David's Space...

Who is Tara?

The maternal Tara is one the most widely revered within the old Indo-Tibetan Buddhist world. However, she is not as well-known within the earlier diffusion of Chinese Mahayana Buddhism. Even then, some Lamas proclaim that Kuan Yin (a popular Chinese Bodhisattva of compassion) as a manifestation of White Tara (one of the more popular forms of Tara). 

Tara is Sanskrit and is loosely translated as the saviouress. She has 21 main forms which is derived from Green Tara, which incidentally is her main form and the most popular image of her. She has emerald-green skin with her left hand lightly placed at the level of her heart with her ring finger and thumb joining - a symbolic gesture of bestowing supreme refuge.

Her right hand rests downwards near her knee with her palms exposed and her thumb and index fingers joint, which means that she grants worldly and ultimate (spiritual attainments) boons. Her left leg is enclosed in the posture of medition while her right leg is uniquely outstretched. This is of powerful significance for devotees of Tara because the posture of her legs signifies her strong affinity she has with us (because she is ever ready to come to our aid). 

Tara was first revealed to us by Vajrapani, one of the 8 main Bodhisattva students of the historical Buddha. She is said to be a female student of a Buddha of another place and time. Her refusal to accept gender discrimination and her eventual enlightenment led her to assume her female form. She is said to assume that form to protect all Beings from fear and from our their limitations imposed by gender, preferences and various other attachments. 

Tara is said to be one of the most sensitive to devotees. She has manifested to innumerable Indian and Tibetan masters of the past. She manifested to Atisha, the great Indian master of old and told him to go to Tibet. Tara and Lama Tsongkhapa statues are some of the most common deities to manifest miracles. She is also very efficacious to help those who seek her assistance. 

Her mantra is Om Tare Tuttare Tore Soha. 

Shield against Spirits

There was a time when I was constantly being attacked by an unseen spirit when I was asleep. I would hear a buzzing sound and then I would be rudely awakened by the feeling of paralysis. I would struggle for awhile before I would be set free. There were times I would feel hands pinning me down and there was once I saw a rough white image of a face turning towards me. 

I freaked out of course and sought help with my spiritual master, H. E. Tsem Tulku Rinpoche. He adviced me to recite White Umbrella's mantra and keep a consecrated image of White Umbrella next to my bed. So I recited it every day and initially the spirit problem got worse but after that it eventually died down. It was very effective for me and for a few of my other friends. Hence, I always advice people with similar spirit problems to recite White Umbrella's mantra for protection. There's also a White Umbrella chakra amulet if its needed for those who don't want to recite the mantra. 

White Umbrella / Sitatapatra / Dukkar 

Mantra - Om Sita Ta Pa Trey Hum Phet

Photo of A Tibetan Yogin

I have always loved this photo that I saved from the Internet sometime ago. This sepia photo depicts a Chod yogi wielding his ritual Chod drum and thighbone trumpet along with a display of ritual implements right before him. Chod is a practice of cutting off the self-cherishing mind. It is a meditative practice developed uniquely in Tibet by the awakened yogini,  Machig Labdron, an emanation of Vajrayogini herself.

Such practices are usually performed under the cover of night and right in the heart of all all fears - the cemetary. It is also a solitary practice that requires one to come face-to-face with our biggest internal foe - fear itself. The meditations is to graphically cut and chop up a replica of ourselves (representing our ego) and offer it to the spirits and various supernatural beings. This is clearly not for the feign hearted. 

That is how fear is used as a means to cut away at the root of all evils - our self-cherishing mind that we conventionally call the ego. I don't think I will ever be able to practice such an advanced practice but there is something alluring about it and the hynotic and rhthymic chant seemed ethereal and otherworldly, that perhaps hint of its supernatural origin. 

Whatever it is, this rare photo evoke a time of the Mahasiddhas of old and the tremendous power they held over the imagination of the people and the development of Buddhism in Tibet. 

I gave an Interfaith talk...

Last Saturday, I was invited (by Rev. Thomas George) to participate in an interfaith lecture, in memory of Swami Satyananda. This was held in the Pure Life Society center. It was interesting to be here on premise and the topic was 'Religion in the Marketplace'. It was such a broad topic and the panel of speakers were intellectuals representing various faiths in Malaysia. 

It was truly an honour to be representing the Buddhist perspectice. However, the other speakers were formidable with their intellectual discussion. I did my best to bring things into prespective with what I understood of the topic and yet appear unperturbed by these great intellectuals. Even the questions from the floor required me to think a little. It was perhaps my poor grasp of the language or the interesting Indic accent of its speakers. I only managed to scrape through with lots of quotes by Rinpoche and a smart little commentary of each. 

However, the lecture and the dialogue that ensued went on quite well. I was not booed off stage and I didn't put too many people to sleep. I did meet Mother Mangalam, which I found out was the president of the Pure Life Society and of course, I would take this opportunity to offer a bouquet of roses to her on behalf of H. E. Tsem Tulku Rinpoche. She said she remembers Kechara (she came to the opening of the new Gompa) and she said Rinpoche was very down-to-earth. 

Of course, I wouldn't forget to offer a bouquet and a gift of some books to Rev Thomas George as well for inviting me to this talk. I hope I wasn't too bad of a speaker and that he would invite me and my recommendation, Jamie Khoo as well.

Alls well ends well. I was presented with a neat gift of a Shaeffer pen and I was glad it was over and it was nice to meet some new faces and perhaps some new friends as well. Looking forward to such talks and appearances in the future. 

 

A Buddhist Past...

A visit to the local muzeum was not really on the top of my to-do list. However, I found myself visiting it along with a bunch of my friends from Kechara as part of an educational visit arranged by H. E. Tsem Tulku Rinpoche. We are there not to soak in the culture of Malaysia as we are already Malaysians but to see relics of Malaysia's Buddhist past. 

Everybody knows that Malaysia is predominantly Muslim today but this was not so, over a thousand years ago. The Malay archipelago (which include Malaysia and the Indonesian islands) were then predominatly Hindu-Buddhist. Smaller and larger Malay kingdoms rose and fell throughout history. At that time, they were a thriving civilisation that were heavily influenced by India due to trade routes bringing Indian traders that have been ploughing through the region for over a millenia. 

This ancient 8-armed Amoghapasha Avalokiteshvara statue is one of the few relics of that past. Its serene smile hints of the turbulent moments in history that only its bronze eyes have seen. Who commissioned this statue? Who prayed and made offerings to this this divine statue? 

We may never know as the muzium does not have much to say about it and have relegated it to prehistory of Malaysia. The muzium have very little artifacts from this period except a few scant pottery shards, beans and worn-out sculptures. There is little archelogical explanation which perhaps is reflective of today's prevalent belief system. This period is very much a past that seemed glossed over, unwanted and very much under-researched. 

Whatever it is, Hinduism and Buddhism arrived here and set the seeds of the local culture to germinate into the modern Malay culture. Perhaps, with this somewhat Tantric emanation of Avalokiteshvara, the earlier waves of Tantra may have arrived here much earlier as well. This statue is an exciting find and a very interesting clue to what Malaysia was like back then. 

And not only Malaysia but what the whole region was like, especially when Atisha arrived on the Indonesian Isles to study under the great Bodhichitta master, Serlingpa. I left the muzeum wishing there were most exhibits and explanations from this era of our history. 

You don't impress me much!

(In order to safeguard the identity of this person, I took the liberty to change the details of these people so as not to offend anyone. So, please don't jump to quick conclusions about the identities of these people.)

This afternoon, I went for lunch with this person, who has a sibling in the Dharma. It was a fun vegetarian lunch and everything was hunky-dory, even when we started talking about her cousin. You see, her cousin had been working in the Dharma for a while now. That seemed very noble of her but actually, her cousin had been occasionally helping her out with her stipend but is still receiving crap treatment from her. (Excuse my French but you know what I mean.)

This family member takes from her cousin emotionally and financially but portrays herself to be a smart and loving person to the world. She takes her cousin for granted on very small issues and expect 'family' to take care of the nitty-gritties. She is not even that closely related but demands so much more. Hence, whatever Dharma work this person does, it does not impress her cousin. 

On the bright side, the cousin notices that she has improved and is much better at handling difficult situations without losing her cool. However, this does little justice to what she do at home and all she need to do is to bring Dharma home. I don't really know what advice to dispense and so I would tell her to be patient and give her some time, as her cousin does more Dharma work, she will learn to appreciate others and will transform naturally.

I try to sound as assured as I can although I am not confident inside as the issues momentarily made me introspective as well. 

My Lil Personal Shrine...

I promised a facebook friend that I will take a photo of my shrine to share with him. So I thought I share it here with anyone who would chance upon this blog. The main deity is Lama Tsongkhapa sitting on a little Dharma throne with his two foremost disciples at his feet, Gyaltsab Je and Khedrub Je.

On the left is Vajrayogini, all decked in pearls and brocade, while on the right is Singdongma, the lion-faced dakini. The photo frame on the left is of Rinpoche with the Dalai Lama and Kensur Rinpoche.  There is a Buddha Shakyamuni tsa-tsa leaning on Tsongkhapa's throne and a turquoise Vajrayogini residing in a silver and gold-plated 'Gau' box. There's a little Stupa behind Vajrayogini's Gau and a chrome-plated Kamakura Buddha. That's the Buddha that normally sits on the dashboard of my car but I have it on my altar temporarily.

I love Buddha statues and this particular Je Yab Sey Sum set - Je Tsongkhapa and two heart sons is my absolute favourite. They were apparently the handiwork of a renowned Nepalese sculptor, Siddhi Raj. It cost me a bomb to invite and it took me around 2 years to repay my credit card but it was worth it. 

Finding Peace and Solace

For those of you who are interested in engaging in a Je Tsongkhapa retreat, I have taken the liberty to include here the instructions from the Tsongkhapa boxset manual. However, I would encourage those of you who are interested in conducting the retreat to go through the entire manual and read about Je Tsongkhapa's amazing life story, prayers and practice. You can invite the Tsongkhapa boxset from 

http://vajrasecrets.com/products-by-category/books/english-books/tsongkhapa-boxset-a-simple-guide-to-a-powerful-practice.html 

If you can't afford the boxset or you have further questions, do let me know. Thank you ~

Tsongkhapa Retreat

We can engage in spiritual retreats of body (physical), speech (verbal) and mind (mental). A physical retreat is when we keep ourselves physically away from distractions while a verbal retreat is when we keep silence and avoid idle chatter. A mental retreat is when we restrain ourselves from negative emotions such as anger and attachments. In order to have a successful retreat, it is important to practise all three simultaneously, because even if we are having a physical and a verbal retreat but we do not control our minds and let our delusions influence us, our retreats will not be successful.

In a Migtsema retreat, we should aim to achieve 100,000 recitations of Migtsema. However, it is also possible to break it down to several small retreats. You can do a weekend retreat and achieve 5,000 recitations, for example.

It is excellent to do retreats for your birthday or for birthdays of loved ones. Then, you can dedicate the merit of the retreat to your loved ones – for their long life, health, success and happiness. You can do retreats on your own, with your Dharma community or even with family and friends. 

Preparations for a Retreat

Decide on where your retreat area will be. It can be a room in your house, or if space is limited, you can designate an area in your room for the retreat. Make sure it is clean and that there is space for an altar and a place to sit.

Seat

In front of the altar, choose a spot where you will sit throughout the retreat. On that spot, place a picture of a swastika, which represents indestructibility. Swastika comes from the Sanskrit word svasti, which means well being or good fortune. Recite Migstema and blow on the image of the swastika. Then, take two stalks of kusha grass[1] and place it on top of the swastika. A longer stalk should be placed facing outwards, vertically; a shorter stalk is then placed across, perpendicular to the longer stalk, like a cross.

Place your meditational cushion on top of both the swastika and the kusha grass. This is where you will sit throughout the retreat and it should not be moved until the completion of the retreat. Be careful that other people do not sit or step on this seat throughout the duration of your retreat. 

Altar

As this is a Tsongkhapa retreat, there should be a statue or thangka of Lama Tsongkhapa as the main focus of the altar. In front, there should be a picture of your Guru and on the side, a picture or tsa tsa of your Dharma Protector, such as Lord Setrap.

Tormas

In front of the images, there should be four tormas set up. The torma offerings symbolise generosity and the sizes of the tormas are up to us. There should be (1) a large torma for Tsongkhapa (2) a smaller torma for Tsongkhapa’s entourage (3) a large torma for Dharmapala Setrap and (4) a smaller torma for Setrap’s entourage.

The tormas can be made out of cakes, biscuits or chocolates. In tropical countries like Malaysia, it would be more practical to put the torma offerings into sealed jars to prevent an insect infestation. The tormas can be changed daily or weekly, it is up to you. After the retreat, the tormas can be eaten or offered to birds to eat. 

Offerings

There should be two sets of offerings to Lama Tsongkhapa. Immediately, in front of the tormas, from your left to right (you are facing the altar), make the outer offerings to Lama Tsongkhapa with: water to drink, water for the feet, flowers, incense, light, perfume, food and sound.

Next, make the inner, or self-generated, offerings to Lama Tsongkhapa, where the offerings are placed in reverse order. From your left to right, offer food, perfume, light, incense, flowers, water for the feet and water to drink respectively.

Also offer two sets of offerings to your Dharma Protector, in this case, Lord Setrap. First, the peaceful offerings and secondly, the wrathful offerings, following the guidelines in the diagram. The size of the offerings are up to you.

Next is the optional set of five commitment offerings: black tea, alcohol, tsampa (flour or oats), yoghurt and milk.

Finally, there should be a serkym offering, the golden drink offering to the Dharma Protector. This can be black tea, milk or yoghurt.

Retreat Offerings for the Altar 

A= Tsongkhapa’s entourage Torma
B= Tsongkhapa’s Torma
C= Setrap’s Torma
D= Setrap’s entourage Torma
 
E = Peaceful sensory (outer generation) offerings to Lama Tsongkhapa (Yidam): water, water, flowers, incense, light, perfume, food, sound.

F = Peaceful sensory (inner generation) offerings to ourselves: sound, food, perfume, light, incense, flowers, water, water.

G = Peaceful sensory offerings to Setrap: water, water, flowers, incense, light, perfume, food, sound.

H = Wrathful sensory offerings to Setrap: black tea (blood), wrathful flower (picture is permissible), Incense (crossed), light, perfume (bile), food (flesh), sound.

I = Commitment offerings: milk, yoghurt, crackers, black tea, alcohol (beer, wine etc)

J = Serkym set: black tea, alcohol or milk

K= Mandala Set

L= Incense

M= (optional) Protector incense (juniper if possible) to be offered throughout the invocation verses.

The prayers for the retreat should be recited in the order below. The visualisation and meditations are as I have already explained.

1. Refuge
2. Four Immeasurables
3. Guru Yoga
4. Migtsema with the seven types of visualisations.
5. Torma offering
6. Praise of Tsongkhapa
7. Yonten Shigyurma
8. Dissolution
   1. Disciples dissolve into Lama Tsongkhapa
   2. Tsongkhapa comes to you
   3. Tsongkhapa dissolves into you
9. Powa
   1. Concentrate on your consciousness so you are ready to leave to go to Gaden Paradise

10. Invocation to Setrap

11. Praise to Setrap

12. Serkym offering

13. Enthronement

14. Completion Dedication

15. Yonten Shigyurma

[1] Kusha grass is scientifically known as Desmostachya bipinnata. In the USA, it is called Big cordgrass or Salt reed-grass, and in Australia, it is known as Halfa grass. 

Lord Over Life

There is a special puja that can be performed to request Lamas who have control of their lifespan to extend their lives. No matter how spiritually attained the Lama is, they still cannot live forever. However, an attained Lama can extend their life according to the collective merit of the students.

Therefore, a very special puja that is specifically meant to request the Lama to live long by requesting the ethereal Dakinis not to make requests to their Lamas to leave their earthly body. You see, attained Lamas often have ethereal Dakinis visit them to make requests to come to their celestial realms to turn the wheel of Dharma. The Lama may acquiesce to their requests if the students' merits are low because many students are resistant to advice and teachings. Hence, this special puja is called a Dakini Tenshug and is important to develop merit for our Lama to remain with us. I will write more about this soon...

A Monk dressed as a Dakini during a Dakini Tenshug

 

Escape to Nepal

Bouddhanath Stupa

                                            Kechara Lounge @ Bouddhanath

Some friends just returned from Nepal and they got me dreaming about Nepal. I would like to go to Nepal too but I guess I can't afford it at this time. The next best thing would be to travel with my mind. The picture above is very iconic of Nepal and it is the largest Stupa in Nepal called the Bouddhanath Stupa. It was built a long, long time ago and is believed to contain relics of Lord Buddha Shakyamuni. Hence, it is one of the biggest mecca for Buddhists, from around the world. It is so old that Atisha, Guru Rinpoche and many other great Indian and traveling Tibetan masters have been here to do pilgrimage. It is amazing! We have since set up Kechara Lounge just facing the circumambulation circuit around the Stupa. The second picture is that of Kechara Lounge and it is facing the Stupa. Here is a link on our official website - http://www.kechara.com/lounge/kechara-in-nepal/kechara-in-nepal/

Patan's Durbar Square

I love these ancient buildings and the hustle and bustle there because just being there made me feel like I was transported back into time during the great Patan Kings. I just have to replace the cars and bikes with horses and bullock-carts. The old grand buildings are little royal temples and the actual square belonged to the royal palace of the old kings. Almost every corner of this vast square makes an excellent photo opportunity. 

Chenrezig Temple

This Chenrezig temple is really an old temple with amazing bas-relief images of the various forms of Chenrezig carved all around the temple. The temple's inner sanctum is inaccessible to all except the caretaker or a priest. However, it is not very big so one can see the white hallowed face of Chenrezig within and make offerings of flowers, incense or butter lamps and recall our own spiritual aspirations. The caretaker will take your offerings and place it within. 

Dukkar or Sitatapatra or White Umbrella with a thousand hands and thousand faces

I saw this amazing White Umbrella statue at a store in Nepal. I just love it and at around 3-4 feet, this is the biggest statue of White Umbrella I have ever seen. I think someone did mention seeing a similar statue at one of those antique shops in KL and they were retailing it for over RM200k!! I dare not ask the price though and I doubt this statue is still in there after all these years if I returned to ask. But it would have been a grand image for my altar. (I know, I am such a pagan Buddhist...Hehehe!)

 

Vajracharya Priest and his Flock

I saw this sepia photo of a Vajracharya along with his 'flock' in the hotel. I love it so much that I took a picture of it and unfortunately the glass on the photo was highly reflective. This is the old Nepalese society and even then, the monastics of Buddhism did not survive and was largely replaced by the lay Vajracharya priests that perform Tantric rituals for the benefit of the community. The star design on his robes hint that he might be a Vajrayogini priest. I found that intriguing and that was another reason why I snapped this picture.  

Manjushri's spot on Swayambhunath Hill

This is another exceptionally sacred spot on Swayambhunath hill. This spot is near the famous Swayambhunath Stupa, another great icon of Nepal. This place is largely an empty square lined with trees and abundant fluttering prayer flags. According to Rinpoche, this place is sacred to Manjushri, the Buddha's student, who is also considered to be the Buddha of wisdom as well. He is believed to appear at a certain time of the year to teach the worldly gods. However, only those with clairvoyance or with the third eye can perceive him  and many people have in the past. In this picture, we were propitiating Manjushri's blessings by receiving oral transmission of his mantra and propitiating him with his praise.  

A Naropa Statue in His Meditational Cell

This statue was offered to represent Naropa in a small little cell that was said to be his cave centuries ago. Naropa is said to have experienced extreme privation under the tutelage of his Guru, Tilopa and is believed to have achieved enlightenment soon after receiving teachings and a Vajravarahi initiation. He beheld Vajravarahi in a new form that is now known as Vajrayogini, who initiated him into her practice. Thus, Rinpoche's lineage of Vajrayogini stems from this divine beginnings. We were so fortunate to be able to make offerings, mantras and prayers here. Naropa's pure devotion to his master was a source our inspiration and we prayed to have similar devotion in our practice so we achieve his same state of pure awakening. 

For more pictures and stories of Nepal, check out Vajrayogini Coffee Table Book:- http://vajrasecrets.com/products-by-category/books/english-books/vajrayogini-and-other-sacred-power-places-in-nepal.html