Centre of Buddhist Studies, The University of Hong Kong
Online Public Lecture:
Narratives that walk: An approach to the early history of Tibet and Dzogchen via the cultural routes and roots of Central Asian spirituality
Date: 2021 April 11 (Sunday)
Time: 7:00-9:00 pm (HKT)
Conducted in English
JOIN our online lecture on Zoom!
Zoom link: https://hku.zoom.us/j/94291465776
Meeting ID: 942 9146 5776
Lecture topic :
Narratives that walk: An approach to the early history of Tibet and Dzogchen via the cultural routes and roots of Central Asian spirituality
by Dr. Father Francis V. Tiso, PhD, Columbia University and Union Theological Seminary, President and Founder of the Association Archbishop Ettore Di Filippo and priest of the Diocese of Isernia-Venafro, Italy
Organized by HKU Centre of Buddhist Studies
Sponsored by Tung Lin Kok Yuen (東蓮覺苑)
April 11 (7:00-9:00 pm (HKT))
Narratives that walk: An approach to the early history of Tibet and Dzogchen via the cultural routes and roots of Central Asian spirituality
by Dr. Father Francis V. Tiso, PhD, Columbia University and Union Theological Seminary, President and Founder of the Association Archbishop Ettore Di Filippo and priest of the Diocese of Isernia-Venafro, Italy
Abstract
I first heard about the disappearance of the body -“the rainbow body”- of an elderly Tibetan monk, Khenpo A cho, in 1999. Within a year, I was able to interview eyewitnesses in eastern Tibet and in India. This led me to the spiritual byways of Central Asia to find the wellsprings of the practices known as “the great perfection” (dzogchen). Here I found shared narratives disclosing some remarkable conversations in which the experiences of Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, and other mystics witness to a remarkable era of spiritual exchange. In Tibet, the outcome has been the rainbow body attainment: a yogin’s body may shrink dramatically after death, or even disappear, accompanied by rainbows of varied shape, mystic sounds, perfumes, and optical illusions.
In recent years, various relics of such yogins have been displayed for veneration around the world. It is no longer possible to dismiss the phenomenon as folklore. Our lecture, “Narratives that Walk”, proposes criteria for research on this topic, mindful that the researcher’s self-awareness may play a key role in the emergence of the luminous contours of the human adventure
About the speaker
Father Tiso holds the A.B. in Medieval Studies from Cornell University. He earned a Master of Divinity degree (cum laude) at Harvard University and holds a doctorate from Columbia University and Union Theological Seminary where his specialization was Buddhist studies. He translated several early biographies of the Tibetan yogi and poet, Milarepa, for his dissertation on sanctity in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism. He has led research expeditions in South Asia, Tibet and the Far East, and his teaching interests include Christian theology, history of religions, spirituality, ecumenism and interreligious dialogue.
