Buddhists welcome His Holiness Dalai Lama at Kalachakra in Spiti, Himachal

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Buddhist followers perform a welcome dance with khadas of silk scarves in their hands, with respect to His Holiness Dalai Lama during Kalachakra in Spiti, Himachal. The Kalachakra initiation process spans several days, with the first day being a preparation ceremony, followed by usually two or three days of actual empowerment. The most important part of the initial procedures is taking refuge and the bodhisattva and tantric vows. Without all three, we cannot actually receive empowerment, although we may witness it and derive great benefit. The empowerment itself involves a complex procedure of imagining ourselves transforming into a series of special forms, entering the mandala of the Buddha-figure Kalachakra, and experiencing in it a sequence of purifications and the awakening and enhanci