Lama Thupten Gyaltsen Dorje Rinpoche talks with practitoners on the Urgyen Samten Ling Tibetan Buddhist Temple as they take part in Prayers for Compassion in Salt Lake Metropolis on Thursday, July 13, 2023. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret Information
Practitoners on the Urgyen Samten Ling Tibetan Buddhist Temple take part in Prayers for Compassion in Salt Lake Metropolis on Thursday, July 13, 2023. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret Information
Konchok Jinpa and practitioners on the Urgyen Samten Ling Tibetan Buddhist Temple take part in Prayers for Compassion in Salt Lake Metropolis on Thursday. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret Information
Practitoners on the Urgyen Samten Ling Tibetan Buddhist Temple take part in Prayers for Compassion in Salt Lake Metropolis on Thursday, July 13, 2023. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret Information
Getting into the Urgyen Samten Ling Tibetan Buddhist Temple in Salt Lake Metropolis, you will note multicolored tapestries and shrines; hear chanting and the ringing of bells; and scent incense. However you might also hear one thing surprising: guffawing.
"This isn't so critical. Compassion needs to be a lighthearted factor," Lama Thupten Dorje Gyaltsen Rinpoche mentioned throughout the Prayers for Compassion opening ceremony Thursday, joking round with different lamas. "Your homework while you go away right now: It's essential to smile and provides your radiant compassion to everybody you see."
Thursday night's agenda included a three-hour Buddhist ceremony marking the start of the temple's 18th annual Prayers for Compassion occasion. The celebration continues by way of Sunday with the aim of accumulating 1 million recitations of a prayer for compassion by the tip of the competition.
That prayer — "Om Mani Padme Hung Hrih" — is a mantra that expresses the unification of the individual praying with Chenrezig, a Buddhist deity embodying the concept of compassion. In essence, Buddhists consider reciting the prayer brings Chenrezig's consideration and helps deliver extra compassion to the world.
Practitoners on the Urgyen Samten Ling Tibetan Buddhist Temple take part in Prayers for Compassion in Salt Lake Metropolis on Thursday, July 13, 2023.
Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret Information
"You do not have to hope for your self. Your job is to hope for others," the lama mentioned. He defined that prayer in Buddhism means "producing ideas" that ship goodwill towards others.
Lama Thupten Rinpoche has studied Buddhism for greater than 45 years and leads the temple at 40 N. 800 West. He hopes extra Utahns, irrespective of their spiritual affiliation, will attend the remainder of the occasion, which contains six extra ceremonies.
"Come and please, let's pray for compassion. It would not matter what you consider in," he mentioned. "Please come and sit, and let's simply generate optimistic ideas."
He defined previous to the opening ceremony that at a time when humanity is confronted with pure disasters, wars and political unrest, it's extra vital than ever to give attention to rising compassion for one another.
"Prayer, goodwill and optimistic ideas start to make a change," he mentioned.
Thursday's ceremony started with Lama Thupten Rinpoche and different lamas bowing and praying to a shrine that features bone fragments, enamel and different relics from the Buddha and different previous Buddhist leaders.
The subsequent few hours included group meditations, recitations of Tibetan chants, respiration workouts and recitations of the Chenrezig mantra. Every individual in attendance additionally acquired a person blessing, symbolically cleaning and empowering their our bodies and minds.
Konchok Jinpa and practitioners on the Urgyen Samten Ling Tibetan Buddhist Temple take part in Prayers for Compassion in Salt Lake Metropolis on Thursday.
Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret Information
Lama Thupten Rinpoche additionally intersected every a part of the ceremony with expressions of knowledge, compassion and the "honest want" that everybody experiences true happiness. He shared humorous and insightful observations in regards to the fallacies of human nature and what actually issues in life.
"If you put others earlier than ourselves, you'll all the time be blissful," he mentioned, encouraging everybody to not harbor unfavourable emotions towards others, however to repeatedly prolong compassion and understanding as a substitute.
"Make your existence worthwhile. We trivialize our lives," he mentioned. "Your life may be very valuable. … Cry day by day. Cry and scream and throw tantrums, after which exit and have enjoyable, however reside with kindness.
"Reside your life fearlessly," he added. "Run into the fireplace when everybody else is working away."
A full schedule and extra data may be discovered on the temple’s web site.
Practitoners on the Urgyen Samten Ling Tibetan Buddhist Temple take part in Prayers for Compassion in Salt Lake Metropolis on Thursday, July 13, 2023.
Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret Information