In November of 2011, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche led two hundred and fifty disciples of the Taiwanese Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center, on a special trip to New Delhi, India.  On the morning of November 10, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche presided over the auspicious Dorje Phurba Puja at the most respectful request and invitation from the local Sikh believers in Jalandhar, a city located in the Punjab Province of northern India. Although that day did not fall on a weekend holiday, there were 308 Indian VIP guests, 7 believers and 250 disciples from Taiwan.  The total in attendance was 565.  There were also 4 lamas who made a special trip from Jangchubling to assist in setting up and prepare for the puja.  During the  puja, there was an earthquake, an auspicious sign. The attendees felt that the ground shook twice. They were amazed and all praised the extraordinary puja. Then on November 12 and 13, His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche led disciples to the Jangchubling Monastery in Dehradu in northern India to attend the Winter Teachings of the Drikung Kagyu Order, and received the Hevajra Empowerment.  Thereafter, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche led the disciples to seek an audience with his three-grace root guru, His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang.  In the evening of November 13, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche started the twelfth retreat as instructed by His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang, and successfully completed this retreat on November 19.

On November 8, 2011, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche led disciples of the Taiwanese Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center on a special trip to New Delhi, India. The group was to take a bus next morning and proceed to Jalandhar for the puja to be held there. On the night of their arrival, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche had dinner with disciples at the hotel restaurant. It is a great virtue to dine with a Mahasiddha. The disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center were grateful that Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche bestowed upon them frequent opportunities for accumulating virtues. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche did not wear the Dharma robe during the dinner. However, one manager of the restaurant still felt Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s compassion and dignity and asked for Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s blessings. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche compassionately agreed and blessed him for a long time despite the long and tiring trip that day. The hotel manager expressed his utmost respect by touching Rinpoche’s shoes first, and then his own head and chest with his hands.

Early next morning Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche led the disciples to Jalandhar, a major city in Punjab Province in northern India, roughly three hundred sixty kilometers from New Delhi. As the fleet of buses embarked for Jalandhar, the sky had the auspicious sign of a vertical rainbow. To welcome His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche, local believers had hung many huge Dharma photos along traffic arteries, and at the entrances of hotels and restaurants where the group was to stay and visit. Believers here would welcome Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche to preside over the auspicious puja and benefit many sentient beings in Jalandhar.

After a ten-hour, bumpy car trip, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche and the disciples arrived at their hotel and had dinner together. Disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center were grateful that their guru, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche, again bestowed opportunity for accumulating virtues, by dining together. At the end of dinner, representatives of the restaurant presented a two- layered birthday cake to celebrate the birthday of attendees who were born in the month of November. Then they invited Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche to cut the cake. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche enlightened the attendees: “A birthday is a mother’s  day of hardship; therefore, it should not be celebrated. Since the cake  is already here, it would be wasteful not to share it. Those nineteen people represent all people who  have the same birthday; each should pray to prolong the life and increase the merits of their mother.” His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche personally cut the cake and compassionately enlightened the gathering: “The first cut, cuts off the sentient being’s affliction. The second cuts off the affliction of affection. The third cuts off the evils of disease.” Usually, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche does not eat dessert at nighttime. But today Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche will not worry about his waist line, but for sentient beings, and he will eat some cake.  On hearing this, many disciples shed tears because of Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s never-ending caring for sentient beings. During the dinner, another auspicious sign appeared, a lunar halo shining in the sky.

On November 10, His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche presided over the auspicious Dorje Phurba Puja in Jalandha, a major city of the Sikh religion in Punjab Province, in northern India. This is the fourth time Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche held an extraordinary puja of Tibetan Buddhism at the beseech of local believers. Prior to that, there has never been any puja of Tibetan Buddhism held in the region. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche not only benefited the local sentient beings with Tantra, but also lively gave enlightenment to the attendees on Buddhism with his fluent English. The Indian guests were full of joy, reverence and praise.

There were many huge dharma photos of Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche, and the flags of Drikung Kagyu Order were hung around the hall. The arrangement and decoration of the hall were sublime. By 9:00 a.m. more than two hundred disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center had entered and taken their positions. The guests and Indian believers entered the venue quietly and in an orderly manner. All participants, with utmost reverence, waited for Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche to ascend the dharma throne. At 10:00 am, His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche arrived, walking along the red carpet spread for him by hotel staff. With prayer flags, incense, musical instruments, and a jeweled parasol, ordained disciples greeted His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche and escorted him along the white carpet printed with the eight auspicious symbols and spread with flower petals. As Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche entered, all attendees rose gravely. They put their palms together, greeting His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche as he ascended the dharma throne. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche did prostrations to the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas as well as the dharma thrones of His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang and His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chungtsang at the mandala. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche then ascended his dharma throne. He lighted the butter lamp for sentient beings to make offerings to the Buddhas. The tea offering ritual then followed.

At the beginning of the puja, leading disciples guided attendees to recite the prayers. Local believers, guided by volunteer disciples, stepped to the front of the mandala to make offering and light the lamps. On the spot, believers drew lots among themselves in order to select five people. These five, on behalf of all sentient beings, were to make offerings of mandala and one hundred people to light the butter lamps. His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche waited for the one hundred selected believers, finishing lighting of the butter lamps before bestowing the precious Buddha’s teachings.

Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche bestowed enlightenment: “Good morning everyone. Although you have been very busy, you attend the puja today, and it is a very good thing for you. In Buddhism there is no discrimination between races or religions. Everyone is equal. If you need help, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas will help you. Today’s puja can help eliminate our karmic obstacles of past lives and demons of ill health.”

“Just now you saw two dharma rituals performed. One was the ritual of mandala offering, which symbolizes making offering on behalf of all sentient beings to guru, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Through offering, one would have the conditions and merits to receive the help of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. “The other offering was the ritual of lamp lighting. The lamp lighting ritual is important. The lamp symbolizes the light of Buddha, illuminating all beings and helping to liberate them from suffering in the ocean of reincarnation. The light of Buddha can eliminate all obstacles, and through the ritual of lamp lighting, making offerings to Buddhas, it can increase one’s wisdom. It also symbolizes that, through Buddhist cultivation, one will have a bright future. Those who light lamps perpetually will have a brighter appearance and be good-looking. The lamp lighting ritual also represents the light of Buddha illuminating, blessing and protecting this puja.”

“The Yidam Dorje Phurba of the dharma performed today is the wrathful yidam of Buddhism. Yidam in Buddhism is divided into peaceful yidam and wrathful yidam. The dreadful appearance shown by the wrathful yidam is not to punish you for your mistakes, since you will take on the karmic effects of what you do. It is not Buddhas and Bodhisattvas punishing you. The wrathful yidam is to help sentient beings stop their greed, hatred and delusion in mind sooner, when they have these heavy afflictions. The wrathful yidam is like parents teaching their children. At the beginning, parents would teach their children kindly. But if children continuously pay no attention, parents show a wrathful appearance to make children listen.  However, today, many children are not obedient no matter how wrathful their parents are, and it is because the sentient beings in the Age of Degenerate Dharma have so much heavy karma. “

“The practice of Dorje Phurba Ritual is to help all attendees: 1. eliminate illness of mind, emotion, and brain; 2. dispel unknown disease and cancers caused by ghosts, demons, dragons, and deities; 3. avoid possible accidents affected by yearly, monthly, daily or hourly conflicts. Conflict, here, means that your personal magnetic field is conflicted with that of the year, month, date or hour, which brings you an accidental death. That means you die at an inopportune time. 4. be kept free from natural disasters such as floods, fire, and earthquake, which result from changes in the celestial elements; 5. be protected from harm by poisons or curses; 6. eliminate accumulated karmic obstacles.”

“Dorje Phurba is the wrathful yidam of Vajrasattva. Dorje Phurba is also the mind manifestation of Amitabha Buddha, Vajrapani, Manjurshri Bodhisattva, and Vajra Bhairava. Dorje Phurba is the essence of all Buddha activities. Practitioners who practice the Dharma of Dorje Phurba perpetually can be propitious and endowed with all kinds of merits, wealth, good health, longevity, many disciples, prosperous Buddhist activities, boundless power, and perfection in all aspects. The dharma text performed today was organized by the twenty-ninth Drikung Kyabgon Tenzin Peme Gyaltsen. This particular dharma text is more helpful for ordinary believers, while the other dharma texts are not performed publicly. The Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang is the thirty-seventh Kyabgon in the Drikung Kagyu Lineage. Empowerment and transmission of the practice were personally bestowed by His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang upon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche, who then completed a perfect retreat on the Yidam. This dharma text has a long history. The force of Dorje Phurba is especially powerful. If any practitioner can have Dorje Phurba as his or her dharma protector when performing rituals or pujas, he or she can subdue all devils.”

“Practitioners who conduct Dorje Phurba Ritual must have performed perfect retreats, attained the compassion of emptiness and profound meditation. They must also have obtained the ability to transfer consciousnesses to the Pure Land. Although there are also wrathful gods in other religions, the underlying meaning is different. Practitioners of other religions perform rituals to expel or kill enemies. In Buddhism, however, to perform the rituals of wrathful yidams, one has to attain both the ability to eliminate and to transfer enemies to the Pure Land. If a practitioner can simply kill enemies, but cannot transfer them to the Pure Land, it will entail bad karmic retribution. The foundation of Buddha Dharma is compassion. Even toward one’s enemy, one has to be compassionate. If you fight with your enemy and you win, whenever your enemy has a chance to seek revenge, they will do so. Only through Buddha Dharma and a Buddhist practitioner, can one’s enemies, including all the sentient beings one has hurt in past lives, can be transferred. Buddha Dharma can rudimentarily solve our problems. Only through compassion can all your problems be solved with no residual effects.”

“In the following procedure, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche will begin to conduct the ritual. You will not understand what Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche does. Nor will you understand what Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche says. It is not important that you don’t understand what Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche does or says. Only Rinpoche’s root guru, His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang, knows. It is also the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang who has approved Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s attainment. You are not the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang; therefore, all you need to know is that all the actions of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are for the benefit of sentient beings. They want to help sentient beings leave suffering in the ocean of reincarnation. This is sufficient for you to know.”

His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche began to perform the ritual of Dorje Phurba and gave the following enlightenment: “Usually, there are three sessions in performing rituals of Buddha Dharma. They are preliminary practice, main practice and dedication prayer. What had just finished was a preliminary practice. The following is the main practice, which is the primary conduction of the ritual. Preliminary practice is to aspire to Bodhichitta and to make offerings. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche has given blessing to some food which will be brought to the outside of the hall to feed ghosts and spirits, so they will not come in to interfere with the proceedings of the puja.” The next ritual was about making eight kinds of offerings. It was performed by using eight kinds of food to make offerings to Buddhas and the yidam.”

Then Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche began the rituals of greeting the Yidam’s arrival, making offerings, and praising Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche enlightened that you should sit upright and not lean on the back of the chairs during the ritual. Nor should you leave to go to the bathroom. You should not have other thoughts and a delusive mind, either. You could participate in the rituals by thinking that you are here on behalf of all sentient beings that you have hurt and all your parents of past lives. If you attend the puja with reverence, the rituals would be very beneficial to you. As Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche began conducting the rituals, Rinpoche asked attendees to say three times their own names, as well as the names of their families and friends whom they wish Dorje Phurba to help.

Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche continued to conduct the main practice of the Dharma of Dorje Phurba and recited the mantra of the Yidam. It is very important to follow the sequence of rituals closely when performing the ceremony. When Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche began to recite the mantra of the yidam, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche showed an extremely bold and powerful look with vertical eyebrows, protruding eyes, and a stretched mouth, which is identical with the wrathful appearance of Dorje Phurba. This was an auspicious sign of attuning to the yidam. While reciting mantra several times, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche rumbled with a sound like that of roaring thunder, majestically turning his neck and staring at attendees. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche showed a wrathful look lasting quite a long time. Its power was beyond imagining. Attendees felt the incredible dignifying and powerful force of Dorje Phurba Yidam’s arrival. While the rituals proceeded, the six hundred attendees remained absolutely quiet, and no one got up to walk about. Even babies stopped crying. This mighty force of encompassing invincibility was unimaginable! Tears rolled down many attendees’ cheeks. These phenomena indicated the powerful blessings of Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche which can help people eliminate obstacles to learning Buddhism and benefit innumerable sentient beings.

Prior to the commencement of the puja, three doves were flying into and, from time to time hovering in, the venue. When the puja began, they stopped at the roof beams, quietly participating in the puja.

Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche then started to perform the ritual of A-Chi Dharma Protector. It was to thank A-Chi Dharma Protector who had protected the puja, allowing it to proceed smoothly and successfully.

Then, the Tsok offering was conducted. Every attendee received a portion of the food offering blessed by Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche. Thereby, all attendees had an auspicious and rare opportunity to share food with the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas during the puja. Then, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche spoke. “The food offering distributed today was Japanese food transported from Taiwan. Everyone, eat just a little bit during the puja, and take one piece out to make an offering to sentient beings who were unable to attend the puja. This is to practice generosity. Only those who have great merit would have the opportunity to share food with the guru, the yidam, the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. It would be impossible for one without merits to do so, just like a beggar can never have a meal with a wealthy person. Today, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche enabled everyone to have an opportunity to share food with the guru, the yidam, the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas at the same time. Why were you told to take a piece of the food offering outside? It was for those invisible sentient beings, such as deities and devils, who could not attend the puja. Thereby, these beings can also receive help from the guru, the yidam, the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. As these food were offered to the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, whoever eats them will be blessed. Apart from helping everyone to eliminate karmic obstacles, it is to help everyone forming the karmic connection by sharing food with the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.”

Then, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche recited the Dharma text and enlightened, “The prayers recited just now are repentance and wish-fulfilling prayers. They are to help everyone eliminate their afflictions. Our afflictions originate from our desires, and desires bring about attachment. We suffer because of our attachment. Through the help of the guru, the yidam, the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, everyone can eliminate afflictions.”

Then, with the Phurba vajra, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche cut the food offering, made of tsampa. Those cuts made with the Phurba vajra were symbolic in that all the beings who had grudges against you were summoned to the dish, and after the cut their hatred towards you became offerings to the Yidam.

After that, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche compassionately instructed attendees to approach the mandala and personally bestowed blessing upon each individual’s crown with the Phurba vajra. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s right shoulder joint does not have cartilage. In order to bestow blessings upon nearly six hundred attendees, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpcohe held the Dharma instrument in his right hand and had to bend his arm hundreds of times. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche provided help to sentient beings with undivided attention and still remembered to instruct disciples to adjust the queue of believers for receiving precious balls of longevity and wine of longevity, totally without regard to his own fatigue. How resolute is the heart of an accomplished Vajrayana practitioner! Even though Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche himself was in great pain, he still was constantly concerned with the suffering of sentient beings. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche truly dedicates his entire life to help sentient beings with Buddhist teachings without asking anything in return.

Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche continued the puja, and said that you should not be concerned about the matters to be conducted next by Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche. Only His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang would know about it, and you would not, unless you were His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang. All you had to do was to sit upright and listen attentively. As long as you can concentrate, it will definitely be good to your future and it will definitely benefit you.

Then, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche held a five-colored flag in his hand and said, “This ritual will help you increase your lifespan. The greed, hatred, and ignorance you usually harbor have been causing you to commit evil deeds that decrease your lifespan. Killing beings, eating meat, drinking, smoking, taking drugs, and having a lot of desires all decrease one’s lifespan. Through this practics, one’s lifespan that was decreased can be supplemented. To a Buddhist, increasing lifespan enables you to have sufficient time to learn Buddhism. To ordinary people, increasing lifespan enables you to do charity, rather than enjoying life or making money. Do not do things just to become rich. Do not be corrupted or bribe others. The fact that you have wealth in this life is because you made offerings and practiced generosity in your previous lives. You should do more charities and accumulate your virtues so as to have a good future life.

The purpose of giving you a little longer lifespan is not to let you find your husband or wife. If you had the causal condition to find a husband or a wife, you should already have had such a relationship and would not have waited until now. Your fate in this life is caused by what you have done in previous lives. The conditions you can have would have already happened. If you still do not have those conditions it indicates that you are destined for such a situation.” Then, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche recited mantras and slowly waved the five-colored flag to bless the participants. After completing the dharma, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche spoke to the attendees, “The ritual of today’s puja is perfectly completed.” Then, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche proceeded to perform the ritual to send off the Yidam.

Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche enlightened the attendees. “The first important thing in Buddhism is giving charity, which is like the act of Sikhs who often donate food to poor people. For those of you who believe in a different religion, listen to the teachings of your own gods and continue to do charity and help others.

Buddhism teaches the arising of inter-connected occurrences. Buddhism originated in India. At the time, Sakyamuni Buddha began to preach Buddhism near India and Nepal. Later, Buddhism was spread to China, Tibet, and around the world. Today, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche, as a member of Tibetan Buddhism, comes back to India to hold this puja. This event has a very profound meaning to Indians, Chinese, and Tibetans.”

Because the disciple who is responsible for oral translation did not interpret properly, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche spoke directly to the participating believers with his fluent English. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche had only a high school diploma, but this disciple had been educated at a famous American university. Reasonably speaking, the disciple’s English should have been very good. However, he could not describe clearly and appropriately as Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche did. “Can you understand Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s English?” All participants nodded to indicate that they did. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche then said that the disciple, who was responsible for oral translation, was too nervous! “He wished he could do the best interpretation; but, in fact, there is no such thing as ‘best’.

The most important thing is concentration. You should do things with full concentration without wishing to achieve the ‘best’. There is no ‘best’ in the world. The most important thing in practicing Buddhism is to begin to practice it; you should not ask what the best is when practicing Buddhism. Buddhism is not a religion, but a high level of education, which is different from other religions. The purpose of today’s puja is not to ask you to take refuge under Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche or Buddhism. You can follow what is taught by the gods in whom you believe and continue to do virtuous deeds. It was a kind of rising condition for everyone to attend the puja today; the puja will definitely give you very deep help for your future. The most important thing is to do charity without thinking that you are doing good deeds. Doing these virtuous deeds is not for yourself or for some kind of purpose. No matter how many virtuous deeds you have done or how much you have achieved, do not ask why. Doing charity should be the same as breathing. If you do not breathe, you will die. Do not think the purpose of helping others is for doing charity. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche will remember you and pray for you every day.

In order to bring about today’s Dorje Phurpa Puja, in addition to the participation of local believers, there is still Mr. J.P. Singh’s sponsorship. Mr. J.P. Singh spent a lot of money for this puja. There are also two hundred fifty disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist center, in Taiwan, who flew especially from Taiwan to India, the birthplace of Buddhism. They had spent a lot of money as well. Plus, there are four lamas from Dehradun who have come to help this puja. Furthermore, the puja also needs Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche to conduct the dharma. However, we do not ask anything in return for holding this puja. We only hope that the puja will be able to help all of you and this land. You have already created connections with Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche when attending today’s puja. If you want to know Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche and the related undertaking of Buddhism, you can visit the website of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center. From the website, you can see the contents of Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s teachings in each week’s puja. If you have any questions, you can also write an e-mail to Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche by following the link on the website.

The purpose of putting so much manpower and resources into today’s puja is to hope that this land and the local people can be well and coexist with each other peacefully. There are mountain gods in mountains and there are mothers of lands in lands. Why do disasters like earthquakes or war happen? There are earthquakes because you dig mountains, damage the land, and build fortifications on the land, so that the mother of land is affected. Today’s puja can make mothers of lands and mountain gods happy. It can let the people in this area live peacefully and work joyfully. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche does not ask anything in return but only hopes that everyone can use the time of this life to do more good deeds. Although there are only a few hundred people to attend today’s puja, if all of them can do virtuous deeds, be good persons, and have good behavior, they will affect the people around them and bring peace to the world.”

After the perfect completion of the puja, all participating disciples and believers lined on both sides with joy and gratitude to reverently see Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche getting off the dharma throne.

His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche immediately had a lunch banquet with all accompanying disciples. The disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center appreciated the guru Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche for once again bestowing the opportunity of accumulating blessings on disciples. The four lamas from Jangchubling in northern India were invited to attend the lunch banquet as well.

On November 11, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche traveled over two hundred kilometers to the Jangchubling Monastery, Dehradun, and led over two hundred disciples to attend the Winter Teachings at the Jangchubling Monastery in the following two days.

When greeting a great Rinpoche in ancient times, people would greet them from several kilometers away and make a tea offering. At around 6 pm of that day, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s car detoured from the main road to Songtsen Library. Lama Yanpei, who is the attendant of His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang; Puka , secretary of Jangchubling Monastery; and lama Konchog Chönyi, from Phiyang Monastery in Ladakh, greeted Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche and presented a Khadak scarf. After ten minutes of further driving they arrived at the Songtsen Library. Khenpo Rangdol, who is the Principal of Kagyu College; lama Bili , who is the general director of Jangchubling Monastery, and Lama Tsulwang came to receive Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche. They also presented a Khadak scarf. The reception for Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche was held in the style for a great Rinpoche.

On November 12, His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche led two hundred forty-nine disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center to Jangchubling, Dehradun, India, to attend the 2011 Winter Teachings of the Drikung Kagyu Order. In the morning, the benevolent Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche instructed the disciples to pay homage to the Samtenling Nunnery. The disciples were thereby granted a rare opportunity to visit the retreat room in which Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche conducted his very first retreat, do prostrations to the retreat room of Dharma Protector Achi, and circumambulate the mandala of Chakrasamvara.

The Samtenling Nunnery, located in northern Dehradun, is close to the Jangchubling Monastery, Songtsen Library, and Kagyu College. In 1997, His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche performed his first retreat at the Jangchubling Monastery, India. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche saw that the monastery did not have any water supply system. The nuns at the institute had to get pails of water at the water source in the low temperatures of the early morning so as to meet daily needs for water consumption. The benevolent Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche sympathized with the painstaking efforts taken by the nuns every day and provided sponsorship for the construction of a water tower and pumping equipment. The shortage of water at the monastery was thereby solved. With Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s continuous support, the number of nuns practicing at the Samtenling Nunnery has increased from twenty-five to over eighty.

After paying homage to the Samtenling Nunnery, disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center went by coach to the nearby Jangchubling Monastery. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche led the disciples to attend the November 12th Winter Teachings of the Drikung Kagyu Order. This year’s winter teachings were presided over by His Eminence Garchen Rinpoche. The preparatory Hevajra Empowerment would be held today. When it was almost 2 pm, the disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center stood in a procession along the driveway in front of the monastery and reverently greeted Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche.

At that time, two young believers from Russia approached the procession, curiously asking who were the disciples waiting for and where they were from. One of the disciples answered, “We are waiting for our guru, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche. We are from the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center, in Taiwan, here to attend the Winter Teachings.” These two Russians immediately said that, although they had never met Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche, they felt immensely grateful towards Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche. The reason was they had heard a lot about Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s support for the monastery and the Winter Teachings. Because of Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche, their group of forty to fifty people from France, Germany, Russia, Australia, and Switzerland was able to participate in the teachings without any discomfort.

Before long, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s car arrived at the entrance to the Jangchubling monastery. Lama Bili, general director of the monastery, greeted Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche. The lama made offering of a Khadak scarf and personally accompanied Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche into the venue.

At commencement of the teachings, Garchen Rinpoche accepted the mandala offering and bestowed the Buddhist teachings upon the attendees. After the midterm break of the puja, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche spoke to two believers from Sweden. The two told Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche they had browsed Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s website. It can be seen that Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s immense influential power is incredible.

When Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche was about to lead the disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center to leave the venue, believers from other countries saw Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s awe-inspiring appearance and came on their own initiative to pay homage to Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpcohe’s influential power was so great that all the monks and nuns in the venue stopped to bow to Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche in reverence when they saw Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche passing by. Their sincere reverence and affection, which were expressed naturally, were truly amazing!

After the teachings, His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche allowed the disciples to visit the Songtsen Library, established by His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang, and instructed the disciples to stay quiet during the visit. In 2001, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche knew about His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon’s wish to establish a library to preserve Buddhist scriptures. In order to fulfill the guru’s wish, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche single-handedly took on the responsibility for the fundraising. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche implored His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang to send tens of lamas to Taiwan to perform in a tour of the Vajra Dances. It was the first time the Vajra Dances had gone on an island-wide tour in Taiwan. A fund of 200,000 USD was raised for the construction and inauguration of the Songtsen Library and for the installation of computers and accessories in the library. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche was extremely reverent and circumspective toward his root guru, His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche is always thoughtful for his guru, takes the guru’s fatigue into consideration, and makes preparations and arrangements for the guru, thereby freeing his guru from worries. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche still continuously provides sponsorship for the Songtsen Library. It is an on-going and long-term commitment..

At the time, the Songtsen Library was closed for the day. It was reopened particularly for the disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center. The director of the Songtsen Library personally gave an orientation program for the disciples. In the Songtsen Library, where precious texts and artifacts of Buddhism are preserved, the disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center also paid homage to a statue of the Thousand-eyed and Thousand-armed Avalokiteshvara, made of rare sandalwood, and visited a magnificent collection of tormas. They felt grateful for the guru’s grace and virtues. Without the guru Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s continuous long-term support for the lineage, the disciples would not have the opportunity to attend the Winter Teachings, receive auspicious blessing of the lineage, or have been treated as honorable guests by the monastery.

On November 13, His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche again led the disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center to the Jangchubling Monastery to attend the main empowerment of Hevajra. When Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s car arrived at the entrance of the Jangchubling Monastery, lama Bili, secretary of the Monastery, reverently greet Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche and presented a Khadak scarf. He accompanied Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche into the venue. The Abbot of the Jangchubling Monastery, His Eminence Trisab Gyabra Rinpoche, walked down from the mandala to invite Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche to a seat on the mandala. In addition, because of the request of Garchen Rinpoche, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche was seated at the second highest seat on the left side of Garchen Rinpoche, the presiding guru. Most Venerable Nupa Rinpoche was in front. The presiding guru, His Eminence Garchen Rinpoche, ascended the dharma throne and then he walked to Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche. Garchen Rinchen and Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche each touched their forehead in greeting.

The teaching began. Garchen Rinpoche taught on the meaning and content of the Hevajra empowerment until noon. During lunch break, Garchen Rinpoche stepped down from the dharma throne and invited Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche to have a chat in the lounge. Later, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche instructed the disciples to leave for lunch.

After lunch, His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche led the disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center back to the Jangchubling Monastery and continued to attend the Hevajra Empowerment Puja. At the beginning of the program, His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche was arranged as the first one leading his ordained, as well as laity, disciples, to present the mandala and offerings for the presiding guru, His Eminence Garchen Rinpoche. While presenting the mandala, His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche also presented as gifts five hundred DVDs of the 793rd Anniversary Drikung Kagyu Lord Jigten Sumgon Memorial Grand Puja, presided over by His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang at the Taipei Arena in 2010. The DVDs were brought from Taiwan especially, to be given to  ordained participants and believers.The DVDs were distributed by lamas. Because response to the DVDs was so enthusiastic, and hoping that more people could know His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang and Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche promised to send another five hundred DVDs to Jangchubling Monastery to be given to believers, ordained people and donors. During the puja, Garchen Rinpoche politely invited Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche to give empowerment; however, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche humbly declined. Before the end of the puja, lamas distributed some Indian rupees, provided by Garchen Rinpoche, to every attendee. With much compassion, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche immediately instructed every disciple to collect back all rupees they received, and made it an offering to the presiding guru. The disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center were all extremely grateful to Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche for creating an opportunity for them to accumulate merits. Before concluding the teachings, Garchen Rinpoche presented a bag of nectar pills for Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche. At once, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche instructed that the bag of nectar pills be distributed amongst all disciples who attended the teachings. The disciples felt very grateful and moved to be able to follow Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche to attend the teachings and thereby receive such an invaluable treasure.

At the completion of the teachings at the Jangchubling Monastery, His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche led the disciples to seek an audience with His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang. Before going to the residence of His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang, the benevolent Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche instructed the disciples. Originally, His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang does not see anyone at the moment and needs to rest completely. However, today, His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang would make an exception and receive the disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center. When meeting with His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang, no one should speak, greet, or say “thank you”. No disciple should try to express their gratitude or emotions with tears. No disciple should disturb His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang or make any noise. The disciples should leave immediately after meeting with His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang. His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche created auspicious karmic connections for the disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center to meet with His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang. All the disciples were extremely grateful.

The grateful disciples followed Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche into the residence of His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang. His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang was so kind as to let the disciples come into the room and sit down. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche did not want His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang to become tired and thereby instructed the disciples to settle in as soon as possible. His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang then pointed to a bag of vajra knots on the Dharma table, saying that those were to be given to the disciples in the room. At seeing this, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche left his seat at once, and went to the side of His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang in order to help His Holiness take out the vajra knots from the bag. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche was worried that His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang would be exhausted giving the vajra knots to every single disciple, and, therefore, implored His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang to pass along the vajra knots among the disciples. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche personally held the vajra knots in his hands for His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang to bless the knots by blowing air onto them. Then, the knots were given to the ordained disciples sitting in the front row, and then were passed to everyone. At the moment when His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang took out the vajra knots to give to the disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center, some of them had a slip of the tongue and said “thank you” to His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche admonished such misconduct at once, for these disciples should not have spoken and disturbed His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang.

In order to attend to the needs of His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche grabbed a cushion and simply sat on the floor beside the throne of His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang, naturally revealing his circumspect and reverence towards the guru. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche expressed his unsurpassed reverence and obedience towards His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang, attending to the guru’s needs without distractions. Rinchen Dojree Rinpoche himself was truly the best example to follow for a disciple on how to attend to his guru.

After all the disciples had received the vajra knots, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche did not want His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang to deplete any more mental or physical strength and told the disciples to leave. Nevertheless, His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang was very compassionate. Disregarding his own fatigue, His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang still bestowed a precious brief advice upon the disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center. His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang said to the disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center, “Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche has been very loyal to the lineage in the past twenty years. You should follow the guru’s instruction very closely, and His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang will bestow blessings upon you.” Having received the precious advice and vajra knots from His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang, the disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center gratefully nodded in reply. The disciples’ gratitude for His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang’s meaningful and heartfelt words was beyond expression. Then, the disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center, following Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s instruction, left the residence of His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang.

On that same day, after dinner, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche entered the retreat room, despite his own fatigue, and for the benefits of sentient beings, began his twelfth retreat at the Jangchubling Monastery. His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang knows that Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche has devoted himself to liberate countless beings and help them with absolutely no regard for himself. His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang, therefore, especially instructed Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche to conduct the retreat at Jangchubling Monastery this year. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche always listens to His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang, his root guru, and follows instructions accordingly. He never finds any excuse or postpones anything. Even though Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche is very busy in running his owns companies and taking care of more than 1,000 disciples and their families, however, once he receives the instructions from His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang , Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche immediately takes action, and arrives at the time specified by His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang.

On November 19, at 7:30 a.m., 54 disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center gathered in Dehradun, India to reverently greet His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche. His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche perfectly completed his twelfth retreat. As soon as he emerged from the retreat room, he went to pay homage to His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang to offer all the merits accumulated from this retreat to His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang. The sky was cloudy that day, but when Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche emerged from the retreat room, the clouds above the room started to churn. All of a sudden, the sun burst through the clouds and its beams darted forth, and the clouds changed into the shape of a dragon. The sun broke through the clouds and cast its golden rays all over. The clouds gradually dissipated, and the vast blue sky reappeared. It was just like the Buddha’s light illuminating the world. The sentient beings obtained the help of auspicious Buddha Dharma, and regained their pure nature. The marvelous signs of the perfect completion of an accomplished practitioner’s retreat are truly amazing!

Meanwhile, many different kinds of birds, including unidentifiable colorful birds, eagles, swallows, doves, and so forth, flied from nowhere to circle above His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s retreat room. Sometimes they hovered, and sometimes they perched in trees. They constantly chirped and sung lively songs. Seeing this, the disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center, felt extremely joyful and praised the great practitioner’s sublime merits! His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche followed His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang’s instructions to carry out the retreat, totally disregarding himself and entirely benefiting sentient beings. The various auspicious signs at the moment when Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche completed the retreat clearly showed his extraordinary achievements!

After emerging from his retreat, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche gave the food that was used for the Tsok offering in the retreat to a male disciple, instructing him to distribute the food among the disciples who had come to greet Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche at the completion of his retreat. This disciple is reticent and seldom interacts with others. Compassionate Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche was so attentive that he particularly instructed this disciple to give out the blessed nuts and cookies to other disciples, so as to let him have the opportunity to make virtuous connections with everyone. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche, as a guru, has always cared deeply about his disciples, and created auspicious virtues and virtuous conditions for them!

The disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center reverently waited in a queue for Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche to lead them to New Delhi. When Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche arrived, the ordained disciples made offerings to His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche on behalf of sentient beings, and led the other disciples to do prostrations three times. His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche bestowed blessings on the disciples with his benevolent eyes and instructed them to rise and board the buses. When Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche led the buses to leave Dehradun, many different kinds of birds still hovered for a while.

In the evening, compassionate Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche let all of the disciples who came on this trip have the precious opportunity to enjoy dinner with Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche, so as to help them accumulate virtuous conditions. Again, everyone was immensely grateful.

When attending the teachings at the Jangchubling Monastery, a male disciple did not act properly while serving His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche. Immediately, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche scolded and hit him in public, bestowing blessings. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s teaching is very strict. As soon as a disciple makes a mistake, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche corrects him right away, preventing him from creating negative causes. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s joke, laughs, anger, and admonishment are all Buddhist teachings and manifestations of his loving kindness. During this trip to India, even with extreme fatigue from traveling, Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche always cared about the disciples in his heart and made circumspective arrangements for the disciples. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche constantly bestowed nuts and fruits for the disciples to eat and always gave the best to the disciples. The disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center are extremely grateful, knowing clearly that one can never learn, or practice, Buddhism without the guru. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche created auspicious cause and conditions for the disciples to have such a precious opportunity to go to Jalandhar, India, to attend the Dorje Phurba Puja, presided over by His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche, as well as the 2011 Hevajra Empowerment held at the Jangchubling Monastery in Dehradun, India. The disciples of the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center are extremely fortunate to be able to follow His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche to learn the Buddhist teachings and thereby receive the blessings of His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang and the pure lineage of Drikung Kagyu. All the disciples are deeply grateful for the endless grace and virtues of their guru.

Updated on December 14, 2011