H.E. Menri Lopön Rinpoche, head teacher of Menri Monastery, is nearing completion of an Encyclopedia of the Bön Religion.

Lopön Rinpoche’s new encyclopedia contains more than twelve thousand different entries, which include a comprehensive set of articles and definitions used in the Yungdrung Bön religion by Bönpo practitioners, as well as entries explaining cultural terms and concepts unique to Bön. Even the largest reference works currently available in Tibetan or English do not include much of the information that will be available in this new work. Entries include:

• Tibetan and Zhang Zhung words and terminology specific to the Bön religion
• Biographies of Bonpo scholars and practitioners, both historical and contemporary
• Descriptions of significant places in Bon history
• Descriptions of Bon religious symbols, images and objects
• Names and descriptions of Bon deities

Scholars of Tibetan culture regularly have problems correctly understanding the language in texts of the Yungdrung Bön religion because such texts use words that are often different, or familiar words that have different meanings, than the terminology used by Tibetan Buddhists.

A work of this scope on Bön has never been published before. The Bön Encyclopedia is in the Tibetan language, but after initial publication, Lopön Rinpoche hopes to have it translated into English. They have begun collecting donations to help with translating and publishing this book in English. Any amount would be a great help and greatly appreciated. Donations can be sent to Menri Lopön’s Khyungdzong Wodsel Ling center in the United States at the following address or use the PayPal button on their website KWLING.ORG.

Dika Ryan
1977 N. New Hampshire Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90027

(This article originally appeared at http://kwling.org/projects/encyclopedia-of-bon/)