This issue of Gentle Voice is titled ‘Art Unlimited’ and there are a multitude of different forms of art: drawing, painting, sculpture, collage, computer generated art, digital graphics, pop art, minimal art, performance art, street art, indigenous art, architecture, music, dance, film, photography, the art of conversation, the art of seduction and so on…!  Types of art are as varied as media, subject matter and technology allow.

Maree: [M]  Emma Walker, one of Australia’s most respected young artists says, “The creative process is not a straight forward one.  There is no exact recipe that can be followed to produce a consistent result.  Each artist comes with unique inner workings and personal history that creates their own individual approach.  For this reason, the variety of outcomes is limitless”.…. In your view, what is integral to the work of the artist?

Rinpoche: [R] I really like that actually. I think she is very right. It is limitless and that’s so good. It is so good but also because of its limitlessness it’s also frustrating.

M: What genre of art do you most identify with and why?

R: I’m supposed to identify myself with the art of being able to become useless but the temptation to be useful is just so strong. The temptation to have some kind of purpose in life is so strong because of lack of renunciation and all that – it’s just not possible but that’s what I should be identifying. Other than that, I guess the most tangible and visible so far is the art of filmmaking that I have been exploring and recently I am actually picking up on drawing. I really like drawing.

M: From your perspective what is the purest form of art?

R: You know communication with people is so, so, so difficult. Even the notion that we actually did communicate with somebody is only in your own imagination and for that matter even miss communication. In my mind I think that I am talking to you and you are listening to me and I think you are listening to what I say and that’s about the only thing I have to settle with. In my mind I think that you can see the same fake flowers from Hong Kong as I see (Rinpoche points to a bowl of flowers on the table) but actually who knows, most probably you never see what I see and I never see what you see. So the purest art is actually the closest and the most successful way of being able to convey the message and portray or demonstrate what I see – to you. To me that is the purest art.

M: Do you think art in its purest form is spontaneous or premeditated?

R: I actually think both. I like premeditated art because after all we human beings are more capable of mimicking. Spontaneous is very difficult. Many times we just make believe that we are being spontaneous. Of course, I think the aspiration to be spontaneous is quite important other wise we become too corrupted. And I think, as I was saying earlier, the purest form of art is based on being able to communicate. I think children do that, they force adults to think like them even for a split moment, that’s quite a success and they do it kind of spontaneously.

M: Most artists seem to be suffering, searching; tortured souls and many of your students are artistic. Can you explain the link between spirituality and the artist?

R: I think it is connected to what I said earlier. My ideal art should be able to be useless. Art, music, romance, and poetry, all of this is the closest thing that we have that is spiritual in this materialist world. I mean, scientists, mathematicians they are all bound and limited by logic and measurement and all of that but suddenly a scientist can fall in love and when they fall in love logic doesn’t make any sense and nothing makes sense but at the same time also everything makes sense. Everything that logically doesn’t make sense makes sense. I think without many of the artists realising that as soon as you try to be a good artist the war between uselessness and usefulness begins. This is maybe bothering people and I think it is good.

M: What similarities do you think there are between a meditative state and creating a work of art?

R: It can be similar, because in meditation there is no meditation such as keeping a notebook next to you, write it down and record everything. Whatever comes, especially in Buddhism, you are supposed to shrug off, no hope, no fear, no jotting it down. I guess if an artist can do that I think they become much more creative because they don’t get stuck with one idea.

By Ani Lodro Palmo

M: Sand Mandalas, Kseniya Simonova’s Sand Animation, Ice Sculptures – for instance – are transient art. Do you think that ephemeral art is a higher form of artistic expression because in the end what is created is destroyed?

R: I think that’s a very good idea. The idea is good but nowadays everything has become so commercialised. It would be so good if somebody made a really amazing Sand Mandala or an Ice Castle without any audience and the manufacturing date or expiry date is never known. These days even the renunciation of a person is recorded and made a big who-ha about it. If somebody renounces the world then it will be publicised. Not the best thing to do is it?

M: In your view what role does the artist have in society today?

R: To create harmony. Definitely. Harmony is so important.

M: And how does an artist achieve that?

R: To really make people realise their own potential and their own weakness, both, through whatever medium they are using. Not just entertainment, not just through creating distractions but to really make you believe.

M: When you visit small galleries in London, Paris and New York and view the work of young emerging artists – what do you think of their art?

R: I am so bad with these because I am not really trained, I don’t know especially the modern arts. I am still trying and learning to appreciate it.

M: What about Impressionist artists? Are there any paintings or Old Masters that you admire?

R: Oh they are amazing, just mind-boggling. Amazing!

M: Any particular artist or artwork that you really admire?

R: Many, many Russian artists. The ones in Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg. Wow! The works there are just amazing.

M: Do you think artists can enhance their skills at art schools or do you think it is preferable for artistic skills to emerge without any formal training?

R: Both. I think artists  isolate themselves too much from the rest of the world.

I would like to say that I wish many artists should try to become politicians. That’s what is lacking.

Dzigar Kontrol Rinpoche

By Dzigar Kontrol Rinpoche

“For me, painting is a means to express the truth one discovers through meditation. The essential practice of meditation is to allow the mind to express itself freely without fear or judgment. In each moment of awareness we encounter impressions of the outer world through our sense perceptions as well as our inner world of thoughts, feelings and emotions. When we are able to let this incredible array of experience be, without trying to reject what we fear or pull in what we are attracted to—when we relax into experience without trying to manipulate it in any way—we have a complete experience of mind, naked and unaltered. Painting, when it is free of such notions as beauty and ugliness or should and shouldn’t, can be used to express this complete experience of mind. When art evolves from this understanding it provides the possibility for those who see it to also experience the unfabricated nature of their own mind.”

Dzigar Kontrol Rinpoche

www.mangalashribhuti.org

Link to Dzigar Kontrol Rinpoche talk Integrating Art and Wisdom www.kongtruljigme.com/onpainting.php

No. 47, oil on paper By Dzigar Kontrol Rinpoche

by Dzigar Kontrol Rinpoche

By Jakob Leschly

One of the things we need to remember about Buddhist art, and perhaps sacred art in general, is that it is not situated within a fragmented world view. The familiar split we in the modern world more or less consciously subscribe to, a three-way divorce between science, ethics, and art, does not generally apply to sacred art. Sacred art expresses undiluted reality, reality properly seen, and as such it represents knowledge and insight, which again has an immensely constructive role in providing vision and values – the key ingredients in a good life, as well as in the case of Buddhism, the foundation for enlightenment. While the poverty of a world that has separated beauty from truth and moral direction is increasingly palpable, one can still appreciate the brilliance of the cultures that have not fallen prey to such bad science.

Modern Optics

The sacred as a realistic perspective on our experience is almost a contradiction in the modern world, where the sacred is often constructed as part of the great and soothing myths or narratives that are anything but realistic. But then again, the modern view of reality is quite different from most other cultures. The modern world’s view on reality is founded on an amputated science that excludes consciousness and spirit from observable matter, with real science exclusively operating with so-called objective knowledge – data and information exclusively established on the basis on what can be measured and empirically verified. Anything beyond that is problematic; anything that has to do with what we really live for is a grey zone. Go figure it out yourself – don’t come looking for wisdom in the hallowed halls of Stanford, Cambridge or Leiden!

In our modern culture, the real issues of our existence – those of our heart and mind – are traditionally the domains of ethics and religion. Sadly, for the modern believer in science, ethics are generally regarded as something impossibly relative, and religion is seen as founded on impossible fairy tales. Ethics and religion appear to have little to do with reasoning. And far from both science and religion, art has retreated to a neighbourhood that celebrates human creativity without any particular allegiance to either of the former two. At times a guru, at times an entertainer, at times a rebel, art generally has no pretence of representing more than fragments of human reality. The source of its inspiration is indeed often beauty and love, but also just as often confusion and suffering.

The Context of Sacred Reality

Sacred art, or the art of awakening, as we find it in Buddhism, and in numerous other sacred art traditions, is founded on a holistic vision that unites science with religion as the path that enables the awakening to reality. Science as truth and valid knowledge is key in Buddhism. We could translate the Sanskrit term for Buddhism, Dharma, as the study or law of reality. So a Buddhist studies to acquire a vision or grasp of reality, and the practice of Dharma is appreciated as eliminating confusion and dogma and unveiling what is undeceiving and valid. The Dharma is embraced not through blind faith or belief, but rather on the basis of a decisive critique of the deluded assumptions about reality that inevitably lead to suffering. Sacred art is based on liberation from delusion, and an unlimited vision of reality. Such vision reflects accurate knowledge of reality, and accurate knowledge of what leads to happiness and liberation. Such science is wisdom, and, being the domain of the sage, not the scientist, she is happily married to both ethical practice and the joy of artistic expression.

Liberation and enlightenment has inspired an immense production of art that celebrates its immanence and validity. In that enlightenment is regarded as pinnacle of life’s potential, Buddhist art everywhere celebrates this vision in paintings, sculptures, architecture, and calligraphy, flower-arranging, not to mention empty space – the gap that allows us to appreciate both space and the content of space. While the Sutra traditions, particularly Zen, celebrate the nature of wisdom through the beauty of uncluttered space, the Tantric traditions celebrate the inseparability of wisdom and its manifest qualities, reflected in an immense wealth of vivid and powerful sacred art, that also includes music, dance, and sensuality.

Engaging with the Sacred

Sacred art is not objectified and passively beheld as is common in our cultural practice of viewing art. Sacred art is seen as speaking to, or invoking, an inner heritage of what is profound and real, and so its real value is not in the external support – the piece of art itself. The experience of being touched profoundly by what is intuited as real can be called blessing, and as such the piece of art is not merely observed, but is seen as something that we interact or connect with. It touches us and provides us with the relief of recognising an inner wealth that lies beyond the stranglehold of our self-imposed limitation – samsara. For that reason, sacred art in Buddhism is sometimes viewed as a nirmanakaya, or physical manifestation of enlightenment.

Buddhist cultures, and other cultures that live with a sacred vision, do not celebrate their art through merely placing them in museums or galleries; sacred art is celebrated everywhere: in the streets, in the temples, in the hills, in the fields, in workplaces and homes, rendering immanent the sacred that is innate to all life, and providing a possibility of doing so. The sacred is celebrated with innumerable offerings, such as flowers, incense, light, song, poetry, and in the best case – a non-dual appreciation of the sacred within.

In front of sacred art, one does not dwell on some perceived gap between the sacred and one self, but extends a gesture of appreciation and connects with the sacred, or buddha nature, through bowing down and making offerings. In Indian and Tibetan temples, the shrine consists of two aspects: first, the support for the sacred – statues, books, objects, and secondly the place where the offerings are placed. A shrine is not a static institution, but is lively interacted with through honouring the support of the sacred through bowing, and through making offerings. These practices are generally done first thing in the morning, and they are continued throughout the day.

Vision of Life

We can see this practice of connecting with a greater vision of reality in cultures that have so far been untouched by the modern practice of leaving the primary concern of all life – happiness – to being a random private project that is inevitably subject to subjective confusion. In almost any other culture beside that of modernity, sacred art permeates all fabrics of societies with a vibrant way of connecting with, and celebrating, that which is real, and that which brings, on one hand the conditions for temporary and ordinary happiness and, on the other hand, liberation and enlightenment.

Disclaimer: the author apologises for any irritation or discomfort brought on by this article. Raised in the simple-minded cult of modern western rationality, he has had to de-program himself from numerous kinds of blind faith, assumptions, and dogma, and only gradually has the brilliant logic, vision, and liberation of innumerable Buddhist masters been able to penetrate his traumatised mind and heart, and resuscitate a minimal degree of natural sanity. A work in progress, his journey has unceasingly been inspired by the immense luminous beauty and power of traditional Tibetan art.

Lhatsun Namkha Jigme - from Shechen Archives

by Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

Ideally the ultimate retreat is to retreat from the past and the future, to always remain in the present. However our mind is so empowered and controlled by habit all the time. One characteristic of habit is not being able to sit still, not being able to remain in the present. This is because being in the present is so scary, so boring and unbearable for our deluded and spoiled mind. Little do we know that actually being in the present is so exciting and the most liberating from all kinds of pain, suffering and anxiety. We sentient beings like to be free from all these things, but we always end up diligently creating more and more causes and conditions to have this pain, suffering and anxiety.

Being in the present is so important in Buddhism. It is the core strategy of Buddhism to do whatever it takes to keep the mind present, to have ones mind from going astray. Every single method that exists in Buddhism is for that result. It could be from just a simple sitting meditation to the tantric methods of visualisation, ritual and mantra. Even elaborate practices including certain tantric dances, what is now popularly known as lama dancing.

With the myriad of methods, one is basically retreating oneself from mundane activities and hopefully from mundane thoughts for as long as possible. Traditionally in Tibet we try to retreat from the everyday for something like one week, three weeks, three months, six months, three years, nine years. Even today there are many people in Tibet who are actually in retreat for a lifetime. However retreat doesn’t have to be three months or three years. What we need is to have the discipline of retreat every day. Such discipline is to retreat from our mundane worldly activities and simply sit on a meditation cushion with oneself.

The idea is to avoid engaging oneself with things we usually end up engaging in, such as gossiping, chatting, internet browsing or newspaper reading. We have so many Buddhist methods to help us do this, from simply doing nothing which is actually the most difficult, to all the way up to two or three hours of rituals and practices. There is no reason why we can not refer to this as a retreat.

Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche by Gosha Heldtz

By Arne Schelling

Khandro Tsering Chödrön, who was the spiritual consort of Jamyang Khyentse Chökyi Lodrö, passed away in Lerab Ling in France on the 30th May.Universally respected, loved and revered as one of the foremost female practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism of recent times, she was an inspiration and source of blessings to Buddhist practitioners everywhere.

Khandro Tsering Chodron Kudung Photo Arne Schelling

Kyabje Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche called her “the queen of the dakinis”. Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche visited her regularly during the past years and re-arranged his schedule to see her during her final days, particuarly on the 28th May when he conducted many pujas for her.

Now three months later, on the 2nd September, the cremation of her kudung, which was now only about 60 cm tall, took place in the presence of a great gathering of masters. In the east gathered H.H. Sakya Trizin (and his consort Gyalyum Chenmo), Dungse Gyana Vajra Rinpoche and Khen Rinpoche to practice the Yajrayogini Jinsek. In the south gathered Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, Jigme Khyentse Rinpoche, Pema Wangyal Rinpoche, Rangdröl Rinpoche and Tulku Yeshe to practice the Thukdrub Barche Kunsel. In the west was Sogyal Rinpoche and his mother (Khandro Tsering Chödrön’s elder sister), Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche, Alak Zenkar Rinpoche and Tulku Rigdzin Pema to practice the Minling Dorsem; and in the north the practice of Hevajra has been conducted by Dungse Ratna Vajra Rinpoche and his Lamas.

Alak Zenkar Rinpoche & Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche at Lerab Ling Sept 2011 Photo Arne Schelling

H.H. Sakya Trizin and Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche at Lerab Ling Sept 2011 Photo Arne Schelling

It was a very peaceful and blissful day, celebrating the life of such a great and inspiring dakini.

H.H. Sakya Trizin concluded with the words “Her passing away is of course a great sadness to myself and to many of you also, and I extend my deep condolences to everyone. The most important thing now for us to do is to fulfill her wishes.”

3rd September 2011

Many great lamas gathered Photo Arne Schelling

Khandro Tsering Chodron Photo Jurek Schreiner

Khandro Tsering Chödrön Courtesy of Shechen Archives

By Kate Miller

When we think of the traditional Tibetan Buddhist three year retreat, we naturally bring to mind courageous individuals practicing intensively and relentlessly day in and day out. But just as the visible mass of an iceberg is supported by an even greater mass invisible below the surface, so are long term retreatants dependent on an extensive team of supporters who are equally committed to this long-term journey.

The 16 retreatants in Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche’s second three year retreat at Vajradhara Gonpa in Australia are now in their final year. Participants in the current retreat include five men and eleven women, ranging in age from their early thirties to late sixties and they’ve come from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany and Hong Kong, as well as Australia.

Traditionally not much is said about the retreatants and what they are doing while their retreat is still in progress, but this is a very appropriate time to say a little about what it takes to support such a program.

Rinpoche’s three year retreat program in Australia is supported by three full-time core staff members appointed by Rinpoche and some 25 part-time volunteers who have committed themselves in their various capacities to serving the retreat – many of them through both of the three year retreats that have been held at Vajradhara Gonpa. The part-time volunteers provide their support all in the midst of their own busy lives with family, work and other commitments, including their own meditation practices. Beyond these regular helpers are many others in the broader community that also extend themselves in support of the retreat.

A Sprawling Three Year Retreat Campus

Joe Shields, Nishkam Pomeroy and Dave McCarthey raising prayer flags

Vajradhara Gonpa as a retreat venue encompasses a sprawling complex of buildings over many acres of grounds, all requiring continuous upkeep. Due to its remote location, the Gonpa is on solar power backed up by diesel generator. Water is pumped from a natural spring, and stoves, refrigerators and hot water heaters are fuelled by propane gas. Rinpoche appointed Jerry Epps to the role of full-time Facility Caretaker with responsibility for the routine daily support of the physical facilities. Jerry, a member of the nearby Gesar Community affiliated with the Gonpa, has over twenty years of experience at Vajradhara Gonpa and his extensive knowledge of the property has proven invaluable in the smooth day to day operation of the retreat.

Andrew giving Indigenous Gallibal Welcome to Country

Jerry is assisted by Joe Shields, Nishkam Pomeroy and Dave McCarthey who spend a day each week ensuring that longer term tasks such as maintenance of grounds, fire roads and minor repairs to buildings receive their due care. They are further supported by Simon Thomas and Andrew Johnson, and in the wider community, by members of the Northern Rivers Regional Rural Fire Service. Joe says, “Events such as three year retreats are such a rare occurrence. The merit generated from such practice (seen and unseen) benefit countless beings for infinite lifetimes. It is an unquestioned privilege and honour to be part of the retreatants’ journey and responding to the needs of our sangha brothers and sisters.”

Fire and Rain!

The rugged Australian sub-tropical bush of northern New South Wales, where Vajradhara Gonpa is located, is subject to periodic bush fires in summer and the possibility of floods during the wet months of the year. The facility team is therefore critical in maintaining a safe container for the retreatants in a manner that is non-intrusive and harmonious with their program of practice.

Jerry Epps (right) & Rural Fire Service volunteers

How real are these threats? Locals say that on average a major bush fire will come through about every seven years. We had one that surrounded the Gonpa property in 2004 just before our first three year retreat and then again during the first year of this current retreat. Thankfully it didn’t require evacuation of retreatants. However Jerry, as our staff fire warden, and our maintenance crew were on hand to fight the fire for over a week. At that time Joe Shields, one of the original founders of Vajradhara Gonpa some 30 years ago, was on site day and night. Vajradhara Gonpa is important as a forward fire fighting base for protection of the nearby Border Ranges National Forest and the fire was monitored and fought under the guidance of the very experienced Rural Fire Service which is comprised mostly of volunteers from the local community. As emergency workers all of these workers have blanket permission to enter our otherwise strict retreat boundary.

The only road to town gets flooded

Earlier this year Dave McCarthey liaised with a crew of Rural Fire Service volunteers which undertook fire prevention activities in preparation for this current season to deal with what Nishkam refers to as our ‘radical areas’. To ensure continued efficacy in fire fighting Jerry and Joe have put their knowledge to paper and completely mapped our property to identify regions of significant risk and prioritise annual preparations for the bush fire season. Even though the likelihood of fire is low this season we need to be prepared not only to comply with our stringent OH&S regulations, but also to ensure that our retreatants can feel at ease in their retreat!

Low bushfire threat sometimes means we can look forward to short term flooding. This last year in particular saw massive flooding in much of the State of Queensland and its capital city Brisbane, just north of the retreat. While Vajradhara Gonpa itself does not flood – it’s located on a mountain shoulder, the retreat can be temporarily isolated due to swollen streams preventing access. During such periods volunteers work extra hard to ensure all necessary support, often in unscheduled hours – all the more challenging when phone lines go down since our remote location is a mobile phone dead zone.

Is There a Doctor in the House?

While the purpose of three year retreat is not to improve or restore one’s health, retreatants must receive timely medical support that will ensure that they are able to carry on with their practice. This can be a sensitive area as the intensive, relentless practice of retreat can provoke all manner of health issues as part of a process of purification. It takes much patience and skill to appropriately respond to retreatants who may develop complex physical manifestations relating to their health. Our health team must be sensitive to strike the right balance of encouragement and reassurance that this can be part of the “normal” retreat process while also being vigilant not to miss those health issues that require intervention.

Julie St. Aubyn, with a background in herbalism, homeopathy and health services administration, is the retreat’s Health Care Coordinator. Julie’s reassuring capacity for equanimity and practicality in varied health circumstances has supported practitioners through both retreats.

Julie St Aubyn & Dr Oscar

Julie oversees a team of licensed health care professionals that have permission to periodically enter the retreat boundary thereby minimizing occasions that might require retreatants to cross out of the boundary. Julie says, “Being a support for the retreat is a fantastic experience. There is something truly wonderful about driving up the hill and entering the sacred space of the retreat. I try to slow down and be mindful in my thoughts and actions as I know that I will be interacting with people who are living outside of the everyday world. The retreatants make me feel very welcome. It’s like visiting with really joyful friends. Their feedback is so positive that I feel like what I do really makes a difference in their lives. Watching the retreat participants as they go through this unique program is amazing. I gain insight into the process of the retreat without having to do one myself!!!”

Lead physicians Oscar Serralach and Jacquie Boustany of the Nimbin Medical Clinic are complemented by Libbie Nelson (physiotherapy, acupuncture & yoga therapy), Michele Alberth (acupuncture & Chinese herbs), Chime Leschly (naturopathy), and visiting pathology nurses. These medical practitioners enter the retreat every three months or so to provide care. Dr. Oscar, heading the health team, while also tending to a young family and busy medical practice, says that for him, “coming into the retreat and working with the retreatants is an absolute joy which also nourishes him.” Oscar takes a multidisciplinary team approach, having a keen interest in holistic medicine as an adjunct to traditional medicine.

Libbie Nelson teaching yoga therapy

Libbie Nelson, is another volunteer who has served on both retreats. Her stabilising and gentle way of being, combined with her lifetime of expertise in her field of health care has been sustaining for staff as well as retreatants over the years. Libbie says, “My experiences have only been positive – even when the retreatants felt low, which was often the case if they needed me to see them, their strength has been a source of delight and inspiration. The exquisite pleasure of being there is greater than the sum of the parts constituted. To sit on the veranda of the Gonpa while waiting for the acupuncture needles to do their bit, I feel I am truly blessed to be able to be there and I recognise that this is a very special experience for us all. It has enabled us all to grow.”

On those rare occasions when it is truly necessary for retreatants to visit external health appointments, Northern Rivers Community Transport volunteer dispatchers and drivers often provide transportation to those participants that are within their age and health criteria.

What’s to Eat?

Ensuring a range of quality food for retreat, especially in a remote location while adhering to a budget prepared years in advance requires tremendous logistical planning. Regina Zenz, the retreat’s Catering Coordinator, has primary responsibility for the two month bulk shop of dry stores, and ensures that retreatants have nutritious food which addresses the changing health needs that can arise for long term meditators. Regina is a great nurturer of others with a reliable and practical nature which has held her in good stead during her support of both retreats – all while managing to juggle responsibilities of family and full time work. Regina says, “I’ve always regarded it as a precious lineage blessing and an immense privilege to be able to work helping to fulfil Rinpoches’ vision and to support such dedicated practitioners through this mundane activity of ‘shopping’. A bit of shopping is nothing compared to what the retreatants are doing, but it’s good to know it’s making their retreat possible! Hey! – what more could a shop-aholic’s heart desire?!”

Core Staff

Kate Miller and Regina Zenz in the supermarket

The Retreat Administrator is appointed by Rinpoche as the person responsible for coordinating all volunteer efforts as well as the 24/7 day-in, day-out operation of the retreat. This position has been shared in turn by Kate Miller, Charlotte Davis and Ani Gosha Gray (Charlotte and Ani Gosha, themselves three year retreat graduates).

The appointed role of Retreat Master is responsible for presenting the detailed curriculum of the retreat and coaching retreatants through the course of the program.This position has been shared by Steve Cline and Jangchub Haubner, both graduates of the Chanteloube three year retreats in the Dordogne (France).

Teachers

About once a year Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche visits the retreat to give individual interviews, empowerments and instructions. This year Rinpoche spent about a month with the retreatants while doing his own retreat. Other times, Rinpoche’s visit has been scarcely more than a day!

From time to time the retreatants have also been fortunate in having instruction and advice from visiting lineage holders and guest teachers such as His Holiness Sakya Trizin, Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche, Khyentse Jigme Rinpoche, Khenpo Sonam Tashi, Lama Rigzin Samdrup, Ven. Tenzin Dorje, and Tara Frances (MacLachlan) of the Blue Mountains Insight Meditation Centre. Visiting teachers are in turn often supported by individuals such as Jakob Leschly (translator), Ela Pedma (cook & shrine implements) and Jittima (Ou) Promindr (cook & seamstress).

So Many Others

Eva Thomas, Gael Wallace and Judy Arpana have loyally provided general assistance and emergency support through both of the two retreats. Eva says, “Being a support person for a long retreat makes one appreciate the preciousness of the practice, I’m always so grateful to all the people doing the hard work day-in and day-out and having some contact with them is a constant reminder – the atmosphere rubs off a bit.” Tara Thomas and Dawn Johnson have helped out as general shoppers in addition to the individual personal shoppers that assist each retreatant with personal needs.

Steve Cline turns his hand to sword sun moon ornaments for flag poles

Major support is also provided by members of the Board of Directors of Siddhartha’s Intent Australia such as Paula Yacoub-Raymond (Vajradhara Gonpa Facility Coordinator), Hugo Croci (Treasurer & Budgetary Management), Nikki Keefe (Health Consultant) and Christina Peebles (OH&S Officer).

Cangioli Che, Florence Koh, Su-yin Lee and Marco Noailles of the Khyentse Foundation have facilitated need-based scholarship support for qualified retreatants.

It is not possible to do justice to the contribution of all these people with a few words. All-in-all it is the respect and regard for the work of supporting the retreatants as they go through their journey of intense practice which motivates volunteers to serve Rinpoche and the dharma in this way. What sustains them is the knowledge that their service is dedicated to providing a special opportunity for others to practice deeply, so rare in our times.

The current three year retreat will conclude in May 2012. In April 2009 Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche formally announced that the current retreat will be the final three year retreat at Vajradhara Gonpa. At present Rinpoche has not indicated any plans for future three year retreats at other locations, either in Australia or overseas. Any future three year retreat program will be announced through the Siddhartha’s Intent website. In the mean time, those interested in engaging some of the contemplative practices typically included in three year retreat may wish to look to the Dharma Gar programs currently being administered in Germany and the United States, and soon to be available for Asia and Australia. Dharma Gar is designed for those who wish to combine a commitment to disciplined contemplative practice with worldly commitments such as career and family.

Main entrance to the Gonpa Photo Janine Schulz

PILGRIMAGE

“The aim of all Buddhist practice is to catch a glimpse of the awakened state. Going on pilgrimage, soaking up the sacred atmosphere of holy places and mingling with other pilgrims are simply different ways of trying to achieve that glimpse.” Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

Pilgrim at Sarnath photo Sarah Mist

Rinpoche wrote the book “ What to do at India’s Buddhist Holy Sites “ in response to the questions students frequently ask about going on pilgrimage to Buddhist holy sites. What to do at India’s Buddhist Holy Sites is not a guidebook for ordinary tourists, but for Buddhists who wish to purify their defilements and accumulate merit by going on pilgrimage. Focusing primarily on the teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha and the great Indian masters of the past, Rinpoche offers pilgrims advice on every aspect of pilgrimage: where to go, what to do, the meaning of pilgrimage  and generating the right motivation before leaving home. He explains what Buddhists mean when they describe a person, place or object as being ‘holy’. Included are suggestions for which prayers and practices one can do at the four main Buddhist holy sites in India and Nepal.

Click here to request a pdf file of Rinpoche’s book

Click here for a preview of Rinpoches Book

This story below is an excerpt from “What to do at India’s Buddhist Holy Sites” and was told to Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche By Deshung Rinpoche.

There are many stories, about people whose devotion was such that their one-pointed longing actually created holy places, or even invoked the material presence of holy beings into their own perceptions.

Like Lodro, for example, who felt tremendous devotion for the bodhisattva Mañjushri. One evening, he came across an amazing passage in a book he was reading about how Mañjushri had vowed three times to show himself to anyone who travelled to Mount Panchashisha * . For Lodro this was the most wonderful and inspiring discovery, and he became so excited that, after a sleepless night and without eating breakfast, he ran to his master’s house to ask his permission and blessings to visit the mountain. At first Lodro’s master did his best to convince him that such a journey, fraught with danger and hardship, was entirely unnecessary, but Lodro would not be convinced. Again and again he begged his master to allow him to go, until eventually he gave in and agreed.

In those days travelling was difficult, but Lodro, undaunted by the dangers that lay ahead, packed enough food and medicine for several months onto the back of his donkey, waved goodbye to his master, family and all his friends, and set off across the Tibetan plateau.

The terrain was extremely tough. He had to cross several fast flowing rivers and survive the punishing heat of empty deserts where his only companions were venomous snakes and wild animals. Nevertheless, after several months, Lodro arrived safely at Mount Panchashisha and immediately started searching for Mañjushri. He looked everywhere, again and again, but couldn’t find anyone who even vaguely resembled the bodhisattva. Then, one evening as he rested his back against the cold iron steps of a monastery he fell fast asleep. The  next  thing  he  remembered  was  walking  into  a  lively  bar  where  a  boisterous  crowd  of  locals  were drinking, laughing and having fun. It was late and Lodro was tired. He asked for a room, and the enormously fat Madame who sat behind a small desk at one end of the main corridor told him they were full up, but he could sleep in a corner of the corridor if he wanted to. He accepted gratefully and pulled a book out of his luggage to read before he went to sleep. Before long a rowdy gang of Chinese boys burst out of the bar into the corridor and started making fun of the fat Madame. Lodro tried to ignore them, but the leader caught sight of him and swaggered over to examine him.

The path that leads to the Manjushri Cave at Wu Ti Shan in China

“What are you doing here?” he demanded.

Not  quite  knowing  what  to  say,  Lodro,  in  his  innocence,  found  himself  telling  the  Chinese  boy  about Mañjushri’s vow. The boy laughed and laughed.

“You Tibetans, you’re so superstitious! Why is that?” he cried. “And you actually believe what you read in books! I’ve lived here all my life, and I’ve never heard of anyone called Mañjushri.”

Shaking his head in disbelief he turned back to his friends, saying, “Winter’s coming. You should go home before you freeze to death.”

The whole gang then staggered back into the bar for another drink as the Madame and Lodro exchanged a look of relief. A few days later, on his way back from another futile trek up the mountain, Lodro bumped into the same Chinese boy.

“You still here?” exclaimed the boy.

“Alright, I give up,” replied Lodro, with a wan smile. “You were right, I am too superstitious.”

“So, you’ve finally had enough, have you?” crowed the Chinese boy. “Will you go home now?”

“I thought I’d make a pilgrimage to Mongolia,” said Lodro. “I might as well, it’s on the way home. And it’ll mean this journey wasn’t a complete waste of time.”

Lodro looked sad and there was something about the way his shoulders slumped as he spoke that softened the Chinese boy’s heart.

“I tell you what,” he said, slightly less aggressively than before. “You don’t have much money and you’ve run out of supplies, so you’re going to need some help. I have a friend in Mongolia. I’ll write him a letter. If you deliver it to him I’m sure he’ll do what he can.”

Auspicious Clouds at Wu Ti Shan

The next day, Lodro once again packed everything he had onto his old donkey and, feeling depressed and disheartened, took one last look at Mañjushri’s mountain, hoping desperately that Mañjushri might appear at least long enough to wave him goodbye. But no. The crowds of people rushing to and fro before him gave up nothing but the Chinese boy with the letter he’d promised. Lodro thanked him, tucked the letter into his yak skin coat and left for Mongolia.

After several months Lodro reached the town where the Chinese boy’s friend was supposed to live. Waving the letter in his hand, he stopped everyone he met to ask where the recipient of the letter might be found. To his surprise, every single person he approached burst out laughing. Lodro was extremely puzzled. Eventually he met an old woman who managed to control herself long enough to ask if she could read the letter. Lodro gave it to her, without reading it himself. She studied it carefully, then asked,

“Who wrote this letter?”

And Lodro told her the whole story. She shook her head and sighed, “Those young men are always bullying helpless pilgrims like you. But there is one creature I know of who bears the name written in this letter. If you really want to deliver it, go to the rubbish tip at the edge of the village. There you’ll find a pig. He’s very fat so you can’t miss him.”

Lodro was a little baffled by this information, nevertheless he decided that, as he was already so close he would go to the tip and have a look at the pig.

Before long, he found a huge hill of rubbish on top of which sat an extremely large and rather hairy pig. Feeling a little self-conscious, Lodro unrolled the letter and held it in front of the pig’s small, bright eyes and was completely astounded when the pig appeared to read it. Once he’d finished, the pig started weeping uncontrollably and fell down dead. Suddenly curious about what could possibly have had such a strong effect on the animal, Lodro finally read the letter.

Dharma Arya Bodhisattva,

Your mission to benefit beings in Mongolia has been accomplished. Now hurry back to Mount Panchashisha.

Mañjushri

Amazed and reinvigorated, Lodro rushed back to Mount Panchashisha with just one thought in his mind,

“This time, when I meet Mañjushri, I’m going to hold onto him extremely tightly and I’ll never let him go!”

His first stop back on the mountain was the bar where the Madame had given him shelter. Lodro asked her if she’d seen the Chinese boy.

“Those boys are always on the move. Who knows where they’ll be?” she said.

Lodro’s heart sank.

“But you’re tired,” continued the Madame, a little more gently. “Why don’t you sleep now. You can look for the boys tomorrow.”

And she offered him his old place in the corridor. He fell asleep quickly, only to wake with a start to find himself slumped against the steps of the monastery and freezing cold. There was no sign of the Madame, the bar or the town. Physically he was on Mount Panchashisha, the external realm where Mañjushri is said to live, yet his merit had been such that his experiences of Mañjushri had all taken place in a dream.

I’ve always hoped that Lodro finally realized that Mañjushri’s compassion is so immense and all pervasive that it’s possible to invoke his presence absolutely anywhere—even his hometown. And from that point of view, his journey to China had been unnecessary, but it definitely wasn’t a waste, because if Lodro had not made his pilgrimage he probably wouldn’t have experienced this inner journey, or realized anything at all.

Chotu, the chai wala at Bodhgayas Number 1 tea stall photo Pawo Choyning

After I heard this story from Deshung Rinpoche, I visited Mount Panchashisha * several times, but had even less success than Lodro. Not only did I completely fail to invoke Mañjushri’s presence, I didn’t have any dreams at all. The only thing that happened was I got annoyed by the ticketing system that’s been instituted at most of the temples and by the monks who sold the tickets. Most of all I was extremely disappointed to see holy shrines reduced to the status of national monuments. Later, though, my intellectual mind began to wonder if one of those arrogant, acquisitive monks who could only think about the amount of tickets they were selling, was in fact Mañjushri. Who knows?

*Also known as Mount Wu Tai Shan.

Noa Jones

Feb 2011
In September, Rinpoche posted a message on the SI Web site warning people who might be thinking to following him on his pilgrimages to Bodhgaya and Sikkim:

“Here in India, worlds like “delay”, “cancellation”, “confirmation”, “cleanliness”, “no problem,” “yes” and “no” all have different meanings. And in fact, if you learn how to appreciate those different definitions, you will find that this is what makes this part of the world magical. So, people who are wishing to come from the first world expecting their toilet will flush, and a hot shower, who are married to, the whole principal of no trespassing, who value individual rights and personal space, might as well just look at pictures, preferably black and white and especially taken by Cartier Bresson and Raghu Rai.”

Attending the drupchen in Tashiding, Sikkim was part practice, part pilgrimage and part adventure. About 20 of Rinpoche’s Bhutanese, Tibetan and Sikkimese students attended the ten-day drupchen and another ninety came from other parts of the world. Tashiding Gonpa is remote and even when one drives—and if one makes it through the road blocks and striking protesters—there is a good 10 to 15 minute walk up a set of stairs to arrive at its gates. People scrambled to find housing near the top but the higher one stayed, the more rustic the conditions became. People were shacking up in the strangest of places to be closer to the action. The action being a red hot drupchen, Lhatsun Namka Jigme’s Ridgin Songdrup, in a very cold temple.

Tashiding landscape and Farmhouse

Like all sangha gatherings, there were exuberant reunions with old friends and lots of new connections made. And of course the restrained clamour for the guru’s attention. He appeared, but always seemingly just out of reach, emerging from the mist, disappearing, giving scant moment of his precious time to as many people as possible before moving on with the enigmatic grace of his. And as the days progressed, as we all became grimy and exhausted, he only seemed to become more luminous.

It rained for days and then hail, the likes of which a 17-year resident had never seen, came crashing down on the temple roof on one sunny cold day. Most days were cold, though sometimes hot. The nights were frigid and in the sky the moon waxed from half to full. We asked if there was a reason the drupchen landed on these particular dates. Did it have to do with the moon? “Sometimes we check astrology for dates but this time we only checked Rinpoche’s schedule,” said Khenpo Sonam Tashi. The shivering masses, old friends, wanderers, court jesters, and royalty, engaged in all kinds of survival techniques, sharing supplies and telling stories, inviting romance, butting heads, and spending rollicking nights with that Sikkimese potion, tongba, in the parking lot below.

“No matter where we go, it’s the people we meet who create the ambience and character of a place and who inject it with a unique energy. A café becomes ‘cool’ or a ‘dive’ depending on the kind of people who hang out there; a rave party for three hundred over-60s and two teenagers is unlikely to involve much raving. It goes without saying that for people like us whose minds and perceptions aren’t very flexible, a holy site is made powerful by collective devotion and veneration, not wall-to-wall carpets.”

Fresh paint on old stone - Tashiding Gonpa

The real potion of the week, however, was the amrita, the mendrup, that was produced with the help of the monks from Pemayangse over the course of the ten days. Preparations had been underway for months prior to the drupchen, overseen by Khenpo Sonam Tashi. Substances were ordered and gotten from an expert in Kalingpong, others were brought from Rinpoche’s secret stash. “Mother pills” are required, just like starter is needed to make sourdough bread. These pills contain parts of pills that contain parts of pills that go all the way back to Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo’s days and with those came snow lion milk, herbal medicines, the eight substances, and so on. During the ten day drupchen, one day is spent preparing these substances, then three days is spent mixing the dry substances, and on the fifth day it is mixed with the mother pills and wet substances. This mix is placed into a large vase and the main practice begins. On the ninth day, the vase was opened and the mendrup is measured. Everyone was very pleased because there were clear signs that the substances had increased, which is the best result. Khenpo Sonam Tashi said that this means it “woke up” and that the worst case scenario is that it merely rots.

Stupa that Liberates upon Seeing - Lhatsun Namkha Jigme photo Sangpo Shresthra

Drupchens are magical, not least because of the chanting of the mantras must continue uninterrupted through the night. Not everyone signed up for all night shifts, although some signed up for almost all of them. Tshewang Dendup, the “hero” from Travellers & Magicians, became the hero of the night, taking it upon himself to make sure there were thermoses of tea and some biscuits to keep people awake. Sometimes only one or two people would show up and the pressure of the drupchen’s success lay on their shoulders, which was enough to keep them alert and chanting ! The mantras changed every few days to match the activity of the amrita production.

We were told plainly not to complain but by the fifth day, Tashi Colman was making the rounds in the shrine room, alerting people to the exact number of minutes and seconds until the drupchen would end (although there was a rumour that he may have been set up).

Rinpoche sat on the throne flanked by Thangthong Tulku, who is the reincarnation of Thangthong Gyalpo, the famous bridge maker.  Jamyang Gyeltshen, whom many students know from Sea to Sky Retreat Centre in Canada attended them both. Jamyang was in fine form, serving Rinpoche all kinds of crazy concoctions, and seemingly always going for elaborate costume changes between services. You never knew what he’d show up with at tea time, perfectly pressed espresso in a Tibetan robe, banana flambé in traditional Sikkimese dress, paan in a tracksuit, all variety of chili pastes. Rinpoche seemed amused.

And Rinpoche was more than just amused by the westerners that came to the drupchen. He made a point of praising the effort they put into making the drupchen a success. He even went so far as to say they “saved” it. This was a surprise for some of the monks who were unaccustomed to foreigners participating in such rituals. “In the end they learned a lot,” said Khenpo Sonam Tashi about the monks, “and they were very happy.”

Stupa of Choki Lodro at Tashiding Gompa

Rinpoche noted that the very first empowerment he ever received after his enthronement was from Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, the Lama Gongdu. It took place right there in Tashiding, in the room that was now used for cold storage. It was also here that Dzongsar Khyentse Chokyi Lodro was cremated in 1959. Several of Jamyang Khyentse Chokyi Lodro’s close students were key coordinators of the drupchen. If one wasn’t made aware of these men, they might have seemed like any other old codgers fetching thermoses of tea and making sure things were running smooth. “Butter tea or sweet?” We asked them. And they pointed and poured with a smile. But these were the very same men, his carpenter and his cowherd, who travelled with Chokyi Lodro from Derge, witnessing miracles and mastery along the way.

Khenpo Sonam Tashi, Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche and Thangthong Tulku on the last day at Tashiding

After the drupchen, a smaller group of students followed Rinpoche to Ghezing (Geyshing) where Rinpoche did a fire puja and hosted two bonfires to burn loads of his old possessions so that he could clear way for the new abbot of the Gonpa there. He saved a few things, his Bee Gees record, a tea set from his teens, and of course his pechas, but suitcases full of clothes and books went up in flames while his students sang and danced around the flames.

For the two weeks following the drupchen, the nine monks who had come from Rinpoche’s Chokyi Gyatsho Institute (Dewathang, Bhutan), remained in Tashiding to roll the mendrup into pills, which will be saved for special occasions. Seeing what goes into the production gave many of those who attended the drupchen a new appreciation for precious pills. Many participants are now back at home with their hot showers and routines, some kept going on the pilgrim path. But all took a little shining memory of Tashiding with them that can be lit up or forgotten, clung to, used, misremembered. It doesn’t really matter. As Rinpoche said in “ What to Do in the Holy Sites of India”:

“What exactly is the right motivation for going on a pilgrimage? At best, it is to develop wisdom, love, compassion, devotion and a genuine sense of renunciation (renunciation mind). So, as you set out, you should make the wish that your journey, one way or another, will continuously remind you of all of the great noble enlightened qualities of the Buddha, and that as a result you will accumulate merit and purify defilement.“

Noa Jones  – Feb 2011

Mt. Kanchenjunga from Tashiding Gonpa

The Spirit of Nalanda continues…

By Melitis Kwong

Deer Park Institute is a centre for study of classical Indian wisdom traditions. The Institute’s core vision is to re-create the spirit of Nalanda, a great university of ancient India where all traditions of Buddhism were studied and practiced, alongside other schools of classical Indian philosophy, arts and science.

Interfaith Meetings with His Holiness Dalai Lama photo Jennifer Yo

Deer Park Institute’s campus is situated on the former site of Dzongsar Institute, a well respected Tibetan Buddhist college. When Dzongsar Institute moved to its new site in Chauntra, Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche transformed the campus into a centre with a new vision.

In remembrance of the Buddha’s first teachings at the historical Deer Park (Mriga Dava) in Sarnath, where the Buddha displayed a spirit of open inquiry into the nature of mind, existence and suffering without any bias, Dzongsar  Khyentse Rinpoche named the new (centre) institute “Deer Park”.

Since opening in March 2006, the Institute has hosted teachings by great masters of all lineages of Tibetan Buddhism including Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, Sakya Trizin Rinpoche, Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche, Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo, Geshe Lakdor ….  Deer Park in the spirit of inclusiveness also runs courses and retreats in the Zen and Theravada traditions within Buddhism and courses on other classical Indian philosophy such as Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras and Kashmiri Shaivism, which have recently been integrated into the program.  This year (2011) Deer Park launched a series of Tibetan language courses and translation workshops, providing an exciting new dimension to the Institute’s academic curriculum.

The principal vision of Deer Park is to create a welcoming, safe and open-minded place of learning. Students from all over the world visit and attend programs, sharing their knowledge and experience. The atmosphere is intimate and friendly. A youthful kitchen staff prepares simple, healthy, delicious vegetarian food. The office staff includes young interns from different Asian countries.

Clowning in the Himalayas photo Jennifer Yo

Deer Park welcomes students, laypeople and wisdom seekers to attend their programs. Most of the programs are free of charge and the language of instruction is English.The Institute’s programs are not advertised extensively, relying instead on ‘word of mouth’. People, who have come to know about its existence, appreciate its non-sectarian approach as upheld by Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche. The dining area often becomes the centre for activities with lively discussions and exchanges. The campus has a number of meditation halls that are the venues for different activities, from meditation and ecology workshops to film screenings. The Institute can accommodate up to 65 or 70 people in single rooms with attached bathrooms; double rooms with shared bathrooms and the dormitory.

Communities bond on the steps of Deer Park photo Jennifer Yo

One feature of the Institute’s activities is its commitment to ecological sustainability. Deer Park has organized workshops and conferences on environmental issues, preserving local culture and sustainable livelihoods with courses held in the Institute as well as in local schools. To disseminate awareness of these issues, informative documentaries and printed materials have also been produced. Since 2009, Deer Park Institute has been invited by the Himachal Pradesh (HP) Government (the local state government) to advise on zero waste and has received an Appreciation Award.

Deer Park is located in Himachal Pradesh , within the Bir Tibetan colony at the foothill of the Himalayas.  Set in an idyllic landscape, Deer Park is surrounded by hills, namely the Dhauladhar range, and rice fields. On a sunny day, students and guests can take an hour’s walk to visit Dzongsar Institute in the nearby town of Chauntra, or walk through the rice fields to Sherabling Monastery (Situ Rinpoche’s monastery). In Bir village itself you can visit four other monasteries, all within ten minute’s walk. There are other holy places of the Hindu and Buddhist traditions nearby such as Tso Pema where Guru Rinpoche displayed miracles and practiced in the caves or the ancient temple of Baijnath.  For students keen on outdoor adventure, one can hike up the hill from Deer Park to a waterfall or simply take a thirty-minute stroll to the Upper Bir village.

Lunchtime with Rinpoche at Deer Park Institute photo Jennifer Yo

With Dharamsala becoming more crowded as tourists flock to this famous Tibetan settlement, home of H.H. Dalai Lama, many long-term Dharma students are attracted to the spaciousness and tranquillity of Deer Park and its surroundings.  Although, over the past ten years more hotels and restaurants have been established in Bir, it still retains its charm as a small village with its monasteries against the backdrop of the magnificent Dhauladhar range.

You can travel to Deer Park by air, train or bus from Delhi. It’s a long journey but once you arrive you’ll appreciate the fresh air and the serene countryside. As you walk up the hill towards the Institute, the friendly staff or our friendly dogs, the majestic temple and the clean surroundings of the campus will welcome you. You can then sip a cup of “Chai”, taste homemade cookies from the Deer Park café, visit the temples, browse through the expansive library and sit back and enjoy your stay at Deer Park.

It is through Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche’s vast vision, and the dedication of the staff and volunteers, that Deer Park Institute came into being. May this endeavour be auspicious and enable the precious Dharma to spread and benefit all beings.

For detailed information on Deer Park programs and other related information, please check the web site www.deerpark.in

For further inquires on program registration and room booking, please write to: info@deerpark.in

Welcome to Bir photo Pawo Choyning Dorji