By Charlotte Davis, Kathmandu, Nepal

After the sad news of Kyabje Trulshik Rinpoche’s passing was announced, the Vajrasattva Drupchen from Mindroling was practised here at Shechen for a week, which I attended as much as I could. They perform this Drupchen each year and I’ve come to appreciate the special energy and inspiration that comes from attending these intensive group practises. A very kind person has made a translation available, so those of us who aren’t fluent in Tibetan can engage in the practise with more understanding. This practise is also being performed at Sitapaila Gonpa. I was fortunate to have received a number of empowerments from Kyabje Trulshik Rinpche during my numerous stays in Nepal over many years, so I feel a personal gratitude towards him as well as respect for he has been the Teacher of so many of our Teachers.

On the 12th September 2011, I headed up to Sitapaila Gonpa to pay homage to Rinpoches relics, with a nun, (known as “Ani Chung-Chung” or “Little Ani”) who is from Trulshik Rinpoche‘s remote nunnery at Thupten Choling. Sitapaila Gonpa is a large new monastery, still under construction though completed in the main part, that Kyabje Trulshik Rinpoche built on a mountain behind Swayambhunath Stupa in Kathmandu, Nepal. I heard that one of the reasons that Trulshik Rinoche located the new gonpa there is that on a clear day, you can see three of the main Buddhist sacred places in the valley: Swayabhunath stupa, Baudhanath Stupa, and Namo Buddha.

There was the usual chaos that such journeys often seem to invoke! I was assisting the young Ani (Tibetan for ‘nun’) because she has to walk with an artificial leg, due to cancer. So when we found out that the Shechen monks had been invited to conduct the Pujas we decided to travel with them.

At 7am we were ready and waiting on Mahankal Road. By 7:30 the buses had all arrived and off we set. The traffic was already building up and we had to alternate between opening the window to let in some air and closing it to keep out the pollution and dust. To anyone who has travelled in this area this will be very familiar. We hadn’t gone far before the first obstacle arose: we were stopped by a car that was stuck in the mud. The bus-driver then backed up and we went back to Ring Road. Again we set off up the hill this time via the only alternative route and soon met a procession of devotees travelling up to Sitapaila Gompa in taxis and cars for the same purpose, causing the ubiquitous “jam” (traffic jam). As the road became steeper, the bus driver said that it was impossible for him to travel further fully laden, so the monks all got out. We weren’t sure if it would make it even if it was empty, so we got out too. Quickly we negotiated a price with a taxi driver heading down the hill and off we set again. We were happy to see that he veered to a side road to turn around but then for some reason he decided to change his mind and instead headed all the way back down the hill until we were back at the bottom! So there we were back at the beginning at the end of the long traffic jam. In the meantime we observed the bus we had abandoned chugging its way up to the top! We moaned and complained a bit, but in the end our intrepid taxi driver pulled through, put his foot to the accelerator, charged past all the stationary vehicles until he got to the steepest part, then he backed up for the final charge to the top of the hill. Muttering “go go go!” under my breath we made it with a wing and a prayer! With lots of smiles and a sense of relief we paid the taxi driver. He went on his way and there we were looking up at the beautiful new Gonpa.

Young Ani “Chung Chung” from the Shechen Gonpa Art School is one of those very humble and sweet natured practitioners you meet here that cannot fail to touch your heart. She never complains about her affliction, the discomfort and the pain it gives her and is constantly attending our art school ‘Genla’ or teacher, Konchog, with great devotion. Konchog in turn also inspires this kind of devotion, being someone who has also spent his entire life in humble service to his guru Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche and the Dharma. He too always expresses good humour in even the most difficult situations. Travelling and being in the company of people like this is always a teaching, as I am confronted with my own spoilt tendencies and selfish grasping. I am inspired to see how people who have been brought up from birth, in this ‘dharma culture’, relate very differently to their world and situations.

Back to the journey…
Ani and I headed up the stairs to the Gonpa. When Ani was recognised from Thupten Choling Nunnery and when we said we were with the Shechen monks we were ushered up to the side of the small temple where the relics are housed. We were quickly reminded as to why we were there when we saw a number of grief stricken nuns as well as a few monks overcome with emotion and sadness as they left the temple after paying homage to the kudung.

The organisation around this day, the first day his relics were open for the public to view, was very impressive. There were many friendly volunteers to help direct people and take care eg a chair was quickly found for Ani so she could be seated comfortably. I sat with the other westerners to the side of the marquee where the Shechen monks were performing the pujas. People were handed tea and bread as they arrived and later lunch was served. The weather was hot so there were water fountains and cups in many locations that were constantly being refilled with filtered water. As each person left the temple after paying homage, they were each handed a large bag of tsok. Also each person received an envelope with a photo of His Holiness, a prayer for his swift rebirth with English translation, and a small plastic bag with some of his body salts and another bag with a small piece of his cloth, as an object of veneration and devotion. So kind.

When our turn came, we were ushered into the temple, where a gathering of High Lamas and guests were conducting Pujas. When I went through, Jigme Khyentse Rinpoche was seated in meditation next to the kudung. After receiving a blessing string from Pema Wangyal Rinpoche, I exited the building in something of a daze. Receiving the envelope with the precious remains and the bag of tosk we returned to our cushions and joined in with our own prayers and the Minling Dorsem Puja.

A number of the lamas, as well as ordinary people who were inspired to speak about Kyabje Trulshik Rinpoche, were interviewed on live local TV over the afternoon. Although unfortunately the noise of the pujas made it difficult to hear very well, Jigme Khyentse Rinpoche recounted many details of Trulshik Rinpoche’s incredible life story. He also gave words of advice as to how we should relate to this time. The essence of the advice I heard from him and others was that the most significant thing for us as aspiring practitioners to contemplate during this time, was to take the life of such great masters as an example and that the best way to pay homage to such great beings is to put the teachings we have received from them into practice and contemplate their life example so we can try to emulate this in our own lives.

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

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.

“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.”

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.

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.

“At the close of the World teaching tour of Yangsi Khyentse Rinpoche, eight stupas were consecrated at the following places: Lumbini, Shravasa, Sankisa, Sarnath, Kushinagar, Vaishali, Rajgir, Bodhgaya.

Here are a selection of photographs taken by Mathieu Rikard and Raphaele Demandre to inspire and encourage pilgrimage.

Thank you to Yangsi Khyentse Rinpoche, Rabjam Rinpoche and everyone who made possible this extraordinary tour to all parts of the world ”

In December 2010 Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, Jigme Khyentse Rinpoche and Tsikey Chokling Rinpoche lead a Barche Kunsel Drupchen at the sacred Asura Caves in Pharping, Nepal. Here are a few photos from Pawo Choyning Dorji’s gallery of this time.