Llama vs. Lama

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Grammarist

A llama is an animal that lives in the Andes mountains in South America. The llama is a pack animal that also provides wooly fleece, meat and milk. Llamas are domesticated ruminants, a member of the camel family. Llamas are most likely descended from the guanaco, llamas were first domesticated by the Quechua Indians about 6,000 years ago. The Quechua word for this animal is llama.

A lama is a title for a Tibetan or Mongolian Buddhist spiritual leader, a priest a monk of Lamaism. The name comes from the mid-seventeenth century Tibetan word, bla-ma (with a silent “b”) which means superior one, chief, high priest. Currently, the most well-known lama is the Dalai Lama, which means the Ocean Lama, referring to his ocean of compassion and wisdom.

Examples

A man accused of killing and mutilating a llama in January at a farm in Monroe has pleaded guilty to animal cruelty. (The Charlotte Observer)

Unlike the camels of the old world, however, llamas are very pleasant creatures and generally make excellent pets. (The Jerusalem Post)

Although llamas and alpacas have a reputation for spitting, this was not the case Saturday during the 2015 Greene County Fair Llama show when instead they handled the competition with poise. (The Xenia Gazette)

Buddhist spiritual leader the Dalai Lama will address a group of MPs when he returns to the UK in September, but the exiled Tibetan has no plans to meet with David Cameron or any ministers, IBTimes UK has learned. (The International Business Times)

On Monday, Phakchok Rinpoche, a 34-year-old reincarnate Tibetan lama, returns to the Pink Garter Theatre to address the issue of loving in the face of impermanence, because, as organizer David Shlim noted, all aspects of life are transitory. (The Jackson Hole News)

A day after the first shahi snan on Saturday, Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama arrived at the holy town of Trimbakeshwar on Sunday to meet and interact with religious heads and mahants, who have all gathered for the ongoing Kumbh Mela. (The Indian Express)

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