| There has been a bootleg recording circulating | | | | others have done over the years, robbing Mr. |
| now for decades in yoga and meditation | | | | Braat of his duly earned royalties! If you are |
| communities rumored to be of the Dalai Lama | | | | familiar with the tradition of yoga, then you know |
| chanting for a dying friend. | | | | very well there's a tenet of asteya, or |
| It came into my possession the way it comes to | | | | non-stealing. |
| most people -- a yoga friend gave me a burned | | | | I mean no disrespect to His Holiness (who had |
| CD with the following written on it by hand: | | | | nothing to do with the perpetuation of this |
| 'Dalai Lama's Chant to Heal All Illness: Please | | | | untruth), but the myth --and the robbery -- has |
| Distribute.' | | | | gone on long enough. It's time to give credit |
| I immediately fell in love with this powerful chant, | | | | where credit is due! |
| and the story that came with it was certainly | | | | The truth in the rumor is this:The mantra on the |
| compelling. | | | | recording is indeed a powerful healing chant. |
| Here's how it goes: | | | | To be precise, it's the Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra |
| The Dalai Lama had a friend who was dying, and | | | | from the Rig Veda, a prayer invoking Shiva. |
| His Holiness chanted this healing mantra at his | | | | Its roots are firmly in the Vedic tradition, not the |
| bedside. His Holiness at first refused to allow it to | | | | Buddhist tradition of the Dalai Lama. (Buddhism |
| be recorded, but then relented on the condition | | | | does not recognize the Vedas as authoritative.) |
| that it never be sold. | | | | I hope the fact that it's not His Holiness the Dalai |
| What a great story. | | | | Lama or even Buddhist doesn't diminish the appeal |
| Unfortunately,the story of the 'Dalai Lama Healing | | | | of this mantra of healing for you. |
| Chant' isn't true. At least, not entirely. | | | | There are many other quality recordings of the |
| First, the recording was meant to be sold (all | | | | Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra by other artists, but |
| those bootlegged cassettes, CDs, and mp3s | | | | Hein Braat's unusual devotion and hauntingly rich |
| made over the years are illegal copies which | | | | voice bring this mantra alive in a unique fashion. |
| infringe the chanter's copyright). | | | | The repitition of the Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra |
| And secondly, the person chanting is not the Dalai | | | | over time changes your mental and spiritual inner |
| Lama. It is Hein Braat, a Dutch performer and | | | | landscape, inviting direct healing or pointing your |
| devoted practitioner of mantra yoga. | | | | intention to where you might find it. |
| How can I be so sure? | | | | This healing chant is also said to be a 'liberation |
| Awhile back, I posted the recording on my yoga | | | | chant,' leading one away from the cycle of |
| web site. An authorized distributor of Mr. Braat's | | | | suffering and death into the realm of pure |
| work asked me to take it down. Unbeknownst to | | | | consciousness. |
| me, I had been violating the copyright as so many | | | | |