Time Travel in Tibet

The central soteriological vision of Buddhism in Tibet is the same as that in Buddhism elsewhere: it is founded upon the four noble truths that describe cyclic existence (’ khor ba, “turning, going around”; Skt. saṃsāra, “wandering”) as pervaded by suffering (sdug bsngal), and it possesses instructions on the practices needed for the achievement of peace. Nevertheless, as elsewhere, the Buddhist traditions of Tibet have been marked by developments that in some cases they shared with other Mahāyāna traditions, and others that can be identified as being specifically Tibetan. ¹ The development of specifically Tibetan theories (lta ba), practices (sgrub thabs), and institutions (chos lugs, gzhung lugs, ’gro lugs) is, of course, what most stands out when we think of phrases like “Tibetan Buddhism” or even “Buddhism in Tibet.”