Chinese to English. 中文-英文
Translations from the heart
I try to capture the essence of the contents, what tends to be lost in translation, to make sense of the Chinese culture using Western vocabulary, to reduce misunderstandings that arise from cultural gaps and to convey the sense of beauty behind each culture.
summer 2021:
From June 5, 2021, His Holiness the 17th Karmapa started giving weekly teachings on Atisha’s “Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment” in Chinese. The reason being that many Chinese people do not know the history of Tibetan Buddhism. I have this spontaneous wish for my non-Chinese friends to receive the teachings and so, this is my attempt at translating his impeccable words.
1st Session June 5, 2021- Why Atisha’s “Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment”
In this very first session, HH Karmapa talked about the reason for holding this “One Mind Series” lecture and why he chose to teach Atisha’s “Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment”. https://youtu.be/vIib-qX1vDQ
Link to English Translation PDF
2nd Session June 12, 2021- How Buddhism Entered Tibet
In this second session, HH Karmapa continued on the significance of Atisha’s “Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment” and explained the meaning of pith instructions and the importance of putting teaching into practice. In the second part of the session, he narrated the history of how Buddhism entered Tibet, starting with the first Tibetan King Songtsen Gampo, followed by Trisong Detsen. https://youtu.be/ZMIMqHL_jFQ
Link to English Translation PDF
3rd Session June 19, 2021- Tāranātha’s “The Life of Padmasambhava”
In the third session, HH Karmapa chose Tāranātha’s “The Life of Padmasambhava” to narrate the epic of Guru Rinpoche entering Tibet and subduing the demons, finally setting the stage for the introduction of Buddhism into Tibet. https://youtu.be/3jQ4GjCXcHI
Link to English Translation PDF
4th Session June 26, 2021- The Samye Debate and Lang Darma Persecuted the Dharma
In this fourth session, HH Karmapa talked about the Samye Debate based on the “Testament of Ba” and the “Ratification of the True Principle of the Mahayana Teaching of Sudden Enlightenment”. He also talked about Lang Darma, the Tibetan Bull Demon King much to his own amusement, ending with the founding of Guge Kingdom. https://youtu.be/kzokYzT7vxk
Link to English Translation PDF
5th Session July 10, 2021- 3 Main Contributions of Lha Lama Yeshe-Ö
In the fifth session, HH Karmapa talked about the main achievements of Lha Lama Yeshe-Ö and how they were instrumental in the renaissance of Tibetan Buddhism. https://youtu.be/UNUIo1Xhwxc
Link to English Translation PDF
6th Session July 17, 2021- Atisha’s Life Story Part I
In the sixth session, HH Karmapa talked about the life story of Atisha, from his time in India, his studies and up until he finally went to Tibet and wrote the “Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment”. https://youtu.be/Ht4__u9UvjA
Link to English Translation PDF
7th Session July 24, 2021- Atisha’s Life Story Part II
In the seventh session, HH Karmapa talked about Atisha staying on in Tibet, his time at Samye and Jokhang until the time he passed into parinirvana. https://youtu.be/M0ssBZLoVKU
Link to English Translation PDF
人外有人 天外有天 