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Resource Index | Left Brain | Right Brain | Courses | Site Directory Shrine Guidelines To visit Franca's website, click here. What is a shrine? The Buddhist shrine or altar is a focal point that helps return one's attention, during practice and during daily life, again and again to dharma. Each item on the shrine has special significance, and items are often placed in a way that also has significance. Traditional Tibetan shrines carry reminders of the body, speech and mind of the Buddha. Usually the body is represented with an image or statue of Buddha. Speech is represented by means of a sacred book. Mind is represented by a small "stupa" ("chörten" in Tibetan). Stupas are reliquaries; there are large stupas containing relics from famous teachers in Tibet, India and Nepal. Tibetans are nothing if not inventive when it comes to setting up shrines in strange places. Portable shrines that can be packed up and carried from place to place are common and of course indispensable for nomadic people. Tibetans also practice in tents, caves, on mountainsides, and of course in temples and homes. The basic design of the shrine can be adapted to any situation. What you'll find on every shrine
If a shrine has multiple levels, the highest level holds the representations of the Buddha, and the lowest the offerings. The body, speech, and mind of Buddha can be presented separately using an image or statue of the Buddha (body), a dharma text (speech), and a small stupa reliquary (mind); or all at once in a single image or statue. If nothing else is available, a natural object of great beauty can represent Buddha: an interesting rock or beautiful flower, for example. Tibetans also place a picture of their root guru on this level. Traditional offerings include:
In Tibetan practice these are most often represented by 7 bowls of water (the music of dharma is considered to be ever-present and pervasive and therefore does not need a special bowl). One will often see several "banks" of water bowls on a shrine. At Friends of the Heart, we actually put out the 8 literal offerings. Each one serves as a reminder, both of what we offer to our highest aspirations, and what the world offers to us. Where to Put Your Shrine If you can afford to do so it is best to have a separate room for your shrine. If possible this should be upstairs or in an attic that is quiet, not used for other things and through which people do not have to pass to get elsewhere. If this is not possible, then it is wise to use a corner of a sitting room or study. Failing this, you can use a small cupboard in your bedroom but this should be above the head of the bed. Such a shrine should be covered or closed at all times except when you do your prayers and meditations. Keeping Your Shrine Put out water in your offering bowls in the morning and empty and wipe the bowls at night, turning them upside down. Change the food offering regularly, although it is not necessary to do so every day, as long as the food remains delicious. It is best not to eat the food offering, as that kind of defeats the purpose. Better to put it out for the birds and animals, preferably under a tree in a quiet area of a park or garden where people don't pass back and forth. Shrine Room Etiquette The following guidelines will help you keep the vibration in your meditation area clear. Obviously these guidelines also apply at the Centre.
Courtesy that comes from the heart has always formed a part of spiritual disciplines. To be courteous, respectful, and polite is not a superficial form, but can be a great practice of mindfulness and a way to develop bodhisattva actions. It is with this attitude that one may approach the particular kind of attention to detail that showing respect involves, be it to a lama, in a shrine room, or in ordinary daily interactions. Franca Leeson - Toronto, November 2002 Resource Index | Left Brain | Right Brain | Courses | Site Directory
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