The opinion piece below was sent to dorjeshugden.com for publication. We accept submissions from the public, please send in your articles to ds@dorjeshugden.com.

By: Steve Lee

Lama Tseta is a self-proclaimed former member of the Dorje Shugden movement. He gained notoriety for the interviews he gave against Dorje Shugden practitioners, claiming they had links to the Chinese government. One of these interviews was with Reuters, a reputable news agency with a strong global network. In his interview, Lama Tseta claimed that China paid him and other prominent Shugden lamas and practitioners to engage in protests and other activities to split the Tibetan community apart. Lama Tseta’s claims have since been debunked and discredited by many parties, including in the video below featuring outspoken Tibetan commentator Dhamchoe Nyima.

Lama Tseta claimed he had evidence to prove that Dorje Shugden practitioners were connected to the Chinese. His claim was later debunked and he became the subject of criticism from both Dorje Shugden and non-Dorje Shugden practitioners.

In his video, Dhamchoe Nyima exposes Lama Tseta as an outright liar. Dhamchoe, who personally knows Lama Tseta, says that there is no truth in Lama Tseta’s claims and in reality, Lama Tseta has no hard evidence for the allegations he made against Dorje Shugden practitioners regarding their connection with the Chinese government. Dhamchoe came to this conclusion after he repeatedly asked for concrete evidence which, apart from some photographs, Lama Tseta failed to produce.

After a while, it became obvious to Dhamchoe that Lama Tseta had fabricated his claims. His lies to Reuters resulted in an interview that widened the chasm in Tibetan society between Dorje Shugden practitioners and non-practitioners. Hence, Dhamchoe was quick to label Lama Tseta a schismatic ‘society destroyer’. Although not a Shugden practitioner or sympathizer, Dhamchoe was deeply disturbed by Lama Tseta and his divisive lies, leading him to produce this tell-all video to expose the truth about Lama Tseta and his false claims against Shugden practitioners.

Dhamchoe Nyima was an employee of the Tibetan government until he became disillusioned by the political infighting and self-serving behavior he observed there. He is now speaking up against the Tibetan leadership and their lackeys like Lama Tseta, who falsely claimed to have proof that Dorje Shugden practitioners are connected with the Chinese government. In a shocking tell-all video, Damchoe Nyima reveals that Lama Tseta is an outright liar and a schismatic ‘society destroyer’ who never had any proof of his allegations against Shugden believers.

What is compelling about this video is the fact that the speaker, Dhamchoe Nyima is neither a practitioner of Dorje Shugden nor a sympathizer, himself having given up the practice in 2015. Dhamchoe also reveals that until 2014, he used to work for Gaden Phodrang, another name for the Tibetan government.

During his employ, he was led to believe in the negative views about Dorje Shugden practice. In fact, thanks to the dissenting views he observed in the Tibetan government regarding the practice, Dhamchoe felt compelled to begin his own investigation into rumors that Shugden practitioners were linked to China. His investigation led him to connect with Lama Tseta. Intrigued by Lama Tseta’s claims of possessing proof that Shugden practice had direct links with and support from the government of China, and wanting to validate his own beliefs, Dhamchoe invited Lama Tseta to stay with him for a week.

As a result of the Dalai Lama’s ban against the deity Dorje Shugden, a divide was created in Tibetan society between Dorje Shugden practitioners and non-practitioners

Based on Dhamchoe’s video, it is clear that Reuters originally reported in favor of Lama Tseta’s divisive claims because they had not anticipated that Lama Tseta would manipulate the truth to this extent for self-gain and prestige. In truth, Lama Tseta was only able to tell such boldfaced lies thanks to the backing and support of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA; Tibetan leadership in Dharamsala, North India). If such a powerful media agency like Reuters can be innocently duped into believing the sensationalist claims of the CTA, Lama Tseta and his ilk, how many more people have been tricked into thinking the best of the CTA for the last few decades? Fortunately, the millions of Tibetan Shugden practitioners are faithful, resilient and forgiving as embodied in the spirit of the teachings that the great lineage masters have proliferated in the past.

Lama Tseta was only able to tell such boldfaced lies to Reuters and other media agencies thanks to the backing and support of the Central Tibetan Administration

We at dorjeshugden.com hope that the powerful journalists, editors and chief editors at Reuters will consider delving deeper into the Dorje Shugden issue and realize the true political nature of the Shugden ban. And that they will seriously consider publishing more articles that will clarify the current divisive situation and uncover the truth about the Shugden issue, thereby separating fact from sensationalist, political fiction.

Video: Brave Tibetan debunks Lama Tseta, speaks up against the Tibetan leadership

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A Summary of Dhamchoe Nyima’s talk on Lama Tseta

• Dhamchoe Nyima worked for the Tibetan exile government (Gaden Phodrang) until the end of 2014 and he was involved in many departments. During his time there, he witnessed and experienced many internal political and religious disagreements, for example the Dorje Shugden issue.
• Since he has already resigned, he has no personal reasons for clarifying the topics he speaks about. But he decided to make this video because he is uncomfortable with what is going on and he wants to help the Tibetan people [learn the truth]. He has seen for himself that most of the people in the Tibetan government work for their own benefit. Because they are self-serving, they create more problems and conflicts for the Tibetan community.
• He was still part of the Tibetan government when he heard ordinary Tibetans claiming that Dorje Shugden practice was harmful to the Dalai Lama’s life. Since it supposedly affects the Dalai Lama’s life, that made it a religious matter. At the same time, the Tibetan government felt that Dorje Shugden was not a religious matter but a political one because Dorje Shugden people were accused of receiving money from China. Dhamchoe Nyima implies there was no consensus in how to deal with the Dorje Shugden issue.
• Dhamchoe Nyima thought that if it was a political matter, then he should do something about it. Around that time, a friend suggested that he get involved with a WeChat group called Global Tibetan Volunteers for the Truth because everyone on the group was loyal to the Dalai Lama and wanted to protect his life. The group was very active and had representatives of many different Buddhist sects, monasteries and teachers. However, this group did not last long because of disagreements and differences in opinion between the participants. Eventually, it was shut down.
• Later, Dhamchoe Nyima became involved with the YouTube channel Boston Real Tibetan Public Talk (Mangthrod Khada). They heard a rumor that Dorje Shugden people were protesting against the Dalai Lama because they were paid by China to do so. Dorje Shugden people responded by asking for proof to back up these accusations. This got him interested in finding the proof. It was around this time that he heard about Lama Tseta.
• Believing that Dorje Shugden practitioners were using the ban as an excuse to protest and had their own political agenda i.e. they wanted money from China, Dhamchoe Nyima wanted to protect the so-called Tibetan cause from such people. Therefore, when he heard Lama Tseta saying he had proof that Dorje Shugden people were connected with China, he was interested and wanted to know more. That’s how his involvement with Lama Tseta began.
• Lama Tseta stayed with Dhamchoe Nyima for a week. In the video, Dhamchoe Nyima shows photos of Lama Tseta at his house, to prove that Lama Tseta was indeed there. It even appears that Lama Tseta filmed videos at Dhamchoe Nyima’s house [in one of the photos, there is some sort of film production going on].
• When Dhamchoe Nyima asked Lama Tseta for proof that Dorje Shugden people were indeed connected with China, Lama Tseta replied that all the proof was in Tibet. Dhamchoe Nyima asked him if he could get it and Lama Tseta said that he could but it would take some time. After a while, it became clear that Lama Tseta did not actually have any proof that Dorje Shugden people were connected with China. He had a couple of pictures but it was not anywhere near good enough to be conclusive evidence.
• After Lama Tseta’s video was released, the European Shugden society spoke against Lama Tseta and debunked his claims. Thereafter anti-Shugden people began speaking negatively about Lama Tseta. That is when Dhamchoe Nyima began having doubts about Lama Tseta’s credibility because it was not just Dorje Shugden people speaking up against Lama Tseta, but anti-Dorje Shugden people too.
• Today, Dhamchoe Nyima says that Lama Tseta is a liar and a ‘society destroyer’, and has cut all ties with him.

The above summary is based on a translation provided by our Tibetan friends. If there are inaccuracies that you wish to dispute, you are welcome to share your own translation with us.

Addendum

Dhamchoe Nyima used to work for the Tibetan administration until the end of 2014. He was a Dorje Shugden practitioner but stopped his practice in 2015 due to nationalistic fervor. It is clear that he had become a victim of the Tibetan leadership’s political machine.

Having become disillusioned by what he observed while working for the Tibetan administration, Damchoe Nyima started his YouTube channel last year (2017), regularly posting videos to expose the truth. His most popular video to date is that of his bold protest against the excesses and abuses of the Tibetan leadership — Damchoe Nyima tore up and burned his Green Book, an act which sent shockwaves throughout the Tibetan community.

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Also known as the ‘rangzen la deb’, the Green Book records the annual token sum that its bearer pays to the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), as a form of financial support for their activities. Over time, the Green Book mutated into a marker of what it means to be a real Tibetan; if someone does not hold a Green Book, at best they are abused, mocked and criticized for their failure to support their government and its work towards the so-called Tibetan cause. At worst, they are labelled anti-Tibetan pro-Chinese traitors.

In tearing up and burning his Green Book, Dhamchoe Nyima is destroying a powerful symbol of what it means to be Tibetan. In essence, he is saying he does not financially support the Tibetan leadership, and he does not wish to be associated with them. There are few statements more powerful against the Tibetan government’s excesses and abuses than a former government officer turning against them and denouncing them in public. Clearly, those in the upper echelons of power must reconsider their actions or risk their reputations being destroyed in the court of public opinion.
 

Manjushri Buddhist Centre

From Más Allá de la Ciencia

Number 103/9/1997, by J.C. Deus
(Translated from Spanish; scroll down to see scans from the original Spanish magazine)

For the first time in history, the Dalai Lama is having to confront serious accusations made against him publicly for infringing the religious freedom and human rights of his own people. His attempt to eliminate a deity which he describes as ‘suspicious’ and ‘defiled’ is causing him, the highest Tibetan authority, endless problems. Even though the feared ‘demon’ is in fact harmless, the internal demons of Tibetan Buddhism seem to have woken up from their sleep.

Readers of MAS ALLA DE LA CIENCIA will remember that I have written two articles about the religious persecution which the Dalai Lama has implemented against one of the most revered of the countless number of deities within Tibetan Buddhism, a deity known as Dorje Shugden (see numbers 94 and 100). These articles were also recently published on the Internet. In these articles we can read about the ban of the worship of this deity, who has officially been declared as evil, about the persecution of his devotees, and public demonstrations by a number of dissidents who, for the first time in the history of the Tibetans in exile, accuse the Dalai Lama of being a dictator and an oppressor. Finally, there were three murders at the seat of the Tibetan government-in-exile, the court of Dharamsala, for which the dissidents were blamed. This was an obvious sign that ‘the blood had reached the river’ and that this quarrel, which at first just seemed like another of the countless quarrels that have characterised the history of this theocracy (which has not yet lasted a millennium), is becoming a story that has heavy consequences for the future of these people.

For this reason, it was not surprising that one day I received a message through the Internet from someone who complained about my bias in favour of the Dalai Lama, and who offered to tell me the other side of the story. This person was a Basque-born Buddhist nun called Kelsang Dewang, who has been studying with Geshe Kelsang Gyatso – known as Geshe-la by his followers. This Lama has been brave enough to contradict the orders of the Dalai Lama, to protest publicly against them, and to lead a movement of disobedience. The organisation that Geshe leads – the New Kadampa Tradition – not only regards the deity Dorje as a ‘divine emanation’ and one of their main spiritual practices, but is also an important group within Western Buddhism, since it is the one that is growing the most at present.

In this way, we started exchanging messages, with much discussion, not only about the decision of the Dalai Lama, but also about a little-known story of alleged abuse, persecution and despotism by the man who the media has enthroned as a symbol of tolerance and the embodiment of human rights. However, the new image presented by his critics is that of a man hungry for power, cruel to those who oppose him, and ruling the Tibetan government-in-exile with an iron hand while preaching compassion around the world.
 

The Demons of the Dalai Lama

But let’s do a bit of history. The Dalai Lama himself previously revered the deity Dorje Shugden, as had his tutors and teachers, until inexplicably in 1978 he changed his view and adopted a hostility [towards the deity]. Initially this hostility was expressed only within the complex labyrinth of his feudal court and in the puzzling organisation of the Tibetan religious apparatus in exile.

But in 1996 this repudiation of Dorje Shugden was made public and what until then had been only exhortations, often ignored, became prohibitions implemented with violent persecution of the followers of this [deity], now a so-called ‘demon’. The Dalai Lama presented his attack as a matter of life or death for the Tibetan cause. Dorje was portrayed as an evil being responsible for the failure to attain Tibetan independence and for many other problems. If he were not completely abolished forever, he would sink the Tibetan people into the greatest of catastrophes. He was even harmful to the life of the Dalai Lama, the highest leader in Tibetan Buddhism.

His assertions stunned the devotees of this deity, to the extent that the lama Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, director of the New Kadampa Tradition, ignored his orders, and his followers organised public demonstrations in England and Switzerland protesting against the Dalai Lama’s decision. Officials of Tibetan Offices, representing the Dalai Lama in the West, promptly relayed to the media accusations against the New Kadampa Tradition, describing it as a dangerous sect, worshippers of the devil, and people who had sold their soul to a Satanic cult in exchange for Mephistophelian favours of money and power. Dorje was portrayed as a demon, hungry for blood and responsible for a cult that brainwashed and financially exploited innocents who fell into its hands.

For this reason, doubts assailed me when Dewang, the Basque-born Tibetan Buddhist nun and member of the New Kadampa Tradition, invited me to see for myself that these accusations were completely false, to visit their main centre and interview their leader Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, and to know about Dorje Shugden directly. Thoughts such as ‘Am I going into the very mouth of the wolf by going to the headquarters of a fanatic group? What if the Dalai Lama was right and Dorje Shugden really bites?’ arose.
 

In the House of the ‘Demon’

The Manjushri Buddhist Centre is located in the north of England, five hours by train from London, next to a bay in the midst of idyllic green fields. It is a huge mansion, whose property includes a large wood, a beach and several secondary smaller buildings. It is certainly impressive, especially since the purchasing price twenty years ago was only £75,000, as Dewang hurried to tell me in order to counter rumours.

The problem of owning such a mansion, said Dewang, is not so much buying it but maintaining and repairing it. Religious communities are free from this problem as their members work diligently in exchange for room and accommodation, work being considered as ennobling. Dewang took me to see the new temple that was to be inaugurated in two weeks’ time, when more than 1600 followers of the New Kadampa Tradition from all around the world would be gathering for their annual festival. In stone, wood and glass, it is a magnificent place with capacity for about 700; a great work of art made exclusively by the members of the community. I saw impressive bronze statues ready to be placed in the shrine, monks sand-papering the wood and painting walls.

I was guided by Dewang around the whole property, going up and down a labyrinth of staircases, visiting large and beautifully-maintained meditation rooms, and listening to detailed explanations about the statues, mandalas, pictures and shrines of the vast pantheon of Tibetan Buddhism. I was introduced to some of the monks and nuns who had arrived from many of the 200 centres of the New Kadampa Tradition around the world. The fact that it was a mixed monastery, with [some people keeping] vows of chastity, gave the place a charming hippie touch. The nuns with their short hair had a good appearance; they looked at you smilingly, and you forgot that they were nuns. Their faces were beatific, and I couldn’t find anything that was weird or suspicious.

Finally I saw Dorje, as he appeared in Newsweek, holding a blazing sword and riding a wrathful white lion that steps over a human body. A Dorje of wrathful fangs and bulging eyes, including the third eye. Dewang explained that in Tibetan Buddhism there are thousands of beneficial deities with wrathful aspects, and that they only subdue evil and show their wrath against obstacles that prevent spiritual realisations.

I looked and looked at it, but I didn’t feel any fear. It reminded me of the silly things shown to children during the Valencian fallas [typical Spanish fiestas of Valencia]. It was placed in a huge glass cabinet surrounded by four other representations mounted on different animals. If the one mounted on a dragon was quite repulsive, the ones riding a horse and an elephant had kind faces. Perhaps to compensate for his wrathful representation, the most well-known, Dewang insisted on me looking at another of his manifestations, a handsome peaceful youth that seemed to have come out of a poster from the Chinese cultural revolution. Undoubtedly, I could see nothing that was strange, or which you would not see in any one of the hundreds of religious movements that presently exist around the world.
 

A New Portrait

Then the time came for me to meet with Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, the thin and enigmatic person who from his photos seems difficult to reach (see the interview that follows). With his English and mine, we struggled to understand each other. He would continually put his hand at his heart to express that his objectives were pure. He looked happy and very little affected by the controversy. When we finished the interview, he surprised me with a hug and gifts of a bottle of non-alcoholic wine and a pen.

Then I had supper with James Belither, the Secretary of the New Kadampa Tradition, who lives in one of the little houses that surround the main building, and where the Buddhist families live. He is not a monk but a lay person, a gentle English man. That day he was a little taciturn as he told me of the difficulty of knowing the exact number of people affiliated to the New Kadampa Tradition, estimating that there are between two and four thousand. He explained that he could not understand why the Dalai Lama had launched such an absurd witch hunt, and expressed his concern about the possible future harmful effects of ill-intentioned rumours spread by some people against them.

From what I gathered in my conversations with Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, the nun Dewang and James Belither, there emerged a surprising portrait of the Dalai Lama from which we can conclude that although he is considered a world hero, he is in reality a superstitious dictator who relies heavily on oracles and divinations. It also gave a dark description that tore through the idyllic veil of his propaganda; a scenario filled with intrigues more suited to a medieval court in which cruel feudal men fight to the death, while court favourites and sorcerers manipulate the sovereign. Demons and deities fighting to control people’s minds; spells and curses…

It was said, for example, that the new favourite medium or oracle of the Dalai Lama is a young girl who has recently arrived from Lhasa, expert in fanning the inquisitorial fire against the deity Dorje. Recently, in the middle of a public religious ceremony, this young girl, who invokes a favourite spirit of the Dalai Lama called Nechung, entered a trance and accused an old and respected lama of being a secret servant of the demonic deity [Dorje Shugden]. The old lama slapped her. Later, it was agreed to keep quiet about the incident.

An oracle of the protector Nechung

At midnight I switched off the light, mindful that my door had no lock. I slept very well and woke up early in the morning. I had a walk in the woods, went down to the beach, looked at the various buildings and took some pictures. I spoke with a young monk from Barcelona who insisted that the way Geshe Kelsang Gyatso presents Tibetan Buddhism is much more accessible to Westerners than the way shown by other lamas and traditions. Later on, Dewang showed me the local prehistoric stone circle, and we also had time to visit the New Kadampa Tradition’s office. There was nothing else to see, nothing else to discuss, my stay had come to an end.

On the train back to London, I reflected on the conflict. It is a repeat of one that occurred three and a half centuries ago between the then-Dalai Lama and Ngatrul Dragpa. That conflict finished with the Dalai’s assumption of military-political power, the assassination of Ngatrul by [suffocation with] a katag (the traditional white silk scarf), the blaming of problems on the vengeance of Dorje, and the Dalai’s repentance. Would the story repeat itself again?
 

Intrigues at the Palace

For many years, Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, guru of the New Kadampa Tradition, was not allowed to work independently until his followers threatened to expose publicly the dirty linen of a drug trafficking operation organised by certain organisations in order to finance Tibetan centres. The truth is that the growth of the New Kadampa Tradition in the West is causing fear to some, and is the envy of many. Its rapid development over the last six years provides Geshe Kelsang Gyatso with a growing leadership which is a threat to the Dalai Lama. Because of this, the followers of the Dalai Lama are trying to destroy Dorje Shugden, his protector and emblem. However, he has shown himself to be an independent figure and it will be difficult to silence him.

According to one of the personal translators of the Dalai Lama, there is a secret society, the self-styled Secret Organisation of External and Internal Enemy Eliminators [of Tibet] that has threatened to kill anybody who continues to practise Dorje Shugden. The translator, who has offered to prove and expand on his assertions, says that the accusations against the Dorje Shugden Society in Delhi of having planned the three recent assassinations at the court of the Dalai Lama are totally unfounded.

“The Lama who was killed in February 1997″, says the translator, “was known for his strong attacks on Dorje Shugden and those who worship him. It was said that he had returned from Taiwan just a few days before, carrying a lot of cash. Among the hypotheses that circulated at the palace-in-exile in Dharamsala about the motive of the crimes were: there was disagreement about the distribution of the money; Mr Gyalo, a brother of the Dalai Lama, was involved in the crimes, and that he was in contact with other secret organisations; the murders were committed by the Khampa guerrilla organisation that led the fight in 1959 and who are also in disagreement with the Dalai’s government; or by a desperate individual follower of Dorje Shugden; or by Chinese or Taiwanese secret agents; or even done purposely to incriminate the Dorje Shugden Society.”

The accusations that the Dalai Lama and his court are obsessed with eliminating internal dissents are also confirmed by this translator and Western monk: “While the Tibetan government-in-exile has shown itself powerless against the Chinese occupation, they have concentrated on repressing Tibetan opposition to the point of eliminating it, as is shown by the suspension in 1996 of the only independent newspaper in the Tibetan exile community, the recent amendment of the Tibetan Constitution so that a Supreme Judge cannot possibly be a devotee of Dorje Shugden, and by rejecting attempted mediation by abbots of the great monasteries.”

While the followers of the Dalai Lama say that the practitioners of Dorje Shugden are the Talibans of Tibetan Buddhism, they themselves did not show a very good example or good sense when, in July 1997, Lobsang Thubten, one of the leaders of the Dorje Shugden Society in New Delhi was furiously attacked by 200 followers of the Dalai Lama. On the other hand, the Shugdens deny allegations that they use their deity to obtain material and personal favours. They say that they rely on him only for help in their spiritual progress and in their praying for the happiness of all beings. The followers of the New Kadampa Tradition admit that pictures of Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, their spiritual director, take pre-eminent place in their meditation rooms and that they also have special prayers for his long life but as they explain, this is a common practice in Tibetan Buddhism, in which the figure of the guru, or spiritual guide, is crucial.

In summary, all this indicates that the Dalai Lama will not stop until he manages to stop Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. And if the latter has the powerful deity and protector Dorje Shugden on his side, the Dalai Lama tries to counteract this power with his own protector, the spirit Nechung. Lama against lama and deity against deity, it is possible that behind this bloody religious battle, which is not short of threats, intrigues and assassinations, there hides manipulation, which is not spiritual, by a feudal monarchipope trying to eliminate a dangerous rival. On his side he has world public opinion, headed by Hollywood. But in matters of gods and demons one never knows….
 

Deus writes here that Kyabje Ling Rinpoche practiced Dorje Shugden. Click to enlarge.

The Friends of the ‘Evil One’

Among famous Lamas who have already passed away, Ling Rinpoche and Trijang Rinpoche, the tutors of the Dalai Lama, were probably the most renowned figures who worshipped the controversial deity and protector Dorje Shugden. But there are also many famous living Lamas and teachers whose responsibility has been to keep this tradition alive. Despite their cautious silence, they have all become direct opponents of the official line promulgated by the Dalai Lama, and many continue their practice in secret due to fear of reprisals.
 

Geshe Kelsang Gyato: The Dalai Lama is Infringing Human Rights

Geshe Kelsang Gyatso

The difficult responsibility of leading the opposition to the Dalai Lama has fallen into the hands of the highest authority in the New Kadampa Tradition, the independent and intellectual lama Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. But his disagreement goes further than the question of the intrinsic virtue or otherwise of a figure within the Buddhist pantheon. Behind his words, well measured and respectful, throb doubts and accusations of greater depth.

His private residence is on the second floor of Manjushri Buddhist Centre, on top of the visitors’ rooms and next to a meditation room where there is a big statue of Vajrayogini, a female Buddha with naked, swollen breasts who does not seem to take such prominence in orthodox monasteries.

Geshe Kelsang Gyatso’s house is similar to an upper middle class apartment in any Western city. In the kitchen, next to a machine for making organic bread, I was served tea, and then in the sitting-room I finally met him, a gentle man of indefinite age – actually he is over sixty – who has published sixteen books over the last ten years, after completing a three-year retreat in which he alone knows what happened.
 

J.C. Deus: Is there a solution to the serious conflict that divides Tibetan Buddhism in relation to the ban on the practice of Dorje Shugden, the deity you regard as an emanation of the Buddha of Wisdom?
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso: If the Dalai Lama decided to give freedom and allow the practice of Dorje Shugden, the problem would finish automatically.
 

J.C. Deus: What steps should be taken to resolve the situation?
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso: The Dalai Lama has to understand that his ban and the methods his government-in-exile is using to implement it are illegal, cruel and inhumane. The Dalai Lama is infringing the human rights of many people.
 

J.C. Deus: Are there other important figures in Tibetan Buddhism who are disappointed with the Dalai Lama? If so, why don’t they make their criticism public?
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso: There are very many indeed who do not agree with him, but they cannot express their critical point of view for fear of reprisal. In Tibetan society, no one is allowed to express ideas that oppose those of the Dalai Lama. If you do, they will destroy you. They will discredit you to the point of making you a pariah, if they don’t resort to violence.
 

J.C. Deus: Is it possible that the Dalai Lama is just a moderniser of Tibetan Buddhism who is clashing with more traditional sectors? Or are you amongst those who think that he is hungry for power and wishes to monopolise all Tibetan religious and political power?
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso: The second description seems closer to reality.
 

J.C. Deus: What, in your opinion, is the real reason why on 14th July 1978 the Dalai Lama publicly went against the deity and protector Dorje Shugden?
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso: I think that there are many reasons. One of them was the influence of the spirit Nechung, the protector of the Dalai Lama. The oracle (medium) of Nechung with the consent of the Dalai Lama wants to have all the power. Many people think that jealousy was an important factor because the practice of Dorje Shugden was, and still is, very popular among many Lamas, including the tutors and root gurus of the Dalai Lama, as well as many scholars and thousands of other practitioners. But there is also a factor of ignorance and superstition, because the Dalai Lama based all his decisions to implement this ban on divinations, oracles and dreams. He himself says so in the discourse he gave in July 1978.
 

J.C. Deus: Do you think this is an attempt to stop the preponderance of the Gelug tradition in Tibetan Buddhism?
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso: Yes, this is clear.
 

J.C. Deus: Who is responsible for this problem, the Dalai Lama or the human oracle through whom the spirit Nechung manifests? Who is this oracle, how was he elected and whose interests does he represent?
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso: The Dalai Lama chooses everything. He also chose Nechung. I don’t know much about him but they themselves say he is a spirit.
 

J.C. Deus: It is said that the Dalai Lama has more oracles (mediums) than ministers, that he is surrounded by oracles and that he does not take a step without consulting them. What do you think about such reliance? Do you think that there is a hidden power at the palace in Dharamsala?
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso: This reliance is inappropriate. These methods of divination are often the source of many problems, conflicts and quarrels, and give rise to superstition. The person who gets into the habit of relying upon these methods ends up losing self-confidence, and there comes a time when he becomes incapable of taking a single decision by himself based on logical reasoning and using his own wisdom, or relying on the wisdom of other experts who could advise him. Buddha did not teach these methods; they are not Buddhist practices. About the second part of the question, whether or not there may be a hidden power in Dharamsala, all the power is in the hands of the Dalai Lama. If tomorrow he were to say that all Tibetans have to worship Dorje Shugden, they would put photos and images of this deity on their shrines. If the next day he said the opposite, they would remove all these images. This is his power.
 

J.C. Deus: Has the Tibetan government-in-exile failed? Do you think that the fight for independence should be abandoned and instead accept dependency on China?
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso: It is obvious that the Tibetan government-in-exile has failed in its principal task: to gain independence for Tibet. But I prefer not to comment about political matters, so I will abstain from replying to the second question.
 

J.C. Deus: How do you see the Dalai Lama’s role as a political Tibetan leader? Do you think that he may have become a puppet of the United States in its disputes with China?
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso: I think that it is a serious error to have a political leader who is at the same time a spiritual leader. Politics and religion are two different things, and to mix them gives rise to many political and religious problems. Often they use religious methods, such as devotion to the spiritual guide, to attain political objectives. It is very problematic. To me it is unacceptable that the government-in-exile forces all of us to take the Dalai Lama as our spiritual guide or guru. In Buddhism there is complete freedom; no one can force you to choose someone as your spiritual master, this is something that each of us has to choose with complete freedom.
 

J.C. Deus: Would you say that the Dalai Lama runs a dictatorship over the Tibetan exile community?
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso: Yes, in many aspects it is a dictatorship. There are no elections and an opposition is impossible in present Tibetan society, and these are two of the main characteristics of a dictatorship.
 

J.C. Deus: Finally, do you think that it was a serious mistake to have chosen the present Dalai Lama? Is it possible that he may not be the actual reincarnation of his predecessor?
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso: I think that political leaders should be elected democratically, and it is a mistake that the same person embodies and administers both the political and religious power of a country.
 

Interview with Kelsang Dewang, Buddhist Nun

The Dalai Lama makes decisions based on oracles, and dreams, and throwing little balls of dough into the air.

Despite her name, Kelsang Dewang is a Spanish nun who converted to Buddhism twenty years ago. She is the translator and personal assistant of the leader of the New Kadampa Tradition. As a practitioner of the deity Dorje Shugden, her voice has been listened to in this controversy, and presents a serious and critical point-of-view about the historical roots of Tibetan Buddhism and the present role of the Dalai Lama.
 

J.C. Deus: You are a practitioner of Dorje Shugden, a deity that is accused of being a demon and of taking the souls of those who worship him.
Kelsang Dewang: No, he is not a demon. He is a protector of Dharma and these protectors, by definition, are emanations of Buddhas or Bodhisattvas (realised and liberated beings), and the practitioner relies on them seeking help to attain spiritual realisations. Shugden is an emanation of the Buddha of Wisdom and one of the main protectors of the Gelugpa tradition.
 

J.C. Deus: Are we in fact facing a political conflict and a battle for power which is obscured by an apparent religious confrontation?
Kelsang Dewang: It could be, religion and politics are very much mixed in Tibetan society. The truth is that the Gelugpa Tradition is the most widespread and the most successful, and this always gives rise to jealousy and envy. It is a conflict that has its roots in the XVII century, but it is dreadful to bring these resentments into the present. It does not matter that some people think that Dorje Shugden is a spirit and others think that he is a Buddha. In democratic countries we have freedom, and we should also respect those who have different views to us. Besides this, they cannot prove that Dorje is an evil spirit. When they try to, they only tell superstitious stories. If someone has a bad dream, if someone gets sick, if the crops are not good, or if a Lama falls off a bicycle and dies, all these are blamed on Dorje Shugden. Just recently a young girl in Dharamsala was raped, and they immediately said that the perpetrator was a follower of Dorje Shugden. Tibetan culture is very superstitious, but this has nothing to do with Buddhism. Buddhism and Tibetan culture are two different things, and we have to learn carefully to unwrap the precious treasure of Dharma from the dirty wrappings in which we have received it.
 

J.C. Deus: It seems that the attack is not limited to Lama Geshe Kelsang Gyatso and to the New Kadampa Tradition, but that they are also trying to discredit the whole Gelugpa tradition by forbidding the essential practices of this tradition. News has been heard that some of the Lamas of this lineage have been discredited. Are there any details of this situation?
Kelsang Dewang: It has been said that they have started to suppress the practice of Lama Chöpa, and that the Dalai Lama has also publicly criticised the famous Jamyang Shaypa. But the principal objects of the attack are the lamas that have brought the Gelugpa tradition into the present day, Pabongkha Rinpoche and Trijang Rinpoche. This criticism implies that they were not realised beings, but were ordinary beings with delusions, so it would follow that their teachings lack blessings and are not valid. From this it would follow that the Gelugpa Tradition is a degenerate path. But the paradox is that the Dalai Lama himself was educated as a Gelugpa, and received all his instructions from Trijang Rinpoche, his root guru, whom he now criticises. In reality, in Tibetan society there has never been any democracy. In the VIIth century in Tibet they threw criminals over a cliff, and in the XXth century the way of punishing those who oppose the Government has not changed so much, even in exile.

Before the present Dalai Lama escaped to India, members of his government assassinated the great Gelugpa Lama Reting Rinpoche. He was poisoned in 1947, after it was decided that to throw him over a cliff was not an appropriate way to kill a lama of such rank. And this lama was killed just because he did not agree with the government’s activities. Because of these reprisals, Tibetans are forced to wear two masks: with one they smile to the Dalai Lama, and with the other they criticise him. All the power is held by the Private Office of the Dalai Lama and its orders have to be followed at all costs. No one has the opportunity to express a different view. This institution [the Private Office] is in charge of passing on information to the people. When it criticises someone for holding different views, and that person does not retract his views or keep silent, he will start receiving threats. Many people feel unhappy for other reasons also. For example, the Dalai Lama and his government have spent the last twenty six years fund-raising for the purpose of Tibetan independence, but now the Dalai Lama says that he is not interested in the independence of Tibet, so for this reason many people feel that they have been cheated.
 

J.C. Deus: What is the relationship between the Dalai Lama and other schools and traditions?
Kelsang Dewang: The Dalai Lama has a very bad relationship with the other main Tibetan Buddhist tradition, the Kagyupas. Recently they underwent a lot of suffering due to the interference of the Dalai Lama in the choice of the reincarnation of the new Karmapa, the head of the Kagyupas. The Dalai Lama forced the recognition of a boy that the Chinese authorities had recognised as the new Karmapa, but the Kagyupas had already found a boy they believed to be the true incarnation. Besides, the Dalai Lama has no power to recognise officially this reincarnation and in doing so, he has divided the Kagyupas into two main factions: those who follow the Dalai Lama and those who follow Shamar Rinpoche, the lama in charge of recognising the Karmapas. Consequently, the Tibetan Government has done everything possible to make this lama another pariah. In Gelugpa society, the problems created by the ban of the practice of Dorje Shugden has forced many lamas and monks, who cannot accept abandoning their religious practice, to escape to Nepal or Mongolia. Many monks demonstrated, and several of them were expelled from their monasteries.
 

J.C. Deus: Nechung is the spirit protector of the Dalai Lama. How does he manifest?
Kelsang Dewang: Nechung is a worldly spirit, they say so themselves. Tibetans like spirits and divinations very much. In the New Kadampa Tradition, we do not follow these methods because we do not consider them to be truly Buddhist. In my opinion, often the medium or oracle is just a good actor. When the spirit has entered the body of the oracle, people ask questions and he replies. I find this way of answering questions incorrect and open to criticism, because often a medium will reply according to his personal interests. Also, I cannot understand why the Dalai Lama, if he is an enlightened being as some say, needs to consult a worldly spirit. The Dalai Lama decided that he had to ban the worship of Dorje Shugden following the advice he received from the spirit Nechung transmitted via a medium. The writings of the Dalai Lama confirm that he makes his decisions based on divination through oracles, dream interpretation and throwing little balls of dough into the air. Considering that his internal and external political activities are based on these methods of discrimination, we should not be surprised that in all these years in exile he has [only] managed mainly to become one of the idols of Hollywood stars. Besides, the spirit Nechung is notorious for making many mistakes. The 13th Dalal Lama died because Nechung gave him poison by mistake.
 

J.C. Deus: Do you think that the Dalai Lama has degenerated?
Kelsang Dewang: A being of high realisations cannot degenerate. There is a point on the spiritual path when it is impossible to go backwards. It is not possible for the Dalai Lama to be a Buddha and then to degenerate; therefore, the only possibility is that he is an ordinary being and his actions are showing it. A real Buddhist does not need to be afraid of spirits, so why should he be?

J.C. Deus
 

Addendum

Spanish author José Catalán Deus is renowned for having worked with the likes of CNN, and other big name newspapers and magazines. He has even published book after book of historical reporting, giving factual accounts of events and issues. His article in a 1997 issue of the Mas Alla magazine is no different. Aiming to fulfil the magazine’s aim to report on events and matters regarding religion, spiritual affairs, and metaphysics, he has provided a balanced, unbiased overview of a somewhat tricky situation – the conflict surrounding the practice of Dorje Shugden, as orchestrated by the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA; Tibetan leadership in Dharamsala). Published well before the height of this coordinated ban, the article is free from the CTA’s machinations to hide the truth.

The CTA have long spewed the false claim that Kyabje Ling Rinpoche did not practice Dorje Shugden but as Deus reports, this is not even close to the truth of the matter. He clearly interviewed the right people and as an independent commentator, discovered that Kyabje Ling Rinpoche did in fact practice Dorje Shugden and has even composed prayers to the deity. In fact, it was not only Kyabje Ling Rinpoche, the senior tutor to His Holiness the Dalai Lama who practised the deity, but Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche, the junior tutor to the Dalai Lama as well. The CTA often claim that these two primary teachers of the Dalai Lama were not involved with the practice, but as Deus’s objective reporting clearly indicates, they both in fact did practice. And Deus has no recourse to lie or take sides on the matter, as such a blunder would have ruined his reporting career – neither he himself nor the magazine he was writing for were linked to Tibetan Buddhism in any way, and therefore have no reason to report either in support for or against the Dorje Shugden ban.

The very fact that an unbiased author, in a matter-of-fact reporting manner, reaffirmed the truth that both tutors of His Holiness the Dalai Lama practised Dorje Shugden, undermined the CTA and exposed them for what they are – liars. What they propagate is nothing near the truth, and here it has been exposed for all to see.

You can scroll down to page 33 of the magazine to see where José Catalán Deus specifically mentions that Kyabje Ling Rinpoche and Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche both practised Dorje Shugden.

The cover of the September 1997 issue of Mas Alla magazine in which the article by José Catalán Deus was published. Click to enlarge.

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José Catalán Deus highlights the fact that both Kyabje Ling Rinpoche and Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche were practitioners of Dorje Shugden here on page 33 of the magazine. The sentence in English reads “Among famous Lamas who have already passed away, Ling Rinpoche and Trijang Rinpoche, the tutors of the Dalai Lama, were probably the most renowned figures who worshipped the controversial deity and protector Dorje Shugden.” Click to enlarge.

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This graphic novel was produced with the motivation of bringing Dorje Shugden all over the world so that the blessings of his life story may pervade and touch lives everywhere. We at this website are committed to this goal.

This graphic novel is available to you ENTIRELY FOR FREE. We only request that you in your compassion bring the practice of this Protector, and share this graphic novel with others. Download, email or print – here are some ways you can spread the world’s first Dorje Shugden graphic novel:

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We hope that this graphic novel which comes from over one year of effort, resources and hard work of our team, will benefit many. May the lineage of Lama Tsongkapa invite everyone onto the practice of impermanence, Bodhicitta, and Emptiness.

The DorjeShugden.com Team

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Original Tibetan scripture

“MUSIC DELIGHTING THE OCEAN OF PROTECTORS”
by Kyabje Trijang Dorje Chang
(click to view clearer images of sample pages)

Tagtshang Lhamo Setri Monastery

One of the earliest Gelug Monasteries that enshrined Dharmapala Dorje Shugden

Lhamo Setri Monastery in Tibet was formerly known as Tagtshang Lhamo Monastery, which means “fairy maiden in the tiger’s den”. The full name of the monastery is Gaden She Dru Pe Kar Drol Wai Ling which translates to Gaden White Lotus Monastery, inspired by a stalactite which looks like a graceful human figure, found inside the cave where the monastery was first established.

Tagtshang Lhamo Setri Monastery was founded by the 53rd Gaden Setri Gyal Tshen Seng Ge of Gaden Monastery in the Thirteenth Wooden Dragon Year of the Tibetan Calendar (AD 1748). The monastery is located on the border of Gansu, Qinghai and Sichuan provinces where the source of Bailong River is, and the strategic location offers the visitors and residents of the monastery a lush and scenic view.

Over the years, five different colleges were established in the monastery focusing in the areas of debate, tantra, Kalachakra Tantra, Tibetan medicine and sutra woodblock printing; eventually the Sangha population in the monastery grew to almost a thousand monks. Unfortunately, many of the monastery’s original structures that held great historical significance, such as the prayer hall, stupa and countless sacred sites along with the blessed items preserved within were destroyed during the Cultural Revolution. Reconstruction of the monastery was later carried out in the Sixteenth Monkey Year of the Tibetan Calendar (AD 1980).

Lhamo Setri Monastery is one of the earliest monasteries that enshrined Dharmapala Dorje Shugden as a Dharma Protector. A massive statue of Dorje Shugden astride a black horse stands in the main prayer hall of Lhamo Setri Monastery. Commissioned by the 2nd reincarnation of Gyalthang Rinpoche, Setri Monastery’s traditional throneholder, the statue represents over 200 years of rich historical significance on the establishment of Dorje Shugden’s practice in great monasteries such as Setri Monastery.

Statue of Dorje Shugden Tanag (Dorje Shugden on a Black Horse) in Lhamo Setri Gompa (Lhamo Setri Monastery)

We at DorjeShugden.com make an auspicious prayer for the essential teachings of Lama Tsongkapa and the precious lineage of Dharmapala Dorje Shugden to spread from Tagtshang Lhamo Setri Monastery in the ten direction. May the Sangha of Setri Monastery continue to turn the wheel of Dharma, bringing Buddha’s teaching to all corners of the earth, reaching new heights of peace and harmony amongst all nations.

More photos of Lhamo Setri Monastery

Golden roofs – a unique feature of Setri Monastery

The main prayer hall

Performing religious rituals in the prayer hall

White stupa right in front of you when entering Setri Monastery

Turning prayer wheels in the White Stupa

Monks of Lhamo Setri Monastery

Preserving the purity of Tsongkapa’s teachings

With a rich history, Setri Monastery is also a major tourist attraction

An aerial view

Lhamo Setri Monastery by night

To Lama Dorje Shugden,

In places where people are wild and untamed,
You assist and protect me. You show reasons for them to turn
Their minds around towards the dharma.

When I have no money, food, medicine or housing,
You provide everything for me. And what I need your provisions grow
And increase with time. You show me the six paramitas continuously.

When I am depressed, sad and lose hope,
You assure me of your presence, your blessings and your friendship
Lifting my spirits. No friend can be better than you.

When I have been abandoned by others who are not real friends,
You are my real friend, confidant and inspiration. You show me a
Friendship that is super worldly and at the same time worldly.

When I am afraid, attacked or have been cheated,
You replace what has been taken, reassure me and
Advise me to continue. You give with love, abundance and no agenda.
You give solely to benefit.

You are my Buddha, my yidam, my Guru, my protector and my
Complete source of blessings. By relying on your rituals, mantras, prayers and puja,
I can always create a powerful Vajra Manjushri link to you that will extend
To future lives.

May I never be separated from you in this and future lives.
Bless me to gain real genuine bodhicitta, love, forgiveness,
Compassion and skilfull means.

You give me purpose, goals and visions that surpass anything
We can be attached to or be tricked by in samsara. Nothing we have attachment
For in samsara can hold light next to your advice and your goals for us.
I trust you and surrender my attachments to your goals and advice. Which are
Meant for my benefit.

Bless me to have entourage, sponsors, help, assistance and
Many auspicious signs from You. Follow me like a shadow to the body.
Never abandon me when my mind occasionally turns negative and
Keep me close to you. Let me always have close contact, signs and omens from you.
You are no other than the Gentle Lord Manjushri in a worldly form to rescue me.

I love you as I have not loved anyone else. I trust you because you will never disappoint me.
I believe in you because you abide in pure compassion and powerful abilities.
I will never choose anything or anyone in samsara over you. You never ask me to choose, but I am just expressing your nature and the reasons for my choice.

Your presence, blessings and existence is permanent without permanence whereas the friends and objects I am attached to do not last and in the end have to be abandoned or leave. I am left in despair even before they leave. But your presence is promised till the 1,000th Buddha appears. I choose you and your ways Lord Protector.

I hold you close to me. You are more precious than diamonds, gold, money, rich friends, foods, travel, palaces, fame and reputation to me as your nature is fixed yet changing. I will remain loyal and devoted to you above anything because it is so rare to find such a support such as you in this degenerate age.

Hold me close. Love me. Protect me. Bless me. Watch over me and my loved ones. Show me swift action to tame my and other’s mind. In return I promise you to work compassionately and skilfully towards the benefit of others. I promise you to develop in this life compassion, love and wisdom so I may rank among the highly skilled beings that take birth for others. Bless me to be so and not be afraid. As fear arises from ignorance and not the state of our goals.

I must and will realize you are far better to cling to than children, parents, husband, wife, partner, friend, sponsor, confidant and any relations I deem to have, have had or will have. By resolutely alliancing myself to You, I will in fact benefit those I have wrongly or conceptually clung to. Bless me to realize and immediately enact this attitude.

May I gain your wisdom mind that is equal to the attainments described by Nagarjuna and Lam Rim. May I not be stuck in the quicksands of samsara and my tight mind anymore. All sufferings, problems, delusions, and their results arise from my clinging to the wrong objects time and time again. Finally I have found the right being to rest my mind with and this being is no other than You.

Om Svasti!

composed by the current incarnation of Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen
May 25th, 2013

Dear readers,

This initiation of Dorje Shugden was conferred in Los Angeles in the 1980s onto Geshe Tsultim Gyeltsen’s own students in Thubten Dhargye Ling. Prior to Kyabje Zong Rinpoche giving the advice, Geshe-la formally requested Kyabje Zong Rinpoche to give an initiation of Dorje Shugden. Geshe Tsultim Gyeltsen was a very strong and devoted practitioner of Dorje Shugden and you can hear Geshe Tsultim Gyeltsen’s voice at the beginning of the video.

After the formal request was made, Kyabje Zong Rinpoche himself, who is the overlord of all tantric mandalas, gave the profound initiation of Dorje Shugden to Geshe-la and all his disciples. And thereafter, Geshe-la and all his students practiced Dorje Shugden very strongly and very devotedly until the ban.

We have no reports of what happened after that.

Transcript :

— (Geshe Tsultrim Gyaltsen speaks in Los Angeles) —

My root guru His Holiness Kyabje Zong Tulku Dorje Chang Lobsang Tsundu Thubten Gyaltsen gives most emanation deity Gyalchen Dorje Shugden’s life entrustment initiation along with very pure and excellent biographies and stories, here is the voice record while giving the empowerment.

I, Geshe Tsultrim Gyaltsen student formally requested.

— (His Holiness Kyabje Zong Rinpoche begins to speak through a translator) —

After receiving this Dorje Shugden initiation, you have to do puja once a month. Also, it is necessary to follow the commitment, and you have to make a commitment with the lineage and with the order.

So that means, for example you [might] receive teachings from different traditions but mainly, your practice, your focus, your energy [should be put] into this lineage, the Gelugpa lineage.

If you have to or if you wish to do some kind of Dharmic activities with other sects of Buddhism, that is okay to do some kind of activities but your main practice or the principle practice, you have to make the commitment with this lineage of Lama Tsongkhapa. That’s why I mentioned before, you have to know and told that you should not take initiation if you are not sure. So once you take this initiation, then you have to make a commitment with the Gelug lineage and this is necessary not to mix up everything.

There are sometimes rumours that people say, “Oh, Shugden initiation is not…”, people say that it is not necessary to take Shugden initiation or, some people say Shugden is even not good protector.

That is not true. People who have this Shugden initiation and people who practice Dorje Shugden, those people have very great, successful meditation and practice. Even worldly measures, like worldly activities and business and job; everything becomes very successful.

Because it says Dorje Shugden is a Gelugpa protector, so some people they think when you say ‘Gelugpa protector’, they think we are narrow-minded and they think people who practice Shugden, they think they are narrow-minded and they think people who practice Shugden, they are sectarian. Actually, not sectarian…maybe because they are sectarian so they think that the people who practice Shugden are sectarian. People make up all kinds of stories and rumours, you should know that beforehand.

Some people, after taking the Shugden initiation and teachings, when they hear these rumours, they think…ignorant people, narrow-minded people make those rumours, and some people think that it is true and so maybe they give up the practice or they even don’t want to have this protector which is very bad, and that is not good for the person.

Actually it is up to you, whatever you want to do is up to you; your own life, everything is your own choice and your freedom and your own enlightenment, and what you want to do or not is up to you but I’m talking about what is good for you. You have to be very careful about what you do and you should not become gullible; you should not just follow someone saying “this is no good” and listen to all these stories from people. You should not change your mind, and you should always be aware and you have to make sure.

In Tibet, it doesn’t matter what people say and actually in Tibet, there’s many people who follow this and do this practice and actually, always there’s more and more people who do this kind of meditation.

So you have to know this, you have to be very sure or otherwise, later on, if people say to you “Oh, this practice is no good” and they make all kinds of stories and rumours…then if you give up, then it’s not good for you and then it will be a big mistake for you. Therefore you have to make sure that you keep this commitment and follow this commitment.

Because this is your own choice, and no one says you should do or you must do this and your own…like you choose to do this so you have to think about this very carefully. No one says you must do this without your own choice, and it’s like if you don’t want to and no one can say “you should do this or shouldn’t do this.”

(repeated from Part 1) Because it says Dorje Shugden is a Gelugpa protector, so some people they think when you say ‘Gelugpa protector’, they think we are narrow-minded and they think people who practice Shugden, they think they are narrow-minded and they think people who practice Shugden, they are sectarian. Actually, not sectarian…maybe because they are sectarian so they think that the people who practice Shugden are sectarian. People make up all kinds of stories and rumours, you should know that beforehand.

This is a very special protector and very precious, so therefore you have to do puja monthly.

You have to do the puja once a month, the prayer, long sadhana or long prayer, once a month but if, for example, if next month, if you know you’re going to be very very busy, if you know that you can’t do this, it’s impossible – then you can do the puja for next month, this month. The month before, you can do two [pujas] within two days.

If you don’t know how to read the sadhana, the prayers; if you cannot do the sadhana or you’re unable to do [the sadhana], then you also can ask the Lama, or monks or teachers to do this for you.

It is very important to know that you really want to take this initiation, and it is not just to come here and take this initiation because other people are taking this initiation. If you feel “I should do this and if I don’t do, then maybe I’m going to miss something”, that is the wrong idea. If you really want to make the commitment, then you should take. Otherwise you shouldn’t.

As I mentioned before, if you don’t know how to say the prayer and if you’re unable to do the puja once a month, then you can ask a Lama or your friend who knows this prayer and this monthly puja – you can invite them to your place, and ask them to do the puja.

Or if you can’t do [the puja] at your home, then even if it’s long-distance, like at some kind of monastery or where the Lama or the friend is – you can ask them, or him or her, to do this puja.

The reason I’m saying this again and again is because if you don’t follow just any kind of people, and if you’re not gullible, then it’s okay.

But it is possible sometimes that even a Lama or monk or some kind of teacher says “this is not right, and it’s wrong, and you shouldn’t do this kind of practice” – then it’s possible that you can change your mind. You think, “Because a Lama or some kind of teacher is saying this to me, maybe it’s true” – so people are very easily influenced and they can change their minds.

And one of the reasons because many Westerners don’t know the Dharma deeply, and all the significance and symbolism and the meanings. They also don’t know who is the right teacher and who is not the right teacher; they just go wherever there is a teacher or some sort of Lama, and they go and listen to all these teachings and that’s why. Westerners are generally very honest people, very direct, and very…they’re good people, they have a good heart.

Like in India or in Tibet, sometimes they…some people, they don’t practice Shugden but they say they are practicing Shugden. And some people, they do practice and they say something else. What people say and what they do is different, and so there’s kind of a corruption.

In India, some people mislead other people, other Tibetans. When some Tibetans ask them to do the Shugden puja, they will say, “Yes, I will do puja for you.” But after they go, they will do something else, and not the Shugden puja – they do another different puja. The people who asked them to do puja, they don’t know – if they can’t read, they can’t read and write – that these people say they are doing Shugden puja, but they don’t do it. They do something else and they just do what they want to do, and it’s very bad.

The reason why they do that is because in India and Tibet, householders will invite laypeople or monks to do this puja. It is a long puja and long day, so the household makes offerings like dana. These people are lying, saying they’re doing the Shugden puja but they don’t do. And they actually don’t like to do Shugden puja but in order to get some kind of benefit or money or some other reason, they say they do the pujas and it’s very very bad and very samsaric motivation.

Eventually those people, the householders who request for the Shugden puja will know or realise; they know that these people are not doing the right puja because they feel that it is not helping. It is not working because they are not doing the real puja. Eventually, they can feel intuitively because it is not helping, it doesn’t feel right. They will say they don’t want those people to do the puja, and will ask someone and make sure that the people who do the Shugden puja, are also practicing Shugden.

Here, we don’t have that kind of problems and there is no doubt. I’m just talking about general stories so that you have some type of understanding and everything.

During the time of the 13th Dalai Lama Thupten Gyatso, Trehor Khangsar Rinpoche was the Abbot of the Tantric College of Gyumey. Among his students were high lamas such as Jampa Chodak, who held the post of the 90th Gaden Tripa. Jampa Chodak was also the student who wrote a biography of Trehor Khangsar Rinpoche.

Pabongka Dechen Nyingpo was also a student of Trehor Khangsar Rinpoche, receiving teachings and initiations that may have well been passed down to many of the most prominent Gelugpa lamas in the world today. In fact, it was from him that Pabongka Rinpoche received the initiation of the Vajrayogini’s tantra in the tradition of Ngulchu Dharmabhadra.

Trehor Khangsar Rinpoche was born in a large town known as Ganzey located in the Eastern part of Tibet, in the Trehor region of Kham. He was also known by the name of Lobsang Tsultrim Denpay Gyaltsen. The name “Trehor” originates from Mongolia, from the time when the Mongols under the rule of Gushri Khan established themselves in the Kham region after defeating the King of Beri. As a young monk, Trehor Khangsar Rinpoche studied the Five Great Treatises at Drepung Loseling College in Lhasa and went on to become the seat holder at Ganzey Monastery. Eventually, he ascended the prestigious and respected position as abbot of Gyumey.

Among the texts written by Trehor Khangsar Rinpoche, we find notable commentaries on the First Stage of Yamantaka, Quick Path Lamrim, the Profound Path of the Six Yogas of Naropa, the Kalachakra Tantra and the Profound Guru Puja. In particular, there is also a specific series of texts on the Kalachakra written by Trehor Khangsar Rinpoche that are still being used to this day.

Trehor Khangsar Rinpoche was also known to have written rituals specifically to protectors. In the fourth volume of Trehor Kangsar Rinpoche’s collected works, we find protector rituals for invoking Dorje Shugden, Setrap and Nechung oracles that were written as a “tangrang” (thanksgiving) for the deities’ activities following auspicious oracle invocations.

In the short request for activity to Dorje Shugden, the Protector is described as riding a snow lion, a description missing from earlier Gelug descriptions. The text also mentions the role of Dorje Shugden as the protector of Manjushrigarba, which is the name of Lama Tsongkhapa’s incarnation in Tushita land. The short request for activity also contains a reminder to protect the Dharma and a request to protect the practitioners from illnesses, for them to have long lives and to be assisted on their path to gain attainment of realisations.

Some contemporary scholars claim that the practice of Dorje Shugden arose and was promoted predominantly by Pabongka Rinpoche. However, the discovery of texts like those written by Trehor Khangsar Rinpoche and other Lamas before him prove that the practice was very much alive and propitiated long before Pabongka Rinpoche.

Later, Pabongka Rinpoche composed the kangsol to Dorje Shugden at the request of a lama of the Kham area, and not on a personal initiative. This alone denotes that Dorje Shugden’s practice and rituals were already established in the region prior to the arrival of Pabongka Rinpoche, countering these scholars’ assertions.

Further, Trehor Khangsar Rinpoche writings referenced the fact that oracle invocations of Dorje Shugden were very much practiced at the time, contrary to later claims that Shugden was restricted by the 13^th Dalai Lama and established only by Pabongka in the mid 20th century.

The catalogue of Lobsang Tamdin lists this particular work, which also means that Dorje Shugden’s practice had found its way to Mongolia. The practice was not confined only to Tibet, but by this time, there were many lamas who had also brought Shugden, as well as other Gelugpa teachings, into Mongolia where it was also flourishing.

Without Pabongka Rinpoche passing on the valuable teachings to his heart disciple, Trijang Dorje Chang, none of us would probably be able to even lay our eyes and hands on this immensely blessed text.

Teachings that are passed down from one generation of teachers to the next generation of disciples are highly blessed. They become the treasured “oral transmissions” that is the heart of the Gelugpa tradition. Therefore, the teacher and disciple relationship is of utmost importance. It is what we call the path of Vajrayana.

For instance, the Southern style Lamrim that we all know today as documented in the Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand was actually a priceless teaching given to a great lama named Kelsang Tenzin directly from the Buddha of Wisdom himself, Manjushri.

Pictured here is an image of Dagpo Jampel Lhundrup who was the Guru of Pabongka Dorje Chang.

Then Kelsang Tenzin had passed on these teachings to Dagpo Kelsang Khedrup, who passed it on to Dagpo Jampel Lhundrub. This is how the special teachings came to Pabongka Rinpoche. It was Pabongka Rinpoche who then spread this teaching to the masses throughout Tibet; and from there, it has spread to the world.

Dagpo Kelsang Khedrup was no ordinary Lama. As the Guru of Pabongka Rinpoche’s Guru, Dagpo Jampel Lhudrup, Dagpo Kelsang Khedrup was the conduit of the many precious teachings that survived and were passed onto Pabongka Rinpoche.

Pabongka Dorje Chang also spoke highly of Dagpo Kelsang Khedrup on many occasions, where he declared Dagpo Kelsang Khedrup as one of the most important Lamas in the Gelugpa Lineage. The role of the lineage holders is very important and thus Dagpo Kelsang Khedrup was honoured in the Lamrim, as well as in the lineage prayers of the Gandapa Heruka Body Mandala.

In his lifetime, Pabongka Rinpoche promoted two specific teachings widely and passionately. One was the Southern style Lamrim which makes up the text Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand, and the other is the practice of a special powerful Dharma Protector, Dorje Shugden.

During the civil unrest in Tibet, Pabongka Rinpoche passed both these practices in their entirety to Kyabje Trijang Dorje Chang, as he knew that he was not able to leave Tibet. Pabongka Rinpoche did not want these precious teachings to die with him but for the lineage to continue and spread far and wide. He believed that in the future, many people would need the special Protector practice of Dorje Shugden as it would benefit many people of this time.

Following the wishes of his Guru, Pabongka Rinpoche, Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche promoted both practices widely, giving thousands of people the valuable Protector Dorje Shugden Initiation. Trijang Rinpoche also wrote the famous commentary, Music Delighting the Ocean of Protectors. This was a commentary on a praise of Dorje Shugden written by Dagpo Kelsang Khedrup that was called “Infinite Aeons”.

In essence, “Infinite Aeons” was a comprehensive text on the Dharmapala Dorje Shugden Fulfillment Ritual. It was passed down to Pabongka Rinpoche, who then passed it onto his closest disciple, Trijang Rinpoche. This became the vital text that Trijang Dorje Chang based his commentary upon in the Music Delighting the Ocean of Protectors. This text is still being studied and used among Shugden practitioners across the globe today.

In “Infinite Aeons”, the great Dharmapala Dorje Shugden’s previous incarnations are listed to include Sakya Pandita, Birwapa, Panchen Sonam Drakpa and Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen. Within this document, there are stories about the erudite Lama, Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen in this extensive praise to Dorje Shugden. There are details of Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen’s life story, how he was murdered, how he arose as the Dharma Protector Dorje Shugden and was enthroned first by the Sakya clan and the Chinese Emperor. It also details how Dorje Shugden was finally confirmed as a Protector by the 5th Dalai Lama himself. Above all, “Infinite Aeons” explains that Dorje Shugden is an enlightened emanation of Manjushri in the wrathful form.

The text states that Dorje Shugden arose as a Protector to guard the precious teachings of the Nagarjuna’s Middle View as taught by the Dharma King, Lord Tsongkhapa.

In this text Dagpo Kelsang Kedrub included the serkym, or golden drink offering ritual, as well as offerings to the three main Yidams – Heruka, Yamantaka and Ghuyasamaja. In addition, we can find complete verses praising each of the five emanations of Dorje Shugden, and the Protector’s entourage – all 32 of them, excluding Kache Marpo.

Dagpo Kelsang Khedrup authored many important texts, such as the biographies of the Lamrim Lamas, generation of Bodhichitta and etc. However, the most crucial text of all would be the “Infinite Aeons”, as it confirms that Dorje Shugden is truly an enlightened being and not an evil spirit. Most importantly, it confirms that Dorje Shugden is none other than Lord Manjushri in a fearsome form.

These are thangkas and scriptures have been destroyed due to the instruction of the Dalai Lama as he tries to enforce the ban on Shugden worship. However, Dorje Shugden still remain in our world to protect Buddhists and non-Buddhists as these beautiful thangkas clearly show.