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The Tiger
-Tiger Wisdom for Troubled Times-
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We live in a moment when the ground beneath us often feels uncertain—political unrest, climate instability, a fast-moving world that doesn’t always allow us time to breathe. Many of us find ourselves moving through life like startled creatures: tense, reactive, unsure how to meet what is coming next.
In such times, ancient symbols are not abstract—they are guidance. The Tiger of Tibetan and Vajrayana tradition offers medicine for our moment. It invites us to move not from fear, but from presence. To be strong without aggression. To protect what is sacred not through dominance, but through compassion. When we learn from Tiger energy, we discover that true confidence is quiet, rooted, embodied. It walks step by step, aware, unafraid.
This is wisdom urgently needed today.
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The Tiger (18"X18") - screen printed on 100% cotton (unhemmed)
Sale Price in December: $15 (regularly $18)
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Across the Himalayas, the Tiger has always been more than an animal—it is a spiritual force. In Tibetan culture and especially within the Vajrayana tradition, the Tiger represents a powerful blend of awareness, courage, and embodied compassion. Where the Tiger walks, delusion trembles. Where it rests, wisdom settles quietly into the heart.
The Tiger as a the Face of Bodhicitta
In Buddhism, Bodhicitta means the awakened heart—the wish to benefit all beings, paired with the resolve to act. The Tiger is Bodhicitta in motion. Its confidence is not ego, but clarity. It moves without hesitation, places each paw deliberately, and meets the world with fearless generosity.
The Tiger teaches a quality of power that is rooted in awareness rather than force. It moves with confidence but not arrogance, acts with precision rather than impulse, and carries strength that needs no display. Its presence is alert yet relaxed, grounded yet ready, fully alive in each step. This is fearlessness with a heart—strength tempered by compassion, clarity held without tension, an awakened mind moving through the world quietly and unmistakably.
This is the activity of a Bodhisattva brought to life.
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Our line of “Dharma Caps” combines beautifully embroidered auspicious symbols with the highest quality "Flexfit" fitted caps. The main innovation of Flexfit Caps is the built in flexible poly-weave spandex band There are no buckles, Velcro strips or “expansion holes” in the back, just a continuous smooth comfortable band. For our Dharma Cap line we have chosen to use their all-cotton (except for the spandex in the flexible band), low profile (3 1/8” crown height), 6 panel caps with same color visors.
SIZES: The Small/Medium size fits hat sizes 6 3/4 – 7 1/8" (21”- 22 3/4” around) and the Large/XLarge size fits 7 1/8 – 7 5/8 (22 1/2”- 24 ̋”). The spandex band stretches so, if you’re in between sizes, go for the smaller size.
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The Four Dignities of Shambala
(Also know as The Four Auspicious Animals)
| | The Four Dignities are among the most beautiful symbols to emerge from Shambhala teachings—an elegant map of the awakened warrior’s journey. Each dignity represents a stage or quality of the spiritual path, beginning with Tiger, the dignity of earth, humility, confidence, and mindfulness, then expanding outward into greater spaciousness, joy, vision, and ultimately boundless wisdom. Together, they form a natural progression of awakening—Tiger → Snow Lion → Garuda → Dragon—and each dignity lives already within us, waiting to be recognized, cultivated, and embodied. | | |
Tiger, the first and foundational dignity, teaches relaxed presence, ground-based awareness, and power without aggression. It sees clearly, moves deliberately, and rests deeply, offering confidence rooted in embodiment rather than ego. Only when Tiger stability is present can the higher dignities unfold, just as a warrior must learn to walk the earth before taking to the sky.
Snow Lion follows as the boundless joy of the open sky—a symbol of vital energy, nobility of spirit, and spontaneous happiness without grasping. Leaping freely across mountain peaks, radiant with white purity and turquoise-mane clarity, Snow Lion represents the delight of being awake.
Garuda, born fully grown and bursting into limitless sky, embodies primordial awareness, fearlessness in open space, and vision sharp enough to cut illusion. From above it sees beyond fear and story, showing that insight can transcend problems brute force cannot, inviting us to trust vastness and hold the world lightly.
Dragon, rising through cloud and thunder not as a beast, but as fully realized presence—mature wisdom, fearless truth, and spontaneous compassion united. Dragon does not roar to intimidate but to awaken; it is fearlessness, clarity, and wisdom woven into one unshakable dignity: enlightenment moving in the world as action.
| | Shambhala & Tibetan Buddhism | | |
In Tibetan lore, Shambhala is the hidden kingdom of enlightened warriorship—described in the Kalachakra Tantra as a place where dignity, fearlessness, and compassion are lived, not merely understood. This vision became the heart of Shambhala practice: ordinary people cultivating extraordinary presence, confidence, and heart-clarity.
Where Vajrayana Buddhism offers the full path of mantra, meditation, subtle-body practice and realization, Shambhala distills a central teaching:Awakening is not only personal. It is social.
The Shambhala teachings are not separate from Tibetan Buddhism—they arose from within it. Rooted in the same Vajrayana wisdom streams, they share the goal of awakening, compassion, and the transformation of the mind. But Shambhala shines a particular light on one aspect of that path: how awakening becomes culture, society, and daily life. It is Buddhism turned outward, awakening expressed as community.
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Man With Tiger Wall Hanging - This multi-colored wall hanging is screen-printed on heavy cotton duck fabric. All four edges are hemmed. There's a hand-carved wooden rod at the top with rainbow-colored cord for hanging. With only 6 of these pieces in stock. we're limiting sales to one-per-customer.
Size: 19 in. x 30 in. Price: $30
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The wall hanging shows a dignified scholar leading a tiger on a rope — a striking image of poise beside raw power. Though the design originates in the Chinese/Daoist tradition, this pairing of human and tiger also appears in Tibetan iconography, where the beast represents untamed energy, ferocity, and the wild forces of nature and mind. The man, richly robed and calm, holds the rope lightly, not forcing the tiger into submission but guiding it through presence rather than domination. Here, Tiger symbolizes primal strength, danger, instinct, even harmful spirits or obstacles, while the man represents mastery of fear and aggression — using power rather than being used by it. The image is therefore one of protection and disciplined strength: the cultivated mind walking beside the wild mind without suppressing it.
In Vajrayana interpretation, the tiger is not merely an animal but the embodiment of shakti — the raw, instinctive life-force that, left unchecked, can consume us, yet when met with clarity becomes fuel for realization. The man walking unhurried beside the tiger is the yogin who has befriended his own power; he neither represses nor is dragged by it, but moves forward with mastery that requires no violence. This is the tantric way: transformation rather than rejection, riding energy rather than fleeing from it.
Charisma naturally arises from this union — not personality glitter, but the radiance of fearlessness, the presence of someone who is not at war with themselves. When one’s inner tiger is acknowledged rather than denied, strength becomes grounded, authority becomes effortless, and power becomes visible rather than threatening.
The rope becomes a subtle but essential symbol: it may represent samaya, mindfulness, mantra, or skillful means — the thread of awareness that guides energy without choking it, the bridle of consciousness that channels force toward awakening. Human figure, tiger, and rope form one complete teaching: awakened awareness leading primal energy through skillful practice. Together they move forward as a single being — strength without hardness, danger without chaos, charisma arising from integration rather than suppression. The image shows Bodhicitta in action, fierce compassion carried lightly, the fearless path of one who walks with their tiger instead of running from it.
| | Dorje Drolo & Pregnant Tigress | | |
Dorje Drolö—a wrathful form of Padmasambhava—is shown riding a pregnant tigress, wild-eyed and unbound by gravity or fear. To the uninitiated, this image can seem strange or even violent, yet it is one of the most powerful symbols of transformation in Vajrayana Buddhism. Dorje Drolö appears not as a destroyer, but as the force that refuses to let ignorance rule. His wrath is not anger—it is compassion with fire behind it. It is the willingness to confront what is harmful, within ourselves and in the world, without hesitation.
The pregnant tigress he rides holds the potential of new life—future awakening, yet-to-be-born wisdom. She represents instinctive power, raw and untamed. By riding her, Dorje Drolö shows that the wildness of the world, and the wildness within us, is not something to suppress but something to transform. The tigress is not conquered; she is partnered. She is wisdom in gestation, fierce and fertile, carrying the seeds of awakening beneath her ribs.
For modern practitioners, this image offers a teaching we urgently need. In a time of fear, polarization, and uncertainty, we cannot afford to meet the world with passivity alone. Dorje Drolö teaches that love sometimes needs teeth—not to harm, but to protect tenderness, clarity, vulnerability, and truth. The pregnant tigress reminds us that every challenge we face carries within it the possibility of birth: a new understanding, a new strength, a new way to live. When we ride the tigress instead of running from her, we become capable of transforming even our most instinctive reactions into skillful means.
For those walking the path today, this image is not mythology—
it is instruction. It tells us:
Meet the world directly, without flinching.
Transform instinct into clarity, fear into protection, and raw energy into awakening.
| | On Sale This Month - 20% Off | | |
Prayer for World Peace
"At this very moment for the people and the nations of the earth may not even the words - disease, famine, war and suffering be heard; but rather may their moral conduct, merit, wealth and prosperity increase and may supreme good fortune and well being always arise for them."
Written by H.H. Dudjom Rinpoche
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World Peace - Set of 5 Flags
Sewn on Rope
2 ft - 6 in long - $12.80
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World Peace Set of 10 Flags
Sewn on Rope
5 ft long - $20.80
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World Peace - Set of 25 Flags
Sewnon Rope
13 ft long - $24
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Hayagriva
This woodblock print depicts Hayagrīva, the fierce horse-headed tantric deity revered throughout Himalayan Buddhism as a subjugator of disease, demonic forces, and obstructing spirits. Although rendered primarily in human form, Hayagrīva is distinguished by the horse’s head rising from his crown of skulls, a defining feature of his iconography and the key to identifying him among the many wrathful deities of the Vajrayāna pantheon. His body is surrounded by billowing flames—the fire of transcendent wisdom—and he stands or dances upon prone figures that represent the forces of ignorance, ego, and spiritual obstruction. In this print he appears in yab-yum union with his consort, a symbolic embrace that embodies one of the most essential principles of tantric Buddhism: the inseparability of method and wisdom, or compassionate activity fused with the direct realization of emptiness.
Hayagrīva is a deity of power, healing, and fierce protection, invoked particularly in rituals directed at conquering illness, spirit affliction, and obstacles arising from the subtle realms. His multiple arms, each likely once holding ritual implements now softened by the age of the impression, signify his expansive capacity to act for the benefit of beings. The sun and moon in the upper corners symbolize the complementary energies of masculine skillful means and feminine primordial awareness, reinforcing the union at the core of the composition. This print, executed on thin rice or lokta paper, likely once served as a ritual support image, possibly an initiation aid, a meditation reference, or an insert for consecration within a statue or protective amulet. As a surviving example of tantric practice imagery—explicit in its symbolism yet intimate in scale—it offers a rare glimpse into the esoteric ritual world of Himalayan Buddhism.
2”x14” woodblock print on hand-made rice paper
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If you'd like a chance to win this print, email me your name and address to prayerflags2@gmail.com.
Please don't forget to include your mailing address.
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Congratulations to Dennis Radovitch of Creighton, PA
for winning the woodblock print of the Lotus Family Deities
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The 10th Tibetan month will goes thru Dec.19. According to the Kalachakra Tantra and the Vedas, this month is the Naga’s sleeping time. Making offerings will bring no benefit.
During the 11th Tibetan month (Dec. 20 - Jan. 18), the Nagas are preparing for their winter season. If you make offerings to them on a good Naga Offering (teb) day, you will enjoy peace and happiness. If you make offerings to them on a negative (dok) day, they will feel disgusted by your offering and flee.
This month the best days to perform offering ceremonies are December 20 and 28.
| | Prayer Flag Photos from Friends | | |
Please send us photos of your prayer flags so we can share them.
Any size, shape and format is okay.
Email: prayerflags2@gmail.com
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This image was sent in a Thanksgiving "Gift of Graditude" email from Wisdom Publications.
I hope they don't mind that I'm sharing it with you. Check out their fabulous website.
| | | | These photos of well-used prayer flags were taken at Pure Land Farms in Topanga, CA | | | |
Links to all the previous Newsletters can be found in the Newsletters Archives.
Please pass the link on to any friends who mignt be interested.
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Email me at: prayerflags2@gmail.com
Thank you for taking the time to read my newsletter.
Timothy Clark
Owner of Radiant Heart Studios
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