Category Archives: Tibetan Lamas

The Wise and the Young

HE Menri Lopon Rinpoche talks with young students at Menri Monastery in Dolanji, India.

Posted on October 31, 2017 | Image

Fire Offering for the Holy Physical Remains of a Realized Being

Some of the many Fire Offering Ritual items to be burned with the holy remains. Photo credit: Menri Monastery

During the early morning hours of October 2, 2017, the holy physical remains of His Holiness 33rd Menri Trizen Lungtok Tenpé Nyima Rinpoche will be cremated during an elaborate fire offering ritual at Menri Monastery in Dolanji, India. For the past five days, concluding at 3:30 a.m. prior to the beginning of the actual cremation ceremony, the monks have been performing the Kün Rik Le Zhi Gyü Nga, The Full Cycle of the Four Activities and the Five Tantras with cycles for each of the four kinds of enlightened activity which are classified as peaceful, expansive, powerful and wrathful.

Cremation chorten for HH 33rd Menri Trizen Rinpoche at Menri Monastery. Photo credit: Lee Hartline

In preparation for the cremation, a special cremation chorten has been constructed near the gompa and the butter lamp house. This cremation chorten (Sanskrit: stupa), built under the guidance of Khedup Gyatso who is a treasure of knowledge in the Yungdrung Bön community and a relative of His Holiness 33rd Menri Trizen Rinpoche, will be where the holy remains will be taken for cremation. This chorten has been constructed exactly to the dimensions of the sand mandalas of the Kün Rik cycle that will be burned with the holy remains. After the cremation ash has been collected, this chorten will be torn down.

Extensive offerings for the fire offering ritual for HH 33 Menri Trizen Rinpoche. Photo credit: Menri Monastery

The Kü Dung, or holy physical remains, will take up to three hours to burn. After that, it will take an additional day to offer and burn the vast array of offerings that are housed inside the gompa at Menri Monastery. Everything is made clean through prayer, and cleansing with pure water and incense. Among the many offerings are prayers of aspiration that have been written in pure gold and silver and placed upon tall wooden boards that will be read aloud and then offered to the sacred fire. This vast array of offerings are not given as a support for His Holiness 33rd Menri Trizen Rinpoche. Rather, his sacred activity of having attained realization is taken as an auspicious opportunity to generate great benefit for all sentient beings.

Prayers of aspiration written in precious gold and silver.

During the time of the Fire Offering Ritual, lay people continuously circumambulate the sacred site. It will take many days for the cremation ashes to cool. At that time, the monks will collect the sacred ash and also look for kü dung ringsel. These kü dung ringsel, or relics of the holy physical remains, can appear in the cremation ash of realized beings and take many forms including the appearance of sacred images on small bone fragments or small, pearl-like spheres. The cremation ash will be made into tsa tsa and placed within a special memorial chorten dedicated to His Holiness 33rd Menri Trizen Rinpoche.

Some of the many offerings for the Fire Offering Ritual dedicated to His Holiness 33rd Menri Trizen Rinpoche. Photo credit: Menri Monastery

Posted on October 1, 2017 | Image

Offerings For the Lama

Ku dung khang, or house of the holy physical remains, for HH 33rd Menri Trizen Rinpoche

“EMAHO!

To the lama who is the embodiment of all of the Victors and spiritual masters,

who acts principally through the accomplishment of Bön for sentient beings who are as limitless as the sky,

I offer prostrations with my body,

prostrating with my arms, legs and head!

I prostrate with my speech,

chanting with a joyous and inspired melody!

I prostrate with my mind,

prostrating with single-pointed motivation and devotion!

May the negative actions and defilements of my three doors become purified!

AH OM HUNG CHI PAR RAYNA KO PUNG AKSHO TRI TSE GU DÜN HRUN

EMAHO!

To the great lama who has no equal and possesses characteristics,

I present unmatched external, internal, and secret offerings.

Externally, I offer the environment and the beings within it.

Furthermore, I offer my own body and its vitality as an ornament.

I present these offerings with non-attachment.

Internally, I offer the arising of my mental and physical aggregates.

I offer my accumulated realization of whatever arises as subject and object as illusory.

Furthermore, I present these offerings within the vast space of self-liberation.

Secretly, I offer the natural radiance of my unborn mind, which is

unceasing and understands whatever arises as enlightened manifestation and wisdom.

Furthermore, I present these offerings within a completely vast and all-pervasive space.

AH OM HUNG CHI PAR RAYNA ZUR NAM DÉ SHO HA RA TIM TIM YÉ SOHA

EMAHO!

At the crown of my head, the change-less palace of great bliss,

abides the state of Künzang, completely equipoised and free from extremes.

I pray to the dimension of the Bön lamas,

hold the migrating beings of the six realms in your compassion and loosen the mind-stream!

At the neck, the space of the palace of Ogmin,

are the peaceful and wrathful deities who have the major and minor characteristics.

I pray to the dimension of lamas of the Dzog ku,

hold the migrating beings of the six realms in your compassion and loosen the mind-stream!

At the center of the heart is the realm of the manifested subduer of migrating beings,

the One who teaches whatever is needed and who performs a variety of enlightened activity.

I pray to the dimension of manifested lamas,

hold the migrating beings of the six realms in your compassion and loosen the mind-stream!

To the gathered Victors of the dimension of leisure and fortune

who teach the entire collection of scripture with completely pure speech,

who have the extensive wisdom of knowledge and kindness, and a mind free from elaboration,

who protect migrating beings like their very own children with the exalted qualities that arise,

To Those who have spontaneous, enlightened activity as limitless as the sky,

I pray to the unequaled lamas,

hold the migrating beings of the six realms in your compassion and loosen the mind-stream!

I pray to those who are unrivaled and who have perfected the Three Bodies,

hold the migrating beings of the six realms in your compassion and loosen the mind-stream!

I pray to Those whose speech is an ornament of the world,

hold the migrating beings of the six realms in your compassion and loosen the mind-stream!

I pray to Those who are free of defilements and have the two kinds of knowledge,

hold the migrating beings of the six realms in your compassion and loosen the mind-stream!

You, my lama, who has brought cyclic existence and nirvana under your power,

I, and your other followers, pray,

please bestow benefits that are as limitless as the sky to migrating beings !

Please grant our wishes to be continuously without separation from your presence!

Continuously hold us with your unequalled compassion, we pray!

Until I obtain complete enlightenment,

not born into a negative place,

may I obtain a body of renunciation with the advantages of the leisures and fortunes.

Having practiced the three trainings and loosened the mind stream, and having traveled the paths and the grounds,

and from the state of complete Buddhahood,

may I accomplish benefit that is equal to the vastness of the sky!”