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Buddhists/beings of white light

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Expert: - 11/10/2009


Question
Hi Alex,Are practitioners who attain the rainbow body, buddhas And are they then beings of pure white light?Can you explain something about this especially the beings of white light.In the Dharma,Tom  

Answer
Hi Tom,
The rainbow body is said to be a sign that the practitioner has achieved the full realization of dzogchen and is therefore fully liberated from the bondage of the mental poisons. This can also happen without the signs of the rainbow body - it depends on the nature of the person's practice, which in dzogchen can involve seeing the nature of everything as pure energy or light. Anyway, that makes them "enlightened" and therefore, in a sense, Buddhas, although in the strict sense a Buddha is someone who manifests as a very rare kind of teacher.
As for "beings of white light" - I'm not quite sure what you mean there. Have you heard of them, or seen them?
All the best
Alex W

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Alex Wilding

Expertise

I have practiced and studied Tibetan Buddhism in the Kagyu and Nyingma traditions since the early 1970s, and have a good knowledge of theory, history and of the struggles of trying to practice the teachings, including meditation, while leading a normal, modern life. I am also available to provide background information for journalists.

Experience

I have been a practitioner since the early 1970s; have run a small Buddhist centre in the English Midlands and was vice-president of Kagyu Benchen Ling e.V. in Germany, for whom I managed three large Buddhist summer-camps. More importantly, I maintain a habit of personal practice. I am the "owner" of the Kagyu list at Yahoo.

Education/Credentials
My first degree was an M.A. from Oxford. I later obtained a Master of Philosophy degree for a research thesis in "Initiation in Tibetan Buddhism" from Leicester University. I also have engineering and educational qualifications.

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