Interview with Dr. Pasang Arya of the Men Tshi Khang Institute of Tibetan Astrology and Medicine.
Sylvia Begwin speaking.
What is Lha?
"Lha" (bla) in Tibetan means "higher body" or "energy body". According to the concepts of Tibetan medicine and astrology, between the mind and the physical body there is Lha, which develops as a copy of the body, a shadow or a reflection of the physical body. That is why it is called the subtle or energy body. It cannot be seen with the naked eye. The Lha Body is extremely important for the health of the body / mind as it constantly protects, nourishes and energizes the physical body, keeping it strong, stable and powerful. It gives psychological confidence, ego feeling and plays a protective role. The natural shape and form of the Lha body follows the shape of the physical body and therefore can be considered as a two-body body. When the subtle body Lha and the physical body are in a corresponding position, this creates harmony and a person feels great,feeling only vague doubts and worries, he is concentrated, his mind is stable, and his immune system is stable. When our physical body is healthy and in great shape, our mind and emotions are stable. However, modern life, full of stress and traumatic situations, as well as various natural conditions can upset the balance between the physical body and the subtle body of the Lha, and lead to separation, weakening or loss of connection between the two bodies. This loss of the Lha body is called "lost Lha." Lha can be damaged, sick or leave the physical body, which leads to serious consequences for a person. However, modern life, full of stress and traumatic situations, as well as various natural conditions can upset the balance between the physical body and the subtle body of the Lha, and lead to separation, weakening or loss of connection between the two bodies. This loss of the Lha body is called "lost Lha." Lha can be damaged, sick or leave the physical body, which leads to serious consequences for the person. However, modern life, full of stress and traumatic situations, as well as various natural conditions can upset the balance between the physical body and the subtle body of the Lha, and lead to separation, weakening or loss of connection between the two bodies. This loss of the Lha body is called "lost Lha." Lha can be damaged, sick or leave the physical body, which leads to serious consequences for the person.
What happens to Lha after death?
- After death, Lha is separated from consciousness. Consciousness continues on its path and comes to the next reincarnation of its karma, while Lha remains on earth, still taking the form of a person until his physical body completely disintegrates. Although Lha is the energy and reflection of the body, it also has a kind of pseudo consciousness.
Where does this pseudo consciousness come from?
Promotional video:
- It's like a video. If you save a voice or an image, then even if the person is no longer there, the image remains. Lha is like that. Throughout life, the body and mind, the power of thinking, emotions, sounds, all the knowledge and experience that a person possesses - all this remains in the form of a copy in the Lha body, and therefore after death, the Lha body can act as before, visiting places, friends, family, work, fields, … and sometimes even able to prove himself, for example, through the voice of a medium or an obsession. But unlike the mind (soul), the Lha body is not reborn; that makes all the difference. After the decomposition of the body, Lha is also completely destroyed.
In Tibetan medicine and tantra, there is a wind energy called Norlegyal, the last of the five winds of the body, which remains in the body after death until it decays. So I think that Lha and Norlegyal are strongly related.
At the moment of conception of a child, when consciousness is reborn and acquires a new life, together with the physical body, a new Lha appears like a shadow, somewhat reminiscent of the smell of fruit. When a child is born, Lha is born. As a person develops, Lha also develops. And as we get older, our Lha also gets older.
Are the ashes after the cremation of the body a help for Lha?
- When the body after cremation turns into ash, it has a different composition, and therefore the Lha has little chance of staying longer. This is probably why Tibetans usually prefer cremation or heavenly burial.
According to the Tibetan tradition, after death, the body was burned, and the bones were collected. At the request of relatives, a ritual ceremony was held to cleanse the bones, which were then used to make tsa-tsa (small statues or images of Buddha), kept in a special place. This is a common practice. In this case, perhaps the Lha is purified and will not harm anyone.
Usually a Lha ceremony is performed for a sick person to restore his Lha. However, it is also carried out for healthy people in order to re-strengthen the Lha. For the dead, it is not the Lha ceremony that is performed, but the bone ceremony, which, I think, apart from its religious concept, is also in a certain way connected with Lha …
Can the body of Lha be felt?
“It’s not that easy, because most people don’t think about it and don’t even know anything about it. But I believe that if someone has increased sensitivity and is worried about it, then you can feel the Lha body or see it.
Is it possible to diagnose a problem with the Lha body by the pulse?
- There is a special pulse called "Lha pulse", which is felt in a different place than the normal pulse; The Lha pulse is felt on the ulnar artery. If this pulse beats evenly and gently, for example, fifty or one hundred beats without interference, then this means a good state of Lha. When the Lha is in poor condition, some disturbance or cessation of the pulse can be felt on the ulnar artery. The Lha canal runs along the ulnar artery from the heart to the ring finger. From there he goes to a distance of fifteen, sixteen fingers and comes back, as it is said in Tibetan medicine and astrology. The arrival and departure of the Lha pulse from the physical body at a distance of fifteen, sixteen fingers is considered normal, but when it remains at such a great distance, it is not normal.
Sometimes, when a person is in a state of shock, for example, after an accident, sadness, depression or mental problems, the Lha can go quite far, very long distances, and then the connection between these two bodies can be lost, like communication between radio and antenna. When this connection is lost, a person begins to suffer, feel lonely, weak, or have a split personality. Symptoms of damage or loss of Lha can include depression, unhappiness, fear, insecurity, apathy, panic attacks, anxiety, poor concentration, nightmares, recurring dreams in which he is naked, loses hair or rags, aloofness, pallor, illness for no apparent reason …
Samye monastery in Tibet, 2007
Photo: Nadia Beckenheim
Sometimes they say that a person's Lha was stolen, how does this happen? Can you live without Lha?
- Lha can be stolen by perfume, usually in spring and autumn. A body without Lha is like an apple, odorless and tasteless. It is devoid of vitality or strength. The spirits hunt for the body of Lha, they feed on it.
Our body / mind is usually naturally well protected by Tse, Le, and Sonam, which are the energies of our existence, karma and destiny - the three pillars of life. When one of these energies weakens, the spirits easily capture it (especially during some unfavorable astrological cycles of a person's energy or when a person is psychologically depressed) and use it. Spirits are usually unable to take over the physical body; instead, they attack the body of Lha and take it away. And then the physical body begins to ache - like a small child who has lost his mother. Even though the Lha is still alive, it lacks protection and energy source. If you find the loss of Lha immediately, it can be brought back through the Lha ritual ceremony. But if you did not find his loss immediately, no matter what happened to him,then even the Lha ceremony cannot bring it back and the patient's life gradually fades away.
There is Samye monastery in Tibet, one of the oldest. It contains a small Temple of Spirits, Samye Ugkhang, the "house of breath", the breath of dead beings. This is the place where the Lha is returned when one is about to die. In fact, Lha is associated with breathing, as the connection between the physical body and the Lha body is through breathing. When a person is seriously ill and is about to die, one of the spirits is sent to him to take Lha from him. They torture the pseudo-soul of Lha, but the dying person does not know about it. They put it in a bag called ugkiel, which means "bag of breath," and take it to the Samye Spiritual Temple. When I was young, my teacher told me this story related to medicine and astrology more than once. It was one of his favorite stories, which fascinated me every time. He said,that there is a specific smell in this place and that at night one can hear spirits killing Lha souls in order to absorb them, cutting them with a knife on a large piece of wood, which to this day the Tibetan government has to change every year.
Are the spirits inside the Samye monastery?
- This temple is located in the inner circle of Samye monastery, at a distance of about 400 meters from the main temple. In fact, spirits are considered the protectors of Samye. Guru Rimpoche (8th century) pacified them and gave them power to use over the Lha. In Tibetan legend, it is said that the Lha of the dying is brought there to kill him, because if this does not happen, then the Lha will remain and for some time can act as a restless spirit before disappearing forever. As my teacher said, the spirits are still there. By the way, during the Chinese Cultural Revolution, this temple was badly damaged, but was not destroyed.
Several years ago I had the opportunity to visit Tibet and of course I wanted to see this special place. To be honest, I was somewhat afraid and worried, since I remembered all the stories of my teacher, and also knew them from the book I read about Samye, in which everything was described in great detail. And when I arrived there, I saw everything with my own eyes: an old door with two holes (through which the spirit and breath pass) and two urkjelas - leather bags hanging on the sides of the door. It was scary, but I could not resist and looked inside. It was very dark and I couldn't see anything, but I smelled a very strange smell. I didn't sniff too much, as there could be a lot of bacteria inside! Anyway, I preferred to leave this place as soon as possible!
Lha ritual ceremony
The Lha ceremony is very popular in places where Tibetan culture is spreading, such as Nepal, Bhutan, the Indian Himalayas, Tibet and the surrounding areas, whose residents are well aware of this ceremony and the benefits it brings. The Lha ritual ceremony, Lhagug Tsegug, is an ancient Tibetan healing method that restores the energetic balance between the physical body, soul and Lha body. This healing ritual is considered effective and Tibetans love it.
Lha ritual ceremonies derive in part from the Bonpo tradition and have been practiced in Tibet for thousands of years. After the arrival of Indian Buddhism in Tibet, this ritual, due to its effectiveness, was combined with Buddhism, and since then it has been practiced by Buddhist tantric practitioners, lamas, geshes or monks who perform tantric rituals and healing rituals.
“If one is suspicious of the Lha, is there anything other than performing the Lha ceremony?
- I think it's not easy. If the Lha has gone a long distance because of the illness of the physical body, then undoubtedly one should try to cure the person. If one recovers, then Lha can be returned. However, if the patient's Lha has gone a very long distance due to shock and trauma, then it is difficult to return it, and a ritual ceremony must be performed.
How does the Lha ceremony work? What is its "mechanism"?
- This ceremony works on the material, spiritual and energetic levels. During the ceremony, the patient sits opposite the person performing the ritual, who meditates, concentrates and recites mantras. The ritual is accompanied by the chanting of a hymn and dialogue with those who have abducted the Lha; then the patient's name is pronounced in a deep, low voice, for the name of the Lha is the same as that of the patient. As a rule, for the ritual, those who perform it are sent to places of large gathering of people, such as cities or crossroads, forests, rivers, palaces, etc. They also recite the name of Lha in a deep, low voice, urging him to return. Lha hears this call and, if still possible, returns and reunites with the patient's body. It's like when you call someone and ask them to come home.
When Lha is lost, then a person also feels lost, but when Lha returns, something changes on the psychic level and concentration of attention, self-confidence and spiritual strength are restored.
During the ritual, another necessary tool is used - a container of copper filled with water, inside which is a wooden plate with a sheep's head made of oil, with turquoise on its forehead. The performer of the ritual reads a mantra and, while meditating, rotates a wooden plate in the water. At the end of the mantra recitation and visualization, the rotation of the plate slows down. If the sheep's head "looks" at the patient after the plate, the Lha is considered to have returned. If not, it means that the Lha has been taken over by the spirits or it has gone too far. So the recitation of the mantra and meditation, as well as the rotation of the wooden plate, are repeated again until it stops. Sometimes it takes a lot of time, since you have to repeat this procedure over and over again while waiting for the sheep's head to turn "facing" the patient. If the sheep's head does not turn "to face" the patient in any way, then it is consideredthat the Lha cannot return, and that the patient is likely to lose his Lha power.
Regarding the ritual ceremony of Lha, the "mechanism" of its action is never mentioned, but I think that all the symbolism is extremely important here: the container can symbolize the brain, our head, like a skull filled with water, since the brain is connected with water. The sheep's head symbolizes consciousness, mind and brain, as well as Lha, the second body. Lha is there because the sheep is a special animal that sustains and stabilizes the Lha energy. Turquoise is the Lha stone, home or place for the Lha energy. Spinning the sheep's head plate means reminding the soul to return, just like we reinstall a CD in a computer. When the rotation of the plate slows down and the sheep's head "looks" at the patient, this means that the subtle body has returned to the physical body. At the end of the ritual, the turquoise is given to the patient so that he always keeps it. After the Lha ritual ceremony, it is necessary to receive long-term initiation in order to recover and prolong the vital energy.
