RELS 223 Lecture Notes - Positivism, Songtsen Gampo, Thangka

• School: Queen's University
• Department: Religious Studies
• Course: RELS 223
• Professor: Peter Campbell

Document Summary

Tibet: remote, land-locked, many mountain ranges, most of the land is cold, snowy, inhospitable, sparsely populated with villages and towns, population of settlers and nomads, majority population lives in the valleys. Also location of main monastic institutions: capital is llasa. Potala main monastery, where dalai lamas live. Monks engage in politics: until 7th century, tibet had a strong military. Spread and development of buddhism: encounter with other cultures, simple transplantation model to describe the introduction and establishment of. First dispensation (did not take root: 635 ce, king songtsen gampo marries a chinese princess and a. Built a temple in llasa for them and based his rule of law on buddhist ethics. Sent scholars to india to learn about buddhism and brought buddhist practitioners from india to propagate the dharma of vajrayana (tantra) Gampo seen as incarnation of avalokiteshvara, bodhisattva of compassion. Om mani padme hum : the jewel in the lotus .