In this episode I am once again joined by Naomi Levine, author, under her birth name Norma Levine, of several books including ‘The Miraculous 16th Karmapa’, ‘A Quest For The Hidden Lands’, and ‘Chronicles of Love and Death: My Years With The Last Spiritual King of Bhutan’.

In this interview, Naomi discusses her first book ‘Blessing Power of the Buddhas’, an account of her 3 year investigation into the sacred relics and holy men of Himalayan Buddhism and the field of supernatural happenings that surround them.

Naomi recounts her insider meetings with Tibetan Lamas such as the polarising Dzongsar Khyentse, the reclusive Tarthang Tulku, and the wrathful Orgyen Tobgyal; and recalls stories of talking statues, sky metal magical implements, and the necessity of a female consort for certain tantric workings.

Naomi also talks about the naive faith of the fresh convert, what it’s like to be burned by a guru, and how to survive the waning of the honeymoon phase in one’s religious devotional life.

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Video version: https://www.guruviking.com/podcast/ep233-blessing-power-of-the-buddhas-naomi-levine-4

Also available on Youtube, iTunes, & Spotify – search ‘Guru Viking Podcast’.

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Topics Include:

00:00 - Intro

01:08 - Evolution of Naomi’s faith and writing

03:19 - Writing her first book

06:04 - The esoteric side of Tibetan Buddhism

07:33 - Naive faith of the neophyte

09:35 - Interviewing the who’s who of Tibetan clergy

12:27 - Hunting down sacred objects

18:13 - Getting burned by the guru

21:55 - Saved by the lineage blessings

24:44 - Quest for the hidden

25:55 - When devotion matures

28:30 - Guru scandals and Vajrayana vows

31:48 - You can’t return to the honeymoon phase of religiosity

37:34 - Corporate Buddhism and today’s guru circuit

44:21 - Naomi’s impressions of Dzongsar Khyentse

50:11 - Meeting the enigmatic Tarthang Tulku

56:41 - Meeting the wrathful Orgyen Tobgyal

59:43 - Stories of sky metal

01:05:57 - Sacred objects of Tibetan Buddhism

01:10:04 - Categories of sacred objects and hidden treasures

01:13:17 - Rethinking how to get explanations about reality

01:15:37 - True meaning of ‘hidden’

01:16:25 - Talking statues and other miracles

01:21:43 - The necessity of the female consort

01:24:37 - The mysterious phenomenon of rangjung

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Previous episodes with Naomi Levine:

- https://www.guruviking.com/podcast/ep190-love-death-in-the-himalayas-naomi-levine

- https://www.guruviking.com/podcast/ep208-karmapa-tales-naomi-levine-2

- https://www.guruviking.com/podcast/ep223-the-spiritual-odyssey-of-freda-bedi-naomi-levine-3

To find out more about Naomi Levine, visit:

- https://www.facebook.com/naomilevine111

- https://www.amazon.com/stores/Norma-Levine/author/B001K86LZ4?ref=ap_rdr&store_ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true

For more interviews, videos, and more visit:

- https://www.guruviking.com

Music ‘Deva Dasi’ by Steve James