The Origins of Manjushri

The lineage of Manjushri can be traced back to the time of Buddha Shakyamuni who, in the sacred text of the Avatamsaka Sutra, mentioned that Manjushri’s actual identity is the Buddha Nageshvaraja who achieved enlightenment many eons ago in a different world system.

Of the eight great Bodhisattvas – the close sons of Buddha Shakyamuni, Manjushri is revered as the most senior; the foremost Bodhisattva who embodies the perfection of Wisdom in the Buddhist pantheon. Reading through the scriptures, one will note multiple instances where Manjushri initiates many teachings just by asking a question of Buddha Shakyamuni.

Within the Gelug refuge tree, Manjushri stands as the main lineage master of both the Kadam and Gelug schools, beginning with the Buddha Vajradhara himself and continuing in an unbroken line of enlightened masters – a pure source of unadulterated dharma, undeviating from the Buddha’s teachings.

Within the merit field, Manjushri also appears as the leader of the lineage of Pervasive View, the patriarch of Arya Nagarjuna who founded the Middle Way and the Mahayana school of Buddhism. The word “Pervasive” means that this view is free from extremes and is unbiased; it is objectively based on benefit and takes no sides. “View” refers to the correct view of all phenomenon and the Dharma. This school of thought emphasizes the methods of memorization, understanding, debate and contemplation to realize in depth the meaning of the Buddha’s words of wisdom.

Within Tantra, Manjushri is a lineage master of many tantric texts and lineages, predominantly those of the father tantras such as Guhyasamaja. For instance, Manjushri takes on the form of Yamantaka who is the Opponent of the Lord of Death, and whose tantric system focuses on transforming one’s gross and subtle consciousness into qualities of enlightenment. The Yamantaka Tantra is the only tantra that promises salvation within a single lifetime for those who have committed the five heinous crimes: drawing blood from a Buddha, killing an Arhat, killing one’s mother or father, and creating schism within the Sangha community.

Just like the process of turning dirt into diamonds, the practice is arduous and even dangerous, but promises to grant enlightenment within the shortest possible period of time based on one’s karmic dispositions. As we enter the last few hundred years of the reign of Buddha Shakyamuni’s teachings, Yamantaka’s blessings continue to remain potent, thus allowing sentient beings to purify their misdeeds and gain the necessary attainments to achieve enlightenment through his practice. Such is the power and blessings of Manjushri in this day and time.

The Father of All Buddhas

Mahasiddha Geshe Tsultrim Gyaltsen

In many stainless tantric texts, Manjushri is praised as the Father of All Buddhas. This does not mean that Manjushri is the biological father of all Buddhas; rather, it means that the wisdom energy that he embodies is necessary for one to achieve enlightenment.

The Buddhas are considered to be the perfection of two collections – Merit and Wisdom, with Manjushri serving as the Father (Wisdom) component of enlightenment. Thus, it is clear that Manjushri is an essential part of one’s spiritual practice. The great Mahasiddha Geshe Tsultrim Gyaltsen of Ganden Monastery once expounded that:

Enlightenment is not possible without Manjushri.

Again, Manjushri above does not refer to the deity but to what he embodies: Wisdom.

The realization of Wisdom arises from study, contemplation and practice. With time and consistency, knowledge, combined with intense contemplation and put into practice gives rise to realizations. The more we realize, the less ignorance there is in our minds. Hence, that is why there are ten levels of Bodhisattvahood: the more we realize, the less clouded we become and the greater our attainments.

How Understanding Relates to Manjushri

The 21st century has blessed us with education and spoiled us with an array of convenient technology. With such convenience comes distraction from spiritual practice. As humanity looks further outwards for happiness and fulfillment, it becomes ever more unattainable. Why?

Happiness, fulfillment, peace and harmony are inherently within us but are clouded by negative habits and past karmas from a different time. Convenience and the consequent distractions are the outer karmic formation of obstacles, while the inner karmic formation of obstacles arises through laziness, a desire for comfort, delusions, and wrong views.

Modern education builds one’s IQ while developing one’s EQ and human sensitivities. There are many levels of education and each level enables us to learn and develop our character and personality with time. With this foundation, there is a possibility for us to tap into our spiritual selves and evolve from there.

Thus, the very foundation of thinking, logic and reasoning correlates with what Manjushri represents. His practice is essential because by propitiating Manjushri on a daily basis, outwardly we are able to clear the obscurations within our mind, thus enabling us to see clearly who we are and where we are going. At a deeper level, his practice provides a source of inspiration, power and fuel for one’s spiritual journey.

Having understood the concept of Manjushri, we shall now delve into the various aspects of Manjushri which we can tap into to achieve our highest potential.

Manjushri as Guru

Large Manjushri Thangka unveiled in Tibet

Throughout time immemorial since the advent of Buddhism, Manjushri has manifested in many forms both celestial and mortal, animate and inanimate, to guide all sentient beings out of the cycle of transmigration. He has taken on the form of Bodhisattvas, Mahasiddhas and even ordinary beings, as if in a drama, to suit the propensities of each and every individual.

In the Mahayana Tradition, an important aspect of Manjushri is that of the Guru, who guides the spiritual aspirant onto the path of practice and realization. Manjushri, in his various forms, has been the Guru of many prominent masters of ancient India and Tibet. He “saved” Bushuku or Shantideva from being jeered at by members of his entire monastery; he manifested to Je Tsongkapa throughout his life, giving guidance and direction; he even manifested as a poor lady with a child in Five Peaked Mountain (Wutaishan) to teach modesty and humility.

The role of the Guru, regardless of whether the spiritual aspirant spends every waking moment with him, or just one teaching occasion, is a key factor in opening one’s seeds of enlightenment. With the sincere efforts of the spiritual aspirant, the Guru is able to guide and expedite the achievement enlightenment within a short span of time, as compared with that of a Sravaka.

Within the snowy lands of Tibet, Manjushri has manifested three times to turn the Dharma wheel, first as the great teacher-yogi Longchenpa, a Nyingma master of both Sutra and Tantra. His major work, the Seven Treasures, contains 600 years of the Buddha’s teachings and he was a crucial link between the learning of Sutra and Tantra. Longchenpa established the Dzogchen teachings which are still widely practiced today within the Nyingma school.

Sakya Pandita

The second manifestation of Manjushri in Tibet was the great Sakya Pandita Kunga Gyaltsen. His coming was foretold by many great masters including Guru Rinpoche. At a young age, he spoke in Sanskrit and could recite the texts from memory without ever having laid eyes on them.

With due diligence, he reenacted the Vinaya, the code of conduct of Buddhism and widely preserved and proliferated the Sutric and Tantric teachings. Sakya Pandita was the father figure of the Sakya school and the teachings of Lamdre originated from him.

The third turning of the Wheel of Dharma in Tibet by Manjushri was through Je Tsongkapa Lobsang Drakpa himself. Born amidst auspicious omens, Lama Tsongkapa dedicated his entire life to the preservation of the Dharma, especially the Vinaya, Sutras and Tantras, during a time when the Dharma had degenerated in Tibet.

His views and cohesiveness in the Dharma silenced a nation of false orators and reestablished the Banner of Victory in Tibet. His deeds spread far and wide, to China, Turkestan, Mongolia and even to the Land of the Aryas – India. Subsequently, Ganden, Drepung and Sera monasteries became the beacon of light and hope for those who wished to study and contemplate on the teachings of Buddha Shakyamuni.

Je Tsongkapa further united the Tibetan nation with the Grand Prayer festival (Monlam Chenmo) by making vast offerings to the Buddhas at Jokhang Temple day and night during the month of Miracles. Such was his fame and glory and through his works, the essence of Dharma is preserved until today.

Evidently, the manifestations of Guru Manjushri are innumerable, as Manjushri further emanates as disciples, geshes, humble monks and yogis in order to undertake the tasks of a Guru. But to cite the three main figures to invoke one’s faith is as necessary as feeding oneself to avoid starvation.

If we have pure view and faith in the Buddha Dharma, it is not difficult for us to see the outer Guru Manjushri, whose work invokes the inner Guru Manjushri, so that we can realize the Secret nature of Manjushri which is total enlightenment.

Manjushri the Yidam

From the assembly of meditational deities who exist to tame and set our minds on the path of fruition, Manjushri also appears in different forms and aspects according to the time, people and dispositions. He manifests as a Yidam in all four classes of Tantras to suit the needs of practitioners.

In the Kriya Tantras, Manjushri appears at the entry level to overcome difficulties for the practitioner in order to set their minds on the path of spiritual practice. These manifestations arise in different forms, each enacting different activities ranging from destroying terminal diseases, plagues and sicknesses to overcoming mundane problems of poverty, unhealthy relationships and more. The list goes on.

With the practitioner’s problems on their way to resolution, the next class of tantra, the Charya Tantras, kicks into play. Here, Manjushri creates conducive conditions for spiritual growth, bringing resources and clearing obstructive factors in order for us to ground ourselves in Buddhist study and practice. In the intermediate and advanced levels, practitioners develop the views and realizations of Renunciation and the Bodhi Mind with Manjushri’s assistance.

The third class of tantra is the Yoga tantras, which prepares the practitioner’s body and mind for the Highest Anuttara Yoga Tantra teachings. Manjushri manifests as the ferocious Yamantaka, complete with many hands carrying various weapons and legs trampling on different forms of opposing forces. At this point, the practitioner’s devotion to the Guru has to be firm like a rock, and his understanding of the Lamrim has to be deep in order to engage in this sacred practice, which propels the practitioner towards enlightenment in the swiftest manner possible.

Manjushri the Protector

Dorje Shugden statue in Trode Khangsar

As with all things in life, we need security, assurance and a guiding hand to help us move in the right direction. Dharma protectors in general protect the Buddha Dharma from all forms of destruction; they protect the Gurus and lineage masters as they are holders of the Dharma; they protect monasteries, nunneries and all forms of Dharma institutions as they are seats where the Dharma will flourish; they protect practitioners of the Dharma because all of us have the potential to gain Dharma realizations.

Dharma protectors guard the practitioner’s three doors – body, speech and mind – so that we may avoid transgressions which will slow down our progress towards enlightenment. Once again, Manjushri manifests as different dharma protectors to guard different aspects of the Dharma. For instance, Four-Faced Mahakala guards the Heruka tantras, while Dharmaraja Kalarupa guards the Lower Scope of the Lamrim as well as the Yamantaka Tantras.

Manjushri in the form of Dorje Shugden manifests as a Dharma protector of Je Tsongkapa’s teachings, to preserve the lineage and the practitioners who have entered into the teachings of the Second Buddha Je Tsongkapa, who is also none other than Manjushri.

As Dorje Shugden, Manjushri uses skillful means to guide sentient beings to enlightenment. The four emanations of Manjushri Dorje Shugden bestow activities of pacification, increase, control and wrath to bless sentient beings with animate and inanimate resources, thus fulfilling their secular and spiritual needs. In doing so, as more and more people are set on the path of realization, the Dharma grows in terms of study, contemplation and practice.

From Manjushri, we realize the need for compassion. From Manjushri, we realize the need for skillful means and protection. From Manjushri, we realize and achieve wisdom. Hence, Manjushri is most relevant and prevalent in spiritual practices for the people of today. This does not mean the other Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are not useful but rather the time and disposition of beings today need Manjushri more.

This opinion piece has been extracted from the DorjeShugden.com forum. Please add to the discussions on the forum if you have further perspectives, comments and thoughts. We always welcome debate and exchange. The original thread can be viewed at http://www.dorjeshugden.com/forum/index.php?topic=767

Question

Does anyone here know how to remove curses and negativity from places and objects? If our prayer beads, sadhanas and other ritual objects are being tainted by the touch of those who slander our Spiritual Guides, Deity or Dorje Shugden, is there anyway to cleanse them and restore their purity?

A sharing by TK

I will do a short explanation for you and hope it helps. There are the general methods and Tantric methods. (However, in my explanation on the Tantric methods, I will not go beyond what is allowed).

You have to identify, if you can, where the curses or negativities are coming from. For example, if it is a lot of general talk, malicious talk or jealous talk towards you, then you can recite a Sutra called Miga Tramdo, or have it recited for you. This Sutra is especially for turning back the effects of speech from many that could hurt you. Speech can turn into something physical that interferes with you.

If the problem is coming from a land god, or regional deity, then there is a short ritual – extracted from the Shugden Kangsol or Lama Chopa Tsok – which you can do to make offerings to them as a friend.

If you have offended a spirit, you may generate loving compassion or think good thoughts and apologize. Reciting the Heart Sutra and Refuge formula (“Namo Guru Bey, Namo Buddhaya, Namo Dharmaya, Namo Sanghaya”) would be powerful antidotes if recited with deep conviction (There is no limit to how many times you should recite. It would be good if you can recite one mala a day or more of the Refuge formula (i.e. 108x or more).).

None of the recitations or rituals should be done with the intent to harm the land, god, ghost etc. It should be done with the altruistic wish for their liberation and planting seeds in their mindstream. You should think that it is also to purify the karma you have to be able to receive this type of harm at all.

For curses, spells or black magic that you are confirmed about, the following pujas can be selected, depending on the intensity of the harm:

• Sheningdodo (Heart Sutra with ritual)
• Gyabshi (400 offerings)
• Chasum
• Kabardo
• Dukkar
• Dukkar dondo
• Protector Puja
• Dukkar Se Sum (Dukkar, Singdogma and Heart Sutra recitation)
• Receiving Vajra Yogini or Yamantaka Kakko (a short ritual done by a qualified lama to block interferences)

The above are just some to name a few. It would be best to consult a lama. There are more, but I am just giving general pujas here. All these pujas can be done in any Gelug Monastery.

You can also do any of the personal recitations, prayers, mantras or sadhanas below for repelling curses, spells and black magic; or a combination of these:

• Reciting one’s lama’s personal name mantra
• Singdongma Goddess
• Ekazati Goddess
• One’s protector
• Vajrapani
• Black Manjushri
• Hayagriva (Thamthing Samdrup)

If one has the higher Annuttara tantric initiations then they can engage in:

Yamantaka or Vajra Yogini would be very powerful. One can engage in their sadhana and focus on the following:

• Soliciting the lineage lamas and one’s lama during the sadhana is very important for the success of the practice and dissolving.
• Protection wheels
• Protection deities/armour in the case of Vajra Yogini
• Dissolution and emptiness of all phenomena in either generation or completion stages

Their sadhana / practice should not be engaged in to conquer demons, spirits, black magic, etc. That would be a side benefit. One should engage in their sadhana with an altruistic motivation wishing to gain great bliss and wisdom (Detong Yermey). Doing their sadhanas daily will be very powerful and effective protection.

One can also engage in the following method. However, this is not recommended as you need great skill, good samaya, strong concentration and you also need to have to ‘accomplished’ your deity (Yidam):

Do one’s meditational deity practice as per the sadhana. Then, generate the spirit as the deity you are doing, place the spirit as a deity in a pillar, or something stable in the house. Bless the pillar to generate it as a divine palace of the deity. Seal the pillar and recite the auspicious verses.

Those are the various means I have explained in short and general terms. There are many variations depending on circumstances. The best way is to consult a great practitioner, lama or above all, one’s own lama. You need not take what I have written and start doing it yourself. I have purposely omitted many details as I am just sharing knowledge not writing instructions on how to do this. I am letting you know just in short what is available.

There are a few methods to protect yourself against those with broken samaya or negative intent who ‘contaminate’ your objects. Any of the following are fine for you to do:

• Ask a lama to bless.
• Recite OM AH HUM 108 times or more, focusing on what you know on Emptiness. Then blow on the contaminated object.
• Recite any amount of your guru’s name mantra, trust your teacher and bless.
• Use the consecrated water from a Trusol ritual to wash the objects.
• Recitation of your protector’s mantra, focusing on altruism.

If you are doing any of the Annutara tantric deities, then just before the recitation of their mantras in their sadhanas, there is a section for consecrating the mala. That would be very sufficient. In fact, any of these practices/sadhanas will consecrate your environment, the objects within, the beings within and more importantly, your mind. Hence, everything becomes purified and blessed.

It is said that wherever there is a pure practitioner of Heruka Chakrasamvara / Vajra Yogini, when he/she recites their 8-line praises, the Dakas/Dakinis from the 24 holy-power spots will converge to bless the practitioner, the environment and all beings in that space immediately. It becomes a sacred environment to plant the seeds of enlightenment in the minds of those beings and visitors.

I wish you luck and speed in your practice always.

TK

At the age of 48, he made the decision to go to Ngulchu, a location situated within the province of Tsang to take teachings from the famed Ngulchu Dharmabhadra as well as his nephew, Yangchen Drupey Dorje.

Namka Tenkyong was a very accomplished master. He excelled in his studies and went on to become a reputable teacher in the Ganden tradition, earning him also the position as lineage holder of the Ganden Mahamudra teachings and the Five-Deity Heruka initiation lineage; he is even included within the lineage prayers of the practice, on par with his teachers Ngulchu Dharmabhadra and Yangchen Drupe Dorje.

Namka Tenkyong came to be known for his many writings including five different texts on the many practices of the Five-Deity Heruka and seven different texts on the Yoga Tantra practice of Kunrig (Four-headed Vairochana). Aside from that, he also produced commentaries on the six preparatory practices.

However, one of the most interesting works attributed to him is a ritual on Dorje Shugden by the name of The Miraculous Swift Messenger That Beckons the Four Activities: a Brief Method to Fulfill and Activity for the Great Dharma Protector Dorje Shugden.  This ritual can be found in the Dorje Shugden collection of works, Pe Bum.

A unique point of this text is that it equates Dorje Shugden as an emanation of Vajrapani, which was a common view held by the older masters, especially of Sera. Another mention of this is found in the letter composed by Ngulchu Dharmabhadra as an answer to a query, found under the collected replies section of his works. In here, there is a letter written to Shabdrung Rinpoche that talks about combining the practices of Ganden Lha Gyama and Dorje Shugden, and the torma offering that should be used.

This text is pivotal as it shows that during the first half of the 19th century there was already confirmation that Dorje Shugden was the absolute reincarnation of Tulku Drakpa Gyaltsen. This totally disproves George Dreyfus’s claims the two beings were not of the same mind-stream and that Pabongkha Rinpoche had made this up to make this practice popular.

I hope you are in good health. I am writing to bring your attention to an important issue within the Tibetan Buddhist community today and hope you will join us to make a change for real religious freedom.

While Buddhism is a very open religion which encourages tolerance and harmony between all people, there is now a big division within the Tibetan Buddhist community. This is because of an instruction that the Dalai Lama issued to stop the practice of the Protector Deity Dorje Shuden. People are now not permitted to practice this Protector or associate with anyone who does. If they do, they are expelled from monasteries, excluded from all Tibetan communities, refused access to welfare and suffer verbal and physical attacks.

The Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), the governing body of the Tibetan exile community living mainly in India, have been very aggressive in maintaining this ban. They exert a tremendous amount of pressure on Dorje Shugden devotees, accusing them of being traitors to the Tibetan cause and being Chinese spies.

This is contradictory to the practices of Buddhism as a whole. Buddhists are encouraged to be kind to all beings, including animals and even spirits! Anyone of any religion and culture is permitted to attend Dharma teachings and the Dalai Lama’s talks – except for Shugden practitioners. For anyone to associate with Shugden practitioners is considered a very bad traitorous act and they risk being completely excluded from their community. Should this be the behavior of a culture and people who are most famous the world over for their spirituality?

It seems to us that it is because the CTA failed to obtain independence and freedom for Tibet that they have turned their attention to Dorje Shugden instead. Because of their failed policies and their inability to get their country back, they have lost much respect in the eyes of their own people. So they have placed the “blame” onto Shugden instead, declaring that this practice threatens the Tibetan independence cause. Naturally, while everyone got caught up in the “excitement” of the Shugden ban, everyone forgot about the Tibetan freedom cause for a while and the attention moved away from the CTA to Shugden. Was this just a convenient action for the CTA, to distract the public’s attention and blame away from them?

Meanwhile, in the rest of the world, there are many groups engaged in practices that are questionable or which appear to move away from the established lineages and practices. An example currently being discussed online is an organisation in Australia called Chinese Han Tantrayana Buddhism – Holy Tantra Jin-Gang-Dhyana Buddhism: www.jingangdhyanaincnet.org (Photos and extracts of the discussion are attached below). We are not in a position to judge all religious groups but this clearly does not seem to be in accordance with traditional Vajrayana practices. Even the shape of their hats have never been seen or recognised in any established Vajrayana or Tantric schools.

Our question is this: Why don’t the CTA examine groups like this further? They are using the sacred name of Tibetan tantra but not following the established practices – shouldn’t this be under investigation? The CTA speak openly and issue public statements about the need to preserve the purity of Buddhism; this is their reason for stopping Dorje Shugden’s practice because they claim it is not a pure practice. If this was really the case, then why do the CTA put so much effort, time and money into stopping the practice of Dorje Shugden, but allow all these other strange practices and groups to continue everywhere else? If they want to protect the purity of the Buddhadharma, then they should monitor all such strange groups that use the name of tantra so casually.

The CTA cannot claim to be a secular government but issue orders and instructions only for selected religious issues. On the other hand, IF they are going to start commenting on religion and establishing themselves as a religious authority or monitor, then they should also do this fully and investigate all questionable tantric groups. To focus only on Shugden practitioners is very selective and makes the CTA seem very biased against a minority group. Is this a fair way for a democratic government in the modern world to treat their own people?

We do not mean disrespect towards anyone, but we call for fairness and equality. If Shugden practitioners are being constantly questioned and examined, then other unconventional groups also should be. To act in any other way reflects on the CTA badly and shows them to be biased, undemocratic, intolerant and not progressive. We hope you will heed our advice and create a better religious future for all Buddhists.

Best wishes,
dorjeshugden.com
dorjeshugden.net
xiongdeng.com

Topic: Maybe CTA should look into this Chinese Tantra Buddhism Organisation?

Discussions on the dorjeshugden.com forum:
www.dorjeshugden.com/forum/index.php?topic=1734
Topic started by “namdrol”

I don’t know how to begin, but I just found this in some Chinese forum, it is an organization in Australia called Chinese Han Tantrayana Buddhism – Holy Tantra Jin-Gang-Dhyana Buddhism…something like, even the name is confusing, but looks like it has something to do with Vajrayana/Tibetan Buddhism.

I am not in a position to judge another guru/organization so I will not comment on their authenticity, but from the physical outlook, it is quite unorthodox if it is a Vajrayana group.

Since it could be Vajrayana, then perhaps the CTA should look into it? Didn’t CTA persecute Geshe Michael Roach for his long hair and other stuff a few years ago? And I think this Chinese Tantra Organization surpasses Geshe Michael Roach’s “weird look” by miles?

And what about the Tsongkhapa-hat-look-alike thingy? Can CTA please kindly write to them and ask them not use a hat similar to Gelugpa’s yellow hat because it may create confusion to the public? Please help us to protect the purity of Gelugpa’s image will you CTA since you are the Vajrayana’s highest authority.

Since CTA is so engrossed to be a religious police in Vajrayana, can CTA pls go check this organization out? Give the Shugden monks a break will you? At least Shugden monks still wear proper monks’ robes, hold their vows, do their pujas, serve their gurus…

I will keep looking out for organizations like this for CTA to keep them busy, so that they can leave Shugden monks alone for a while…

Other comments and responses:

“samayakeeper”

Why is the CTA so selective and target only the Dorje Shugden practitioners? Why the selective witch hunts targeted at only Dorje Shugden practitioners? Well, the CTA may say they have the right only over Tibetans who are Dorje Shugden practitioners, so should not CTA also ban Tibetans who are practitioners of Bon or other religions and deprive them of their basic human rights?

It is time already for CTA to focus and help Tibetans in their daily needs and lives and STOP playing being the highest governing spiritual body for Tibetan people!

“Dorjedakini”

in response to samayakeeper

It is what they should do and focus on since day one. They just hide behind Shugden issue and did not do their best to improve the living quality of their citizen, worse is that they create disharmony and doubt between their people.

“Triesa”

I am hopeful Dr Lobsang Sangay, the present Kolan Tripa of CTA, will slowly relax the pressure for DS practitioners, after all this is the 21st century, how he runs CTA is being watched and observed by heads of other countries. And the language spoken in the 21st century is freedom of religion, freedom of human rights. Why prosecute your own people because of a difference in belief in one dharma protector and accept all the other religions with even more differences in the whole context of the spiritual practices?

“dsiluvu”

I remember when I was holidaying in Singapore one time, there was this YELLOW BOOK that were placed in several strategic center around Singapore… they even got it translated in to Chinese! Well this is the kind of ways that the CTA poke their noses and centres that like to rub shoulder with His Holiness to get fame and sponsorships do, could do to make other people’s life difficult even though it is not in their jurisdiction to do so. Many accounts of such negative experiences, really you cannot even practice Dorje Shugden freely even though you are outside of Dharamsala. There are many centers who will judge, ban and condemned you, sometimes even smear your name to others saying you worship a “demon” hence you cannot even enter their center or events! Down right religious discrimination!

Basically a statement was put out in every forms of Amitabha Buddhist Center, Singapore (http://www.fpmtabc.org/), whether it is a trip to attend Dalai Lama’s teaching in South East Asia, Kalachakra, or a trip to Dharamsala. On top of name, passpost number, addresses etc. personal details, you need to declare that you do not practice Dorje Shugden first.

So yeah, not only our dear sanghas in Dharamsala are going through injustice, we outside of India and Nepal are also going through such ridiculousness which why it is high time we put a stop to such injustice. And we shall do so by working harder to educated anyone who crosses our path on Dorje Shugden.

Thank you Namdrol for saying it! CTA why don’t you look at those who are more weird then the Shugden practitioners?

“Aurore”

CTA may not have the authority over others outside of Tibetan community of India, however they have done a lot to destroy reputations of certain lamas which creates a rippling effect to other mindless Vajrayana/Buddhist councils around the world.

There are politics involved everywhere and not only within the Indian community. CTA … please focus on organizations that looks weird rather than lamas which are proven authentic already. If this will get them off their case, then I support Namdrol to continue scouting.

Chinese Han Tantrayana Buddhism group

Chinese Han Tantrayana Buddhism group

Chinese Han Tantrayana Buddhism group

Ra Lotsawa Dorje Drak

A Yamantaka Pioneer

One of the previous lives of Dorje Shugden is the renowned lama Ra Lotsawa Dorje Drak, who was most famous for introducing the powerful Yamantaka tantras to Tibet.

This great translator was born in the year 1016 in Nyenam, at a place called Nangyul, which runs through an important Nepali-Tibetan trade route. His father was known as Raton Konchok Dorje and his mother was Dorje Peldzom. He had a special connection with Palden Lhamo and was believed to be held in her robes for two months as she travelled across Tibet to celebrate his birth. Ra Lotsawa’s father was also a Nyingma lineage holder of Yangdak Heruka and Vajrakila, which he eventually passed down to his son.

At fourteen, Ra Lotsawa made his first trip to Kathmandu, arriving in the historic city of Patan during a tumultuous period. Scholars dispute many details of his earlier life at this point of his hagiography. However, he was believed to have attended the Fire Dragon Religious Conference that convened in 1076 under the patronage of King Tsede, the nephew of the famous Jangchub Ö of the old Guge Kingdom of Western Tibet. The conference was a meeting of many great Indian and Tibetan Lamas in order to spur new and more accurate translation works.

Shortly after attending the conference, Ra Lotsawa travelled to Kashmir with five other young companions including the famous Ngok Lotsawa Loden Sherab and Nyen Lotsawa Dharma Drak. According to the Blue Annals, he was to eventually come under the tutelage of Nepalese guru Bharo Chakdum, an adept of the Vajrayogini and Yamantaka Tantric systems. Ra Lotsawa would receive both initiations on his first visit.

Ra Lotsawa also prostrated himself before Mahakaruna, a master that was in the line of Naropa’s lineage of disciples and received a number of initiations from him including Cakrasamvara and Manjushri Namasamgiti. On the same visit, he refuted the doctrine of a Shaivite master and then defeated him in the magical battle that ensued.

Upon returning to Tibet, Ra Lotsawa began to propagate the Tantric systems that he had acquired from his gurus. At that time, the buffalo-headed yidam, Yamantaka, defied the Tibetans’ preconceived notions of what a yidam should look like. Therefore, Ra Lotsawa faced much opposition from ordinary practitioners as well as high lamas, who could not believe that Yamantaka was an authentic Buddhist practice. Many of these lamas engaged Ra Lotsawa in a showdown of arcane powers.

One such lama who opposed Ra Lotsawa was Khon Sakya Lodro, a lineage holder of Yangdak Heruka and Vajrakila who accused Ra Lotsawa of propagating a non-Buddhist teaching that would lead practitioners to hell. This culminated with Ra Lotsawa killing the Sakya lama with the Yamantaka killing rite. At the same time, eyewitnesses reported seeing a vision of Yamantaka in the sky wielding the 58-deity mandala of Yangdak Heruka. This was widely interpreted to denote Yamantaka’s superiority and power. The Sakya lama’s disciples and sponsors then turned to Ra Lotsawa to be their master.

Later, Ra Lotsawa engaged in a battle of arcane powers with Langlab Jangchub Dorje, another powerful and important lineage master of Vajrakila. Ra Lotsawa originally went to pay his respects to this master but was dismissed as a non-Buddhist practitioner of arcane magic. Ra Lotsawa was initially defeated in the ensuing battle and as a result, his disciples were slain by the lama’s divine power. Soon after, Tara appeared to Ra Lotsawa, urging him to return to Nepal to seek out his lama for further instructions. After receiving the necessary teachings from Bharo Chakdum and his other gurus, Ra Lotsawa made a second trip down south, travelling all the way to Nalanda Monastery in India to seek ordination. Upon his return to Tibet, Ra Lotsawa entered another battle and emerged victorious after slaying Langlab Jangchub Dorje.

Upon hearing about Ra Lotsawa’s deeds, the famous Go Lotsawa challenged the authenticity of Ra Lotsawa’s lamas and was said to have entered a battle of psychic powers. Go Lotsawa drew on arcane rites from the Guhyasamaja Tantras in his battle with Ra Lotsawa that involved many villagers. In a display of divine wrath, Go Lotsawa was slain in the ensuing battle along with the villagers that had made false accusations against Ra Lotsawa.

According to his hagiography, Ra Lotsawa dispatched a total of thirteen lamas that challenged his lineage. Among them were translator Gyu Monlam Drakpa, the translator of the Cakrasaṃvara Samvarodaya Tantras, Go Lotsāwa Khupa Letse, the translator of the Guhyasamāja Tantras, and Marpa Chokyi Lodro’s son, Darma Dode. To ordinary view, these may appear to be assassinations but in actuality, the lamas were playing out divine roles to highlight the superiority of the Yamantaka Tantras and to eliminate the opposition that Ra Lotsawa was facing in propagating them.

Amongst his great deeds, Ra Lotsawa was known to have renovated many temples in southern Tsang and Lhato, along with Samye, Tibet’s first monastery, which was damaged by a fire in the year 986. He also sponsored numerous new translation works, the copying and recitation of sacred scriptures, and the installation of Buddha statues.

A lot of people get confused how one practically surrenders completely to the spiritual guide. It seems as if you would become a lifeless zombie frozen, incapable of acting. The reality is it is the exact opposite. Right now we are a lifeless zombie incapable of acting since we are completely controlled by our delusions and have never tasted the enlightened experience of being all living beings.

It can seem like surrendering means you no longer make any decisions. But this is wrong. You do make one decision, over and over again: the decision to surrender and submit to the spiritual guide in all of his aspects. This is the best decision to make in every situation we find ourselves in.

I will repeat, this is the best decision to make in every situation we find ourselves in. There is no situation in which this is not the best decision, and if we make any other decision in any situation, we are making the sub-optimal decision. Any other decision is a product of our ignorance.

Given that things are empty, when reduced down to its essence, every situation has three components: what is appearing, how we respond and what direction we are heading in (towards what destination are we moving). What is appearing is dependent upon our past karma.

How we respond is dependent upon our present wisdom. What direction we are heading in (towards what destination we are moving) is dependent upon our aspiration.

In all three of these domains, our spiritual task is to learn to surrender/submit completely to the spiritual guide. With respect to what is appearing, we need to actively and continuously surrender/submit completely to Guru Dorje Shugden. With respect to how we respond, we need to actively surrender/submit to Lama Tsongkhapa.

With respect to what direction we are heading in (towards what destination we are moving) we need to actively surrender/submit to Guru Father Heruka (or Vajrayogini as the case may be).

Most of our worries in life are about what is appearing. We are such externally-oriented beings. As times become increasingly impure, this will only become more so the case. For this reason, I believe that reliance upon Dorje Shugden is already and will increasingly become our primary and most important refuge.

Dorje Shugden has the power to control what karmically ripens, both externally and internally. Normally, samsara is uncontrolled karmic appearance. When we surrender/offer all of our karma into Dorje Shugden’s care, then he becomes the master of our universe, he becomes the Director of our (Truman) show.

It is so simple to do: generate a pure intention, and request ‘please arrange whatever is best.’ By ‘best’ we mean, what is best for the swiftest possible of enlightenment of all living beings, understanding that our own enlightenment is an essential condition/pre-requisite for their enlightenment (the means to the end).

We have to get to the point where we actually don’t want to make the decision ourselves. We want him to decide everything for us. We have our own plans and our own goals, and we grasp onto them and become very attached to them. We generate enormous stress for ourselves through this. What freedom to let all of this go!

We need to be like a good soldier who is ready (indeed eager because he has complete confidence in his general) to go wherever he is to be deployed and to perform whatever mission is asked of him.

For a lot of RTs, they surrender themselves completely to VGL in terms of letting him decide where they go and what they do. They are happy to do so because they trust his omniscient wisdom. But for the overwhelming majority of us, it seems as if we are on our own in this respect. But this is not the case. We too can enjoy the same enlightened direction in our life by learning how to surrender/submit to Dorje Shugden.

I try to have no plans of my own, no agenda of my own other than to surrender/submit to Dorje Shugden. There is no stress, no anxiety, no worry, just an adventurous heart ready for whatever the Protector ripens next. There is no basis for aversion to anything (for example the baby crying when I am trying to mediate or do my journal).

My ignorance makes me attached to my wishes, and I suffer when they are thwarted. My faith in Dorje Shugden helps me let go of that aversion and be happy to assume responsibility for whatever the situation he emanates for me calls upon me to do. No questions asked, no hesitation, no worry, no second-guessing and no frustration, just the peaceful equanimity of a confident faith that the Protector has taken charge.

I am running out of time, so I will have to explain later how it works to surrender in terms of how we respond and the direction we are going.

But briefly, the way we respond to all situations is to oppose orthogonally the nexus of delusions arising in any given moment. This as well can be done quite simply through making simple requests such as ‘reveal to me what I should do’ or ‘please give me the wisdom to know how to respond’.

Likewise, we can simply ask ourselves, ‘what would VGL do?’ or ‘what would Lama Tsongkhapa do?’ much like Christians ask what would Jesus do. Then we do that. He has perfect wisdom and perfect skilful means, so really these two types of request are just two sides of the same coin.

In terms of what direction we are going, our job is to make ourselves useful to others. Our final goal is the complete freedom of all beings. This is what we are working towards. To bring this about, we need to recognize that we have imprisoned all beings in the samsara of our creation (our contaminated dream).

Thus to free them we need to gather and dissolve all our appearances into the bliss of the Dharmakaya (transform ourselves into Chakrasambara). As a way station or an interim step in that process, we likewise transform ourselves and our entire empty world into Heruka’s pure land.

Heruka’s pure land is like a funnel which gathers all appearances from the deepest hell to the highest pure land gradually inwards towards the Dharmakaya inside the nada inside Father Heruka’s heart. From the Charnel grounds into inside the protection circle, then into the celestial mansion, then into the deities of the commitment, body, speech, heart and great bliss wheels. Then into Father Heruka himself, then into his indestructible drop, then into the nada.

When you enter into the nada, it is like a magic portal that when you pass through the entire interpretative mandala dissolves behind you and you emerge into the infinite expanse of the clear light Dharmakaya. It is then that you realize that the entire path to enlightenment was like an unwinding of the contaminated karmic ball of knots we have been creating since beginningless time. We release ourselves (and all beings) from the infinite chains of our past deluded deeds. It all unwinds and dissolves and we emerge united with all beings in inseparable and irreversible freedom.

Source : http://kadampaworkingdad.wordpress.com/2012/02/18/the-decision-to-surrender/

The interview is conducted on the occasion of His Holiness the 101th Ganden Tripa’s first official visit to Singapore.

The interview is conducted by Kunga Nyima and is translated by Associate Professor Huang Yi Yan of Taiwan. It is conducted on 18 June 2003 at His Holiness’s residence in Singapore.

His Holiness the 101th Ganden Tripa is hosted on His first Official Visit to Singapore from 25 May 2003 to 23 June 2003 by the Charitable Assistance Society.

About the Ganden Tripas:

The Ganden Tripas, the Sakya Trizins and the Karmapas are official heads of their respective traditions: the Gelug, the Sakya and the Karma Kagyu. Je Tsongkhapa is the founder of the Gelug tradition. The line of the Ganden Tripas are Tsongkhapa’s spiritual successors and are therefore the official supreme head of the Gelug Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. The line of the Dalai Lamas and Panchen Lamas both hailed from the Gelug Tradition.

The 101th Ganden Tripa, together with Mindroling Trichen, have been enthroned in 2002 as the heads of respectively the Nyingma and Gelug traditions.

Those beings who so rarely are fortunate enough to have contact with His Holiness, there is hardly any who will fail to realize that His Holiness is a GEM…… a sign of the fruition and flowering of seamless cultivation of the Buddha’s holy Teachings. It is a genuine blessing to personally witness His Holiness’s absolute sincerity, warmth, wisdom, innocent humour, unending patience and honesty.

”May it be of benefit !!”

Buddhism

What is the most essentially fundamental thing for a Buddhist?

Buddhists should know that samsara is suffering. We need to realize that samsara is suffering first before we will try to obtain liberation from it. The only way to liberation from samsara is through following the Teachings of the Buddha. According to the Texts, only by following the Buddhist Teachings can there be ultimate liberation from samsara.

What is the most important thing a Buddhist should remember?

A Buddhist should always remember the 3 Jewels: the Buddha, His Teachings [The Dharma ] and His Assembly of Noble Disciples [ The Sangha ]. A Buddhist should clear internalize the supreme qualities of the 3 Jewels. In general, the Buddha is like a doctor, the Dharma is like medicine and the Sangha is like nurses and assistants to the doctor.

We, sentient beings, in samsara, are like the patients. We need to take the doctor’s prescription to get well. Moreover, we also need to rely on the doctor and his assistants too. A Buddhist needs to always take refuge in the 3 Jewels as well as to remember the qualities of the 3 Jewels.

How do we sustain “Bodhicitta”: the attitude of completely dedicating ourselves for the welfare of others; of wanting to attain the state of Complete Enlightenment or Buddhahood solely for the good of others?

To put the Teachings into practice is difficult. If we can put the Teachings into practice, this is real Bodhicitta. If we cannot, this cannot be Bodhicitta. To give rise to Bodhicitta, we must first cultivate Loving-kindness [ Wishing all beings to have happiness and the causes of happiness ] and Compassion [ Wishing all beings to be free from suffering and the causes of suffering ].

Next, we must think of the kindness of our mother. Then, we need to remember the kindness of all beings as they have acted as our mothers in countless past lives. Following, we need to cultivate the wish to repay the kindnesses of all these uncountable mother sentient beings. To put Bodhicitta into practice is difficult. If we can put Bodhicitta into practice, this is real Bodhicitta.

If we cannot put Bodhicitta into practice, this cannot be genuine Bodhicitta. Always try to sustain a good-heart. Do not be bothered about what others do. Just try to sustain a good-heart. This is the way of the true Buddhists.

Is vegetarianism compulsory?

It has been suggested that cultivating crops kill untold numbers of insects whilst the slaughtering of only one yak in old Tibet can feed the whole family for a week. Therefore, from the numerical point of view, this group of people suggests that we should consume meat of big-size animals rather than eating vegetables which inevitably entail the death of countless creatures. Moreover, some masters have insisted on vegetarianism as compulsory for a Buddhist whilst others quoted Buddhist texts to the contrary.

What is Your Holiness point of view?

In general, Lord Buddha has taught 3 differing points with regard to vegetarianism. In the first one, in the Theravada tradition, it is taught that we cannot take the so-called three categories of “Impure Meat”: a) we perceive through our eyes or ears the killing of the meat; b) we suspect that the meat is killed for ourselves; c) we know that the meat has been killed for us.

Besides these 3 categories of meat, we are permitted to partake of the rest. In the second one, in the Mahayana tradition, it is taught explicitly that the taking meat is necessarily unskillful and wrong. So vegetarianism is compulsory here.

In the third, in the Vajrayana tradition, it is taught that practitioners of this path should take meat. The reason for this is given in the texts and requires extensive explanations. It is not appropriate for me to elaborate here. Students of Buddhism can choose to follow any of these 3 points. It is not possible for me to dictate which points students should follow.

There have been some Buddhist centres concentrating mainly on doing social work whilst some concentrating mainly on spiritual practices. What is Your Holiness’s opinion on what a Buddhist centre should concentrate on?

Doing both social work and spiritual practices are not contradictory but are in fact complementary. Both have their own reasons for doing their respective work. Shantideva said in “Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life” that the perfection of generosity does not mean that one can only perfect the practice of generosity after one has alleviated the poverty of all sentient beings.

Lord Buddha has already perfected the practice of generosity. However, there is still poverty in the world. Therefore, this proves the point as elucidated in “Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life” that to perfect the practice of generosity means to be able to perfect the activity of generosity from the point of view of one’s spiritual practice rather than from already physical completion of the alleviating of poverty of all other beings.

Following this point of argument, cultivation of generosity through various spiritual practices is important. Even if I can help, I can only but help but a minute proportion of beings through doing social work. Even if I can help 1000 beings, this is still a small proportion relative to the population of Singapore and the number of beings in the whole universe.

There are 3 sets of vows: the Self-Liberation Vows; the Bodhisattva Vows and the Vajrayana Vows. All these 3 sets of vows contain the Practices of the 6 Perfections including of course the practice of generosity. Some examples of how we can exercise the vows include one assisting if any beings fall sick or have other difficulties, one helping to guard banks as they contain the wealth of many beings! From this point of view therefore, social work is therefore an essential part of dharma practice.

In addition, however, we must also remember Shantideva’s teaching that the accomplishment of the perfections lies in one’s mind through spiritual practices also. Therefore, there are valid and good reasons for social work as well as spiritual practices. There is no need to split them into two different groups.

There have been comments that Buddhists from almost all traditions, be it Tibetan, Thai or even the west, have been building too much big statues, stupas, centres and even monasteries and that Buddhists should instead expend more of their resources on social welfare projects such as hospitals, animal-shelter-homes, orphanages and others that directly benefit beings in more tangible ways. What is Your Holiness’s opinion about this?

All are good. All can accumulate merit. Building hospitals or monasteries are good. Both activities are not wasteful.

Some Buddhist centres will only support or circulate news of activities organized by their own centres. Some will even through either implicit or even explicit means, discourage their members from attending programmes organized by other centres even if these programmes are conducted by acknowledged great masters and are beneficial. It has been suggested that these centres are trying to maintain the number of students or followers in their centres as they are worried that their resources will be “lost” to other organizations. On the other hand, these centres claim that they are only trying to “protect” their students from even some of these important teachers, some of whom are even teachers of their centres’ own spiritual advisers. What does Your Holiness think about this?

I have no comments. If I say something, some people may get angry with me! [ laughing ]

Will there be an end to samsara?

It is difficult to say if there will be an end to samsara. It is mentioned in the texts that all beings will eventually become Buddhas. But before that, samsara is there. It is also mentioned in the texts that there does not exist a time where all beings will be free from samsara.

There have been allegations of conversions of Buddhists to other religions through deliberate and aggressive inaccurate depiction of Buddhism, conditional provisions of material aid, educational opportunities and such. What does Your Holiness think of this?

We have to try our best to propagate the Buddhist Teachings. We have no ability to stop these alleged practices. It is also no good for us to stop conversions through “fair” means. The main thing is to develop and improve ourselves. We need to establish more Buddhist centres. We need to improve the management of existing centres.

Just like how other religions spread their teachings, Buddhists should also follow likewise. We should not think of going against other religions however! Conducting certain religious ceremonies or “pujas” for welfare of the Buddhist teachings is also another method. According to the Buddhist Teachings, it is considered negative karma to desecrate the Buddhist teachings.

Similarly, we should not desecrate teachings of other religions. We simply need to improve ourselves with diligence. In the context of Tibetan Buddhism, the Sakyapas will need to preserve and propagate teachings of the Sakya Tradition. The Kagyupas, the Nyingmapas and the Gelugpas will similarly need to do likewise.

What does Your Holiness feel about the state of Buddhism in the west?

Buddhism has been taught and transmitted in the west but it is difficult to ensure that every Teaching has been taught and learnt well. There is definite room for improvements in terms of the way the Buddhist centers are being managed, the way the western students are learning the teachings, the way these students are practicing the teachings, the way in which the teachings have been taught and others. Another matter of concern is that many Tibetan teachers in the west have no place of their own.

Tibetan Buddhism

Does Your Holiness feel that it is timely and appropriate to introduce the Bhikshuni or Fully-ordained Nun’s Order into Tibetan Buddhism?

I have not much comment about this matter.

Does Your Holiness feel that the “tulku” system or the system of finding reincarnated teachers is still relevant today?

There are still many masters getting recognized today. I do not know whether it is still relevant today.

What is Your Holiness opinion of astrology and divination?

Some people believe in them and some people do not. I personally have not much opinion about this matter.

There have been great concerns and fear almost amongst Vajrayana students in both the east and west, on their need to, at all cost, at least read through the meditation text of their yidam daily as they have been told to do so by their teachers during initiation ceremonies of which they participated. These students considered missing doing the meditation of their Yidam or missing reading through the relevant text even for a day a serious transgression of their vow or commitment. What is Your Holiness’s opinion about this matter?

The main point is not to simply and blindly read through the Yidam’s meditational text or “sadhana” daily without understanding. The main point is to keep strictly to our best ability all the commitments we have taken: the Self-liberation, the Bodhisattva and the Tantric commitments.

It is good and important to do the meditational text of your yidam daily especially if you have promised to do so daily but this is not the main point. The main and most important point is to keep the above 3 sets of vows to our best ability. If you have promised your Teachers to do certain “sadhanas” or “Practice Texts” daily, you should definitely try to do them daily.

If you really cannot do it due to sickness, it is perfectly fine. But you should continue after you have recovered from your sickness. If you miss your “sadhana” due to that you have forgotten to do it, you should still continue to do it the very next day. You should also do at least 21 times the long Vajrasattva 100- Syllable Mantra or to do the “Confession to the 35 Buddhas” the very next day.

If for whatever reason you miss your “sadhana” such as not having the time due to work, you should let your Teacher know about it and then re-take the particular initiation again. In the meantime, before say you can re-take the initiation again, continue with the practice. You should also do at least 21 times the long Vajrasattva 100-Syllable Mantra or do the ”Confession to the 35 Buddhas”.

If owing to work commitments you cannot continue with your daily practice of the promised ”sadhana” anymore, you should let your Teacher know about this. If you are not able to let your Teacher know about this or your Teacher has already passed away and you still cannot continue to do your practice daily, you should then do at least 21 times the long Vajrasattva 100-Syllable Mantra or do the “Confession to the 35 Buddhas” daily.

It is important to check if there is any commitment that comes with any particular initiation. If you are not able to keep the commitments, you should not take the initiation. If a student has promised to do say 5 “sadhanas” a day, the student should not decide for himself or herself without consulting their Teachers first whether he or she can simply do only one “sadhana” in place of all the rests daily. However, it is also important that students should not feel unreasonably or overly upset or fearful of missing daily practice for whatever reasons.

How will Your Holiness describe Your relationship with HH the Dalai Lama?

His Holiness the Dalai Lama has taken care of me in my past lives. His Holiness has taken care of me when I was just a newly-ordained monk, when I was the Abbot of the Tantric College of Upper Lhasa, Abbot of Ganden Shartse Monastery, when I was the Lord of Dharma of the Eastern End or the “Sharpa Choje” and even when I am now the Ganden Tripa or the Supreme Head of the Gelugpa Tradition.

His Holiness is one of my precious Root Teachers. I have taken a photograph with HH the Dalai Lama this year [ May 2003 ]. There is nothing in the world that I cherish more. Then, not forgetting also, that His Holiness is, in some ways, my “boss”. [ giggles]

What is Your Holiness’s opinion on a student being non-sectarian and doing practices or receiving teachings and initiations from all the 4 Tibetan Buddhist lineages?

I feel that it is best if a practitioner can do the practices of all these four lineages without discrimination. However, it may be difficult for some unless they have the capacity. On the other hand, it is also possible for a practitioner to concentrate only on one lineage. However, this latter practitioner even concentrating only on one lineage, needs to have sincere and genuine respect and appreciation for all the other lineages he or she is not practicing.

As we are Buddhists, we all said the Refuge Prayer in which it is mentioned that we take refuge in the Community of Noble Ones. This means the beings who have gained Enlightenment. These beings can be found in all the different lineages. Therefore, when we take refuge, we take refuge in these Enlightened Beings in all the lineages.

If we accept only those Enlightened Beings found in our lineage and reject those Enlightened Beings of other lineages, what we do and say are different. I consider such sectarian attitude or behaviour a very serious breach of Buddhist commitment.

In summary, if we have the ability, it is best if we can follow teachings from all the lineages. Otherwise, we can concentrate on learning from any one of the lineages that we have affinity towards but at the same time maintaining sincere and genuine respect and appreciation of the other lineages.

The Gelugpa Tradition

Can Your Holiness tell us the distinguishing characteristics of the Gelugpa Tradition of which You are the Official Head?

Both in the west and the east, people recognize the Gelugpa monks by the yellow pointed hat they wear. This is the special characteristic! [ laughing ] The uncommon feature of the Gelugpa is that outwardly, the Gelugpa monks adopt a subdued and gentle form of the Shravaka practitioner who live according to the Vinaya rules of the Sutra Vehicle whilst inwardly possessing the full realization of the Generation and Completion Stages of the Tantra Vehicle. The Gelugpa Tradition perceives the Sutra and Tantra Vehicle as complementary and not contradictory.

Does Your Holiness feel that Tibetan Buddhism, in particular, the Gelugpa Tradition, has been upheld well in exile?

I feel that in general, Tibetan Buddhism has been relatively well preserved. In India, the number of monks in the great monasteries has increased due to diligent efforts. However, efforts to make further progress beyond the current situation may be difficult as most efforts have already been expended towards preservation itself. One of the difficulties faced by the monks is that as they are now in exile, they have to take care of their livelihood themselves such as growing crops in the fields. In Tibet in the past, monks only need to study and practise without having the need to work for their own living.

Does Your Holiness feel that there could be some changes introduced into the Geshe study programme followed by the great monasteries of the Gelugpa Tradition?

There have been some suggestions about this. The five great texts that form the curriculum of the Geshe study programme is not for the purpose of winning debates. The debates are not to be only done in mouth but are to be followed by actions throughout the 20 to 30 years of study. The debates are not mere games. Before we can start practising, we need first to know what and how to practise and this we can achieve through studying.

Both Lord Buddha and Je Tsongkhapa have said that before we accept any of Their teachings, we need first to behave like a goldsmith examining the purity of his goods. A goldsmith will first need to smelt the material under investigation. Next, he will need to dissect the gold into appropriate sizes. Finally, he will need to shape the material.

Similarly, too, before we accept or commence any practices, we need first to investigate carefully the sources of these practices through correspondingly adopting the above three processes, whether they originate from the Buddha or any of the Indian or Tibetan lineal Teachers. Study will assist in this task.

There have been suggestions too to introduce scientific study into the Geshe study programme. In general, I feel that studying science is good. However, the study and practise of the Buddha’s teachings is the only ultimate way to the liberation of all beings from samsara and for us to become a Buddha so that we can liberate all beings from samsara.

Towards this objective, studying the Buddha’s teachings is sufficient. All the 500 Arahants of the past have achieved this without requiring study of science. Studying the Teachings is not to just acquire knowledge or to acquire official paper certificates. Studying the Teachings is to free oneself from samsara and also that oneself can become a Buddha to liberate all beings from their sufferings.

Again, towards this aim, studying of the Teachings is sufficient. There is no further need to include the study of science. However, to be a famous scholar recognized by the world, we will then need to study both the Teachings and science! [laughing ]

The study of the Teachings is so that we can gain wisdom to realize Emptiness which is the ultimate nature of phenomena. The study of the teachings entails the following three stages: Listening to the teachings; contemplating what we have heard; putting into practice what we have learnt.

We need to listen to the teachings first before we can contemplate on them. Before we can contemplate, we first need to listen to what has been taught. If we do not listen, we cannot contemplate and subsequently, there is nothing for us to practise! Therefore, first, we need to seek for knowledge through listening and studying the teachings.

I personally started to study the great texts when I was 25 years old. I am now 77 years old and still I feel that I have not learnt enough. In addition to the Gelugpa tradition, the other 3 traditions of Tibetan Buddhism, the Sakya, the Nyingma and the Kagyu all contain examples of great realised masters who studied the Teachings extensively.

In the Sakya tradition, we have Sakya Pandita. In the Nyingma tradition, we have Longchen Rabjampa. In the Kagyu tradition, the lineal Karmapas and Dhakpo Lhaje or Gampopa are such great beings. All these masters learnt and studied extensively the great texts and do not rely simply on merely one text alone.

In recent years, some teachers have taught that it is sufficient to rely only on the tantric practices of the Vajrayogini [ Naro Kachodma ] and the Solitary Yamantaka. On the other hand, it has been suggested that the current strong emphasis on the tantric practices of the Vajrayogini [ Naro Kachodma ] and the Solitary Yamantaka instead of the combined tantric practices of the 32 Deity Guhyasamaja, the 62 Deity Heruka Chakrasamvara and the 13 Deity Yamantaka recommended by Je Tzongkhapa are signs of the degeneration of the tantric practices in the Gelugpa tradition. What is Your Holiness’s opinion on this matter?

The Vajrayogini or Naro Kachodma practices is not introduced into the Gelugpa Tradition by Trijang Rinpoche but popularized earlier by masters such as Pabongka Rinpoche as Pabongka Rinpoche is considered to be an emanation of Naropa who is Himself the first Lineage Master of this tantric cycle. Trijang Rinpoche is Himself strongly affiliated to the Vajrayogini cycle as even HH the Dalai Lama pronounced that Trijang Rinpoche is a great practitioner of both the Heruka and Vajrayogini cycles.

In general, Je Tsongkhapa’s three meditational deities or yidams are the 32 Deity Guhyasamaja, the 62 Deity Heruka Chakrasamvara and the 13 Deity Yamantaka. Amongst these 3 yidams, Tsongkhapa especially meditates on Guhyasamaja and wrote most extensively and deeply on this practice. Guhyasamaja is in fact Tzongkhapa’s main practice.

Both Guhyasamaja’s and Heruka’s meditation texts are long whilst Yamantaka’s text is relatively shorter. The genuine good practitioner of the Gelugpa tradition must do all these three practices inseparably.

I have personally heard HH the Dalai Lama taught before that doing the practices of these 3 yidams inseparably is not exactly to mean to read the meditation texts of these 3 yidams separately. The point is to extract the essential and critical features of each of these 3 respective yidams and to subsequently integrate them into any one of these 3 yidams which one has adopted as one’s main yidam.

For example, if your main yidam is Yamantaka, you integrate the essential features of each of these 3 yidams into Yamantaka and you then concentrate on the practice of Yamantaka. Similarly, if your yidam is Guhyasamaja, you then integrate the essential features of each of these 3 yidams into Guhyasamaja and you then concentrate on the practice of Guhyasamaja. This applies also if your yidam is Heruka. The past great lineage Gelugpa Masters similarly do practices of these 3 yidams inseparably.

The recent great lineage Gelugpa Masters such as Ling Rinpoche [ who is the 97 th Ganden Tripa and the Senior Root Teacher of the present Dalai Lama ], Trijang Rinpoche [ who is the Junior Root Teacher of the present Dalai Lama ] and Zong Rinpoche all practise these 3 yidams inseparably.

These great masters have definitely mastered practices of these 3 yidams. Some teachers may have taught their students only to concentrate on Vajrayogini and Solitary Yamantaka because their students may not have the ability or time to do the practices of these 3 great Yidams. However, in general, genuine Gelugpa practitioners who have the ability should do the practices of these 3 great Yidams as His Holiness the Dalai Lama advised.

General

What is Your Holiness’s opinion on mercy-killing or euthanasia?

To kill another being before his or her natural death involves the negative karma of killing even if he or she themselves request to end their lives or if they are already unconscious on life-support and their next-of-kin decides to end their life on their behalf.

Does Your Holiness think that it is permissible to abort babies if they are conceived through rape or if giving birth to the baby endangers the mother’s life or if the baby is so chronically handicapped that it will die within a few seconds or minutes of its birth?

Any form of abortion will involve the negative karma of killing a being.

What is Your Holiness’s opinion on experiments being done on animals for the alleged benefit of human beings?

According to the Buddhist Teachings, giving suffering to another being is wrong.

What is Your Holiness’s view on homosexuality?

Homosexuality seems to be getting more common in the world these days. Homosexuality, like heterosexuality, are both activities of samsara. Neither seems to be particularly better or worse than the other. Whether a man or woman is straight or gay does not make him or her any particularly better or worse than the other. In general, both are activities of lay people. Not that, however, that there is no karma involved in homosexuality, only that it is just like heterosexuality, another activity of samsara.

What is Your Holiness’s opinion of genetic engineering?

I do not know whether it is correct or wrong.

Does Your Holiness think it is permissible to eradicate “pests”: animals or insects which are harmful to human beings such as mosquitoes, cockroaches, rats and such?

All beings are the same. It is considered negative karma to kill any being. Even if these animals infect human beings with diseases, according to the Buddhist Teachings, it is still considered an unskillful action to harm or eradicate them. However, to say not to stop diseases getting spread to human beings as a result of infections from these animals also does not seem to be totally correct. It is very difficult to decide. No matter which stand you take, it is still very difficult.

What is Your Holiness’s opinion of the so-called “pre-emptive strikes”? There is one viewpoint that claims that crippling your enemy’s military resources first before they initiates a brutal onslaught on civilians is actually a skilful means to protect lives. The other viewpoint is that “pre-emptive strikes” initiates aggression first from one’s side without provocation from the other and is therefore wrong.

It is difficult to decide.

What is Your Holiness’s wish for the world?

I wish all beings in the world happiness, health and also that they will live even better.

A short introduction to Buddhism

[ As informal accompanying notes to the above interview with HH the 101th Ganden Tripa for friends unfamiliar with the Buddhist teachings ]

General

The cause of samsara Buddha, the Enlightened One, taught that all beings suffer as a result of their not recognizing the inherent Emptiness of nature.

• From their Non-recognition of Emptiness or Ignorance arises a sense of Self.
• From this sense of Self arises Self-cherishing Attitude which places oneself above all others.
• From Self-cherishing Attitude arises all the other Defilements: Anger, Attachment and such.
• As a result of creation of actions motivated by these Defilements, beings suffer from ”Karma” or the Resultant Effects of their Actions.
• From their endless creation of “Karma”, beings are forced to take birth, experienced inevitable death, take birth again, experience death again and so on, again and again in unending cycles of suffering.

The way to end samsara

• To realize Emptiness so that they can be free from samsara, beings will need to practise the Noble Eight-fold Path: Right View / Right Intention / Right Speech / Right Action / Right Livelihood / Right Effort / Right Mindfulness / Right Concentration.
• When beings realize Emptiness, they are then liberated from samsara.

Mahayana

Bodhisattvas

Beings who do not only want to liberate themselves from samsara but in addition, wanting to attain Buddhahood, as this is the best manner that they can liberate all other countless beings from samsara, are known as “Bodhisattvas”.

Common Bodhicitta

The wish to want to attain Buddhahood regardless of how long it will take or how difficult it will be solely for the liberation from samsara of all other beings is known as the “Common Bodhicitta”.

Way of practice of the Bodhisattvas

Sutra Tradition- Bodhisattvas practise the Six Perfections for countless aeons so that they can attain the state of Buddhahood. The Six Perfections are Generosity / Morality / Patience /Perseverance /Meditation / Wisdom. This group of Bodhisattvas is practicing according to the Sutra Mahayana Tradition.

Uncommon Bodhicitta

Another group of Bodhisattvas practices according to the Tantra Mahayana Tradition. This latter group of Bodhisattvas are motivated by the “Uncommon Bodhicitta” which is the wish to attain Buddhahood for the liberation from samsara of all other beings through any means whatsoever because they cannot stand, due to their great compassion, the suffering of any beings whilst they are progressing towards Buddhahood.

Way of practice of the Bodhisattvas

Tantra Tradition- This group of Bodhisattvas practices Deity Yoga and other tantric practices which will yield the state of Buddhahood in the shortest time possible including even this very life. In general, these Bodhisattvas practise viewing the inherent ultimate potential or purity of all beings. They do this through viewing their Spiritual Teachers as Buddhas, themselves and all other beings as Buddhas.

Source: http://www.trisurlungriknamgyal.com/blog-2/

I have been edging to write this for the longest time to share this view of what has been both draining my well-being as well as empowering my spiritual self to clear the frustration and negative emotions arising from this unfortunate spiritual suppression.

Loving Shugden

At the early time, entering into the teaching of the Tathagata,
you rose in the form of Vinaya-holding Bhikshu,
thus you protect all the teachings of the Sravaka-Pitaka without exception, I prostrate to you.

As we all know and agree that Dorje Shugden is by no fault an enlightened Being of the highest nature. Openly portraying himself as the sacred protector of Manjunatha Je Tsongkhapa’s teachings, he had vowed to arise as an UNCOMMON protector of the sublime Gaden lineage. This form which He has dutifully taken in order to serve his Spiritual Master with the interest to preserve the holy lineage which is unmistakenly clear and lucidly outlines the path to Supreme Enlightenment.

It is therefore with great responsibility that this noble monk, Je Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen in his lifetime chose to arise during his murder as this uncommon protector. The controversies surrounding this historical figure today has lead to many uncalled for mental anguish and material deprivation. The ban since its conceptualization and beginning has pushed Tibetan Buddhism especially the lineage of the Gaden tradition to the forefront. Both negative and positive feedback has been received by the media and people around the world which denotes the amount of care and hate people have for this deity.

The current result; people have heard about Tibetan Buddhism, Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, Lamas, Rinpoches, Geshes, and of course Dorje Shugden. Without any doubt it has triggered in the recipient’s mind that such things exist. Those who are concerned showed signs of care which triggers the dormant compassion in them, allowing a seed of liberation in the form of Compassion and Love to sprout in barren grounds of today’s world of advanced technology.

Those who show hate and malice towards the deity, lineage masters and that of the tradition collects a certain amount of negative karma but in nature connects with the Buddha nature within. A Buddha is a Buddha, any thought of hatred or malice would not harm Him, but only plant seeds of enlightenment for the future. Either way things will work out fine.

The ancient Kadampa masters always tells us to think with broad and expansiveness of the mind, look further into the future and we shall be able to do more to benefit others. Such is the nature of an enlightened Mind which we need to badly nurture. This thought coupled with compassion and skillful means brings us yonder to a world better known as Bliss.

The wisdom Buddha Dorje Shugden’s encompassing qualities of body, speech, mind, qualities and activities renders such an amazing chance for sentient beings who are sunk in the seas of Samsara to be able to obtain his sacred blessing in this way. He is therefore a Buddha WITHOUT DISCRIMINATION!

Je Pabongkha Dechen Nyingpo, HH Kyabje Trijang Dorje Chang, HH Zong Dorje Chang, HH Zemey Dorje Chang are lineage masters without fault in conduct and practice which we can see living proofs of what these masters have contributed towards the people of Tibet and humanity in itself. The spread of the untainted doctrine of Lama Tsongkhapa through these masters of which have benefitted thousands in India, China, Mongolia and Tibet during the prime time of their life has made so much impact in the minds of those who receive their teachings.

Today, we see their lineage grow through hardworking living masters who have transformed from practice and perfected them before passing onto others whom in turn made a huge impact in their life. How is this possible? The enlightened mind works in reference to the happiness of other people and not on the self. Hence, the protector of these highly evolved beings is definitely a Buddha of great Compassion!

Within a short span of time and given the geographical and demographical set downs of Tibet, the practice of Dorje Shugden has definitely outshone many older teachings which had originated in Tibet. During times of hardship when the people and their religion was put down badly to the point of extermination, Dorje Shugden held these people within the folds of his robes and ensured them safety. Such is the display of his unfeigned powers of protection.

A good example was Dorje Shugden’s powers in shielding the Dalai Lama on HH’s escape from Lhasa to India. Without doubt Dorje Shugden’s powers have ensured a nation in exile to have a spiritual leader today. Definitely to be able to protect the Dalai Lama from the Red Guard would not only mean skillful magical powers but the merit to put on hold negative karma from ripening on the people who will be without a refuge in the world. Dorje Shugden is the wrathful King of Dharma Protectors in which we can take refuge for whatever obstacles we may face for His might is infallible!

Uncommon in any tradition of Buddhism, Dorje Shugden arises to teach when the Dharma is degenerating. True to his predecessor’s personalities, Dorje Shugden is a master of both Sutras and Tantric teachings. On top of that, he is the sacred holder of the Vinaya which is the root of all Buddhist texts, views and attainments.

From time to time through his emanations, trances and magical manifestations, Dorje Shugden has arisen and will arise to propagate the special view of Je Tsongkhapa. From here we can see that Dorje Shugden does not only support other Lamas and Rinpoche’s well being for them to spread the sacred Dharma, he takes it upon himself to do the job at times. This makes him a very special being and protector because he provides the SAME PROTECTION to both Dharma and sentient beings.

Recollecting the above few points which I have highlighted, it is safe for us to accept and love Dorje Shugden. A protector Buddha with characteristics such as I’ve mentioned above would not harm anyone regardless who they are. If they cannot harm beings such as Trijang Rinpoche, why would He want to harm HHDL and the cause of Tibet? If he is so malicious, it would be right for Trijang Rinpoche, the junior tutor of HHDL to warn us also. If Trijang Rinpoche is wrong, HHDL will have to be wrong also! And there goes the rest of the world of Buddhism.

Loving Dorje Shugden means to embrace the teachings of his spiritual master, Je Tsongkhapa. By practicing the paths of Lojong(Mind Transformation), Lamrim(Stages of the Path) and Mahamudra(the Great Seal) one delights the heart of Dorje Shugden and we will be blessed. A demon would not require this of us to make him happy. A demon would only want flesh and blood from jealousy and malice to destroy ourselves and the people around us. Love, for many of us is attachment, love for Dorje Shugden is Liberation.

Love all Lamas

We are fortunate to be able to be reborn in this era where technology has brought our living standards to a point whereby we do not need to endure hardships for our daily needs. Our material needs are pretty much taken care of. Education is affordable though may vary according to our family background but we will not be easily left uncared for. On top of that, we are more fortunate to have met our Spiritual Guide of a valid tradition stemming from Buddha Shakyamuni’s time. If we have such fortune, we should really appreciate and rejoice in the merits which we have amassed over time.

With technology also, we have access to highly evolved beings such as HHDL and Lamas of traditions of Lord Buddha. These traditions sprouted when Dharma was bare in the lands of barbarians and these masters and their patriachs went through hardships and sacrifice to establish the good news of the sacred Dharma in these lands. We need to understand the nature of Dharma which is very precious and not easy to phatom in the minds of the unsown. The amount of love, work, cajoling, beating, punishments etc in order to get the Dharma settled within our mindstream.

Whether their actions are wrathful or peaceful, their motivation is focused in bringing the Dharma, the nectar which is the medicine to heal our sufferings and negative emotions. This is done in order to uplift us and bring us to come to terms with ourselves in peace and happiness. And on a higher level, empower us to empower others with the holy words and practice of the Omniscient Lord Buddha. This is done in order to preserve the wondrous holy Dharma which we have received much benefit from. We need to keep it alive so that the generations that come after us may be able to benefit from it as well.

Different views and points highlighted during the process of teaching and disseminating the Dharma is often misread as means to oppose another party. The differences in teachings are not meant to be contradictory but to be complimentary by the Buddha himself. This is further elucidated by masters of the Middle view such as the great mendicant Nagarjuna, Lord of the Pervasive view. When you structurally put it focused onto smaller things and put people into view on a single subject, we would not be able to achieve harmony in terms of realizing the essence of what these views has been put onto us.

Similarly when we approach one Lama and we are taught one thing but the next Lama whom we meet teaches us something contradicting, we should examine ourselves and not the qualified Lamas. Traditionally, when we engage in practice with one Lama, we should stick to only His Eminence and not move to another without the permission of the first. This is clearly stated in the 50 verses of Guru Devotion.

We should not be masters of ourselves and make decisions for our spiritual path without proper consultation and permission from our current gurus. From this, we create causes to be suitable vessels for the Dharma to be in us. Our minds will be at ease and not cluttered from the things we hear. Having dispelling unnecessary obstacles, we create a platform for attainments and realizations to grow within ourselves.

Hence, it is important to LOVE OUR LAMAS and in abiding with their wishes, we create a very harmonious platform for teachers of all traditions to teach their disciples in accordance with their dispositions. This is very essential of today’s world as this would have lessened the sufferings of members of the Sangha who have worked very hard in getting the sacred Dharma to us. By loving our Lamas, we LOVE ALL LAMAS from every tradition and lineage of Lord Buddha disregarding race, color and orientation. Making the Buddhist world a better place to study and gain realization from our practice.

Our minds are weak, hence we need the nectar of our Lama’s speech to empower us to be better people. With concentration and discerning analysis of our Lamas’ words, we are not easily confused and will have the faith to act in accord with our Lama’s wishes to get things done for the happiness of many. The confusion with the Dorje Shugden ban would be easily lifted if it we loved our Lamas without agenda for ourselves. This would have cleared much doubt and confusion with the people of Tibet suffering from the ban. For us watching from the front, we should look deeper into the problem and understand it thoroughly before we jump into any conclusion.

Creating this strong loving platform of awareness, we save many people from undesired state of confusion and unhappiness. I am writing this to create awareness for us to have clean Samayas with our Spiritual Guide for it is through them many attainments will arise in our mind stream. Loving our teacher means we listen to EVERYTHING THEY SAY and follow all the way.

Heal the world

Healing a world damaged and hurt by pollutions of the mind and physical pollution is by far the hardest and most mind boggling task to do in this era and time. Convenience is the great cause for this to happen. The peace which we envision for the world today might not be what we can achieve with our own two hands. But here’s what I think is possible:

Promoting the Gaden tradition:

Our tradition is rich with the fruits of all four schools of Buddhism in Tibet (Nyingma, Kagyu, Sakya, Kadam) we shall promote Lama Tsongkhapa’s tradition in accordance with the disposition of the people of today. People from all walks of life should bask in the sunshine of the Gaden tradition. In doing so, we promote spiritual harmony amongst other schools too!

Dorje Shugden – Protector of Universal Peace

Like the mother Matzu of China/Taiwan, this deity has been honored by the UNESCO as one of its world peace ambassadors. We can write and promote Dorje Shugden as means of UNIVERSAL PEACE for all.

Go Vegetarian

Peace is a result of non-violence, I urge everyone who reads this to dedicate one week of your vegetarian diet towards this cause. Make a prayer to Dorje Shugden and dedicate it to this cause. Earnest prayers coupled with action begets results.

Raise awareness of the sufferings of suppression

Monks who are practitioners of Dorje Shugden are suppressed for their religious beliefs, we need to raise awareness about this matter and release these monks from their confusion and mental turmoil.

Prayer of Universal Peace

I believe Dorje Shugden promises peace within ourselves and to the people around us whom we love. He is Manjushri, lord of ultimate wisdom who cuts asunder our negative emotions and provides us with the wisdom needed for a better world. Doing his prayer COLLECTIVELY would create the causes for this to happen.

Above are 5 points which I have in mind through this website which we can help achieve Universal Peace and in return create causes for the ban to be lifted. Do take a good read and give your feedback on what we can do to make this happen!

As no-one desires the slightest suffering
Nor ever has enough of happiness,
There is no difference between myself and others,
So let me make others joyfully happy – bless me thus!

Harry Nephew
dorjeshugden.com/forum/index.php?topic=1605.0

Source 1: http://www.fpmt.org/images/stories/organization/announcements/shugden/ILTKtalk-Thirdedit.pdf

Source 2: http://www.lamayeshe.com/index.php?sect=article&id=335&chid=1398

I myself took the initiation of Shugden from His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche. There were four of us. Lama Yeshe, Claudio Cipullo, Piero Cerri and myself. However, this initiation can be given to only three people at a time; there cannot be four… - Lama Zopa

Lama Zopa Rinpoche gave this talk to students of the FPMT’s Masters Program at Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa, 22 October 2000. Edited by Nicholas Ribush.

Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche, His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Shugden

Recently I sent a letter to the abbots of the large monasteries of Sera, Ganden and Drepung to inspire the older geshes and other lamas who had a strong connection with the previous life of my root guru, His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche, to request his incarnation to show the aspect of following His Holiness Dalai Lama’s holy wishes and return to India to study in his monastery and follow the normal way of life of such high lamas.

In this way, the incarnation will benefit the world greatly, in the West and especially the Tibetan people in the East. I’m not going to read the whole thing from top to bottom to you, just a few parts.

His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche has been in Switzerland away from his monastery, under the control of other people, for a long time. Some time ago, I felt that because he was my root guru, I must do something about it. I felt it unbearable to leave things as they were; I felt I had to try to resolve this issue. Therefore I wrote this letter, which expresses my own thoughts, hoping to inspire the abbots and older geshes to add their views and request the incarnation and his entourage to return to India.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama has taken unbelievable responsibility for the peace and happiness of this world. He has worked for world peace in general and, in particular, for the preservation of Buddhism, the holy Dharma, in its entirety.the teachings of the Lesser Vehicle and both Mahayana Paramitayana and tantra. On top of that, there’s the issue of Tibet, which is unbelievably hard and such a difficult situation.

Despite the many problems, His Holiness has taken responsibility for the welfare of all Tibetan people, especially those in the monasteries.the monks’ means of living and their education. That in itself is an unbelievable task, but in addition, he has taken responsibility for the freedom of Tibet.

If Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche’s incarnation were to follow His Holiness’s holy wishes and go back to study in the monastery like His Holiness Ling Rinpoche and other lamas do, it would reduce the burden in His Holiness’s heart and relieve the discomfort of this situation. So that’s one aspect of this.

There are many contemporary and ancient stories about His Holiness Dalai Lama that, together with valid quotations from the scriptures, prove that His Holiness the Dalai Lama is Chenrezig; the Buddha of Compassion. The qualities of his holy body, speech and mind, his great compassion and his holy actions are as limitless as the sky and benefit not only the East but also the West; in fact, every country in the world.

His Holiness has even managed to spread the Dharma to far-flung countries where normally you’d never hear any Buddhadharma at all. Like the rising sun, he has shed the light of Dharma upon the sentient beings who live in those countries, leading them along the pure path to peace and happiness, to liberation and enlightenment. Because of such incredible, extensive work throughout the world, His Holiness’s kindness is beyond measure.

What proves that the founder of the Buddhadharma, Shakyamuni Buddha, is a pure founder, a valid founder? This is proven by his teaching being pure and valid. Similarly, the fact that even ordinary beings like us can see the extensive qualities of His Holiness’s holy body, speech and mind proves that he is the Buddha of Compassion.

Further proof that His Holiness is the Buddha of Compassion comes from Guru Shakyamuni Buddha in India, when he predicted to the bodhisattva Eliminating Defilements (Dribpa Namsäl), “The sentient beings in the Snowland of Tibet will be subdued by the Buddha of Compassion.” Guru Shakyamuni Buddha also predicted to the bodhisattva Thayä Rigchog, “The Chenrezig who is going to work for the transmigratory beings of the Snowland of Tibet is you.”

Furthermore, the teachings say, “The guide of all the sentient beings in the Snowland of Tibet will hold the position of a king. The savior of Tibet, Phurgyäl Yül, is my heart disciple. His holy mind is completely clear, without obscuration, but he will work for sentient beings in a hidden manner by acting as an ordinary being.”

When we meet this Chenrezig that the Buddha predicted, hear his holy speech and are guided by him with compassion, if His Holiness Dalai Lama is not that Chenrezig, who else can Chenrezig be? If His Holiness is not Chenrezig, then nobody can be Chenrezig; even those great yogis who are said to be incarnations of this buddha or that are suspect. You can’t trust any other incarnation.

So, that proof relates to the ancient stories from the time of the Buddha, when he predicted that Chenrezig would be the Dharma king of Tibet and preserve Dharma and guide sentient beings in Tibet by revealing the Dharma.

However, there are also recent stories that prove the ancient stories true. When His Holiness was giving teachings at Geshe Sopa Rinpoche’s center, Deer Park, in Madison, Wisconsin, recently, he said, “I have no experience, no realization of bodhicitta and no realization of emptiness.” His Holiness often says that, but later, during an interview with the staff of Deer Park, somebody raised the question, “If you don’t have those realizations, as you say, there must be no hope for people like us.”

When His Holiness heard this, he felt incredible compassion and had to say something, so he told the people that he remembered being around Guru Shakyamuni Buddha in India. This means that he was one of the bodhisattvas who were part of the Buddha’s entourage. It slipped out that he remembered being in the presence of the Buddha.

This story is connected to the previous stories about the predictions the Buddha made to those bodhisattvas and that Chenrezig would guide sentient beings in Tibet and that the bodhisattva Thayä Rigchog was in actuality Chenrezig and would be the one who would do that work in Tibet.

There are many Buddhist leaders in the world, not only those from Tibet. But amongst all these Buddhist leaders, His Holiness’s deeds are beyond compare. Because of His Holiness, the Buddhadharma, the precious teaching of the Buddha, the only medicine that can eliminate the suffering of all transmigrator beings, is flourishing. His Holiness’s holy actions have prevented the Buddhadharma from degenerating.

Besides His Holiness having taken complete responsibility for preserving the stainless teaching of the Buddha, he has also taken full responsibility for the freedom of the six million Tibetan people in the world. His Holiness has borne great hardship to ensure that Tibetans everywhere have both Dharma and temporal freedom.

Because of all this, we must not only completely abandon any thought of giving harm to His Holiness’s activities but also put every effort into helping him. The time has come for all of us together to offer His Holiness every possible service. Therefore, each of us should generate the most extensive thought of benefiting others and ourselves. In this way, please follow His Holiness’s advice and wishes as much as you possibly can.

Whereas above I am asking everyone to follow His Holiness’s advice, in a later paragraph I quote the sutra that says, “Bhikshus and the wise should examine my teachings like goldsmiths analyze gold, by cutting, rubbing and scorching it. Examine my teachings in the same way and then put them into practice. Do not practice Dharma on the strength of blind faith alone.”

So, the Buddha himself said that we should first analyze his teachings and once we are convinced of their validity then put them into practice. We should not just blindly follow what he said simply because he said it.

We have many gurus; many virtuous friends with whom we have made a Dharma connection. You often find that, when you ask your various teachers for advice on your practice, you receive different instructions. That’s quite common.

It also says in the teachings that you should not simply rely on the person giving Dharma teachings but on the Dharma itself. In other words, you should base your practice on valid teachings of the Buddha and the previous pundits’ and yogis’ commentaries on those teachings. Moreover, you should practice according to your own capacity. Just because something is called Buddhism or Buddhist meditation doesn’t mean that you should necessarily put it into practice. Of course, your practice should be based on valid teachings of the Buddha and the ancient Indian pundits’ and yogis’ commentaries, but even then you should just practice according to your own capacity.

You have to use your own wisdom; you have to analyze. One guru tells you not to do a certain thing; another tells you to do it. Which one are you going to follow? You have to use your own wisdom. So here, in my letter to the abbots, I’m talking about the practice of this particular protector, Shugden.

Some of you may be familiar with this issue, others may not. However, whereas so far I’ve just been talking about general advice, where one guru tells you not to do something and another says to do it, what I’m doing is leading up to the specific issue of the practice of Shugden. One guru tells you “Don’t practice this protector”; another says, “Practice this protector.” You find yourself getting conflicting instructions from different gurus. How are you supposed to know what to do? What you have to do is use your wisdom. Analyze the various instructions you have received to determine which course of action is the most beneficial for sentient beings, which creates fewest problems. Once you have reached a conclusion, practice that.

The teachings also explain what to do if your guru tells you to do something that you can’t do, that is beyond your capacity; something that you cannot transform into the path to enlightenment and would create heavy negative karma if you did it. For example, if your guru tells you to do something very heavy, like killing a human being, but from your side you feel that you don’t have the capacity to do it, how do you handle that situation?

It is said in the teachings, “Like an actor, the one Dharmakaya, the great bliss, the ultimate guru, manifests in many different forms.”

Therefore, from your side, you must look at the holy minds of all the gurus with whom you have made a Dharma connection as the great, blissful Dharmakaya. You must see them as being completely free of error and in possession of all good qualities. Your mind must look at all of them as Buddha. By keeping your mind in that view, you don’t lose your guru devotion. If continuously you keep in mind that your gurus are Buddha, non-devotional thoughts, such as disbelief, anger and so forth, do not arise. It is extremely important to avoid generating negative thoughts towards your gurus because such minds create enormous obstacles not only to gaining realizations but even to temporary success. However, the Vinaya teachings say, “If your guru tells you to do something that is not Dharma, do not do it.”

Also, the Fifty Verses of Guru Devotion says, “If you cannot do what your guru suggests, you can request permission not to do it by explaining why you can’t.” 1 Humbly, without arrogance, without thinking, “Oh, my guru doesn’t know this, he doesn’t know that,” by looking with devotion at your guru as Buddha, humbly explain how you are incapable of doing what he asks. As skillfully as you can, try to get permission from your guru not to do what he has asked you to do.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama has said, “Special disciples and special gurus, like Milarepa and Marpa or Naropa and Tilopa, are different. In such cases, every single word that the guru says to the disciple, even if it involves killing, stealing and so forth, has to be followed exactly.”

In this part of my letter, then, I am offering His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche my suggestions for dealing with various questions that arise, such as, “Perhaps His Holiness says this, but what about other lamas, who say something different?” Here I try to answer those various points. Of course, this approach can help with many things, but the particular issue here is that of Shugden.

Then I request His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche to go back to India to study in his monastery. It is extremely important that he return to his monastery to undertake deep, extensive study. The people who are preventing the incarnation from doing this are not considering the extensive benefit that he could offer sentient beings if he were allowed to develop in the normal way. They are not thinking of his future benefit to sentient beings.

At the Gelugpa meeting in Delhi in March 1999, which we, the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition, helped organize, all the abbots agreed that if His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche’s incarnation’s holy activities were not developed in one of the great monasteries, if they were developed outside, they wouldn’t count.

Another thing is that the way things are, the Tibetan people see the incarnation as being against His Holiness the Dalai Lama. In that way, Tibetan people and others generate wrong views towards him and thus create the extremely heavy negative karma of criticizing a holy being. Also, other people’s misuse of the incarnation damages his samaya with His Holiness, which severely hinders the incarnation’s ability to develop his holy actions to benefit sentient beings.

Moreover, if a bad connection is made with His Holiness this time, there will be bad connections in all future lives. This hinders his ability to benefit sentient beings in future lives. Therefore, it’s extremely harmful. Many sentient beings collect negative karma. Most people can understand all this. Even someone with just a little lam-rim knowledge can understand these problems. Some people say that if you don’t practice Shugden, Lama Tsongkhapa’s teaching cannot be developed. The next point answers this view.

Some people think that the practice of Shugden prevents Lama Tsongkhapa’s teachings from degenerating and promotes their development. But there have been many Gelug lamas who without practicing Shugden, spread Buddhadharma, spread the stainless teaching of Lama Tsongkhapa like the sky. Lamas like Their Holinesses the Thirteenth and the Fourteenth Dalai Lamas, Ling Rinpoche and Kachen Yeshe Gyaltsen.a great, well-known Tibetan lama who wrote many, many teachings and not only didn’t practice Shugden but also advised against the practice.

Purchog Jampa Rinpoche, a very high lama of Sera Je Monastery and an incarnation of Maitreya Buddha, wrote against the practice of Shugden in the Monastery’s constitution. Jangkya Rölpa’i Dorje and Jangkyang Ngawang Chödrön, who wrote many excellent texts, also advised against this practice, as did Tenpa’i Wangchuk, the Eighth Panchen Lama, and Losang Chökyi Gyaltsen, the Fourth Panchen Lama, who composed the Guru Puja and wrote many other teachings, and Ngulchu Dharmabhadra. All these great lamas, and many other highly accomplished scholars and yogis who preserved and spread the stainless teaching of Lama Tsongkhapa, recommended that Shugden not be practiced.

This point is very important, because people think that His Holiness the Dalai Lama is the only one trying to stop the practice of Shugden. Therefore, the people who are practicing it get negative towards His Holiness. But His Holiness is not the only one. There are many other high lamas who, in monastery constitutions, have advised their monasteries not to practice, or, if they are practicing, to stop. There are many, many lamas who have done this.

No other protector has become such a big issue, but this has become important because not only His Holiness the Dalai Lama has advised against it but so have many other great lamas. Therefore it is something that we have to think about.

Even though this specific issue does not concern most of you.only a few old students.everybody has to understand what I mentioned at the beginning and again in the middle: how to remain devoted to lamas who give you conflicting advice and how to get permission not to do something you have been asked to do without generating wrong views, arrogance or anger.

My root guru, His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche; Pabongka Dechen Nyingpo, His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s guru’s root guru; His Holiness Song Rinpoche, from whom many of the older students received the initiation of Shugden; and the previous incarnation of Gomo Rinpoche, who has a strong connection with Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa, here in Italy, all promoted the practice of Shugden. They were all aspects of the Dharmakaya.

I myself took the initiation of Shugden from His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche. There were four of us.Lama Yeshe, Claudio Cipullo, Piero Cerri and myself. However, this initiation can be given to only three people at a time; there cannot be four. Kyabje Rinpoche had set up the altar and made all the preparations perfectly.of course, everything he did was always perfect.and was there, waiting for us. After the four of us sat down, he said, “You cannot be four; only three. Whoever has bodhicitta, who has let go of the I and cherishes others, should leave.” Lama shot up immediately. I just sat there like a donkey, as if I were made of stone. So then the three of us, Claudio, Piero and I, took the initiation.

Of course, Lama and I practiced Shugden for many years. That was always the main thing that Lama did whenever there were problems to overcome. At the beginning of every Kopan course, Lama always did Shugden puja to eliminate hindrances. Of course, this was not Lama’s principal practice. His principal practice was bodhicitta, emptiness, clear light, illusory body and so forth. The protector puja was done simply to overcome obstacles.

However, all these lamas giving different kinds of advice are all manifestations of the Dharmakaya. The point is that many great lamas who had incredible qualities and were of unbelievable benefit in Tibet, preserving and spreading the stainless teaching of Lama Tsongkhapa, advised against the practice of Shugden.

Similarly, His Holiness is of enormous benefit to sentient beings and, furthermore, has taken on the incredible burdens of his position. Therefore, it has become crucial that we support him, especially in his efforts on behalf of Tibet. This is very important and the main reason we changed.why Kopan changed; why I changed . As I understood how hard His Holiness works and what heavy burdens he has assumed, I changed. How could I be against His Holiness? There was no way. The only thing to do was to support, serve and help him. That’s the main thing.

The next question.and here, I’m just posing hypothetical questions and giving the answers, like the debate texts do.that comes up for some people is that if the incarnation of His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche doesn’t practice, the lineage of Shugden will degenerate and die out. Some people might think this because in his previous life, His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche was the main lama preserving this lineage, which had come down through his root guru, Pabongka Dechen Nyingpo. To that, I say there’s no need to worry because many other people do the practice, so the lineage will not get lost.

Then, some people say that this practice should continue because it promotes wealth and prosperity in the world. In response, I say that the practice of Shugden is not necessary for wealth. There are many rich and powerful countries in the world, like Saudi Arabia and the USA, that don’t practice Shugden. They haven’t taken the initiation; they haven’t made a commitment to practice. As everybody knows, wealth and prosperity comes from merit and virtue; from the creation of good karma.

After Guru Shakyamuni Buddha left his father’s palace but before he began to practice Buddhism, he practiced Hinduism. That’s not because he didn’t know that Hinduism was not the way. It was to show sentient beings that his first choice was wrong and that Buddhism was the right path.

At one point, when things in Tibet became very difficult politically, His Holiness came to Dromo Geshe Rinpoche’s monastery in southern Tibet. At that time the Tibetan government could not decide whether His Holiness should go on to India or back to Lhasa. So His Holiness and his ministers consulted Dromo Geshe Rinpoche’s monastery’s protector, the one in question. Through the oracle, Shugden said that His Holiness should not go to India. This protected Tibet for another year or for so. What I have heard is that after that experience, His Holiness would recite prayers to Shugden regularly. However, after many years of analysis, when His Holiness was about to take the initiation of Shugden, he received signs in a dream that he should not. As a result, he didn’t take the initiation.

This is the same as what Guru Shakyamuni Buddha did. He first became enlightened inconceivably long ago, not, as history tells us, two-and-a-half thousand years ago in India. According to the Theravada tradition, that’s what happened, but the Mahayana does not accept this—we believe he became enlightened inconceivably long ago. Therefore, as an enlightened being, how can the Buddha make a mistake? He simply practiced Hinduism to show sentient beings that it was the wrong path. This is just what His Holiness did; he practiced Shugden to show us it was wrong.

Because of His Holiness’s special capacity to benefit people extensively by revealing the entire Buddhadharma in a very short time, in two or three days or even one or two hours, it is very important that he have a long, healthy life. Since His Holiness can introduce the Dharma to people in such a short time, leading them to the peace and happiness of liberation and enlightenment, the longer and healthier His Holiness’s life, the more he can benefit us sentient beings. Therefore, we need to support him. That’s the main point.

For example, if something were to happen to His Holiness’s life, what would happen to Buddhism, especially Tibetan Buddhism? Imagine how much suffering there would be. We’d have no guide; all those monasteries would also be guideless. Everything depends on His Holiness. Like a father and mother, His Holiness is everything; not only to Dharma students but especially to Tibetans. Who would we listen to if His Holiness were not there? You can see how much suffering there’d be without him.

If Tibetan Mahayana Buddhism is lost, the complete teaching of the Buddha is lost. If there’s no Tibetan Mahayana Buddhism there’s no complete teaching of the Buddha. Even though there might be Chinese Mahayana and other traditions, it’s only Tibetan Mahayana Buddhism that has everything.the Lesser Vehicle teachings, Mahayana sutra and Mahayana tantra; especially the complete teaching on tantra. You see how much suffering and confusion there’d be in the world. This is particularly true for Tibetans.

Therefore, it’s extremely important that you understand this. His Holiness’s advice is to not practice Shugden, therefore, we have to support His Holiness and fulfill his wishes on this point. That’s the essence of what I’m trying to say. I don’t know whether any of you are practicing Shugden, but this is just to inform those who do not know and to clarify the situation for those who do.

Another thing is that some Tibetans and others severely criticize Pabongka Dechen Nyingpo because he practiced Shugden, making him out to be some kind of demon. However, Pabongka Dechen Nyingpo wrote incredible teachings on sutra and tantra; on Heruka, Tara Cittamani and many other topics. All these amazing teachings were written purely from his experience. So it’s impossible that he can really be some kind of evil being, as those extremists accuse him of being. There’s no way he could have done the negative things they say he did.

The great translator Ra Lotsawa, one of the main Yamantaka lineage holders, is supposed to have killed many people through his tantric power, but nobody regards Ra Lotsawa as bad. Tantric powers are attained on the basis of bodhicitta, the realization of emptiness and the generation and completion stages of Highest Yoga Tantra, and when you gain the powers that come with the clear light and the illusory body and do wrathful actions—for example, separating evil beings’ consciousness from their body—the main point is to transfer their consciousness to the pure land. That’s the end result of wrathful tantric actions.

Wrathful actions like that are done to benefit other sentient beings. When dealing with evil beings through peaceful actions doesn’t benefit them the only way left to benefit them is through wrathful actions. If you possess the necessary powers and qualities you can benefit others in that way with no danger to yourself. Not only can you but you are supposed to. It’s part of your samaya.

There are many stories about the great yogis and living beings. For example, one great yogi called Lobpön Jampel Shenyen made soup with live worms. And when Naropa first met his guru, Tilopa, he was down by the river cooking live fish and eating them, which made him think, “This can’t be Tilopa.” So when he asked, “Are you Tilopa?” Tilopa said, “No.” Later on, when Naropa had generated faith and again asked, “Are you Tilopa?” Tilopa said, “Yes.” Anyway, great yogis can assume such aspects.

The incarnation of Kyabje Dorje Chang, His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche, is His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s guru and the lama of all the Tibetan people, so it’s terrible if he’s hidden away in some corner as if there’s something wrong with him. That’s absolutely shameful. Therefore, the people around him have to think very extensively.

In his previous life he performed incredibly holy actions; therefore, his present incarnation has the potential to spread Dharma in both the East and the West like the rising sun spreads light. Even just within the FPMT there are more than 120 centers in which he could spread the teaching of Lama Tsongkhapa when he finished his geshe degree. But the extent to which he can practice guru devotion and develop his holy actions depends almost entirely on his attendant.

Then in my letter to His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche I also request the incarnation that whatever sutra and tantra teachings he offered His Holiness Dalai Lama in his previous life, to please take those complete lineages from His Holiness Dalai Lama. So I request this from my heart. However, this does not apply only to His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche.

It applies to all of you as well. The main point in telling you all this is that if you read the letter, it might give you an idea of how to practice in general and particularly what to do with respect to the issue of the protector, Shugden. The other point is to let know something about this issue itself.

Colophon: Lama Zopa Rinpoche gave this talk to students of the FPMT’s Masters Program at Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa, 22 October 2000. Edited by Nicholas Ribush.

1 See verse 24: http://www.lamayeshe.com/otherteachers/dhargyey/50verses_long.PDF

Alexander Berzin, 1991

expanded with Tsenzhab Serkong Rinpoche II, September 2003

Original version published in “Gelug Monasteries.” Chö-Yang, Year of Tibet Edition (Dharamsala, India, 1991).

The founding of Ganden Nampar-gyelway-ling Monastery (dGa’-ldan rnam-par rgyal-ba’i gling dGon-pa) by Jey Tsongkhapa Lozang-dragpa (rJe Tsong-kha-pa Blo-bzang grags-pa) (1357-1419) was prophesied by Buddha Shakyamuni. In the Manjushri Root Tantra (‘Jam-dpal rtsa-rgyud), Buddha said, “After I have passed away from this world, when the earth becomes desolate, you will take the form of a child and enact the deeds of a Buddha. At that time there will be a great monastery called Rabga (Rab-dga’) in the Land of Snows.” “Ga” is the first syllable of “Ganden.”

On the occasion of Tsongkhapa, as a small boy in a previous life, offering the Buddha a crystal rosary, the Buddha prophesied in The Sutra Taught to King Dam-ngag-bogpa (mDo-sde gDams-ngag ‘bog-pa’i rgyal-po’i bstan-pa), “O Ananda. This small boy who has given me a crystal rosary will restore my teachings. At a degenerate time in the future, he will found a monastery called ‘Ge’ (dGe) at the border between Dri (‘Bri) and Den (lDan). His name will be Lozang.”

“Ge” is a variant of the first syllable of “Ganden.” The boy was given in return a conch shell that had been presented to the Buddha by a naga king. Buddha entrusted this shell to his disciple, Maudgalyayana, who buried it in Tibet as a treasure auspicious for the future spread of the teachings.

In 1409, Tsongkhapa instituted the Great Prayer Festival (sMon-lam chen-mo) at the Lhasa Jokang Temple (Lha-sa Jo-khang, Jokhang). Afterwards, his disciples, concerned about the effect of constant travel on their teacher’s health, offered to build him a monastery at any site of his choice.*

Tsongkhapa accepted and chose Drogri Mountain (‘Brog ri-bo-che), approximately 50 kilometers east of Lhasa. He personally consecrated the land and named the monastery Ganden, Tushita in Sanskrit, after the pure land realm of the future Buddha, Maitreya.

The main temple and over seventy buildings were completed that year, 1409, in strict adherence with the Indian monastic rules. The next year, on a hill behind Ganden, Tsongkhapa unearthed the treasure conch shell that Maudgalyayana had buried there. All the prophesies about Ganden Monastery were thus fulfilled.

In 1416, Tsongkhapa gave the Ganden conch to his disciple, Jamyang Chojey (‘Jam-dbyangs Chos-rje bKra-shis dpal-ldan) (1379-1449), who founded Drepung Monastery (‘Bras-spungs dGon-pa) later that year. The conch has been kept at Drepung ever since. Another close disciple, Jamchen Chojey (Byams-chen Chos-rje Shakya ye-shes) (1354-1435), founded Sera Monastery (Se-ra dGon-pa) in 1419, the year Tsongkhapa passed away.

Tsongkhapa stayed frequently at Ganden until the end of his life. He passed away at this monastery and his remains were kept there. His construction of Ganden’s main temple, with its large statues and three-dimensional mandalas, is counted as the fourth great deed of Tsongkhapa’s life.

Since its founding, Ganden has been the seat of the Ganden Tripa (dGa’-ldan Khri-pa), the Holder of the Golden Throne of Ganden and head of the Gelug Tradition. This tradition, traced from Tsongkhapa, is also called the Ganden Tradition (dGa’-ldan lugs), named after Ganden Monastery. “Lug” means tradition, and “Gelug” is an abbreviation of “Ganden Lug.”

The first Ganden Tripa was Gyeltsabjey (rGyal-tshab rJe Dar-ma rin-chen) (1364-1432), to whom Tsongkhapa gave his robe and staff before he passed away. The second was Kaydrubjey (mKhas-grub rJe dGe-legs dpal-bzang) (1385-1438). The present throne holder, Tri Rinpoche Yeshey-tubten (Khri Rin-po-che Ye-shes thub-bstan), is the ninety-ninth of this line. The term of office is seven years.

Ganden Monastery is comprised of two colleges, Jangtsey (Byang-rtse Grva-tshang) and Shartsey (Shar-rtse grva-tshang), meaning North Peak and East Peak respectively. According to one tradition, they were named after their location to the north and east of Ganden’s main temple.

At the time of the Second Ganden Tripa, Kaydrubjey, Ganden Monastery was divided into four colleges. Later in his term, Pelden (dPal-ldan Grva-tshang) and Yardrog Colleges (Yar-’brog Grva-tshang) merged to become Jangtsey; while Panchen Shakya-shri (Pan-chen Sha-kya-shri Grva-tshang) and Chodrag Colleges (Chos-grags Grva-tshang) merged to become Shartsey.

Horton Namka-pelzang (Hor-ston Nam-mkha’ dpal-bzang), the author of Mind-Training Like the Rays of the Sun (Blo-sbyong nyi-ma’i ‘od), is considered the founder of Jangtsey College. Nayten Rinchen-gyeltsen (gNas-brtan Rin-chen rgyal-mtshan) is considered the founder of Shartsey College. During the period of the Twenty-first Ganden Tripa, Sangpu Nyarong College (gSang-phu nyag-rong Grva-tshang), which had arisen later, also merged with Shartsey.

Jangtsey College, which contained Tsongkhapa’s residence, at first had thirteen divisions (khang-tshan): Lubum (Klu-’bum Khang-tshan), Tsawa (Tsha-ba Khang-tshan), Samlo (bSam-blo Khang-tshan), Hardong (Har-gdong Khang-tshan, Hamdong Khamtsen), Serkong (gSer-skong Khang-tshan), Trehor (Tre-hor Khang-tshan), Gyelrong (rGyal-rong Khang-tshan), Bati (sBa-ti Khang-tshan), Ngari (mNga’-ri Khang-tshan), Dora (rDo-ra Khang-tshan), Dranyi (Bra-nyi Khang-tshan, Banyi Khamtsen), Gowo (Go-bo Khang-tshan), and Kongpo (Kong-po Khang-tshan) Kangtsens.

Monks joined these divisions according to their places of origin. Monks from Mongolia, for example, joined Hardong. In later times, there were only twelve. Bati and Ngari Kangtsens were dissolved, and Para Kangtsen (Pha-ra Khang-tsan) was added. Each division had several houses (mi-tshan), also divided according to the places of origin of the monks living in them.

Shartsey College has eleven divisions: Dokang (rDo-khang Khang-tshan), Pukang (Phu-khang Khang-tshan), Nyag-re (Nyag-re Khang-tshan), Lhopa (Lho-pa Khang-tshan), Zungchu (Zung-chu Khang-tshan), Tepo (The-po Khang-tshan), Choni (Co-ni Khang-tshan), Ta-on (rTa-’on Khang-tshan, rTa-dbon Khang-tshan), Ngari (mNga’-ris Khang-tshan), Sogpa (Sog-pa Khang-tshan), and Gungru (Gung-ru Khang-tshan) Kangtsens.

Both divisions of Ganden, Jangtsey and Shartsey, have a combined study program of sutra and tantra. This is in contrast with the other two main Gelug Monasteries in the Lhasa area, Sera (Se-ra dGon-pa) and Drepung. Of the four colleges at Drepung: Losel-ling (Blo-gsal gling Grva-tshang) and Gomang Colleges (sGo-mang Grva-tshang) have only sutra studies, Ngagpa College (sNgags-pa Grva-tshang) has only tantra studies, while Deyang College (bDe-dbyangs Grva-tshang) has both. Of the three colleges at Sera: Jey (Byes Grva-tshang) and May Colleges (sMad Gvra-tshang) have only sutra studies and Ngagpa College (sNgags-pa Grva-tshang) has only tantra studies. In India, Drepung Ngagpa and Sera Ngagpa Colleges have added sutra studies to their programs. Drepung Deyang College has not been reestablished.

Jangtsey College follows the sutra textbooks (yig-cha) of Jetsunpa Chokyi-gyeltsen (rJe-btsun-pa Chos-kyi rgyal-mtshan) (1469-1544), in common with Sera Jey and Sera Ngagpa Colleges. Shartsey College uses the textbooks of the Fifteenth Ganden Tripa, Panchen Sonam-dragpa (Pan-chen bSod-nams grags-pa) (1478-1554), as does Drepung Losel-ling and Drepung Ngagpa Tantric Colleges.

As for the other colleges at the three major Gelug monasteries in the Lhasa area (gdan-sa gsum), Sera May College uses the sutra textbooks written by Kaydrub Tendarwa (mKhas-grub dGe-’dun bstan-pa dar-rgyas) (1493-1568).

Drepung Gomang and Drepung Deyang Colleges use the textbooks written by Kunkyen Jamyang-zheypa the First, Ngawang-tsondru (Kun-mkhyen ‘Jam-dbyangs bzhad-pa Ngag-dbang brtson-’grus) (1648-1721). All the colleges follow the texts written by Tsongkhapa, Gyeltsabjey, and Kaydrubjey. Their various textbooks differ merely on fine points of interpretation.

Study is by means of memorization, logic, and debate. Monks study the preliminary subjects of logic for three years. The main study of the five major texts takes eleven further years. At the end of each year of study, monks must pass an examination (rgyugs-sprod) to go on to the next class. Those who end their sutra studies at the completion of these eleven years and present a formal debate to the mixed assembly of their entire college (gling-bsre dam-bca’) receive the degree of Geshe Tsogrampa (dGe-bshes Tshogs-ram-pa).

Those who study for a further five years and present a formal debate before the collected assembly of monks from all three major Gelug monasteries of the Lhasa area during the Great Prayer Festival at the Lhasa Jokang receive the title Geshe Lharampa (dGe-bshes Lha-ram-pa). Monks who merely pass examinations on memorization of the major texts, but without completing their Geshe education receive the degree Kyerimpa (bsKyed-rim-pa).

Geshe Tsogrampas and Geshe Lharampas must then pursue their tantric studies at either Gyumay Lower Tantric College (rGyud-smad Grva-tshang) or Gyuto Upper Tantric College (rGyud-stod Grva-tshang). To which one they go depends on their places of origin. Upon completion of their tantra studies, also through the medium of debate, and presentation of a tantra formal debate, they receive the degree Geshe Ngagrampa (dGe-bshes sNgags-ram-pa). They may either stay on at the Tantric College or return to Ganden. If they return, they must present another tantra formal debate at their home college.

[See: A Brief History of Gyumay and Gyuto, Lower and Upper Tantric Colleges.]

Monks with merely the Kyerimpa degree may study tantra at their own college. Those at Jangtsey follow the textbooks of Gyumay, written by rGyu Sherab-senggey (rGyud Shes-rab seng-ge) (1383-1445). Those at Shartsey follow the textbooks of Gyuto, written by Gyuchen Kunga-dondrub (rGyud-chen Kun-dga’ don-grub) (1419-1486). Those from Jangtsey who present the tantra formal debate also receive the degree Geshe Ngagrampa. Those from Shartsey receive the degree Uma-shayring (dBu-ma bshad-ring).

[See: Overview of the Gelug Monastic Education System.]

Jangtsey College as a whole is responsible for maintaining the annual performance of the full rituals of the Akshobhya (Mi-bskyod-pa) form of the Guhyasamaja (gSang-ba ‘dus-pa), while Shartsey for mainitaining Thirteen-Couple Vajrabhairava (rDo-rje ‘Jigs-byed Lha bcu-gsum). In addition, each division within the two colleges is responsible for the annual performance of the full rituals of specific tantric deities from the four classes of tantra.

At Ganden Jangtsey, within the anuttaryoga (rnal-’byor bla-med rgyud) class of tantra, Para, Kongpo, and Dranyi maintain the Akshobhya form of Guhyasamaja, while Hardong maintains the Mahachakra form of Vajrapani (Phyag-rdor ‘Khor-chen). Within yoga tantra (rnal-byor rgyud), Lumbum and Tsawa maintain the rituals of Vajradhatu (rDor-dbyings). Within charya (behavior) tantra (spyod-rgyud), Serkong, Dora, and Samlo maintain Vairochana Abhisambodhi (rNam-snang mngon-byang). Within kriya (action) tantra (bya-rgyud), Gowo, Trehor, and Gyelrong maintain Akshobhya (Mi-’khrugs-pa).

At Ganden Shartsey, within the anuttaryoga class of tantra, Dokang, Ta-on, and Gungru maintain Thirteen-Couple Vajrabhairava; Tepo and Lhopa maintain the Luipa (Lu’i-pa) lineage of Chakrasamvara (bDe-mchog); and Nyag-re maintains Kalachakra (Dus-’khor). Within the yoga class, Choni and Sogpa maintain Samvid (Kun-rig). Within the kriya class, Zungchu maintains the Nine-Deity form of Amitayus (Tshe-dpag-med lha-dgu); Ngari maintains the Eight Sugata practice of Bhaishaja (Medicine Buddha) (sMan-lha bDe-gshegs-brgyad), and Pukang maintains the Sixteen Arhats (gNas-brtan phyag-spyod).

The special protector (srung-ma) of the Common Assembly of Ganden Monastery as a whole (dGa’-ldan Bla-spyi) is Chogyel (Chos-rgyal, Dharmaraja). The special protector of Ganden Jangtsey is Pelden Lhamo (dPal-ldan Lha-mo). The Jangtsey monks perform daily, and more extensively on special occasions, the rituals of this protector for the benefit of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and for the Tibetan Government.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s special protectors are Pelden Lhamo and Nechung (gNas-chung), while those of the Tibetan Government are Pelden Lhamo and Jamsing (‘Jam-sing). Both pairs are called the Black and Red Pair (dMar-nag gnyis) – Pelden Lhamo is black in color, while Nechung and Jamsing are both red. The special protector of Ganden Shartsey is Setrab (Se-khrab).

On the 29th and 30th of each Tibetan month, the Jangtsey monks perform for an entire day and evening the full rituals of their protector, while Shartsey does the same on the 28th and 29th. Each kangtsen division also has its own special protector. On the 15th of each Tibetan month, each khangtsen performs for an entire day and evening the full rituals of its protector.

As for the two other main Gelug monasteries in the Lhasa area, the special protector of the Common Assembly of Drepung is Nechung, that of Drepung Losel-ling is also Nechung, and that of Drepung Gomang is Six-Armed Mahakala (dGon-po phyag-drug). The special protector of the Common Assembly of Sera is Jamsing, that of Sera Jey is also Jamsing as well as the Yangsang (Yang-gsang, Especially Hidden) form of Hayagriva (rTa-mgrin), and that of Sera May is Teu (The’u).

Since the time of the Eighth Ganden Tripa, the position of Ganden Tripa has alternated between the Jangtsey Chojey (Byang-rtse Chos-rje) and the Shartsey Chojey (Shar-rtse Chos-rje). The Jangtsey Chojey, or Dharma Master of Jangtsey, is the senior-most Retired Abbot (mKhan-zur Rin-po-che) of Gyumay Lower Tantric College (rGyud-smad Grva-tshang). His seat is at Jangtsey College. The Shartsey Chojey, Dharma Master of Shartsey, is the senior-most Retired Abbot of Gyuto Upper Tantric College (rGyud-stod Grva-tshang). He has his seat at Shartsey College.

Ganden Monastery, as well as Sera and Drepung, follows the early summer retreat (dbyar-gnas snga-ma), from the 16th of the sixth Tibetan month to the 30th of the seventh month. During the retreat, a discourse is traditionally given on Tsongkhapa’s Lam-rim chen-mo (Great Exposition on the Graded Stages of the Path). The initial scope teachings are given by the junior of the Jangtsey and Sharjey Chojeys, the intermediate scope by the senior of the two, and the advanced scope by the Ganden Tripa.

The monk population of Ganden was officially listed as 3,300, but by 1959 it was 7,500. The monastery was totally destroyed by the Chinese. At present, it is being partially reconstructed in Tibet. In India, Ganden Monastery has been relocated in Mundgod, Karnataka State.

* The main student requesting not mentioned in the article is Duldzin Drakpa Gyeltsen (Dorje Shugden). Hence, Dorje Shugden literally built Gaden Monastery for his Guru, Lama Tsongkhapa.

Gaden Monastery in its original form in Tibet

Gaden Monastery after destruction by the Chinese communists, with partial restoration

Gaden Monastery today in Tibet

Not only did Dorje Shugden built Gaden. He also composed the textbooks that they debate in Gaden Shartse, Drepung Loseling and the Tantric Colleges of Drepung to become a Geshe. These textbooks were composed by the incomparable Panchen Sonam Drakpa, whose prolific works are indisputable commentaries of the highest order and equivalent only to Je Tsongkhapa’s own works. Hence, if someone is able to write the textbooks that will lead you to full Enlightenment, he must be enlightened himself!

extracted from http://www.berzinarchives.com/web/en/archives/study/history_buddhism/buddhism_tibet/gelug/overview_gelug_monastic_education.html

Textbooks

All colleges within the Gelug monasteries follow the commentaries to these texts written by Tsongkhapa and his two main disciples, Gyeltsabjey (rGyal-tshab rJe Dar-ma rin-chen) (1364-1432) and Kaydrubjey (mKhas-grub rJe dGe-legs dpal-bzang) (1385-1438). In addition, each follows one of several textbooks (yig-cha) that developed to explain the fine points. The textbooks differ in interpretation of many details.

The first set of textbooks to develop were written by Jetsunpa Chokyi-gyeltsen (rJe-btsun-pa Chos-kyi rgyal-mtshan) (1469-1544), called “the Jetsunpa textbooks” for short. Ganden Jangtsey (dGa’-ldan Byang-rtse Grva-tshang), Sera Jey (Se-ra Byes Grva-tshang), and Sera Ngagpa Colleges (Se-ra sNgags-pa Grva-tshang) follow them.

The next two sets were written by two disciples of Jetsunpa. According to popular tradition, Jetsunpa asked the two to write commentaries explaining some of the major texts slightly differently than he had, so that future disciples would be able to sharpen their intelligence by debating their discrepancies. One set was written by Kaydrub Tendarwa (mKhas-grub dGe-‘dun bstan-pa dar-rgyas) (1493-1568). They are used by Sera May College (Se-ra sMad Grva-tshang).

The other set was written by Panchen Sonam-dragpa (Pan-chen bSod-nams grags-pa) (1478-1554), called “the Panchen textbooks” for short. They are followed by Ganden Shartsey (dGa’-ldan Shar-rtse Grva-tshang), Drepung Losel-ling (‘Bras-spungs Blo-gsal gling Grva-tshang), and Drepung Ngagpa Colleges (‘Bras-spungs sNgags-pa Grva-tshang).

A fourth set was written several centuries later by Kunkyen Jamyang-zheypa (the First), Ngawang-tsondru (Kun-mkhyen ‘Jam-dbyangs bzhad-pa Ngag-dbang brtson-‘grus) (1648-1721), called “the Kunkyen textbooks” for short. They are followed by Drepung Gomang (‘Bras-spungs sGo-mang Grva-tshang) and Drepung Deyang Colleges (‘Bras-spungs bDe-dyangs Grva-tshang). Labrang Monastery (Bla-brang dGon-pa) in far-eastern Amdo (founded by Jamyang-zheypa) and most monasteries in Inner and Outer Mongolia, Buryatia, Kalmykia, and Tuva also follow them.

Each of the textbook traditions includes several additional texts written by later scholars.