the deepest heritage of Hinduism. I don't have to be a Hindu to follow the nonviolent path, I can just borrow exactly that. I'm telling you this because you can do the same. You can borrow some particularly important and interesting elements from the Buddhist tradition without becoming a Buddhist. But if you still want to become a Buddhist, of course, it is the right of every person to choose their own spiritual path. We live in a free world, a world of free consciousness, where we enjoy freedom of religion, so it is the decision of each of us. I will just emphasize that this is your decision, but this decision must be thoughtful and needs to be thought through. If we return to the description of what Buddhism is, we can distinguish two more categories, Buddhism as a religion and Buddhism as a Buddhist culture, in fact these are two completely different views of Buddhism. But these two planes are related to each other. What you saw here within the walls of this museum in recent days, we showed you the essence of Buddhist culture. Buddhism as a religion, I think we haven’t shown this and in fact we don’t even have the right to impose our faith on you. It is truly a great honor for me to be with you today in Krasnodar for the second time and to see today so many familiar faces, friendly faces, although I come here for a short time, we already manage to become friends. And once again, I want to take this opportunity to invite all of you to Kalmykia when you have the opportunity. Organizing such an event, here within the walls of this city, is, of course, not an easy task. A lot of people made an effort: organizers, coordinators, sponsors, the staff of this wonderful museum, many volunteers took part, supported this program, a whole large team of people. People worked hard not to get money or to get fame, honor, respect, but to make this wonderful event happen. Of course, I must thank you, the spectators who come to this exhibition every day, because without your participation this event would not be so wonderful. I hope you enjoyed it, I really hope you had a positive experience and those seeds of positive experiences that were sown in your heart, in your mind, they stay with you and help you in your everyday life. For our part, we will hope that our meeting is not the last and we will return and come to you again. And I would like to thank Pema Lyutovich today, the organizer of this event “Days of Tibetan Culture” in Krasnodar, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts, on behalf of the monks who came to Krasnodar and on behalf of our Kalmyk Buddhist community. We have a tradition of presenting walkers, and we want to thank the director of the museum. We thank everyone who helped organize the mandala, everyone who helped guard, everyone, all the people who worked here. We would like to thank Irina and Dmitry, who are our long-time friends, who helped us in a variety of ways so that our temple in Kalmykia developed. We thank you on behalf of all Kalmyk Buddhists on behalf of everyone who took part in this exhibition.
I want to give the floor to our esteemed guest Tenzin Priyadarshi and I want to ask you today, regardless of what religion you belong to, to support Tenzin Priyadarshi with your prayers, because he just recently lost his father, just a few days ago, he was sixty-three years old. He is not going through a very easy period in his life, but he still found the opportunity to come to us. It is very difficult when you part with family and friends and at the same time continue to smile and be happy. And that's what he embodies. Of course, there must be some tool, some technique that will allow a person to smile in such difficult times and this is what we can learn from him. I want to thank the monks who have come such a long way, who came to Russia, thank all of you who attended these programs, if there is interest on your part, then we can always make some effort to ensure that these exhibitions continue. The monks who came to you, they adhere to the Buddhist tradition, but at the same time, as you know, they represent the Himalayan region. They are Indian by nationality, but they came from the Himalayan region, these are places like Ladakh, Zanskar, I know that there are people here who have visited these places, and you can confirm what beautiful places they are, I personally have not been there. Some of the monks who came here to you are the people with whom I studied in the monastery, the teacher who accompanies them, the head of the group is a very sincere spiritual practitioner with whom we grew up together, when I was a child I was afraid of him, frankly speaking. , because he is such a big monk, very big, with such a deep, sonorous voice. Probably, selfishly speaking, I have already dealt with my fear, I have the deepest respect for him and I also thank him for lecturing you over the past days. I also thank Gen Nawang Lodoy, who is the administrator of the central Kalmyk khurul, he came here not only to support the monks, but because he has a very warm and sincere friendship with the organizers in Krasnodar, with the residents in Krasnodar. Thank you!
Good morning! It is a great joy for me, a very great joy to be with you. I thank Telo Tulku Rinpoche for his kind invitation to come to Russia again, to return here again, and I am not alone in my admiration for this man for his determination, for his willingness to introduce certain aspects of Buddhist culture to the general population of Russia. I’ll be brief, I see that many of you are standing, besides, it’s getting hot and stuffy here, I’m very afraid that you won’t return home and say: I went to listen about happiness, but in fact there were only ones there suffering. Then, probably, no one will feel good about such an outcome of events. The first thing we need to understand is what is happiness? Of course, happiness is a very, very subjective experience. And each person will define what happiness is in his own way. Very often, when we talk about happiness, we create certain artificial conditions around it and think, if I am happy from this, then others will not be happy. But when Buddhists define what happiness is, their definition is different from the ordinary definition of human beings. Because Buddhists want us to become happy and to be happy always, at all times, in any place, wherever we are. How do we usually experience happiness, each of us? When you are happy, what do you do? What emotions are you expressing? Absolutely right, you scream with happiness, jump with joy, you can hug someone with joy, but then answer me this question: can such happiness be lasting? Can you do any of the following all the time, like jumping all the time or screaming all the time? Scream for joy all day? Of course you can try, but it will be difficult. So, what we call happiness on an everyday level is a very short-term experience that comes in bursts. But the happiness we are talking about is a kind of constant experience, happiness that does not change, joy that you do not lose. While experiencing this basic state of happiness, of course, throughout the day you may experience ups and downs, positive experiences may occur or negative ones, but your mind does not follow them and does not fall, that is, it retains this basic experience of joy. How can we achieve this smooth experience of happiness? We need to start from the premise that absolutely all living beings want to be happy, regardless of what religion we follow, what our nationality is, this unites us, we all want to be happy. Let me demonstrate this to you. Who woke up this morning and said to themselves: I want to be unhappy all day today, suffer and spend the whole day in such unpleasant experiences? There are such? Were there any like this yesterday? Has anyone planned on being miserable all day tomorrow? You see, we don't plan for anger and unhappy states of mind. Likewise, we will not plan that we will be jealous, envious or unhappy. And no matter where I perform in the United States or in India, there is not a single person who plans to be unhappy. Therefore, it would be good if, when you woke up in the morning, you would cultivate this state of joy and think like this: let today pass in such a way that I help myself create conditions conducive to the experience of happiness. First of all, we need to understand, get rid of confusion, understand that there is a difference between the ordinary experience of joy, remember I said this at the beginning, the ordinary experience of joy when we jump for joy and so on, and the deep experience of happiness. It is very important from the very morning, when you wake up, to generate this joyful mood in yourself, let the conditions that I encounter, let what I do help me strengthen myself in a good mood. Happiness has a very simple equation, we must do as many things as possible, as many actions as possible that lead to the experience of happiness. And try with all your might to avoid those actions, those actions that, on the contrary, lead you away from happiness. A very simple equation, a formula for happiness, but it is very difficult to put into practice. Why is this so? Because our mind has primary tendencies. When we have formed certain habits in ourselves, habits of thinking, habits of acting, then these habits are very difficult to break. For example, this situation: we understand that we don’t want to be unhappy, we don’t want to feel angry, but we know for sure that every time we see that particular person, we can say with certainty that we will definitely get angry, we will definitely get angry . But it makes sense to ask yourself the question why it happens that some other person, not ourselves, but another person has such power over our mind, he changes our mental state from plus to minus. So start by cultivating simple conditions that lead you to happiness. In order to become happy, we don’t need to do something absolutely radical from what we usually do. If, for example, you wake up in the morning and tell yourself this: I want to be happy, and Buddha said: in order to be happy you need to meditate two hours a day. If you try this, you'll likely wake up with sore knees the next day. Very often, when we have something new in front of us, new tasks, new actions, we make too much effort, we feel overly enthusiastic, and the Buddha suggested that we act gradually, step by step, without overdoing it. So on the one hand we look at what makes us happy, on the other hand we work through what makes us unhappy. I won’t be able to explain this technique to you in detail now, but as Telo Rinpoche said, he is only five hundred kilometers away from you, so you can always come to him and ask how to become happy. But Rinpoche says that after all, I am not the creator of your happiness, I cannot make you happy of my own free will. Another very important element from a Buddhist point of view is that all the emotions that we experience are interconnected. There are certain actions that you can do consciously that will affect your state of mind. They will influence how you perceive the world around you. What I would like to encourage you to do is one very interesting practice and it is called “The Practice of Compassion”. After all, it often happens that when we see a person whom we do not like for some reason and we see that everything in his life is going well, he is happy, we begin to envy. What automatic thought is born in us? Why is this person so happy, he doesn’t deserve happiness? But let's see what happens next. This negative thought of yours actually does not cause any harm to the person you envy, but the envy that is born in your heart changes your inner mood, it makes you unhappy. It takes you away from the state of happiness, the same thing, if you see that some person achieves success, do not envy, just be happy, this person achieved success, and I also want to achieve success. Let it be at the level of joy. When we make comparisons between ourselves and other people, and such comparisons are instinctive, they are natural for us as human beings. You must develop a new habit in yourself, when you see a person who has achieved success, when you start making this comparison, yourself with another person, try to make this comparison positive and if you try to always make the comparison in a positive way, then after a while you You will notice that your overall state of mind changes for the better. Otherwise, you will never be happy with the relationships (whether close relationships, friendships or family) in which you are involved. Let me give you an example: do you know the Bentley car? Because it happens that if an example is not well translated into another language, then its essence cannot be conveyed, so I ask. Several years ago I was invited to give a lecture on the West Coast of the United States. And the organizer came to meet me in a brand new Bentley, he knew that I like different cars, different engines, the whole technical side of life interests me. And while we were driving along the highway, he described this new car to me in every detail, and you could see as he delved into the detailed description of his car, he became happier and happier. He told me that he had been waiting for this car for six months, it has a leather interior, how much this car costs, it has such an engine, he was simply beaming with happiness. It was clear that he liked driving this car, driving this car. And what happened next? As we drove a few miles, we met another Bentley, and this Bentley model was a little newer than the model he owned. After looking at that Bentley, he began to describe to me the advantages of that second Bentley. He said that the model that was driving now costs so much, the engine is like that, the leather is like that. And the more he delved into the description of that second Bentley, you could see that he was becoming sadder and sadder. By the time he finished his description, there was no trace of happiness left. This is what you and I do on a daily basis. We make such negative comparisons between ourselves and others and lose the ability to appreciate what we have now. Therefore, if we want to be happy, then one practical piece of advice that definitely works is the advice to rejoice, that is, to rejoice in what you already have, to feel grateful for what you have now. It is also very important not to think that happiness is certainly what you deserve today and until the end of your life and that you will find happiness in the end, because this time, this threshold, may never come, there is no need to postpone . But, if today you say: I want to be happy, right today and start making efforts in this direction, then there is a very high probability that in a few years and by the end of your life you will really become happy. Thanks a lot.
Now we can briefly answer some of your questions, and then after the question and answer session we can begin to destroy the mandala. I want to apologize to you that after so much hard work that the monks put in to create this beauty, I have to upset you today and tell you that this mandala will be destroyed. I apologize because it turns out that I am the destroyer of your happiness today. Sand mandala building is not an art that was invented by this group of monks or any single monastery, it is a spiritual art that has been passed down from generation to generation for many centuries. Buddhism is two and a half thousand years old, and today we can say with great pride that we are glad that we have brought this teaching and this art to the present day. When Buddha passed away from this life, when he left our world, he said that my teaching will be preserved where you find the true sangha. What is Sangha? These are fully ordained monks who preserve the teachings. Sangha, monks are people who keep two hundred and fifty-three vows pure. This is very difficult, we often cannot keep even five vows or ten, let alone two hundred and fifty-three vows. As fully ordained monks, these people carry a huge burden of responsibility on their shoulders. When monks build a sand mandala, they accompany it with certain rituals, as well as meditation and mental constructions. The very beginning of the construction of the sand mandala symbolizes the origin of life. And then, as the mandala grows, we correlate this growing, building mandala with our life, which also grows day by day. We must compare the beauty of this mandala with the beauty of our life and accept the fact that our life is truly beautiful, beautiful like this mandala. This is how we think, this is how we reflect, this is how we meditate when creating a mandala. The reality of our lives is that everything, even our wonderful life, ends up ending. This is a very special day for us, a special occasion - the destruction of the mandala, because we can deeply reflect on the impermanence of all things. Everything that exists in this world, material things, finances, all this is impermanent. We tend to take things for granted, but when such a moment occurs when we lose something, we lose loved ones or a lot of wealth or property that we have accumulated, we are filled with great, great sadness. This happens because we do not think about the impermanence of things from the very beginning. If our premise from the beginning had been that everything is impermanent, we wouldn't experience such heartbreaking pain when we lose loved ones or our possessions or anything else. The Buddha's teachings are simple, but quite difficult to apply in your daily life. Why? Because we are too selfish. If we suffer, we think that the Gods are to blame. If we achieve success, we say: “I”. “I” comes to the fore. I did it. I achieved this. It's because of me. A very strong sense of "I". I, mine, belong to me. But what is this “I”? What is this? Maybe we can start looking for him? But searching for “I” is difficult. It is difficult to find its definition, it is difficult to say what “I” is. Okay, you have now come to this room. Are you here. Or maybe tomorrow you will no longer be alive. Who knows? Then where is this “I”? What will happen to him? What will happen to what belongs to you? What will happen to what you called “yours”, “mine”?
The material was prepared by Roman Anoshchenko and Elena Krasnikova based on oral translation by Yulia Zhironkina.
http://youtu.be/yWo8PmvW63c
Dear Telo Tulku Rinpoche! Recently you were solemnly honored in Kalmykia on the occasion of your appointment as the honorary representative of H.H. Dalai Lama in Russia and Mongolia. What are the main goals you set in your work, and what needs to be done to ensure that the development of Buddhism in Russia corresponds to the tasks and ideas of H.H. Dalai Lama?
Telo Rinpoche: For me, the appointment to the position of honorary representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in Russia, Mongolia and the CIS countries is a great honor and great responsibility. It came as a complete surprise to me. But for me, as a follower and student of His Holiness, who fully shares his principles, it is a great joy to serve such a wonderful person who, although he calls himself a simple Buddhist monk, does an incredible amount to promote the ideas of love, compassion, forgiveness, and tolerance. In addition, His Holiness is a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, which also makes the position of his honorary representative especially responsible.
Russia is a huge country. Thus, the scope of my activity must cover vast territories, which, of course, will not be easy. Russia is one of the major players on the world political stage, as well as in the economy and other areas. But the activities of His Holiness’s representative in Russia have nothing to do with politics. Our task is to help His Holiness fulfill his three main obligations, the first of which is to promote the spread of universal human values. The second is to promote harmonious relations between religions. And third, to be a spokesman for the aspirations of the Tibetan people, to contribute to the cause of Tibet. These are the main commitments that His Holiness the Dalai Lama strives to fulfill in his life. And I, as a representative of the Dalai Lama, see my task as serving as a conduit for the ideas of His Holiness and helping promote universal human values, interreligious harmony, and helping the cause of Tibet.
Unlike other Western countries, Russia and Tibet have strong historical ties that go back centuries. This was largely due to the fact that more than 400 years ago the peoples of Buryatia, Kalmykia and Tuva joined Russia. I would call the relationship between Russia and Tibet outstanding and unique, rooted deep in history. Today it is important to renew and strengthen these ties, which were practically lost in the 20th century, when first the communists came to power in Russia, and then the communist China occupied Tibet, which as a result became part of the country under totalitarian rule. In the nineties, Russia underwent a transition to a democratic state, and thanks to this, it became possible to restore historical ties between the Russian and Tibetan peoples. I think these connections can be useful and serve the benefit of both parties. Of course, today in Russia we live in an open and free society, but in the past we suffered great losses in terms of culture, traditions, and language. And we really need the help of the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan organizations he created in India to assist in the revival, reconstruction and strengthening of our rich Buddhist heritage. At the same time, the Tibetan people continue to suffer under China's occupation. And I believe that the Russian people should express solidarity with the Tibetans and help find ways to resolve the Tibetan issue. It is important to emphasize here that His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government in exile, called the Central Tibetan Administration, do not seek separation or independence of Tibet from China. They adhere to a policy known as the "Middle Way Approach", which recognizes that Tibet's presence within China is beneficial to both the Chinese and Tibetan peoples. But at the same time, Tibetans want to be able to preserve their national identity, culture, language and traditions. I think in this situation it is possible to find a solution that will be mutually beneficial and acceptable to both parties. I also believe that finding such a solution is important not only for Tibet and China, but also for the rest of the world. In Asia, many countries depend on the natural resources of Tibet, on the rivers originating in the glaciers of Tibet. This conflict, this mutual misunderstanding needs to be eliminated as soon as possible, because, as I have already said, both Tibet and China are closely connected with the rest of the world.
This year, the 80th anniversary of H.H. Dalai Lama is celebrated all over the world. How would you suggest we celebrate this anniversary to please His Holiness, our spiritual guide? How should the anniversary be celebrated in three Buddhist regions of Russia?
Telo Rinpoche: Indeed, this year His Holiness the Dalai Lama will turn 80 years old. For a man of his age, who travels tirelessly to spread messages of peace and secular ethics, he is in excellent physical condition, despite the fact that his daily schedule is incomparably hectic than that of any of us. And yet he is in excellent health. Doctors say he has the heart of a young man. These are all very encouraging signs. We wish His Holiness good health and may he remain with us as long as possible.
A few years ago, a foreign journalist asked His Holiness what would be the best birthday present for him? And His Holiness replied that the best gift would be if all people showed warmth. It's so simple! And this goes very well with the principles that His Holiness always promotes: to show love, to show compassion. This is exactly what we lack in our daily lives. Not only in relationships with friends and relatives, but also in relationships with other people. So the best birthday gift we can give to His Holiness - not only the residents of Buryatia, Kalmykia and Tuva, but all residents of Russia - is to try to show warmth.
We live in difficult times, we are faced with a variety of difficulties: rising unemployment, people losing their jobs, rising inflation. All these external factors influence our internal state, our inner world. In such conditions, it is very easy to lose our usual internal balance. In times like these, we must all unite and help each other as best we can. Do not be selfish, but show self-sacrifice and altruism. Try to unite into a single community, bound by friendly relations, for the benefit of not only the local community, but for the benefit of the entire country. This is the best gift we can give not only to His Holiness, but to ourselves. Because every person undoubtedly deserves love, compassion from others and at the same time should share his love, compassion and forgiveness with them. This is the only way we can promote peace on Earth, peace in society, good relations with neighbors, friends and relatives. I am sure this will be the best gift not only to His Holiness, but to all humanity in general.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Golden Abode of Buddha Shakyamuni Khurul, built on the site blessed by His Holiness the Dalai Lama. What important events dedicated to this anniversary can Russian Buddhists take part in?
Telo Rinpoche: This year we will celebrate 10 years since we built a new temple, the Golden Abode of Buddha Shakyamuni. It's amazing how quickly time flies! Looking back over the past ten years, we see that we have achieved a lot and achieved many of our goals. It's safe to say that it was a successful decade. In honor of this holiday, we will hold many different events. These will not only be religious celebrations, but also a variety of events related to culture and education. We are still only at the very beginning of preparations. But we would like the celebration to take place in an atmosphere of mutual understanding and unity. And, of course, we gladly invite everyone to come to Kalmykia. I firmly believe that the closer we get to know each other, the more we travel, get to know each other’s culture, way of life, the easier it will be for us to overcome obstacles such as doubts and mutual misunderstanding. I think it is important for all residents of Russia - to come to Kalmykia and see how we live, to find out what we think, to experience the hospitality and cordiality of the Kalmyk people, to visit our Buddhist temple - one of the most beautiful Buddhist temples in Russia and the largest in Europe. We always welcome guests, but this year we especially invite everyone to attend numerous musical and cultural events. You will be able to watch the religious ceremony “Cham”, it will be performed by a group of monks who will specially come at our invitation from India. We also organize educational programs for schoolchildren. We are also planning to hold a scientific conference for Buddhologists, Indologists, and Tibetologists. They will gather in Kalmykia to discuss further cooperation in the scientific field. You can, of course, learn more about what events will take place to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the khurul on our website, where the information will be constantly updated.
At the international conference in Elista, you again bring together people from different regions on one platform. Some believe that establishing cooperation between Buddhist regions is a very difficult task. Do you think such cooperation is possible, and can it be fruitful?
Telo Rinpoche: As I said before, I believe that relationships between people are very important. We always invite everyone to come to Kalmykia. I travel a lot myself. For me, this is more than tourist trips or business trips. Wherever I go, I always try to learn something new about the history, culture, and various events associated with this place. This helps to understand how small our world is, how much we have in common, despite external differences.
If someone says that cooperation is impossible, then this is wrong. Before making such categorical statements, you still need to try and do something. Therefore, I believe that it is important for us to travel more and meet more often in order to get to know each other better.
If we return to the issue of interreligious harmony, to which His Holiness the Dalai Lama pays such close attention, then if representatives of all religious traditions live separately, avoiding meeting and communicating with each other, avoiding cooperation, then how can we live in peace and consent? After all, there will always be misunderstandings between us, deep down we will doubt. And doubts lead to suspicion, which in turn entails many negative consequences. So, the more we meet, the better we will understand each other. And then, even if we fail to reach full agreement on some issues, we will be able to come to a compromise that will be acceptable to all interested parties. This means that we will be able to maintain peaceful relations, study together, conduct scientific research, and work. We can do so much together! Therefore, it is so important that we reach out to each other and learn to cooperate, together to solve the complex problems that we face in the modern world.
Shajin Lama of Kalmykia Telo Tulku Rinpoche
Biography
Venerable Telo Tulku Rinpoche was born in America, in the city of Philadelphia in 1972. Parents are immigrants from Kalmykia who immigrated to the United States. Telo Rinpoche's grandfather was a Buddhist cleric who was subsequently persecuted. As a child, Venerable Telo Rinpoche began to show special interests that were not typical for ordinary children. At the age of four, he began to call himself a lama and said that he would become a monk. He often visited the khurul of the Kalmyk community in America. His extraordinary abilities were noted by the monks and in 1979 his family received an audience with His Holiness the Dalai Lama. After conducting special traditional inquiries, His Holiness recognized Erdni-Basan Ombadykov as the ninth incarnation of the Indian Mahasiddha Tilopa. In 1980, in the South of India at the Drepung Gomang monastery, he was officially enthroned. At Drepung Gomang Monastery, Telo Tulku Rinpoche studied logic, philosophy, history, grammar and other Buddhist disciplines for thirteen years.
In 1991, His Holiness the Dalai Lama was invited to the Republic of Kalmykia. He asked Telo Tulku Rinpoche to accompany him on this visit. In 1992, Telo Tulku Rinpoche visited the republic again. During this period, an extraordinary congress of the Society of Buddhists of Kalmykia was held at which the lama from Buryatia Tuvan Dorje was removed from the post of Shajin Lama of Kalmykia for financial fraud. Buddhists of Kalmykia unanimously supported the candidacy of Telo Tulku Rinpoche for the place of the Supreme Lama of Kalmykia.
Over the course of seventeen years, through the efforts of Shajin Lama of Kalmykia Telo Tulku Rinpoche, more than forty Buddhist temples and a huge number of stupas were erected. Also in the city of Elista, the largest Buddhist temple in Russia and Europe was erected.
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- Dilova Khutukhta of Mongolia. Political memoirs and autobiography of the reincarnation of a Buddhist lama, Gordienko E. V.. Memoirs of Dilov-khutukhta Bashlugiin Dzhamsranjava (1884 1965) occupy a special place among the sources on the history of Mongolia in modern times. Their author is one of the highest lamas of Mongolia, the incarnation of Tilopa...
Telo Tulku Rinpoche was born in the United States of America.
October 27, 1972, (in the world - Erdni Basan Ombadykov). When he was six years old, during the visit of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama to Philadelphia, he was recognized as the living incarnation of the Indian Mahasiddha Tilopa.
Since that time, all his activities have been inextricably linked with the revival of Buddhism in our republic.
In 1992, at a Buddhist conference, he, as the living embodiment of the Teacher, was elected Shajin Lama of Kalmykia.
From then until today, Telo Tulku Rinpoche, as Shajin Lama, has done a lot of serious work to restore and strengthen Buddhist teachings on Kalmyk land.
The current state of Buddhism in Kalmykia.
Buddhism in Kalmykia has a long and rich history. By the beginning of the 20th century, there were more than 90 large and small khuruls on the territory of Kalmykia, with about 3 thousand clergy.
In the 1930s, as a result of Stalinist repressions, almost all temples were destroyed, and the Buddhist clergy were subjected to severe repression. By the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, Buddhism in Kalmykia was practically destroyed. The eviction of Kalmyks in 1943 completed the defeat of Buddhism.
The revival of Buddhism in the republic began only in the late 80s. and was associated with the process of perestroika in the USSR, the beginning of the democratization of public life. In 1988, the first Buddhist community was registered in Elista, and the first house of worship was opened in the same year. Lama Tuvan Dorj, who came from Buryatia, became its rector.
A significant event in the religious life of Kalmykia was the first visit of His Holiness the Dalai Lama XIV, which took place in the summer of 1991 and gave a powerful impetus to the development of Buddhism in the republic. In Elista, the Dalai Lama held three mass prayer services, visited a khurul, consecrated the construction site of a Buddhist temple complex, and met with the leadership of Kalmykia and the public of the capital.
In the fall of 1992, the Dalai Lama visited the republic again. As during the previous visit, he read prayers and delivered sermons. In addition, he ordained thirteen people as monks, among whom were not only Kalmyks, but also representatives of other nationalities. This ceremony took place in the newly erected shume temple. During his visit, the Dalai Lama visited the Caspian, Ketchenerovsky and Yashkul regions of Kalmykia. He consecrated khuruls in the city of Lagan and the village of Dzhalykovo.
An important event was the creation of the Union of Buddhists of Kalmykia (UBK). In 1991, the first conference of the OBC was held, which approved the charter and elected Shajin Lama of the Kalmyk people Tuvan Dorja. In 1992, a second conference took place. Its result was the election of Shajin Lama and President of the OBK Telo Tulku Rinpoche (E. Ombadykov). Back in 1992, a Buddhist youth center was created in Elista, which began active educational activities, including teaching the basics of Buddhism, the Tibetan language and ancient Indian logic. The center was later renamed Dharma Center.
It should be noted that the revival of Buddhism in Kalmykia was primarily facilitated by the policy of the current leadership of the republic, headed by the Head of Kalmykia, FIDE President K.N. Ilyumzhinov, elected to the post of head of the republic in April 1993. It was thanks to his constant support - financial and organizational - that over forty Buddhist religious buildings were built, annual trips of pilgrims to holy places for every Buddhist were organized (Tibet, India, etc.) and representatives of the Russian media at the annual press conference of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama at his residence in the Indian city of Dharamsala, the arrival of outstanding teachers of various branches of Buddhism in Kalmykia.
In 1994, the International Buddhist Forum, organized by the Dharma Center, was held in Elista. About a thousand believers from Russia, the CIS countries and a number of foreign countries, as well as famous Buddhist lamas from India, Bhutan and Nepal took part in the forum. As part of this event, Buddhist prayers, dedications, a charity telethon and a spiritual-ecological expedition were held.
Subsequently, within the framework of the Dharma Center, religious communities of lay people began to form, focused on one or another of the four main schools of Tibetan Buddhism. One of the first such communities was the Karma Kagyu center. In 1995, a branch of the International Institute of the Karma Kagyu School was opened in Elista, the program of which includes Buddhist philosophy and practice, and the Tibetan language.
“Red Cap” Buddhism is represented in Kalmykia by two more schools - Sakyapa and Nyingmapa, whose communities arose after the arrival of teachers of these traditions to Kalmykia: the patriarch of the Sakya tradition, His Holiness Sakya Tritsin, and the Nygmapa teachers, the venerable Palden Sherab Rinpoche and Tsewang Dongyal Rinpoche. Currently, there is a khurul of the Ningma school in the village of Iki-Burul.
In Kalmykia, there are also secular Buddhist organizations, whose followers adhere to the traditional Kalmyk Buddhism of the Gelugpa school. In Elista, these are primarily the Chenrezi and Tilopa centers.
A significant event for the Buddhists of Kalmykia was the opening in 1996 of Syakusn Syume in Elista. The new temple became the center of the spiritual life of our republic. Several tens of thousands of people gathered at the opening of this beautiful temple.
One of the main teachers and followers of the Gelug school is His Eminence Bogdo-gegen IX, who repeatedly visited Kalmykia. The visits of the spiritual leader of the Mongolian peoples contributed to the revival of Buddhism among the Kalmyks. During his visits, Bogdo-gegen traveled around the regions, read sermons, and gave blessings. The 2003 visit was especially fruitful, during which believers were given initiation into Kalachakra tantra.
The venerable Lama Yeshe-Lodoi Rinpoche visited our republic several times. In the early 1990s, Yeshe-Lodoi Rinpoche, on behalf of the Dalai Lama, came to Buryatia to teach Buddhist philosophy. In Kalmykia, Rinpoche gave initiations into the Yamantaka, Chakrasamvara and Guhyasamaja tantras.
In 2002-2003 Tibetan monks from the Gyudmed monastery came to Kalmykia four times. Gyudmed is famous for teaching secret tantric teachings here. In addition, its monks are famous for their original throat singing. In Elista they built three sand mandalas, which symbolize the matrix of the Universe and at the same time the palace of the deities. The Green Tara mandala was erected first, the Avolakitesvara mandala was the second, and the Yamantaka mandala was the third. It is believed that contemplation of the mandala cleanses a person of negative karma, obscurations and diseases. At the end of construction, the mandalas were destroyed, which should remind people of the frailty of existence and the need to prepare for the next life. During their visits, the monks of Gyudmed also bestowed blessings of the goddess Tara, Manla (Buddha of Medicine) and Mandzushri (Buddha of Wisdom), performed ceremonies for purifying the Universe, and gave lectures on Buddhism.
From August 3 to August 15, 2003, in Kalmykia, on the territory of Citychess, an all-Russian Buddhist retreat was held under the leadership of the venerable Geshe Jampa Tinley. It became a very important event for Buddhists not only in Kalmykia, but throughout Russia. To participate in this event, many Buddhists from different cities (Rostov-on-Don, Ufa, Ulan-Ude, Kyzyl, etc.), as well as from Ukraine, arrived in Kalmykia.
The most important event of recent years was the visit to Kalmykia of His Holiness the Dalai Lama XIV in 2004, organized by the Head of Kalmykia Kirsan Ilyumzhinov. Despite the brevity, the meeting with the Teacher gave a huge impetus to the revival of Buddhism in our republic.
Another major event in the life of Buddhists in Kalmykia was the opening at the end of 2005 of a new temple in Elista - Burkhn Bagshin Altyn Sume (Golden Abode of Buddha Shakyamuni), which is the largest Buddhist temple in Europe and built with the blessing of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama ( During his visit in 2004, the Dalai Lama consecrated the site for the construction of a khurul) with the personal funds of Kirsan Ilyumzhinov.
And in 2006, under the patronage of Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, the Days of Kalmyk Culture were held in Dharamsala, during which Kirsan Ilyumzhinov presented His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama with the highest award of Kalmykia - the Order of the White Lotus for his outstanding contribution to the revival of Buddhism in Russia and Kalmykia .
For the period 1993-2002. There was a quantitative increase in Buddhist communities. Today there are 35 Buddhist associations in Kalmykia. Much has been done with government support in the construction of Buddhist temples. There are already more than 30 khuruls operating in the republic.
In recent years, large khuruls have been erected by believers and local authorities in the city of Lagan, the villages of Tsagan-Aman, Yashkul, Iki-Burul, Arshan-Zelmen, etc. Prayer houses were opened in the city of Gorodovikovsk, the Khomutnikovsky state farm, the village of Ketchenery, the village of Troitsky, etc.
Never lose hope
Buddhism has the concept of “good karma”. Famous Buddhist teachers who come to Kalmykia sincerely rejoice at how the teachings of Buddha are being revived here, wondering how the Kalmyk people managed to maintain faith and devotion to their religion in the most difficult trials. But the positive changes would not have been so noticeable if one day a modest young monk had not come to us with His Holiness the Dalai Lama. There was little that meant his name to the Kalmyks. But good karma was already manifesting itself. The oldest monk, Ph.D. Venerable Geshe Dugda once said this: “The Kalmyk people have good karma, because they have a precious mentor - Telo Tulku Rinpoche. However, such great teachers are not born where they are not needed. Of course, much remains to be revived; patience and diligence are needed along this path. The Tibetan people adopted the teachings of Buddha from Indian teachers for five centuries! But look what a leap the Kalmyk people have made in just fifteen years.”
The future head of the Buddhists of Kalmykia was born into a family of Kalmyk emigrants in the USA. At the age of four, he began to tell his parents that his place was not here, that he wanted to become a monk. During His Holiness's visit to America, the baby's mother met with him and asked for advice. His Holiness recommended that the parents send their child to study at a Buddhist monastery in India. First, his mother brought him to one of the newly created Tibetan monasteries, where the seven-year-old boy flatly refused to enter, declaring that this was not his monastery. And they went south, to the state of Karnataka, where a small group of monks, who had left Tibet following the Dalai Lama, were uprooting forest in the desert jungle, clearing the site for the construction of a monastery.
The largest monastery-university, Drepung Gomang, was founded in 1416 by Lama Tsongkhapa’s closest disciple, Jamyang Choyzhe, near the capital of Tibet, Lhasa. It soon became the largest educational center in the country. People called it the Temple of a Thousand Doors. Here, many monks who had achieved the understanding of emptiness entered and exited through the walls as if through open doors. Kalmyks, Buryats and Mongols came here, overcoming thousands of kilometers and incredible hardships of a dangerous journey, to gain knowledge of Buddhist teachings.
Kalmyks have preserved the names of those few who studied in Drepung Gomang in different centuries, achieved high spiritual realizations and brought a lot of benefit to their people. One of them is a Buddhist monk, a prominent political figure in Central Asia in the mid-17th century, the creator of Kalmyk writing (todo bichig), scientist, educator, poet and translator of many sacred texts of Zaya-Pandit.
Until 1959, more than 10,000 monks studied at the monastery. After the invasion of Tibet by Chinese troops, many, following the Dalai Lama, left their homeland.
In India, as the chronicles of the Drepung Gomang monastery say, there were a little over a hundred monks in the monastic community. Geshe Lobsang, a Buddhist monk originally from Kalmykia, was elected abbot. He did everything to ensure that a new Drepung Gomang was built in Karnataka. During the day, the monks cleared the place from the jungle, built a road, and studied in the evening.
Telo Tulku Rinpoche arrived at the monastery when there were about 70 monks there. The old lamas immediately drew attention to him. In the first days, during a prayer service, a seven-year-old boy declared that the abbot was obliged to give up the throne to him, since this was his place, and it was he who should sit there. The baby was different from the other children in many ways, and a letter was sent from the monastery to the Dalai Lama. By order of His Holiness, special studies were carried out, and the reincarnation of the great Mahasiddha Tilopa, the great Indian yogi, was determined in the boy.
Tilopa was born in 988 in Bengal (India) into a Brahmin family. He studied in a monastery, wandered, then went to the tantric masters, studied with them, became the holder of all lines of teachings and the founder of the Kagyu school.
Several centuries later, in 1980, a solemn ceremony took place in Drepung Gomang, and a boy from a Kalmyk family was recognized as the next incarnation of Tilopa, receiving a new name - Telo Tulku Rinpoche.
In the Tibetan tradition of Buddhism, it is believed that after achieving Enlightenment, Tilopa did not stop being reborn, and to this day exists in the world. Tilopa's first six rebirths appeared in Tibet. From the seventh, they began to be born in Mongolia.
Dilova-Khutukhta (1884 - 1965), - the previous rebirth of Tilopa, after the revolution he was forced to leave Mongolia, emigrate to Inner Mongolia, then to Taiwan, then return to China again. From there he traveled to Tibet, from Tibet to India, and eventually emigrated to the United States, where he lived in the Kalmyk community.
In Mongolia, the Dilova-Khutukhty monastery is now being restored; at every opportunity, the laity asks Telo Tulku Rinpoche to return to them. To which the Shajin Lama of Kalmykia replies that he is needed by his people...
Journalists often ask Telo Tulku Rinpoche: what is it like to be the reincarnation of a great mahasiddha?
First of all, says Rinpoche, this is a great responsibility. “I bear a great name, a great title, and if I am concerned about anything, it is only that I must bear this great legacy that my great predecessor left. This is the main goal of rebirth - to preserve and pass on the traditions of predecessors.
The first time Telo Tulku Rinpoche came to Kalmykia was in 1991 as part of the delegation of His Holiness the Dalai Lama XIV. Finding out that our compatriot was among the Buddhist monks was a true shock for many. A year later, the Buddhist communities of the republic turned to him with a request to lead the spiritual revival in the republic. So, at the age of less than 20, he became the Shajin Lama of Kalmykia and headed the Association of Buddhists of the republic.
“When I became Shajin Lama,” recalls the spiritual leader of the republic, “I was very young, and it was not easy for me. Find yourself in an environment that is unfamiliar to you. Lack of experience. These were probably the two biggest difficulties. Not having an adviser or a teacher at hand, people you could trust unlimitedly. A great responsibility fell on my shoulders. And my mind was not yet ready for the difficulties that had to be endured as the spiritual head of the Kalmyk people. It must be said that there is a big difference between monastic life and secular life. I was not ready for this responsibility. I listened to a lot of teachings, I listened to comments, instructions. But I did not have the opportunity to practice these instructions. And it is not easy to turn theory into practice.
During the years of militant atheism in the Kalmyk steppes, all Buddhist temples and places of worship were destroyed to the ground. Of the monks who escaped execution, only a few survived hard labor and exile. During the years when the khuruls were destroyed, the wind carried pages of precious sacred texts across the steppe, broken statues lay in the courtyards of monasteries, and ritual utensils and figurines of Buddhist deities rattled on carts.
There was nothing left that could be preserved for posterity. The Kalmyks did the incredible - they maintained a strong, pure faith and devotion to their religion. People did not know prayers, they did not know how to fold their hands correctly in a prayer gesture, but an unquenchable fire of faith burned in their hearts.
But faith without knowledge is blind, says Telo Tulku Rinpoche. “When we talk about Buddhism, there are several factors. Buddhism for us is not only a religion, but also part of our culture, our way of life, our mentality. The Buddhist worldview, first of all, is non-violence, compassion, here we, to a greater or lesser extent, follow these principles in Kalmykia. But we must not forget that we are still continuing this process of teaching people the true essence of Buddhism. We have lost a lot.
It should be noted that everything in the republic started from scratch. The first prayer house in Elista, the first office of Rinpoche - a rented room in a design institute, the first temple built using the method of folk construction with donations from the residents of Kalmykia. People of different nationalities and religions took part in the construction of a Buddhist temple in the suburb of Elista. It was a single inspired impulse.
In August 2007, Metropolitan Kirill (now the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'), then the chairman of the department of external church relations of the Russian Orthodox Church, arrived in Kalmykia. The distinguished guest in Elista performed two ceremonies: he consecrated the monument to Sergius of Radonezh and the construction site of the Orthodox Cathedral in Elista, which were attended by Telo Tulku Rinpoche and the monastic Sangha of the republic.
During the consecration of the site for the construction of the church, the Shajin Lama of Kalmykia said: “Today is a wonderful day for all believers of Kalmykia. On behalf of the Buddhists of Kalmykia, I want to congratulate and greet our Orthodox brothers on the consecration of the foundation stone of the new cathedral and monument to Sergius of Radonezh. People of different nationalities and religions live in our republic, they all live in peace and harmony, in friendship and mutual understanding. I'm happy and glad about this. On behalf of the Buddhists of Kalmykia, we are making a donation for the construction of a new temple in the amount of 10 thousand dollars, this is an offering from the bottom of our hearts, with good motivation, and I think that in the future we will always help and support each other.”
Long before this event, truly friendly ties began, developed and strengthened between representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church and the Association of Buddhists of Kalmykia. They had not yet found proper formalization, but representatives of three faiths met and talked about the revival of spirituality, preservation and promotion of universal human values: Buddhism, Christianity and Islam. Until now, in all significant events, people can hear an Orthodox priest, a Buddhist monk, an imam. And for everyone such representation is a matter of course. In March 2004, the Interreligious Council was created, and for more than ten years it has been successfully operating. Kalmykia is an excellent example of interreligious harmony, peace, harmony and mutual understanding of spiritual brothers. “Dear brothers and sisters! - said one of the messages of the Interreligious Council, - we appeal to all citizens of Kalmykia with a call to love and respect each other, to show care and attention to those who need support - the elderly, orphans, people with disabilities.”
Telo Tulku Rinpoche also puts enlightenment and educational goals at the forefront of his work. This will help, he believes, every person, overcoming difficulties, to become truly happy:
Many people ask themselves the question: “What is the meaning of life?” Some people say, “My life’s goal is to become a doctor.” Okay, you have reached your goal and become a doctor. What's next? Are you still not satisfied? People continue to search and inquire. At first they search in the material sphere, but when they satisfy their wildest material and economic expectations, they find out that they still do not feel happy, they are still unable to find balance. This shows that people need spiritual truth. Each of us wants happiness and does not want suffering. When people suffer greatly, they seek salvation in alcohol, drugs and the like. In fact, to overcome this problem, we need to share our love, compassion, kindness, be able to forgive, and show tolerance. It is important to teach people to lead a correct, healthy lifestyle. And such a lifestyle is not limited only to physical health, mental health is also necessary. Of all living beings, only man has developed intelligence. We are potentially able to differentiate between a negative action and a good one. You just need to show people how to do it. This is what Buddha taught us. Suffering is the nature of our life. And to reduce them, we need to cultivate compassion, love, kindness, tolerance, the ability to forgive, everything that makes your life happy.
The modern world is changing rapidly. The way of life, the way of thinking has changed, the mentality has changed. But the teachings of the Buddha have remained unchanged for thousands of years. Telo Tulku Rinpoche often says that the essence of religious teachings is one - to make a person kinder. If a person practices a kind heart in life, if he is a good and decent person, this becomes the source of his happiness. No matter how amazing material progress may be, it does not provide inner comfort or create peace of mind.
- Today we can confidently say that internal balance is ensured by religious and spiritual teaching. Buddhism as a teaching, as a philosophy, as a faith is not divided. Culture is the life of people, traditions, mentality. The Buddha's teaching, as a certain way of thinking, reveals the path that leads to happiness. According to the teachings of the Buddha, happiness in this life can be achieved by practicing love and compassion for all living beings. Buddha teaches a moral way of life, teaches us to find harmony in life on a spiritual level.
Telo Tulku Rinpoche often emphasizes one of the unique features of Buddhism in his speeches.
"Buddhism is not only a religious teaching, it is a philosophy, it is a science," he says. "Many Western scientists and researchers these days, mainly neurologists, but also psychologists, are doing serious research into how Buddhist methods affect reducing stress and helping to cultivate and strengthen love, compassion and kindness. Not only Buddhism, but also other religious teachings can influence the improvement of people's mental state. But one cannot help but mention religious fanaticism. I believe that those people whom we call radicals, extremists, terrorists use religion for their own selfish purposes. We can observe radical manifestations in Russia. Many people, not understanding and seeing these manifestations, come to the conclusion that other religions are bad. Those who use the teaching for their own purposes form a wrong understanding of religion. They discredit their religion by incorrectly interpreting the tenets of the doctrine. Most people have not read the Koran. They don't know what jihad really means. According to the Koran, this means that we must fight disbelief in ourselves, in other words, strive to eliminate our shortcomings. And some radicals present this as a fight against infidels. This way they discredit their faith. All this is due to ignorance.
Telo Tulku Rinpoche once said at a meeting with journalists: “The past is gone forever, you can’t bring it back. The future has not yet arrived, what it will be depends on what we do now in the present.” And from the first days of his activity, he laid the seeds of the future. Formation of a monastic community, creation of a translation department, support of socially significant projects for the publication of Buddhist books, books of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, revival of pilgrimage traditions. In addition, he provided great attention and assistance to teachers in the Russian experiment on studying the foundations of religious cultures and secular ethics, the platform of which was Kalmykia.
Then Telo Tulku Rinpoche said that there was no reason to worry: the republic has a central khurul, the Golden Abode of Buddha Shakyamuni, whose monks can help teachers. Seminars, lectures, courses, and round tables were organized to introduce the basics of Buddhism.
Society is faced with a huge number of problems - political, economic, moral. To overcome these difficulties, spiritual discipline and a code of moral principles that corresponds to reality are again necessary. It would be useful to think seriously about what the Buddhist approach to solving pressing social problems is, and to find a way to offer elements of Buddhist ethics to society. I am sure this will be beneficial and will contribute to his recovery.
Telo Tulku Rinpoche considers the introduction of the subject “Fundamentals of Religious Culture and Secular Ethics” into the general education curriculum to be a correct and timely step:
It is a very good idea to teach the basics of traditional religion in schools, it benefits the individual. We live in a society in which people are separated from each other by belonging to religious cultures: for example, “you are a Buddhist, I am a Muslim,” but I believe that the world will become more harmonious if we all begin to communicate more and enter into dialogue with others despite differences in religious views.
If we talk about the basics of Buddhism, then knowledge in this area, based on nurturing in a person love, compassion and such an important quality as altruism, when you consider others more significant than yourself, helps to harmonize relationships in the family and society.
There is not a single subject in school about how to become a good, decent person. When we talk about how to become a good person, it is not necessary to start from some religious tradition. These are questions of secular ethics. Secular ethics is not based on any religious tradition, but promotes and develops universal human values. This needs to be learned. Just as we teach love to our own children, we must educate the younger generation as a whole. When we talk about Buddhism, in which several directions can be distinguished, we must not talk about teaching religious doctrine, but, first of all, about teaching the basics of culture and Buddhist philosophy. Some work is being done in this direction, and it is not coming so easily.
An important event for the Kalmyk people was the appointment of Telo Tulku Rinpoche as the honorary representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in Russia, Mongolia and the CIS countries. For him this was a complete surprise, for the Kalmyks another reason for joy. His new responsibilities include many things, including promoting universal human values, developing interethnic harmony, and supporting Buddhists in Russia, the CIS countries and Mongolia.
When journalists ask Shajin Lama about his ideal, a vibrant spiritual personality, he invariably says: I consider myself very fortunate to be a disciple of His Holiness. I was very lucky to spend time in his company. I traveled next to him, attended his meetings with government officials, intellectuals, actors, and ordinary people. It is very difficult to have such a state of consciousness, to be so full of mercy as he was. I look to the Dalai Lama as a role model. I have met many people, many politicians, many celebrities, but I have never met anyone like the Dalai Lama. He is an amazing person, he has so much compassion! He cares about the problems of the environment, the planet on which we live. He cares about peace on earth, he thinks about humanity. I know this as his friend, student and follower. And it is my duty and my responsibility to uphold these values.
Kalmyks are the only Asians in Europe who, several centuries ago, set off on a journey in search of the promised land. They found their home in the Volga steppes and linked their fate with Russia.
We have many financial problems, problems with the quality of education, quality of life, but no matter what difficulties we experience, we must not forget about the other side of life - the spiritual. The main thing is good motivation, do not pay too much attention to things of an external nature, the main thing is what is inside. Money matters in the world, but it cannot solve every problem. Remember the difficulties that we once had, that we experienced, and never give up, do not lose hope, we have every opportunity for a bright spiritual life. And I believe that Buddhism will definitely make its contribution not only to the formation of our republic, but also to the stabilization of Russia. “I absolutely believe in this,” the Supreme Lama of the Kalmyk people, Telo Tulku Rinpoche, once said.
Nina SHALDUNOVA