Buddhist Hour

Script No. 386

Broadcast live on Hillside 88.0 FM

on Sunday 19 June 2005CE   2549 Buddhist Era

This script is entitled:

Khentrul Rinpoche; Welcome to Our Community

On today’s program, it would be our pleasure to introduce a new member of our community to you; His name is Khentrul Rinpoche and he is a Buddhist Monk from Tibet.

First and foremost, we would like to acknowledge Rinpoche’s compassion for the Australian people and wholeheartedly thank him for his choice to move here to teach the Dharma. We are determined to help him in any way we possibly can. We wish that all of his Dharma activities become completely successful and that he has happiness and is of good health always.

In the matter of introductions, we will begin by reading a short biography of Rinpoche and continue on with a summary of what he hopes to achieve while in Australia.

Rinpoche was born in the Golok region of Amdo, Eastern Tibet, in the second month of the Earth Monkey year (1968), amid many auspicious signs and omens. Before his birth, the realised yogi and renowned Nyingma master Drupchen Jampa Chudzin predicted that this child would be very special.  At around the age of eight years, Rinpoche was officially recognised as the reincarnation of Getse Khenpo by the famous master Gyarung Samdrup.

He began his extensive Buddhist studies and practice at age twelve with Khenpo Sangten, Abbott of Katok Nyingma Monastery. At his ordination aged eighteen years, Rinpoche drew the name of his Lama's teacher, Amdo Geshe Jamphel Lodoe, in a random ballot, which was considered to be highly significant. Rinpoche received his ordination from the Gelug Lama Trulku Jijme Gyepa Dorje. 

During his many years of scholarship and practice, Rinpoche studied in eleven monasteries, covering the main Tibetan Buddhist traditions: 

• the Nyingma monasteries of Denang and Darthang 

• the Gelug monasteries of Longkar and Ngayul Kirti (the largest of the Kirti monasteries) 

• the Sakya monastery Raktsa 

• the Kagyu monastery Yuthok 

• the Jonang monastery of Tashi Chutang where Rinpoche undertook a three year Kalachakra retreat, and other Jonang  monasteries Dzamtong, Chamda and Dungyang 

• the Serta Larung monastery where scholars have the opportunity to engage in study of the five main Buddhist traditions. 

In 1997 Rinpoche was awarded the title Rime Master (non-sectarian dharma professor) from his root Lama, the highly realised Lobsang Trinley.  Rinpoche then undertook to introduce certain monastic practices from Vinaya in monasteries that lacked these. He also wrote a text on classic Madhyamika debates, explaining and attempting to reconcile the differing viewpoints, and gave many teachings to the monastic and lay communities on diverse topics. These included logic and perceptual theory, vowed morality and Amitabha practices, as well as Kalachakra preliminary, generation and completion stage practices. 

In 1999 Rinpoche was chosen as Abbott of Dzamthang Tsangchen monastery, but after two months he decided he wanted to share his experiences and also to experience life in a foreign country. Arriving in India in 2000, he undertook retreats and pilgrimages to sacred Buddhist sites, received teachings and private audiences with His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and arranged for the translation and publication of a text on Kalachakra preliminary practices into English.

He has had two private audiences with His Holiness and has received from him transmissions of the highest sutra and tantra teachings, the Lamrim and Nagrim.  Rinpoche has written a book consolidating the history, views and practices of the various spiritual traditions of Tibet. His Holiness the Dalai Lama commented that it was a very precious and unique book, the first to give a concise history of all five Tibetan Buddhist traditions, and was very happy that it was written from a non-sectarian Rime point of view.

The book is aimed at a popular audience and aims to resolve confusion about the different schools and give people opportunity to decide which teachings are best for them. It is currently being translated into English by Michael Sheehy.  Also while in India, Rinpoche began to attract Tibetan and Western students to whom he gave teachings on the Kalachakra preliminary practices, Amitabha practice, Dream Yoga, and Mind Training (Lojong).

Now living in Australia, Rinpoche has a clear vision of what he wants to achieve:

1. Establishing the Jonang lineage in the West

Rinpoche is one of very few Tibetan teachers in the West to hold the Jonang lineage, which His Holiness regards as being especially important in preserving and sharing the wisdom of Tibetan Buddhism. Jonangpa is regarded as the foremost view to teach the Kalachakra practice, which is one of the rare tantric teachings that many high lamas give and is considered important for the future.

Thus Rinpoche wishes to teach Western students Jonangpa (Shentong View), and he also wishes to translate some very special and rare Jonangpa books, which have not been seen before in the West. He has also taken a petition to the Tibetan government in exile, with the belief that the tradition will be formally recognised soon.

2. Establishing a non-sectarian Dharma centre

Rinpoche's non-sectarian Rime training has inspired him to have an approach to teaching Dharma that truly considers a student's needs and aptitudes. He envisages a Dharma centre where, in addition to receiving Jonang teachings, students are able to consider and choose an approach that will suit them. For example, for people who are intelligent and logical thinkers, he will guide them step by step from student to logician to scholar, as a systematic path leading to the highest Tantric teachings. However, for people who have stable, focussed faith and a good heart, he will take them through a different, simple approach to the same high teachings. He does not propose to mix the lineages but to choose which one of the five schools will best suit each student.

3. Sharing the wisdom of the Buddhist teachings with young people, the elderley and community organizations

In keeping with the Buddhist view of compassion, Rinpoche has an interest in offering principles from the Buddhist teachings to the wider Australian community – for example, offering perspectives on how to be happy and successful. He wishes to work with NGO's, with the elderly (who he observes often have much opportunity to practice Dharma), and with school children and university students.

4. Translating and publishing Dharma books in the English language

Rinpoche sees himself publishing texts accessible to the general public on several important themes:

- how to live meaningful, happy lives

- a comparison of the main Tibetan Buddhist traditions with a view to reconciling the apparent differences

- a history of the great masters and developments in the Jonang tradition

- translations of Tibetan texts not currently available in English

- dialogues with scientists and other belief systems in Australia (Rinpoche loves to debate different viewpoints!)

5. Constructing a Kalachakra Mandala in Australia

If possible, Rinpoche wishes to arrange for the construction of a large and detailed, three-dimensional Kalachakra Mandala in Australia, a building which would represent the Buddhist view of the universe. If this plan comes to fruition, he foresees that this will attract people from all over the world and become the most famous, beneficial and universal place of pilgrimage in the world.

6. Organising a pilgrimage to Tibet

To repay the generosity of so many people who continue to help him in Australia, Rinpoche proposes to organise a trip to Tibet in the (Tibetan) summer of 2006. He is keen to arrange travel, accommodation and translation to make the trip cheap and easy. He is offering to take up to 20 people on a one-month journey to see his homeland and experience the unique culture. Similar trips are also planned for later years.

In the more immediate future, Rinpoche has several plans. In order of priority, he wishes:

• to be able to teach dharma at public venues with the help of a good Tibetan-English translator while he is still brushing up his English.

• if it is not possible to access a translator, to teach groups of Buddhist students who are willing to clarify translation issues if they arise.

• to find a convenient and affordable location to live and teach from (he envisages renting a small house or unit with modest financial support from Dharma students or anyone willing to chip in).

• to teach at Buddhist centres which are already established (although he would prefer to establish his own centre in the long-term).

• to write books and articles in English, with the help of people with a good mastery of written English and an interest in Buddhism (for example, he has recently written a short text about his viewpoint on eating meat).

Rinpoche is currently based in Melbourne. He is still considering, however, where it would be best to establish a Dharma centre and teach. At the moment his first choice is Sydney, but this depends on what other opportunities arise.

As we mentioned earlier in the program, one of Rinpoche’s most important projects is the writing of his autobiography, which is yet to be titled. The story is very warm and is filled with all sorts of the cultural lore of Tibet, as well as important Dharma advice. Through illustrating important teachings through real stories, it will be very accessible to readers, and is sure  to warm the heart and provide counsel all at once.

We would like to read you an excerpt of the story. In this part, Rinpoche is talking about his Mother, and relates to us the story of her younger days.

When my mother was less than five years old, my grandfather took her to visit Lama Trubchen Chamba Choenzen. The pet name given to my mother as a child was Kyiglo. It is Tibetan custom to take gifts when you go to see a Lama, and on this occasion, my grandfather took some butter, the best white butter made from the milk of a dru.

My grandfather wished to request a prediction from the Lama for the year ahead, and also to seek advice about what he should do to make the year propitious. He had no knowledge of Dharma, but would trust in the Lama’s advice to guide his family.

The Lama considered my grandfather’s request and then said, “This year will be trouble-free, as will the next few years. But then you will have to do something very important. Do you want to do it or not?”

My grandfather said he didn’t know if he wanted to do a big thing unless he knew what it was first. Trubchen Sang looked at his daughter for a while and said again, “You have to do something very important but I don’t think you will do it.”

He said, “Your daughter is different, because she has qualities to do great things. The seed is definitely there for that, but the conditions are not. You will have to make merit in many ways, and will have to do many things”. My grandfather asked, “What must I do”?

Trubchen Sang said, “You have two choices. If you let your daughter become a nun, many good things will come from that. But still for this you will have to make the merit. Even if you don’t let her become a nun, if you make much merit, good things will still come.”

My grandfather said clearly, “No, I don’t want her to become a nun”! He believed that women should not be ordained, that it was unsuitable for a woman to become a nun. His children were all beautiful, but the most beautiful was my mother. It seemed to him a waste of such beauty for her to become a nun.

 “Oh no!” he said, holding up his hands, “I definitely don’t want her to be a nun”. He asked the Lama to tell him about the second choice.

The Lama replied, “Do good merit. Your daughter has the seeds to give birth to wonderful children, wonderful beings. But she needs the supporting conditions to be created because there is not enough merit in place for that.” My grandfather asked, “What do I need to do? How can I accomplish that?”

The Lama said, “You need to do big things. First you need to arrange to have the complete Prajnaparamita text chiselled into stone tablets”. This task my grandfather could arrange by obtaining the services of some local stone carvers. These stone carvers use special stones that have been dug up and smoothed on the surface to make them flat, and then chiselled into a uniform rectangular shape.

The text chosen would fill a western-style book of several hundred pages. The chiselled work would take many hundreds of rocks and it would cost the value of possibly 200–300 yaks. In today’s terms, we could say it would cost at least several million dollars.

The Lama then instructed my Grandfather further. “Then you will need to pledge to preserve the lives of 1,000 animals”. In Tibet we have a recognised religious practice of pledging to save animals’ lives as a meritorious act. A small piece of flesh is cut from an animal’s ear, making a hole that identifies the animal as being one that should not be killed, as a promise had been made to preserve the life of that animal. Such animals have to have an owner. You cannot be said to have saved the life of an animal already living in the wild. My grandfather could take pieces of ear flesh from the animals in his own herd, acquire more animals from which to take pieces of ear flesh in order to pledge their lives, or get family and friends to pledge a set number of animals from their own stock, offering him further pieces of ear flesh to add to the tally.

In this practice, when the number of ear pieces collected reaches the total number pledged, they may be presented to a Lama for a dedication, or just kept.

My grandfather was advised to save the lives of 1,000 animals in this way. Owned animals could be yaks, cows, and sheep, and a pledge to save 1,000 animal lives represented a massive expense to anyone making such a pledge.

My grandfather found the project too difficult, just as the Lama had predicted. A worldly man, he lacked a strong inclination to follow the instructions. He had accumulated great wealth, in the form of around 500 dzo, 1,000 sheep, 70 horses, many expensive guns and certain amounts of silver, and was reluctant to give up his riches.

He asked the Lama what would happen if he were not to do the meritorious work as advised. Lama Trubchen Sang replied, “First your daughter will have children, but it will be difficult for them to survive. Even if they survive, their lives will be difficult, fraught with obstacles. They are destined to be great beings, but the conditions for their lives will be difficult. Even if they don’t die, it will be a difficult journey to adulthood, and they will later be unsuccessful in attaining the conditions that will allow them to benefit many other beings. Your daughter will also have a difficult life.”

My grandfather could only fear that he would become destitute. He would not be able to live the affluent life to which he had become accustomed, would lose his social status, and would no longer be treated with the respect he was used to receiving.

When my grandfather communicated his unhappiness at completing this task, the Lama reminded him of the impermanence of his worldly wealth, from which at some time in the future he must become separated.

The Lama also reminded him that his great wealth made him just the person to be able to perform this great act of merit, which his poorer relatives would have been physically unable to accomplish.

If he were to perform the meritorious action as advised, and dedicate the merit to his own full enlightenment in the future, then his grandchildren would be healthy and would be able to fulfil their great destiny. His own future prospects would be vastly improved, and his good fortune would be perpetuated through future lives.

My grandfather returned to his herd, and, not willing to fulfil the pledge to save 1,000 animal lives, decided to make the effort to save 100 animals. He also devised his own merit-making projects, taking on the Lama’s advice in part, perhaps ten percent, making up the rest himself.

My mother, Sherab Droma, was known in the local area for her beauty. The custom in that area was for girls to have short hair until the age of thirteen or so, but even at sixteen or seventeen, Sherab Droma refused to grow her hair, despite the pleadings of family and friends, who longed to see her beautiful face framed by long hair. Sherab Droma was more interested in making regular visits to the Buddhist monk who lived with her family, requesting to hear stories of Bodhisattvas and other Dhamma stories. Wealthy families would often have a monk live with them, referred to as an amchod, for an extended period of time, to whom they could request prayers and blessings for their protection and continued health, wealth and prosperity.

Sherab Droma’s wish to become a nun was not happily received by her father, and she ran away from home numerous times during her later teens. Each time, her father would summon his resources of horses and men, and each time she would be brought back to the family home.

Sherab Droma’s parents and relatives did not support her wish to become a Buddhist nun, because she would no longer be making any contribution to the running of the family and management of their many possessions.

A female in a wealthy family in Tibet had no time to enjoy that wealth. Instead, she would spend her time looking after the many animals, rising at 3 am each morning to milk about 100 dzu, churning butter and cheese by hand, and looking after the young animals who would be separated from their mothers to ensure a continued milk supply. Without fences, the animals could not be left to themselves, but had to always be guarded against theft by some hungry wolf. In addition to tending to the animals, Tibetan women also had to prepare and cook food, including the staple off tsampa. River sand was collected and put into a big pot, heated to a very high heat, and then barley thrown in with the sand. This would be quickly stirred at high heat, the sand helping to create the heat required to roast the barley, a very noisy affair. The sand would then be sifted from the barley, using a rectangular-shaped board, shaking the board from side to side to perfectly separate the grain from the sand. Physical work consumed most of every day. The women had only three to five hours per day to sleep in the summer months, and perhaps a little longer in the winter.

My mother craved the time to be able to visit the family monk to request stories. Her hunger for the Dharma was great, and when the monk would relate to her the stories of the Bodhisattvas, tears would stream down her face due to her deep faith. She wanted nothing other than to escape from the life of a rich man’s daughter and be free to pursue the Dharma.

We would like to thank Rinpoche for this great opportunity he has given us in helping him to write his story. We hope to finish the book and have it published so that many beings many benefit.

Again, we would like to express our warmest welcome to Khentrul Rinpoche, and offer our services to him in all of his Dharma activities.

May I be well and happy.

May you be well and happy.

May all beings be well and happy.

This script was written and prepared by Julian Bamford, Frank Carter, Leanne Eames, Anita M. Hughes, Anthony Knox, Alec Sloman, and Lainie Smallwood.

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