Sacred Painting
This is the original that belonged to my Mom now with my sister. The painting is around 2.5 x 3 inches. It is small and portable.
This is a small White Tara painting (Tzakaley) that was in the possession of my mother in New Jersey. Whenever she travelled she would take this Buddha along. When she was sick, she would hold this Buddha and do mantras. She said it was very powerful and sacred.
She told me when she was very sick and the doctors told her sisters/family to prepare as she would pass away in the hospital any moment and she was also in a coma, her family monk came to her hospital room. He did some rituals, placed this small painting if Tara above her head and hung it above her bed. Too everyone’s shock, she woke up the next day from a coma and said she is hungry. The doctors were flabbergasted as they never expected her to awake from the coma and her vitals were going down fast. My Mom told me this Tara saved her life.
From that day on, she kept this sacred White Tara near her all the time. It was very precious to her and she wouldn’t let me touch it. Of course I was very fascinated with this Tara.
My mom told, me when this monk was in Russia and imprisoned by the Red Army, in the night he prayed to this Tara and the cell door swung open on it’s own and he just walked out. The guards never saw him leave. So this Tara was in his possession at the time and now he passed it to my mom when she was very ill. The monk brought this Tara with him from Russia.. This Tara is now with my sister Lidshma. Good for her. Tara will bless Lidshma.
As a child my mother wouldn’t let me handle or hold this Tara. I wanted to put Tara in my room and pray to her. Mom wouldn’t allow it. So one day, she as at work, I repainted it exactly and hid it the duplicate. I did it in water colors. I had my own copy now that I had painted and was real excited. My mom found it and freaked out. She said it was blasphemous for an ordinary kid like me to duplicate Buddhas in paintings. I got a huge scolding…. So she took my priceless copied painting and kept it in her room… When she passed away, my sister got the original and the water painted copy I did… My sister Lidshma passed the copy to my students a few days ago and I will be getting it soon. I haven’t seen this painting in over 35 years!! I painted this over 35 years ago as a kid in New Jersey secretly..I wanted a copy of this powerful Buddha…. I wanted to have the exact same Tara in my room. Now I will after waiting a lifetime…
This is the White Tara that I drew and painted 35 years ago… I copied from my Mom’s original (pictured above), because I wanted to have a powerful Buddha near me too. This painting was kept by my sister who recently passed it to my students who visited her to interview for my biography in Texas. I was around 10 years old I think when I painted this Tara. It is the same size as the original. I wanted it to be the same.
Tsem Tulku Rinpoche
Such an amazing story!
Such an amazing story about Rinpoche high perseverance and endurance!
What a beautiful precious treasure!
Tara is amazing… there are endless stories about her miracles and her work to save beings… there are so many talking images of Tara… I believe that if you pray to her sincerely and recite her mantra, she can dissolve any obstacle!
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this wonderful story. It’s amazing to know RInpoche as a small kid is so attracted to Buddhism and Tara. I’ so excited for Rinpoche as you will be getting your Tara painting soon. It looks beautiful!
Dearest Rinpoche,
This is indeed an incredible story. Since reading the sms updates regarding this, I have been soooooo curious to see the painting Rinpoche did… and now here it is! How amazing this duplicate survived all these years! When I was a kid, I was drawing houses and people (and what they wore meticulously) in scenerios… now I have an Architectural/ID and Events Company… I believe that our dreams as a child do come true, it is just that we tend to forget what it was I think.
Much love… Andrew
Anything Sacred no matter how simple or old it may be or look, if kept with reference and devotion can definitely work wonders. May it be an old painting or old statue. But in the perciever’s eyes and minds it can save a situation. In Rinpoche’s mum’s case. Her monk has given her a small framed picture of a painting of White Tara. The monk must have done a lot of prayers to it. And so much energy is generated in the picture. Rinpoche’s mum was saved when she was very ill in hospital and the picture of White Tara was placed above her head and she came out of coma the next day. I understand in Ganden Monastery in Mundgod, India there is a Manjushri statue that speaks.
How beautiful,thanks for sharing Rinpoche. I love White Tara,my niece gave me a statue of her..Im so pleased you will have your Tara painting back..Tara is incredible,she has helped me a lot..even when i dont ask for help she helps.x
It is a blessing to be able to see the original picture of the sacred Tara, as well the oine painted by Rinpoche when he was kid back then.
Thank you for sharing with us this sacred picture of Tara. Thank you.
Thank you for sharing these stories about the Tara painting. Seeing Rinpoche’s watercolour of the Tara and being able to bring it back was one of the highlights of the trip. I am so glad Rinpoche’s mother kept Rinpoche’s painting all those years and then Lidshma looked after it and now Rinpoche has it back.
Rinpoche’s painting of Buddha images from young is another example of how Rinpoche’s past lives of pure Dharma continues again in this life. From the US trip, we saw and heard so many people observe Rinpoche’s love for the temple, Buddhist images and the Dharma. We will share these lovely stories about Rinpoche’s childhood and youth soon.
Despite the difficulties of getting the original painting of the sacred Tara, Rinpoche doesn’t reserve the painting for himself but instead share it with the world by putting them on the blog.
By posting the images of holy Buddhas on the blog, including the Sacred Tara on the blog, Rinpoche has made it possible for each one of us to carry the Buddhas along with us wherever we go simply by owning electronic gadget that has access to Internet connection.
Rinpoche’s act of selflessness and generosity in sharing the prayers, mantras, dharma teachings (text and videos) and sacred pictures of Buddhas on his blog have transformed our electronic gadgets into a mobile shrine that we can pray to and and listen to dharma teachings anytime, anywhere at our own convenience simply by accessing Rinpoche’s blog/facebook/website.
Thank you again for setting up this blog thank you again for all the contents inside the blog. Thank you.
Dear Rinpoche,
Thanks fo sharing. The White Tara is very divine.
Thankks.
Such beautiful White Tara paintings and happy reunion again after so many years
I am just discovering and learning about the White Tara known as the Mother of All Buddhas
from the wonderful story of Rinpoche The Sacred Painting.
In front of my computer is a piece of paper with The White Tara Mantra that I printed a few days ago to practice.
I choose an image of the White Tara at
http://tsemtulku.com/images/stories/resources/freepictures/deitypics/highres/WhiteTara_2009A.jpg
to meditate on as I am chanting the White Tara Mantra:
OM TARE TUTTARE TURE MAMA AYUH PUNYA JANA PUTRIM KURUYE SOHA
Infinite gratitude for your guidance and inspiration!
Dearest Rinpoche,
Thank You so much for sharing with us the wonderful stories of white Tara! The experienced of the monk and Your mom went through and saved by Tara, it was a amazing!
It was inspired and amazed by Rinpoche aged 10 but could draw and duplicated the White Tara Tzakaley so well!
I pray that, with these wonderful stories of Rinpoche’s sharing, may benefit more and more people to practice and increase faith in Mother Tara. OM TAREE TU-TAREE TUREE SOHA!
love, angel
Thanks you Rinpoche for sharing the precious stories behind this special Tara. How fortunate we were to have audience with her in Lidshma’s home and to finally see her after hearing so much about her and what an important, precious place she held in the lives of Dana and Rinpoche.
Most touching to us, as your students, is to hear that Dana kept this picture drawn by Rinpoche first on her dresser table and then later in her life, on her altar until the day she died. The painting was something precious to her too, for her to have kept it for so, so many years in spite of her (initial) objections to Rinpoche’s pursuit of Dharma. Rinpoche may have physically left Howell, but never left her heart.
This posting reminds me of the stories that Rinpoche has shared with us of his childhood in New Jersey and the abuse he had to endure due to Dana’s illness. Yet he never fought back, having deep compassion that she was suffering even when he was only a child then. The fact that Dana has kept this painting drawn by Rinpoche confirms this, that she loved Rinpoche underneath all the pain she must have suffered. To have the skill to draw and replicate so closely the original at age 10 tells us that this is a skill and talent from previous lifetimes.
Om Tare Tam Soha