General aspects of Tibetan Buddhism
From the book "De lama die naar 't westen kwam" (probably the lama who came to the west, English title unsure), by Dagpo Rinpoche, the following interesting details were extracted:
Object of being a monk:
- Bettering ones own spirit
- Becoming a master of yourself
Five objects of study in Lam Rim(the stages to enlightenment) are:
- Logic (Pramana)
- The Perfections (Paramitas)
- System of the Middle Way (Madyamika)
- Rules of the convent (Vinaya)
- Metaphysics (Abidharma)
Furthermore:
The method (Vadjra)is all the qualities the Buddha has which do not require discrimination:
compassion, loving kindness, generosity, patience, enthusiastic perseverance
etc.
Then there is the bell, which symbolizes wisdom: i.e. all the qualities of the Buddha which do require discrimination.