LamaLama (Wylie bla ma) is a title for a Tibetan religious teacher.


Perhaps due to misunderstandings by early western scholars attempting to understand Tibetan Buddhism, the term “Lama” was historically, and is still sometimes erroneously, applied to Tibetan monks generally. Similarly Tibetan Buddhism was refered to as Lamaism by early western scholars and travellers who did not understand that what they were witnessing was a form of Buddhism; they may also have been unaware of the distinction between Tibetan Buddhism and Bön. The term Lamaism is now considered derogatory.

In the West, lamas are also called those who have achieved significant achievements in spiritual self-improvement.

buddha monk

buddha monk