Over one thousand years ago, in the southern foothills of the Himalayas in what is now the kingdom of Bhutan, Guru Rinpoche taught, hid treasures and suppressed negative influences that would hinder the growth of the Vajrayana Buddhist teachings. It was in Bhutan, the last sovereign country where Vajrayana is the national religion, that His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche died and where his body was enshrined during continuous ceremonies for forty-nine days.
In October, Chagdud Rinpoche, his wife Jane Tromge and several students who had been with Rinpoche on pilgrimage in China, traveled to Bhutan, joining hundreds of students of His Holiness and many lamas from around the world in paying their respects to the kudung (the stupa in which the body is enshrined), making prayers and offerings, and simply sitting quietly for a few moments in the presence of the blessings of His Holiness.
Rinpoche was graciously received by the Queen Mother of Bhutan, herself a student of His Holiness, whose residence, the palace of the royal family in Paro, housed the kudung. She generously helped facilitate our group's pilgrimage to many holy places in Bhutan. Tulku Kunga, abbot of Padma Yeshe Choling Monastery, who finished its construction after the great treasure discoverer Padgyal Lingpa died, and Sherab Dorje, Joint Director of Telecommunications, organized much of Rinpoche's trip. Their involvement was an unexpected and greatly welcomed addition to the pilgrimage.
In Bhutan the unbroken lineage of realization within the Vajrayana tradition was ever-present. Near Paro, where the kudung of His Holiness was enshrined, Taktshang Monastery sits precipitously on the edge of a narrow ledge. It was built over the cave where Guru Rinpoche transformed into the wrathful Dorje Drolod to tame the demons obstructing practice of the sacred dharma. When he cast the beads of his mala at the demons on the top of the mountain, Yeshe Tsogyal knelt to catch them in her skirt as they fell, and her knee-prints in the rock are visible today. A thousand years later, Yeshe Tsogyal appeared to His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche in a vision as he practiced in the same cave and revealed to him the treasure of the Vajrakilaya practice which Chagdud Gonpa centers do every evening and at Losar.
Centrally located in the heart of Bhutan is a valley known as Bumthang, where we saw the deep imprints of Guru Rinpoche's back in the rock walls of two different caves in which he had practiced. The Queen Mother of Bhutan has sponsored the construction of a third Iha khang, designed by His Holiness Khyentse Rinpoche, in the Ku-jey ("body imprint") Temple complex, where one of these caves is located. Here and elsewhere, the monasteries we visited, most of them hundreds of years old, housed stunning murals, wood sculpture, t'hangkas and statuary, exquisitely rendered and painstakingly maintained. Nothing of the traditional artistry has been lost in over one thousand years of practice in Bhutan.
Having seen the newest Iha khang under construction, we then visited Ganteng Monastery, built over five hundred years ago, which is the oldest and largest Nyingma monastery in Bhutan and carries the lineage of the great treasure discoverer Padma Lingpa. Ganteng Tulku Rinpoche, the abbot and are incarnation of Padma Lingpa, had visited Rigdzin Ling two years ago. At that time, he gave an empowerment and conducted a fire puja to bless the land.Chagdud Rinpoche was able to give a brief teaching to the monks at the monastery.
It is said in the Vajrayana that the mind of the lama is equal to that of all the buddhas, but the kindness of the lama is greater, for the lama is here with us now to show us the way to liberation. Thus the devotion and gratitude of Vajrayana practitioners toward their heart lama are inexpressible. This speechless silence surrounded us in a small shrine room on the outskirts of Thimpu, the capital, as we, Rinpoche's students, accompanied him to pay respects to the kudung of his heart lama, Khenpo Dorje. Rinpoche had last seen Khenpo Dorje in India after he helped him escape from Tibet. Not wanting to be a burden on his teacher during a time of impoverishment and great difficulty, Rinpoche had remained in India, while Khenpo Dorje subsequently moved to Bhutan. We prayed quietly in the palpable presence of Rinpoche's Great Perfection lineage as we visited the shrine room where Khenpo Dorje had practiced, which also contained a lifelike statue and photograph of this great teacher.
Returning to the kudung of His Holiness one last time, past,present and future blended in one seamless moment, the truth of mind that knows no separation in time or space. The great lamas of the past who had walked this land, the great lamas of the present who came in unending procession to pay their respects and the tulkus, young lamas and students who would carry the practice forward, were all testimony to the lifeblood of the Vajrayana pulsing through this sacred land. Standing by the kudung, it was clear that this is due in no small part to the kindness of His Holiness Khyentse Rinpoche.
Lisa Leghorn
Over one thousand years ago, in the southern foothills of the Himalayas in what is now the kingdom of Bhutan, Guru Rinpoche taught, hid treasures and suppressed negative influences that would hinder the growth of the Vajrayana Buddhist teachings. It was in Bhutan, the last sovereign country where Vajrayana is the national religion, that His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche died and where his body was enshrined during continuous ceremonies for forty-nine days.
In October, Chagdud Rinpoche, his wife Jane Tromge and several students who had been with Rinpoche on pilgrimage in China, traveled to Bhutan, joining hundreds of students of His Holiness and many lamas from around the world in paying their respects to the kudung (the stupa in which the body is enshrined), making prayers and offerings, and simply sitting quietly for a few moments in the presence of the blessings of His Holiness.
Rinpoche was graciously received by the Queen Mother of Bhutan, herself a student of His Holiness, whose residence, the palace of the royal family in Paro, housed the kudung. She generously helped facilitate our group's pilgrimage to many holy places in Bhutan. Tulku Kunga, abbot of Padma Yeshe Choling Monastery, who finished its construction after the great treasure discoverer Padgyal Lingpa died, and Sherab Dorje, Joint Director of Telecommunications, organized much of Rinpoche's trip. Their involvement was an unexpected and greatly welcomed addition to the pilgrimage.
In Bhutan the unbroken lineage of realization within the Vajrayana tradition was ever-present. Near Paro, where the kudung of His Holiness was enshrined, Taktshang Monastery sits precipitously on the edge of a narrow ledge. It was built over the cave where Guru Rinpoche transformed into the wrathful Dorje Drolod to tame the demons obstructing practice of the sacred dharma. When he cast the beads of his mala at the demons on the top of the mountain, Yeshe Tsogyal knelt to catch them in her skirt as they fell, and her knee-prints in the rock are visible today. A thousand years later, Yeshe Tsogyal appeared to His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche in a vision as he practiced in the same cave and revealed to him the treasure of the Vajrakilaya practice which Chagdud Gonpa centers do every evening and at Losar.
Centrally located in the heart of Bhutan is a valley known as Bumthang, where we saw the deep imprints of Guru Rinpoche's back in the rock walls of two different caves in which he had practiced. The Queen Mother of Bhutan has sponsored the construction of a third Iha khang, designed by His Holiness Khyentse Rinpoche, in the Ku-jey ("body imprint") Temple complex, where one of these caves is located. Here and elsewhere, the monasteries we visited, most of them hundreds of years old, housed stunning murals, wood sculpture, t'hangkas and statuary, exquisitely rendered and painstakingly maintained. Nothing of the traditional artistry has been lost in over one thousand years of practice in Bhutan.
Having seen the newest Iha khang under construction, we then visited Ganteng Monastery, built over five hundred years ago, which is the oldest and largest Nyingma monastery in Bhutan and carries the lineage of the great treasure discoverer Padma Lingpa. Ganteng Tulku Rinpoche, the abbot and are incarnation of Padma Lingpa, had visited Rigdzin Ling two years ago. At that time, he gave an empowerment and conducted a fire puja to bless the land.Chagdud Rinpoche was able to give a brief teaching to the monks at the monastery.
It is said in the Vajrayana that the mind of the lama is equal to that of all the buddhas, but the kindness of the lama is greater, for the lama is here with us now to show us the way to liberation. Thus the devotion and gratitude of Vajrayana practitioners toward their heart lama are inexpressible. This speechless silence surrounded us in a small shrine room on the outskirts of Thimpu, the capital, as we, Rinpoche's students, accompanied him to pay respects to the kudung of his heart lama, Khenpo Dorje. Rinpoche had last seen Khenpo Dorje in India after he helped him escape from Tibet. Not wanting to be a burden on his teacher during a time of impoverishment and great difficulty, Rinpoche had remained in India, while Khenpo Dorje subsequently moved to Bhutan. We prayed quietly in the palpable presence of Rinpoche's Great Perfection lineage as we visited the shrine room where Khenpo Dorje had practiced, which also contained a lifelike statue and photograph of this great teacher.
Returning to the kudung of His Holiness one last time, past,present and future blended in one seamless moment, the truth of mind that knows no separation in time or space. The great lamas of the past who had walked this land, the great lamas of the present who came in unending procession to pay their respects and the tulkus, young lamas and students who would carry the practice forward, were all testimony to the lifeblood of the Vajrayana pulsing through this sacred land. Standing by the kudung, it was clear that this is due in no small part to the kindness of His Holiness Khyentse Rinpoche.
Lisa Leghorn
Over one thousand years ago, in the southern foothills of the Himalayas in what is now the kingdom of Bhutan, Guru Rinpoche taught, hid treasures and suppressed negative influences that would hinder the growth of the Vajrayana Buddhist teachings. It was in Bhutan, the last sovereign country where Vajrayana is the national religion, that His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche died and where his body was enshrined during continuous ceremonies for forty-nine days.
In October, Chagdud Rinpoche, his wife Jane Tromge and several students who had been with Rinpoche on pilgrimage in China, traveled to Bhutan, joining hundreds of students of His Holiness and many lamas from around the world in paying their respects to the kudung (the stupa in which the body is enshrined), making prayers and offerings, and simply sitting quietly for a few moments in the presence of the blessings of His Holiness.
Rinpoche was graciously received by the Queen Mother of Bhutan, herself a student of His Holiness, whose residence, the palace of the royal family in Paro, housed the kudung. She generously helped facilitate our group's pilgrimage to many holy places in Bhutan. Tulku Kunga, abbot of Padma Yeshe Choling Monastery, who finished its construction after the great treasure discoverer Padgyal Lingpa died, and Sherab Dorje, Joint Director of Telecommunications, organized much of Rinpoche's trip. Their involvement was an unexpected and greatly welcomed addition to the pilgrimage.
In Bhutan the unbroken lineage of realization within the Vajrayana tradition was ever-present. Near Paro, where the kudung of His Holiness was enshrined, Taktshang Monastery sits precipitously on the edge of a narrow ledge. It was built over the cave where Guru Rinpoche transformed into the wrathful Dorje Drolod to tame the demons obstructing practice of the sacred dharma. When he cast the beads of his mala at the demons on the top of the mountain, Yeshe Tsogyal knelt to catch them in her skirt as they fell, and her knee-prints in the rock are visible today. A thousand years later, Yeshe Tsogyal appeared to His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche in a vision as he practiced in the same cave and revealed to him the treasure of the Vajrakilaya practice which Chagdud Gonpa centers do every evening and at Losar.
Centrally located in the heart of Bhutan is a valley known as Bumthang, where we saw the deep imprints of Guru Rinpoche's back in the rock walls of two different caves in which he had practiced. The Queen Mother of Bhutan has sponsored the construction of a third Iha khang, designed by His Holiness Khyentse Rinpoche, in the Ku-jey ("body imprint") Temple complex, where one of these caves is located. Here and elsewhere, the monasteries we visited, most of them hundreds of years old, housed stunning murals, wood sculpture, t'hangkas and statuary, exquisitely rendered and painstakingly maintained. Nothing of the traditional artistry has been lost in over one thousand years of practice in Bhutan.
Having seen the newest Iha khang under construction, we then visited Ganteng Monastery, built over five hundred years ago, which is the oldest and largest Nyingma monastery in Bhutan and carries the lineage of the great treasure discoverer Padma Lingpa. Ganteng Tulku Rinpoche, the abbot and are incarnation of Padma Lingpa, had visited Rigdzin Ling two years ago. At that time, he gave an empowerment and conducted a fire puja to bless the land.Chagdud Rinpoche was able to give a brief teaching to the monks at the monastery.
It is said in the Vajrayana that the mind of the lama is equal to that of all the buddhas, but the kindness of the lama is greater, for the lama is here with us now to show us the way to liberation. Thus the devotion and gratitude of Vajrayana practitioners toward their heart lama are inexpressible. This speechless silence surrounded us in a small shrine room on the outskirts of Thimpu, the capital, as we, Rinpoche's students, accompanied him to pay respects to the kudung of his heart lama, Khenpo Dorje. Rinpoche had last seen Khenpo Dorje in India after he helped him escape from Tibet. Not wanting to be a burden on his teacher during a time of impoverishment and great difficulty, Rinpoche had remained in India, while Khenpo Dorje subsequently moved to Bhutan. We prayed quietly in the palpable presence of Rinpoche's Great Perfection lineage as we visited the shrine room where Khenpo Dorje had practiced, which also contained a lifelike statue and photograph of this great teacher.
Returning to the kudung of His Holiness one last time, past,present and future blended in one seamless moment, the truth of mind that knows no separation in time or space. The great lamas of the past who had walked this land, the great lamas of the present who came in unending procession to pay their respects and the tulkus, young lamas and students who would carry the practice forward, were all testimony to the lifeblood of the Vajrayana pulsing through this sacred land. Standing by the kudung, it was clear that this is due in no small part to the kindness of His Holiness Khyentse Rinpoche.
Lisa Leghorn
Over one thousand years ago, in the southern foothills of the Himalayas in what is now the kingdom of Bhutan, Guru Rinpoche taught, hid treasures and suppressed negative influences that would hinder the growth of the Vajrayana Buddhist teachings. It was in Bhutan, the last sovereign country where Vajrayana is the national religion, that His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche died and where his body was enshrined during continuous ceremonies for forty-nine days.
In October, Chagdud Rinpoche, his wife Jane Tromge and several students who had been with Rinpoche on pilgrimage in China, traveled to Bhutan, joining hundreds of students of His Holiness and many lamas from around the world in paying their respects to the kudung (the stupa in which the body is enshrined), making prayers and offerings, and simply sitting quietly for a few moments in the presence of the blessings of His Holiness.
Rinpoche was graciously received by the Queen Mother of Bhutan, herself a student of His Holiness, whose residence, the palace of the royal family in Paro, housed the kudung. She generously helped facilitate our group's pilgrimage to many holy places in Bhutan. Tulku Kunga, abbot of Padma Yeshe Choling Monastery, who finished its construction after the great treasure discoverer Padgyal Lingpa died, and Sherab Dorje, Joint Director of Telecommunications, organized much of Rinpoche's trip. Their involvement was an unexpected and greatly welcomed addition to the pilgrimage.
In Bhutan the unbroken lineage of realization within the Vajrayana tradition was ever-present. Near Paro, where the kudung of His Holiness was enshrined, Taktshang Monastery sits precipitously on the edge of a narrow ledge. It was built over the cave where Guru Rinpoche transformed into the wrathful Dorje Drolod to tame the demons obstructing practice of the sacred dharma. When he cast the beads of his mala at the demons on the top of the mountain, Yeshe Tsogyal knelt to catch them in her skirt as they fell, and her knee-prints in the rock are visible today. A thousand years later, Yeshe Tsogyal appeared to His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche in a vision as he practiced in the same cave and revealed to him the treasure of the Vajrakilaya practice which Chagdud Gonpa centers do every evening and at Losar.
Centrally located in the heart of Bhutan is a valley known as Bumthang, where we saw the deep imprints of Guru Rinpoche's back in the rock walls of two different caves in which he had practiced. The Queen Mother of Bhutan has sponsored the construction of a third Iha khang, designed by His Holiness Khyentse Rinpoche, in the Ku-jey ("body imprint") Temple complex, where one of these caves is located. Here and elsewhere, the monasteries we visited, most of them hundreds of years old, housed stunning murals, wood sculpture, t'hangkas and statuary, exquisitely rendered and painstakingly maintained. Nothing of the traditional artistry has been lost in over one thousand years of practice in Bhutan.
Having seen the newest Iha khang under construction, we then visited Ganteng Monastery, built over five hundred years ago, which is the oldest and largest Nyingma monastery in Bhutan and carries the lineage of the great treasure discoverer Padma Lingpa. Ganteng Tulku Rinpoche, the abbot and are incarnation of Padma Lingpa, had visited Rigdzin Ling two years ago. At that time, he gave an empowerment and conducted a fire puja to bless the land.Chagdud Rinpoche was able to give a brief teaching to the monks at the monastery.
It is said in the Vajrayana that the mind of the lama is equal to that of all the buddhas, but the kindness of the lama is greater, for the lama is here with us now to show us the way to liberation. Thus the devotion and gratitude of Vajrayana practitioners toward their heart lama are inexpressible. This speechless silence surrounded us in a small shrine room on the outskirts of Thimpu, the capital, as we, Rinpoche's students, accompanied him to pay respects to the kudung of his heart lama, Khenpo Dorje. Rinpoche had last seen Khenpo Dorje in India after he helped him escape from Tibet. Not wanting to be a burden on his teacher during a time of impoverishment and great difficulty, Rinpoche had remained in India, while Khenpo Dorje subsequently moved to Bhutan. We prayed quietly in the palpable presence of Rinpoche's Great Perfection lineage as we visited the shrine room where Khenpo Dorje had practiced, which also contained a lifelike statue and photograph of this great teacher.
Returning to the kudung of His Holiness one last time, past,present and future blended in one seamless moment, the truth of mind that knows no separation in time or space. The great lamas of the past who had walked this land, the great lamas of the present who came in unending procession to pay their respects and the tulkus, young lamas and students who would carry the practice forward, were all testimony to the lifeblood of the Vajrayana pulsing through this sacred land. Standing by the kudung, it was clear that this is due in no small part to the kindness of His Holiness Khyentse Rinpoche.
Lisa Leghorn
Over one thousand years ago, in the southern foothills of the Himalayas in what is now the kingdom of Bhutan, Guru Rinpoche taught, hid treasures and suppressed negative influences that would hinder the growth of the Vajrayana Buddhist teachings. It was in Bhutan, the last sovereign country where Vajrayana is the national religion, that His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche died and where his body was enshrined during continuous ceremonies for forty-nine days.
In October, Chagdud Rinpoche, his wife Jane Tromge and several students who had been with Rinpoche on pilgrimage in China, traveled to Bhutan, joining hundreds of students of His Holiness and many lamas from around the world in paying their respects to the kudung (the stupa in which the body is enshrined), making prayers and offerings, and simply sitting quietly for a few moments in the presence of the blessings of His Holiness.
Rinpoche was graciously received by the Queen Mother of Bhutan, herself a student of His Holiness, whose residence, the palace of the royal family in Paro, housed the kudung. She generously helped facilitate our group's pilgrimage to many holy places in Bhutan. Tulku Kunga, abbot of Padma Yeshe Choling Monastery, who finished its construction after the great treasure discoverer Padgyal Lingpa died, and Sherab Dorje, Joint Director of Telecommunications, organized much of Rinpoche's trip. Their involvement was an unexpected and greatly welcomed addition to the pilgrimage.
In Bhutan the unbroken lineage of realization within the Vajrayana tradition was ever-present. Near Paro, where the kudung of His Holiness was enshrined, Taktshang Monastery sits precipitously on the edge of a narrow ledge. It was built over the cave where Guru Rinpoche transformed into the wrathful Dorje Drolod to tame the demons obstructing practice of the sacred dharma. When he cast the beads of his mala at the demons on the top of the mountain, Yeshe Tsogyal knelt to catch them in her skirt as they fell, and her knee-prints in the rock are visible today. A thousand years later, Yeshe Tsogyal appeared to His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche in a vision as he practiced in the same cave and revealed to him the treasure of the Vajrakilaya practice which Chagdud Gonpa centers do every evening and at Losar.
Centrally located in the heart of Bhutan is a valley known as Bumthang, where we saw the deep imprints of Guru Rinpoche's back in the rock walls of two different caves in which he had practiced. The Queen Mother of Bhutan has sponsored the construction of a third Iha khang, designed by His Holiness Khyentse Rinpoche, in the Ku-jey ("body imprint") Temple complex, where one of these caves is located. Here and elsewhere, the monasteries we visited, most of them hundreds of years old, housed stunning murals, wood sculpture, t'hangkas and statuary, exquisitely rendered and painstakingly maintained. Nothing of the traditional artistry has been lost in over one thousand years of practice in Bhutan.
Having seen the newest Iha khang under construction, we then visited Ganteng Monastery, built over five hundred years ago, which is the oldest and largest Nyingma monastery in Bhutan and carries the lineage of the great treasure discoverer Padma Lingpa. Ganteng Tulku Rinpoche, the abbot and are incarnation of Padma Lingpa, had visited Rigdzin Ling two years ago. At that time, he gave an empowerment and conducted a fire puja to bless the land.Chagdud Rinpoche was able to give a brief teaching to the monks at the monastery.
It is said in the Vajrayana that the mind of the lama is equal to that of all the buddhas, but the kindness of the lama is greater, for the lama is here with us now to show us the way to liberation. Thus the devotion and gratitude of Vajrayana practitioners toward their heart lama are inexpressible. This speechless silence surrounded us in a small shrine room on the outskirts of Thimpu, the capital, as we, Rinpoche's students, accompanied him to pay respects to the kudung of his heart lama, Khenpo Dorje. Rinpoche had last seen Khenpo Dorje in India after he helped him escape from Tibet. Not wanting to be a burden on his teacher during a time of impoverishment and great difficulty, Rinpoche had remained in India, while Khenpo Dorje subsequently moved to Bhutan. We prayed quietly in the palpable presence of Rinpoche's Great Perfection lineage as we visited the shrine room where Khenpo Dorje had practiced, which also contained a lifelike statue and photograph of this great teacher.
Returning to the kudung of His Holiness one last time, past,present and future blended in one seamless moment, the truth of mind that knows no separation in time or space. The great lamas of the past who had walked this land, the great lamas of the present who came in unending procession to pay their respects and the tulkus, young lamas and students who would carry the practice forward, were all testimony to the lifeblood of the Vajrayana pulsing through this sacred land. Standing by the kudung, it was clear that this is due in no small part to the kindness of His Holiness Khyentse Rinpoche.
Lisa Leghorn
