Letters form Nepal 2

5 am in Kathmandu.

Arrived at the hotel in Kathmandu last night after a day of heavy consecration of the new Dirkung Kagyu Rinchen Ling Monastery. The Chakrasamvara consecration rituals performed in the last two days were long and complicated. Every gesture ritualized and involved with offerings, appeasing of deities, local elementals, invocation of the Lineage Protectors and the one thousand years of unbroken line of enlightened Masters, who are beautifully artistically painted on the temple walls.

Seating in a line of the many lines of monks and nuns (more than 150 monks, about 8 local nuns and two westerners) in our red and yellow robes, heard whispers of legends telling stories out of time and space of such old ceremonies in sacred and secret places.

His Holiness Kyabgon Chetsang Rinpoche lead all the rituals from his throne, and then lead the circumambulation of the whole premises, which is compound of several buildings surrounding the magnificent temple in its traditional Tibetan architecture and the court yard. At the back stage of the Temple Hall stand three gigantic (more than 20 meters high) statues of Lord Jigten Sungom, founder of the Drikung Kadyu Lineage (one the main four Lineages of Tibet), The Lord Buddha, and a four Arm Avalokiteshvara, all covered in gold. In front of it sits an almost 2 meter high throne of His Holiness, along with The Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang Rinpoche side by side with the throne of other Drikung Kyabgon Chungtsang Rinpoche, who shares the lineage control from Tibet.

The lamas were finally comfortable enough with me to allow me to move around freely to take my pictures after I had offered my service to them and shared info on my web site. During lunch time, while transferring images to my computer, I lost around 500 pictures in the process, very painful... Fortunately, in the afternoon there was a repetition of the previous day's consecration ceremony and I was able to photography it all over again. I will have time to photograph the temple images and walls covered with sacred paints again in the next few weeks. I am sorry for the loss of individual pictures of the baby monks, and the very old monks and yogis playing or sitting around in the sun or the kitchen. I will have to go after them again trying to capture that special moment of a window into their souls.

My camera acted out, like my other ones after heavy use. Poor contrast and color for some pictures but I continued non stop, I am sure it is something I am doing wrong when I am working with heavy sequences.

A Chinese woman from America, whom I met in Arizona, told me again and again how much she appreciates my pictures. She prays for my health every day, she says, so I can continue to take pictures for posterity. Someone left a box of crackers in my place as an offering I think, another left me a flower, and still another a candy. Some European women were really happy to see a western nun looking in charge of something in the whole masculine environment and moving freely around His Holiness. All monks and Rinpoches bless me with lovely smiles for camera and to myself. In the next few days it is expected to arrive at least 1,000 guests between monks, nuns, Rinpoches and westerners. There is still a lot of construction work being done to finish the hosting facilities and the court yard for the great event of the inauguration.

Outside, the sun is coming out on top of the houses and behind the little towers on roofs, typical of Nepalese and Tibetan architecture (although with some differences). I am planning to work downstairs a little before going out to photograph Boudha and do some shopping before going back to the monastery. The hotel ground has beautiful surroundings with gardens and flower vases within closed gates, allowing you to forget the chaotic poverty outside. The streets leading to the Hotel are just a dirty road clearing in the jungle of the city, a narrow lane in between large constructions and poor houses. The rich and poor, always side by side here. There are no paved roads, only trails. At a distance I see and hear water falling from a tank, a sign of old broken systems leaking resources. I remembered I seeing the same in Paris.

Last night, I walked courageously outside the compound of the hotel to look for a place to eat dinner treading the uneven path covered sparsely with stones. I found a door with Tibetan symbols and an invitation to eat. All business are construed out of their own homes, I took three high steps on a ladder of partially destroyed cement into a nice little courtyard surrounded with flower vases and an adolescent boy asked me in perfect English, if I a wanted to sit inside or outside. I said outside, feeling like I was in a classy restaurant and he gave me a well printed menu. The little garden had only three tables. One was occupied by two Tibetans having an intense conversation. Inside, I noticed two unaccompanied Tibetan women vividly talking to each other while having dinner. I recognized them not only for their faces but also for their traditional dressing. They all said, with their hands joined together: Tashi Dele, Ani La, the traditional caring compliment of Tibetans to monks and nuns. I had a delicious chicken low main with coca cola.  Here soda is safer than water. Then, I walked back to the hotel on the dark narrow trail with a small lantern on my hands. Soon, a young  monk walked alongside and talked to me (I felt to protect me). He introduced himself, a Tibetan from England of the Nyngma Lineage, and he walked me to the Hotel gates where the lovely old Tibetan gate keeper greeted me Namaste, with joined hands, Tashi Dele, Ani La.

Outside the window the sun is shining over the colorful Tibetan prayer banners hanging between the buildings. At a distance children playing in a school, and crows and other birds sing their songs, it is cool and fresh. I am going to have breakfast downstairs in the garden.

Letters From Nepal 1

First night in Katmandu, second in Nepal.

The trip across the world is brutal no matter the comforts of a nice air company. However stopping overnight in Doha was an unexpected nice complement. Doha is a thriving new Metropolis--a true corner of the world. Modern and exotic, highly technological and new skyscrapers raising by the day. There, you cross people from all over the world going about their business or going back and forth from home and work, international workers and first class business people seat on the same row.

However, above all what is different about middle-eastern cities is the agglomeration of people. Unlike the US where people keep to themselves and their personal comforts, going to shop in huge commercial malls, in the middle-west, like in most third world countries, people are everywhere. Reams of people going about their business, talking, shopping, wondering, or just sitting around. In Doha there is an atmosphere of prosperity and a certain order as opposed to Katmandu, another famous corner of the world. After the magnificent view of the Himalayan mountains shining under the sun and an aerial tour of the forest covered lower mountains, the view of the airport and the town is poor. It is like entering a parallel world from the past. Here, time and people slows down. At the airport, the only sign of the times is a flat digital TV showing the beautiful scenarios for which Nepal is known--mountains and forest hikes, the trekkers paradise.

To choose to get your visa on arrival is a major mistake. Be prepared to spend hours in the line, after loosing precious minutes looking for forms and to understand what you will need for you visa. The lines can be long and slow.

When finally you get to your luggage and pass another inspection you find yourself at the airport lobby, where starts the Odyssey of multitudes of people surrounding you, among them taxi drivers asking for astronomical sums to take you to your destination. There you meet modern, overpopulated, poor and chaotic Nepal. As a monk friend of mine told me, they forgot to tell the people about precautions, so the country is overpopulated adding to the fact that at the moment Maoists are fighting in the country side making the people seek refuge in the capital.

After meeting our party and extensively negotiating the fee, we were in our way to Rinchen Ling Monastery, the new Drikung Kagyu center for education, retreats and meditation.

I guess I was expecting romantic, bucolic landscapes since the monastery was supposed to be in a valley away from the city. But what you get is the most amazing roller coaster ride on narrow dirty streets and roads, where the drivers constantly maneuver to avoid hitting each other. There are no signs and traffic lights. The whole city is a gigantic shanty town. Large, three or four pavement houses are built right on the street side by side with the poor of the poor, cows, people, children and other animals crossing in front of the traffic, miraculously avoiding collisions and disaster. Many people, young and adults wear colorful masks to survive in this most polluted city of the world.

Many houses along the most traveled roads have a store on the ground floor making of Katmandu one of the world's largest traditional market place. From every door and window hang finest Indian saris, socks, blankets, cushions, colorful signs or trays displaying fresh fruit, foods or fresh cut meat. Incessantly, people are going and coming, talking to each other, sweeping or wetting the dirt ground, and hanging more articles to sale. What strikes the most is the lack of space in between. All constructions are on top of each other, no space, or privacy. It is all one large common ground. The houses are quite dark inside and the people are all doing something outside, if not just watching life passing by.

What is called out of town are small cultivated parcels of land among buildings of all sorts, with animals everywhere. However, after a last sharp turn emerges a great compound of magnificent Tibetan architecture seating on the feet of forest covered mountains.

The compound, still in construction, is huge. With a large courtyard at the center, to one side the first building for residence for Rinpoches, Abbots and Retreat Masters, presently also used for monks of the Monastery. On the opposite side stands the massive building of the Temple surrounded on both sides by motel like wings of rooms and apartments for resident monks and guests. There is also their Holiness residence and garden and a Hospital building still in construction with a small health center operating since 2005.

On arrival, Khenpo Tsultrim (from TMC) and I were directed to the office, right under the temple building and introduced to other monks. From there we were directed to our accommodations on the left wing of the monks residence. After we were settle I went up the steep stairs to the Shrine Hall. As I left my shoes at the red marble covered entrance, I felt I was stepping into another world of ancient religious grandiosity. The huge red doors are surrounded by gigantic paintings of protectors and wrathful deities  I lifted the curtains covering the huge wooden doors and stood in front the 21.5 feet tall gold covered images of Jigten Sumgon on the left, the Lord Buddha at the center, and Chenrezing on the left.

As your eyes get accustomed inside, you start to see the walls lined with paintings covering every inch of the space: scenes of the life of the Buddha, peaceful deities, and the sequence of the heads of  the lineage and of other lineages.

Rinpoches, lamas, monks and nuns seating in lines running from shrine, directing the eyes again to the statues.

Chakrasamvara Drupchen was on the way and the chants of the monks filled the air with mystery and reverence. At the center, His Holiness Chetsang Rinpoche presides, seated on his throne. On a throne side by side, rests the picture of Chutsang Rinpoche. The chanting, the gong, the bells, and the incense take you to the depths of your being.

The Sacred Feminine and the Collective Unconscious Today

During my morning meditation, insights about the Sacred Feminine occurred while I was contemplating Nicholas Roerich’s paintings of Tibet and the Himalayas, particularly the one he calls “Mother of the World. A subject taken by the Dharmakirti College.

Roerich’s painting of the “Mother of the World,” as a figure without a face, revealing its condition of great mystery and depth is very inspiring and touching. Its vision touches that depth of energy we call sacred and feminine. His paintings of Himalayan landscapes took me to these mountain tops, which Shri Aurobindo said are within us. In this exercise, I was overcome by the oceanic feeling of overwhelming devotional and evocative emotion. Bliss and insight followed. In that state I also examined the monastic retreat I attend at TMC and the feminine issues on the Vinaya, we discussed. I also remembered several occasions in which nuns have been offered khatas by sangha members and how uncomfortable it made them, especially if monks were present. In the same line of thought I tried to remember when I have seen a nun giving empowerment, and I could not remember such an occasion. It is not that women cannot give empowerment, lay practitioners do it all the time, the reality is that women are not comfortable with it or have not been authorized by their mentors to do it, although young monks can do and are encouraged to do it. Despite all the progress that has been achieved regarding women’s condition in our society the sacred feminine archetype is not yet internalized in equal condition with the masculine archetype as representative the divine archetype. The situation of equality, in which both genders can represent equally the deity’s qualities, is not yet established in our “collective unconscious.” As it was coined and defined by Carl Jung, the collective unconscious is a product of ancestral experience, “a reservoir of the experience of our species.” . The issue is much bigger than religious orders and even feminism—if feminists do not understand what their task really is.

Jung’s insight explains why men can do it so naturally. Men have internalized the idea of themselves as representatives of the deities and their authority for many millennia. They carry the collective unconscious experience of the species., they have internalized the archetype (deity); men are the patriarchs, the judges, the prophets, the priests, the monks, and the "sons of god" during the age of patriarchalism.

Traditionally men embodied the archetype in their daily lives by being the providers for their families and presiding over the dinner table, religious and governmental ceremonies and ritual. It is true that we are in the middle of a major paradigm shift, however, despite the fact that many women are occupying these positions everywhere, even when continuing to be the carrying nurturers of their families while providing for then, many in equal or superior position than their male counterpart--the truth is that the archetype is not internalized in equal conditions yet. It is only in the last 50 years that women have started to be elevated to that position--the dogma of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary is only 69 years old, 1950; the first woman to hold a position of Prime Minister and the first woman President of a country also happened in the 50s.There is not enough experience accumulated in the memory of the species for the assumption, or ascension of women to an equal place of the divine archetype in the collective unconscious.

To exert authority and receive homage outside the home is not yet natural for women or accepted in many sectors of our society. This is revealed in the way women conduct themselves in a society set up for masculine authority leading women to low self-esteem, looking up for masculine authority and guidance while avoiding conducting religious rituals, even when that will be permited. The shift to achieve balance between the two archetypes is still ahead of us. The alchemical change is yet to take place. We got freedom, freedom to live, to receive equal education, to exert some authority, to speak up to a certain extent, freedom of movement and of self determination, but women have not achieved the level of representation, the energy and the power that comes with the internalization of the symbol.

For monastics in Buddhists monasteries, especially when we share the stage, nuns defer to monks, even in nunneries when some nuns assume a kind of masculine authoritarianism--the model is masculine. It is obviously all more complicated and complex within the Vinaya system. Women, it is said, created civilization, and democracy is more natural for the feminine aspect than for men, who defer to the authoritarian system. Even when token situations are set up and the situation is apparently of equality, it does not reflect the integration of the archetype in the collective unconscious.

Tibetan Buddhism has a major role to play in this evolution, especially for us Tibetan Buddhist nuns, because it holds the archetypes. However, we need to be aware of the cultural differences and of the meaning of symbols. It is from the monks that we receive the so beautifully preserved and developed teachings and techniques, but awareness in this matter is essential, because they are not prepared to make the change for us. It does not come from within them. As the Dalai Lama alerted as followers of Teachers and Gurus we must keep your own judgment about what we are told, and not follow blindly, despite the recommended devotion. Garchen Rinpoche says that the ultimate guru is within, and it is not suppose to have separate sets of rules for monks and nuns. But they exist. It is very encouraging that we find help in this issue from within our own western culture. Through Carl Yung, we also received the concept of "individuation," which is the realization of our full development as a human being. “Individuation is the process of transforming one’s psyche by bringing the personal and collective unconscious into conscious.Individuation has a holistic healing effect on the person, both mentally and physically.” Jung, C. G.

Carl Yung, received teachings and initiations from a Tibetan Lama in Switzerland, practiced Mudra Tantra and Kundaline yoga, and traveled and studied cultures and traditions throughout the world. According to him this individuation process can only take place with the internalization of the union of the masculine and the feminine inside, which he recognizes is a psychological and a spiritual process. Both in western and Tibetan Vajrayana tradition, this union is symbolically represented by the alchemical union of the sun and the moon. Furthermore Vajrayana offers us the symbolism and the beauty of the yab-yums, male and female deities in blissful union. They also offer us the historical accounts of the realization of many women who attained Buddhahood, and many were elevated to the state of Lineage Protectors.
It all seems very contradictory, since women in Tibetan society still holds the traditional position of a pastoral patriarchal society, full ordination for women was never brought to Tibet, and education was never offered to them within the so many lineages and monasteries. Why then in the pantheon of deities of the lineages we see all these displays of the sacred feminine? The secret resides on the meaning of the sacred feminine for men. The sacred feminine represents the aspect of Transcendent Wisdom in the process of enlightenment. Without developing feminine qualities such as receptivity, nurturing and lovingness their knowledge is just scholarship--not wisdom or realization. Without the feminine aspect they cannot be open and receptive to the "divine" within themselves, and without the integration of the feminine they cannot achieve enlightenment--the entrance of the sun and the moon energy within the central channel. The psychological changes, transform the chemistry of the body which in turn, among other causes and conditions, change the wind--prana energy circulation within the channels. Hence, in most yab-yum representations, the feminine aspect is depicted much smaller that the male aspect, with the male front and the feminine’s back, and it should be so because they are visualizations for the male, they are archetypes for men. The same is not true for women. The imagery has to show the opposite--the female representation has to be larger and the male in union, has to be smaller, with the deity depicted looking forward and the male giving his back to reflect the feminine inner process representing all the qualities to be developed and worked from within by women. This kind of representation hasn’t been taken yet by artist, although recently I heard from a tanka artist friend of mine, that he has seen one painting like that which called his attention because of its uniqueness, but he could not explain the symbolism!!

Although Tibetans and Buddhists in general recognize that women can achieve the same state of Buddhahood as men, and carry the stories of a few women who have achieved and have integrated them into their pantheon, there is no tradition of developing causes and conditions for these achievements for women. Effort is taking place right now by many lineages in India and Tibet, and by the Dalai Lama himself, but it is not yet a priority. Monkhood and priesthood is still a main profession for man in many Buddhist countries and in the west.

Tibetan Buddhism was a powerhouse, a true millenary industry for male achievement. They have developed, tested and implemented thousands of systems for their processes, for the different types of men, not for women. Only a few women were able to achieve enlightenment despite all the adverse cause and conditions. But they were the exception to the rule. We, women-lay and nuns will have to do it for ourselves. We will have to add education, intellect and discrimination, i.e. method and thinking, to our sense of community, nurturing, feeling and wisdom. We have to learn not just how to create and manage monastic houses in the 21rst Century, but how to develop yogas appropriated for women without the excesses of the masculine rational system and develop informal and formal networks to support nuns and their projects. Man have developed formal and informal systems of mutual support, taking apprentices, teaching, mentoring, giving references and placing their favorites in high positions.

As we receive ordination, many of us have to take monks as mentors. Not always they have our best interest in their directives. I have seen young western novice monks immediately given functions as teachers as well as centers tin which to work and direct, some times unprepared for those functions. The same is not true for women, even for accomplished, mature women, with high education with a life long spiritual and religious training. Some monks expect us to take positions as secretaries instead of writers or teachers when they are capable of taking these roles. We will have to work the differences with true humbleness and lovingness, listening to the divine feminine intuition, sometimes taking issue with our mentors which can be a difficult task because of the devotion involved. But that is the riddle of our times, as would say Marie Louse von Franz, a Jungian analyst. The search for the solution of this riddle is the task that each one of us has to take for our individuation process and ultimately to achieve enlightenment(more).
Some Yoginis such as Machig Labdron, Sukhasiddhi, Achi Drolma and Niguma, among a few others, who achieved in their own authority, without being a consort, and became Buddhas on their own right, had to face tremendous hardship and discrimination within their society, their families and from the monks to be able to practice and receive the teachings they needed for achievement. Even while learning about the science of energy, winds and channels from the monks, we have to be aware. Some women's channels are on different sides than those of men. Most monks don't know this. In some yogas like Dream Yoga, we need to learn the proper position for women to lie down, the lion position is inversed, it is not the same, etc. There are books and teachers who are aware of that, but not all.

We have a long way to go in a road less traveled. There is much we can learn from the monks, but there is much that we will have to work out by ourselves. Fortunately, there are some good heroine models both in Tibetan pantheon and within the Western tradition, which offer us larger than life figures such as the pioneer work of contemporary western Tibetan Buddhist nuns, and the ones like the recently discovered Catholic giant of spirituality, wisdom and creativity, the now famous religious artist, abbess, musician, healer, founder of monasteries, counselor of kings and popes--Hildegard von Bingen of the 12th century. The question is how did they do it, how are they doing it?

We must continue to share experiences and reflections, but the biggest work is within ourselves, it is practice. By practicing properly and understanding what we are doing we will help each other and ourselves in this amazing human journey.

The first step is to use the quality of divine pride taught by the devotional aspect of deity yoga and develop the pride and dignity of the Sacred Feminine in us, which is none other than self-esteem so many times confused with human pride and arrogance. If we give rise to the deity and keep our visualization of the deity during the day while we act as nuns or lay leaders officiating rituals, give blessings, give talks and teach, then we can develop this kind of dignity and internalize the Sacred Feminine, (Garchen Rinpoche said that we can only help when we rise as the deity). That will start to deepen the process of self-esteem (internalization) extending its roots to the sacred feminine ground within. This exercise coming from a monastic community can be a powerful force within the species collective unconscious towards the integration of the Sacred Feminine archetype in equal conditions to the masculine.

May the merits of this contemplation benefit all sentient beings for now and times to come, and advance the evolution of humanity with the blessings of the Great Mother Tara.

Rigpa News: His Eminence Garchen Rinpoche tours the Lerab Ling Temple with Sogyal Rinpoche

Rigpa News: His Eminence Garchen Rinpoche tours the Lerab Ling Temple with Sogyal Rinpoche

Buddhism and the Environment

October 24th is the International Day of Climate Change. A movement for a gobal wake-up call. September 21 is the worldwide launching of a  movie in preparation for this wake-up call. Climate Change a wake-up call,

A Day to Remember 

This was a paper prepared for delivery in the Bhuddist International Day, Wesak festival in Bangkok by myself, Angela Harkavy. 2009.

Most of us in the Tibetan Buddhist Community have heard the Dalai Lama express his concerns about the environment in the last 20 years and the latest recomendations and directives given by the Karmapa  to monastics and laypeople in his manual for the environment. Karmapa Environmental Guidelines

Mother Earth is in pain and is letting us know. Environmental disasters are happening much faster than predicted only 15 years ago. Scientific calculations of environmental changes are predicting catastrophic events in a near future: rising sea levels, increasing cancer rates, vast population growth, depletion of resources, and extinction of species are on the radar. Human activity everywhere is destroying key elements of the natural eco-systems of which all living beings depend on. It is hard to visualize the future life of humans in the planet.

We all know that buddhism sees ignorance as a source of all suffering. Humans thought the Earth was inexhaustibly sustainable, now we know the extent of our ignorance, and because of that all sentient beings are suffering. The good news is that all cultures and civilizations will have to come together to resolve the problem; however for that to happen, we have to overcome ignorance, wrong views, wrong actions, and afflictive emotions, the very issues that Buddhism is set up to tackle.

When I engaged in working at the UN with other fellow NGOs, for the creation of an Earth Charter, a declaration of principles to guide our relationship to the planet, I had in mind a Buddhist world view. As we well know, the doctrine of pratītyasamutpāda (Doctrine of "dependent origination)" is at the core of Buddhist philosophy. "Dependent arising" states that phenomena arise together in a mutually interdependent web of cause and effect. This is the understanding that any phenomenon exists only because of the existence of other phenomena in an incredibly complex web of cause and effect covering time past, time present and time future.

To say it in another way, everything depends on everything else, or yet in other words: when this is, that is. From the arising of this comes the arising of that. From the cessation of this comes the cessation of that. A human being's existence in any given moment is dependent on the condition of everything else in the world at that moment, but in an equally significant way, the condition of everything in the world in that moment depends conversely on the character and condition of that human being.

If we were professional ecologists we could say that this concept is the definition of ecology today, which is the science that studies the relationship between living beings. It is ecology that is telling us that we are very quickly killing the planet and all its life. Ecology now sees the universe and our world as a living system of systems, where everything is interconnected and interdependent. Well, that sounds like a budhist world view and karma, doesn't it?

Because of the acceptance of this new scientific concept at the UN it was felt the need for a new worldview and a declaration of principles on how to live accordingly, so people everywhere could understand how their local actions could affect the global environment. Hence the slogan: think globally and act locally. Also a new ethics was necessary. In the ethics of karma and the of the Bodhisatvas, no one has an individual ethical destiny, separate from the destiny of humanity. Karma, as we know means action. Those concepts have been embraced into the body of what is now known as Environmental Ethics.

The effort to create a Charter to reflect principles to guide people's behavior that could help to save the Earth was long overdo within the UN environmental agencies, and among NGOs all over the globe. This effort finally culminated with the finalization of the Earth Charter in 1997. As people, we are as responsible for the planet as anybody else, but as Buddhists we are infinitely more responsible because we know, we know about interdependent origination and we know about karma, and we have known for thousands of years. The question is, what can we do beyond living with great compassion and responsibility? Although Buddhism has a long history of protecting the environment and all sentient beings, the call today is for a more engaged karmic action, we must work together and fast if we are going to help stop and revert the process of destruction of the planet. In this endevour we can find some guidance from the Earth Charter and the Karmapa's Environmental Guidelines. The Earth Charter

The Earth Charter as it stands today, has been the object of a process of global partnership and discussion, and it contains a preamble in which it includes a view of life as an interdependence ecosystem and sixteen principles to guide our actions.

Principle 7 calls for us to Adopt patterns of production, consumption, and reproduction that safeguard Earth's regenerative capacities, human rights, and community well-being. It is a call that seems overwhelming and a task for governments.

What can we do as monastic communities and as individuals?

First as communities, we can immediately review how we run our temples, monasteries and meditations centers. Are we energy efficient? How do we conserve water? Do our temples, monasteries, and meditation centers recycle? Do we use biodegradeble material, such as detergents, plates and cups? What we do with all the plastic we use everyday? How can we protect the ecosystem of the places where we live? Do we burn or cut wood for the winter and cooking? Do we plant trees? Are we prepared to educate the lay community for specific actions that can be taken, and to help them to understand their responsibility and their participation in local communities?

Our monasteries, temples, and communities can promote efficient methods of waste management and prevent pollution, for example. We can use the Earth Charter to educate children and parents about the importance of their actions for the environment. We can look for partnerships with local, national, and international Non Governmental Organizations to apply energy efficiency to our monasteries, temples and Centers, to properly manage waste, and to prepare educational material for our communities. We must talk about the environment to all people and encourage them to engage in sustainable activities in their homes and their communities. The need today is not just for conservation and protection. We need to change and to promote change. We must take active responsibility for our views and beliefs.

Principle 14 call us to Integrate into formal education and life-long learning the knowledge, values, and skills needed for a sustainable way of life. We Buddhists are in a privileged position to bring to life this principle.

Buddhist philosophy provides a rational basis for ecological conservation and engaged activism. Buddhists from all determinations have come forward to work in this global common problem, which affects the very survival of the planet, and their voices have been heard everywhere. Many books were published, conferences were promoted and talks were given, but we are still further away from greening our temples, monasteries and meditation centers, and from resolving the problem. Now that we are engulfed in an economical crisis there is the danger that immediate human interests will again blind our consciousness from the right perception of things and misguide our choices and actions.

The Dalai Lama said that in the past we were ignorant of the environmental implications, despite the fact that Buddhist precepts protects all life, but today we have no excuse, the Earth, He says, is the home of billions and billions of sentient beings. "We must act before it is too late." Dalai Lama's articles on the Environment

"Our ancestors viewed the earth as rich and bountiful, which it is. Many people in the past also saw nature as inexhaustibly sustainable, which we now know is the case only if we care for it. It is not difficult to forgive destruction in the past that resulted from ignorance. Today however, we have access to more information, and it is essential that we re-examine ethically what we have inherited, what we are responsible for, and what we will pass on to coming generations."

For Shakyamuni Buddha, (Gautama the Buddha) the environment was his home. Although he was born in a palace, he found enlightenment under a tree, and when the paranirvana moment came, he placed himself outside to die. The environment is our home and our mother. Peace and survival of life on Earth as we know it are threatened by humans that lack the commitment to humanitarian values. Destruction of nature and natural resources result from ignorance, greed, and lack of respect for life, above all from lack of a daily life awareness. We are ignoring the consequences of what we do with all the material we use in our daily lifes.

Because of our tenets and principles, we Buddhist, more than any other religion, have an inherent responsibility to engage in compassionate environmental activism to save the planet for all sentient beings. Let us remember that Buddhism is not anthropocentric, it advocates that all sentient beings pursue happiness, and that the Buddha nature exists in all sentient beings (Buddhism & Anthopocentism). We can educate, produce material, spread the word, promote workshops, and create community projects for the monastic and the lay community to work together and to bring about change. If it seems like a too big of a task, we can start at home--from our kitchens and trash, comes the most damage to the ecosystems that surrounds us and even the much larger ecosystems.