Kashag issues statement over Tulku Orgyen Topgyal’s voice clip
DHARAMSALA, 28 May: The Kashag(Cabinet) of the Central Tibetan Administration(CTA) has declared Tulku Orgyen Topgyal’s remarks on the HIs Holiness the Dalai Lama and other religious leaders offering empowerments and blessings online as “unfortunate” and “erroneous”.
The Kashag made the remarks in a notice it issued after a voice clip of the Tibetan religious figure and former two-time member of the Tibetan parliament in Exile spread like a wildfire across social media platforms.
Tulku Orgyen Topgyal says in the voice clip that empowerments can be conferred only when the teacher and student are present before each other physically and not through television screens as he called out the Dalai Lama and other lamas over such practice.
It violates the tenets of empowerments and such practice exhibits and amounts to the degeneration and destroying of the faith,” the Tulku says in the clip.
The Kashag stated in its notice that the comments were “derogatory and regrettable” and added that it is “wrong.”
It further acknowledged the Dalai Lama’s tireless work thus far in resurrecting Buddhism and Tibetan culture and that of the growing interests towards Buddhism across the world including from mainland China.
Apart from the Tulku, Religion and Culture Minister of the CTA Yuthok Karma Gelek also received wrath from the public over the statement he issued wherein he described the former as an outspoken personality and called his remarks sans other intent or background.
The Kalon has later issued a clarification over his remarks stating that his remarks were made in his capacity as the head of the Religion and Culture Minister of the CTA and differed it from that of the Kashag’s.