Volume 20, Number 1 / February 2020
Letter from the Editors
Growing Familiar
Dear Friends,
It is our great pleasure to share with all of you an excerpt from a teaching given by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche at the European Summer Retreat in Buchenau, Germany, in 2017. Thank you to all of those in the Ligmincha Deutschland sangha who helped make the translated transcript possible! And thank you to Rinpoche who reminds us all of our connection to each other. As he says so fondly in his introductory words, “I'm so happy to be here, a familiar place and familiar faces.” We, too, feel more and more connected and familiar with everyone in the best ways possible.
Heartfelt thanks to His Eminence Menri Ponlop Trinley Nyima Rinpoche. While visiting with him during a special retreat at Serenity Ridge this past November, he was gracious enough to share some of his personal memories surrounding the passing of His Holiness the 33rd Menri Trizin, Lungtok Tenpai Nyima Rinpoche, and then of his overseeing the selection of the 34th Menri Trizin, abbot of Menri Monastery and head of the Bön lineage. His kindness and openness were so loving and lovely. What a treat.
Beginning this past December, Ligmincha International invited Bön practitioners everywhere to recite long life mantras in honor of His Eminence Yongdzin Lopon Tenzin Namdak Rinpoche, the most senior teacher in the Bön tradition, as we soon celebrate his 95th birthday. There was even a global online marathon of practitioners reciting the mantra together on Zoom. Quite spectacular! What a wonderful connection. A special mandala offering ceremony for the long life of H.E. Yongdzin Rinpoche was held January 27 at Triten Norbutse Monastery in Nepal. Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, who was in California at the time, was happy to offer the more than six million accumulated mantras to his teacher. EMAHO!
Let's all be sure to stay connected. It's much more easily done now through the CyberSangha.net website where you can find all of Rinpoche's broadcasts and a wonderful collection of archived talks. Read details there and in the article below about a special new opportunity to practice together on Zoom, during the full moon of each month. A new Facebook conversation also is scheduled for February 26 – Meet the Teachers: The 3 Doors.” Hope to connect again soon and see familiar faces!
There are many announcements and happenings to report at Ligmincha International:
- Losar celebrations begin February 23 with Ligmincha's annual Losar webcast. See details below and join sangha around the world in welcoming in the new year!
- See the latest dates and locations for Rinpoche's worldwide teaching schedule available on Ligmincha's website. Check back soon for details on soon to be added retreats in Lithuania, Thailand, Brazil and Argentina.
- There are four upcoming retreats at Serenity Ridge: February 21–23: “Sherap Chamma: Mother of Wisdom and Love” with Marcy Vaughn; March 13–15: “The Five Precious Wisdom Medicines” with Geshe Denma Gyaltsen; April 2–5: Annual Spring Retreat, “Discovering the Melody of Silence” with Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche; and April 5–7: “Serenity Ridge Dialogues: Body, Breath & Mind” with Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche and guests. If you can’t attend the Dialogues, an opportunity will be available to participate online.
- Learn about the new translation for the Yéshe Walmo Invocation that Ligmincha will now be using worldwide. See all the details below.
- Enjoy some poetry shared by both teacher and students.
- Ligmincha Learning offers an online course, “Treasures of Bön: History, Lineage & Practice” with Geshe Denma Gyaltsen beginning February 29.
- Don't miss this chance to begin or to refresh your ngöndro practices! Starting March 7 and continuing through December, you can participate in, an online course “Ngöndro: The Foundational Practices,” through Ligmincha Learning.
- “The Truth That Sets You Free: Discovering Your Inner Wisdom Through Practices of Waking and Sleeping” begins February 15 through GlideWing.
- The 3 Doors announces “Walking the Healing Path,” an online course starting in March, as well as a four-day retreat in Switzerland in June, with senior teacher Raven Lee.
- Student and Teacher – Together on the Path is a regular feature of VOCL. Rinpoche answers a question about one's sense of being during the process of dying.
- View the translation of the December VOCL in Spanish.
In Bön,
Aline and Jeff Fisher
'Recognizing and Shining Through One's Delusions'
An Edited Excerpt from Oral Teachings on ‘The 21 Nails, Part 3’ by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, European Summer Retreat 2017, Buchenau, Germany
Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche teaching in BuchenauI’ve been coming here to Germany and Austria for 27 years. Time has passed really fast, but one thing is clear: this kind of commitment – that I’ve come every year – has continued for a very long time. A number of you were here from the beginning along with myself, and this commitment is amazing. We have learned so much about ourselves. We have learned so much depth in the teachings. We have gone through ups and downs – some people have left us, some people continue, some people have passed away – but the journey still continues. It is always in some sense evolving, growing, and deepening. So, I’m happy to be here again, a familiar place and familiar faces.
The last few years we were teaching on the 21 Nails. Probably some of you have already received it before. These teachings are a continuously evolving thing. I have told people that I have nothing more to teach; I will teach the same thing no matter how many years you follow me. The whole idea about this teaching is not about changing things, it’s about realizing and going deeper. Every moment, if you are fresh with what you are learning with your life, you never get bored with the same topic. But when you are not connected with what you are learning about yourself, every new topic becomes boring right away. It becomes boring because there is no connection. It becomes not-boring because it changes, evolves and never loses the connection.
If you think about the whole teaching of Buddha, there is only one purpose: to self-liberate, that’s the only topic. If you look at all the cycles of teachings of dzogchen, the great perfection, the only one topic is to self-realize. There are not many self-realizations, there is only one self-realization. That is the topic that we are not trying to change.
There is one mantra, the SA LE Ö mantra – A OM HUNG A A KAR SA LE Ö A YANG OM DU – that I want also to introduce and emphasize and sing during this retreat. I created this melody for it in the last year. During the break we will play this music, and you listen to it, get used to the melody and then we will sing together. It is one of the Three Heart Mantras of the Tibetan Bön tradition.
When you’re singing sacred mantras you use your voice, vibrations in your body, your attention, concentration to those energies. It seems like a powerful way of changing and transformation, rather than trying to put a lot of effort into understanding and figuring things out conceptually.
In the handout for this mantra, you can read the meaning of each syllable, which is very important to understand. However, when you look at what each syllable means, it’s important that you don’t simply look only in the usual conceptual way: Oh, A means space. Not like that. But how then should you be relating when you sing A? Experience the space. That’s what you need to understand, not like: Oh, A means space and has nothing to do with me.
Understand, experience, realize, integrate. Most of the time people are trying to understand, and then they don’t experience, or they get the experience and get too attached to the experience, and they always seek experience – it's not like that. You experience, and then you also will go beyond experience, more like realization, more like being. In being in that state, you do not necessarily have experiences. Sometime you might have experiences; experiences are an outcome of realization. Realization is more important than experiences. Very often, though, as human beings we seek more experiences than realization.
Maybe the difference is that experiences are a little bit more feeling and emotion, related to conditions, whereas realization is more a state of awakening. For example, if you feel open, it’s like a state of openness itself, not necessarily so much a feeling about opening or a feeling about clearing something, or releasing something, or feeling free of something, or from something – these are all experiences, you see? The realization itself can be just a state of awakening of space. Now, I’m not saying that experiences are not good, but I am saying there is a difference.
I do encourage everyone to sing the mantra. For people who love to sing it’s great. For people who have not sung for a long time, this is your opportunity. For sure you might surprise yourself with singing, that’s a good surprise. Definitely it will be a good practice. Specifically, it is the mantra of dharmakaya, the mantra of awareness of space. It helps one to open, clear and connect.
The teachings are talking about the space, the sense of being. This sense of being, of space, of ground, of foundation, of essence. It’s there all the time, but we lose the connection to it. When you observe other people, it’s easy to recognize when they lose it, but it’s harder to recognize yourself when you lose it.
Yesterday as I was coming here from Berlin, I was a little bit early at the train station so I had a cup of coffee and was just observing, watching people. There was a couple, and of course I don’t know anything about this couple, but I have my imagination. They were in their thirties, a new relationship, they were on their holiday, and you could see they are in love. The guy goes into the supermarket in the train station to buy some food. She was sitting there with a coffee, and every time somebody came out of the supermarket, she thought it was him. You could see within 10 minutes’ time the situation was different for her: He’s not coming; why does it take so long to get a few things; he’s always late, he’s lazy. I think it was basically insecurity, whatever it was, but it was amazing. I could not help noticing. Every time someone moved she looked, but it was not him. Then after maybe six or seven times of that, you could see the expression on her face getting agitated. Before, she was just looking like it might be him with some sense of joy, then It’s not him again. You could see her face was changing, her eyes were changing, like pain coming out, and I was kind of worried what would happen. Fortunately, nothing happened.
Of course, when I was doing that, I was not aware of the base, but I was very aware what she was doing. I could clearly see she was not aware of that base. This happened for about 10 minutes. We live our life like that, which is scary, waiting for somebody or something to happen. What I’m saying here is that you lose the connection to the base. When you are losing contact with the base, like in that example, one has to be aware and self-reflect on it, one needs to know it. Now, my observing her doesn’t help her. But, if she realizes that she has lost contact, then there’s a good chance that she will not repeat herself after the first time. Or, maybe she will succeed after half of it, or at least the next time she will be better prepared not to do that. But it looks like she did not realize, which means she was not even conscious of what happened during these 15 minutes. That’s a pattern of life she lives. Energetically it’s a quite draining 15 minutes – not being able to enjoy a cup of coffee; she had to turn her head all the time to the one side to face the door. You can see there’s no base, there is no connection, there’s no resting, there’s no trust. There is a constantly ungrounded, disconnected, fearful, anxious stress that she was in during that 15 minutes, and she’s not conscious. There is an impact of living life like that; you have to pay the consequences for that. It’s not a good thing.
This sense of being, of space, of ground is there all the time, but we lose the connection to it. So the question will be, of course, are you interested in recognizing your delusion? You don’t have to answer loudly, but be curious about the answer. Are you interested in your delusion? Are you interested in your weakness? I mean are you interested to know about these things. Interested in recognizing the delusion, investigating the delusion. When somebody asks you, Are you interested in your delusion? maybe there’s a good chance that you say, What do you mean? Me? A delusion?
Sitting in gompa in BuchenauThere’s a good chance, since we are sitting here in this gompa trying to learn and meditate, that everybody is very open and says, Yes, I’m interested. But if you have a conflict with somebody you have a relationship with, and that person tells you that you need to realize your delusion, then you will say, No, me? I don’t need to, you need to, or at least, we need to. You don’t like the idea when you’re in a relationship that somebody is telling you that you need to realize the delusion. Immediately you can feel like that, right? You know what I’m talking about. The closeness to recognizing the delusion in different circumstances is different. But I think as a practitioner we need to be really open, saying, Yes, I’m really interested. I’m genuinely, truly interested in understanding my delusion. That’s the only way.
Every recognition of your delusion, either in you or in relation with somebody, is a great help to you. Do you agree with that? So get more interested, more open to it. The ability of how fast you can transform is a different story, but acknowledging it is already good enough. Better to be in the right place and going slowly than in the wrong place going at a fast speed.
Once you’re interested in your delusion, once you recognize the delusion, then you have the chance to enter into the nature of Bön. Nature of Bön refers to the truth of phenomena – referring back to that space. You will find yourself in that true space within you.
Read SA LE Ö Mantra text and meaning
Listen to SA LE Ö Mantra recording (Mantra of Light)
UPCOMING: Two retreats on the Twenty-One Nails with Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche:
- March 3–8, 2020: Mexico: The Twenty-One Nails. Visit: Ligmincha Mexico
- August 3–9, 2020: Buchenau Germany: “The Essence of the 21 Nails” (practice retreat) Learn more and register
Interview with His Eminence Menri Ponlop Trinley Nyima Rinpoche
November 2019 at Serenity Ridge
This interview with His Eminence Menri Ponlop Trinley Nyima Rinpoche, conducted by VOCL editors Jeff and Aline Fisher, took place at Serenity Ridge in November 2019 during His Eminence’s special retreat “Pith Instructions from the Golden Advice.” A renowned scholar and meditation master, His Eminence is the head instructor of Menri Monastery in Dolanji, India.
VOCL: You worked very hard during the time surrounding the passing of His Holiness Lungtok Tenpai Nyima Rinpoche, the 33rd Menri Trizin. Would you share some of your memories with us?
Ponlop Rinpoche: The 33rd Menri Trizin and Yongdzin Rinpoche [His Eminence Yongdzin Lopon Tenzin Namdak Rinpoche] chose me to become Ponlop back in 1992. Ponlop means the head teacher. From that time I have worked very closely with the 33rd Menri Trizin. So I have much experience being with the 33rd Menri Trizin, a really great master and great leader. I received many, many experiences and advice from him over all these years.
His Holiness the 33rd Menri Trizin Lungtok Tenpai Nyima Rinpoche and His Eminence Menri Ponlop Trinley Nyima RinpocheMenri Monastery is the main monastery in Bön. It is a large community made up of nuns and of the orphanage children and then the monks, the dialectic school monks. There are more than 550 people. It's quite a big community and a big responsibility. After His Holiness Menri 33rd became sick and had problems, I had some very big responsibilities there at Menri involving ritual and prayer, everything. But it was amazing, everything worked out just fine, very good, without any sort of problem! You see, His Holiness had given me advice on everything to do upon his passing. He shared his guidance on everything in that regard.
Just two or three days before his passing, His Holiness requested that he'd first like to see all of the older village people and that they could all come visit him. So he gave his blessing and his advice to all of them. Then after that he said that he wanted to meet with all of the children in the monastery, the young monks and young nuns. They all visited him and he gave his blessings to all of them, and he gave all of the children sweets. After that he requested that he wanted to see all of the monks, all the dialectic school monks. And he met with them. Everything that he wanted to do, he managed by himself in those last few days. So naturally, we did not stop anyone who really wanted to see him.
Then after His Holiness passed, it was another very challenging time. It was not easy. His passing was an issue not only for those of us at Menri Monastery, but for all of the Bönpos – outside of Tibet, inside Tibet and around the world. After His Holiness passed, we immediately made an announcement emphasizing that I wanted true transparency, I didn’t want to hide or keep secret anything in this process. There's no way. Everybody, every Bönpo and many followers, wanted to really know what the situation was, and get accurate information. So we made public everything in all its detail. We performed all of the rituals, the cremation – everything – in that manner.
Menri Monastery offering prayers to HH the 33rd Menri TrizinAfter he passed [on September 14, 2017], he stayed three days, almost four days in meditation. I announced everything in detail, too, to the whole world. Somebody said, oh you should take picture and show with photograph. So, I said okay, and we sent out a picture. It was a sign that we don't hide things. You see, for people now in this 21st century, it is very difficult to simply believe; they want to see what is really happening. If they see it for themselves, then they will feel happy. So I gave permission and we took a picture and sent it out.
And then I saw that people all over the world were very interested and very happy. In one way there is very much sadness around his passing, but in another way everyone becomes very united. And with the picture, people were very happy to see what was actually happening. Even in Buddhist centers they prayed and they sent letters to us. Not only Bönpos were supporting us, but the Buddhists too, the Sakya, Nyingma, Gelug, also the Tibetan communities in Europe, in the Americas, and in India and Tibet. They all did prayers. It was amazing. I could see His Holiness the 33rd had now become even more popular after his passing. He became famous.
All during that time I did not run into any problems or obstacles with regard to the monks or nuns in the monastery. It's a big responsibility, but I was not too worried. I didn't worry because I have had experience in keeping the monastery continuing. I've worked there for a long time, almost 40 years. And all of the monks helped me with everything. They never complained. It was very good. Yongdzin Rinpoche was available, too, whenever I requested his guidance and advice. As a result, everything went very well, no problem.
The great stupa of the 33rd Menri TrizinThen we set about building three stupas for His Holiness. Two of them are golden stupas. One of these is in his residence room at Menri. The other is in the stupa temple. And the third stupa is outside in the courtyard at Menri. That one is very big and made of the very best pure white marble without any green or black markings. It’s very expensive and pure like the marble on the Taj Mahal. The stupa is made of one single solid piece of marble, rather than many separate pieces of stone. So it's very strong and very, very heavy. There is space in the middle of it for the five elements, and for consecration or blessings.
Once all of that was taken care of and completed, then I turned my attention to preparing and organizing for the selection of the new 34th Menri Trizin. This was also a very big issue. Traditionally the process for selecting the new Menri Trizin is quite elaborate. But I received so much assistance from Yongdzin Rinpoche, because you see, at Menri Monastery, I am almost the most senior one there, the oldest one. Most are very young there. So I discussed everything, all the details of the process, with the other senior monks at Menri and with Yongdzin Rinpoche. And before beginning the selection process, I also had the special privilege of contacting a very high lama in Tibet. I shared with him all of my ideas about the process and asked for his thoughts and guidance. It was a very special experience, indeed. I did not decide everything myself. I really want always to first discuss with others, you know? And then afterwards I would make the final decision. Everyone then told me that however I decided to proceed, they would support me one hundred percent! So everything was laid out very well.
All aspects of the selection process were done very well. Everything went perfectly – everything. Also I made sure that at all times throughout the process, there was full transparency – no hiding anything or keeping secrets. Every aspect of the process we made sure to do perfectly – very honestly and clearly, including the ritual practices done in the protector temple. We made absolutely sure to write the names of all the geshes being considered on exactly the same size of paper, even using the same pen. We made sure to measure everything carefully so that no geshe was favored in the process. The tsampa pills that contained the names were measured precisely to be the same gram weight, so that no pill stood out or was in any way special. They were all identical. And there were many, many monks in attendance witnessing what was done.
Monks’ names being rolled into tsampa balls and weighed by Khenpo Tenpa Yungdrung RinpocheThen we sealed all of the pills in a special box using first a wax seal and then two or three locks so that it wouldn't be tampered with. It was also covered with a special silk cloth. Then all of the monks joined me in the main temple in front of the large statue of Buddha Tonpa Shenrap and we performed prayers and made offerings for two weeks, calling on all of the protectors and the deities.
Then the ritual selection was performed, and over time it came near the close, with the one final tsampa pill remaining. Before opening it to see who the new Menri Trizin was, I gave an empowerment touching the head of each person in attendance, saying that each person attending had a commitment to honor the one about to be chosen here. I said that whoever it is, recognize that they weren't chosen by me. They were chosen by the protectors, the deities. So, I said, we each must trust and believe that the choice made here is sealed by the protectors, by the deities. Therefore, we have to respect that choice, we have to trust that choice and follow and accept their decision. And I could see and feel that everybody there felt that way, you know, even myself.
Earlier, Yongdzin Rinpoche had told me that there was not going to be any problem. He said there will be no mistakes in the selection of the new Menri Trizin. He said that 500 years ago we selected the new Menri Trizin in this very same way. And there have never been any problems, nor has there ever been anyone who was mistakenly chosen. The selections in the past have always been perfect.
And true to his words, everything went perfectly and the new 34th Menri Trizin was selected and, as you already know, the outcome is very great! Very great!
Grand enthronement of the 34th Menri TrizinVOCL: Yes, and he's perfect.
Ponlop Rinpoche: Yes perfect. Lungtok Dawa Dhargyal Rinpoche grew up as a child in the same village as the 33rd Menri Trizin. He began as a young monk at Menri and worked in the monastery for many, many years and has lots of experience about how to do everything for continuing the monastery into the future, such as the economics, all of the rules, and so on, he knows everything. So, you see, it was a very great result!
VOCL: So now you can rest?
Ponlop Rinpoche: Yes, I can rest, for a bit. [laughter] But I need to help His Holiness the 34th, because he is new to this role. I will lend him any kind of help that I can give, say, with a transmission or an empowerment, I will be a support for him. You see, for a new leader, it is not easy. There are now lots of big responsibilities that he must attend to. So we will all support and help him together. This is very important.
Now everything is pretty much back to being the same as before when His Holiness the 33rd was still alive. All of the systems, the education and practices are running smoothly, and the rules of the monastery are followed, everything is continuing perfectly.
VOCL: We're so glad.
Ponlop Rinpoche: Yes, all Bönpos are now happy. In just one single year's time since the passing of the 33rd Menri Trizin, everything is completed in the perfect transition to the new 34th Menri Trizin. Yes, it's not an easy task choosing. I was so busy. But the deities and the protectors really, really did protect, and they really helped me. I really, really appreciate that and give my deepest thanks to them.
VOCL: We all prayed for that.
Ponlop Rinpoche: Ah, yes! Everybody prayed. And this is a big reason it went perfectly and had a very good outcome. And now, I've done my job. [laughter] Now I need to practice myself. Up until now I have always been talk, talk, talking with everyone all the time! Now I need to do some silent practice.
VOCL: What was the hardest part of the whole journey after His Holiness passed away?
Ponlop Rinpoche: First, a few days after His Holiness passed away, it was very hard, because there was this empty feeling; I was feeling very empty without him. Everyone was feeling that way. And on top of that, for me there was also the weight of this very big responsibility for my knowing how to proceed. You see at first, it felt as if I had lost everything with him gone. But in one very important way, I very much knew that this was all impermanent. Right? It's changeable. And I also had the good fortune to have been working for His Holiness and working for the monastery for a long time, almost 40 years. So I had very much experience with how to continue keeping all aspects of the monastery system running.
Then came the most challenging part, which was the selection of the new abbot, the new Menri Trizin. This issue was the most difficult one that I faced. But I planned out everything, making note of all of the details and then discussed each of them with the senior monks and with Yongdzin Rinpoche.
H.E. Menri Ponlop Rinpoche and H.E. Yongdzin RinpocheYongdzin Rinpoche supported me throughout the process and gave me guidance on many of the details. So initially I presumed that this selection process for the new Menri Trizin was going to be very difficult. But after a lot of careful planning, I simply focused on completing each successive step that I encountered along the way. And I noticed that it was all proceeding very much like a river running, you know? Flowing smoothly, rather than lurching or jumping along. It was moving very smoothly along with no problems arising at all!
And while some warned me that I would have a very difficult time with this complex selection process, saying that I would need much help, I was actually feeling quite normal in the midst of it, you know, not too worried. That's because the main responsibility that I had throughout the process was to be completely honest. And this is my nature, always to be honest, and not political. My natural instinct is to not hide or keep anything secret. Just honestly do the work that I have to do. This is my promise, my commitment. If there are not politics or anything that is kept hidden or secret along the way, then there will be no problem. Because if you are transparent, then everyone is able to see and understand what is happening. So though overseeing the selection process for the new Menri Trizin was naturally going to the most difficult challenge for me, it turned out that I was able to manage everything so well and it ran very smoothly. It's a miracle.
All of the monks were a very great support for me. We are all like one big family. If I told them to go in an easterly direction they would go. If I said to go in a westerly direction then they would go that way. They work very hard, the monks, they were very good. I'm really, really, really fortunate, because every monk was a support for me, also even the laypeople were supportive, everyone was very good to me, every Bönpo follower was a big help. And that's why I didn't have a hard time.
I believe, though, that really the biggest support came from His Holiness [the 33rd Menri Trizin] himself. He prayed daily while he was still alive. He prayed for us. He prayed for me, especially. So after he passed away, nothing arose as a problem or an obstacle.
Now I really believe more in and trust the deities and the protectors. Really, they did help me. Everything that went on without a problem is a great sign, a good sign. I was very surprised. And all the while I was not scared, not very worried. And the result was that everything has turned out very, very good! [laughter]
VOCL: Thank you, Rinpoche. Thuk-je-che!
Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche and H.E. Menri Ponlop Rinpoche
Full Moon Meditations on Sherap Chamma
Tenzin Rinpoche Launches New Online Series February 9, 2020
In a special 40-minute Facebook Live broadcast on the day of the February 9 full moon, 1 p.m. New York time, Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche will guide a deep, healing meditation on Sherap Chamma, Mother of Wisdom and Love. Rinpoche also will use the time to introduce a series of 24-hour meditation and mantra recitation sessions, which will take place online via Zoom during each subsequent full moon of 2020.
View the February 9 broadcast on Facebook to participate in the chat, or view it at cybersangha.net. If the viewing screen does not appear at the scheduled time, try refreshing the page.
About the Full Moon Series
Following the February 9 broadcast, on March 9 and each subsequent full moon of 2020 you can join Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche online for meditation and a 24-hour mantra recitation session. This is a precious opportunity to engage in the healing practice of Sherap Chamma, Mother of Wisdom and Love. Each session, beginning with March 9, starts at 10 a.m. New York time on the day of a full moon and ends at 10 a.m. the following day. Rinpoche will be supported by Ligmincha International's global community of practitioners.
Unlike Rinpoche's CyberSangha® Facebook Live broadcasts, the 24-hour full moon practices wll take place via Zoom, in an online meeting space. There is no cost to participate, but advance registration is required.
Full details and instructions for participating are at cybersangha.net.
Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche Upcoming Broadcast February 26
Facebook Live Conversation with 3 Doors Senior Teachers
Mark your calendar for the upcoming Facebook Live broadcast “Meet the Teachers: The 3 Doors” on Wednesday, February 26 at 1 p.m. New York Time. Ten years after the birth of the 3 Doors organization, founder Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche meets with its director and senior teachers in this online broadcast.
3 Doors senior teachers Raven Lee, Alejandro Chaoul-Reich, Laura Shekerjian, Gabriel Rocco and Marcy VaughnKallon Basquin, Marcy Vaughn, Gabriel Rocco, Raven Lee, Laura Shekerjian and Alejandro Chaoul-Reich will introduce The 3 Doors, share insights about its flourishing programs, and give a taste of the new in-person and online programs offered.
The 3 Doors is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to transforming lives through meditation practices grounded in wisdom and compassion. The 3 Doors is a vibrant, ever-expanding practitioner community committed to supporting one’s natural inclination to serve the well-being of others. Its signature program is The 3 Doors Academy, a series of retreats taking place over a 2 ½-year period that guide participants to explore the power of meditation and community in supporting self-discovery, personal transformation and actions that benefit others. The next 3 Doors North American Academy will begin in September. Additionally, The 3 Doors offers a wide variety of multi-length programs online and in-person to deepen and refresh your meditation practice.
Learn more
You can easily view Rinpoche's broadcasts on Rinpoche’s Facebook page and now you can view many of Rinpoche's recent Facebook Live recordings, as well as some of his upcoming live streams, directly on Rinpoche’s new website, CyberSangha.net.
View live on Rinpoche's Facebook Page
Learn more about the translations on the CyberSangha website
View the archive of recorded broadcasts or search by category or keyword
Happy Losar!
Ligmincha Celebrates Tibetan New Year February 23
Prayer flags below Triten Norbutse Monastery in KathmanduLigmincha will hold its annual Losar webcast on Sunday, February 23, at 10 a.m. New York time. The event will be livestreamed from Ligmincha’s Facebook page. Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche will have a message for us, and he will be joined by many of our resident lamas. We will have a short guided practice and then share greetings from our sanghas around the world. This is a wonderful time to gather together, share our good wishes and enjoy each other’s company.
Losar is the name for the Tibetan New Year. It is a time for expressing gratitude and thanks to the natural world and all the beings who inhabit it. In preparation for Losar one thoroughly cleans one’s home, decorates, burns incense, prepares special foods and brews chang (barley beer). In his book Healing with Form, Energy and Light, Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche writes:
During Losar, the Tibetan celebration of the new year, we did not drink champagne to celebrate. Instead, we went to the local spring to perform a ritual of gratitude. We made offerings to the nagas, the water spirits who activated the water element in the area. We made smoke offerings to the local spirits associated with the natural world around us. Beliefs and behaviors like ours evolved long ago and are often seen as primitive in the West. But they are not only projections of human fears onto the natural world, as some anthropologists and historians suggest. Our way of relating to the elements originated in the direct experiences by our sages and common people of the sacred nature of the external and internal elements. We call these elements earth, water, fire, air, and space.
This year, following the Tibetan calendar, Losar is celebrated from February 24–26. Each year in the Tibetan calendar is characterized by one of the five elements and belongs to one of the 12 zodiac symbols. This year, 2020 by our calendar and 2147 by the Tibetan calendar, is the year of the male iron mouse. The year of the mouse begins the cycle of the 12 zodiac figures in the Tibetan calendar.
Learn more about Tibetan astrology and the calendar
Many of our practice groups and centers will be organizing live events and activities on this day. Please check local webpages and social media channels for more information about these opportunities.
Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche’s Worldwide Teaching Schedule
February Through April 2020
Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche’s 2020 Schedule by Date is available on the Ligmincha website, with location, teaching topic and contact information. Rinpoche's schedule also is available as individual Events boxes on the website – the ones with photos have complete information; information about others is still to come.
You can also find Rinpoche’s schedule of online events, including his live Facebook broadcasts, at Rinpoche’s new CyberSangha website and at Ligmincha Learning and GlideWing.
Here is a listing of Rinpoche’s teachings over the next three months.
- February 15–March 8, 2020: Online course through GlideWing: The Truth That Sets You Free
- February 28–March 1, 2020: Berkeley, California: The Body of Light: Transformation Through Space, Light and Energy, Part 3. Email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
- March 3–8, 2020: Mexico: The Twenty-One Nails. Visit: Ligmincha Mexico
- March 7–December 31, 2020: Online course through Ligmincha Learning: Ngöndro: The Foundational Practices
- March 28–April 19, 2020: Online course through GlideWing: Tibetan Meditation
- April 2–5, 2020: Spring Retreat at Serenity Ridge, Shipman, VA: Discovering the Melody of Silence
- April 5–7, 2020: Serenity Ridge, Shipman, VA: Serenity Ridge Dialogues: Body, Breath & Mind
- April 17–19, 2020: Berlin, Germany: The Seven Mirrors, Part 4
- April 24–26, 2020: Vienna, Austria: The Five Wisdoms
Four Upcoming Retreats at Serenity Ridge
Annual Spring Retreat on ‘Discovering the Melody of Silence'
Registration is now open for four upcoming retreats at Serenity Ridge: “Sherap Chamma: Mother of Wisdom and Love” with Marcy Vaughn will be held February 21–23. “The Five Precious Wisdom Medicines” with Geshe Denma Gyaltsen will be held March 13–15. “Discovering the Melody of Silence” with Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche will be held April 2–5. And “Serenity Ridge Dialogues: Body, Breath & Mind” will be held April 5–7.
February 21–23, 2020: “Sherap Chamma: Mother of Wisdom and Love” with Marcy Vaughn
In many cultures the primordial female energy is seen as the origin of existence and the source of all positive qualities. As such, Sherap Chamma, Mother of Wisdom and Love, is the source of wisdom, and her medicine is love and compassion. The teachings of Sherap Chamma comprise one of the most important tantric cycles of the ancient Bön tradition. In this retreat, participants will learn a beautiful and simple meditation practice enabling each to directly connect with the divine feminine energy. Within the support of the group, an environment is created to promote profound healing of physical, energetic, emotional and spiritual dimensions of life.
Learn more/register
March 13–15, 2020: “The Five Precious Wisdom Medicines” with Geshe Denma Gyaltsen
The Five Precious Wisdom Medicines are the healing methods we can skillfully administer to ourselves to counteract the five poisons of everyday life—attachment, aversion, ignorance, pride and jealousy. Geshe Denma Gyaltsen, resident lama of Ligmincha Texas, will teach us about the five problems that arise for us, destroy our peacefulness and cause us to react in habitual ways that compound those problems. He also will teach us five methods we can use to restore our peacefulness and choose positive, creative responses to those problems. Through this simple-sounding topic, Geshe Denma will take us a long way toward a new understanding.
Learn more/register
April 2–5, 2020: “Spring Retreat: Discovering the Melody of Silence” with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
We affect both ourselves and others when we speak from fear, anger and pain—or hear this divisive speech from others. And often the voice that judges, blames and shames is heard from within and is turned toward ourselves. What is the sound of a true voice, one that is not driven by ignorance or confusion? A true voice comes from the boundless openness of being and the awareness that recognizes this. In this retreat, we will engage in the healing power of collective silence and sacred chant to touch into that deep connection through which we can discover the sacred space within us and all of life.
Learn more/register
April 5–7, 2020: “Serenity Ridge Dialogues: Body, Breath & Mind ” with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche and Guests
When we bring our attention to our body, our breath and our mind, what happens and why? How does our relationship to sensations, thoughts and perceptions change through spiritual or energetic practices? Can science and medicine inform what and how we practice? Join Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, leading scientists, physicians and practitioners at Serenity Ridge Retreat Center in deep conversations on these and other questions at the intersection of scientific and spiritual knowledge about body, breath and mind. This event builds and expands on the science and spirituality conferences that Ligmincha International has hosted since 2010.
Learn more/register
A New Translation of the Invocation of Yéshe Walmo
New Translation of Standard Prayer for Use Throughout Ligmincha
As part of a long-term project to standardize the prayers and translations used throughout the many Ligmincha International centers, a translation of the standard version of the Invocation of Yéshe Walmo is now being introduced. Yéshe Walmo is an enlightened deity within the Yungdrung Bön tradition who acts to protect the religious tradition and its practitioners. This new translation is by Raven Cypress-Wood, and in the article below she explains some of the prayer’s history and changes. Raven has translated hundreds of Yungdrung Bön prayers, poems, texts and commentaries and is the translator and annotator of the book Indestructible: The Longevity Practice of Lama Tsewang Rikdzin.
Within the Yungdrung Bön religious tradition many of the scriptures and recitations have been handed down orally for centuries. Therefore, it is not uncommon to have slight variations between different written or printed editions of the same scripture. However, throughout the Yungdrung Bön monastic tradition, communal recitations have been standardized, although the melodies of these standardized recitations can vary from monastery to monastery as each follows their own lineage. For example, Menri Monastery follows the Dru family tradition, and Triten Norbutse Monastery follows the Shen family tradition, etc.
Thanks to the translation work of John Myrdhin Reynolds, Ligmincha International had English language translations of some of the commonly used prayers available for students in the early years of the organization. This included a translation of the Invocation of Yeshé Walmo. The version of the Invocation of Yeshe Walmo that Reynolds translated is from a small prayer book that was published around 1980. That particular version, however, is not the standard one being used within the Yungdrung Bön monastic tradition. Therefore, as part of a long-term project to standardize the prayers and translations used throughout the many Ligmincha International centers and sanghas, translation of the standard version of the prayer is now being introduced.
It might be of interest to point out a few details regarding the Invocation of Yeshé Walmo and its translation. For example, the use of the term “invocation” generally means “to call upon.” However, the Tibetan term is külpa [Tib. bskul pa], more specifically meaning “to arouse” or “to call to action.” Therefore, this prayer is clearly used to call upon the enlightened protector Yéshe Walmo to quickly act on our behalf. The term shen [Tib. gshen] occurs twice in the prayer. One of these instances has been preserved in the translation in the line: “And your left hand holds a long-life vase that extends the life-force and the lifespan of shen practitioners.” In conversation with Geshe Tenzin Rinpoche, he suggested using “shen” in the translation rather than generalizing by using only “practitioners.” This term “shen” refers to the shen lineage of Tönpa Shenrap Miwoché, the Buddha and founder of the Yungdrung Bön religious tradition. “Shenrap” is a compound of the two words “shen” and “rap” together meaning “the highest shen.” In this line of the Invocation of Yeshé Walmo translation, “shen” refers to followers of Tönpa Shenrap and his shen lineage, i.e., those who have taken refuge in the Yungdrung Bön.
In the final line of the prayer, Yéshe Walmo is called upon to “pacify all obstacles and causes of disharmony without exception, into the vastness of outer, inner and secret space!” The Tibetan text specifically refers to these three spaces, kha long ying [Tib. mkha’ klong dbyings]. This indicates the ability of Yéshe Walmo to support the practitioner by destroying obstacles that range from being obvious and external to the subtlest obstacles of mind. Nothing is beyond her capability. That power combined with the doubtless trust of the practitioner can bring immediate action and support as expressed in this concise and powerful prayer.
Invocation of Yéshe Walmo (new translation in Tibetan and English)
Learn more about Raven Cypress Wood
From the Heart
Teacher and Students Share Their Poems
Photo by Brian HarrisFeatured below is a poem by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, Who Am I? that he read during a December 2019 Facebook Live broadcast, Poetry of Tibet, which included two well-known Tibetan poets who also read their work in Tibetan. You can see some of the translations into English on the CyberSangha website. We also have two poems that sangha members shared with us during this past winter retreat at Serenity Ridge. We invite you to share a poem of yours that has arisen through your connection to Bön. Just send it to our
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.)
Who Am I?
I – who am I?
I am no one
I can be anyone
I am Kuntuzangpo, who cannot be seen by looking
I am the melody that cannot heard by listening
I am the truth that cannot be held by grasping
I am the energy that cannot be stopped by blocking
Do you know me?
I am no one
I can be anyone
I – who am I?
I am no one
I can be anyone
I am the space between thoughts
I am the joy between painful moments
I am the confidence between fears
I am the peace between wars
I am the light that sees the darkness
I am the ear of compassion that hears suffering
I am the warmth of the heart that generates joy
I am the power of mind that benefits others
I – who am I?
I am no one
I can be anyone
I am the source of everything
I am the expanse of the boundless sky
I am the radiant light that is everywhere
I am the wind that grants life force
I am the fire that enlivens the body
I – who am I?
I am no one
I can be anyone
I am the refuge that abides within you
I am the value that spontaneously manifests
I am the energy that arises naturally and ceaselessly
I am the activity that compassionately benefits others
I – who am I?
I am no one
I can be anyone
I am the mother who loves
I am the friend who can be trusted
I am the power that protects from enemies
I – who am I?
I am no one
I can be anyone
I am home for you who are homeless
I am the friend for you who are lonely
I am power for you who are weak
I am wealth for you who are poor
– Ababa (Tenzin Wangyal) September 24, 2019
(translated by Tenzin Wangyal and Steven Goodman, 29 September, 2019, Cafe Leila, Berkeley, California)
*****
The Students
Seeds blown from the East;
Lying dormant of our potential;
Gently grounded with fertile soil;
Ceaselessly watered with wisdom and love;
Finally illuminated by his boundless clarity;
We grow.
–Scott Clearwater
*****
Sound Banquet
When I am dying I would like to hear
Grandchildren (or great-grandchildren) squabbling in the next room;
My children laughing, a tea kettle squeaking and someone taking it off;
The garbage truck, the early morning bus, birds,
My neighbors' voices in the hall;
The dog suddenly barking at nothing.
I would like to arrange for someone to play scales on the cello
As beautifully as I have imagined I someday would.
I would like to lie there and hear my two dead husbands snoring
(one at a time, of course),
Mozart, Blossom Dearie, and the click of Sally's claws
Walking across the hardwood floors of cat heaven.
Since I am already dying, I will listen to all of these as often as I can
And dream of Sally
And the husbands
And great-grandchildren yet to come.
–Mattie Scott
'Treasures of Bön: History, Lineage & Practice'
Online Course with Geshe Denma Gyaltsen Begins February 29
Ligmincha Learning is pleased to offer an online course with Geshe Denma Gyaltsen on “Treasures of Bön: History, Lineage & Practice” from February 29–April 4, 2020. This six-week course is designed for anyone who would like to learn more about, or deepen their existing knowledge of, the ancient, profound tradition of Tibetan Bön Buddhism.
Geshe Denma Gyaltsen, resident lama for Ligmincha Texas, and John Jackson, mentor for many Ligmincha Learning courses and international teacher, enter into deep conversations around essential masters and teachings of the Bön tradition. The conversation is followed by a guided meditation led by either Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche or Geshe Denma.
The course is ideal for both beginners who have recently connected with Bön teachings and want to know more about where it comes from and for practitioners who would like to know how all the practices fit together into a beautiful and complete system of philosophies and meditations.
The course is divided into five parts:
- History and Lineage
- The Causal Vehicle
- The Path of Sutra
- The Path of Tantra
- The Path of Dzogchen
'Ngöndro: The Foundational Practices'
Ligmincha Learning Online Course Begins March 7
Ligmincha Learning will offer an online course with Geshe Denma Gyaltsen, resident lama for Ligmincha Texas, and John Jackson, mentor for many Ligmincha Learning courses, on “Ngöndro: The Foundational Practices” from March 7–December 31, 2020. This nine-month course is much longer than our other online courses, due to the number of meditation practices and the commitment of the practitioners to accumulate 100,000 repetitions of many of the practices.
The ngöndro teachings are a set of nine practices that offer complete instructions for taming, purifying and perfecting the suffering mind. Although these practices are considered the foundation for entrance into the five-part cycle of Tibetan Bön dzogchen teachings – Bön’s highest teachings on the nature of mind – many practitioners adopt the ngöndro as their main meditation and complete the nine sets of 100,000 repetitions over the course of a lifetime. Within each is contained the entire path to liberation. They are considered to be the foundational practices for the entire tradition.
Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche rarely teaches the ngöndro and recommends it for dedicated practitioners who feel a strong connection to the Bön lineage. Within the ngöndro are found practices that are used within many other practices, such as the Guru Yoga Prayer, Bodhicitta Prayer, Refuge Prayer, Prostrations, and the Three Heart Mantras, so the ngöndro supports and deepens all other meditation practices.
This online course is drawn from recordings when Tenzin Rinpoche taught the ngöndro at Serenity Ridge in Virginia in 2014 over the course of a weeklong retreat. Added additional recordings include demonstrations on how to create a shrine, make prostrations and perform mandala offerings, so this is a very full and comprehensive course.
The ngöndro practices are in three groups.
The Three Practices for Taming Oneself:
- Opening Your Heart with Guru Yoga
- Impermanence
- Admitting Your Misdeeds
The Three Practices for Purifying Oneself:
- Bodhicitta: Generating the Mind Intent on Enlightenment
- Going for Refuge
- Offering the Mandala
The Three Practices for Perfecting Oneself:
- Purification through Mantra
- Offering Your Illusory Body as a Tsok
- Request for Blessings
The course includes teaching videos on each of the topics, many guided practices and a thorough written practice guide. You will be able to download MP3 audio recordings of each of the guided practices. Monthly live guided group meditations via Zoom one Sunday each month, plus a discussion forum for participants to share insights, also are part of the course.
'The Truth That Sets You Free' with Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
GlideWing Workshop Begins February 15
This three-week online workshop, with personal support and guidance from Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, is about becoming liberated from fear and other disturbing emotions so you may live more fully and genuinely in all aspects of life. Ultimately, its practices are about achieving liberation, or enlightenment.
“The Truth Sets You Free: Discovering Your Inner Wisdom Through Practices of Waking and Sleeping,” will be held February 15–March 8. The meditations taught in the workshop include daytime contemplative practices from the dzogchen, or “great perfection,” tradition of Tibetan Bön Buddhism. They also include sleep yoga practices of the night from the Bön Mother Tantra, which offer helpful support for one’s dzogchen practice.
Through these practices Rinpoche helps you to discover the truth of who you are: a state of spacious awareness that is beyond the ego-based identity and which is eternal, changeless, indestructible and serene. Realizing this truth is what liberates us from the fear and negative emotions that have trapped us in suffering.
Upcoming: March 28–April 19, 2020 “Tibetan Meditation: The Nature of Mind – Achieving Great Bliss Through Pure Awareness
'Walking the Healing Path' Online and a Summer Retreat
3 Doors Courses Led by Teacher Raven Lee
“Walking the Healing Path,” a course with 3 Doors senior teacher Dr. Raven Lee, will be held both online beginning in March and during a residential retreat in Switzerland in June. You are welcome to attend one or both events.
The multimedia online course, be held March 11–May 27, 2020, is based on ancient Tibetan practices and is designed for energy healers and others who work with intuition or subtle energies. It also benefits those on a personal healing journey intent on transforming stress and bringing harmony and well-being to their daily lives.
The wisdom of your essential nature is a refuge and source of healing and protection. Discovering and deepening familiarity with this inner refuge is the foundation of this training. Each month we will practice using energetic pathways within the body to deepen and strengthen our capacity to connect with and abide in our nature. Doing so supports unshakable confidence in those who walk the healing path.
Explore methods for clearing blockages, establishing protection and enhancing our awareness of the conditions that lead to imbalance and to feeling overwhelmed and fatigued in the presence of the suffering of others. You will experience how the three qualities of your true nature—being, awareness and the warmth of genuine presence—protect, support and guide you on your human journey.
Learn more/register
A four-day residential retreat on the same topic will be held June 4-7, 2020, in Switzerland. Also led by Raven Lee, this residential retreat will be held at the beautiful Hotel Zum Goldenen Hirschen in Arth, Switzerland.
Learn more/register
Dr. B. Raven Lee is a Jungian psychotherapist, meditation teacher, shamanic healer and board-certified fellow in clinical hypnotherapy. A Buddhist practitioner for almost three decades, Raven is a senior student of Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche and a senior teacher of The 3 Doors Academy. She is a Reiki master/teacher and certified Energy Psychology clinician. Raven integrates ancient wisdom with Western psychology and neurobiology in her private practice in Pasadena, California, where she specializes in trauma and mind/body healing. She is the author of Unbinding the Soul: Awakening through Crisis and Compassion.
Student and Teacher
Together on the Path
As students on the Tibetan Bön Buddhist path, we offer our teachers a range of questions from the simple to the complex. Here is a question about one's sense of being during the process of dying. It is an edited excerpt from oral teachings given by Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche at the European Summer Retreat in Buchenau, Germany, 2016.
Student: In which periods in the process of dying and after death does the sense of being dissolve, or does it dissolve at all?
Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche: The wrong sense of being dissolves. The right sense of being does not dissolve. When the wrong sense of being dissolves into that space, then the true sense of being is just there. In the bardo prayer we say: “May I become free from my possessions” because people are attached to their possessions, so may I overcome that; “may I overcome my attachment to my loved ones” because people are attached to their loved ones; then eventually, “may I overcome my own identity” – that’s the last one. So become free of my belongings, my loved ones and myself. But most of the time we say, belongings – yes; loved ones – maybe; me – no. The core one is me. These (belongings, loved ones, me) are significant, these are pieces of that wrong identity, but ultimately it’s not you.
So when you clearly let go, then you have this true sense of freedom of being: pure awareness is there; it’s much more fun. That’s the first bardo, the bardo of clear light. There everything dissolves and it’s so clear. But [often] you cannot recognize it. When something is okay, you don’t recognize it, because there’s no reflected place; you need a reflection, you need a mirror, there’s no mirror. It’s difficult to recognize. You have the possibility to recognize, but it’s very difficult, much more difficult than now. If you’re familiar with it now, you have more chances to recognize in the bardo.
Spanish Translation of VOCL
Link to December Issue Now Available
Look for the translations of Voice of Clear Light newsletters at the top of the VOCL website.
Read VOCL in Spanish
Upcoming Retreats
Serenity Ridge Retreat Center
The events listed below will take place at Serenity Ridge Retreat Center, Ligmincha International headquarters located in rural Nelson County, Virginia. To register or for more information, visit the Serenity Ridge website, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call 434-263-6304.
February 21–23, 2020
Sherap Chamma: Mother of Wisdom and Love
with Marcy Vaughn
March 13–15, 2020
The Five Precious Wisdom Medicines
with Geshe Denma Gyaltsen
March 28–April 2, 2020
Spring Service Retreat
April 2–5, 2020
Spring Retreat—Discovering the Melody of Silence
with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
April 5–7, 2020
Serenity Ridge Dialogues: Body, Breath & Mind
with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
June 20–July 4, 2020
Summer Retreat: Tummo, Part 3
with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
To register for any of the above retreats, or for more information about teachings in the Bön Buddhist tradition of Tibet, please visit the Serenity Ridge website, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call 434-263-6304.
