True Buddha School
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The True Buddha School (真佛宗, Zhen Fo Zong) is a new Tantric Buddhist (or Vajrayana) sect with influence from Sutrayana and Taoism. True Buddha School's main objective is to propagate the Buddha's teachings to the world indiscriminately, to all sentient beings of the world.
The founder of this school is Master Lu Sheng-yen (盧勝彥), often referred to by his followers as a "Living Buddha", "Root Guru", or "Grand Master". Master Lu is a self-declared Buddha, known by his disciples as "Living Buddha Lian-sheng" (蓮生活佛). He is a writer who has written approximately 183 books to date. As of 1995, over 4 million people had taken refuge in the True Buddha School.[1]
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[edit] Teachings
Master Lu teaches that as a Buddhist in the True Buddha School, the necessity to cultivate diligently for the benefit of spiritual advancement is strongly emphasized. A Tantric Buddhist practitioner cannot rely solely on listening or reading spiritual doctrines, or simply worshipping and paying respect to Buddhas and Bodhisattavas statutes as the method to achieve the goal of spiritual liberation. All students are expected to follow the 14 Root Tantric Vows (Vajrayana samaya) along with the Five Precepts that all Buddhists should follow.
There is a structured curriculum to guide the student's practice, and at each level, a specific yoga is practiced. To advance to the next level, the student must achieve yogic response from the yoga being practiced in the current level and receive empowerment for the yoga of the next level.
As a beginner, there are specific yogas that are practiced to establish a strong foundation. The yoga practiced in the first stage is the Vajrasattva yoga, a great repentance yoga to purify bad karma. The next level is the Guru Yoga, followed by the Personal Deity yoga and then the inner body practices of energy yoga.
[edit] Worldwide chapters
True Buddha School has chapters across North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Latin America, though the size of each local chapter varies. For more information on the locations, please visit the official website of True Buddha School. The main temple is located in Redmond, Washington (USA), it also served as the main residence where Lu Sheng-yen resided while he was living in United States. He now lives in Tahiti.
The majority of the followers of the True Buddha School are located in Asia, and many devotees are from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Taiwan. Across North America, Australia, and Europe, the majority of the students are immigrants of Asian decent.
Like any non-profit organization, True Buddha School relies on donations. This is supplemented with the income from the publication of Lu Sheng-yen's books and videos of his sermons. The money is used to publish its teaching materials and for charity work such as the South Asian Tsunami relief effort. True Buddha School disseminates Buddhist teachings through Lu Sheng-yen's sermons, books and articles. These materials are supplemented with sermons and articles by other True Buddha School Acharyas certified by Lu Sheng-yen. Master Lu's books are published in Chinese, with a limited number translated into English. However, more translations are slowly being made to reach a wider audience. Many of the major True Buddha School spiritual liturgies and practices are available in English.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Lu (1995), p. iii
[edit] References
- Casey, Noah. The True Buddha School: A Field Research Report on The Chan Hai Lei Zang Temple. Montreal Religious Sites Project.
- Lu, Master Sheng-yen (1995). A Complete and Detailed Exposition on the True Buddha Tantric Dharma. San Bruno, CA: Purple Lotus Society. ISBN 1-881493-04-0
- Mayer, H. Gregory. Sect combines Tibetan rituals, Chinese custom in Chicago Tribune, September 20, 2002.
