Today, we have come to the end of our three-day picnic. It seems that the morning rainfall has made the day a little uncomfortable but all is well. Usually by this time, I have been going abroad, but due to an inconvenience in my authorization letter from New Delhi, I had to postpone it for some days. Nonetheless, everything is as usual.
It is very important for every member of Namdroling Monastery and Tsogyal Shedrubling to live happily and in a friendly way together, with good thoughts and moral conduct.
Our monastery has been functioning for around thirty to forty years and for these many years, the members of our monastic society (the monks and nuns) have been living in harmony like the members of one family. You all are staying in the same monastery, taking meals from the same kitchen and although I don’t know whether I am your root master or not, I acted like one—hence, you have also been relying on one root master. You all are vajra friends who have received empowerments, oral transmissions, and pith instructions together. Therefore, like those vajra friends who are devoted, respectful and loving, it is very important that every one of you live in harmony and behave well.
When there is a little bit of misunderstanding, some pessimists tend to cook it up to be something huge. Above all, one who creates misunderstandings among the members of the sangha community will accumulate great non-virtue. There is no reason for creating any disagreement, conflict or disharmony among ourselves.
Although I am not able to provide for all of you plentifully, I try my best to provide sufficient food and accommodations for you all. Likewise, we receive donations and offerings from our devoted benefactors according to their wishes. The support we receive for our monastery is due to our monastic society, so you all must abide by moral conduct by refraining from saying undesirable things. There is no need for that. As we all are vajra friends, we don’t need a single disagreement, quarrel, or fight.
Well! The lopons and khenpos guide and take care of you all with their pure motivations, like parents caring for their own children, and are kind to teach you all. Likewise, you all need to study hard and gain adequate knowledge according to your own capacity. This is your main responsibility. Each and every one of you should cooperate and live in tranquility. A monastic society has great merit; as it is said, “A friendly sangha community is harmonious.”
In general, it is very rare that our monks and nuns get critically ill. But in case you get a bit ill, I have established both traditional and modern hospitals to the best of my ability. These are all just the accessories for your accommodation. Though I could not arrange food, clothes and rooms in abundance, I think I have provided all the necessities. You all should be satisfied with that. Moreover, being sangha, we must be dedicated to saving all sentient beings from suffering. As a member of the sangha, every individual should maintain the dignity and status of monkhood, and treasure all the precepts and vows more than their own life. I always stress this and I am going to make this request again.
Beyond that, please give your best in your studies. In this degenerate time, you should not misbehave and then blame it on the degenerate time. In this time, having become a follower of Lord Buddha, if one can behave properly and practise Dharma through the means of explanation, debate, composition, recitation and visualisation, then without question that will be a great service in upholding the Buddha’s teachings. There is a saying: “Butter lamps become brightest at their last moment.” Likewise, if you can arouse bodhicitta with a calm mind, and observe precepts and vows even for a single day in this degenerate time, the merit acquired will be a hundredfold greater than during the time of the Buddha. So, at present, the Dharma has more blessing than before. It is well known that, in order to preserve Dharma, one must practise listening, analysing, meditation and other practices while observing pure moral conduct. So, please, be careful!
As far as your studies, there are many things you all need to learn like the lessons for inner development, grammar, and others. All of these should be learned without neglecting them.
What I want to say is, don’t just think of acquiring certificates and completing the courses. Try again and again, study hard, then you will become learned. If you think of studying just for a few years, then it is very difficult to learn. For instance, Patrul Rinpoche said that he reviewed the Bodhicharyavatara more than thirty times and its meanings became more profound and vast every time he went through it. In our case, we feel satisfied by just listening once and receiving certificates. This is fine, but however, what you have learned should be reviewed again and again, you should become habituated to it, and it should blend with your mindstream. It is very important to practise like that. Instead, if you think that you have finished your studies, that you don’t need to study the subjects of the lower classes, that you are currently in the seventh or eighth year and you don’t have the time to review them, then you will forget them as we have a strong habit of forgetting easily. So, keep in touch with whatever you have studied. Make sure that you go through it again and again. Don’t just think of preparing for examinations and getting passing marks. It is very important for every one of you to study sincerely. So, please, study hard!
Likewise, literature is the heart of study. Most of you are proficient at that but give importance to handwriting and practise well. If one has good handwriting, it will be better for others and oneself to read. You should also memorize the root verses on time without procrastination. You should try your best at memorising without thinking, “I have poor memory power and I cannot do it.” If you do your work with care, then it will benefit you. When you become learned, the things that you have memorised will naturally benefit you. So, don’t be neglectful, thinking, “I cannot read and memorise”; rather, read and memorise time and again.
It is also very important to pay attention to spelling, grammar and poetry. In the past, in our country (Tibet), only a few became learned regarding those subjects. The monks who were engaged in daily classes would not show much interest in these, so when they completed their courses, they became like fools. So, these are very important. They will be like ornaments if you are learned. Therefore, they are very important. Please, study hard!
In ancient Tibetan culture, nuns were considered be like nomads who looked after animals. They would indulge in prayers and other virtuous activities but would not show interest in teaching or studying. So, even today, there are many illiterate nuns coming from Tibet. Don’t be like that; instead, make an effort to study. You should not neglect the importance of education by thinking, “I am old and I cannot catch up.” If you study well, whether you become learned or not in this present life, it will definitely be of benefit in your next life. If you don’t study well, you will be born as a fool with learning disabilities in your next life as a consequence of such karmic propensities. Therefore, it is very important to be serious about your studies irrespective of your age.
We fall in the category of the old school tradition of the Nyingma. Our Palyul tradition stands among those of the six great mother monasteries of the Nyingmapa. It is our sole responsibility to work hard and make sure that our lineage does not lag behind others, even if we are not able to be ahead of them. Since you have resources, it’s crucial for you to make improvements in your studies through your own intelligence.
In general, lamas and monks should always behave properly such that other people will have a good image of monkhood and even oneself will feel good. So, manners are very important. You should not pretend to be decent while staying within the monastery and misbehave when you are away from its confines. I guess there are not so many unwanted things going on but be careful. It is not proper to commit a single misdeed because cause and effect are undeceiving. So, you should not waste your precious human life by being lazy and careless.
In Tibet, there is a saying, about “sticking up for one’s kind.” Similarly, one must have a sense of loyalty, bearing in mind, “Oh! I am a monk of Namdroling, a follower of the Ngagyur Nyingma tradition. So, it would be a disgrace to the Nyingmapas in particular and to the Buddhadharma in general if I misbehave.” It is very important to think in this way.
Do not commit negative deeds and break your samayas for the purpose of worldly wealth and fame. Even if it works in this life, it won’t be good for the next life. One will accumulate karmic debts resulting in samsaric bondage for a long time. Thus, it is very important to value your samayas. Please, observe them carefully!
In the case of learning rituals and their hand gestures, don’t think that you don’t know and don’t need them. If you don’t learn them now, then they will diminish in the future. At present, we have been practising the undiminished tradition of rituals, hand gestures, ritual dance, drawing mandalas and making ritual cakes. They should all be carried out in the future as they are. However, the model of symbolic ritual cakes is changing rapidly. We should not imitate this; instead, we need to preserve our traditional models. These days, it is very difficult to find a person who can make symbolic ritual cakes in the perfect authentic shape. Even the process of squeezing the flour dough has different ways. It is not that you can make a solid spiritual cake like it’s nothing. There are different processes for this like adding water to the flour and butter and so on. At first, you should mould the dough like the shape of a garuda’s egg. Then, gradually you need to prepare the necessary cakes. It is important to make an authentic ritual cake rather than those that are in name only.
At this juncture, there are many people who don’t know to perform karmic debt restitution. While performing this, we have to imprint five fingers on the dough as an offering to the five hundred family members of the yakshas. But some of you seem to imprint just four fingers and also do it with the right hand. You should not do it like that. In ancient days, Lord Buddha gave his word to the five hundred family members of the yakshas that his followers would offer the karmic debt restitution every day. So, there are practices like making karmic debt restitution, chasum and others as described by the Buddha. Therefore, you all should learn how to make ritual cakes according to their prescribed methods. You all must improve your knowledge.
The way our monks blow the conch shell and the horns is quite up to the mark. But while playing the gyaling, you should not alter the flow of the finger movements. One should play them in such a way that from its chords and melodies, others can make out the tradition to which it belongs, whether from the Minling or Palyul tradition. In the case of blowing the dungmar (long horn), this has declined a bit. Day before yesterday, I told the dungmar handlers to learn but I guess they were not able to practise well. At first it is very important to keep up with the other dungmar player (usually, dungmars are blown in pairs). Afterwards you should keep the tune of the high and low notes accordingly, rather than always hitting high notes. Indeed, you all are fairly good in blowing conch shells. This also has different styles like making peaceful, wrathful or other sounds, as per the instructions. So, please think carefully and study well!
Finally, you all should observe the vinaya rules sincerely. Don’t create fights and make others angry. You should not pass negative comments among yourselves. You all must behave well by giving hundred percent obedience to the commands of the disciplinarians and khenpos of this monastery because none of them will say anything to humiliate this monastery. Rather, they will give orders only through their sincere altruistic thoughts. Sometimes, there may be things that you don’t like but you should tolerate them. You should not create problems when there is something you don’t like. Hence, you should all behave in such a way that won’t prompt other people to complain and you yourself won’t feel ashamed. Likewise, you should be able to arouse respect and devotion when you are walking, sitting and even when eating. Now I have nothing more to elaborate. Please, follow the rules and regulations accordingly. Thank you all so much! See you all later. Tashi Delek!
Translated by Rigzod Editors
