Bhutan - Lindsay Brown [47]
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PRECIOUS UMBRELLA
The duk symbolises the activity of preserving beings from illness and negative forces.
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Karma
As beings are reborn in samsara their rebirths in the different realms of existence are determined by their karma. Rebirth is not haphazard. Karma is often simplified in translation as meaning ‘action’ (las). The Buddha states that ‘for every action we perform we experience a similar result’.
Karma in Buddhist doctrine refers to three important components: actions, their effects and their consequences. Actions are divided into those of the body, speech and mind and the main concern is with the imprint of each action on the mind or mental continuum which follows each being from rebirth to rebirth. Buddhist teachings liken karma to a seed (action) which ripens into a fruit (effect).
Merit (sonam) refers to the wholesome tendencies imprinted in the mind as a result of positive and skilful thoughts, words and actions that ripen in the experience of happiness and well being. According to ancient texts, the Tibetan king Srongtsen Gampo set out the ten virtuous and non-virtuous actions in order to help guide people to lead virtuous lives. The Ten Virtuous actions (gewa cu) are to refrain from: killing, stealing, inappropriate sexual activity, lying, engaging in gossip, cursing, sowing discord, envy, malice and wrong view.
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WHITE CONCH
The dungkar winds to the right and is a symbol of the deep and melodious sound of the dharma teachings.
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Mahayana teachings say it is important to dedicate the merit of one’s wholesome actions to the benefit of all living beings, ensuring that others also experience the results of one’s positive actions. Therefore, in Bhutan and elsewhere in the Himalayan region, the accumulation of merit is not a selfish act. Rather, it is dedicated to all living beings with the aspiration that they gain liberation from samsara, demonstrating the belief that through action all beings, as one, affect each other.
Rebirth
In Buddhism, life is a cycle of rebirth, and these rebirths are countless as living beings ‘wander’ in samsara. There is not just one world but a myriad of worlds in which beings may be reborn – according to Buddhist doctrine there are six different realms of existence. Rebirth, or cyclic existence, emerges from fundamental ignorance through a process known as the twelve links of dependent origination. When this fundamental ignorance is reversed, cyclic existence itself can be reversed and nirvana attained, free from suffering and the processes of rebirth. The six realms of existence and the twelve links of dependent origination are commonly depicted in the Wheel of Life and according to Buddhist teachings it is important during one’s lifetime to accumulate enough merit to avoid being reborn in one of the three lower realms. This emphasises the preciousness of a human life and the importance of engaging in virtuous actions.
Impermanence
Along with suffering and the absence of the self, impermanence is regarded in Buddhism as one of the three marks or characteristics of causally conditioned phenomena. Although Buddhist literature mentions various degrees of impermanence, in general it can be defined as the momentarily changing nature of all things. Buddhist teachings say change is dynamic and never ending, reflecting the nature of flux and fluidity in conditioned existence. This fundamental quality of impermanence includes our bodies, the world around us and also our perceiving minds.
Four Mind Turnings
In Bhutan, as in Tibet, the teachings of Buddha are presented with an emphasis