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Why, if this practice that offends you so is so wrong is it not railed against by the very institution and its adherents that is based in loving kindness, compassion and wisdom?
Because the institution has a vested interest in continuing the tradition, possibly? And the institution is corrupt. Tulkuships are sometimes bought (see Steven Seagal, for the most recent example), other times they are kept in the family. Monastic life is far from based on loving-kindness, compassion and wisdom. But that is possibly the subject for another thread.
anyone that is going to become a monk should be 21+ years old... it doesn't make much sense as childs.
No, it doesn't. Sri Lanka has a law requiring a minimum age of 15 for anyone wishing to become a monk. The Chinese set the minimum age at 18 (though they stopped observing that law, because they haven't built enough schools, so some monasteries continue functioning as schools). The reason for these laws was to stop the sexual exploitation of the boy novices.
Why, if this practice that offends you so is so wrong is it not railed against by the very institution and its adherents that is based in loving kindness, compassion and wisdom?
Because the institution has a vested interest in continuing the tradition, possibly? And the institution is corrupt. Tulkuships are sometimes bought (see Steven Seagal, for the most recent example), other times they are kept in the family. Monastic life is far from based on loving-kindness, compassion and wisdom. But that is possibly the subject for another thread.
Somehow this answer about why this practice is not opposed turned into a declaration for an institution preserving itself to protect its corruption. The adherents referred to in the question - who are indeed an important part of the institution - are the Tibetan people. The question unanswered is: "Why is there no outcry from these adherents?" And if this practice is so offensive why do not the monks themselves protest. It also gives rise to the question: "Where is this anger and hatred for Tibetan Buddhism borne from?" Granted, monastic life may well be difficult but it is the epitome of ignorance to claim it is far from the teachings and actions of loving-kindness, compassion and wisdom because it may simultaneously contain suffering. Corruption occurs in all institutions - and laws are passed to control it from within and without - but that does not mean the tradition is corrupt or wrong.
anyone that is going to become a monk should be 21+ years old... it doesn't make much sense as childs.
I had an intense longing to be a monk at 14, but it wasn't appropriate for a US citizen and my Indian meditation master at the time wasn't making any monks, so I had to move on. I wanted to be a monk again at age 20 and did it internally for a while. It was good.
I'm in no position to judge someone elses culture with total clarity, especially when it comes to things like the tulku tradition as I've met so many highly realized tulkus that it seems to be quite successful of a tradition on one level, but then I hear other stories and it seems to be stagnant dogma on another level?
I don't know... It certainly is being forced to evolve though, as noted by the Dalai Lamas possible future decision as discussed on this thread.
anyone that is going to become a monk should be 21+ years old... it doesn't make much sense as childs.
No, it doesn't. Sri Lanka has a law requiring a minimum age of 15 for anyone wishing to become a monk. The Chinese set the minimum age at 18 (though they stopped observing that law, because they haven't built enough schools, so some monasteries continue functioning as schools). The reason for these laws was to stop the sexual exploitation of the boy novices.
Because some bad things happen doesn't mean more good things don't happen. It's interesting what people have a tendency to focus on. Don't you think? Why not look at all sides of a situation? I'm not saying that these bad things shouldn't be looked into and worked out, but that doesn't mean the entire system is inherently corrupt, everything is more gray than this black and white absolutist view of things that seems to plague most Western minds. Black and White thinking seems to be an inherent quality of Western upbringing, it's effects liter our history. I don't think it's merely a Western disease either.
So many wonderful beings come out of the tulku tradition who turn the suffering that occurred during their locating, relocating and training process into a means for spiritual elevation and contemplation. The spiritual path is not meant for those that want to maintain their comfort zones, but for those that wish to challenge them. Who knows what sorts of longings these kids had in past lives? Maybe they really, really wanted to be monks, then again, maybe not and there are other reasons for these circumstances. It's interesting when someone wants to make a self certified judgment from outside without any direct experience concerning the situation and people from within. How many kids go to private schools in the West and end up molested or abused by teachers without the buffering of any type of spiritual teaching that is as deep as Buddhism? Buddhism is for helping people and people are generally speaking severely delusional in so many obvious and not so obvious ways.
I've met too many highly realized tulkus and have read too many great works of spiritual illumination by tulkus to make such damning black and white opinions about the tradition. It does work on so many levels!! Even if there are some bad circumstances that happen simply due to the fact that most of humanity is pretty screwed up in the head and always has been. This is not a satyaloka (pureland), but that doesn't mean we shouldn't at least attempt to make it more so. So yes, I am all for engaged Buddhism that attempts to alleviate these circumstances, but I don't think the tulku system or the monking of young children is at the heart of the problem.
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I'm in no position to judge someone elses culture with total clarity, especially when it comes to things like the tulku tradition as I've met so many highly realized tulkus that it seems to be quite successful of a tradition on one level, but then I hear other stories and it seems to be stagnant dogma on another level?
I don't know... It certainly is being forced to evolve though, as noted by the Dalai Lamas possible future decision as discussed on this thread.
So many wonderful beings come out of the tulku tradition who turn the suffering that occurred during their locating, relocating and training process into a means for spiritual elevation and contemplation. The spiritual path is not meant for those that want to maintain their comfort zones, but for those that wish to challenge them. Who knows what sorts of longings these kids had in past lives? Maybe they really, really wanted to be monks, then again, maybe not and there are other reasons for these circumstances. It's interesting when someone wants to make a self certified judgment from outside without any direct experience concerning the situation and people from within. How many kids go to private schools in the West and end up molested or abused by teachers without the buffering of any type of spiritual teaching that is as deep as Buddhism? Buddhism is for helping people and people are generally speaking severely delusional in so many obvious and not so obvious ways.
I've met too many highly realized tulkus and have read too many great works of spiritual illumination by tulkus to make such damning black and white opinions about the tradition. It does work on so many levels!! Even if there are some bad circumstances that happen simply due to the fact that most of humanity is pretty screwed up in the head and always has been. This is not a satyaloka (pureland), but that doesn't mean we shouldn't at least attempt to make it more so. So yes, I am all for engaged Buddhism that attempts to alleviate these circumstances, but I don't think the tulku system or the monking of young children is at the heart of the problem.