MY GREAT AUNT THE PRINCESS

4 Responses to MY GREAT AUNT THE PRINCESS

1. 

   Tsetchi on Mar 12, 2010 at 3:25 am

   Her costume is really nice !

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2. 

   Elena on Jul 4, 2010 at 7:18 am

   I Googled her once (haha all great stories start like that these days!), and read up about this remarkable and very intelligent lady who could hold her own with the men. She had a traditional Torghut upbringing but thanks to her father who believed his children should have a Western education, she was also visionary for her time. I mean, an Asian woman married to a French diplomat? And fluent in French, and as well as English, Chinese and Russian? And holding conversations and intellectual discourses with men in a time when women were to be seen and not heard? Talk about forging a path for Mongolian women.
   I think that the way she led her life and her way of thinking is kind of like Rinpoche, in that like Rinpoche, she combined ancient Eastern wisdom with Western methods and speech. Even though Rinpoche gives teachings from a pure lineage, and he is very traditional about certain things like respect for one’s guru, his methods show that he turns conservativism on its head.
   It amazes me how people’s lives mirror one another’s despite so much difference in time. It just goes to show that we’re really not that different to one another…so why all the discrimination and schism, and ‘us and them’ situations? We all need love, we all need kindness and care. We are all also equally capable of giving love, kindness and care and bringing happiness to others…and those qualities transcend time, period and culture.

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3. 

   David Lai on Jul 7, 2010 at 4:09 pm

   Mongolia was one of the last countries who became Buddhist and they became Buddhist mainly through the earlier efforts of the Sakya High Lamas like Sakya Pagpa, Sakya Pandita and more so with the effort of the 3rd Dalai Lama himself. As it is already common knowledge, Mongolia was much feared in the ancient world for its killing horde. But it was through the efforts of these high Lamas that converted much of Mongolia and eventually pacified the war-mongering Mongolian tribes.
   Buddhism took centuries to take root in Mongolia but everything began due to the kindness of these great courageous Lamas. When they first taught and toured the Mongolian Steppes, they instructed their royal students who in turned enforced this religious ruling of no human sacrifice, no killing and pillaging. This effectively pacified the war-like tendencies and effectively altered the course of world history. Hence, the Mongolian empire that stretched from east to west eventually broke apart and many kingdoms reestablished their own rulership once more. Hence, Buddhism had much influence upon world history which goes largely unmentioned by experts and historians today.

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4. 

   Wan Wai Meng on Jul 8, 2010 at 7:53 pm

   David, courage was the right word to use. The Great Altan Khan invited the 3rd Dalai Lama Sonam Gyatso to meet him. Altai was a great Mongolian leader he used to make military raids into China on a yearly basis and he will get a great bounty of slaves and treasures from the raids. Despite initially declining the offer Sonam Gyatso eventually met up with Altan Khan. Initially Sonam Gyatso sent a disciple and when the disciple came back he spoke of the opportunity about bringing the Dharma to the Mongolians. Many of his students begged Sonam Gyatso not to go.
   Alathan Khan wore a wire robe to meet Sonam Gyatso, the white robe signified his devotion to the dharma. Altan Khan coming from a shamanistic culture expected all religious figures to be able to perform miracles, Sonam Gyatso complied. Altai Khan first heard of Sonam Gyatso from a wandering monk who spoke and expounded Drepung’s Sonam Gyatso’s good qualities. The 3rd Dalai Lama efforts managed to persuade the Mongolians to give up their blood sacrifices in return they got to offer tormas which are still colored red but made of sugar,barley flour and etc. I recall the 3rd Dalai Lama promised to return as a Mongolian and true enough the 4th Dalai Lama was Yonden Gyatso a grandson of Altan Khan.

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