Foreign influence: Hindu
•Uttarakuru in the Mahabharata:
–„South of the Nila mountains and north of the Sumeru there is the holy Uttarakuru, the home of the
siddhas. The trees there have sweet fruit and are full of blossoms. All these blossoms have a
fragrant smell and the fruit are delicious. Other trees are called „milk-giving“. These trees give
milk and different food that has the taste of ambrosia. The soil of the land consists of gold dust.
One part of the land shines in the splendour of various precious stones, rubies, diamonds,
lapislazuli and others. The seasons are pleasant, the lakes are crystal clear. The inhabitants of
the land never suffer from illness and are always cheerful. They live ten times ten thousand
years…“
•

•Kalki, the last of the ten avataras of the god Vishnu, mentioned in the Mahabharata and the
Puranas (Kalkipuranam):
–At the end of the current Kali yuga, the „dark age“ (corresponding to the Buddhist conception of
the „age of degeneration of the Buddhist dharma“), Vishnu will appear in the form of a pious
brahman warrior called Kalki, who will rid the world of the barbarians and unruly members of the
lower castes. Kalki’s apocalyptic war will purify the world, re-establish Brahman dominance of the
social order, and thus institute a new golden age.
•

Manichean
•„Adam, Noah/ Enoch and Abraham; there are also five others endowed with tamas in the familiy of
demons and snake: Moses, Jesus, the White-Clad One, Muhammad and Mathanī – the eighth – who will
belong to the darkness. The seventh will clearly be born in the city of Baghdad in the land of
Mecca, where the mighty, ferocious idol of the barbarian, the demonic incarnation, lives in the
world“ (Laghukālacakra-tantrarāja, chapter 1, verse 154) [Tibetan translation by Bu ston, Collected
works, 1, Ka, 40-41]
•

Islamic
•Adam, Noah,Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad: the list of the great messenger-prophets of Islamic
tradition •The White-Clad One: the angel Gabriel? An Islamic heterodox sect? •The concealed one:
the veiled prophet? The hidden Mahdi of the Shi’ite tradition?

The Indian Mahayana Buddhist context: buddhaksetra and other paradises
•The three dhatu:
1.the realm of desire (kamadhatu). This is the wheel of existence with its six worlds, the world of
the gods, demi-gods, men, animals, hungry ghosts and hell beings. All these beings are governed by
their sexual desire.
2.the realm of form (rupadhatu). This realm is on or above mount Sumeru, the mountain at the center
of our universe according to Indian and Buddhist mythology. It consists of four sub-levels that
correspond to the four levels of meditation (dhyana). These sub-levels are again divided into
different levels and are inhabited by gods who possess only a spiritual body and are without
desire.
•
–

The Wheel of Life
(Srid pa‘i khor lo)


1.the realm of the formless (arupadhatu). The highest level, where sentient beings are reborn as
pure minds, without possessing a body. This level is not fixed in location and consists again of
four sub-levels, corresponding to the four immaterial meditations (samapatti). The samapatti are
advanced meditation levels. In the arupadhatu deities without material body live who during long
time intervals remain in meditation in which even conscious thoughts are extremely rare.
•
•

The five methods to be reborn in a buddhaksetra:
1.a pure way of life and the wish to become a Buddha;
2.veneration of the Buddha’s name and the giving of gifts/ offerings (pranidhana);
3.evocation of the Buddha’s name;
4.belief in the oath of the Buddha or Bodhisattvas to lead all living beings on the path to
enlightenment;
5.meditation on the perfections of a buddhaksetra, the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.
•

Sukhavati



The Phowa ceremony
•The lama opens the brahmarandra («brahma-opening»), the fontanel, so that the consciousness can
climb through the main psycho-psychical channel, leave the human body and immediately enter the
Sukhavati.

The Tibetan context: the Beyul



The Tertön Pemalingpa (1450-1521)



The outer appearance of a Beyul
•« Now listen to the outer appearance of the hidden valley ! […] It is as if one has set foot into
the land of the gods [….]. The mountains are pleasant, the corn fields are fertile. The region is
surrounded by rows of snow mountains with summits shimmering white. […] The valleys are smooth and
wide, and there are many flowers and fruit. The villages are pleasant to look at, and filled with
lotus flowers. […] There are a lot of medicinal trees. The medicine is very powerful. […] This
region is like the center of the Tibetan country. » (Klong chen rab byams pa Dri med `Od zer, Bum
thang lha’i sbas yul gyi bkod pa la bsngags pa me tog skyed tshal)

The seven Beyul
1.Dremo jong, Sikkim. It was opened by Rig dzin gödem, a famous Tertön of the Nyingmapa (1337-1408)
2.(dedan) Kyidmolung in Kutang in Northen Nepal
3.Bepa Pemätshal (could be identical with the famous Pemakö to the northwest of Kongpo)
4.Rölpä khandroling west of the Mt. Everest. This Beyul is an important pilgrimage site for the
local people.
5.Gyel kyi Khenpalung in the Khumbu region of Nepal. Another Khenpalung is in Bhutan, and according
to oral information provided by Tashi Tshering from the LTWA, there is yet another Khenpalung in
Kham.
6.lHä phodrang
7.Dromokhü in the Chumbi valley in Southern Tibet.
•

•„During the time of degeneration [of the dharma] the troops of the Mongols will conquer the center
of Tibet. They will annihilate all Tibetans …“ • (sBas yul mkhan pa lung gis lam yig sa dpyad dang
bcas pa, Fol. 11r1)

•„In short, a hidden region is a region, to which one escapes in the face of wild enemy troops. Its
character is that of a completely safe place.“ (rDo dmar Zhabs drung Mi `gyur rdo rje, gNam sgo zla
gam gyi dngos `dzin phan bde snying po, Fol. 7v5/6)

The signs to open a Beyul
•According to the sBas yul `bras mo ljongs kyi gnas yig there are
–1. visible signs (war, destruction, invasion)
–2. outer signs (natural disasters like earthquake)
–3. inner signs (social and religious breakdown)

Mongolia - The Jebtsundamba Khutukhtus (Bogd Gegen)
•Janabazar (1635-1723)


The 8th Bogd Gegen



The 9th Bogd Gegen



Shambhala goes global