Ermakov, D.
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Tibetan calendar dates
Biographical Information
DMITRY ERMAKOV was born in 1967 in Leningrad, Soviet Union, and trained as a classical musician from the age of six. He was raised in a highly cultural environment, attending after-school classes on ancient history, mythology and art history at the prestigious Hermitage Museum. During his summer holidays he often participated in archaeological digs led by his aunt, the former Head of Archaeology at Kiev University. In 1987 Dmitry joined the University of Leningrad's expedition to Khakassia near the Tuvan (Tyvan) border to excavate Scythian Kurgans. This was his first trip to Siberia.
His interest in Buddhism began in his childhood, with a book called Gods of the Lotus by Parfionov. The book details the author's trip to the Himalayas and it opened up a whole new world of deities and religions. Later, this interest was combined with martial arts based on Taoism and Zen philosophy, and Qi Gong, disciplines which were strictly forbidden in the Soviet Union. It was only with the coming of Perestroika in 1989 that Dmitry was able to meet Buddhist masters: receiving a blessing for the Lotus Sutra from a Japanese Zen master; and then teachings and initiations from a Tibetan Buddhist lamas: Bakula Rinpoche (1989), Khenchen Palden Sherab and Khenpo Tsewang Dongyal Rinpoches (1991), Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche (1992).
In 1993 Dmitry moved to the UK and in 1995 he met the great Bönpo master Yongdzin Lopon Tenzin Namdak Rinpoche. He has been practising Yungdrung Bon and attending Yongdzin Rinpoche's teachings ever since.
Dmitry first visited Buryatia in 1990 where he struck up a deep friendship with the Buddhist thangka-painter Batodalai Doogarov as well as with a several of the local bo and utgan shamans.
Welcomed into their circle, Dmitry was able to gain unique insight into the Buryatian spiritual tradition of Bo Murgel, insight which developed into a detailed study of the similarities and differences between this ancient tradition and Yungdrung Bon. With the patient help of Yongdzin Rinpoche, Dmitry spent years researching a large anthology, Bo and Bon: Ancient Shamanic Traditions of Siberia and Tibet in their Relation to the Teachings of a Central Asian Buddha, (2008), which sheds new light on both traditions.
Dmitry went on to study Tibetan at Oxford University with Prof. Charles Ramble (2009-2010) and, as well as having articles published in both English and Russian, has been invited to lecture in Oxford, London, St. Petersburg, Vilnius, Cagliari, Budapest etc. His knowledge of Tibetan brings a new level of scholarship to the books and transcripts he and his wife Carol produce for the international Bonpo sangha.
Dmitry currently lives in the North Pennines, UK, where he works as a freelance translator. Alongside his work for the Bon tradition, he is currently composing pieces for a new fusion album.
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