Columns/Reviews |
DHARAMSALA DIARY: From Russia with love
Thursday, 15 November 2007, 12:43 p.m.
By Thubten Samphel
Starting from 6 November, about 400 Buddhists from Mongolia and Russia flocked to Dharamsala to receive teachings from His Holiness the Dalai Lama. They also came to offer him a long-life prayer ceremony and to proudly display their traditional cultures. The President of Kalmykia was in town to launch this big cultural effort. So were dignitaries of Burytia, Mongolia and Tuva, including a representative of the Russian Orthodox Church. This joint cultural effort by the Mongols and people of the three republics within the Russian Federation was made to affirm their cultural ties with Tibet. This is the first such joint effort and because of this, historic.
(From left) Kalon Tripa Samdhong Rinpoche, Speaker Karma Chophel, two justice commissioners, Thupten Tashi Anyetsang and Ngawang Phegyal and spiritual leader of Kalmykia, Telo Rinpoche at the inauguration of an exhibition at Tibet Museum on 6 November, to mark the five-day Russian and Mongolian Buddhists festival held in Dharamshala (Photo: Sangjey Kep) |
This unprecedented event is indicative of the scale of the Buddhist revival that is taking place in these three Russian republics and Mongolia. The event also clearly reflects the need of the Mongols of this vast region to re-connect with the source of their traditional culture, albeit in exile.
The force behind this cultural event in Dharamsala is Telo Rinpoche Rinpoche is just 35 years. He is the elected spiritual head of Kalmykia. In an interview squeezed between his hectic schedule, he said,” We – people of Burytia, Tuva, Kalmkyia and Mongolia – share a similar language and our religion is the same. But because we are known as Buriats, Tuva, Kalmyks and Mongols and we live like that, it kind of pulls us away from each other. So it has always been my dream to bring these people together in the presence of our spiritual leader, His Holiness the Dalai Lama. It initially started off as a simple long-life prayer ceremony to His Holiness. I was quite taken aback by how much people supported this idea and how enthusiastic the people were. They wanted to travel a long way just to be here. So I thought, so many people willing to travel a great distance, spending so much money, taking time away from their families and work, it didn’t make sense to come to Dharamsala for just four or five hours for a ceremony. So we came up with the idea to organize an exhibition and a cultural performance.”
So for a week the Tibetan public and students were treated to some dazzling performances at Gopalpur TCV, the main TCV school and TIPA. The public response was so overwhelming that many had to be turned away from TIPA for lack of space. The grand finale was performed before His Holiness the Dalai Lama on 10 November. That day, the hot topic, other than how impressive the performances were, was how big the crowd was.
Kalmykia dance troupes presenting dazzling cultural performance |
The Mongols’ need to connect with Tibet’s cultural heritage is in a sense due to the same degree of suppression that befell them.
But some history first, to make sense of this sudden outburst of cultural enthusiasm. The Kalmyks say they as a people were Buddhists since the time of Genghis Khan. They say Kublai Khan, Genghis Khan’s grandson, declared Buddhism the state religion in his imperial domain. Later, Altan Khan invited Sonam Gyatso to Mongolia and conferred on him the title of the Dalai Lama.
The Kalmyks are the descendants of the Oyrat Mongols who operated in Dzungaria in present-day Xinjiang of the People’s Republic of China. Because of un-ending tribal warfare, the Oyrat Mongols pushed into Russia at the end of the 16th and beginning of the 17th centuries, taking with them their Tibetan cultural heritage. They pushed beyond the Caspian Sea. At the banks of the Volga, they were stopped by the Tsar of the day and ordered not to cross the Volga. So they settled in Kalmykia. The Kalmyks, as they came to be known, is a Turkish word. It means the “remains,” the remains of the Oyrats who moved from Dzungaria and the remains of those who fought through all the Muslim nations that lay across their path.
In their new land, the Kalmyks set out to establish their cultural heritage. Under the guidance of famous scholars like Zaya Pandita, the Kalmyks built monasteries, temples and educational centres for monks to study. By the beginning of the 20th century, there were 92 monasteries and temples scattered across the Volga and the Caspian Sea with a monk population of 2070.
Rendition of group song performance by cultural troupes from Mongolia at TIPA |
Soon the temple became the centre of the cultural and spiritual life of the Kalmkys. All the important family events, the birth of a child, the selection of a name, selection of a bride, wedding ceremony, the call for military service and the rest, were centred around the temple. Children attended temple schools and studied Oyriat and Tibetan languages. Those who decided to continue their studies became monks. The brightest students were sent to Tibet and Mongolia to pursue further studies.
All this spiritual renaissance stopped in the wake of the Russian Revolution of 1917. Temples were closed and the Buddhist church in Kalmykia was suppressed. Even then some brave and hardy souls like Geshe Wangyal continued to make the trek to Tibet to study. When communism caught up with him in Tibet in the form of the People’s Liberation Army, Geshe Wangyal crossed over to India and sailed to America. There he taught Buddhism at Columbia University and set up one of the first Tibetan Buddhist centres in the new world.
Then another disaster called Stalin struck the people of Kalmykia. Stalin shipped off the Kalmyks, with other minorities, to Siberia. “Our people lived in small camps for 13 years in Siberia,” said Telo Rinpoche. “After 13 years, we were given permission to return. When we returned to Kalmykia, there was nothing. No buildings, no monasteries, no temples, no monks.”
Tuvanian dance troupes presenting cultural performance at (TIPA) |
Meanwhile, Telo Rinpoche’s parents migrated to America after the World War II. Telo Rinpoche was born in Philadelphia in 1972. His name then was Erdni Basan Ombadykov. “I came from a very big family,” he said. “I have five brothers and three sisters. I am the youngest. At a very young age, I had a very strong interest in becoming a monk, which was unusual for a child in the USA at the time. I always bothered my parents that I wanted to become a monk at a monastery. In 1979 His Holiness visited America. During this visit we had the opportunity to have a private audience with His Holiness. With us at the audience was a Mongolian monk who immigrated to the States in the mid-1970’s. My parents and the monk explained that I wanted to become a monk. His Holiness said that I should be sent to India. I joined Drepung Monastery at the Gomang Khamtsen, where by tradition and history most Mongols had studied.” He spent 13 years of study in South India.
Later, he was recognized as the reincarnation of Telo Rinpoche. Telo Rinpoches are recognized as the reincarnation of Tilopa, the teacher of Naropa, who in turn was the teacher of Marpa, who taught Mila, and started the Kyagu tradition of Tibetan Buddhism.
“The previous Telo Rinpoche was born in Mongolia,” said the present Telo Rinpoche to explain this cross-over from the Kagyu to the Gelug lineage. “Since about 90 percent of Mongols belong to the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism he decided to become a Gelug.”
Singers from Buriyatia presenting cultural song at (TIPA) |
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, His Holiness the Dalai Lama visited Kalmykia in 1991. Telo Rinpoche accompanied His Holiness. His second visit was in 1992. His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s third visit took place in the winter of 2004. Before this visit, Telo Rinpoche told his people, “The most important thing for believers is not only to see His Holiness as a living deity but to take everything that he says to heart. I am sure that this visit will bring a great deal of benefit to everybody. The first two visits of His Holiness resulted in positive changes in the development of Buddhism in Kalmykia and society in general. And when His Holiness visits our republic again, I am sure our life will change for the better.”
During his 2004 visit to Kalmykia His Holiness had this to say to the people: “When I was here last, more than 10 years ago, there wasn’t any temple here. Now looking at the temple and buildings around here, I see how much you have done, what progress you have made. However, the Buddha’s teachings are not mere buildings. Milarepa is remembered not for the construction of monasteries but for practicing the teachings.”
At the end of the visit, His Holiness said, “I am amazed by the way people have kept their traditional values and Buddhist culture in particular. Why is it important today in the 21st century to keep traditional values and Buddhist culture in particular? Because Buddhism like any other religion teaches kindheartedness. That is why Buddhist culture is the culture of peace, non-violence and compassion that is what the modern world is striving for.”
Telo Rinpoche is happy with the pace of Buddhist revival in Kalmykia. “I truly believe that His Holiness has foreseen the future of the Kalmyk people, has foreseen the revival of Buddhism and has seen the need for help and as far as I am concerned we have done a very good job.”
*An occasional contribution