Tibetan Worldview
Stacie Andrews, Richard Sweet,
Glenni Rankin, Sarah Hollingsworth
HCOM 301
04/29/13
The Dalai Lama...
Those unrelentingly cruel ones, objects of compassion,
Maddened by delusion's evils,
wantonly destroy themselves and others;
May they achieve the eye of wisdom, knowing what must be done and
undone,
And abide in the glory of friendship and love.
Tibet: The Roof of the World
China's Tibet Autonomous
Region: 1965
Tibetan Settlements in India
Tibetan-Government in Exile:
Indian State of Himachal
Predesh, a village known as
Upper Dharamsala. This is
where the Dalai Lama resides.
Tibetan Refugees in Nepal
Tibetans...
Demographic Information
- China’s grip makes this more difficult..
- Tibetan and Mandarin Chinese
- The Han people
- China’s Tibet Autonomous Region
- Communities of faith
Core Values
- Individual expression of spirituality
- Buddhism
- The Dalai Lama: human happiness; interreligious harmony; survival of identity,
culture, and religion
- Faith
Elements Necessary to
Understand World View
Tibetan philosophy engages in philosophical
investigation not only to gain an
understanding of the world but to also gain
an understanding on how to eliminate
suffering in the world.
Religious or spiritual beliefs
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Indigenous Tibetan religion called Bon.
Tibetan Buddhism (influenced from earlier Indian
Buddhism and Bon).
o Dalai Lama
o Use of mantras and yogic techniques.
o Preoccupation with the relationship between life
and death
o Gods and spirits taken from earlier Tibetan religions
o Texts are separated into two sections
 Translated Words- the teaching of Buddha
 Translated Teachings- commentaries written by Indian and Tibetan authors
o Four main sects of Tibetan Buddhism
 Ancient
 White Earth
 Oral Transmission
 Way of Virtue
Ontological beliefs
•
Two different “schools” of
ontological thinking that originated
from Indian Mahayana Buddhism.
o Mind Only School (Yogacara)
 Awareness and
consciousness is the only
thing with intrinsic
essence.
o Middle Way School
(Madhyamaka)
 Denies that anything has
an unchanging essence.
Epistemological beliefs
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Mysticism -meditation,
Religious Faith- texts, dalai
lama
The Doctrine of Two Truths:
o The Two Truths
 Conventional
(Normal) truth
 Ultimate Truth
~Truth can mean “true” as well
as “real”.~
Ethical Views/Teachings
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Utilitarian
o
•
elimination of
suffering
Aristotelian Virtue
o
flourishing and
freedom both function
as a goal for good
traits
Education
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Lower
o Beginning in 1999, 200 schools were built and enrollment went
from 85% to 98% in 2010.
o Secondary education is taught in Mandarin and entrance exams
to universities are in Chinese.
o From primary school through college, tuition fees for ethnic
Tibetans are completely subsidized by the central government
Higher
o In 1980, Tibetans were only 10% of higher education students
o In 1984, Tibet University was est.
o By 2006, had six institutions of higher learning.
Medicine
•
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Ancient system based on Buddhist philosophy
and psychology.
The mind is considered to be the base because all
existences and moments depend on its
movements; it is the creator of every external and
internal phenomena.
Rural-Agrarian
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90% work as herdsmen
The other 10% live in towns earning living doing
business and handicraft work, factory workers or
government officials
Clothing
•
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Cultural regions- home woven gowns
Grasslands- sheepskin
Men from Chamdo- red/black silk tassels
Lhasa residents- more modern/stylish
Rituals & Practices
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Buildings are blessed by a lama that circles it twice and
throws handfuls of rice in each direction.
The Hada is the most precious gift.
Tibetan festivals such as Losar, Shoton, & the Bathing
Festival are deeply rooted in indigenous religion.
Tibetan music often involves chanting in Tibetan or Sanskrit,
as an essential part of the religion.
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Each house has altar tables for worshipping Buddha.
o Most important part of the home is the prayer room.
o Tend to be very colorful with scenes of Buddha’s life
Do not eat horse, dog, or donkey meat, and some areas do not
eat fish as well.
Polyandry is practiced amongst nomadic Tibetans still today.
Oppression
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Nearly all the beggars in China are Tibetan.
China has occupied Tibet for over 60 years
Since 2009, about 100 Tibetan monks, nuns and others have
set themselves on fire to protest the severe living conditions
imposed on Tibetans
More than 250,000 Tibetans die in prisons and labor camps.
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Since the 1960s, China has inflicted severe damage to Tibet’s
environment: Toxic waste is dumped into rivers; forests are
clear-cut; endangered species are hunted for sport; and
nuclear-testing facilities are built.
Hundreds of thousands of Tibetans die from famine and
disease.
Government-in-Exile
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Dharamsala, India
Established after
escape(CTA)
Sino-Indian War
Dalai Lama's policy
of China owned
Tibet
Failure of Chinese Programs
•
"Great Leap Forward" (1958-1961)
o
o
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Shift from Agrarian to Modern Communist
Massive failure of the program
 Commune system
 Industrialization
 Economic Loss
"Cultural Revolution" (1966-1976)
Another attempt to modernize
o To fix the mistakes of "Great Leap Forward"
o Led to the destruction of 6,000 Tibetan monasteries
o
Protests
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3•14 Riots
o
o
o
o
o
Meant to bring attention
44 monks since 2009
Arrests and Deaths
Censorship
United States Reaction
What Can You Do?
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Read more about the issues...
Internet Websites
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http://www.savetibet.org/support-tibet
http://www.helptibet.org.uk/
Spread awareness!
For More Information:
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For more on Tibet: http://www.tibet.org/
Free Tibet: http://www.freetibet.org/
For more information on Tibetan Buddhism:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/buddhism/subdivisions/tibetan_1
http://www.religionfacts.com/buddhism/sects/tibetan.htm
Tibetan Epistemology and Philosophy of Language:
http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/epistemology-language-tibetan/#Epi/
Tibetan Philosphy: http://www.iep.utm.edu/tibetan/