Dear Sangha,
After so many years of serving as Rinpoche’s typing fingers and the English grammarian for the Wind Horse letters, I am surprised that this one has proven so difficult to write. This is not due to a lack of something to say, but rather to not knowing where to begin. Rinpoche’s parinirvana last November 17th, which also marked our twenty-third wedding anniversary, was the culmination of so many of his teachings—on impermanence, on illusion, on meditative mastery at the moment of death, on guru yoga, and most of all, on the nature of mind itself.
Although I was privileged to be at his side during his physical transition, many others received Rinpoche’s final transmissions in equally powerful and personal ways. Distance as measured by miles mattered not at all. As various sangha members have shared their experiences with me, I am again and again amazed at the pervasive brilliance of a great master’s mind when awareness finds release from the frail sheath of the body. For me, this remains Rinpoche’s most profound teaching, one that instills strong confidence in the face of uncertainty and death.
Rinpoche remained seated in a state of meditation for more than five days after his last breath, with no signs of physical deterioration whatsoever, then was taken from Brazil to Nepal. Ceremonies were conducted during the traditional forty-nine days at his retreat center near Parping, Nepal; at Khadro Ling in Brazil; and at Rigdzin Ling in California. Prayers and butterlamp offerings were performed at many other centers, in the West and in Asia, supported by the prayers of many high lamas.
Though sorrow at the loss of the warm, physical presence of our beloved teacher cannot be adequately expressed, these ceremonial proceedings had their own healing power. We rejoiced in the generation of merit, prayed that extremely positive interdependence would be established for the next Chagdud Tulku and the continued activities of the Chagdud sangha, and delighted in the remembrance of Rinpoche’s own love of butterlamp and tsok offerings. Rinpoche seemed palpably present.
H.E. Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche once remarked on Rinpoche’s courage in teaching Westerners. He held back nothing—not the highest view, not the details of method, not the ordination of those he thought could sustain others through the lineage teach- ings, not the empowerment of those he thought could practice. In his transmission he took risks, sometimes teaching beyond the level of intellectual comprehension and meditative realization of his students, but with faith that their minds would ripen over time. If they floundered in doubt or confusion, or if they held tight to some lesser level of practice, he would urge them on with his famous, “Keep going!”
Rinpoche’s teachings always rested on several key points, nevertheless: bodhichitta, impermanence, and the dreamlike illusion of existence. Even with longtime students who had heard these teachings over and over again, or sophisticated audiences who resisted hearing them at all, he would return to these points with conviction and enthusiasm. He loved the basic teachings, which he illuminated with his wonderful stories and radiant personality. All those who took Rinpoche’s teachings to heart—by now, thousands of people—hold the seeds of transformation and liberation.
In the moving, prescient teaching Rinpoche gave Trungpa Rinpoche’s students after Trungpa’s parinirvana (see first page), Rinpoche said that when a lama passes away, practitioners maintain their vajra samaya with their teacher by upholding the meaning of dharma in the world and helping others gain access to the teachings of the dharma so they too can overcome suffering and attain enlightenment. In Nepal I spoke with Matthieu Ricard, whose furtherance of Kyabje Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche’s activity has been extremely inspiring. When I asked him how he accomplishes so much, he said he was driven by his responsibility not only to prevent diminishment, but also to propagate Khyentse Rinpoche’s activities. “And I can’t bear to waste time and opportunity,” he added.
One thing that has become especially clear to me recently is that Rinpoche mapped out great avenues by which his lamas and his students can fulfill their part in upholding and making accessible the precious dharma; these include practice lineages, translations, artwork, ceremonies, and sacred architecture. All of these activities are interdependent, all surge forth from the heart of our precious teacher, and all accomplish the two benefits, for self and others. All provide extraordinary arenas in which to tame and train the mind. I can only marvel at the richness of Rinpoche’s legacy and aspire to honor it as fully as possible.
Khadro Ling, Brazil
June 2003
Dear Sangha,
After so many years of serving as Rinpoche’s typing fingers and the English grammarian for the Wind Horse letters, I am surprised that this one has proven so difficult to write. This is not due to a lack of something to say, but rather to not knowing where to begin. Rinpoche’s parinirvana last November 17th, which also marked our twenty-third wedding anniversary, was the culmination of so many of his teachings—on impermanence, on illusion, on meditative mastery at the moment of death, on guru yoga, and most of all, on the nature of mind itself.
Although I was privileged to be at his side during his physical transition, many others received Rinpoche’s final transmissions in equally powerful and personal ways. Distance as measured by miles mattered not at all. As various sangha members have shared their experiences with me, I am again and again amazed at the pervasive brilliance of a great master’s mind when awareness finds release from the frail sheath of the body. For me, this remains Rinpoche’s most profound teaching, one that instills strong confidence in the face of uncertainty and death.
Rinpoche remained seated in a state of meditation for more than five days after his last breath, with no signs of physical deterioration whatsoever, then was taken from Brazil to Nepal. Ceremonies were conducted during the traditional forty-nine days at his retreat center near Parping, Nepal; at Khadro Ling in Brazil; and at Rigdzin Ling in California. Prayers and butterlamp offerings were performed at many other centers, in the West and in Asia, supported by the prayers of many high lamas.
Though sorrow at the loss of the warm, physical presence of our beloved teacher cannot be adequately expressed, these ceremonial proceedings had their own healing power. We rejoiced in the generation of merit, prayed that extremely positive interdependence would be established for the next Chagdud Tulku and the continued activities of the Chagdud sangha, and delighted in the remembrance of Rinpoche’s own love of butterlamp and tsok offerings. Rinpoche seemed palpably present.
H.E. Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche once remarked on Rinpoche’s courage in teaching Westerners. He held back nothing—not the highest view, not the details of method, not the ordination of those he thought could sustain others through the lineage teach- ings, not the empowerment of those he thought could practice. In his transmission he took risks, sometimes teaching beyond the level of intellectual comprehension and meditative realization of his students, but with faith that their minds would ripen over time. If they floundered in doubt or confusion, or if they held tight to some lesser level of practice, he would urge them on with his famous, “Keep going!”
Rinpoche’s teachings always rested on several key points, nevertheless: bodhichitta, impermanence, and the dreamlike illusion of existence. Even with longtime students who had heard these teachings over and over again, or sophisticated audiences who resisted hearing them at all, he would return to these points with conviction and enthusiasm. He loved the basic teachings, which he illuminated with his wonderful stories and radiant personality. All those who took Rinpoche’s teachings to heart—by now, thousands of people—hold the seeds of transformation and liberation.
In the moving, prescient teaching Rinpoche gave Trungpa Rinpoche’s students after Trungpa’s parinirvana (see first page), Rinpoche said that when a lama passes away, practitioners maintain their vajra samaya with their teacher by upholding the meaning of dharma in the world and helping others gain access to the teachings of the dharma so they too can overcome suffering and attain enlightenment. In Nepal I spoke with Matthieu Ricard, whose furtherance of Kyabje Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche’s activity has been extremely inspiring. When I asked him how he accomplishes so much, he said he was driven by his responsibility not only to prevent diminishment, but also to propagate Khyentse Rinpoche’s activities. “And I can’t bear to waste time and opportunity,” he added.
One thing that has become especially clear to me recently is that Rinpoche mapped out great avenues by which his lamas and his students can fulfill their part in upholding and making accessible the precious dharma; these include practice lineages, translations, artwork, ceremonies, and sacred architecture. All of these activities are interdependent, all surge forth from the heart of our precious teacher, and all accomplish the two benefits, for self and others. All provide extraordinary arenas in which to tame and train the mind. I can only marvel at the richness of Rinpoche’s legacy and aspire to honor it as fully as possible.
Khadro Ling, Brazil
June 2003
Dear Sangha,
After so many years of serving as Rinpoche’s typing fingers and the English grammarian for the Wind Horse letters, I am surprised that this one has proven so difficult to write. This is not due to a lack of something to say, but rather to not knowing where to begin. Rinpoche’s parinirvana last November 17th, which also marked our twenty-third wedding anniversary, was the culmination of so many of his teachings—on impermanence, on illusion, on meditative mastery at the moment of death, on guru yoga, and most of all, on the nature of mind itself.
Although I was privileged to be at his side during his physical transition, many others received Rinpoche’s final transmissions in equally powerful and personal ways. Distance as measured by miles mattered not at all. As various sangha members have shared their experiences with me, I am again and again amazed at the pervasive brilliance of a great master’s mind when awareness finds release from the frail sheath of the body. For me, this remains Rinpoche’s most profound teaching, one that instills strong confidence in the face of uncertainty and death.
Rinpoche remained seated in a state of meditation for more than five days after his last breath, with no signs of physical deterioration whatsoever, then was taken from Brazil to Nepal. Ceremonies were conducted during the traditional forty-nine days at his retreat center near Parping, Nepal; at Khadro Ling in Brazil; and at Rigdzin Ling in California. Prayers and butterlamp offerings were performed at many other centers, in the West and in Asia, supported by the prayers of many high lamas.
Though sorrow at the loss of the warm, physical presence of our beloved teacher cannot be adequately expressed, these ceremonial proceedings had their own healing power. We rejoiced in the generation of merit, prayed that extremely positive interdependence would be established for the next Chagdud Tulku and the continued activities of the Chagdud sangha, and delighted in the remembrance of Rinpoche’s own love of butterlamp and tsok offerings. Rinpoche seemed palpably present.
H.E. Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche once remarked on Rinpoche’s courage in teaching Westerners. He held back nothing—not the highest view, not the details of method, not the ordination of those he thought could sustain others through the lineage teach- ings, not the empowerment of those he thought could practice. In his transmission he took risks, sometimes teaching beyond the level of intellectual comprehension and meditative realization of his students, but with faith that their minds would ripen over time. If they floundered in doubt or confusion, or if they held tight to some lesser level of practice, he would urge them on with his famous, “Keep going!”
Rinpoche’s teachings always rested on several key points, nevertheless: bodhichitta, impermanence, and the dreamlike illusion of existence. Even with longtime students who had heard these teachings over and over again, or sophisticated audiences who resisted hearing them at all, he would return to these points with conviction and enthusiasm. He loved the basic teachings, which he illuminated with his wonderful stories and radiant personality. All those who took Rinpoche’s teachings to heart—by now, thousands of people—hold the seeds of transformation and liberation.
In the moving, prescient teaching Rinpoche gave Trungpa Rinpoche’s students after Trungpa’s parinirvana (see first page), Rinpoche said that when a lama passes away, practitioners maintain their vajra samaya with their teacher by upholding the meaning of dharma in the world and helping others gain access to the teachings of the dharma so they too can overcome suffering and attain enlightenment. In Nepal I spoke with Matthieu Ricard, whose furtherance of Kyabje Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche’s activity has been extremely inspiring. When I asked him how he accomplishes so much, he said he was driven by his responsibility not only to prevent diminishment, but also to propagate Khyentse Rinpoche’s activities. “And I can’t bear to waste time and opportunity,” he added.
One thing that has become especially clear to me recently is that Rinpoche mapped out great avenues by which his lamas and his students can fulfill their part in upholding and making accessible the precious dharma; these include practice lineages, translations, artwork, ceremonies, and sacred architecture. All of these activities are interdependent, all surge forth from the heart of our precious teacher, and all accomplish the two benefits, for self and others. All provide extraordinary arenas in which to tame and train the mind. I can only marvel at the richness of Rinpoche’s legacy and aspire to honor it as fully as possible.
Khadro Ling, Brazil
June 2003
Dear Sangha,
After so many years of serving as Rinpoche’s typing fingers and the English grammarian for the Wind Horse letters, I am surprised that this one has proven so difficult to write. This is not due to a lack of something to say, but rather to not knowing where to begin. Rinpoche’s parinirvana last November 17th, which also marked our twenty-third wedding anniversary, was the culmination of so many of his teachings—on impermanence, on illusion, on meditative mastery at the moment of death, on guru yoga, and most of all, on the nature of mind itself.
Although I was privileged to be at his side during his physical transition, many others received Rinpoche’s final transmissions in equally powerful and personal ways. Distance as measured by miles mattered not at all. As various sangha members have shared their experiences with me, I am again and again amazed at the pervasive brilliance of a great master’s mind when awareness finds release from the frail sheath of the body. For me, this remains Rinpoche’s most profound teaching, one that instills strong confidence in the face of uncertainty and death.
Rinpoche remained seated in a state of meditation for more than five days after his last breath, with no signs of physical deterioration whatsoever, then was taken from Brazil to Nepal. Ceremonies were conducted during the traditional forty-nine days at his retreat center near Parping, Nepal; at Khadro Ling in Brazil; and at Rigdzin Ling in California. Prayers and butterlamp offerings were performed at many other centers, in the West and in Asia, supported by the prayers of many high lamas.
Though sorrow at the loss of the warm, physical presence of our beloved teacher cannot be adequately expressed, these ceremonial proceedings had their own healing power. We rejoiced in the generation of merit, prayed that extremely positive interdependence would be established for the next Chagdud Tulku and the continued activities of the Chagdud sangha, and delighted in the remembrance of Rinpoche’s own love of butterlamp and tsok offerings. Rinpoche seemed palpably present.
H.E. Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche once remarked on Rinpoche’s courage in teaching Westerners. He held back nothing—not the highest view, not the details of method, not the ordination of those he thought could sustain others through the lineage teach- ings, not the empowerment of those he thought could practice. In his transmission he took risks, sometimes teaching beyond the level of intellectual comprehension and meditative realization of his students, but with faith that their minds would ripen over time. If they floundered in doubt or confusion, or if they held tight to some lesser level of practice, he would urge them on with his famous, “Keep going!”
Rinpoche’s teachings always rested on several key points, nevertheless: bodhichitta, impermanence, and the dreamlike illusion of existence. Even with longtime students who had heard these teachings over and over again, or sophisticated audiences who resisted hearing them at all, he would return to these points with conviction and enthusiasm. He loved the basic teachings, which he illuminated with his wonderful stories and radiant personality. All those who took Rinpoche’s teachings to heart—by now, thousands of people—hold the seeds of transformation and liberation.
In the moving, prescient teaching Rinpoche gave Trungpa Rinpoche’s students after Trungpa’s parinirvana (see first page), Rinpoche said that when a lama passes away, practitioners maintain their vajra samaya with their teacher by upholding the meaning of dharma in the world and helping others gain access to the teachings of the dharma so they too can overcome suffering and attain enlightenment. In Nepal I spoke with Matthieu Ricard, whose furtherance of Kyabje Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche’s activity has been extremely inspiring. When I asked him how he accomplishes so much, he said he was driven by his responsibility not only to prevent diminishment, but also to propagate Khyentse Rinpoche’s activities. “And I can’t bear to waste time and opportunity,” he added.
One thing that has become especially clear to me recently is that Rinpoche mapped out great avenues by which his lamas and his students can fulfill their part in upholding and making accessible the precious dharma; these include practice lineages, translations, artwork, ceremonies, and sacred architecture. All of these activities are interdependent, all surge forth from the heart of our precious teacher, and all accomplish the two benefits, for self and others. All provide extraordinary arenas in which to tame and train the mind. I can only marvel at the richness of Rinpoche’s legacy and aspire to honor it as fully as possible.
Khadro Ling, Brazil
June 2003
Dear Sangha,
After so many years of serving as Rinpoche’s typing fingers and the English grammarian for the Wind Horse letters, I am surprised that this one has proven so difficult to write. This is not due to a lack of something to say, but rather to not knowing where to begin. Rinpoche’s parinirvana last November 17th, which also marked our twenty-third wedding anniversary, was the culmination of so many of his teachings—on impermanence, on illusion, on meditative mastery at the moment of death, on guru yoga, and most of all, on the nature of mind itself.
Although I was privileged to be at his side during his physical transition, many others received Rinpoche’s final transmissions in equally powerful and personal ways. Distance as measured by miles mattered not at all. As various sangha members have shared their experiences with me, I am again and again amazed at the pervasive brilliance of a great master’s mind when awareness finds release from the frail sheath of the body. For me, this remains Rinpoche’s most profound teaching, one that instills strong confidence in the face of uncertainty and death.
Rinpoche remained seated in a state of meditation for more than five days after his last breath, with no signs of physical deterioration whatsoever, then was taken from Brazil to Nepal. Ceremonies were conducted during the traditional forty-nine days at his retreat center near Parping, Nepal; at Khadro Ling in Brazil; and at Rigdzin Ling in California. Prayers and butterlamp offerings were performed at many other centers, in the West and in Asia, supported by the prayers of many high lamas.
Though sorrow at the loss of the warm, physical presence of our beloved teacher cannot be adequately expressed, these ceremonial proceedings had their own healing power. We rejoiced in the generation of merit, prayed that extremely positive interdependence would be established for the next Chagdud Tulku and the continued activities of the Chagdud sangha, and delighted in the remembrance of Rinpoche’s own love of butterlamp and tsok offerings. Rinpoche seemed palpably present.
H.E. Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche once remarked on Rinpoche’s courage in teaching Westerners. He held back nothing—not the highest view, not the details of method, not the ordination of those he thought could sustain others through the lineage teach- ings, not the empowerment of those he thought could practice. In his transmission he took risks, sometimes teaching beyond the level of intellectual comprehension and meditative realization of his students, but with faith that their minds would ripen over time. If they floundered in doubt or confusion, or if they held tight to some lesser level of practice, he would urge them on with his famous, “Keep going!”
Rinpoche’s teachings always rested on several key points, nevertheless: bodhichitta, impermanence, and the dreamlike illusion of existence. Even with longtime students who had heard these teachings over and over again, or sophisticated audiences who resisted hearing them at all, he would return to these points with conviction and enthusiasm. He loved the basic teachings, which he illuminated with his wonderful stories and radiant personality. All those who took Rinpoche’s teachings to heart—by now, thousands of people—hold the seeds of transformation and liberation.
In the moving, prescient teaching Rinpoche gave Trungpa Rinpoche’s students after Trungpa’s parinirvana (see first page), Rinpoche said that when a lama passes away, practitioners maintain their vajra samaya with their teacher by upholding the meaning of dharma in the world and helping others gain access to the teachings of the dharma so they too can overcome suffering and attain enlightenment. In Nepal I spoke with Matthieu Ricard, whose furtherance of Kyabje Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche’s activity has been extremely inspiring. When I asked him how he accomplishes so much, he said he was driven by his responsibility not only to prevent diminishment, but also to propagate Khyentse Rinpoche’s activities. “And I can’t bear to waste time and opportunity,” he added.
One thing that has become especially clear to me recently is that Rinpoche mapped out great avenues by which his lamas and his students can fulfill their part in upholding and making accessible the precious dharma; these include practice lineages, translations, artwork, ceremonies, and sacred architecture. All of these activities are interdependent, all surge forth from the heart of our precious teacher, and all accomplish the two benefits, for self and others. All provide extraordinary arenas in which to tame and train the mind. I can only marvel at the richness of Rinpoche’s legacy and aspire to honor it as fully as possible.
Khadro Ling, Brazil
June 2003
