Events
October 30th, 2021 · Conversations on Buddha-Nature
Yaroslav Komarovski: Śākya Chokden's Unique Views on Buddha-Nature
Please join us live on Zoom by signing up here or find us on Facebook live on Saturday, October 30th at 10:00 AM Eastern Standard Time, 4:00 PM CET, 8:00 PM Bhutan Time. The recording will later be made available online here on this website.
Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho will have another "Conversation on Buddha-Nature" with one of the world's most knowledgeable scholars of Śākya Chokden (1428–1507), Yaroslav Komarovski.
Śākya Chokden (1428–1507) was one of the most important thinkers of the Sakya tradition and had many complex views on Buddhist philosophy and practice, especially Madhyamaka and theories related to buddha-nature teachings, some of which are quite unique in the history of Buddhism.
Yaroslav Komarovski is a full professor of Classics and Religious Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His recent books include Radiant Emptiness: Three Seminal Works by the Golden Paṇḍita Shakya Chokden (Oxford 2020), Tibetan Buddhism and Mystical Experience (Oxford 2015), and Visions of Unity: The Golden Paṇḍita Shakya Chokden’s New Interpretation of Yogācāra and Madhyamaka (SUNY 2011). If you would like to read some of his papers on Shakya Chokden, you can find them freely available online here: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/do/search/?q=author_lname%3A%22Komarovski%22%20AND%20author_fname%3A%22Yaroslav%22&start=0&context=52045&sort=date_desc&facet=
25 September 2021 · Conversations on Buddha-Nature
Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo
Buddha-Nature Is Who We Really Are
Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo is a bhikṣuṇī in the Drukpa Lineage of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. She is an author, teacher and founder of the Dongyu Gatsal Ling Nunnery in Himachal Pradesh, India. In addition to her role as Founding Director of Dongyu Gatsal Ling Nunnery, Jetsunma is a former President of Sakyadhita International Association of Buddhist Women, Founding Director of the Alliance of Non Himalayan Nuns, Honorary Advisor to the International Network of Engaged Buddhists, co-president of the International Buddhist Confederation [IBC], and Founding Member of the Committee for Bhiksuni Ordination.
To find out more about Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo’s life, read Vicki Mackenzie’s biography Cave in the Snow, and see the "Cave in the Snow" movie directed by Liz Thompson and narrated by Rachel Ward.Join world-renowned teacher, author, and activist Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo to delve into the ineffable nature and reflect on the universality of buddha-nature.
Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo is a bhikṣuṇī in the Drukpa Lineage of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. She is an author, teacher and founder of the Dongyu Gatsal Ling Nunnery in Himachal Pradesh, India. In addition to her role as Founding Director of Dongyu Gatsal Ling Nunnery, Jetsunma is a former President of Sakyadhita International Association of Buddhist Women, Founding Director of the Alliance of Non Himalayan Nuns, Honorary Advisor to the International Network of Engaged Buddhists, co-president of the International Buddhist Confederation [IBC], and Founding Member of the Committee for Bhiksuni Ordination.
To find out more about Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo’s life, read Vicki Mackenzie’s biography Cave in the Snow, and see the "Cave in the Snow" movie directed by Liz Thompson and narrated by Rachel Ward.
July 31st, 2021 · Conversations on Buddha-Nature
Dorji Wangchuk: Buddha by Nature or Buddha by Nurture: Deliberations on the Buddha-Nature Theory in the Nyingma Tradition
The Nyingma tradition is an eclectic and complex Tibetan tradition with a rich history of teachings that relate to the idea of Buddha-Nature in different ways. Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho will have a conversation with his compatriot professor Dorji Wangchuk about interpretations of Buddha-Nature theory in the Nyingma tradition, of which they are both trained specialists.
June 26, 2021 · Conversations on Buddha-Nature
Kokyo Henkel: Buddha-Nature in Early Chan and Japanese Zen
We were on Facebook live on Saturday, June 26th at 11:00 AM Eastern Standard Time, 5:00 PM CET, 9:00 PM Bhutan Time. The discussion is available online and sections will also be made available as answers to specific questions on this website.
Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho had a wonderful, animated, and detailed discussion with Rev. Kokyo Henkel about Buddha-Nature in Early Chan and Japanese Zen and comparisons with Tibetan Dzogchen. They also discussed some Koans, Dogen, and many textual sources from Indian sutras in Tibetan and Chinese translation to sources for key schools of Buddhism in China and Japan up to more modern texts.
May 29, 2021 · Conversations on Buddha-Nature
Klaus-Dieter Mathes: Buddha-Nature Theories from Fourteenth- and Fifteenth-Century Tibet
Please join us on Zoom by registering here or Facebook live on Saturday, May 29th at 11:00 AM Eastern Standard Time, 5:00 PM CET, 9:00 PM Bhutan Time.
Professor Klaus-Dieter Mathes, one of the world’s most learned and published specialists on the topic of buddha-nature in Tibetan Buddhism, will speak with Lopen Karma Phuntsho about the various interpretations of tathāgatagarbha teachings in Tibet, including those of the Third Karmapa Rangjung Dorje, Longchenpa, Gö Lotsawa, Dölpopa, Butön, and Tsongkhapa.
Prof. Dr. Klaus-Dieter Mathes is the Head of the Department of South Asian, Tibetan and Buddhist Studies at the University of Vienna, Austria. Dr. Mathes has published widely on Mahāmudrā, Tibetan Madhyamaka, Yogācāra, and the interpretations of Buddha-nature in Tibet. Many of his books can be found on this website, including the recent The Other Emptiness: Rethinking the Zhentong Buddhist Discourse in Tibet and A Direct Path to the Buddha Within. Klaus-Dieter also hosted the Tathāgatagarbha Across Asia Symposium in 2019. From 1980-1984 he lived in the Himalayas and studied Buddhism, later obtaining a master's degree in Tibetology from the University of Bonn and then a Doctorate from Marburg in 1994 with a study of the Yogācāra text Dharmadharmatāvibhāga (published in 1996 in the series Indica et Tibetica). He served as the director of the Nepal Research Centre and the Nepal-German Manuscript Preservation Project in Kathmandu from 1993 to 2001.
May 1-6, 2021
Rangjung Yeshe Institute 40th Annual Fall Seminar with Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche on Buddha-Nature
TIME: 6:45 pm Nepal Standard Time. 9:00 AM Eastern Standard Time.
Our friends at the Rangjung Yeshe Institute will be hosting a special online seminar with Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche, who will teach on the topic of buddha nature. Lama Tenzin Sangpo will also guide meditation sessions and there will be other sessions with lamas, khenpos, and professors. This is the 40th Annual Fall Seminar and will take place online.
For more info and registration, please visit: https://DharmaSun.org/seminars
You can find your local time here: https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html?iso=20210501T130000&p1=117
Also see the RYI Facebook Page for more details.
April 2021-2022
Online Buddha-Nature Course with Dr. Karl Brunnhölzl
Online Gyulama Teachings with master translator Karl Brunnhölzl - Learn more here.
We feel very honored and happy that Mitra Karl Brunnhölzl - a wonderful teacher, translator and physician - has accepted our request to teach on the Buddha-Nature, based on the authoritative text taught by Buddha Maitreya: The Mahayana-Uttaratantra-Shastra. With his very clear, humorous and interactive style, Karl will lead us through this precious and celebrated treatise verse by verse.
Dates: The course has started 1st April 2021, but everyone is still very welcome to join. The next sessions will be 28th of April 7:30 pm (CEST, e.g. Berlin) and 6th of May 7:00 pm (CEST). The entire course might last for approximately 18 months, consisting of two sessions (plus one review session) per month. The upcoming dates will be always announced 2-3 months in advance.
Language: English only
Any Questions & Registration: Buddhismus[at]Berlin.de or www.berlin-buddhismus.de
April 24, 2021 · Conversations on Buddha-Nature
Judith L. Lief: Tenderness and the Awakening of Buddha-Nature
We were live on Facebook and Zoom on Saturday, April 24th at 11:00 AM Eastern Standard Time
::"Before any kind of perception occurs, wakefulness is already there—beyond concept, beyond limitation, beyond anything measurable. We can all awaken—that is the hope and the potential."—Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche
Judith L. Lief is a Buddhist teacher, writer, and editor. She was a close student of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, who empowered her as a teacher, and she has edited many of his books including The Profound Treasury of the Ocean of Dharma volumes and Milarepa. She has been a teacher and practitioner for over 35 years and continues to teach and lead retreats throughout the world. Lief is also active in the field of death and dying and is the author of Making Friends with Death.
March 27, 2021 · Conversations on Buddha-Nature
Venerable Karma Lekshe Tsomo: Buddha-Nature and Social Justice
We were live with Karma Lekshe Tsomo on Saturday, February 27th at 9:30 PM Eastern Standard Time (6:30 PM Pacific Standard Time)
Venerable Tsomo is an inspiration to all Buddhists interested in living a socially conscious life and is known around the world for her warmth, knowledge, and clear approach to teaching and speaking about life, Buddhism, and social activism. She co-founded Sakyadhita International Association of Buddhist Women, which hosts the Sakyadhita Conference, the largest and most important meeting of Buddhist women in the world.
February 27, 2021 · Conversations on Buddha-Nature
Geshe Lhakdor: The Human Capacity to Flourish
What is our capacity for compassion? Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho will discuss themes of buddha-nature and human flourishing with renowned Buddhist monk and Director of the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives in Dharamsala, Venerable Geshe Lhakdor.
This event is still available on Facebook Live with Venerable Geshe Lhakdor
February 18, 2021 · Book Launch
Dr. Christopher Jones & Dr. Li Zijie
Revisiting Buddha-nature in India and China
Organizer: SOAS Centre of Buddhist Studies
An online book launch event for Dr. Li Zijie and Dr. Chris Jones' books with presentations from the authors.
The Buddhist Self: On Tathāgatagarbha and Ātman Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, 2020.
Chris V. Jones is Research Associate and Affiliated Lecturer at the Divinity Faculty of the University of Cambridge, and a Bye-Fellow of Selwyn College. His doctoral research, on tathāgatagarbha literature, was completed at the University of Oxford in 2015, and was subsequently awarded the Khyentse Foundation Award for a Dissertation in Buddhist Studies. His research focuses on aspects of primarily Mahāyāna Buddhist literature across Sanskrit, Chinese and Tibetan sources, and his first monograph, The Buddhist Self: On Tathāgatagarbha and Ātman, was published at the end of 2020.
There are major differences between our Sanskrit text of the Ratnagotravibhāga and its classical Chinese translation, which had an immeasurable influence on East Asian Buddhist thought and has yet to be fully explored. No commentary on the Ratnagotravibhāga in Chinese Buddhism has survived, so scholars have maintained the opinion that it was not regarded too much in Chinese and East Asian Buddhism. However, the findings of my research show that the Chinese translation of the Ratnagotravibhāga had more influence than previously imagined in East Asian Buddhist intellectual history.
I explore the ideological background of the classical Chinese translation of the Ratnagotravibhāga, with reference to the Pusa dichi jing 菩薩地持經, several commentaries on the Śrīmālā-sūtra, the Da boniepan jing 大般涅槃經 and the Rulengqie jing 入楞伽經. In comparison to the surviving Sanskrit text, the Chinese version of the Ratnagotravibhāga downplays the significance of the expression gotra and instead reflects a strong interest in zhenru 真如 (Skt. tathatā) and foxing 佛性 (Buddha-nature) – for instance, 'zhenru foxing' becomes the foundation or reason for transmigration in the world. In this context, reality (Skt. tathatā) acts like a conditioned dharma, an idea that deeply influenced later understanding of Buddha-nature in East Asian Buddhism. I furthermore discuss the relationship between the Ratnagotravibhāga and other significant East Asian authors and teachings, such as Paramārtha 真諦 (499-569), the Dasheng qixin lun 大乘起信論, Fazang 法藏 (643-712), the Sanjie school 三階教, and trace the influence of the Ratnagotravibhāga beyond China into the writings of Wonhyo 元曉 (617-686) in Korea and the Japanese authors Juryō 寿霊 and Chikei 智憬 in Nara era (710-784). (Source Accessed May 25, 2021)
The Ratnagotravibhāga and East Asian Buddhism: A Study on the Tathāgatagarbha, Tathatā and Gotra between the 5th and 7th Centuries
Li Zijie 李 子捷 achieved a Ph.D. degree in East Asian Buddhism from Komazawa University in Tokyo under the guidance of Ishii Kōsei and Matsumoto Shirō. He was subsequently elected as a JSPS Postdoctoral Fellow at the Institute of Humanities of Kyoto University, under the guidance of Funayama Tōru. He is now a Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow at SOAS University of London (Centre of Buddhist Studies), hosted by Lucia Dolce. His main research area is the history of East Asian Buddhist Thought between the 5th and 7th centuries. He is the author of Kukyō ichijō hōshōron to higashiajia bukkyō: Go—nana seiki no nyoraizō, shinnyo, shushō no kenkyū『究竟一乗宝性論』と東アジア仏教 ── 五—七世紀の如来蔵・真如・種姓説の研究 [The Ratnagotravibhāga and East Asian Buddhism: A Study on the Tathāgatagarbha, Tathatā and Gotra between the 5th and 7th Centuries] (Tokyo: Kokusho kankōkai, 2020).
28 November 2020 · Conversations on Buddha-Nature
Robert Thurman
Buddha-Nature as the Foundation of Freedom
In this online interview, the second in a series titled "Conversations on Buddha-Nature," Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho discusses themes of freedom, spirituality, and buddha-nature with world-renowned Buddhist scholar, translator, writer, and activist Robert Thurman.
3 November 2020
Khenpo Chöying Dorje
Buddha Nature: A study programme on the Mahayana Uttaratantra Shastra
Khenpo Chöying Dorje is teaching the text based on Jamgon Kongtrul's commentary on the Mahayana Uttaratantra Shastra.
For a review of the text and program, see Arne Schelling's YouTube video here or learn more about this program on the official website here: https://www.rigpa.de/zentren/dharma-mati-berlin/kalender-berlin/eventdetails/?cal-id=16363
24 October 2020 · Conversations on Buddha-Nature
Matthieu Ricard
Buddha-Nature, Happiness and Altruism
In this online interview, the first of a series titled "Conversations on Buddha-Nature," Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho and Matthieu Ricard discuss the meaning of buddha-nature, Matthieu's first encounter with buddha-nature teachings, whether buddha-nature is a seed to be cultivated or something that must be revealed, and whether it is possible to enhance the qualities of buddha-nature without meditation and practice. In addition to these topics, Matthieu also answers questions from the attendees.
19 September 2020
Celebrating Buddha-Nature
Official Launch of the Buddha-Nature Website
On September 19, 2020, the Tsadra Foundation celebrated Buddha-Nature teachings and officially launched an online educational resource. Karma Phuntsho hosted the event as the new Writer-In-Digital-Residence, and we learned more about Buddha-Nature teachings from His Holiness the 17th Karmapa, Alak Zenkar Rinpoche, Geshe Thupten Jinpa, Lama Shenpen Hookham, Dr. Karl Brunnhölzl, and Alex Gardner.
July 2019 · Vienna Symposium
Tathāgatagarbha Across Asia
The Reception of an Influential Mahāyāna Doctrine in Central and East Asia
Increased attention to the tathāgatagarbha doctrine in the last decade has lead to significant publications and meetings on the topic of buddha-nature and related themes. Scholars in Asia, Europe, and the Americas have published new translations and studies of the foundational scriptures and commentaries, and are examining the history and literature of the doctrine. In July 2019 Tsadra Foundation partnered with the University of Vienna to bring many of these scholars together for an international symposium titled Tathāgatagarbha Across Asia. The presentations are available here and the edited papers were published in this book: Buddha Nature Across Asia. WSTB 103.
Over three days the symposium surveyed the differing forms of tathāgatagarbha doctrine that developed as its primary Indian scriptural sources were translated, transmitted, and interpreted by religious schools across Asia. Contemporary Buddhist teachers joined academics at the podium. Presentations ranged from the historical-philological analysis of the primary sources to issues of reconstruction and comparison in the target languages and cultures and included how tathāgatagarbha is taught in Buddhist communities today. Although primarily focused on the Indian and Himalayan material, the diversity in approaches and subject matter made for fruitful comparisons and discussions.
20 November 2018
Jamie Hubbard and Paul Swanson
An Interview at the American Academy of Religion
In this interview during the AAR annual meeting in Denver, Colorado, November 2018, Jamie Hubbard and Paul Swanson discuss Critical Buddhism, buddha-nature, and Buddhism in Japan, as well as many other topics. Present during the interview are José Cabezón, Alexander Gardner, Marcus Perman, and other members of the Tsadra staff.
