Customer Reviews

Karmapa: The Politics of Reincarnation

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If you are a person who believes that Buddhists, particularly high lamas, are above politics, this book will disillusion you right away. Unless you watch the world scene very closely, you probably are not aware of the saga of the Karmapa, the young reincarnation of one of Tibetan Buddhism's most revered and beloved teachers. Unfortunately, the current version, # 17, has been a pawn in an international power play between the Tibetans, Chinese, Indians, and factions of his own lineage, since he was recognized as a child. It is a fascinating story.
In this book, Ms. Terhune gives you most of the unsavory political details and a few of the inspiring points as well. However, as she is closely associated with one of the senior lamas engaged in the political drama, her impartiality is questionable.
While I did enjoy this book, I suggest balancing it with "The Dance of 17 Lives," by Mick Brown. It covers much of the same material and has a flavor that seems to me less biased.

Lea Terhune writes a captivating investigation into the events surrounding, Urgyen Trinley Dorje, the 17th Karmapa's life, escape from Tibet and the political intrigue that surrounds his recognition as the head of the Karma Kagyu lineage. Ms. Terhune obviously researched and interviewed highly credible and well placed sources for this book. This story has drama and intrigue, antagonists and protagonists. Once I started reading, I could hardly put this book down.

This book opened my eyes to the extent which unscrupulous spiritual leaders will go in order to sieze ill gotten power and gains. I highly recommend this book to Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike.

I enjoyed reading this book although it is not a biography at all. The book is well written but perhaps from a very partial viewpoint. I would have liked a little more investigative type journalism.

This history of the Karmapas reads more like novel than biography though it provides considerable biography & hagiography concerning Karmapas (heads of the Karma Kagyu branch of Tibetan Buddhism), especially the current controversy over the identity of the 17th Karmapa. Traditionally, the secondary Karma Kagyu lamas find a Karmapa via: clues left behind by a recently deceased Karmapa, dreams, visions, oracles, etc. Following the tragic death of one of them, the others cannot reach accord on the identity of the 17th Karmapa. There appear to be two factions: the Tai Situpa's & the Sharmapa's. Terhune was secretary to the Situpa; she seems to attempt fairness but does not succeed. For example, she says on p. 250: "Evening Mahakala prayers are required of the high lama & anyone who is serious of leading the spiritual life." This, of course, ignores other traditions--Western, Zen, etc. She seems to lack a higher level of abstraction. There are other books by Situpa supporters as well as one by a Sharmapa supporter & a Sharmapa website. It seems impossible for a westerner to reach a satisfactory conclusion based upon only these materials; scientifically there seem to be some errors in each, but it would be interesting to hear the Sharmapa's response to Terhune's saying he'd called the Dalai Lama a Chinese pawn. The situation reminds me of Deborah Tannen's "Argument Culture" based upon polarized views. Most of the allegations & court battles seem irrelevant to the main issue--e.g. whether there are one or two Karmapa Black Hats is irrelevant to the identity of the Karmapa. Unfortunately, modern legal & political methods failed to determine this, jeopardizing continuation of the Tulku system--where a major reincarnating lama inherits his prior life's assets, duties. Is this why the Dalai Lama indicated he will be the last one? It may reflect the westernization of Buddhism, for better AND worse.

With this book Lea Terhune, Tai Situ Rinpoche's secretary, simply takes several factious old assertions unsupported by facts and courts and proposes them again, but to a broader audience... it's just like trowing more mud on the mud and it's really nothing new in the Karmapa Controversy. In my opinion it's a very biased book simply stubbornly expressing -only one- of the controversy factions' views... very interesting is the fact that THIS BOOK HAS BEEN RESPONDED POINT BY POINT on the international - KARMAPA-ISSUE dot ORG - website. I suggest everyone to read both the book ALONG WITH the responses to it... it will surely be of great help in building up a fair personal point of view :)