Teachings with Khenchen Lama Rinpoche - 2007

Golden Manjushri Empowerment
Important:This teaching is offered for free, but Rinpoche requests all students who are not engaging in the daily practice of Rigpa Guru Yoga to take on a practice commitment, if they attend this teaching. The new students are required to recite the mantra ‘OM AH RA PA TSA NA DHI’ 100,000 times. If you attended previous teachings by Khenchen Prachhimba Dorjee Rinpoche and are engaging in the daily practice of Rigpa Guru Yoga, you don’t have to take on this additional commitment. Genuinely wishing for enlightenment of his students, Rinpoche requests his students to do these practices because without a student’s diligent practice, his teachings will not lead to this ultimate goal.

This empowerment on Golden Manjushri comes from a terma (hidden teaching) discovered by Padma Dragnag Lingpa. Among all the Buddhas, Manjushri is like the father of all Buddhas. He was the first Buddha to cultivate the wisdom aspect, and through that, reached complete enlightenment. It is not possible to reach complete enlightenment without cultivating wisdom recognizing the true nature of mind and phenomena. At the outer level, this meditation on Manjushri supplicates the deity appearing in his golden form. At the inner level, one recognizes that the wisdom aspect of Manjushri is identical to wisdom of all Buddhas. Finally, at the secret level the practitioner realizes that the wisdom of Manjushri is no different from his own Buddha nature. Padma Dragnag Lingpa says that in this era, when we are swamped with the five poisons having their root in our ignorance, it is essential to engage in the practice of Manjushri. When practiced properly, this meditation will lead one to the complete enlightenment.

Oral transmission of Kunshed Gyalpo
Rinpoche will also bestow an oral transmission of Kunshed Gyalpo ( Kulaya RhaZha) – the initial root Dzogchen tantra of all 64,000 Dzogchen tantras. Rinpoche invites all his students to join him for this teaching and meditation marking the anniversary of Rinpoche’s root guru – H.H. Jigmed Phuntsok Rinpoche.

Sutra of Great Liberation
Buddha Shakyamuni received this transmission in one of his lifetimes and said that without it his progress towards enlightenment would have been very slow over many lifetimes. It is also said that those who listen to this transmission will never be born in the three lower realms ? the hell realm, the realm of hungry ghosts and the animal realm. The transmission contains names of Buddhas and bodhisattvas of the past, present and future. During the transmission one should supplicate the Buddhas and make strong aspiration for swift enlightenment. Khenchen Rinpoche would like his students to come together, spend the three hours in meditation and rejoice in the blessing of this transmission. This date is particularly suitable for this transmission because it is the anniversary of Buddha Shakyamuni?s return from the realm of gods where he spent three moths giving teachings to his mother to repay her kindness.

Sangye Yeshe Guru Yoga of the Essential Mind Transmission
Important!!! This teaching is offered for free, but Khenchen Prachhimba Dorjee Rinpoche asks all students attending to commit to 5 minutes of Sangye Yeshe Guru Yoga every day during their lifetime. For those who previously took on the commitment of Rigpa Guru Yoga taught by Rinpoche: The previous 5 minutes per day commitment of Rigpa Guru Yoga fulfills the practice requirement for this teaching. If you do not intend or don’t have time to fulfill this practice requirement, please do not attend these teachings because of adverse karmic results for you and the teacher.

This teaching is a hidden treasure (terma) of mind received by Padma Dragnag Lingpa. Padma Dragnag Lingpa was an incarnation of Sangye Yeshe – one of Padmasambhava’s five heart disciples. Name of Sangye Yeshe means ‘Wisdom of all Buddhas’. Sangye Yeshe said that in order to attain enlightenment, we have to realize the wisdom of all Buddhas. That is why it is important to do the practice of ‘Sangye Yeshe Guru Yoga’. Sangye Yeshe says that those who do this practice are very fortunate because it is very powerful. Within the nine yanas this practice belongs to the highest group of teachings – Atiyoga. It is a very advanced practice but because of good devotion of his students, Khenchen Prachhimba Dorjee Rinpoche decided to bestow this blessing on his students.

White Tara Longevity Empowerment, Teaching and Meditation
Important:This teaching is offered for free but Rinpoche requests all students attending to commit to10 000 recitations of the White Tara mantra (OM TARE TU TARE TURE MAMA AH YUR PUNNE JYANA PUSHTRING KURU SOHA)

This teaching is based on a hidden teaching (terma) discovered in 1946 by Padma Dragnag Lingpa. During that time - just like now - many genuine teachers and Dharma practitioners were facing obstacles and their lives were shortened. Therefore, his students requested Padma Dragnag Lingpa to compose a White Tara practice text to remove obstacles and give blessings of long life to sincere dharma practitioners. After repeated requests Padma Dragnag Lingpa had a vision of White Tara in a dream. As a result of the vision, Padma Dragnag Lingpa recalled the practice of White Tara that Padmasambhava taught to Padma Dragnag Lingpa’s previous incarnation - Padmasambhava’s close disciple Sangye Yeshe. During the vision White Tara instructed Padma Dragnag Lingpa that this practice would help future Dharma students to prolong their precious human life in order to bring their practice to fruition. This mind treasure teaching was subsequently written up into a practice text. Padma Dragnag Lingpa first bestowed the empowerment of this practice onto 21 students including Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche, lama Belo, lama Loma and Ramjang Nangdzet Drubpi Dorjee Rinpoche who enjoyed long life full of fruitful practice. One of the practitioners of this text - Tsele Khandro - is now 116 years old. In this lifetime, Khenchen Prachhimba Dorjee Rinpoche received the empowerment and teaching of this White Tara practice from lama Loma. Rinpoche had very good experience doing this practice and would like to share it with his students on his birthday May 1st. He hopes that this practice will remove obstacles and help his students to have long life full of fruitful Dharma practice and activity. The practice text itself is concise and easy to practice.

Rigpa Guru Yoga Empowerment
In addition to the preliminary practices of Mipham Namgyal Rinpoche, Khenchen Prachhimba Dorjee Rinpoche will also share a rigpa guru yoga from a terma (hidden treasure) discovered by his previous incarnation Padma  Dragnag Lingpa as a part of these teachings on preliminaries. This guru yoga is called rigpa guru yoga because it emphasizes that rigpa or ‘pristine awareness’ is our guru at the deepest level. In the terma it is said that this guru yoga of Padma Dragnag Lingpa is especially suited for this time. Rinpoche will bestow an empowerment of the rigpa guru yoga and give a teaching on its meaning.

The Luminous Path to Liberation Preliminary Practice
Important!!! This teaching is offered for free but Khenchen Prachhimba Dorjee Rinpoche requests all attending to spend 5 minutes every day practicing the rigpa guru yoga, preliminary practices of Mipham Namgyal Rinpoche or some other meditation practice. For example, if you have been doing a regular meditation practice for 10 or 30 minutes every day and sustain it, this will fulfill the requirement. If you don’t have time or do not intend to fulfill this commitment, please do not attend the teaching because of negative karma stemming from not keeping the samaya (words of honor).

These preliminary practices or Ngondro were written down by Mipham Namgyal Rinpoche and are very unique. There were three milestones that led Mipham Namgyal Rinpoche to compose these preliminary practices. First, he exactly grasped the real nature of phenomena. Second, he actually saw the yidam Manjushri as a result of his realization and was instructed to write these preliminary practices down. Finally, strong compassion arose in Mipham Namgyal Rinpoche as a result of these insights and therefore, he wrote these preliminary practices to benefit beings. These three aspects distinguish the preliminary practices written by Mipham Namgyal Rinpoche from other preliminary practices. Mipham Namgyal Rinpoche says that these practices are like roots of any dzogchen practice. If we do not have strong roots, our dzogchen practice will be unstable and unlikely to lead to realization. Since these preliminaries were written specifically for dzogchen practitioners, they are actually not ‘preliminary’ but are dzogchen practices in themselves. They encompass the outer, inner, secret and most secret preliminaries.

Vajrakilaya Empowerment, Teaching and Meditation
Important!!! This teaching is offered for free but Khenchen Prachhimba Dorjee Rinpoche requests all who will attend this teaching to recite the Vajrakilaya mantra 100,000 times (OM VAJRA KILA KILAYA HUNG PHET). If you received this empowerment from Khenchen Prachhimba Dorjee Rinpoche before (in 2004) and fulfilled the samaya (commitment) of 100,000 recitations you should recite the mantra 1,000 times after this empowerment. If you don’t have time or do not intend to fulfill this commitment, please do not attend the teaching because of negative karma stemming from not keeping the samaya.

This Vajrakilaya called ‘Phurba Gurkhugma’ is from the new terma (hidden treasure practice) revealed by H. H. Jigmed Phuntsok Rinpoche on July 23, 1990. The empowerment of ‘Phurba Gurkhugma’ was bestowed upon H.H. The Dalai Lama by H.H. Jigmed Phuntsok Rinpoche on the same day it was discovered.  Even though there are many different Vajrakilaya practices, this is one is very special because it has the power to remove obstacles at the outer, inner and secret levels at the same time. In the terma it is said that this Vajrakilaya practice is especially suitable for this time when there is a lot of discord in the world. Padmasambhava says that this practice is like a powerful protection amulet that one wears around the neck all the time. Khenchen Prachhimba Dorjee Rinpoche received this empowerment from H.H. Jigmed Phuntsok Rinpoche many times and would like to pass it onto his students at this occasion to avert the obstacles of the upcoming year.

Vajrasattva Empowerment, Teaching and Meditation
Important:This teaching is offered for free but Khenchen Prachhimba Dorjee Rinpoche requests all attending to recite the Vajrasattva mantra 100,000 times (OM VAJRA SATO HUNG). If you have accumulated 100,000 Vajrasattva recitations in your previous practice you should recite the mantra 1,000 times after this empowerment. If you don’t have time or do not intend to fulfill this commitment, please do not attend the teaching because of negative karma stemming from not keeping the samaya.

This Vajrasattva practice was discovered in 1951 as a terma (hidden treasure teaching) by Padma Dagnag Lingpa, the previous incarnation of Khenchen Prachhimba Dorjee Rinpoche. Padma Dagnag Lingpa says that this is an advanced Vajrasattva practice presented in the Dzogchen context and thus combines the yidam practice with recognition of the Buddha nature. Therefore, it differs from the usual Vajrasattva meditation practiced as a part of the preliminary practices (Ngondro). The purpose of this Vajrasattva meditation is to purify any broken samaya and bad karma that we have accumulated, in order to remove obstacles to direct understanding of Buddha nature. Padma Dagnag Lingpa says that if we want to purify all our bad karma and obstacles we should recite the Vajrasattva mantra with one-pointed concentration while resting in the Buddha nature one million times.

Smoke Puja, Tsok offering and Celebration & Reading Transmission
Sunday February 18th is the first day of the New Year according to the Tibetan calendar. It is a very auspicious day because it marks the beginning of a new day, new month and a new year. It is said that the whole New Year will be influenced by whatever activity we engage in on this first day. In addition, this is the first day of the first month of the new year when all karma is believed to be accumulated by 100,000 times. Therefore, it is especially important to engage in meditation and Dharma practice on this day and the remaining days of this month. According to sutra, Buddha Shakyamuni manifested on this day in many different forms in various places in order to help sentient beings. According to tantra, this day and the following days of the first month are the days of Vajrasattva blessings. In Vajrayana teachings it is said that the best way to make an offering and accumulate merit is through a tsok feast in which practitioners transform all mundane offerings into pure nectar. Rinpoche thus invites all his students to come together on this day to celebrate and share good wishes for the New Year.

ASSEMBLAGE OF VIDYADHARAS Reading Transmission

Khenchen Palje Dorje Rinpoche will grant us the reading transmission (lung) of the text “Assemblage of Vidyadharas”.  This text is the complete practice of the generation stage of the “Guru Yoga of Guru Rinpoche”.  This guru yoga is one of the three root practices of the Long-chen Nying-thig tradition of the Nyimgmapa school of Tibetan Buddhism. Rinpoche will grant the reading transmission on the day of Losar.  This reading transmission is required for those students who are in the “Generation Stage Practice Course” at Dharmakirti College.  Those not in the course are invited to attend.

Wisdom Root Guru Yoga: Teaching, Blessing and Meditation
Important!!! This teaching is offered for free but Rinpoche requests all students attending to commit to 10000 recitations of the mantra AH and 100 recitations of the mantra of His Holiness Jigmed Phuntsok Rinpoche (OM AH HUNG ABHE LAKCHANG KARA SARVA SIGHI PALA HUNG AH).

Both in the samsara and nirvana the root guru is of the highest importance. Without the help of the root guru one can never achieve full enlightenment. Thus in this teaching and meditation we will together engage in a root guru practice. Who is the root guru? It is the teacher that helps us recognize our own Buddha nature. Khenchen Rinpoche's root guru is H.H. Jigmed Phuntsok Rinpoche and January 3rd is the anniversary of the day when he passed away. Even though Rinpoche's root guru left samsara three years ago, the samaya (words of honor) or the bond between Khenchen Rinpoche and his root guru will never change. Therefore, Rinpoche would like students of H.H. Jigmed Phuntsok Rinpoche and his own students to come together and pray for swift blessings from His Holiness Jigmed Puntsok Rinpoche in order to fully connect with the inner root guru, our own Buddha nature. Rinpoche received this guru yoga teaching and blessing focusing on Dzogchen from H.H. Jigmed Phuntsok Rinpoche seven times. Now he would like to pass this heart blessing and teaching on his students. This guru yoga of H.H. Jigmed Phuntsok Rinpoche combines the Dzogchen aspects with the deity practice of Manjushri. H.H. Jigmed Phuntsok Rinpoche said that this blessing enables one to directly grasp the meaning of Dzogchen teachings one encounters in books. It is a very auspicious opportunity to receive these unique teachings.