As a young boy, His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche loved to draw and paint like any other child but unlike most kids, he was especially inspired to paint Buddha images. Whether it was in art class at school or at home during his free time, painting Buddha forms came very naturally to the young Rinpoche who would spend hours sketching, drawing and producing the images, often at the risk of being severely reprimanded by disapproving parents who could not understand his attraction towards Dharma practice, teachings and Buddha forms.

Some of the artwork, which took hours to create, even won Rinpoche prizes at school. For his artwork, Rinpoche used a variety of mediums; some of the Buddha images would be painted and others would be coloured with crayons or magic markers. Once finished, Rinpoche would also wrap some of the drawings with Saran Wrap (cling wrap) plastic and attach a string to them, before passing the images out to friends and relatives to wear for blessings and protection.

Other children, however, did not share Rinpoche’s enthusiasm for Buddha images. When Rinpoche tried giving them drawings of Green Tara, they would tell him, “You’re crazy! I’m not going to wear that weird green god!” Instinctively, Rinpoche knew that Green Tara offered protection from obstacles and fears and so although Rinpoche would reply, “But she’s a goddess!”, the children, uninterested in spirituality, only protested, “I don’t care!”

In other cases, the artwork would end up as part of Rinpoche’s personal altar. However, they would have to be hidden from his parents who would confiscate them if they were found. Rinpoche’s parents loved their son but were not happy to see his attraction towards Dharma practice. They wanted Rinpoche, their only son, to grow up, finish school, go to college, have a career, get married, get a house and give them grandchildren. So for them, the Buddha images were a sign that their son was moving in an opposite direction, towards monkhood and deeper Dharma practice.

The original White Tara image which belonged to Rinpoche’s mother. Click to enlarge.

But there was nothing they could do to stop Rinpoche. Even as a young child, Rinpoche already had pure faith in the Buddhas and truly, fully believed in the power of the images he drew. Later on, His Holiness Kyabje Zong Rinpoche would confirm this, saying that images of Tara need not be blessed or consecrated, because Tara’s form is so holy and blessed in itself.

So despite all the opposition he faced to the Buddha images he drew, Rinpoche kept on drawing. At one time, Rinpoche even drew a duplicate of his mother’s White Tara image that was on the family shrine, and she later discovered this copy. Though Rinpoche was admonished for the act, his mother Dana privately admired the accuracy of the artwork and set Rinpoche’s own White Tara drawing on her bedroom bureau.

This White Tara drawing is one of three preserved artworks that we have with us today, the other drawings of Rinpoche’s childhood drawings having been lost with time. They are a Buddha Shakyamuni, a Green Tara and Rinpoche’s copy of his mother’s White Tara. Though the drawings have a child-like quality, in the Tibetan tradition such artwork is not judged on the merits of its artistry but deemed sacred for the pure faith the child has in the Buddhas. In Tibet, pure faith in the Buddhas and the natural wish to benefit others are seen as signs of a tulku, or a reincarnated high practitioner, just like Tsem Rinpoche.

It is not unusual for children to paint and draw but it is highly unusual for a child to draw Buddha forms and have natural faith in them. Especially in Howell, New Jersey (USA) where Rinpoche was raised, the majority of people are only concerned with materialism and other secular pursuits. Rinpoche was brought up in such a secular environment and there was nobody in his family that encouraged his inclination and faith the Buddhas. This talent for drawing, painting and creating Buddha images arose naturally within Rinpoche and it has stayed with Rinpoche throughout his life, up until today as Rinpoche still paints Buddha images to give away and even designs Kechara’s range of Buddha pendants. Traditionally, images of Buddhas made by high lamas are considered exceptionally blessed, so we have provided the three images from Rinpoche’s childhood for all of you below. These can be downloaded and printed out and kept on your altar as a source of blessings to transform your lives for the better.

Left: White Tara image which belonged to Dana Bugayeff (Rinpoche’s mother) that she treasured dearly. Right: Tsem Rinpoche’s painting of the same image. Even at such a tender age, it was apparent that both Rinpoche’s artistic talent and deep devotion to the Buddhas were extremely strong. Click to enlarge.

So where did such drive to create Buddha images at such a young age come from? All of this must come from causes created in previous lives, when as a practitioner Rinpoche would have been surrounded by countless Buddha images, in a situation that he instinctively wanted to recreate and connect with in Howell, New Jersey. Because even when Rinpoche was in his local temple Rashi Gempil Ling, Rinpoche was drawn to the altar and the Buddhist art that hung around the prayer hall. While other children played outside, Rinpoche would spend hours sitting in front of the altar, transfixed and gazing in faith at the holy images they contained. Where other children saw going to the temple as a chore, Rinpoche saw going to the temple as an absolute pleasure, a joy that he could not get enough of.

This example is clearly the result of strong imprints of past life practice, and very clear evidence of reincarnation. Reincarnation is the product of karma and is experienced by everyone regardless of their culture, race and religion. People from all backgrounds have talked about reincarnation and their experiences of it. Parents in America, for example, have seen their young children recall very specific memories or demonstrate extraordinary abilities they could not have possibly learned from their immediate surroundings. Reincarnation therefore, is not something the Buddha made up that is exclusive only to Buddhists; reincarnation applies to everyone, independent of their belief in it.

If Rinpoche’s spontaneous interest in Buddha images is not evidence of reincarnation, then what else could it be? Why else would a young boy in a small New Jersey town be so interested in the Buddhas, in a time when they were not easy to find? It was definitely not through constant exposure to these images that led Rinpoche to become fascinated with them. Back in the 1970s and 1980s, Buddha images were not commonplace and Buddhism was still a growing and ‘exotic’ religion that most people were not familiar with. The only places Buddha statues and paintings could be found were in the temples or in the library, inside books on travel and culture. There was no Internet, Buddhism had not yet made it big in Hollywood and there were no monks, deities or altars regularly appearing on TV sets and movie screens.

Yet, Rinpoche instinctively knew their power, how to rely on them and the benefits of spreading them around.

So the images below are especially precious for more than one reason. They are evidence of a practitioner reconnecting at a young age with the activities of his previous life, carrying on as he did before in order to bring Dharma to the world. They also demonstrate the power of imprints and serve as a stark visual reminder that whatever we are interested in this life, will be the things we are interested in our future lives. Do we want to come back and repeat the follies of our current life, or do we want to come back and do something different, something that is beneficial for ourselves and others? The choice is yours.

When His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche was a young child, Rinpoche instinctively loved to draw pictures of the enlightened beings. This drawing of Buddha Shakyamuni, the founder of Buddhism, is one those images which has lovingly been preserved over the years. This is an example of Rinpoche wanting others to benefit from Buddha images as just seeing their form plants imprints of enlightenment in people’s mindstream. Click on the image above to download the high resolution version. This picture is highly charged with the spiritual energies of the enlightened beings and will grant you many blessings.

When His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche was a young child, Rinpoche instinctively loved to draw pictures of the enlightened beings. This drawing of Buddha Shakyamuni, the founder of Buddhism, is one those images which has lovingly been preserved over the years. This is an example of Rinpoche wanting others to benefit from Buddha images as just seeing their form plants imprints of enlightenment in people’s mindstream. Click on the image above to download the high resolution version. This picture is highly charged with the spiritual energies of the enlightened beings and will grant you many blessings.

When His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche was a young child, Rinpoche instinctively loved to draw pictures of the enlightened beings. This drawing of Buddha Shakyamuni, the founder of Buddhism, is one those images which has lovingly been preserved over the years. This is an example of Rinpoche wanting others to benefit from Buddha images as just seeing their form plants imprints of enlightenment in people’s mindstream. Click on the image above to download the high resolution version. This picture is highly charged with the spiritual energies of the enlightened beings and will grant you many blessings.

For more interesting information:

• The Promise – Tsem Rinpoche’s Inspiring Biography Now in eBook Format
• Rime Thangkas (Free Download)
• Buddha Images (Free Download)
• Beautiful Buddha Shakyamuni Thangka
• The Supreme Saviouress – White Tara
• Green Tara – The Ultimate Saviouress
• Must Watch: How Does Reincarnation Work?
• Must Watch: Interesting REINCARNATION Video
• Interesting Signs of Reincarnation
• Reincarnation Videos YOU MUST WATCH!
• Extremely Interesting Investigation on Reincarnation
• Reincarnation: True or false?
• Interesting reincarnation video you must watch!!
• Has a reincarnation been recognized? Imagine how many emanations there could be of such a beautiful teacher!
• Talk on Reincarnation by H.H. Dalai Lama
• Another Proof of Reincarnation
• Dorje Shugden People Do Not Go to the Three Lower Realms

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