The Faith Column
Every week a different believer gives the inside track on their religion or philosophy.
Will the Dalai Lama return to Tibet?
- 105 comments
- Posted by Meindert Gorter
- 29 August 2008
Meindert Gorter gives his views on religious freedom in China today and the prospects of the Dalai Lama return from exile
The Dorje Shugden Society is trying to put a stop to the ban on the worship of Dorje Shugden on the basis of India’s constitution, a country where you are free to worship almost anything. The Indian High Court is due to consider the case in September.
Advanced Buddhist hermeneutics are unnecessary to understand a protector, which is actually simply a powerful thought used for developing wisdom instead of attaining [...]
Why did the Dalai Lama ban Dorje Shugden?
- 62 comments
- Posted by Meindert Gorter
- 28 August 2008
Meindert Gorter explores the history and reasons behind the Dalai Lama's ban on the deity Dorje Shugden
The Dalai Lama has given several reasons to explain the excommunication of the protector, Dorje Shugden, back in 1996. However what he has actually seemed to be doing is adapting the gravity of the ban to match the level of protest against it within the Tibetan community. In some interviews he has even denied having banned the deity; he only wanted to give a warning, people can make their own [...]
Are Dalai Lama's critics backed by China?
- 58 comments
- Posted by Meindert Gorter
- 27 August 2008
Followers of the Dalai Lama claim that China is behind dissent by those who question his ban on the worship of Dorje Shugden
It has been 12 years since I first heard Dorje Shugden’s name. Under normal circumstances it's best not to talk about protectors openly. This is because protectors can lose their strength for a person, and you don't really want them to expire. Best kept in silence, they serve as fuel on the path to enlightenment. In monasteries protectors’ shrines are closed, only to be opened on special occasions. That is [...]
The deity banned by Dalai Lama
- 78 comments
- Posted by Meindert Gorter
- 26 August 2008
Meindert Gorter talks about Dorje Shugden, a Buddhist deity whose worship has been banned by the Dalai Lama
I am a Dutch student of Kundeling Rimpoche, one of the Dalai Lama’s major critics in the Gelugpa tradition. I’ll try to give an explanation of the Dorje Shugden controversy that is both understandable for those who are not initiated in the Mahayana-Vajrayana Buddhist tradition and still explains the very crux of the problem.
When I met Kundeling Rimpoche in 1995 I was interested in Buddhism and thought he [...]
Falun Gong: defying the odds
- 38 comments
- Posted by Leeshai Lemish
- 21 August 2008
Leeshai Lemish talks about Falun Gong’s resistance and the complicity of the West
If this persecution is so severe, why is it so rarely in the news and why isn’t more being done about it?
Last month, I sat down with a journalist in a Taipei pub. ‘The media have a blackout on Falun Gong’, he said. ‘You mean Chinese or Western media’? I asked. ‘Both’.
Indeed, despite notable support from several politicians, journalists and NGOs, after being persecuted for nine years Falun [...]
China’s other world
- 20 comments
- Posted by Leeshai Lemish
- 20 August 2008
Leeshai Lemish tells of his and Ethan Gutmann’s journey into the persecution of Falun Gong
It was 2:00 am and we were sitting on the floor of a Bangkok slum. We had a flight to catch the next morning, but after interviewing Falun Gong refugees for a week we still couldn’t pull away from what they were telling us.
‘At first I thought it was just me. But then, one after another, more Falun Gong practitioners were brought into our cell’, Chen Jie said. ‘Their [...]
Why is Falun Gong Banned?
- 26 comments
- Posted by Leeshai Lemish
- 19 August 2008
Leeshai Lemish looks at the history and causes of the Chinese Communist Party’s campaign against Falun Gong
‘If Falun Gong is benign, why is the Chinese government afraid of it?’ After nine years of persecution this basic question remains common. I’ll try answering it here.
In the 80s, Chinese parks brimmed at dawn with some 200 million people performing slow-movement exercises known as qigong. In 1992 Master Li Hongzhi introduced Falun Gong, outwardly a qigong practise like any other. But Master Li uniquely placed emphasis not on [...]
Being a Falun Gong practitioner
- 9 comments
- Posted by Leeshai Lemish
- 18 August 2008
Often in the news but rarely understood, Falun Gong is regularly associated with Chinese human rights issues. Leeshai Lemish gives his understanding of what Falun Gong practitioners actually believe
I would have laughed if ten years ago you told me that my search for a meditation practice would land me on Beijing’s blacklist.
At that time I was an athlete with more determination than talent. My fascination with the mental side of sports and venture into alternative treatments for a back injury lead me to visualisation techniques, yoga, and tai chi. My quest then turned to Buddhist practices - [...]
A world system
- 2 comments
- Posted by Tajudeen bin Tijani
- 14 August 2008
Do you know what the system of this world is? Tajudeen bin Tijani writes that the Quran claims to have the answer
Those of us who are curious enough to find a "winning formula" for success in this world engage ourselves in all sorts of activities such as observation, investigation, evaluation and so on. This in turn leads to selecting from the options made available as a result of these activities attempted. It is definitely worth mentioning that these activities lead us to choose what "winning formula" we put into practice. We [...]
Islam - pro women’s rights?
- 14 comments
- Posted by Zubia Malik
- 13 August 2008
The beating of women is not advocated in any form by the Quran, writes Zubia Malik from the UK Community of Submitters
The most common justification for ridiculing Islam is that the religion is "backward", particularly towards women, as a fundamental part of its beliefs. There have been many articles and incidences within the press and media suggesting that "women are treated as chattels". And it's true that there are certain religious scriptures which can command this.
Although women’s right encompasses many areas from education to marriage, I want to focus in [...]
Hijab, the dress code for Muslim women?
- 15 comments
- Posted by Zubia Malik
- 12 August 2008
Zubia Malik from the UK Community of Submitters writes why she stopped wearing the Hijab...
The first step seemed somewhat simple for me: wear the ‘hijab’ (veil) and that would be making a statement to me and to others that I am a true ‘Muslim woman.' Modest and dignified. I know for a lot of women embracing Islam that this is fundamental to their journey because either their understanding from the Hadith and Sunna (what is understood to be the practices of the Prophet Muhammad) [...]
What unites all Muslims?
- 2 comments
- Posted by Tajudeen bin Tijani
- 11 August 2008
The Quran is the one thing which all Muslims have in common writes Tajudeen bin Tijani, a researcher and member of the UK Community of Submitters
Where does one who lives in the UK begin with regards to identifying the essence of Islam (submission)?Well, one will have to embark on a journey of seeking answers to our questions from those who call themselves Muslim (submitter to the will of Allah), or better still Allah (God), if one appreciates some of His attributes already.
Note that taking into consideration that all those who call themselves [...]
A philosophy, not a religion
- 2 comments
- Posted by Becer Gul
- 06 August 2008
Becer Gul says that for Alevis God is more about love then fear...
I consider Alevism to be a philosophy and not a religion. That is because in most religions the believers say that one has to do good things, that a person must do this and that they have to do that. However when it comes to actual practise you can't see it. This is not the case in an Alevi society where one must practise what one preaches.
There exist [...]
Will they tolerate me if I wear shorts?
- 4 comments
- Posted by Becer Gul
- 05 August 2008
Becer Gul gives her views on the current government in Turkey, which some claim has an hidden Islamic agenda.
Ever since Ataturk became the leader of Turkey and established a secular country, the Alevi people were able to speak out openly and say: “Yes we are Alevis. We have our own practices and, indeed, we pay taxes like everyone else.”
For years we have been asking for more rights but the government just ignored us. However, as a lot of Alevis began to migrate to European countries, they [...]
Who are the Alevis?
- 0 comments
- Posted by Becer Gul
- 04 August 2008
Becer Gul is an Alevi Kurd who grew up in the Turkish town of Tunceli. According to some estimates, close to 20% of Turkey's population are Alevis.
After the Prophet Muhammad died, people started to fight over who should take his place. Muhammad had said that Hazret Ali was to be his successor. They were cousins and also Ali was his son-in-law. Ali was a very great man, and when finally his turn came to be caliph he was killed while praying in the mosque. So some people said they were going to follow Ali, and today [...]
