IN THIS ISSUE• VIEW, MEDITATION, ACTION • INTERVIEW WITH BERU KHYENTSE RINPOCHE • NORTHERN TREASURES

• WHITE LOTUS - REACHING OUT FURTHER • THE NUNS OF KHACHOE GHAKYIL LING

A N E W S L E T T E R O F S I D D H A R T H A ’ S I N T E N T

MARCH 2004

2 - Gentle Voice

View, Meditation, ActionDZONGSAR KHYENTSE RINPOCHE

In the previous issue of the newsletterwe featured Dzongsar KhyentseRinpoche’s straightforward approach tothe Buddhist view from his recentpublic talk “View, Meditation, Action”.In this excerpt Rinpoche outlines howmeditation and action help to enhancethis Buddhist view.

We’ll talk about meditation now. I don’tknow whether ‘meditation’ is the correcttranslation of the Tibetan word gom orthe Sanskrit word yoga. Yoga istranslated as naljor in Tibetan and naljoris such a very big word. Nal meansnormality. Jor means wealth. So whenyou are meditating, what you are ideallysupposed to do is cultivate the wealth ofnormality. Now the very words yoga andgom imply that it has to do with gettingaccustomed to the view we were talkingabout earlier.

Most meditation techniques are a bit likea placebo or a fake medicine. I’m notmaking this up - this was taught by theBuddha himself. He said the absoluteand final challenge as a meditator is thevery path that we are practising. That’sa very, very big statement. He even gavea good example: taking a boat to the other shore. If youare going to the other shore, you have to take a boat.Once you reach the other shore, you have to abandon theboat. If you are still standing in the boat, you are not onthe other shore. You will find many Buddhists are veryattached to the boat, Buddhism. They don’t even knowthat Buddha, for instance, was never a Buddhist. ThisBuddhism falls into the second category that I mentionedearlier - the whole, not the component bit.

But having said that, it’s the only way to go because weare like a patient and the Buddha is like a doctor. Thedisease we have is this confusion, such as looking at amirage and believing the mirage is water. And we are sothirsty that we really need some water. Only a few of usget relief and feel no more disappointment when ourteacher tells us, ‘Hey, look, that’s a mirage, not water.’Even though our teacher is telling us it’s just a mirage,most of us don’t want to believe it. We want to believe it’swater. Therefore, out of compassion and skilful means,the Buddha and our teachers have had to cope with ourexpectations. For this reason you will find seeminglytheistic prayers in Buddhism. Especially if you go toTibet, it gets even more colourful and more chaotic -candles, butter lamps, prayer wheels, prayer flags, shrinesand all of that.

Ashoka was one of the greatest Buddhist kings and helived about four hundred years after Buddha passedaway. In pre-Ashoka Buddhism there were no Buddhiststatues or symbols because, I guess, they were all busythinking about the view. But time gets degenerated andsomehow we developed the notion that the path has to becomplicated. We asked for these complications, so nowwe have many, many complicated paths – visualisations,mantras and so on. But one should never forget that thiswhole path is like a boat, just to help you reach the othershore. And in this case the other shore happens to beunderstanding that my hand is going to decay sooner orlater, that there is no such thing as a hand and that myhand is a dependent reality.

Anyway, meditation is a technique that makes you getaccustomed to this view again and again and again. It is atechnique, not the goal. The path is not the goal.Meditation is a technique; it is a skin that you have topeel off. The whole Buddhist path is a bit like an onion.You see a layer of skin and as you peel off the first layeryou think, ‘Oh, this is it. This is my moksha, this is myenlightenment.’ Then, after a while, you realise it’s justanother of your own made-up fantasies and you peel thatoff. As you peel off layer after layer, you end up findingnothing inside. Once Buddhists find there’s nothing, theyare happy. It’s very important to release ourselves from

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this burden of needing to find something inside such asthe soul or something precious, which if we are lucky willtravel to heaven and if we are not lucky will go to hell,because according to Buddhism that’s not the right view.According to Buddhism, we have to peel off theseinhibitions or hang-ups that we have. And I stress thatBuddhism is, for many Buddhists, a very sophisticatedand carefully designed inhibition, but it is an inhibitionthat we have to use now.

Of course, you know what meditation is – sitting straight,breathing normally and so on. Anyway, when somebodyis meditating, there’s a sense of somebody doing nothing.That’s quite good, actually. Meditation is basically doingnothing, absolutely nothing. That’s difficult! Thousandsand millions of people want to do nothing. They haven’tachieved that yet because we need to do things, if notwatching television, then reading a novel, throwing aparty, chanting mantras, piercing our skin or dyeing ourhair. We have to do something! The reason is that whenwe don’t do anything, we get left alone, don’t we? Andthat is something we don’t like because there’s a basicinsecurity within us and that basic insecurity is actuallynot knowing whether we exist or not. And in order toconvince ourselves that we exist, we need to have sex,shop or do something. Meditation is the opposite.Meditation is always facing the truth. So how do we facethe truth? By doing nothing. That’s difficult!

Another thing, why do we meditate? If you want tofollow the path of the Buddha, your aim is not to behappy. Happiness is not our goal. The Buddhist goal isnot happiness. It’s very important to know that. So this iswhy Buddhism should never be understood as therapy.Buddhism is the opposite. Buddhism really, reallydeconstructs you! It’s so depressing. If you really want topractise Buddhism, it can really make you disoriented.But after a while you reach a certain level where yourealise there’s nothing to be disoriented about and thenyou reach a certain confidence. Then, I guess, you willhave a lot of joy, but I haven’t reached that stage. That’sjust what I was told. But one thing I definitely know isthat Buddhism has got nothing to do with happiness.Why? Because happiness is a very fickle, impermanentthing. Today’s happiness is not tomorrow’s happiness.Tomorrow’s happiness is something else the day aftertomorrow.

When Buddhists say, ‘May all sentient beings be happy’,what are they saying? When we talk about happiness, weare talking about understanding the truth. It’s got nothingto do with a feeling. And you know that our happinesshas changed a lot. There are people about whom we getso excited, to the point where we become kind of friskywhen we first meet. After about a year or two even thesight of them bothers you. These things happen!

So now back to meditation. Doing nothing, that’s a verydifficult job. There are two things that are difficult. Doingnothing and thinking that you can do whatever you like,living in a free society. That’s very difficult, very difficult!Even though there is somebody who’s giving youabsolute freedom, you will not use it. We don’t have theguts. We don’t have the confidence to do whatever welike. You may think you’re a member of a free society. No,

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you are not free within your own inhibitions. That’sdifficult. These are two difficult things.

Student: Is the reason why people are so afraid of beingfree that they have to face their real self with whateverevil or goodness it may have?

Rinpoche: First of all, Buddhists do not really believe insomebody giving you freedom. Secondly, we do not usefreedom because we have an ego. For example, I know

some people who spend so much money, buying differentkinds of ties. Each tie would feed at least five hundredEthiopian people. I don’t know why they wear tiesbecause of all the garments we have it’s the most useless,isn’t it? You can’t keep money in it – it doesn’t havepockets. It doesn’t keep you warm. It looks like a fishhanging from your neck. We are completely free to notwear one, but because we want to look good, we need tofit into a certain society or we need to be invited to acertain party that requires us to wear a tie, we wear one.And this is how we end up doing everything that bindsus.

S: You were talking about not wearing ties and Icompletely agree with you. But I’ve read somewhere thatthe colour of the robes that monks wear meanssomething. Why is it that you must wear a specific kindof dress code?

R: As Buddhism has travelled to different parts of theworld, all these cultural aspects have contributed a lotand that very contribution can also mislead people. It’svery interesting. First of all, there’s no such thing ashierarchy. Secondly, if you really need to have a hierarchy,the highest entity in Buddhism is the truth or the dharma,then Buddha, the one who taught, then the sangha or thecommunity. So there’s that institutional arrangement.That’s one of the few institutions or symbols thattheoretical Buddhism has.

But on top of that, there are robes. When Buddha wasalive, he told his monks to wear one of three colours.They could choose blue, red or yellow. And ideally thematerial should be material discarded by people. Youthen have to dye it with one of these three colours, just toremind yourself that you have taken such and such a vowand to help you maintain your discipline. Other than thatthere’s no other significance in it. When you meditate,normally you are advised to sit straight. There is noreason why you cannot lie down and meditate. But youare encouraged to sit straight and meditate. Why? It helpsto discipline yourself. There’s more chance that if you arelying down and meditating, you will fall asleep, basically.Most of the classic or theoretical Buddhist symbols ortraditions have to do with discipline.

continued page 10

Happiness is a very fickle, impermanent thing.Today's happiness is not tomorrow's happiness.

Tomorrow's happiness is something else the day after tomorrow.

4 - Gentle Voice

Rinpoche, you were recognised by His Holiness thesixteenth Karmapa, were enthroned by him and receivedmany teachings from him. Could you say somethingabout his qualities?

The Karmapa is like Buddha, not an ordinary humanbeing. He is very great; he knows everything, the futureand past lives. When he meditates, he can see everything.He recognised many, many tulkus, not in an ordinary waybut in a very special way. He could see the exact placewhere the lama was born, his parents, the distance anddirection of how to locate that place, everything.Sometimes he would just tell his secretary to write downthese directions; sometimes, without being requested todo so, he would relate all the details of where a lama wasreborn.

Many people were profoundly and suddenly changedthrough meeting him and have great devotion to him ashe was so powerful. Sometimes they would be moved totears, some would actually see him as Vajradhara, somewould see him as Karma Pakshi, the second Karmapa(1203 - 1283), in the form of an old man with long hair.Karmapa’s sister saw him in the form of Vajradhara.Some people saw the Karmapa with special ornaments,

corals and turquoises. This is an example of what is calledrangjung or self-arising manifestation. The Karmapa wasa real Buddha.

After you were enthroned, the Chinese invaded Tibet and youled your monks and lay disciples out of Tibet. Could you say alittle about that?

Yes. We left in early 1958. In 1959 the Chinese destroyedLhasa and many monasteries. The fighting had started inparts of eastern Tibet, around 1958, but it had not yetbecome so bad. However, both the Karmapa and myselfhad done mo (divinations) and those indicated that itwould be better if we left Tibet. So, officially, we gotpermission from the local government to go onpilgrimage and then we were to come back. After two orthree months, while we were travelling, the fightingstarted in many different places and many lamas wereimprisoned. Many things happened.

We kept going and reached a place near Lhasa calledNyenchen ThangLha’s mountain where we stopped for afew months. Then the Karmapa said that we should leavequickly and go in a northerly direction, to the Nepaliborder. His Holiness the Dalai Lama travelled to the

Cover photo: Beru Khyentse Rinpoche at Vajradhara Gonpa (Photo Bridget Gebbie)

I N T E R V I E WBERU KHYENTSE RINPOCHE

Beru Khyentse Rinpoche

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Assamese border. The Karmapa escaped south throughBhutan. We however went through northern Tibet. Wetravelled for one and a half years, living in tents andtravelling on horseback. In 1959 we reached Nepal. Thenat the time of the New Year, Losar, I met the Karmapaagain in Nepal. We were all safe and didn’t have anyproblems with the Chinese, but many other monasteries’lamas and many lay people died. When we were nearNyenchen ThangLha’s mountain, reconnaissanceaeroplanes flew overhead. We heard them coming andwere able to cover our belongings with cloth so theycouldn’t see us and they didn’t drop bombs on us. Wewere very lucky. The next day we left. At that time, atChegu Gonpa in Kongpo, there were many people killed.

Rinpoche, you are the speech emanation of Jamyang KhyentseWangpo. Could you say something about the rimé or non-sectarian lineage, as it seems very important at this time?

Yes. The background to the Khyentse lineage is that at thetime of the Buddha he was Manjushri. Then throughmany different lifetimes he was Manjushrimitra,Vimalamitra, Dril Bupa, (or Vajra Ghantipa), Bana Ratna(or Pal Yang) and many, many great yogis. In Tibet, thefirst time, he reincarnated as King Trisong Deutsen. Fromthe king emanated five forms of his body, speech, mind,qualities and activities. Then, there are the 108 majortertöns (treasure revealers) and the 1,022 minor tertöns. Ofthe major tertöns in the past lives of Jamyang KhyentseWangpo, the first was Sangye Lama, who was the firsttertön in Tibet (Tsa Sum Dril Drub was one of his termas),then Nyang Ral Nyima Öser and Guru Chöwang.

Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo was a very great master andhad over 150 different lineage gurus. He travelled all overTibet to receive and thereby preserve all of the lineagetransmissions, some of which were almost broken and in

danger of dying out. He would receive that lineage andthen write it down in book form and teach it again. Alllineages of the Nyingma, Kagyü, Sakya and Gelug as wellas the Shangpa, Drigung, Jodruk (Kalachakra) and Chöhe searched out, received and also practised and thentransmitted to his disciples. So he was a very greatmaster.

At the same time, Jamgön Kongtrül Lodrö Thaye (1813 –1899) was his dharma brother and they were each other’sdisciples and gurus. The first Jamyang Khyentse Wangpolived for seventy-three years from 1820 to 1892. Before hedied, he practised Vimalamitra’s guru yoga and said heknew that it was his time to go and that he woulddissolve into Vimalamitra’s heart and go to Vimalamitra’ssacred place, the five peaks of Wu Tai Shan in China.Then he would again radiate five emanations. So thereare five Khyentses. His main seat was at Dzongsar TashiKartsey. The holder of this seat, the second DzongsarKhyentse, died at the age of thirteen, after which theSakyas invited the Kathog Khyentse to Dzongsar tobecome the throne-holder there. This was JamyangKhyentse Chökyi Lodrö. He was also very great and hadmany teachers from different lineages as had JamyangKhyentse Wangpo before him. His activities greatlyflourished and he had many, many disciples, both tulkusand khenpos.

The first Beru Khyentse, my previous incarnation, wasborn in 1896. He was recognised by the first JamgönKongtrül Lodrö Thaye as the speech incarnation ofJamyang Khyentse Wangpo. The boy was taken toPalpüng monastery and was given the name PemaWangchüg. He studied all the different traditions andbecame a great rimé master. He was considered the heartson of his main guru, the fifteenth Karmapa, KhakyabDorje.

Later, the fifteenth Karmapa invited the first BeruKhyentse, who was a monk, to come to his seat, Tsurphu,near Lhasa, and look after the monks and his sons anddaughters as his regent. Before passing away, the fifteenthKarmapa had a vision about the incarnation of thesixteenth Karmapa, which was recorded but was difficultto decipher. Eventually Beru Khyentse Rinpoche receiveda piece of paper containing the exact explanation of thereincarnation document. After he had read it, heunderstood the meaning and was very happy as he hadbeen searching for this key to open the code of thereincarnation letter left by the fifteenth Karmapa aboutthe sixteenth Karmapa. This is regarding the first BeruKhyentse, the fifteenth Karmapa’s main heart son andalso the guru of the sixteenth Karmapa.

Rinpoche, is there something you would like to say inconclusion?

Yes. As the teachings of the buddha dharma spreadthroughout the West and the East, in Australia and NewZealand we really need to put into practice theseteachings of the Buddha. This is a really momentous time.There are many great masters giving teachings here.These teachings are very precious and now you have the

His Holiness the Sixteenth Karmapa

continued page 10

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6 - Gentle Voice

The Northern Treasures is an important TibetanBuddhist tradition that is based on scriptures concealedby Guru Padmasambhava. Here Changling Rinpochedescribes the origin of this tradition, its role in Tibetand how it may be preserved.

After having spread the Buddhist teaching in Tibetduring the ninth century, Padmasambhava concealedmany different treasure teachings or termas forindividuals in the future. These treasure teachings camefrom Guru Padmasambhava himself, known amongTibetans as Guru Rinpoche, and the Northern Treasures issaid to contain the heart teaching of GuruPadmasambhava. It was hidden in the location of ZangZang Lhadrak by Padmasambhava just before he left forthe Copper-Coloured Mountain.

At that time King Trisong Deutsen’s grandson, GyalseLhase, supplicated Padmasambhava with great yearning,asking, ‘If you leave for the Copper-Coloured Mountain,who shall we turn to? What shall we do?’ Guru Rinpocheanswered, ‘Do not grieve. In the future there will come aheart emanation of me who will extract a treasureteaching, which will provide for the happiness of allbeings in this world.’ Having extracted this teaching, thisemanation will proceed to spread it to all beings.’Eventually this individual came. His name was RidzinGodem, or Ridzin Ngödrup Gyaltsen. According to theprophecies of Guru Padmasambhava, Ridzin Godemextracted and spread this teaching, which became knownas the Northern Treasures.

This teaching contains all the different paths from thetranscendent teaching of the Great Perfection down to themundane vehicles of gods and humans. His HolinessDudjom Rinpoche said this terma teaching compares to aminister. A minister is someone who is able to relate topeople at all levels, and like a minister this teachingprovides all the higher transcendent teachings as well asall the teachings that provide for the temporal benefit andhappiness of this world.

From Ridzin Ngödrup Gyaltsen on, this Northern Treasuresteaching spread widely all over central Tibet. The seat ofthis tradition is the monastery of Thubten Dorje Drak,located not far from the Samye Monastery. There is not asingle Nyingma monastery in which the NorthernTreasures is not practised. For example, within theNyingma tradition there’s nobody who doesn’t practisethe Prayer in Seven Chapters, and this comes from theNorthern Treasures. Also the Namgyal Tratsang—themonastic body of the Dalai Lama and the TibetanGovernment—practises the Northern Treasures, specificallythe practice known as Ridzin Dungdrup. Many people arealso familiar with the Prayer of Samantabhadra, whichcomes from the one of the dzogchen tantras of this terma.

Following 1959, and the Cultural Revolution, theBuddhist teachings in Tibet were seriously damaged, and

specifically the tradition of the Northern Treasures wasweakened, with many texts being lost. In the early 1980sthings settled down again for a little while, but not all theNorthern Treasures texts could be found. Nowadays theonly person who upholds this tradition in a great way isTaklung Tsetrul Rinpoche. He is the life force of theNorthern Treasures tradition, holding all the lineages ofempowerments, reading transmissions and instructions.

There are many people in Tibet, Nepal and in the West,who want to practise this tradition, but they cannot do sowithout the texts. I think the most important thing is thatthe surviving texts should be printed – this will helpmany people who wish to practise and it will also help topreserve these teachings. I am now trying to collect themand have them entered in computer format to print them.There is a large number of books—more than fiftyvolumes.

We also need to support the Northern Treasuresmonasteries that are left, for example, Taklung TsetrulRinpoche’s monastery in Simla, Namkhai NyingpoRinpoche’s monastery in Bhutan, and several monasteriesin Ladakh, South India, Nepal, around the Himalayas inIndia, and even Dorje Drak Monastery in Tibet, too. Ofcourse, arranging for Taklung Tsetrul Rinpoche to givethe transmissions is also important. In Tibet there aresome Northern Treasures tulkus, who are not gettingeducated at the moment. Perhaps if they can come tostudy under Taklung Tsetrul Rinpoche, then later theycan hold the lineage and benefit others.

(If you are interested in helping to preserve this tradition,please contact Ani Pema at anipemachodron@yahoo.com forfurther information.)

(The Gentle Voice would like to thank Jakob Leschly for histranslation of this text.)

NORTHERN TREASURES

Ridzin Ngödrup Gyaltsen

(Line drawing by Gomchen Oleshe,

The Nyingma Icons, Kailash, Kathmandu, 1974)

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White Lotus International has undergone another namechange to reflect its growing outreach in the world.Founded by Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche in 1993, theWhite Lotus Children’s Programme as it was thenknown committed itself to serving disadvantagedchildren, their families and communities, initially innorthern India, by ensuring their basic health care andeducation needs. Now called Lotus Outreach, the non-profit, social action organisation continues to spread theseeds of positive change to homeless boys and girls inDelhi slums, Tibetan refugee children and low-incomerural families in Bhutan.

Tens of thousands of children live and work on the streetsof India’s sprawling urban chaos. These children areextremely vulnerable to sickness, abuse and illiteracy. Inresponse to their urgent needs, Lotus Outreach and ChildWatch India conceived the Street Kids Programme (orSKiP), a mobile health clinic for youth in Delhi. The SKiPinitiative is designed to help children by providing easy,reliable access to health vans at fourteen differentlocations. SKiP social workers provide basic health needs,tutoring and protection to approximately 500 children aday. In 2003 the SKiP initiative opened a twenty-fourhour shelter in Delhi which provides a safe haven for fiftychildren each night.

In Delhi’s Yamuna slum – known as the largest slum inAsia – Lotus Outreach opened a free computer literacycentre in 2000. For the first time, Indian youth here wasgiven the opportunity to learn and apply new skills toimprove their lives. The computer centre trains forty-fivepeople a day and is an example of how such projects cantouch lives and help communities.

Another instance of Lotus Outreach’s work is in Bhutan.Although the health and educational systems in thatcountry have experienced unprecedented growth inrecent years, there are still many low-income ruralfamilies lacking health services and education. Inresponse, Lotus Outreach partnered the TarayanaFoundation to provide education assistance to children

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LOTUS OUTREACH NEEDS YOU!

As with all Lotus Outreach work, we rely entirely on yourgenerous support! To ensure that your sponsor moneygoes directly to those who need it most, we work withsmall, local, non-governmental organisations, leveragingcommunity resources and employing a large volunteerbase. So your entire contribution directly supports thechildren and communities we serve. Whether your gift isin the form of a monthly, quarterly or bi-annual pledge tosponsor a child ($Aus320 a year) or a single cash, chequeor credit card contribution, it helps make a lastingdifference. We greatly appreciate in-kind gifts,professional services in accounting, design, printing ordatabase management. We welcome introductions topotential donors and grant-makers. Lotus Outreach isalso developing a range of cards and stationery, as well asmaking available the beautiful photographic book ofRinpoche’s last trip to Dzongsar Monastery in Tibet, Onthe Path - Tibet (for a donation of $Aus25 plus postage).For inquiries, suggestions or donations, please contactMeg Hart on 02 9955 9967 (meg@lotusoutreach.org), Yin-wah Ma (yinwah@lotusoutreach.org) or Glenn Fawcett(glenn@lotusoutreach.org).

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who would otherwise have been forced by circumstancesto work instead of attending school. We are also workingwith the Bhutan Health Trust Fund to provide criticalvaccines and immunisations for these rural communities.

Now Lotus Outreach is gearing up to reach out further.For a long time Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche has feltgreat concern for the plight of children forced into thevoracious sex-trade in South-East Asia. In 2004 we will belaunching programmes targeting child prostitutes andchildren of sex workers in Thailand and Cambodia. Weaim to identify and support partner organisations that arebringing hope and practical rehabilitation to thesevulnerable children.

Indian children in an informal education centre

8 - Gentle Voice

Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche’sretreat house at VajradharaGonpa is nearly complete thanksto the good work of Clyve, Jerryand all the volunteers. The houseis on an elevated site withexpansive views - it looksmagnificent! Sincere thanks to allthose who have offereddonations and loans to get thehouse to this stage. Financialassistance is needed to repay theloans. The opportunity still existsto make your donation or tosponsor items for Rinpoche’shouse, such as the solar powersystem, light fittings, kitchen fit-out, landscaping, painting,curtains, blinds, furniture, etc.Contact Ross Smith at VajradharaGonpa on 02 6633 1382 or emailvajgonpa@nor.com.au

His Eminence Luding Khenchen Rinpoche, one of thehighest and most realised masters in the Sakyatradition of Tibetan Buddhism, will kindly bestow theprecious Lamdre Lobshey teaching at Vajradhara Gonpanear Kyogle from 3 May to 27 June 2004. The teaching

will be hosted by KyeguBuddhist Institute (TsechenSamdrup Ling), a Sydney-based Sakya centre affiliatedwith the Kyegu Monastery inIndia and eastern Tibet andunder the spiritual direction ofAenpo Kyabgon Rinpoche.

The Lamdre teaching is knownas the Jewel Essence of theSakya tradition. It is both atheoretical and practicalexplanation of the entire

Buddhist path, both sutra and tantra, from the beginningstages to the fruit of perfect enlightenment. It is anextremely precious teaching – profound, vast andelaborate. The Lamdre Lobshey consists of two parts: firstthe Triple Vision is taught and then the Triple Tantra.

The Lamdre originated with the mahasiddha Virupa, afterhe received the Hevajra empowerment directly fromVajra Nairatmya. The teaching has continued downthrough Indian mahasiddhas and Tibetan translators tothe great masters of the Sakya tradition. There are twoforms of the teaching: the more common form known asLamdre Tsogshey and the esoteric or uncommon form

known as Lamdre Lobshey. On this occasion at VajradharaGonpa the rarely offered Lamdre Lobshey will bebestowed.

Luding Khenchen Rinpoche is the seventy-fifth head ofthe Ngor sub-sect of the Sakya tradition and wasenthroned in 1954. He has contributed greatly to thedharma by giving teachings, empowerments and oraltransmissions and re-establishing summer retreats inSakya monasteries world-wide. His Eminence hasbestowed the Lamdre teaching fifteen times, giveninitiations and instructions on the Thirteen GoldenDharmas of the Sakya tradition, the Seven Mandalas ofthe Ngor tradition and other deities and has ordainedmore than 10,000 monks.

Before the Lamdre begins and after it concludes, LudingKhenchen Rinpoche will bestow a range of preciousteachings and initiations in Whyalla, Melbourne,Canberra, Sydney, Cairns and Brisbane. The programmeincludes empowerments for Chenrezig, Green Tara,Hevajra, Medicine Buddha, Vajrapani, White Mahakala,White Tara, a Vajrayogini blessing and a number ofpublic talks.

This could be the last teaching His Eminence bestowsbefore entering life retreat. For more information or toregister for the Lamdre, please contact Christine atKyegu Buddhist Institute via email: info@kbi.org.au orphone 02 9699 0087. For more details visitwww.kbi.org.au.

DZONGSAR KHYENTSE RINPOCHE’SRETREAT HOUSE NEARS COMPLETION

LAMDRE LOBSHEY(P

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THE NUNS OF KHACHOE GHAKYIL LING

Nuns carry water from a local spring

The nunnery of Khachoe Ghakyil Ling sits on a smallridge above the great stupa of Boudhanath nearKathmandu, Nepal. Established in 1986, under theauspices of Kopan Monastery on the hill above, it wasoriginally planned for around 100 nuns, but now housesover 300 and they still stream in.

There are a few nuns from India and Nepal, but a largeproportion has come directly from Tibet - from aroundLhasa and the central area of Tibet, from Shigatse andregions closer to Nepal. Their travel stories are alsovaried. Some travelled with family members when theywere very young; others went first to India then, withrefugee status, reached Nepal years later. Several hid frompolice while escaping Tibet and paying bribes to borderguards to enter Nepal or lived in gonpas in the mountainsfor extended periods of time en route to an unknowndestination.

One of the nuns travelled from her home in Tibet alone,sometimes by bus, paying money to police along the way.She spent months at the border, without a passport ormoney, but was helped by the sherpas who gave her workso she could continue. For most, the greatest fear was tobe caught by the Chinese, as this would mean not onlyquestioning, torture and punishment for themselves, butrepercussions for their families – imprisonment, forcedlabour and so on.

The fame of Khachoe Ghakyil Ling nunnery, with its highstandard of instruction in Tibetan Buddhist philosophyand practice, has grown greatly and their resources arealways stretched to the limit. In the past nuns were notgiven access to the same standard of education as monks,but at Khachoe Ghakyil Ling the education, both secularand spiritual, is of the highest calibre possible. Many ofthe nuns, having completed a certain level of theirstudies, are now engaged in the extensive three-yearretreat, while others continue to study with renowned

masters and prepare to teach the newer nuns themselves.

Had they stayed in Tibet, they would only have beenallowed to become nuns after the age of twenty andwould have had no schooling at all. In Tibet nunneries arein name only; one cannot even display the photo of HisHoliness the Dalai Lama. Of course, at present they sufferfinancial difficulties and their families are far away, butthey explain that the benefits of becoming a nun includethe chance to study, increase their knowledge anddevelop their minds.

In 1999, having been fully trained in sacred ritualpractices, the nuns started travelling the world on fund-raising performance tours. In the initial tour theyperformed their dances, drew sand mandalas anddemonstrated debate in more than 100 cities in the UnitedStates and Canada. Since then they have visited Europeand Australia. Although Western audiences may havebecome a little accustomed to seeing Tibetan monksperforming such activities, it is unusual to see nuns in therole.

One of the results of the increasing flow of arrivals to thenunnery has been a constant need for more buildings andalso a serious water shortage. In 1986 a well was dug tosupply them for the future. This well has recently run dryand they must now carry water of very dubious qualityfrom a local spring and buy poor-quality polluted waterfor their daily needs. Connection to the city water supplyis about eight years away. It is therefore urgent to findmore water for the nunnery now. Measures such asdrilling a deep bore, installing water tanks and increasingthe size of the present pipes are all planned. These stepswill help the nuns greatly to live in a clean, healthyenvironment. If you would like to assist with this project,please contact Kathy Vichta of the Foundation for thePreservation of the Mahayana Tradition attkvichta@compuserve.com.

10 - Gentle Voice

S: I’m wondering how important the view really is.Cannot someone be a perfectly normal person, withouthaving such and such beliefs, without following such andsuch a view? Or is it really important and one has to tryand structurise one’s view to actually attain a certainnormality?

R: When we are talking about the view, there are manydifferent levels of view. Of course, everybody has a view.A view is basically an idea and based on that idea wefunction. For instance, BMW is a great car. That’s a view.Then for days and nights you work hard to buy one.That’s meditation. And finally you get one; then you’realways worried about how it will or won’t get scratched.That’s action. View, meditation and action. Everything hasthat. But, of course, Buddhists would dispute all the otherviews. They would say an ordinary view has a lot offaults. That’s why they call it the relative view. Why?Because maybe a year later you will not like your BMW;you will like Ferrari instead. Now that proves that BMWis not the ultimate happiness or the ultimate truth. Sowhat defines the ultimate view is something that will notchange, something that is not dependent on any othercause and condition.

So this is what I mean. Our view about our hand is totallywrong. We think this is the same hand as yesterday’shand. If I ask you, ‘Were you there yesterday?’ youanswer, ‘Yes’, as if yesterday’s you and today’s you arethe same. But they are not. There you go. You have awrong view there! It’s a habit. And then when I ask,‘Who’s this you?’ you point everywhere – to your toes,your nose, your chest. You have a whole abstract idea ofyou. That’s a wrong view again because there’s not asolid, tangible entity that you can refer to as you.

Anyway, let’s talk about action now. Again, the action hasto be based on the view. The view is the most importantthing, okay? Meditation is to get accustomed to this viewthat we have established. Action is also to enhance this

view. There are many Buddhist actions, such asmeditation, visualisation, compassion, generosity and soon. But all these Buddhist actions can be abbreviated intotwo things based on the view: outrageousness andelegance. Why outrageousness? It’s very necessarybecause if you are not outrageous, you will become aslave of this wrong view. You will want to wear a tie andthen you will spend the whole evening not knowingwhich tie to wear. You are losing it again here! Not beingoutrageous enough!

If you are outrageous and you are maybe meeting theprime minister for dinner, you could wear a live fishbecause, based on the view, a live fish would be muchmore valuable than this useless piece of fabric. But, thenagain, action has to be accompanied by elegance. Why?Because as a Buddhist, as someone who knows what theview is, you have a responsibility. Compassion has to bethere. You should not go to dinner with a dead fishhanging around your neck. As a Buddhist you should not!You should wear a very elegant tie that will match yourshoes and your belt. You should put it on properly and allalong you should know, ‘I’m doing the most pathetic,useless thing that exists.’ These two things are theBuddhist action.

So now just to summarise. The Buddhist view of lookingat our hand and at phenomena: everything isimpermanent, interdependent and there’s no such thingas a whole. That’s the view. Meditation is to enhance thisview. To get accustomed to this view you try to cut allthese inhibitions. But how? By doing nothing. Action is toenhance even more that view. You try to practiseoutrageousness and elegance together. You can’t practisethem one after the other. You have to practise themtogether.

Of course, I didn’t do justice to the vast and deep wisdomof Shakyamuni. But I hope some of you can use thisapproach as the door to the infinite path of Buddhism.Thank you.

(This teaching is also available as an audio tape fromSiddhartha’s Intent Southern Door, P.O. Box 1114, StrawberryHills, NSW, 2012, Australia.)

continued from page 3

opportunity to practise, so I wish that all of you disciplesmake efforts to wake up your minds and not be lazy. Yousee, you have all the conditions here, even more than inTibet, so with these good opportunities the time has nowcome to practise. The whole world is full of suffering andproblems, so we need to produce discipline in our mindsthrough the practice. All you Western dharma disciplesshould not squander your precious human rebirth, butinstead act appropriately and practise.

In his message that the sixteenth Karmapa gave to me tobring in 1979, he said the following. ‘I am sending thisincarnation, Khyentse Chökyi Wangpo, (the present BeruKhyentse), to Australia and New Zealand. I hope you canreceive teachings from him.’ He then explained about the

four foundation practices, the view according to theKagyü tradition, how to meditate on mahamudra andhow to apply this in one’s actions. At the end of thecassette he stated that in the future many people herewould practise the dharma and through this gainenlightenment. He dedicated his message in the followingmanner:

In the way heroic Manjushri knows all,And Samantabhadra too,I emulate their wayAnd fully dedicate this virtue.

(The Gentle Voice would like to thank Douglas Mills for histranscription of this interview.)

continued from page 5

The Buddhist view of looking at phenomena is thateverything is impermanent, interdependent and

there's no such thing as a whole.

Gentle Voice - 11

DHARMA DATESRESIDENT TEACHER FOR STUDY PROGRAMMES

Vajradhara Gonpa and Byron Bay Buddhists have excitingplans for meditation, teaching and study programmes this yearto be co-ordinated by resident teacher Steve Cline, newlyarrived from Vancouver. Steve is a senior student of DzongsarKhyentse Rinpoche who has been working as a Tibetantranslator and meditation teacher for a number of years and iswell remembered for his integral part in the three-monthLongchen Nyingthik ngöndro retreat at the gonpa early last year.

Would you like to help sponsor the costs associated withhaving a resident teacher at Vajradhara Gonpa and in northernNew South Wales? Please contact Kathie Chodron on 02 66331382 if you would like to be involved with bringing theopportunity of regular study and practice to our community.

KHYENTSE FOUNDATION

Khyentse Foundation celebratedits second anniversary bysurpassing its 2003 financialgoals through the generoussupport of the world-widecommunity of friends andstudents of Dzongsar KhyentseRinpoche. With nearly $US2,000,000 in donations, thefoundation was able to build up the Endowment Fund forMonastic Education. It was also able to start funding several ofits prioritised projects, including support for variouspublication projects and scholarships. Once the target of$2,800,000 for the Endowment Fund is reached, the interestearned will support up to 700 monks and nuns at theDzongsar Institutes in Tibet, India and Bhutan, relievingRinpoche of a great financial responsibility and allowing himto spread the dharma in his own unique way. Please visit ourwebsite www.khyentsefoundation.org to read our latestcommuniqué with news and a word from Rinpoche.

SSRC NEWS

In September 2003 Sea to Sky Retreat Centre had the honour ofhosting Matthieu Ricard for a four-day seminar on“Renunciation of the Causes of Suffering, Compassion andPure Vision: The Three Vehicles of Tibetan Buddhism”. Fortyparticipants joined the programme and were deeply moved bythe profundity and directness of Matthieu’s teaching. We lookforward to his return in the near future. SSRC is also planninga weekend with Dr Pema and an introductory weekend onMadhyamika with Alex Trisoglio in 2004.

Continuing the new developments at SSRC, a four-bedroomretreat house was completed in August 2003 and is nowavailable to accommodate long- and short-term retreatants. Upthe mountainside are two spacious, self-contained retreatcabins with decks that will be finished by late spring for

retreatants on strict retreat. Two more retreat huts will be builtby the end of 2004. We hope that the expansion of our SSRCfacility will meet the needs of practitioners and will provide asupport for their practice. For further information and detailsof upcoming activities in 2004 please email ssrc@sprynet.com.

BUDDHA DOWN UNDER

Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche blessed New Zealand with hispresence for the first time in April 2003. Though organised atthe very last moment with only three days notice over Easter,more than 250 people joyfully attended a rapidly arrangedpublic talk in Auckland. The following morning Rinpocheasked to establish a trust in New Zealand to support histeachings. Each month on the tenth day of the lunar calendar aShower of Blessings tsog is held in Auckland. Please telephoneeither Brooke Rabten on 09 828 7149 or Ani Dianne on 09 4243334 or email buddhadownunder@ihug.co.nz for details.

PRACTICE IN KYOGLE

Shamatha meditation and an introduction to Buddhism will beheld once a week, from 6 to 8 p.m. on Thursday evenings, atKyogle Primary School from 26 February to 1 April 2004.Those people who just wish to come and meditate can leave atthe tea break at 7 p.m. The cost is $50 for the six-week courseor $25 for shamatha only. Bookings can be made throughKyogle ACE - phone Sue on 02 6632 1833 or 02 6633 3281.

A fortnightly Madhyamika study group, commencing onMonday 29 March 2004, will meet from 1 to 3 p.m. at AniGosha’s house, 5 Warrazambil Street, Kyogle. Under SteveCline’s guidance, the group will listen to and discuss DzongsarKhyentse Rinpoche’s Madhyamika teachings from SanFrancisco, 2003, as well as utilising The Open Door to Emptinessby Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche and Dzongsar KhyentseRinpoche’s Madhyamika teachings from France as studymaterial. The cost will be $5 per session.

VAJRADHARA GONPA

A practice day takes place on the fourth Wednesday of eachmonth at the gonpa, starting on 25 February 2004 andalternating between the Longchen Nyingthik ngöndro andshamatha. A Tsasum Drildrup tsog is held each month on GuruRinpoche day and a Tsasum Drildrup retreat, together withinstructions on the practice, is planned for the Easter longweekend from 9 to 12 April 2004, or from 9 to 18 April 2004 forthose wishing to do a ten-day retreat. Please contact 02 66331382 or email vajgonpa@nor.com.au for details.

TAPES AVAILABLEA set of ten tapes of Jigme Khyentse Rinpoche’s teaching onChapter 8, Meditation, of Shantideva’s Way of the Bodhisattvaare now available for $Aus110. Please phone or fax CarolWeaver on 02 9810 4591 to order.

POBox 1114 • Strawberry Hills

NSW 2012 • Australia

PLEASE NOTE: Because of its sacred content, please treatthis newsletter with respect. Should you need to dispose ofit, please burn it, rather than throwing it away.

12 - Gentle Voice

CORRECTION

In the last issue of the newsletter the interviewer of the article“Vision Within the Four Corners of Film” was incorrectlycalled Noa Taylor. We apologise to Noa Jones for this error!

SIDDHARTHA’S SCHOOL CHILDREN’S DAY

Siddhartha’s School provides a programme based on Buddhistprinciples such as wisdom, compassion, courage andawareness, recognising that these qualities are fundamental tothe nature of every human being. In a respectful andinquisitive atmosphere, children’s individual growth isnurtured, allowing them to discover their own strengths andconnection to the world. The programme runs one day eachmonth for primary-school aged children, offering a variety ofactivities including the martial arts, story-telling, drama,music, meditation, visual arts and games. For moreinformation, or to be added to our mailing list, please contactEva Thomas on 02 6633 1257 or evasimon@dnet.aunz.com orAri Summa on 02 6621 2193 or ari_danapati@yahoo.com.au.Bookings are essential and can be made with Eva.

PRACTICE FOR SYDNEY-SIDERS

Shamatha meditation is held once a fortnight on Wednesday at7:30 p.m. at the dance studio of Darlinghurst Public School atthe corner of Liverpool Street and Barcom Avenue,Darlinghurst. Phone Chris Conlon on 02 9360 1304 or HugoCroci on 0402 894 871 for further details. A Tsasum Drildruptsog is held on the tenth day of the lunar calendar. Pleasecontact Shanti Steiner on 0416 103 314 for details.

PRACTICE IN ADELAIDE

A Longchen Nyingthik ngöndro practice is held on the firstSunday of every month, starting at 2 p.m. A Tsasum Drildruppractice takes place on the third Sunday of every month, alsostarting at 2 p.m. Please phone Tineke Adolphus on 08 83627553 for details about the venues.

ANEWSLETTER OF SIDDHARTHA’S

INTENT

IN THE BLUE MOUNTAINS

A Tsasum Drildrup tsog is held each month on Guru Rinpocheday. Shamatha meditation is held on Monday evening at 7.30p.m. Please ring Pamela Croci on 02 4757 2339 for furtherinformation about these and about the Longchen Nyingthikngöndro practice in the Blue Mountains.

LISMORE COURSE

A four-week meditation and teaching course is planned tocommence in April 2004. Please contact Ari Summa on 02 66212193 for details.

BYRON BAY BUDDHISTS

Byron Bay Buddhists holds a regular weekly shamathameditation on Wednesday evenings starting at 6 p.m sharpand finishing at 7 p.m. The sessions are suitable for beginnersas well as established meditators. There is no charge but, ofcourse, we welcome donations to support the functioning ofthe group. BBB also has a study programme that will be co-ordinated by Steve Cline, who will be residing at VajradharaGonpa from early 2004. For details regarding this studyprogramme or news of visiting teachers, please email PaulaRaymond-Yacoub at bbb@mullum.com.au or phone/fax us on02 6685 1646. BBB is at 1/22 Fawcett Street, Brunswick Heads.

A Longchen Nyingthik ngöndro practice is held on the thirdSunday of the month. Please contact Christina Peebles fordetails of this practice on 02 6688 2055.