In Pure Spirit

At the last minute a court in China has decided to postpone judgement on a living Tibetan Buddha.

Phurbu Tsering Rinpoche faces allegations of illegally possessing weapons and seizing government land.

The delay is widely interpreted as promising by legal experts. It is incredibly rare for a Chinese court to issue a delay and signs suggest that both the international public audience and the highly spirited defence has resulted in on-going judicial debate in China.

The prayer wheel or mani wheel (handheld version) is typically made from leather, stone, metal and wood although rough cotton is sometimes used. The prayer wheel is a spindle decorated with the Sanskrit mantra ‘Om Mani Padme Hum’ although variations of this are possible. The prayer wheel allows the teaching of Buddha “turning the wheel [...]

Syncretism is the process in which a collection of beliefs and understands – once seperate and from different origins – begin to merge and share elements. Modern occult is particularly marked for its syncretism although practitioners have always been interested and willing to learn from other teachings. The internet is a primary enabler of syncretism [...]

Around the world different cultures have had access to different ranges of stones and as a result birthstone lists can be inconsistent. The following collection looks at four broad categories of birthstones; ayurvedic birthstones (influenced from old Indian tradition), modern birthstones (something of a marketing effort from the American association of jewellers), mystical birthstones (influenced [...]