Tibetan Calligraphy Paintings

MDC sangha member Pema Tsultrim (Aaron Joseph) is happy to make custom Tibetan calligraphy paintings available to MDC members and all students of Khenpo Karten Rinpoche, at special discounted rates. 20% of every sale will be donated to MDC. Any additional offering that one makes above the purchase rate would go directly to MDC as well.

Choose from the following:
Smaller Paintings
Black and Red on White: $27 / Gold and Silver on Color: $54
#1 – Ma Yeng (“Don’t Wander”)
#2 – Om Amidewa Hrih (Mantra of Amitabha)
#3 – Hrih (seed syllable of Buddha Amitabha)
#4 – Lama Khyeno (“Lama, You know me!” aka Calling the Lama from Afar)

Larger Paintings
Black and Red on White: $54 / Gold and Silver on Full Color: $108
#5 – Any single shloka (4 line stanza) from any of Rinpoche’s original compositions (your choice, or perhaps Rinpoche could select a verse for your personal practice and contemplation)

About the Artist
Pema Tsultrim (Aaron Joseph) has been studying and practicing Tibetan Buddhism since 2000. Formerly an ordained monk, Pema now lives as a house-holding ngakpa yogi, public Waldorf school teacher, and father of four. His formal practice of Tibetan calligraphy started around 2006 with the blessing of renowned calligraphy master, Nyingma scholar and Dzogchen master, the 10th Bhakha Tulku Rinpoche. Since that time, he has received ongoing guidance and support from his root lama, Tulku Orgyen P’huntsok Rinpoche, and more recently from our precious lama Khenpo Karten Rinpoche. He continues to study the various scripts of Tibetan and to develop a unique artistic style, while remaining faithful to Vajrayana Buddhist and Tibetan calligraphic principles. He receives great joy from the knowledge that his paintings can serve as an inspiration and support for meditative practice, or that they lend a special sense of beauty and reflection to a home, office, or public space.

About the Artwork
Calligraphy can act a aid to meditation practice in several ways. It can support visualization in the case of the mantras or seed syllables associated with a specific Vajrayana yidam deity. It can also serve as a source of inspiration or object of contemplation in the case of dharma words, phrases of verses. All Pema Tsultrim’s work is matted at no additional cost. Framing available for an additional yet reasonable fee. All artworks are one-of-a-kind, hand painted, sealed and signed with the artists’ original seal “chop” and signature.

About Buddhist Calligraphy
Calligraphy as a sacred art form has a long history in Judaism, Christianity and Islam. East Asian Buddhist calligraphy such as the Zen/Chan art from Japan and China is very popular around the world. Tibetan calligraphy is less known but is equally beautiful and inspiring. The first Tibetan script is said to have been created in the 7th century by Thonmi Sambhota, a minister of the Tibetan king Songtsen Gampo. Sambhota was considered an emanation of the Bodhisattva of Wisdom Manjushri. The king sent him to India to learn Sanskrit, and he based his alphabet upon the Gupta and Brahmi scripts. Hindus and Buddhists consider each letter of Sanskrit to be divine, and the Tibetan writing system was developed with the express purpose of translating the Buddha’s teachings into Tibetan so that the people could benefit. As such, Tibetan is also a sacred language. Since Thonmi Sambhota’s time, many Tibetan scripts have been developed and used for different purposes, each one unique and extremely beautiful.