Library of Tibetan Works and Archives
Guru Nanak’s birth marked by new book.
A new book is the first-ever attempt to bring out the similarities between two distinct world religions—Buddhism and Sikhism—both of which originated in India.
Two Gurus One Message––The Buddha and Guru Nanak: Legacy of Liberation, Egalitarianism and Social Justice by Savinder Kaur Gill and Sonam Wangmo, published in e-format this month by the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, is a timely comparison of the teachings of Buddha and the Sikh Gurus that matches expert rigour with an accessible style.
This easy-to-read book celebrates the parallels between two of the world’s most widespread and influential faiths –– Buddhism and Sikhism ––in time for the global celebration of the 550th anniversary of the birth of Sikhism’s founder, Guru Nanak on 12 November 1469.
“I am confident that this work will help to promote mutual appreciation and friendship between followers of these two great masters,” said His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama—His Holiness the Dalai Lama is renowned throughout the world as a champion of interfaith dialogue.
“The strikingly similar teachings of both masters could be due to Guru Nanak being born two thousand years after the Buddha and having access to the Buddha’s teachings because Guru Nanak travelled extensively on four long-term journeys (udāsi) reaching Tibet, Sikkim, Ladakh, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka where he came into contact with Buddhism,” say authors Savinder Kaur Gill and Sonam Wangmo.
The Library of Tibetan Works and Archives published this title electronically on 12 November 2019, to celebrate the 550th birth anniversary of Sikhism’s founder, Guru Nanak. The book is available from Amazon for only Rs. 449.
This book explains sacred verses of the Shri Guru Granth Sahib (Sikhism’s central holy scripture) in great philosophical depth, backed by strong Buddhist philosophical understanding based on the Nalanda tradition. The study draws out surprising similarities, powerfully dispelling the conceptual thoughts that dwarf everyday complications.
There are 27 million Sikhs around the world of whom 83% live in India whereas there are 488 million Buddhist around the world representing 7% of the world’s population.
Purchase details: Two Gurus One Message is available now from kindle at Rs 449.
About the Authors:
Tsunma Karma Tashi Choedron [Savinder Kaur Gill] hails from a Sikh family, and first studied Buddhism in the Theravada tradition in Ajahn Buddhadasa Bhikkhu’s hermitage in Suan Mokkh, Thailand. Tsunma Karma is trained as a civil engineer and holds a Ph.D. in Environment and Resource Studies from Mahidol University, Thailand. She also holds a Master of Arts (M.A.) in Buddhist Studies from the International Buddhist College (IBC), focusing her thesis on comparative religion.
Tsunma Tenzin Dadon [Sonam Wangmo] spent 13 years at Jamyang Choling Institute for Buddhist Dialectics in Gharoh, Lower Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh, India, studying Buddhist philosophy, Tibetan language and literature. She graduated with a Ph.D. in Anthropology and Sociology (Gender and Religion) from the University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur in 2017. She also holds Master of Arts (M.A) degrees in Buddhist Studies from Delhi University, India and more recently, from the International Buddhist College (IBC), Thailand.
