H.H. the 11th Panchen Lama Bainqen Erdini Qoigyijabu is being recognized more and more by the global Buddhist community. On 20 July 2015, a group of Mongolian Buddhists led by the head of the Mongolian Buddhist Association paid an official visit to the Panchen Lama in Beijing, the capital of China.

This visit signifies that Mongolia, the nation that has historically been responsible for the empowerment of the highest Tibetan Lamas, including the line of the Dalai Lamas, acknowledges Baingen Erdini Qoigyijabu as the 11th incarnation of the Panchen Lamas, who is regarded as the second highest ranking Gelugpa lama and an emanation of Amitabha Buddha.

The 11th Panchen Lama has made it one of his objectives to promote national unity within China. This would translate into better prospects for Tibetans in the Tibet Autonomous Region. Since 1959, the relationship between the Tibetans and the Chinese government has been chilly at times, due to what the Chinese regard as ‘separatist activities’ of the Dalai Lama that find expression in the Tibetan people’s revolt against the government. The 11th Panchen Lama’s role is therefore crucial in building trust between the Tibetans and the Chinese, and it is the hope of many that this Panchen Lama will follow in the footsteps of his predecessor, His Holiness the 10th Panchen Lama, who remained in Tibet when the Dalai Lama escaped in 1959, to hold the Tibetan people together and to lead them during a very difficult period in the country’s history.

As China and Mongolia have historically worked together to facilitate the growth of the Dharma, may this meeting lead to many more future collaborations to further the spread of Je Tsongkapa’s teachings.

Click to enlarge. Source: http://eng.tibet.cn/2010zj/smysr/201507/t20150720_3579498.html

Panchen Lama Qoigyijabu Part 1

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Panchen Lama Qoigyijabu Part 2

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Panchen Lama Qoigyijabu Part 3

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Panchen Lama Qoigyijabu’s 20th Enthronement Anniversary

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About 600 Mongolians attended the Dalai Lama’s teachings on Je Tsongkapa’s Lamrim

By Shashi Kei

In early December 2014, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama gave his annual teachings on Lama Tsongkapa’s “Great Stages of The Path To Enlightenment” (the Lamrim) to an international audience in Dharamsala. The Lamrim is irrefutably one of the most important teachings given by Lama Tsongkapa as a detailed guide to all students of dharma on their spiritual path to liberation. Therefore all Lamrim teachings are, by tradition, to be treated with utmost reverence both by the listener and the teacher.

What made this year’s event different was the presence of over 600 Mongolians in the audience. The teachings were held over three days and not long into the first day’s teaching, it became obvious that the Dalai Lama intended to use this religious platform for his political agenda once again.

#1: The Dalai Lama Breaks His Promise

Two years earlier during the Lamrim teachings of 2012, the Dalai Lama gave his word that he would no longer speak publicly against Dorje Shugden. However, he did not stop. At every opportunity since, the Dalai Lama spoke against the Protector and now, two years later, he used another Lamrim teaching to attack Dorje Shugden as well as the present incarnation of his own guru, Kyabje Trijang Dorje Chang.

The Dalai Lama began his assault by demonizing Dorje Shugden yet again, first by suggesting that Dorje Shugden was happy when the 13th Dalai Lama passed away and that Shugden is now eagerly waiting for the 14th Dalai Lama to die. Given the people’s reverence of the Dalai Lamas, that was said with only one purpose in mind – to poison the audience’s minds against the deity.

Far from wanting to harm the Dalai Lamas, Dorje Shugden in fact helped the 13th Dalai Lama [as narrated in The Garland of Jewels: Chronicles of The Successive Emanations of Lokesvara - http://bit.ly/1xaaIWb] and saved the life of the 14th Dalai Lama [http://bit.ly/1Be3U9v]. It is not difficult to see that had Dorje Shugden wanted the Dalai Lama harmed, he would not have provided the means for the Dalai Lama to escape Tibet just before the Chinese army began shelling the Potala Palace.

Not only has the present Dalai Lama not acknowledged the roles played by Dorje Shugden and Shugden lamas in his life, he has in fact demeaned the devotion and sacrifices of so many Shugden followers, quite without conscience.

• Was it not Trijang Rinpoche and Ling Rinpoche, both Shugden lamas, who tutored the Dalai Lama and took care of his every need?
• Was it not Zemey Rinpoche, another Shugden lama, who assisted the Dalai Lama in his precarious dealings with the Chinese?
• Was it not Shugden lamas who consulted with the Protector and planned the Dalai Lama’s escape (and with it the survival of the Tibetan culture and religion) after Nechung gave the wrong advice for the Dalai Lama to remain in Tibet?
• Was it not Shugden monks from Sera who escorted the Dalai Lama in his dangerous journey, and Shugden believers who formed the Chushi Gangdruk that protected the Dalai Lama all the way to India and then returned to Tibet to join in the fight to liberate their homeland?
• Was it not Guru Deva Rinpoche, yet another Shugden lama, who was instrumental in the rebuilding of the great Gelugpa universities and the re-establishment of Tibetan Buddhist infrastructure in India?

As a matter of fact, Dorje Shugden has played crucial roles throughout the Dalai Lama’s life and now here is the Dalai Lama debasing the Protector and those who have helped him. Such shocking ingratitude is unprecedented in the history of Tibetan Buddhism.

#2: The Dalai Lama Maligns His Teacher

For the Dalai Lama to malign Dorje Shugden is disturbing but it is also to be expected of the person who has banned its practice. What is more alarming is how the Dalai Lama used Je Tsongkapa’s Lamrim teachings to attempt to undermine the reputation of his own teacher’s reincarnation, Kyabje Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche.

The countless great deeds the previous Trijang Dorje Chang had performed for Dharma, the lineage and the country had rendered his reputation unassailable thus the Dalai Lama resorted to maligning the reputation of his reincarnation instead. Ironically, Je Tsongkapa said clearly in the Lamrim Chenmo that the proper reliance on the guru is the root of the path. You cannot honor the path if you dishonor the root of the path, but that point seemed to be lost on the Dalai Lama.

Of his relationship with the incarnation of his holy guru, Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche, the Dalai Lama said this to the audience:

Trijang Rinpoche visited Mongolia. When he was there, the Nechung medium was also there and Trijang Rinpoche and the Nechung medium met and explained everything to Trijang, very clear. Regarding Trijang and me… we have a long story and our relationship goes way back.

Previous Trijang Rinpoche was my tutor. Due to the dolgyal issue, when the current Trijang was small he started facing big problems. I tried many ways to help him to get out of the circle of people keeping him under control… and the people surround him created trouble for him.

The Dalai Lama told the audience a story to portray a younger Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche as a recalcitrant boy who was under the control of “the Dolgyal people” – negative elements whom according to the Dalai Lama, caused Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche serious problems. Indeed the young Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche did face tremendous problems, but not because of the people around him but squarely because of the ban on Dorje Shugden that the Dalai Lama had put into effect without reason or cause. To arouse the Tibetan people’s fear and hatred of the Chinese, the Dalai Lama labeled the deity as a Chinese ghost. And to agitate their sentiments for the Dalai Lama who represents their hope of returning to their homeland, he told them that Dorje Shugden’s practice harms his life and will be the downfall of their efforts to regain their country.

In effect, the Dalai Lama had declared all Shugden practitioners including the incarnation of his own teacher, Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche, to be enemies of the Tibetan nation that had to be treated with contempt. As a result, young tulkus of Shugden lamas such as Trijang Rinpoche and Zong Rinpoche received very serious death threats.

Groups began to form to hunt down Shugden practitioners and one organization known as ‘The Secret Society of Eliminators of the External and Internal Enemies of Tibet’ pronounced its death threat against Shugden worshippers, naming in particular Trijang Rinpoche and Zong Rinpoche. Their statement read:

Anyone who goes against the policy of the government must be singled out, opposed and given the death penalty… As for the reincarnations of Trijang and Zong Rinpoche, if they do not stop practising Dolgyal and continue to contradict the words of H. H. the Dalai Lama, not only will we not be able to respect them but their life and activities will suffer destruction. This is our first warning.’ - [http://goo.gl/1ixeO5]

At no time did the Dalai Lama or the CTA step in to object to this behavior and calm the situation. Instead, the Dalai Lama’s government passed parliamentary resolutions that effectively mandated violence against Shugden worshippers. So it was in fact the Dalai Lama who had caused Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche, who was only 13 years old at that time, all those grievous problems. Those around the young Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche, whom the Dalai Lama insinuated to be bad influences, in fact protected Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche around the clock and even stood guard by his bed at night.

A young Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche with the Dalai Lama. The Dalai Lama gave Trijang Rinpoche an ultimatum to either stop the Shugden practice or end his monastic education

I even told him once secretly to come to Bombay and I will send people to get him back to Dharamsala. Later I met him in America. I talked to him about ways to get out of this problem but he didn’t listen.

And to continue to portray his own teacher negatively, the Dalai Lama gave the impression that he tried patiently and incessantly to help the young Trijang Rinpoche but the latter refused. In fact, what the Dalai Lama did do unrelentingly was to try and force Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche to break his vows and abandon the Shugden practice that the Dalai Lama had resolved to destroy.

From a young age, Trijang Rinpoche had to face the very powerful and oppressive Dalai Lama who did not treat the new incarnation of his guru in a manner that a student should. The previous Trijang Rinpoche gave the Dalai Lama the Dharma, knowledge, protection, love, care and nurtured him like a father would a precious son. And yet, each time the young Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche tried to seek the Dalai Lama’s blessings for him to continue with the Shugden practice which has had profound presence in the line of Trijang Rinpoches – for at least the past three incarnations, he was met with a resounding ‘No’.

Since I have received a lot of teachings from the previous Trijang, I thought they should first be given back to the current incarnation of Trijang Rinpoche… but it has not worked out.

To the audience in the Lamrim teachings, the Dalai Lama gave the impression that he has no relationship today with Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche because Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche rejected him. On the contrary, it is the Dalai Lama who made the rule that the Tibetan people should not have any association whatsoever with Shugden practitioners. In addition, the Dalai Lama has stressed at every occasion including the 2014 Lamrim teachings that Shugden worshippers cannot receive any teachings from the Dalai Lama. So who is rejecting who?

#3: The Dalai Lama Proves There Is A Ban

The last time Trijang Rinpoche met with the Dalai Lama was in Graz, Austria in 2003 and then, as before, the Dalai Lama gave Trijang Rinpoche an ultimatum. On that particular occasion in Graz, the Dalai Lama had said to Trijang Rinpoche:

If you give up this deity, myself and all Tibetan people will appreciate it very much and our protector Nechung will take care of you and make you more successful and famous than ever. If you do not give up this deity, then your monastic career, like receiving the full monk’s ordination and taking Geshe examinations will not be possible. So I leave it to your judgment. Yes or No?
- [http://www.shugdensociety.info/historyEvents1998EN.html]

The ultimatum to Trijang Rinpoche provides a rare insight into the Dalai Lama’s mind that triggered a very destructive religious controversy. It therefore warrants careful attention:

1. It shows that the Dalai Lama never intended for anyone to have a real choice in the Dorje Shugden matter even though both he and the Central Tibetan Administration insist that the Dalai Lama had simply provided “advice” with regards to the Shugden practice. If that was true, the Dalai Lama would not have imposed conditions on Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche. This is after all the Dalai Lama’s holy guru. What kind of student who values the dharma and the source of dharma would treat his guru this way?
2. It shows the heavy hand that the Dalai Lama wields against those who oppose his wish. Dalai Lama the politician was prepared to deny an ordained monk his monastic education. A ‘simple Buddhist monk’ would never do that, especially if he is the custodian of the spiritual well-being of the monastic community
3. It shows the Dalai Lama is disrespectful of the all-important Tibetan Buddhist tradition, which is to regard the guru as the root of all paths, as Je Tsongkapa and many other Buddhist saints taught. And if the guru is not held as sacred in the Dalai Lama’s eyes, and similarly if vows and commitments mean nothing to him, then what is sacred?
4. It shows the Dalai Lama’s hypocrisy. The Dalai Lama regularly accuses Shugden practitioners of worshipping a spirit for the sake of worldly gain, but he is in the meantime depending on Nechung, a worldly spirit for not only the same but also to bribe and corrupt others into breaking their vows.
5. And following from that, it shows that the Dalai Lama placed such importance on worldly gain and fame that he thought it would be enough to entice Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche away from a true spiritual path.
6. It shows the Dalai Lama was prepared to use ultimatums, intimidation and fear to coerce others into submitting to him. These are not characteristics of a ‘simple Buddhist monk’.
7. It shows the Dalai Lama had assumed Nechung to be the protector of the Gelugpa lineage (via his reference to Nechung as ‘our protector) instead of Kalarupa as was practiced by Je Tsongkapa. Conversely, when Pabongka Rinpoche instructed students to take Dorje Shugden as their dharma protector, he was accused of distorting Je Tsongkapa’s teachings. An extremely hypocritical accusation.

While that incident exposed the degeneration that had set in the Dalai Lama’s mind, at the same time it revealed the purity of Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche’s practice. Trijang Rinpoche could not be bought or coerced, but neither would he allow himself to dishonor his devotion to the Dalai Lama who was also his student in Trijang Rinpoche’s past life.

In the end, Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche made the difficult decision to disrobe as a monk and to retreat into solitary life as an ordinary practitioner. And till this very day, Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche has not made a single disparaging remark about the Dalai Lama despite all the hardship the Dalai Lama inflicted upon him and other Shugden practitioners.

#4: The Dalai Lama Guards His Power Base

Since Trijang Rinpoche’s re-emergence in 2012, it became obvious that he is still highly revered and regarded as the most important lama in the Gelugpa lineage. It worried the Dalai Lama that Kyabje Trijang Dorje Chang, whom many in the lineage consider to have achieved attainments equal to the Dalai Lama, had returned. And this is happening at a time when the Dalai Lama’s popularity as a world figure seems to be on the decline as cracks began to appear in his well-practiced public persona.

The Dalai Lama had an urgent political agenda during the recent Lamrim teachings. The presence of the Mongolians, the special attention the Dalai Lama accorded them, and the negative remarks that the Dalai Lama made during the teachings about Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche and Dorje Shugden were not mere coincidences. The Dalai Lama meant to use the religious platform to curb Trijang Rinpoche’s rising popularity with the Mongolians who have been supportive of Trijang Rinpoche all this while.

Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche arrived in Mongolia in September 2014 to a rousing reception, not long after the Dalai Lama’s own planned visit had been revoked due to Chinese pressure. A true ‘simple Buddhist monk’ would rejoice at Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche’s popularity in Mongolia, and that the Chinese seem not to disapprove of Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche.

Mongolia has historically played a key role in the establishment of Tibetan Buddhist leadership. The rise of the Fifth Dalai Lama was with the support of the Mongolians. In turn, Tibetan Buddhism has shaped the Mongolian way of life in a profound way, sometimes playing a more influential role than politics in shaping policies and decisions. Therefore a prominent Tibetan-Gelugpa lama would be able to command a respectable standing within the Mongolian establishment. Until recently that honor had been the Dalai Lama’s.

Kyabje Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche in Mongolia earlier this year

If the Dalai Lama had the wellbeing of the Tibetan people and the good of Tibetan Buddhism in mind, he would see the benefits in Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche’s relationship with the Mongolians and the potential bridge it could build with China.

In fact, perhaps in Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche lies the Tibetan people’s only remaining ticket to returning to their homeland via negotiations brokered by the Mongolians whose natural resources and strategic location are deemed important to the Chinese.

But then the Dalai Lama has never been a simple Buddhist monk and thus saw Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche to be a threat, one only a politician would perceive. Hence, instead of assisting Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche, the Dalai Lama sought to diffuse the perceived threat. And so, with the 2014 Lamrim teachings, the Dalai Lama began the process of undermining Trijang Rinpoche’s stronghold in the Tibetan and Mongolian communities.

#5: The Dalai Lama Contradicts Himself Yet Again

The world at large sees the Dalai Lama as a Buddha incarnate, a man of peace who is the embodiment of all that is honest and good. And because of the implied currency of trust that comes with the image the Dalai Lama has successfully sold to the public, they have stood idly by as mute witnesses to the Dalai Lama’s persecutions of Dorje Shugden worshippers. However, it is not at all difficult to see though this facade if one was to decide to awake from the hypnosis.

For instance, the Dalai Lama tells the Mongolians and the audience that they should stop their worship of Dorje Shugden. He assured them that nothing bad would happen to them if they stopped their practice by implying a certain spiritual superiority over Shugden:

If Dolgyal wants to harm you, you should tell him to see the Dalai Lama…

The very next day, the same Dalai Lama told the same audience that if those who practice Shugden were to receive teachings from the Dalai Lama, his life would be harmed.

The main point is that the Dalai Lama lineage cannot practice Dorje Shugden and those who come to receive teachings cannot practice. To do so breaks samaya and harms me.

By inference, the Dalai Lama is saying that a student’s broken samaya will harm their teacher and yet for almost 20 years, the Dalai Lama has forced Shugden practitioners, even monks, to disown their gurus and Protector. If broken samaya can harm the Dalai Lama, can it not also harm the gurus of Shugden practitioners who renounce their teachers and the practice given to them? If so, has not the ban caused many gurus and students to be harmed?

Now the dolgyal renegades are calling me a fake Dalai Lama and protesting against me. They have showed me wearing a Muslim cap. I do that because I try to promote interfaith harmony. Some of these people are saying I am Muslim. I can’t please everybody.

The Dalai Lama also said that he has been accused of being a Muslim for wearing a Muslim cap while attending an Islamic event. He explained that he did so with the intention of fostering religious harmony amongst the different religions. That itself does not hold water given the fact that the Dalai Lama is actively discriminating against the belief in a deity (Dorje Shugden) and the practice of worshipping that deity. If the Dalai Lama is sincere about religious harmony, why has he shown such contempt for a religious practice that has been at the heart of the Gelugpa lineage for over 300 years? Again the Dalai Lama’s actions do not match his words.

Perhaps what betrayed the Dalai Lama’s real motive for the Shugden ban was when he told the audience that the ‘Dalai Lama lineage’ cannot practice Dorje Shugden. The simple fact is that there is no Dalai Lama lineage that stands apart from the Gelugpa lineage founded by Je Tsongkapa. And all Gelugpa stalwarts propitiate Dorje Shugden as they have been for some time. Therefore, if the Dalai Lama’s ambition was to redefine the Gelugpa tradition to suit his political ambitions, he has to find a way to shift the power base away from the high Gelugpa lamas to him exclusively. And banning the Shugden practice was the strategy the Dalai Lama deployed to accomplish that objective – divide the lineage and rule. It was never about Dorje Shugden per se.

#6: The Dalai Lama’s Real Strategy

The Dorje Shugden supporters are saying that I was born to intentionally destroy Tsongkapa’s teachings but what I have done all my life is to promote it…

All this political manoeuvring has come at great expense to the pure lineage that Je Tsongkapa founded which the present Dalai Lama seems determined to destroy. It is not so much the deity that stands in the Dalai Lama’s way but the strong devotion the Shugden practitioner gives to his lama. And so, if we were to try and understand the Dorje Shugden controversy from the perspective of the spiritual reasons given to justify the ban, nothing would make any sense. As such, until this day the Dalai Lama has not been able to provide any scriptural evidence or even a logical and rational argument based on principles of Buddhism to support the claims made against Dorje Shugden.

Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche himself is living proof that the Dalai Lama’s reasons are false. How can the previous Kyabje Trijang Dorje Chang, undoubtedly one of the most attained Shugden masters in history reincarnate as a high lama to resume his Dharma work, which Kyabje Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche is manifesting today, if Dorje Shugden is truly a dark demonic force? That would defeat the principles of karma itself.

At the same time I practice Nyingma, Sakya and Kagyu teachings… because, Panchen Lobsang Choekyi Gyaltsen who was the contemporary of the Fifth Dalai Lama, said in a beautiful verse that the essence of all four traditions boils down to the same point… and should understand and practice all four traditions… what I lack from one side I take from another side…

However, if we were to look at the Dalai Lama’s actions in recent history from the perspective of his political ambitions, then the picture falls into place. The Dalai Lama divided the largest Tibetan Buddhist sect, the Gelugpa, with the Dorje Shugden conflict. He similarly divided the second largest Tibetan Buddhist sect, the Karma Kagyu by interfering in the Kagyu’s internal affairs of recognizing and enthroning its head of the lineage. Today we have two Karmapas, one of whom is closely connected with the Dalai Lama. The Dalai Lama formed an alliance with the Nyingmapa by embracing its core teachings as his own. The Sakyapa have never been politically active in the history of Tibet and so they are spared the Dalai Lama’s political gamesmanship.

In addition the Dalai Lama forged an alliance with the Bon tradition, a form of Tibetan spirit worship, by recognizing it as the official sixth lineage in Tibetan Buddhism and forbade any discrimination against it on the basis that it is undemocratic. [Kværne, Per and Rinzin Thargyal. (1993). Bon, Buddhism and Democracy: The Building of a Tibetan National Identity, pp. 45-46. Nordic Institute of Asian Studies. ISBN 978-87-87062-25-1]. It is noteworthy that the same treatment and respect have not been accorded the Shugden worshippers by the Dalai Lama. This affirms that falsity of an often quoted reason for the Dalai Lama to ban the Shugden practice – that it is spirit worship that causes the Dharma to degenerate.

And finally to complete his plan, the Dalai Lama officially recognized the Jonangpa as the fifth Tibetan Buddhist lineage and went to great lengths to rebuild a very small lineage of only about 40 monasteries with 5000 monks. The Jonang lineage was in fact absorbed into the Gelugpa lineage by the Fifth Dalai Lama but the 14th Dalai Lama reversed that status, removing the Jonang from the Gelugpa lineage and returning it to its own identity as part of the process of shifting the Gelugpa power base. The Jonang tradition is known for its Kalachakra tradition and as we know, the Dalai Lama has given more Kalachakra initiations than any known lamas in modern times, with such initiations being perfect opportunities for the Dalai Lama to swear initiates to oaths of loyalty to him.

Furthermore, with the Mongolian factor playing a crucial role in the Dalai Lama’s power grab, he had to diminish Guru Deva Rinpoche’s influence over the Mongolian people. Thus, to seal the deal, the Dalai Lama assigned Khalkha Jetsun Dhampa Rinpoche of Mongolia, as head of the Jonang lineage. And to the Mongolian audience in the Lamrim teachings, the Dalai Lama expressed his eagerness to find and enthrone the next head of the Jonang, the previous Khalkha Jetsun Dhampa Rinpoche having entered clear light in 2012. A new head of the lineage would at last allow the Dalai Lama to resume his divide and conquer of the Mongolian people.

Dalai Lama’s Great Stages of The Path Teachings – Day 1:

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Dalai Lama’s Great Stages of The Path Teachings – Day 2:

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Dalai Lama’s Great Stages of The Path Teachings – Day 3:

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In Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia, there is a temple that faithfully remains loyal to the practice of Dorje Shugden. Established in 1990, the Tugs Bayasgalant Nunnery was built with great perseverance through a ten-year of struggle, and is now maintained and operated by a group of Mongolian women and lay nuns who have strong faith and devotion to Dorje Shugden. The gonpa (main prayer hall) of the nunnery features a beautiful shrine dedicated to Tara.

Tugs Bayasgalant, which means Heaven of Joy, is one of the few nunneries in Ulaanbaatar. Led by its current Abbess, a lay Buddhist nun named Gantamur, the temple focuses on Buddhist study and practice. In fact, in 2008 there were 21 nuns at Tugs Bayasgalant nunnery, half of which had graduated with a Bachelors degree in Buddhist studies from Zanabazar Buddhist University. This was the first time Mongolian women had been granted such an honor.

Tugs Bayasgalant has been blessed with visits from erudite Dorje Shugden lamas including H.H. Trijang Rinpoche, H.E. Zasep Rinpoche, H.E. Zava Damdin Rinpoche and many others, who fearlessly dedicate their lives to spreading the lineage and practice of Dorje Shugden worldwide.

May all at Tugs Bayasgalant nunnery continuously be blessed with the wisdom of Dorje Shugden and continue to propagate the Gelugpa lineage and practice of Dorje Shugden to many Mongolian women in Ulaanbaatar.

The main gompa at Tugs Bayasgalant

Dorje Shugden altar in Tugs Bayasgalant

A close-up of the Dorje Shugden altar

A beautiful shrine dedicated to Tara

The nuns of Tugs Bayasgalant

Abbess Gantamur, the head of the nunnery

An extremely old and precious thangka of Lama Losang Thubwang Dorje Chang that survived the cultural revolution, passed down through many generations.

A statue of Guru Deva Rinpoche in Tugs Bayasgalant

His Holiness Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche visited Tugs Bayasgalant and expounded the Dharma to the lay nuns

His Eminence Zava Damdin Rinpoche, an erudite Mongolian Lama of the Gelug tradition has also visited Tugs Bayasgalant

The current incarnation of Geshe Tendar at Tugs Bayasgalant

Zasep Rinpoche enthroned in the main gonpa of Tugs Bayasgalant Nunnery in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Zasep Rinpoche giving audience to the Abbess and nuns of Tugs Bayasgalant. Zasep Rinpoche is the Spiritual Director of Gaden for the West

Zasep Rinpoche, the Abbess Gantamur (center) and some lay nuns

The term Mongols commonly refers to the Mongols proper (a.k.a. Khalkha), the Kalmyks, Buryats, Oirats, and Southern Mongols. Ancient Chinese texts trace the ancestry of the Mongolic peoples to Donghu, a nomadic confederation occupying eastern Mongolia and Manchuria.

The growth of the Mongol Empire led the Mongols to settle over almost all of Europe and Asia. Besides successful empire building, the Mongols also carried out military campaigns from the Adriatic Sea to the Indonesian island of Java and from Japan to Palestine (Gaza). Over time, as a result of their conquests, the Mongols became the Padishahs of Persia, Emperors of China, Great Khans of Mongolia and one even became Sultan of Egypt!

Buddhism arrived in Mongolia from Tibet in the 13th century, during the time of Genghis Khan.

By 1279, the Mongols conquered the Song Dynasty and brought all of China under control of the Yuan Dynasty. Although the emperors of the Yuan Dynasty in the 14th and 15th century had already converted to Tibetan Buddhism, the religion did not stick with the Mongols during this period. They returned to their old shamanist ways after the collapse of their empire.

The amazing Mongol Empire circa 1294

The Gelug school becomes the state religion of Mongolia

Despite the collapse of their empire, the Mongols continued to play an important role in neighbouring Tibet by assisting in Tibetan unification. The activities of the Mongols were conducive to the prominency of the Sakya school and then Gelug, and to the further development of the Tibeto-Mongolian civilisation.

School and state were intertwined and supporting, and the doctrine of reincarnation made it possible for the reincarnations of living Buddhas to be “discovered” conveniently in the families of powerful Mongol nobles.

In 1576 the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism became the state religion of Mongolia.

In 1578 Altan Khan, a Mongol military leader with ambitions to unite the Mongols invited the head of the rising Gelug lineage of Tibetan Buddhism, Sonam Gyatso, to a summit. They eventually developed an alliance that gave Altan Khan legitimacy and religious sanction for his imperial ambitions which conversely provided the Buddhist school with protection and patronage.

Altan Khan also gave the Tibetan leader Sonam Gyatso the title of Dalai Lama (Ocean Lama). Altan Khan died soon after, but in the next century the Gelug School spread throughout Mongolia, aided in part by the efforts of contending Mongol aristocrats to win religious sanction and mass support for their efforts to unite the Mongols in a single state.

Tibetan Buddhism thrived in Mongolia until the beginning of the 20th century, where there were some 100,000 monks. It is estimated that a third of Mongolia’s male population were Buddhist lamas then, living in 700 monasteries.

But communism began to take hold in the 1920s and, after more than a decade of failed attempts to wipe out Buddhism, Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin and his Mongolian protege, Khorloogiin Choibalsan, unleashed a brutal purge in 1937, destroying temples and decimating the clergy.

No one knows exactly how many monks and nuns were killed but mass graves uncovered in recent years indicate tens of thousands disappeared between the 1930s and 1960s. Some put the figure at 30,000 killed, with another 10,000 banished to Siberian labor camps. By 1940, institutional Buddhism had ceased to exist in the Mongolian People’s Republic.

The Dalai Lamas

Sonam Gyatso was born near Lhasa in 1543 and was recognised as the reincarnation of Gendun Gyatso and subsequently enthroned at Drepung Monastery by Panchen Sonam Drakpa, the 15th Ganden Tripa, who also became his tutor. Sonam Gyatso studied at Drepung Monastery and eventually became its abbot. His reputation spread quickly and the monks at Sera Monastery also recognised him as their abbot.

The title “Dalai Lama” was first bestowed by the Mongolian ruler Altan Khan upon Sonam Gyatso in 1578. This is how it happened.

Since the time of the great Genghis Khan, only people who were of his “royal” lineage were allowed to rule Mongolia. This frustrated many would-be rulers who were not of this line and Altan Khan was the most destructive of these usurpers. He perceived that through the Buddhist faith, he could gain legitimacy by claiming to be a reincarnation of Khublai Khan.

Sonam Gyatso

Sonam Gyatso, a monk of the Gelugpa (Yellow Hat) school of Buddhism, was then in a position responsible for finding a foreign patron for Gelugpa institutions. He found this patron in Altan Khan.

Altan Khan first invited Sonam Gyatso to Mongolia in 1569, but it is said that Sonam Gyatso refused to go and sent a disciple in his stead, who reported back to Sonam Gyatso about the great opportunity to spread Buddhist teachings throughout Mongolia.

Altan Khan again invited Sonam Gyatso to Mongolia in 1571 and embraced Tibetan Buddhism. After some hesitation, with followers begging him not to go, Sonam Gyatso’s party set out and was met at Ahrik Karpatang in Mongolia where a specially prepared camp had been set up to receive them. Thousands of animals were given to him as offerings and five hundred horsemen had been sent to escort him to Altan Khan’s court. When they arrived there, they were greeted by over ten thousand people including Altan Khan dressed in a white robe to symbolize his devotion to the Dharma.

In 1578, Sonam Gyatso proclaimed Altan Khan to be the reincarnation of Khublai Khan, and in return, Altan Khan gave the title “Dalai Lama” to Sonam Gyatso. Altan Khan also posthumously awarded the title to his two predecessors, making Sonam Gyatso the 3rd Dalai Lama. Sonam Gyatso also publicly announced that he was a reincarnation of Phagpa while Altan Khan was a reincarnation of Kublai Khan, and they had come together again to cooperate in propagating the Buddhist religion.

Altan Khan

Altan Khan had Thegchen Chonkhor, Mongolia’s first monastery, built and a massive program of translating Tibetan texts into Mongolian commenced. Within 50 years, most Mongols had become Buddhist, with tens of thousands of monks who were members of the Gelug order loyal to the Dalai Lama.

Sonam Gyatso’s message was that the time had come for Mongolia to embrace Buddhism, that from that time on there should be no more animal sacrifices, that images of the old gods were to be destroyed, that there must be no taking of life, animal or human, that military action must be given up and that the immolation of women on the funeral pyres of their husbands must be abolished. He also secured an edict abolishing the Mongol custom of blood sacrifices. These and many other such laws were set forth by Sonam Gyatso and were instituted by Altan Khan. According to legend, Avtai Sain Khan was also given a Buddha relic by the Third Dalai Lama to help spread of Buddhism.

The alliance with the Mongols would later prove instrumental in establishing the Gelug order as the rulers of Tibet during the reign of the Great Fifth Dalai Lama.

Altan Khan died in 1582, only four years after meeting with the Third Dalai Lama. He was succeeded by his son Sengge Düüreng who continued to diligently support Buddhism, and two years later the Third Dalai Lama decided to make another visit to Mongolia. On his way, he founded the monastery of Kumbum at the birthplace of the great teacher and reformer, Je Tsongkapa. By 1585, he was back in Mongolia and had converted more Mongol princes and their tribes.

The Dalai Lama was again invited to visit the Ming emperor, which he accepted, but this time he fell ill and died (in 1588, aged 45) in Mongolia whilst on his way back to Tibet. Altan Khan’s great-grandson, Yonten Gyatso, was selected as the 4th Dalai Lama, thus making him the only non-Tibetan Dalai Lama.

Monks were some of the leading intellectuals in Mongolia, responsible for much of the literature and art of the pre-modern period. Many Buddhist philosophical works lost in Tibet and elsewhere are still preserved in older and purer form in Mongolian ancient texts (e.g. the Mongol Kanjur). Zanabazar (1635–1723), Zaya Pandita (1599–1662) and Danzanravjaa (1803–1856) are among the most famous Mongol holy men.

Namkar Barzin

Namkar Barzin

Namkar Barzin is the second minister to Dorje Shugden after Kache Marpo. He is one of the newest members of Dorje Shugden’s entourage, whose history goes back to around 60-75 years ago. He is not an enlightened being but an oath-bound Dharma Protector, after being subdued as a raging spirit by Domo Geshe Rinpoche and placed under the command of Dorje Shugden.

Namkar Barzin was a Mongolian man who traveled from Mongolia to Dungkar Monastery with only one wish, to be ordained as a monk. He was old and poor but still made the effort to travel a far distance to seek solace.

Unfortunately, when he arrived at the monastery, Namkar Barzin was ill treated by the resident monks because he was merely a penniless old beggar. The monk in-charge rejected Namkar Barzin’s request to be ordained and chased him out. This sincere beggar, who thirsted for the Dharma so much and who had nothing else but the Dharma to depend on, again requested help from four monks who he met outside the monastery. However, to his dismay, he was insulted and beaten up by them.

At that point, Namkar Barzin became enraged and cursed the monks who ill-treated him, saying that they would all die within a year. Much later, this poor Mongolian man was found dead near a place known as Pema Choling. The nomads who lived in that area saw his body and threw it into a river where it got caught between some rocks for days. Herders nearby who saw Namkar Barzin’s body amused themselves by throwing stones at him and making fun of him.

Although already dead, fiery anger arose in Namkar Barzin which turned him into a fearsome raging spirit. This was when the nightmare for that area began.

A weird disease erupted and spread, causing many herders and their yaks to fall ill and die, including one of the monks who had previously mistreated Namkar Barzin. Once, Namkar Barzin even possessed a victim and clearly indicated how many more people he was going to kill.

Respite only came when Domo Geshe Rinpoche, who was then the abbot of Dungkar Monastery, heard of this bad news and went to tame the angry spirit. After successfully subduing Namkar Barzin, Domo Geshe Rinpoche made him take an oath to protect Dharma teachings and the area where Dungkar Monastery was situated. Domo Geshe Rinpoche also put Namkar Barzin under the command of Dorje Shugden as the second minister of Dorje Shugden’s entourage, where he would be able to collect vast merits and benefit countless sentient beings for infinite lifetimes.

Jaya Pandita (1642 – 1708)

Jaya Pandita

A boy with promising signs was born in Mongolia to the royal bloodline of the legendary Chinggis Khan. He would later emerge as a most important figure between the Mongolian and Tibetan worlds, who would come to be among the most significant students of the renowned master Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen, and known for having preserved the secret biography (namthar) of this great master.

In his youth, he traveled to Tibet, enrolled into Tashi Lhunpo Monastery and began his monastic curriculum. In 1660, the Great Fifth Dalai Lama bestowed the title ‘Jaya Pandita’ upon the young monk on the auspicious occasion of his ordination. He practiced Yamantaka, Sitatapatra and Guhyasamaja as his yidams and delved into the contemplation of the great treatises while studying the medical treatises. Some of the greatest Tibetan masters of that time were his spiritual mentors, including of course the most illustrious Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen.

He would later return to Mongolia and spend the rest of his life translating a great number of important Tibetan texts into Mongolian. Jaya Pandita himself was a great linguist and his exposure to the technical sophistication of the Tibetan written language inspired him to revise the Mongol alphabet, making the Mongol written language phonetically more accurate. This later became the genesis of an independent literary tradition.

Due to political reasons, the written records of Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen were tampered with or wiped out in Tibet. However, one of the few surviving documents that details the life and writings of Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen was preserved amongst the written works of Jaya Pandita, as well as the biographies of his previous incarnations. Not only do these biographies link Dorje Shugden closely to his illustrious previous lives, they also explored the most secret, mystical side of Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen, revealing for example some of the visions that this master had even when he was still very young. The story of Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen’s transformation into Dorje Shugden, the Protector of the Ganden tradition also fired the popular imagination of the Mongol scholars.

Mongolian scholar Lobsang Tamdin later analysed the meaning of a prophecy that Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen had received from Panchen Lama Lobsang Chokyi Gyeltsen – that as soon as Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen passed away, the Chinese emperor came into the world. This was a clear indication that the Emperor Kangxi of the Qing dynasty was none other than the incarnation of Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen. He also became famously known as an emanation of Manjushri, with specifically close connections to Wu Tai Shan in China, the abode of Manjushri.

By these writings, the initial diffusion of Dorje Shugden’s practice in Mongolia is inextricably linked to the popularity of these texts. Unfortunately, this tradition of recognizing Dorje Shugden on the basis of his previous lives came to an end in the 19th century. More unfortunately, many scholars today fail to reference these early sources in their contemporary discussions of Dorje Shugden, often leaning more towards the recent discussions of him as a spirit rather than relying on the texts of old which clearly pointed to his enlightened nature.

The legacy that Jaya Pandita left behind after his demise was not restricted to the literary tradition alone. He also founded an important monastery in Mongolia and four other monastic colleges.

Present-Day Lamas and Monasteries

Khalkha Jetsun Dhampa

His Eminence the 9th Khalkha Jetsun Dhampa Dorjee Chang Jampel Namdrol Choekyi Gyaltsen

There is no Lama more highly respected and loved within the Mongolian Buddhist community than Khalkha Jetsun Dhampa Rinpoche, in all of his incarnations. (Khalkha is one of the largest regions of Mongolia, and Jetsun Dhampa means “Lord of Refuge”).

The Khalkha Jetsun Dhampa Khutuktus are the spiritual heads of the Gelug lineage of Tibetan Buddhism in Mongolia. They also hold the title of Bogd Gegeen, making them the top-ranked lamas in Mongolia. He is to the Mongolians what the Dalai Lama is to the Tibetans.

The first Khalkha Jetsun Dhampa was recognized by the 5th Dalai Lama. Since that time, both have enjoyed a very close relationship that has also contributed to the rapid growth of Tibetan Buddhist lineages and teachings within Mongolia. Today, Mongolian communities throughout the world has as much respect for Khalkha Jetsun Dhampa as they do for the Dalai Lama.

All incarnations of Khalkha Jetsun Dhampa are strongly remembered for the pivotal role they have played in bringing Buddhism to Mongolia, causing it to grow and keeping it alive to this very day. They have become leaders of the country in their own right, with some of them even leading the country in secular and political affairs.

The Fourth Jetsun Dhampa, of the 18th Century, rose to fame for creating many Buddhist images and texts, making many offerings in his life and for establishing numerous monastic institutions for learning with specialties in debates and meditation. Jetsun Dhampa also had a connection with the very famous Amarbayasgalant Monastery in Mongolia, having built temples in the area. After he passed away, his remains were also enshrined here.

With a special aptitude for grasping the many teachings of both Sutra and Tantra, this incarnation was known for both strong commitment to his personal practice and for creating the foundation for Gelug teachings to flourish throughout Mongolia.

It was also around this time that Dorje Shugden’s practice was starting to take more prominence within the Gelugpa schools of Tibet, with notable praises to Dorje Shugden being written by many Lamas.

Jetsun Dhampa’s contribution to these canons of texts was unique for the references he made to Shambhala in the texts he composed. Shambala is known to be one of the places where Dorje Shugden resides, while Jetsun Dhampa’s previous incarnation Taranatha was very famous for having mastered the Kalachakra Tantra and frequently passing on the initiation.

The Kalachakra practice is very closely associated with Shambhala for it is believed that the Tantra was first taught there by Shakyamuni and strongly preserved there. The prayers written by Jetsun Dhampa call upon this connection that Dorje Shugden has with Shambhala, thus helping practitioners to create an affinity with this deeply spiritual place and its realized beings.

In recent times, the Jetsun Dhampas continue to maintain a very close and mutually supportive relationship with the many incarnations of the Dalai Lamas. The 9th Khalkha Jetsun Dhampa Khutuktu Jampal Namdol Chökyi Gyaltsen (1932 – 2012), was installed by the Dalai Lama as the head of the Jonang lineage. Furthermore, the current Dalai Lama and 9th Jetsun Dhampa spent much of their childhood together, studying under the same tutors, playing, and at family gatherings. It was probably from this long-standing relationship that Mongolia and Tibet have enjoyed a strong friendship and that Buddhist practices have been able to spread so quickly and firmly among Mongolian communities.

Lobsang Tamdin (1867 – 1937)

Lobsang Tamdin

Lobsang Tamdin, a Mongolian scholar and master, was a lineage holder of many practices. He became especially known for collecting many important texts written by Mongolian and Tibetan masters throughout his life. He was also known for having composed rituals to Dorje Shudgen.

Lobsang Tamdin began his studies first in Ganden Monastery, Ulanbataar (Mongolia) where he mastered the Sutras and Tantras. This was also where he received his ordination vows. While he was most renowned for his academic contribution to Dharma and the many comprehensive texts he authored (compiled in 12 volumes, including important texts from other masters, historical accounts of the birth of various monasteries, the history of Buddhism in India, Tibet and Mongolia, and rituals and prayers of Dorje Shugden), Lobsang Tamdin is also remembered for certain miracles he performed in his lifetime, including the spontaneous manifestation of two stupas inscribed with mystical letters.

Lobsang Tamdin’s works include Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen’s biography and a book on Dorje Shugden’s reincarnation lineage. In his account, Lobsang Tamdin stated that Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen took rebirth as the Kangxi Emperor of China who was widely believed to be the emanation of Red Manjushri. He also authored various other works related to Dorje Shugden, including a propitiation text and praise to Dorje Shugden.

On top of everything that he personally authored, Lobsang Tamdin made a remarkable contribution to the vast collection of Buddhist texts by documenting all the lineages of transmissions to practices which he received, based upon the canon of teachings and commentaries already existing at the time. This is very important for it traced the ways in which practices had been passed down from one master to another, thus validating the authenticity of each practice and teaching. Validating the lineage of any practice is an especially important point in Buddhism so as to ensure that the practice received comes unbroken across the generations of teachers and can be traced back to its original, most authentic source.

One particularly noteworthy documentation was that of the Dorje Shugden bepum, for which Lobsang Tamdin located and noted the transmission for almost all texts within that collection. This document continued to be referred to and held in high esteem by many masters after him and is a central reference text to all the most important Shugden texts.

Zava Damdin Rinpoche and Delgeruun Choira Monastery

Zava Damdin Rinpoche

Delgeruun Choira is the traditional seat of Zava Damdin Rinpoche, a lineage of lamas whose stature was almost as great as the Bodg Khans of Mongolia. The previous incarnation was a famed scholar, yogi, healer and mahasiddha who wrote 16 volumes of commentaries to Buddhist Sutras and Tantras as well as many ritual texts.

Zava Damdin Rinpoche arises from a new generation of eminent young lamas who remain devoted practitioners of the Dharma Protector Dorje Shugden in spite of the unlawful ban on this deity. Actually, because of lamas like Zava Damdin Rinpoche, the practice has continued to see enormous growth around the world and in countries such as Mongolia which has long held a strong historical and religious connection with Tibetan Buddhism. Given Zava Damdin Rinpoche’s busy schedule, it would appear that there is no shortage of Mongolian Buddhists wishing to continue with the 350-year-old Shugden practice and the many other teachings of this lineage.

The current Zava Damdin Rinpoche picks up where his previous reincarnation left off and continues to work for the benefit of all sentient beings, bringing the Buddhadharma to millions across Mongolia and around the world.

Guru Deva Rinpoche

Guru Deva Rinpoche

Guru Deva Rinpoche, an incarnation of one of the 84 Siddhas, Bundasheri Tulku Guru Deva, was born in Mongolia for the sole purpose of creating “great benefits for the Dharma and all sentient beings”.

He was a highly qualified Lama, having traveled to Tibet at the age of 20 and studied in the great monastic university of Drepung under great masters like Kyabje Pabongka Rinpoche, Kyabje Trijang Dorje Chang, Kyabje Ling Rinpoche and Kyabje Gonsar Rinpoche, mastering both Sutra and Tantra.

Guru Deva Rinpoche is known for his significant contributions towards the building of the palace of the Dalai Lama in India as well as the re-establishing of the three great monastic universities – Ganden, Sera and Drepung – in India, after the exodus from Tibet. He also helped to establish many other monasteries and temples as well as accommodation for the refugees in India.

When Buddhism was revived in Mongolia in 1992, Guru Deva Rinpoche personally helped in the restoration of temples, statues and scriptures. In addition, he saw to the restoration of accommodation and facilities for the monks and the people of Mongolia, and also played a role in reviving the education of the monastics. In all these efforts, Guru Deva Rinpoche worked extensively, untiringly and in a complete manner to benefit sentient beings, right to his old age.

Sadly, this great holy being was forced to leave India and Nepal and retire to Mongolia after he protested the Dalai Lama’s ban on Dorje Shugden. He remained, until his death in 2009, isolated from the Tibetan community amongst whom he had lived and shared and spread the Dharma for the benefit of all beings.

In Summary

The advent of widespread Tibetan Buddhism in Mongolia began in 1578 when Altan Khan, a Mongol military leader with ambitions to unite the Mongols invited Sonam Gyatso of the rising Gelug lineage of Tibetan Buddhism to a summit. They formed an alliance that gave Altan Khan legitimacy and religious sanction for his imperial ambitions and that provided the Buddhist school with protection and patronage. In the next century the Gelugpa School spread throughout Mongolia.

Today it is estimated that the majority religion in Mongolia is Tibetan Buddhism at 53%. Having survived suppression by the Communists, Buddhism among the Eastern, Northern, Southern and Western Mongols is primarily of the Gelugpa school of Tibetan Buddhism. And without the Dalai Lama’s political influence in Mongolia, the practice of Dorje Shugden in Mongolia is thriving and well.

Images of Dorje Shugden in Mongolia

Dorje Shugden stone carving at Amarbayasgalant Monastery

Dorje Shugden statue in Amarbayasgalant Monastery

Dorje Shugden statue in Amarbayasgalant Monastery

Dorje Shugden Thangka in Amarbayasgalant Monastery

Dorje Shugden statue in Delegriin Choiriin Khiid Monastery, Mongolia.

Images of Dorje Shugden Monasteries in Mongolia

Amarbayasgalant Monastery in Mongolia

Dorje Shugden Chapel in Amarbayasgalant Monastery

Videos of Dorje Shugden in Mongolia

Amarbayasgalant – Monastery with Dorje Shugden in Mongolia

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Oracle Dorje Shugden ceremony of protector possessing in Ulaanbaatar

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Dorje Shugden in Tibet and Mongolia

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Dorje Shugden Monastery Amarbayasgalant – Mongolias Ancient Hidden Gem

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Read more about Dorje Shugden in Mongolia:

Monastery with Dorje Shugden in Mongolia
Oracle taking possession of Dorje Shugden in Ulan Bator, Mongolia
Dorje Shugden in Tibet and Mongolia
Dorje Shugden in Mongolia (Guru Deva Rinpoche)
Zava Damdin Rinpoche spreads Dharma in Mongolia
H.H. Trijang Rinpoche Consecrates Amarbayasgalant Monastery in Mongolia
Trijang Rinpoche confers Dorje Shugden initiation in Mongolia
Delgeruun Choira Monastery
Mongolia – Gandan Monastery – The large Chenresig statue was sponsored and built by Sogpu Rinpoche Guru Deva

In 2008, Dhokang Khangtsen with its 600 tulkus, geshes and monks separated from Ganden Shartse monastery and formed Shar Ganden. This fledgling monastery is an enduring legacy of the segregation imposed by the Dorje Shugden ban

There were many sincere Dorje Shugden practitioners that lived within the walls of Ganden Shartse monastery in the past. Many of these practitioners were great Tulkus, Geshes and ordinary hard-working members of the monastic community. Needless to say, many of these practitioners have contributed everything they had towards the sustenance and expansion of Ganden monastery as a whole.

With the Dorje Shugden ban being ruthlessly enforced in the last decade, many of these monks had to flee to safety with literally nothing on their backs while the elders of Ganden Shartse stood idly by and did nothing to help. In fact, the elders of Ganden Shartse sat tight on the assets and coffers of the monastery, which include offerings and sponsorships made by Dorje Shugden practitioners.

For instance, all Geshes make offerings to the monastery as part of their geshe offering ceremony. And when the monastery is in need, the senior monks, tulkus, rinpoches and geshes will raise the necessary funds for building expansion, books, food and so forth. So why doesn’t the monastery return the offerings of Dorje Shugden practitioners after expelling the same Dorje Shugden monks from their walls?

On the one hand, the monastery accepts and retain donations from Dorje Shugden practitioners (the monastery doesn’t even question sponsors about their stance on the Dorje Shugden affair) but on the other hand, Dorje Shugden practitioners are shamed and expelled from the monastic community. There seems to be a contradiction here with the way the Dorje Shugden ban has been and continues to be enforced.

A traditional depiction of the Tulkus of Shar Ganden monastery. From left to right: Khen Rinpoche Lobsang Pende, H.H Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche and H.E. Domo Geshe Rinpoche

The Dorje Shugden ban requires total segregation between Dorje Shugden practitioners and the followers of the Dalai Lama. This segregation is heavily (even violently) enforced and no interaction is allowed between both parties as Dorje Shugden practitioners are seen as ‘contaminated’ and ‘unclean’. Shops in Tibetan communities display clear signs stating that Dorje Shugden practitioners will not be served. Schools and public service providers such as libraries deny entry to Dorje Shugden practitioners.

So complete and pervasive is the discrimination against Dorje Shugden practitioners that it is therefore surprising that the offerings and sponsorships from Dorje Shugden practitioners are still accepted, retained and used by the anti-Shugden monastic community. Given the illogical and discriminatory implementation of the ban, one would think that the offerings and sponsorships of Dorje Shugden practitioners would likewise be deemed unclean and unfit to be used by members of Monastery!

The generous sponsor of Ganden, Sera and Drepung, Guru Deva Rinpoche

Take for instance the Mongolian Lama Guru Deva Rinpoche, widely regarded as the emanation of Gyenze and a great Dorje Shugden Lama. He had made the most generous offerings and donations to the Dalai Lama and the great monasteries of Ganden, Sera and Drepung in the earlier days when Tibetans coming into exile experienced hardship and scarcity.

During the height of the Dorje Shugden ban however, a Tibetan mob had tried to destroy Guru Deva Rinpoche’s ladrang in Drepung Gomang. Consequently, Guru Deva Rinpoche was forced to return to Mongolia – his homeland. The offerings and donations remain the property of Ganden, Sera and Drepung, who continued to speak against Guru Deva Rinpoche until his passing in 2009.

H.E. Denma Locho Rinpoche and Jamseng Rinpoche

Another clear example occurred in recent years when Serkong Tritul Rinpoche invited Drepung Loseling’s Denma Locho Rinpoche to Taiwan to teach and transmit some important lineages. Tritul Rinpoche, along with Jamseng Rinpoche, are well known Dorje Shugden lamas while Denma Locho Rinpoche does not practice Dorje Shugden but neither does he discriminate against Dorje Shugden practitioners.

During this visit, a series of pictures were taken of Denma Locho Rinpoche and Jamseng Rinpoche (also known as Dromtug Rinpoche). These pictures were proliferated and became the basis for trouble between Denma Locho Rinpoche and the monastery and office of the Dalai Lama.

After the trip to Taiwan, Ganden Jangtse Gaser Tulku Rinpoche had requested Denma Locho Rinpoche to give a series of teachings at Drepung Loseling’s prayer hall. On the third day of the teaching, Drepung Gomang monks put up posters stating that monks shouldn’t attend the teachings as the great lama was ‘unclean’ due to his association with Tritul Rinpoche and Jamseng Rinpoche.

So concerned were the Ganden Jangtse monastic officials with being politically correct that they had the audacity to decree that any monks attending Denma Locho Rinpoche’s teachings would be expelled. Even the Dalai Lama, whom Denma Locho Rinpoche was personally very close to prior to the Taiwan incident, sidelined and basically ignored Denma Locho Rinpoche whenever he visited Ganden or Drepung monasteries. This is not just a great insult but has severe impact on the lama’s reputation in the monastery.

However, there is more to this series of incidents than meets the eye. During the Taiwan trip, Tritul Rinpoche and Jamseng Rinpoche had offered a large sum of money to Denma Locho Rinpoche, who then donated a large portion of this sum to Drepung Loseling. The money that was donated to Loseling (which clearly came from Dorje Shugden practitioners) was accepted and used for the expansion of the monastery, even while they ostracized and criticized this great master for his association with the same Shugden practitioners.

H.E. Lama Gangchen Rinpoche with his close disciple, Lama Michel Rinpoche

H.E. Gangchen Rinpoche is another great Dorje Shugden Lama who sponsored many buildings for Sera Mey monastery’s Tsangpa Khamtsen, including a prayer hall and monk quarters. Due to the ban, he was unceremoniously cut off while the monks continue to inhabit the buildings that he sponsored. In yet another example, Kensur Rinpoche Lobsang Tsephel, the ex-abbot of Ganden Jangtse is a great Dorje Shugden practitioner who sponsored millions for the massive Jangtse prayer hall that is still in use today. These are just a few notable examples of Dorje Shugden lamas who have made tremendous contributions to their various monasteries.

Kensur Rinpoche Lobsang Tsephel (left), the ex-abbot of Ganden Jangtse is a great Dorje Shugden practitioner

Therefore, if the monastic community and indeed the Tibetan laity insist on upholding this ridiculous ban that in fact infringes on the human rights of Dorje Shugden practitioners, wouldn’t it only be fair that the monastery return these offerings? They would if they had any sense of integrity.

Integrity and keeping one’s vows and commitments are ideals that are supposed to be held more dear than our eyes, as Lama Tsongkhapa had said and upheld. With the deepest respect, the monastery should then also practice this and return whatever Dorje Shugden practitioners have offered in the past – be they monks or laypeople. At least, they would then be keeping to the letter of the (unfair and illogical) ban on Dorje Shugden instead of only choosing to do so when it is to their advantage. Why strive to appear politically correct yet live, eat, sleep, and practice in entire buildings built by the most devoted of Dorje Shugden practitioners? It boggles the mind.

He was born during the 19th century. Like many great masters, he had a very early start in Dharma and took the lay vows at the mere age of 7. Naturally, the ordination vows followed which he took when he was 17. They were granted to him by his teacher Ngawang Kedrup.

He then proceeded to take tutelage from some of the most eminent Lamas of his time which included the 10th Dalai Lama Tsultrim Gyatso, the 4th Panchen Rinpoche Tenpa Nyima, and the First Trijang Rinpoche Jangchup Chopel (1756-1838) who also happened to be the Ganden Tripa at that time. After completing his studies in Tibet, Rabjampa Ngawang Lobsang was styled Kurey Kenpo Nomonhan and returned to Mongolia.

It is particularly interesting to note that the collection of Rabjampa Ngawang Lobsang’s works contains a number of Dorje Shugden related materials, one of which is a Panchen Sonam Dragpa’s biography, followed by an account of the precious incarnations of Dorje Shugden. This tallies with the account found in Buton Rinpoche’s biography. This account clearly explains that Panchen Sonam Dragpa was famously known to be an incarnation of the masters Buton Rinchen Drup and Shakya Shri.

Besides this, Rabjampa Ngawang Lobsang had a set of unique works credited under his name including writings on Tara’s Tantra, a number of hagiographies and various other Dorje Shugden ritual texts which have been included in the Dorje Shugden Pe Bum. Many highly attained Gelug masters, including Pabongkha Rinpoche, would later make significant references to his works, especially with relations to Dorje Shugden.

Within his work, Rabjampa Ngawang Lobsang clearly states that it was Pehar who requested Panchen Sonam Dragpa to arise as a Dharma protector, as well as various evidence, accounts and reasonings that Dorje Shugden is an enlightened being who specifically swore to protect the Gelug lineage.

For example, he mentions in particular, how Panchen Sonam Dragpa fulfilled the requests made to him by Pehar, in his later incarnation as Tulku Dragpa Gyeltsen when he arose as a Dharma Protector. This is yet another piece of evidence that disproves the claims of modern day scholars that Dorje Shugden is but a recent invention by Pabongkha Rinpoche.

It is interesting that such scholars would have omitted such significant texts by these great masters and asserted that there were not many great old masters who supported Dorje Shugden.

In his youth, he traveled to Tibet, enrolled into Tashi Lhumpo monastery and began his monastic curriculum. In 1660, The Great Fifth Dalai Lama bestowed the title ‘Jaya Pandita’ upon the young monk on the auspicious occasion of his ordination. He practiced Yamantaka, White Umbrella and Guhyasamaja as his yidams and delved into the studies of the great treatises while studying the medical treatises. He had some of the greatest Tibetan masters of his time as his spiritual mentors, including of course the most illustrious Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen.

He would later return to Mongolia and spend the rest of his life translating a great number of important Tibetan texts into Mongolian. Jaya Pandita himself was a great linguist and being exposed to the technical sophistication of the Tibetan written language inspired him to revise the Mongol alphabet. He made the Mongol written language phonetically more accurate and this would become the genesis of an independent literary tradition.

Due to political reasons, the written records of Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen was tempered or wiped out in Tibet. However, one of the few surviving documents that details the life and writings of Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen were preserved amongst the written works of Jaya Pandita. During Jaya Pandita’s lifetime, much of the profound teachings of the Gelug order were being transmitted into Mongolia. Hence, the story of Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen’s transformation into Dorje Shugden, the Protector of the Gaden tradition fired the popular imagination of the Mongol scholars.

Part of the collection of Jaya Pandita’s works includes the popular genre of biographies of Tulku Dragpa Gyeltsen and his previous incarnations. Thus, these biographies link Dorje Shugden closely to his illustrious previous lives. Also, these texts explored the most secret, mystical side of Tulku Dragpa Gyeltsen, revealing for example some of the visions that this teacher had even when he was still very young.

Later, Lobsang Tamdin analysed the meaning of a prophecy that Tulku Dragpa Gyeltsen had received from Panchen Lobsang Chokyi Gyeltsen – that as soon as Tulku Dragpa Gyeltsen passed away, the Chinese emperor came into the world. This became a clear indication that the Emperor Kang Xi of the Qing dynasty was none other than the incarnation of Tulku Dragpa Gyeltsen. He also became famously known as an emanation of Manjushri, with specifically close connections to Wu Tai Shan in China, the abode of Manjushri.

By these writings, the initial diffusion of Dorje Shugden’s practice in Mongolia is inextricably linked to the popularity of these texts. Unfortunately, this tradition of recognizing Dorje Shugden on the basis of his previous lives came to an end in the 19th century.

More unfortunately, many scholars today fail to reference these early sources in their contemporary discussions of Dorje Shugden, often leaning more towards the recent discussions of him as a spirit than relying on the texts of old which had earlier pointed clearly to his enlightened nature.

The legacy that Jaya Pandita left behind after his demise was not restricted to the literary tradition alone. In fact, he also founded an important monastery in Mongolia and four other monastic colleges.

Like most high incarnations, this 8^th Rongchen Rinpoche met with a very early start in Dharma. Kunkyen Jamyang Shepa first recognized him as the reincarnation of Rongpo Choje and named him Lobsang Trinley Tenpa. He was bestowed his initial ordination vows by Je Kongchog Monlam at the age of seven after which he was given the Getsul ordination a year later when he was eight.

While the monastic education is a vigorous one, Kirti Rinpoche was already studying the classes at the feet of many great masters from the mere age of 11 and excelled in them. He was fully ordained as a monk at the age of 24 and a year later, at only 25, he founded a new monastery in Ngapa and established himself there.

A debate and tantric college owed its existence to this eminent lama. Many monasteries in Amdo and Mongolia were graced by visits throughout his life and he became known too for creating a remarkable number of monasteries – both tantric and debate colleges – including for example, Ngaba Monastery, Tagtsang Lhamo Loseling Collect and Tagtsang Geden Tashi Kyil.

Many rituals for many protectors were written by Eighth Kirti Rinpoche and among his many notable literary accomplishments were the life entrustment rituals he composed for the Dharma Protectors Setrabchen and Nechung, as well as rituals for Tsangpa, Karma Vajra. The ritual of most interest is an initiation manual he composed for Dorje Shugden, called Dorje Shugden Gyi Jenang Chetsul, which details the method of initiation for Shugden.

It is also said that the previous incarnation of Kirti Rinpoche had such strong connections to Dorje Shugden that people in the area would specifically consult and ask Kirti Rinpoche for advice and protection. People would travel specifically to seek him for initiation of Dorje Shugden.

An account written by a Lobsang Tayang tries to trace the origins of this particular Jenang composed by Kirti Rinpoche. It is said that an earlier incarnation of Kirti Rinpoche had also had close connections with Dorje Shugden would who give him clear instructions and promised to protect colleges associated with him.

Later, as he was dying, Kirti Rinpoche passed this initiation an Alag Chojor and instructed to keep the lineage going. By certain requests, this initiation continued to be passed on – records trace that it was passed an Amdo lama known as Vajracharya Chogtrul who then bestowed the initiation to his own students in his own monastery.

Some more contemporary scholars have suggested that the Dorje Shugden practice was proliferated greatly in the late 19th century. It has been further surmised that the diffusion of the Dorje Shugden practice was on the basis of a minor deity but this summary is clearly mistaken.

There is evidence to suggest from this initiation composed by Kirti Rinpoche and the accolades used, the status of Dorje Shugden was definitely being promoted beyond that of a minor worldly protector. Case in point, the title of the initiation manual uses the term “special emanated Protector of the Doctrine of the Second Conqueror Manjunatha”, a very clear indication of the prominent status that this protector held within Tsongkhapa’s lineage.

Another notable aspect of this initiation and other significant works of Kirti Rinpoche are praises he included in his writings to Panchen Sonam Drakpa. Closer study of his writings indicate that Kirti Rinpoche recognized the connection between Dorje Shugden and Panchen Sonam Drakpa – this is especially significant because the core of many major monasteries’ curriculum are based the works of Panchen Sonam Drakpa.

These works continue to be studied today in Drepung Loseling and Gaden Shartse and form the basis of every Geshe’s studies and degrees. This tradition of following these texts can thus be traced back to this time – or even further – which clearly disproves certain scholars claims that Dorje Shugden is propitiated only as a worldly deity and not as an enlightened teacher in his own right.

Further, according to the text Some Historical Accounts of the Secret Activities of Lamas, Gods and Protectors, the proliferation of Gelugpa monasteries and colleges in Mongolia arose as a result of direct advice from the oracles of Setrapchen and Dorje Shugden. According to such accounts, the adherence to specific curriculum, especially that of Panchen Sonam Dragpa, was another important reason in starting up the new colleges. Again this proves the central part that Dorje Shugden – as a later incarnation of Panchen Sonam Dragpa – played in the creation of these monasteries.

What is more interesting is that this remarkable initiation text composed by Kirti Rinpoche is actually a divergence from the lineage derived from Dakpo Dorje Chang and Pabongka Rinpoche. It seems that while the initiation still finds its roots from what was being practiced in Central Tibet, a a new approach was created outside of Tibet and would later spread to Mongolia.

Unfortunately, the works of Dorje Shugden from Central Tibet overshadowed this rare text and lineage and it was not been paid much attention in recent times. It does however, provide us sound evidence that the practice of Dorje Shugden had taken off in various directions, being spread and proliferated by Lamas outside of the central, more famous lineages of Tibet.

At a young age, he was enrolled into the monastery and was ordained by one of the most influential Gelug masters of his time, Yongzin Yeshe Gyaltsen. It was then that he was given the name, Yeshe Zangpo. Therefore, he studied devotedly under Yongzin Yeshe Gyaltsen and his student Lama Yeshe Tenzin, accomplishing a sound understanding of the Sutras and Tantra, including the three highly revered practices of Guhyasamaja, Heruka and Yamantaka Tantras.

After his studies, Yeshe Zangpo went into a cave and entered into intense meditational retreats and austerities in the same manner as the great yogis and Mahasiddhas of old. However, he was called back to the monastery at the request of his Lama to serve as the Abbot of the monastery. During his tenure, he became famous for giving extensive annual teachings on the Lamrim.

Yeshe Zanpo also left a wealth of written works based upon his wisdom and practice. His collected works is divided into two volumes and is based upon traditional subjects like the Lamrim, Mind-Training and Mahamudra. He became one of the main lineage masters that upheld the torch of the Gelug tradition when many luminaries like Yongzin Yeshe Gyaltsen, Purchog Ngawang Jampa and Longdol Lama were passing away.

Of his many contributions to the cannon of texts in the Tibetan Buddhist traditions, one of his most important writings was a long ritual text written to the Protector Dorje Shugden. In this text, Yeshe Zangpo describes the mandala of Dorje Shugden and its inhabitants in graphic detail.

Then, he gives further clear and vivid descriptions of the environment from which the mandala arises. This is very important for the purposes of visualization for practitioners engaged in the practices. This text is especially significant for it offers evidence that significant texts to the Protector were being composed quite some time before Pabongka Rinpoche. It is evidence too that Pabongka’s writings drew from previous existing texts such as this one.

In the invocation portion of the fulfillment ritual text, Yeshe Zangpo mentions the various holy places from which Dorje Shugden is invoked. These places include Gandhav-yuha paradise, the pond from which the earthly remains of Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen is believed to have gathered, a Sakya Temple at Mug Chung, Ngor Monastery that has a Dorje Shugden shrine, the Gelug Riwo Choling Monastery in Yarlung that manages Trode Khangsar in Lhasa, ‘On Valley in Yarlung valley, a monastery near Gaden, the famous Trode Khangsar, which was founded by the Great Fifth Dalai Lama and the ruins of the hermitage of a Sakya Lama at Khau Drakdzong. This list reflects the holy pilgrimage sites that were popular in the 19^th century, many of which had shrines to Dorje Shugden.

In the colophon of this fulfillment text, Yeshe Zangpo wrote that he was requested to compose this text by the Abbot of Tashi Choling monastery in Lhodrag along with the monks of the monastery and various other practitioners of the protector. This means that Dorje Shugden practice had already become deeply entrenched in Southern Tibet and its peripheral regions. This text became widely distributed and found its way to Mongolia where it eventually entered into Lobsang Tamdin’s Bepum collection of Dorje Shugden texts. This is significant because that means that the text was already in wide circulation at that time.

When this text is examined, a new terminology, description of the mandala, epithets and longer Dorje Shugden mantra seemed to have been developed by Yeshe Zangpo. These elements seemed to have been incorporated into later fulfillment texts by Serkong Dorje Chang and Kyabje Pabongka Rinpoche.

It seemed from the newer terminology and epithets used, Dorje Shugden had moved up in prominence within the lineage and practices. Serkong Dorje Chang and Kyabje Pabongka Rinpoche would later use the titles and epithets developed by Yeshe Zangpo as they wrote about and promote the practice of Shugden. Examples include “Dharma Protector of the Conqueror Tsongkhapa”, “Lord of All Kings of the Powerful War Gods”, “Life Force Owner of All Beings of the Three Worlds” and “The Emanated Dharma Protector Dorje Shugden”.  

An important title, “Five Families of Dorje Shugden” – which is now very much used to describe the arrangement of the four emanations surrounding the principal – is also found throughout Yeshe Zangpo’s text. Later, highly attained Lamas like Rongchen Kirti Lobsang Trinley and Serkong Dorje Chang further endorsed these titles and references to Dorje Shugden when they used it in their own writings.

These use of such epithets revealed the great change that was happening at the time, where Dorje Shugden was beginning to figure more prominently as the main Dharma Protector of the Gelug sect. The very existence of this text shows that this change was taking effect during Yeshe Zangpo’s time – quite some time before Pabongka Rinpoche who people commonly (perhaps mistakenly) believe to be the starting point of the practice.

Certain scholars believed that Kyabje Pabongka Rinpoche made up the titles and epithets used on Dorje Shugden. However, in studying the texts composed by Yeshe Zanpo, it becomes clearer that it was actually Yeshe Zangpo’s writings that ushered in a new era of Dorje Shugden as being the Protector of the Gaden tradition.

Later, through the guidance of his guru Tagphu Pemevajra, Kyabje Pabongka Rinpoche further emphasized the importance of this newly elevated status of Dorje Shugden, giving it further prominence by writing a most central text, Melodious Drum Victorious in All Directions. The practice then spread like wildfire throughout Central Tibet, Amdo, Kham and Mongolia.

In his writings, Yeshe Zangpo also makes reference to a time when he was said to have witnessed Dorje Shugden taking possession of the oracle at Trode Khangsar. During the trance, he was told by Dorje Shugden to compile a torma offering ritual text in the same style as the wrathful enlightened Dharma Protector Kalarupa and a fulfillment text on the five emanations. It seemed that for Dorje Shugden to be elevated as the main Protector of Lama Tsongkhapa’s teachings, such a system of practice was essential.

However, this in no way means that the protectors of old – such as Kalarupa – were being replaced by Shugden. In fact, even Kyabje Pabongka Rinpoche maintained Kalarupa propitiation even within the Vajrabhairava cycle of practice and Kalarupa remains a very important and central practice in Gelug institutions around the world.

Yeshe Zangpo’s writing and contributions towards elevating the role of Shugden in the Gelugpa school must be remembered for marking a turning point and important changes in the history of the lineage. They had set the groundwork, so to speak, setting forth practice texts and establishing powerful epithets that would begin to ground the people’s faith in this “newer” Protector. It was by these initial efforts of Lamas like Yeshe Zangpo that Pabongka was later able to easily introduce the practices and popularize it for modern day practitioners.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama formally announced the existence of His Eminence the Ninth Khalkha Jetsun Dhampa, Jampal Namdrol Chokye Gyalsten, in September, 1991.

Khalkha Jetsun Dampa is considered to be one of the most revered teachers of the Kalachakra Tantra, the Tara Tantra, and Maitreya, the future Buddha. All of these lineage teachings descend directly to him from Taranatha, the great historian and Tantric practitioner (B. 1575 AD).

The 9th Jetsun Dhampa is the spiritual successor of the 8th Jetsun Dhampa, the Bogd Gegen or “Holy Shining One”, the Bogd Khan or last Holy Emperor of Mongolia. Because of this the Mongolian government has tried to keep the 9th incarnation at a distance for fear that his supporters would try to restore him as Khan, which would upset the neighbors, especially Communist China. He has been able to visit Mongolia as a tourist when he was formally enthroned by His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama.