Introduction

AsianreligionssuchasKarmaKagyuarerelativelynewtothewesternworld.Overthe
yearstherearemoreandmorewesternsconvertthemselvestoBuddhist.MypartnerandI
becomethepioneerintheclasstolearnthisnewrisingreligiousgroup.Asreligionscholarsmy
partnerandIhavetokeepobjective.Wearebothatheists.AlthoughwearebothfromAsia,we
alwaysfeelreligionsarefarawayfromusandwedontknowanythingaboutKarmaKagyu
beforewedidourtriptotheKarmaKagyucommunity.First,likeEmileDurkheimsuggested
thatinmostreligioustraditions,thesocietysgodis,intruthsimplythesocialgroup,personified
andofferedtotheimaginationsofthegroupsmembersastheirtotem,thesymboloftheir
collectiveselves.(Rodrigues67)JustlikeChristianhavetolearnaboutJesus,KarmaKagyuisa
branchofTibetanBuddhism.PeoplewhopracticeKarmaKagyuneedtoknowwhoBuddhais
andlistentoBuddhasteaching.BuddhawasborninNorthernIndiaaround2560yearsago.He
reachedenlightenmentindeepmeditation.Sincethenheteacheshowtoreachenlightenmentto
thepeoplehemet.Buddhasstudentslaterbecameteachers.Themethodistaughtthroughoral
transmissionandfocusesmoreonmeditationthroughtheguidanceofateacher.
LamaOle
Nydahlbecameastudentofthe16thKarmapaandlaterhimselfbecameateacherofKarma
KagyuandteachesBuddhaswisdomthethewesternworld.PracticingAsianreligionand
joiningAsianreligioncommunitiesarenowbecomingaphenomenoninEurope..Phenomenon,
ofwhichphenomenaistheplural,referstoathingasitisexperiencedorperceivedbyour
senses.Suchathingcanbeobservedorapprehendedbythesensesthoughthisperceptionofthe
objectisnotthesameastheobjectitself.(
Rodrigues67)Inordertogetabetterunderstandof
thekarmaKagyucommunity,mypartnerandIwentstraighttothefourthstageofthebennett
scaleacceptanceofculturaldifferenceandwejoinedthemeditationsectiontheothernight.
DuringthemeditationIfoundsurprisinglyinterestingthatthereisnoAsianinthecenter,but
KarmaKagyuisanAsianoriginatedreligion.WeprobablycanalsouseBennettscaletoexplain
it.ThewesternsarealreadyinthehigheststageoftheBennettscale.Theyintegratedkarma
kagyuintopartoftheirdailylifeandreligion.

LivingBiographyofKarmaKagyuDiamondWayCommunity
HistoricaltimelineofKamarKagyuinAustria

OurreligiousdiamondwayKarmaKagyucommunityisrelativelynewhereinVienna
andAustriacomparedtootherreligiousgroups.FirstifwelookattheBuddhistcommunityasa
whole,wenotethatitwasfoundedonlyacenturyagobyKarlEugenNeumann(18651918).He
wasthefirsttranslatorofthePaliCanonofBuddhistscriptureintoEuropeanlanguagessuchas
German.Moreover,from19381945,allBuddhistactivityinAustriawasforbiddenunderNazi

region.(56).AftertheSecondWorldWar,therewasmorereligiousfreedom.Therefore,more
andmoresmallprivateBuddhismcircleswerefoundedinAustria.OurreligiousgroupKarma
KagyuwasalsofoundedatthetimeperiodafterWWII.In1968,Austriafinallyrecognized
BuddhismasareligiouscommunityunderthenameofAustrianBuddhistReligious
Association(56).
LamaOleisthefounderoftheDiamondwaykarmaKagyucommunityhereinVienna
andalsothefounderofalltheotherDiamondwaykarmaKagyucommunitiesinAustriaand
th
Europe.AfterLamaOlestriptoNepal,hebecameastudentof
H.H.the16
KarmapaRangjung
RigpeDorje,

andhestartedtogiveBuddhistlecturestopeoplewhowereinterestedallover
Europe.

Location

In1972,LamaOlehadhisfirstlecturehereinViennaandtheKarmaKagyucenterwas
alsofoundedatthattime.From1982to1997thecenterwaslocatedattheFleischmarkttogether
withotherBuddhistschools.Untilspring2008werunthecenterinabighouseinFloridsdorf
withameditationroomandwesharedflatswithBuddhistfriends.Atthesametimewealsohad
acitycenterintheSiebensterngasseinthe7.districtfrom2002to2009.Sincemay2009our
centercanbefoundintheSchmelzgasse3,1020Vienna.LamaOleNydahlinaugurateditin
December2011inthecourseofapubliclecture.(LamaOleNydahlandHisJourneyof
BringingBuddhismtotheWest).

Demographicsandmembershipstatistics

LamaOleNydahlhasfoundedmorethansixhundredlaycenterforDiamondWay
BuddhismoftheKarmakagyulineage.Mostcenterarerunningonavoluntarybasis.Thecenters
aretryingtoofferafriendlyandsociableplaces,wherethosenewtoBuddhismandstudents
practisingforalongtimeallmeditatetogether,shareexperience,andactivelyparticipateinthe
centeractivities.(DiamondWayBuddhistCentersFoundedbyLamaOleNydahl)
Allthecentersofferfreeguidedmeditationclassesforeveryonewhocometothecenter.
HerethecenterinViennahasfreeguidedmeditationclassesopentoeveryoneeverynightat
8:00.Somecentershaveacademicfunctions,whereyoucandostudycourses.Buddhist
meditationcoursesareheldinororganizedbyourcentersonaregularbasis,whereoneofour
lamaswillvisittogiveteachingsorempowerments.Lecturesareheldregularlyinandaround
thecentresbyourlayBuddhistteachers,togiveexplanationsaboutBuddhismandBuddhist
meditationpractices.(DiamondWayBuddhistCentersFoundedbyLamaOleNydah
l)Inthe
Viennacenter,everySaturdaynightbeforemeditationtherewillbemeditationclasstaughtin
English.

Typesofworship

AlltheDiamondWaycentersareunderthepatronageofH.H.17thKarmapaTrinleyThaye
Dorje.CentersareteachingBuddhastimelesswisdomtomodernpeopleinamoreinan
approachablewaythroughdailymeditation.

DeButton
Community

AccordingtodeBotton,thecreationofcommunityisforfinancialgain,social
advancementorromanticlove.Comparetoourancestors,wedobetteronhelpingthepooror
peoplewhoneedfinancialsupportthroughthegovernmentalsystemoftaxationandalso
donationsthroughcharitiesorotherorganizations.Nonprofitorganizationsarealsogrowingto
provideservicesforpeoplewhoareneeded.Ourmodernsocietylacksasenseofcommunity.
Wearemoreseparatedfromeachotherandhavebiasedviewtowardstrangers.Allthosebiases
comefromourassumptions.Weassumebasedonourfearandthefearpreventusfrom
approachingstrangers.Througheducation,weweretaughttobeindependentandavoid
strangers.Andsuchlossofasenseofcommunityalsocomesfromthediversityofculturesdue
toglobalization.NoteveryonecanmeetthelevelsixoftheBennettScale.Thusnoteveryonecan
easilyadaptoracceptpeopleofdifferentculture.Themodernsocietyalsotendtovalue
professionalsuccessmorethantheancestorsdo.Oneofthemostcommonlyaskedquestion
amongstrangersiswhatdoyoudo.Wenowpursuitouterattributesofpowerandmoney
ratherthanseekinginnervaluesofloveandcharity.Inthiscase,theKarmaKagyuDiamond
WayoreventheentireBuddhismachievethelaterthroughmeditation.Theultimategoalfor
Buddhistmeditationistoseekinnerpeace.
FromourvisittotheDiamondWaycenter,wefoundoutthatthiscommunityisavery
moderncommunity.AlthoughitisaliketothemoderncommunityasdeButtondescribed,the
peopletherewerereallyopentostrangerslikeus.Itonlytooksecondsforustobecomefriends.
Theyinvitedustositwiththemandofferedussomedrinks.Thepeoplearefromalloverthe
placewithonlyfewwhoareactuallyfromthelocalarea.Thediversityisunquestionable,but
therearenoAsianparticipants.Wewerenotsurprisedtoknowthat,becausetheDiamondWay
lineageisdesignedtomakeitfairlyeasyforthewesternpopulationtojoin.Mostofthepeople
arearoundtheir30sor40sandcontainsabalancedmixofmalesfemales.Therearenogender
inequalitieswithinthecommunityinhereinVienna,butbackinTibet,onlymaleswereselected
tobeKarmapas.Indeed,thecommunitywhichBuddhismwasfoundedwasinanerawhen
womenhadlittlerightsandweretreateddifferentlyfrommen.Theyhavetheiroccupationand

cometomeditatewhenevertheycan.Obviously,comparetosomeotherreligionssuchas
ChristianandJewish,theydonotdedicatetothisreligionasmuch.Theamountofdedicationis
completelybasedonthemembers.Someofthemmeditateeverydayandsomeonlyoncea
month.Withsuchfreedom,themembersalsochangeconstantly.

Kindness

DeBottondiscussedinthischapterhowreligionsdirectlytellonehowtobehavetoward
eachothers.Inthewesternpoliticalthinking,oneshouldhavethefreedomtolivealifeofhis
choiceunderthepowerthatpreventsharmstoothers.Inthesecularworld,lawandorderactsas
thepowertomainthesecurityofindividuals.Theconceptalsoappliestoparentalteaching.
Parentsteachtheirkidswhatisrightandwhatiswrongandeducatetheirchildrenincertain
wayssothattheyareawareoftheirgoodorbadbehavior.Therearealwaysconflictsbetween
groups.AsdeBottonmentionedthatthetruthstoonegroupmightbeseenasculturalbiasor
prejudicetoanother(deBotton).Forexample,theradicalMuslimsuicidebombersandterrorists
believethatriskingtheirlifetofightforwhattheybelievebyharmingandkissingtheinnocent
peopleisright.Anditishighlyunacceptableforotherswhofearsuchbelief.Althoughsome
mayarguethatthoseradicalshavenoconnectiontoreligion,theirfaithandbeliefareas
powerfulasreligionandcertainreligiousgroupshavedonesimilaractsinthepastgenerations.
ThetortureandburningofwitchesandtheexileoftheJewishcommunityallshowthefailof
kindnessinreligion.
InourBuddhistcommunity,theyweretaughtthesimilarlessonsonhowtobehaveto
othertoavoidharmfulconsequenceforthemandalsoforpeoplearoundthem.Thefounderof
theDiamondWaycenterhereinVienna,LamaOleNydahl,wroteabookcalledTheWay
ThingsArethatintroducedaconceptofthreetypesofdisturbingemotions.Theyaredesire
type,angertype,andconfusiontype.Emotioncanbeabigfactorthatstartsaconflictinour
modernsociety.Angertypeisprobablythemostdangerousoneofallthree.Angercantrigger
mostoftheconflictsthatresultsonesidegettinginjuredandevendeath.Hatredfeelingcanforce
onetobehaveabnormallyandendupcausingregretfulconsequences.LamaOleNydahlsadvice
onangeristhatwhenangerarises,oneshouldquicklybecomeawareofitandwhenindanger
ofasuddenoutburst,conqueritduringthesurge(Nydahl,45).LamaOleNydahlsadvice
guidesindividualstogaininnerstrengthtofightviolentthoughts.Ansimplerwaytodealwith
angeristoremainsilentwheninamomentofanger.Withsuchteachings,thecommunitycan

followtheguidancetoreachtheeternalharmonywithinthecommunityandmaintainkindness
towardeachother.
SuchwayoflivinginalifeshowingkindnesstoeachotherisoriginatedfromSiddhartha,
whowastheprinceofKapilvastuandlaterthroughenlightenmentbecameBuddha.Heoncehad
adreamfullofsymbolismindicatingthattheworldisnotperfectandneedshishelp.Therefore
heescapedfromthepalaceandsawthepoorandthesicksuffering.Hethentookoffhiscrown
andspendhislifehelpingpeopleasBuddha.Suchkindnessiscelebratedthroughoutthestudyof
Buddhism(Bulkeley).Indeed,theDiamondWaymeditationofgivingandtakingstatesthat
whenwefinishthemeditation,wewishthatallthegoodjustcreatedmaybenefitallbeings.
Thegoalofthismeditationistoplantgoodimpressioninonesmindinordertobenefit
others(OleNydahl,145).

Education

EducationinKarmaKagyuhereinViennahastwomajortype.OneistheDiamondway,
whichlearningBuddhaswisdomthroughguidedmeditationandmeditationcourses.The
traditionalKarmaKagyucommunitystillholdsaTibetanBuddhistschool
forstudentfrom618.
StudentsmustpasssomeexamsbeforetheycanofficiallydeclaretheyareTibetanBuddhist.
De
BottonsaidWearebynomeanslackinginmaterialwhichwemightintoservicetoreplacethe
holytextwearesimplytreatingthatmaterialinthewrongway,Weareunwillingtoconsider
secularculturereligiouslyenough,inotherwords,asasourceofguidance.(111)Asaresultof
whatDebottonsaid,KarmaKagyucommunitiesoffersmeditationclassandBuddhismschool
forsecularpeopletolearningaboutBuddhasideaandteaching.
MoreoverDeBottonsuggestsReligioushavebeenwiseenoughtoestablishelaborate
calendarsandscheduleswhichlayclaimtothelengthsaswellasthedepthsoftheirfollowers
lives,lettingnomonth,dayorhourescapewithoutadministrationofpreciselycalibrateddoseof
ideas.(132)TheBuddhasschoolfocusesonteachingyoungagestudentsandtheywantto
buildupreligiousthinkinginthem.Fromherewecanseereligiousgroupthinkteachingreligion
atayoungageiscritical.

Perspective

Themainconceptintroducedinthischapteristhathumansdidnotcreatenaturewhen
Godgiveshim(Job)avisionoftheenormityofthecosmoswhichmakeshimunderstandhow
smalltheseobscureandpersonaltragediesareineveryoneslife(deBotton,198).Itsimply
statesthatwearejustatinypartofthisuniverseandnomatterhowmuchsorrowwefeeland
howmuchpowerwehave,itdoesnotaffectthemajorityoftheuniverse.Thebooksuggestthat
thisthinkingcanhelppeoplegothroughthesufferingandthehardships.Whenfacingsorrow,

wecanminimizeitsharmtousbybeingawarethattherearegreaterproblemsintheworldand
theonesweexperiencearenothingcomparedtowhatotherscomethrough.Basically,the
thingshappentousareinsignificantwhenweexaminetheincomprehensiblenatureofthe
universe(beBotton,199).
DeBottonwroteinhisbook:perhapsmeditatingonthevastexpansivenessandmystery
oftheuniverseandmysteryofuniversewouldbegreatforourhealth(deBotton,201).
MeditationisthecoreofBuddhismandespeciallytheKarmaKagyulineagefocusevenmoreon
theexperienceofmeditation.AnoldTibetansayingmentionedinLamaOleNydahlsbookis
thatyoucannotseethesummitofahighermountainfromalowerone(OleNydahl,74).This
sayingsuggeststhatonethroughmeditationcanenrichhisorherinnerstrengthinordertoclimb
higherupthemountainsandhaveagreaterperspectiveoftheworld.ThusDiamondWayhas
similarconceptwiththeperspectivedeBottonmentioned.

Art
DeBottoninthischapterconnectsmuseumandchurchesbecauseofvariousreasons.
Firstofall,thereareflawsofreligiousart.Insteadofprayerandworship,wegatherfactsto
becomeanartexpert.Peoplearealsoconfusedbyartwhenitisstrippedofmeaning(Emma
andCaitlinsdeBottonoutline).Artcannotconnectimportantobjectstooursoulsandalsowere
unabletoexplaintheimportance(deBotton),butartisinseparablefromreligion.Artcandeliver
whatwordscannot.Itdepictsthefeelingsandemotionsandreminduswhatmatter.Whenpeople
arefacingpainandsorrow,theyfeelalone.Somereligiousartshowthefeelingsofsuffering
fromotherstofilluptheloneliness(EmmaandCaitlinsdeBottonoutline).Itincreasesthe
capacityforcompassion.Christiansdidnotallowpainterstopaintwhattheywant,theywere
assignedpaintingsandconceptsfromtheologiansanddoctorsofdivinity.Museumsfailto
groupsartworksbasedontheconcernsofoursouls.Iftheydoso,museumswouldbethenew
churches(EmmaandCaitlinsdeBottonoutline).
KarmaKagyuartisstronglytighttoTibetanart.ThangkasandstatuesofBuddhaarethe
majorityofBuddhistartworks.TheKarmaKagyurefugetreethangkaisbyfarthemost
interestingone.ItcanbefoundinanyKarmaKagyumeditationplace.ItisatreeofBuddhasand
KarmapassurroundingDorjeChangwithprotectorsonthebottomandushumanbeingsaround
thetreewiththenature.ThereareBuddhasrepresentingtime,theelementsthatmadetheworld
,andalsocharacteristics.ItisasophisticatedtreethatisreallydifferentfrompaintingsofVirgin
MaryandJesus.Thefiguresandbackgroundsarefarfromrealistic.UnlikeChristianart,there
arenofeelingsoremotionsshowninthethangka,itisjustfullofsymbols.

Dream
Buddhismisnotareligionasapsychology.Inthemodernwest,Buddhismismore
relatedtocognitivescience.Buddhismismuchbroaderthanpsychology.Atermintroducedto
helpdiscussingBuddhismismetacognition.Itisthinkingaboutthinking,awarenessof

awareness,andknowingthatoneisknowing.Itinvolvesthemindconsideringitself.Inthewest,
manypsychologistsignoretheexistenceofmetacognitionindream.Whenpeopledream,they
losetheirawarenessoflocation.Peopleareoftentimeinastrangeplaceintheirdream.Many
weirdthingscanhappenintheirdreamandareallacceptedbythesleepdiminishedmind.The
existenceofluciddreaming,theexperienceofbeingawarewithinthedreamstatethatyouare
dream,meansthatmetacognitiveabilitiesarenotabsentindreaming.Andthemetacognitive
potentialsofdreamingisrecognizedintheBuddhisttradition.
AninterestingpointthebookmentionedisthatalltheearlybiographiesoftheBuddha
beganhisstorywithhismother,QueenMaya,experienced.QueenMayasdreampredictedthat
hersonwouldeitherbecomeanuniversalrulerorsaveallhumankind.ThusBuddhadidnotgive
birthtoBuddha,shegavebirthtothepotentialofBuddhahood.ThestoryofMayasconception
dreambothreflectedandstimulatedapropensityofthedreamingimagination(particularlyin
women)toenvisionablissfulprocessofbringingnewlifeintobeing.
Siddhartha,QueenMayasson,livedaprivilegedearlylife.Hegrewupinasafe
environmentandreceivedgoodeducationandwentthroughmarriageandhadachild.Whenhe
wasabouttwentynine,hediscoveredthesicknessanddeathsoutsidethepalaceanddecidedthat
hemustrenouncetheworldandseektruth,wisdom,andtranquilityasawanderingascetic.
Whenheleftthepalace,hiswifehadanightmare.
DreamswerewidelyrecognizedinpreBuddhistJapanasanauthenticmeansof
communicatingwiththegodsandasasourceofprospectiveknowledgeaboutpersonallyor
collectivelysignificanteventsinthefuture.Buddhismdidnotsupplantthesedeeplyrooted
Japanesedreamtraditionsbutratheraddedanewlayerofpsychologicalmeaningtowhatpeople
hadlongbelievedabouttheirdreamingexperience,stimulatingtheirmetacognitivepotentialsin
waysthatenhancedtheirspiritualdevelopment.
TheteachingofTantrayanafoundtheirwayintobothBuddhistandHindutraditions
throughoutinSouthAsia,butnowheredidtheytakedeeperrootorgrowtogreaterculturepower
thaniTibet.assummary,Buddhismregardsordinarydreamingasdistractingnuisance,although
mostbuddhistswillgrudginglyacknowledgeapropheticpowerincertaindreams(Bulkeley).

Conclusion
KarmaKagyuisareligionwithalonghistory.IthasbeenapartofTibetanBuddhismforalmost
over2000yearsnow.Becauselimitedtimeandlimitedresources,therearestillmanyareasMy
partnerandIcouldnotcover.Wewantedtolearnwhatexactlytheseyoungstudentsarelearning
intheBuddhistschool,andwhattypeofexamtheyneedtopass.AccordingtoLamaOle
Nydahl,the16thKarmapaleftChinaduringtheCommunistChineseoccupation.Iwanttoknow
afteralmosthalfcentury,isthetensionbetweenTibetanBuddhistandChinesegovernmentget
betterorworse.Forthenextstep,IreallywanttogotoTibetanwhereKarmaKagyuoriginal
cameformtolookathowpeopletherepractiseKarmaKagyu.ThenIcancompareWestern

BuddhistandEastBuddhistunderthesalereligion.Itprobablyalsowillbeinterestingtoknow
theChinesegovernment'sviewonseeingLamasleftChinaandteachingBuddhisminthe
westernworld.Dotheysupportitoragainstitandwhy.

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