Lama Jigme leads Buddhist prayer at a Los Angeles Temple.
// February 9th, 2013 // No Comments » // Blog, Music, News, Personal Stories, Photos, Uncategorized
Buddhist prayers at the beautiful and deeply spiritualized Temple of the Venerable Wangchen Rinpoche in Los Angeles, Ca. Lama Jigme Tenzing, Lama Kelsang, Lama Chokyi, and others spent the day, 2/9/13, chanting and praying for peace and attunement. It was an honor to join them in meditation. This Temple belongs to the lineage of His Holiness Dorje Chang Kalu Rinpoche. This particular ceremony was very small, intimate, and peacefully intense for those of us present.
The air was cool, but the atmosphere quite warm and alive as the repetitive chanting built a momentum that brought me within. I’m not a great one for sitting on the floor, but today I was happy to forget the body, at least a little bit, in order to immerse myself in the sacred vibrational texts and sounds. My wife Julie shot video for awhile and I did some recording on my wonderful little Sony PCM-D50 field recorder. During a break in the chanting, we shared a delightful time of tea, light snacks, and joyful conversation with the Lamas and the local tribe of practitioners. My own lineage, led by Paramahansa Yogananda, has been called the “Church of All Religions.” It is always heartening to share in the ceremonies of others who truly have the vision of an inclusive world in mind.
Lama Jigme and I are nearing completion of our first CD together. “Dragon Voice” will be a collection of 7 chants and Buddhist prayers mixing traditional and improvised interpretations with contemporary musical support. “Blessings Like Rain” is the first chant which is accompanied by this video. “Swift Achiever” is another chant that will soon have it’s own video. More of my music can be heard here.
