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Buddhist Studies

Nature and Environment

Nekhor
The website complements the book Following in your Footsteps: The Lotus-Born Guru in Nepal (Vo.1) in order to "revitalize and restore the great holy places of Guru Padmasambhava, forefather of Buddhism in Tibet, by providing guidance through online resources, print publications, and on-the-ground expertise.
Tsethar International
The website Tsethar International was formed by Lama Palzang in 2006. The mission of the organisation is to "free animals that are destined for slaughter, to educate the public about animal liberation and the preciousness of life, and to promote a plant-based diet."
United Nations Environmental Program Faith for Earth Initiative
This webpage discusses global faith environmental programs and has sections on Buddhism alone. Provides link to UN Tast force on Religion and Development. This 2019 report details work being done by faith groups with the UN on sustainable development projects.
BEYUL - Sacred Hidden Valleys of the Himalaya
This video disusses the importance of Beyul's within Buddhism. Video focuses on the cultural and environmental conservation of these areas.
Buddhist Declaration on Nature 1986 By Venerable Lungrig Namgyal Rinpoche

Environment Conservation

Climate, Corona, and Collapse
Article by Karin Meyers addressing current issues including coronavirus, race, and climate change from a Buddhist Critical Constructive perspective.
Gender and waste management in Kathmandu, Nepal
Waste and Gender Nexus in Kathmandu Nepal. A compilation of photo's detailing the relatioship between waste manamgent and gender in Kathmandu. This Waste and Climate Change Project funded by the International Climate Initiative and implemented by the International Environmental Technology Centre.
The Himalayan Climate and Water Atlas: Impact of Climate Change on Water Resources in five of Asia's Major River Basins
This Atlas sheds light on the current and future state of the HKH area.
Tsethar International
The website Tsethar International was formed by Lama Palzang in 2006. The mission of the organisation is to "free animals that are destined for slaughter, to educate the public about animal liberation and the preciousness of life, and to promote a plant-based diet."
BEYUL - Sacred Hidden Valleys of the Himalaya
This video disusses the importance of Beyul's within Buddhism. Video focuses on the cultural and environmental conservation of these areas.
Youtube Channel: Yale Forum for Religion and Ecology
Monastery Activities | Khoryug
A collection of Buddhist monasteries in the Himalayas working on various envrionmental protection projects. This organization was spearheaded by the H.H. the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa. All environmental projects are aimed at the protection of the Himalayan region, the third pole. There is an intereactive map that can be used to locate projects, monasteries and centres involved.
Dharma Rain
Dharma Rain is a new journal by Buddhistdoor Global. This first edition discusses the global climate change crisis from a global perspective. Entries in the April 2020 edition include : Dharma in Action, Buddha and Gaia, Adaptation and current events, Buddhist Activists. Entries are written by Buddhist Studies scholars and Buddhist practitioners
The Buddhist Center Environmental Action Plan Toolkit
This book details how Buddhist Centres can help protect native plants and species living on the land. This document details a robust environmental plan while taking into consideration the uniqueness of Buddhist Centre's. The book if free for purchase (hard-copy) or downloadable onto Microsoft Word.
Collection of David Loy's Teachings from 2010-2020
Oxford Handbook of Religion and Ecology
Alliance of Religion and Conservation Speech at Buddhist Confrence (April 2006)
Speech presented by Dr. He discusses the role of compassion in nature and society.
Alliance of Religion and Conservation: Faith and Ecology: Buddhism
This page discusses various teachings about what Buddhists say and teach about ecology.

Sacred Landscape

3D models of caityas and temples at Swayambhū, Kwā Bāhāḥ, Namo Buddha and Asura cave in Pharping
Aerial Drone View: Boudha Stūpa
Ayutthaya Historical Research
Well-cited database of ancient Buddhist monuments and historical periods in Ayutthaya, Thailand.
A Walk Through Angkor Wat
A walk through Angkor Wat, beginning at the gatehouse, using Google Street View
A Walk Through Sanchi
A Walk Through Sanchi, beginning at the path toward the main stupa complex, using Google Street View
The Buddhist Bas-Reliefs of Borobudur
A walk-through of the Borobudur temple carvings that depict the lives of the Buddha as told in the Jataka tales and Avadana.
The Life of the Buddha
The life of the Buddha represented in a mirador viewer with interactive text and image, based on murals at Puntshokling Monastery in the Tibetan Autonomous Region. The viewer includes annotations based on 16th–17th century Tibetan scholar Tāranātha's text "The Sun of Life . . .," the mural inscriptions themselves, notes from a painting manual, and canonical sources. Includes both Tibetan and English annotations. Project directed by Andrew Quintman and Kurtis Schaeffer.
Sacred Spaces: Tibetan Buddhist Shrines
Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art (Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery): Overview on the variety of Tibetan Buddhism’s sacred shrine spaces. The page includes neat sections on (1) shrines in situ and (2) shrines in action with respective sub-categories (e.g. domestic shrines, monastic shrines, cave shrines, etc.) as well as a page with a shrine room tour.
Nekhor
The website complements the book Following in your Footsteps: The Lotus-Born Guru in Nepal (Vo.1) in order to "revitalize and restore the great holy places of Guru Padmasambhava, forefather of Buddhism in Tibet, by providing guidance through online resources, print publications, and on-the-ground expertise.
Save the Buddhas in Afghanistan
ArcGIS Story Map investigating Bamiyan Buddhas.
Publication des collections de L'EFEO
Colonial-era photo library of Hindu/Buddhist statuary, inscriptions, temples, and religious life.
Sacred Natural Sites
Online archive of various sacred natural sites around the world. Each SNS description includes the sites protection status, details about the communities that hold the site sacred, and local knowledge about the sites. The global list includes sites from all faiths around the world. The Asian sites include several Buddhist SNS. Buddhist sites include Sagamartha, Sacred Tsum Valley, Sacred Sites of Kham etc.
BEYUL - Sacred Hidden Valleys of the Himalaya
This video disusses the importance of Beyul's within Buddhism. Video focuses on the cultural and environmental conservation of these areas.
and of Pure Vision: The Sacred Geography of Tibet and the Himalaya | The New School
David Zurick Ph.D discusses the intersection of faith and geography in the Himalayan region. Sponsored by the India China Institute.
36 steroscopic views of early 1900s Burma
Stereoscopic photos of Burma; Burmese culture, pagodas, monks
3D interactive pictures of temples in Bagan, Myanmar
Burmese Buddhist temples, Buddha images, archeology, culture
Glass photgraphc plates of the murals that can be found in the Hōryūji Temple in Japan
Introduction to Tibetan Buddhist shrines
"On this page is (1) a video of Geshe Dadul Namgyal, a Buddhist monk and scholar at Atlanta’s Drepung Loseling Monastery, who briefly describes the function of a Tibetan Buddhist altar and (2) a photo of the altar with highlighted spots, that each link to a short video explanation of the item (videos each around 1-2mins, not significantly longer)"

To access the shrine description you need to scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on “here” in the last paragraph. The page has the same URL as the other site and cannot be linked separately.
ArcGIS StoryMaps
ArcGIS Story Maps is a useful tool for students and teachers to interactively develop creative content and have the ability to map their research. This program is useful for students who are interested in mapping and using GIS tools to tell digitial stories of places. No coding is required for GIS. Easy to use interface.
A comprehensive summary of Tibet's ancient maps and culture, courtesty of Oxford University
Lecture by Charles Ramble on Himalayan sacred landscapes
Pew Templeton Global Religous Futures
Pew Templeton Global Religous Futures is a useful and interactive website that provides current information on global religions populations as well as predictions for the future. This tool is useful for students to map geographies of religious population.
Sacred Land Film Project Map
An interactive map with sacred lands highlighted. Highlighted lands belong to various religions. Several Buddhist Sacred sites are listed. Sites also include many sacred Indigenous spaces. The map allows uses to click on spaces and read full reports about its history, conservation status, religous affiliation and significance to the habitat and community.
Sacred Land Categories: Asian Sacred Site Reports