Sign up for our newsletter below. Tara represents virtuous and enlightened action. What was left of them, in the tree, I brought inside. Temples and monasteries are springing up and serving both Asian migrant communities and Western followers alike. 11 Mile Public Parking & Public Space Project Requested Amount: $2,000,000 Recipient: City of Oak Park Project Location: Oak Park Project Description: Funding will be used to repair parking lots and install lighting, EV charging stations, and ADA upgrades. Handmade art has been an indispensable part of the lives of the Tibetan people. Each Color of the Flag Symbolizes an Element. She also brings about longevity, protects earthly travel, and guards her followers on their spiritual journey to enlightenment. When I paint, my practice is to first meditate, and then to create from that space, allowing the painting to spring forth from the concept that I am meditating on. The five colors represent the five elements and the Five Pure Lights. According to legend, the practice is said to originate with the Buddha himself, whose prayers were written on flags to protect the Devas in their cosmic battle against the mythological forces of evil. Yes, we dont think that is a problem. All of those activities are prohibited by the virus and the lockdown. First came the Free Tibet t-shirts and bumper stickers, iconic symbols of grassroots organizing and international awareness, even before the era of MySpace and TedTalks. These were some of the factors which set the stage for the 14th Dalai Lama, who by the end of the 20th century had risen to something like rock star status in the Western world. 7. Tibetan prayer flags are used to promote peace, compassion, strength, and wisdom. The new-style marriage is that men and women have the freedom to choose their spouses but still follow the etiquette of the traditional Tibetan wedding. His Holiness the Dalai Lama has said, The quality or purity of any spiritual practice is determined by the individuals intention and motivation. Wishing you every happiness, Mary. Traditionally, Tibetan prayer flags are hung left to right in this specific order: blue, white, red, green, and yellow. Quickly place the thread on the glue and flatten it with your fingers. During his reign, he greatly expanded the territory of Tibet and made it a powerful country on the Plateau. What do you think of this way of disposing of prayer flags? They are not created to be washed, but rather hung in place where the prayers will blow in the wind. Tibetan Prayer Flags are colorful, rectangular cloths that hung outside and used to promote compassion, peace, strength, and wisdom. The annual Saga Dawa Festival, which takes place in Tibet, is the most important religious festivals in the country. Tibetan prayer flags, found in many parts of the Himalayas, are an important part of the Buddhist culture in Tibet (now part of China) and parts of Nepal. Should I remove the flag and respectfully burn it or simply reattach it? As they blow in the wind, they confer blessings and peace. The order of the flags (blue-white, etc. Normally prayer flags are hung outdoors so the wind can carry the prayers, but intention is key and it is OK to hang them indoors also. Prayer Flags Must Be Treated With Respect Considered sacred, and therefore must be given utmost respect are the prayer flags and the text, mantras, and symbols. Traditionally, prayer flags are hung outside so the wind can carry the prayers to the world for the benefit of all sentient beings. When hanging prayer flags one should wish that all beings everywhere will benefit and find happiness. You have written that, when hanging and taking down the prayer flags, you are handling them with respect and good intentions. Teaching Buddhism by drawing comparisons to Western philosophy can be seen in this light, as a vessel to understanding some aspects of the Dhamma. Revered as the second Buddha, Guru Rinpoche (Precious Guru) conquered the local deities and demons of Tibet and bound them by oath to become guardians of Buddhism. It is always important to treat prayer flags with respect and the intention to end the suffering of all sentient beings. How wonderful! Dear Paul, Yes, you can hang prayer flags on your pack when you climb, but you might ensure that the flags do not touch the ground. Two: there are powerful beings around who will be utterly provoked and create all sorts of calamities. This has always pleased me as it is benefitting them. On top is blue, followed by white, red, green, and yellow, which denote the five elements: sky, air, fire, water, and earth. How to dispose of synthetic cloth (not cotton) prayer flags? We should perhaps all just buy prayer flags that are made of 100% natural fibres. Perhaps you can give the prayer flags to someone who would like them. The bright cloth flags are printed with auspicious symbols, invocations, prayers, and mantras. Yellow for the earth. White for air. Green is water, yellow is earth, and blue is wind. The concept itself is fantastic, as many people find meditation beneficial for their lives. In Buddhist believers eyes, the prayer flag waves for one time in the wind means reciting the sutra once, which is a way to show pilgrims wishes and seek blessings from Gods. A Tibetan Buddhist nun at Dolma Ling Nunnery hangs new prayer flags at Losar, Tibetan New Year. As an alternative I was considering purchasing a traditional wooden block stamp of the windhorse or the medicine buddha (created by artists in nepal) and using that on the artwork instead. I have never heard this step from anyone else. Thank you. Quite some time ago I was assigned to dispose of some hundreds of wood malas that had been blessed by HH 17th Gyalwang Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje. The third type of prayer flag is composed of five pieces of colorful streamers without lettering and a single color trimmed main banner square cloth, which are printed with Buddha's teachings and patterns of birds and animals. This post is a draft, and thus is not publicly visible. I will be grateful for your answers to these two questions: You can buy Tibetan prayer flags through the Tibetan Nuns Project online store. I recently bought the prayer flags from a store that sells hand made stuff and support local artists. Blessings. can you wash TIbetan prayer flags and re-hang them? Do not let prayer flags touch the ground as they are burned. 4 Days Lhasa City Essential Group Tour from USD450, 8 Days Lhasa to Everest Base Camp Group Tour from USD930, 9 Days Lhasa Shigatse Mt.Everest Namtso Tour from USD1200, 15 Days Mt.Everest & Mt Kailash Group Tour from USD1840, 7 Days Lhasa Mt. It is most respectful to burn them. This was finally done today after pondering the best way to do that, eliminating the options of discarding them in the sea or the river. Here and there I have hung prayer flags which I thought it best to let nature work to release the prayers as they disintegrated. Tibetan prayer flags are religious. Dear Willow, The main thing is ones intention and treating the prayer flags with respect. I am very excited to hang my prayer flags as I would like to begin sending my wishes to end suffering for sentient beings. Tibetan prayer flags are bright and beautiful, but their colours aren't just for show. If other bereaved parents ask you about doing something similar, you may want to suggest that they create a separate set of flags to honor their lost child that they hang along with the Tibetan prayer flags. Our artisans combine vintage style Tibetan beads hand-sourced in Nepal with authentic and ethically sourced mala beads. Is there an appropriate way to store them for moving? Buddhism in Western Society These times include Tibetan New Year and the two weeks that follow it and Saga Dawa (the fourth month of the Tibetan Lunar calendar), particularly Saga Dawa Duchen, the most holy day (the 15th day of the 4th lunar month) which marks the Buddhas birth, enlightenment, and paranirvana. It took about 4 hrs to take out all (synthetic) strings from the beads. The 5 colors of prayer flags represent the 5 basic elements: yellow-earth, green-ater, red-fire, white-air, blue-space. There is no specific direction to hang them. However, is the rope theyre strung along also natural fiber? You can choose to say a mantra if you wish. Although of course we modified the flags with the best intentions and respect, Im now wondering if what we did in adding the images/fabric of his shirts to the flags was actually disrespectful? Also when hanging. I assume they are building their nests with them. My idea is that all of the materials that go to make up the prayer flags come from the ground Eventually they will go back to the ground, one way or another.through fire to ash or natural decomposition in the air to be carried by the natural processes, recycled to earth again. The five colors are arranged in a specific order from left to right: blue, white, red, green, and yellow. Blue represents the sky, white represents the air, red symbolizes fire, green symbolizes water, and yellow symbolizes earth. "Color, in ancient times, is generally considered to be the worship of the gods," Tsering adds, stating that the five colors represent the elements of sky (blue), air (white), fire (red), water (green) and earth (yellow). if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'bambubatu_com-medrectangle-3','ezslot_2',119,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-bambubatu_com-medrectangle-3-0');if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'bambubatu_com-medrectangle-3','ezslot_3',119,'0','1'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-bambubatu_com-medrectangle-3-0_1');.medrectangle-3-multi-119{border:none!important;display:block!important;float:none!important;line-height:0;margin-bottom:7px!important;margin-left:auto!important;margin-right:auto!important;margin-top:7px!important;max-width:100%!important;min-height:250px;padding:0;text-align:center!important}. If so is it ok to create pieces of colored fabric that has their names, mimicking a prayer flag? When raising prayer flags it is important to have a good motivation. So they come to you, already having been blessed with prayers by the nuns. But still I was left with the blessed strings. Presenting Khata expresses good wishes and respect. Therefore, burying it in the ground ensures that its components cannot be released into these vital global systems. Your question about prayer flags is not one that we have encountered before. Old prayer flags should be burned in order to show traditional Tibetan respect and carry prayers to the heavens. Prayer flags are made of block-printed fabric using traditional printing techniques going back hundreds of years. Balancing these elements externally brings harmony to the environment. When you travel to Tibet, you can see the great number of Buddhists Prayer Flags hung at the summits of mountains, passes of mountains, banks of rivers, sides of roads, roofs of monasteries, etc. Central to the appropriation in the West is the way Buddhism is tokenised and not treated as a legitimate religion. It better stills, just tie up the new ones next to the old. Please advise. It's a Good Omen to Receive Buddhist Prayer Flags as a Gift. And next came the Tibetan prayer flags, more vibrant in their rainbow colors, but more subtle in their messaging. They're so sacred, they shouldn't touch the ground and must eventually be burned as they age. Traditionally, the squares were printed with wooden blocks, and to this day that same method is often still used. Buddhists added their own texts to increase the power of the flags. Yes, it is fine for non-Buddhists to display Tibetan prayer flags. Color and order. Made of cotton cloth, yarn of ramie, silk and so on, those oblong-shaped prayer flags are combined with five different colors, blue, white, red, green and yellow. On April 15, 2020, hundreds of Michiganders turned up in the state's . (Note: Bambu Batu cannot be held accountable if for some reason your misuse of prayer flags results in bad karma.). For hundreds of years of history, hanging prayer flags has become a traditional custom in Tibetan regions, which is a self-cultivation way. Its a combination of values like compassion, ethics, patience, diligence, renunciation, and wisdom. The old-style marriage is that the man and the woman are married under the arrangement of their parents. Alternatively, you can write a mantra (or any protective affirmation that is meaningful to you) on paper and place it above your door. You may also choose to let your old Tibetan prayer flags fade and disintegrate naturally, hanging new prayer flags up with old ones. However, you dont need to wait to hang your prayer flags. A-. The traditional cotton prayer flags, like those made by the nuns at Dolma Ling and sold in our online store, fade more quickly than synthetic ones and may be safely burned. I have a large patio awning with wide support poles along its perimeter where I would like to hang my prayer flags. Color fading from the flags is considered auspicious. I wanted to present a set of prayer flags with the name of those who could not be there on it. The horse symbol of 'ta' represents speed and of ill-fortune turning into good ones. Many different founding texts are used by the different schools and the Suttas (the earliest recordings of the Buddha's life) alone compiled together are enough to fill a small book-shelf. Ones intention is important. They should not be placed on the ground or put in the trash. The Tara prayer flags have a lovely image of Tara in the center. 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