DHARAMSHALA, October 29: Tibetan spiritual leader His Holiness the Dalai Lama began his three-day teachings on Nagarjuna’s Fundamental Treatise of the Middle Way (uma tsawai sherab) at the Tsug-la Khang, main temple near his exile residence in Dharamshala today.
The teachings have been requested by group of Koreans and will go on till October 31.
According to the Tibetan Department of Security, under the Central Tibetan Administration, over 4000 disciples from 62 countries, including 250 Koreans and Chinese, among many others, are attending the teachings.
Nagarjuna, who lived in South India, is regarded as one of the most influential and widely studied Mahayana Buddhist philosophers. Among his many works, the Fundamental Treatise of the Middle Way is read and studied in all major Buddhist schools of Tibet, China, Japan, and Korea.
In this work, Nagarjuna utilises the Buddha’s theory of “dependent-arising” and demonstrates the futility of metaphysical speculations. His method of dealing, referred to as “middle way,” avoids the extremes of substantialism and nominalism.
Speaking to Phayul, Marilyn, a disciple from the United States, who has attended many of His Holiness’ teachings, said she is “thrilled to be here” and described the Dalai Lama’s mastery over wide ranging Buddhist texts as “incredible.”
Nguyen, a Vietnamese Buddhist said the teachings “opens your mind” to the wisdom of Nagarjuna’s philosophy and helps in understanding his “most important teaching.”
“I hope I can apply everything the Dalai Lama teaches in my daily life and also help others in understanding the teachings,” Nguyen said.
Wong, a Chinese disciple attending His Holiness’ teachings for the first time, said it was a “wonderful” experience.
Live webcast of the teachings is available at http://dalailama.com/liveweb in Korean, Chinese, English, and Russian languages.
Following the teachings, the Dalai Lama is then scheduled to visit Japan from November 4 to 13, on an extensive teaching and talking tour.
