His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche’s Puja Teachings – July 24, 2021

His Eminence Rinchen Dorje Rinpoche presided over the Immense Torma Offering Ritual of Dragon King at the Glorious Jewel Buddhist Center in Taipei.

Rinpoche respectfully made a khadak-offering to the Dharma throne of His Holiness, lit lamps as an offering to the Buddha, and ascended the Dharma throne to compassionately bestow the precious Dharma teachings.

“Today, I will perform the Immense Torma Offering Ritual of Dragon King. Only after one has obtained the empowerment of Lion’s-Roar Avalokiteshvara, one of 50 yidams of Drikung Kagyu, can one perform this Dharma ritual. In the Amitabha Sutra, it is mentioned that we are born in the evil time of the Five Turbidities, and one of them is the living-being turbidity. On earth, there are not only human beings living in it, but also other sentient beings, like dragon species. There are many kinds of dragons. Some will protect and support the Dharma, like what devas, nagas and others of eight groups of non-humans do. Some dragons will not though. Although dragons are born in the Animal Realm, they have great good fortune and supernatural powers. However, their sense of hatred has been heavier. Hence, in the processes of your practices, if you give rise to any kinds of sense of hatred, and even if you have achieved some attainment, there are opportunities for you to fall into the Animal Realm. Shakyamuni Buddha had taught that it is written in sutras that as long as dragons angrily glare at you, you will get ill.

People who have attended this puja today should have a great sense of repentance. In this lifetime, we had eaten so much, that we cannot count, of flesh of sentient beings, especially the seafood. If you had eaten it, or had killed fish, in this life, you really need to make repentances thoroughly in today’s puja. Do not think that since you have already repented you are fine now. Those repentances do not mean that this matter of eating flesh of sentient beings has been solved.

Humans’ illnesses, like cancer, skin diseases, rare and bizarre diseases, lupus erythematosus (in red, scaly, skin patches) or tumors grown on the body, are all related to dragon species. In this age, it is very easy to get dragon-related sicknesses. This is because human beings continuously kill flesh of animals for food, and love to eat seafood. Aquatic creatures are all dragons’ family members, so if a person has eaten such members, this person has a much higher level of opportunities to get cancer than normal people have. What things can humans do that will harm dragons? They live on trees, in stones, in water and in mountains. Human beings cultivate grounds indiscriminately, destroy mountainous forests, contaminate water sources, move stones around, cut down trees, burn forests, or blast mountains or stones. All these activities will harm dragons; they then have come to take revenge on humans. Like humans, dragons will get sick. Because of various reasons dragons get ill. Besides dragons’ own karma, there are also many things that human beings have done making dragons get sick.

Today we will make offerings through tormas to Dragon King, and we hope that Dragon King will command its family members to reduce their sense of hatred towards human beings so as not to harm humans. Most of floods, natural disasters or great forest fires are related to dragons. The term ‘dragon’ does not simply refer to dragon species; many family members of this species and goblins are also included. It is very difficult to subdue goblins, unless dragon species is subdued; then goblins will be. Why are there devas, nagas and others of eight groups of non-humans? It is because for some goblins and little ghosts, when they are talked to with the Dharma, they will not understand it from listening or from thinking, so other methods are relied on to control them, like using things they are afraid of. They fear for dragons. Sometimes there are water-ghosts or water-goblins in water; they will withdraw when seeing Dragon King around, and will not harm human beings. This is why I constantly exhort you to eat vegetarian; the reason is right here.

Nowadays, sciences and medical science have advanced. They can remove tumors or go through chemotherapy to make people live for a few more years. However, there is nothing can be done to completely cure cancer. Also, after surgeries or chemotherapy, your body has already been damaged, so your bodily health will become worse and worse. People who get cancer should do a self-review about what harms they have done in this life to what kinds of sentient beings. Many people think that they have not done bad deeds or wrong things; nevertheless, living in the modern society, it is very easy to contaminate water sources directly or indirectly. Do not think that just by pouring something into the water is contaminating water sources; doing these things will too: barbecuing on stream-sides or riversides or littering the rubbish along the way. These activities will let people have opportunities getting cancer.

From the perspective of medical science, cancerous tumors are formed because cells in the body have become bad ones. To us, this means dragon species lives in the cells of your body. As dragons’ cells are incompatible with your cells, of course you will get sick. Although you get your tumors removed, it does not mean dragons’ cells will disappear; they are still in your body. On today’s Dharma performance, if a person’s cancer has not acted up or has already shown the effects, this performance will reduce the seriousness of the illness. For those who have already gone through cancer surgeries, chemotherapy or removals of organ-tissue, this performance can reduce these people’s pain and decrease their chances of falling into the Three Evil Realms.

As a disciple of the Buddha, you should respect any sentient beings. Having the sense of hatred does not necessarily mean you are angry because others have let you down. As long as you feel you have been harmed, are unsatisfied for being criticized or have explained continuously with many methods and spoken languages, you have given rise to the sense of hatred. Such people will certainly have a personality close to that of dragons, and will easily be of the same type as dragons. As such, these people will then easily get dragons’ diseases. In the Dharma text, it is mentioned that dragons will get many kinds of diseases too. Thus, performing this Dharma today, through the blessings of the Dharma, will make the kindness and resentments between dragons and humans become good affinities. In addition to that, this performance will also cure many of dragons’ diseases at the same time.

If you constantly develop your own sense of hatred, feeling you have been bullied and then wanting to resist, or thinking you must say something clearly to avoid being bullied, then this is dragons’ behavior. Dragons will not let you bully them; so long as you do, they will definitely deal with you. If a person continuously develops a personality like that of dragons, and if the person has good fortune, he or she will be reborn as a dragon; with less good fortune, the person will be reborn as an anaconda, and with even much less good fortune, a snake. The well-known Precious Penitential Rites of Emperor of Liang is about a concubine of Emperor Wu of Liang. When she was alive, she had a heavy sense of jealousy, and often fought and competed with other people. Although she continuously followed Emperor Wu of Liang, paying obeisance to the Buddha and reciting the Buddha’s name, her personality could not take either others’ criticism or their opinions, therefore, after she died, she became an anaconda. She was deemed as having good fortune. If she did not have it, she would have become a small snake, which will be eaten by a large one, and in turn, it will be eaten by other types; this will go on and on.

Hence, while you are alive, all you have done from your thoughts, words and actions will determine what you will be when you die. If you think that in this life you can change your fate by chanting mantras more often, or if you have done wrong but are unwilling to amend your own personality in accordance with Dharma teachings, no matter how many times you have recited the Buddha’s name or sutras, how many prostrations to Him you have made, how much teachings you have listened to and wanted to understand, you cannot leave the Three Evil Realms. Do not think that because you have made prostrations to the Buddha or eaten vegetarian, you will not fall into the Three Evil Realms. You will, just the same. This has been happening to dragon species. In the Dharma text, there is a sentence exhorting dragons, ‘You dragon species should remember that you had seen Shakyamuni Buddha before.’ It means dragons, in one of their lifetimes, had paid obeisance to the Buddha, made prostrations to Him, and even possibly had seen Him. However, because of dragons’ sense of hatred, they have fallen into the Animal Realm, suffering the pain in that realm. They have good fortune and supernatural powers though. Look at the Dragon King; it is in charge of many of its family members.

Several years ago, when I was in Japan, in my visualization, I saw that in the pond of Glorious Jewel Buddhist Monastery in Miaoli there was a golden carp. Actually, it is a dragon. I have raised it and now it has grown a lot. There will be dragons in any places, and not definitely in mountainous areas or at watersides; they will be in all sorts of places, even those where we live in. As long as that particular environment is suitable for dragons, they will possibly dwell in the place. For example, if there is a place with trees nearby, it is possible that dragons live in that place.

I will perform this Dharma today and I hope all of you will respect sentient beings; do not think human beings are most amazing. Through the performance of this Dharma, I will also let you do a self-examination to see whether you are actually practicing the Dharma or methods of becoming animals. As long as you still have the sense of hatred, you will absolutely fall into the Animal Realm, and this will be the effect from the causes you have planted. Of course, many people will say, ‘He has harmed me, and that’s why I have given rise to the sense of hatred towards him.’ Then, they are not disciples of the Buddha. For the practices of the Six Paramitas, the first one is to practice forbearance. We should forbear all things happening to us; what others have done to us, whether those actions are good or bad, we should forbear them all. When people praise you, and if you feel very glad and satisfied or think that you have practiced well, then your good fortune has been consumed. When someone says you are wrong, and if you are displeased, wanting to argue, explain or rebut back, your good fortune will also be worn out and consumed because you have given rise to the sense of hatred.

Good fortune is not to be gained from practices in this lifetime. Accumulating good fortune is very difficult but consuming it is very simple. It is like the salary you have earned each month after working hard for 30 days; such money can be used up in no time and 30 days’ time is not needed for spending this salary. Our good fortune will be likewise consumed in a short while. Do not think that by making offerings occasionally there will be much good fortune gained. It needs to be gradually accumulated, and when it has been much accumulated, it will then be enough to let you not fall into the Three Evil Realms. Only when one’s good fortune is enough, can one be reborn in the Western World of Utmost Bliss. As long as you have indulged yourself in things, thinking, ‘It doesn’t matter; I will do a scolding or a quarrel first; after that, I will see what will happen in the future.’ In this way, your good fortune will be continuously worn out and consumed. Once good fortune has been used up, there will be no more of it. Everyone should be prudent about this.”

(The performance of the ritual was in progress.)

“It is the Lion’s-Roar Avalokiteshvara to eliminate the demons of sickness of sentient beings.

In the sutra, it is written, ‘Chanting Dharani in one’s own state of meditation and making offerings of tormas.’ This means the person who chants the mantra needs to be in a meditative state, and then makes offerings of tormas. Dragons will then stop doing damages and harms to all sentient beings, and all pains from the dragons’ Three Gates of body, speech and mind will also stop. In addition, Dragons will have the power of a Dharani (mantra) as a friend and their abilities to grow on lands will increase; all the common siddhi (accomplishment) will be attained. Rain will fall at a proper time and there will be no great rainstorms or droughts; food will be abundant and disputes will be appeased. There are countless benefits. Thus, this Dharani is very important and it is also a profound essential. It is of no use for one to perform this ritual if one does not observe samaya, has not conducted retreats, has not attained the realization in Emptiness, and cannot chant this mantra in a state of meditation.

The above-mentioned topics are all about almsgiving with substances (material things we can see), compassion and the giving of fearlessness; these are to get dragons satisfied. Only after these are done, is there the giving of the Dharma. What is the giving of fearlessness? It is the practicing of the Bodhisattva Path; one is to give alms to dragons without seeking returns to oneself so as to make dragons contented.

In the contents of the Dharma text, it is mentioned that dragons, goblins and earth-deities (masters of grounds) are together.

(The performance of the ritual was in progress.)

This Dharma should not be transmitted to you. In the Dharma text, it includes the methods of Subduing, Placating and Vanquishing. It is mentioned in a section of the last part of this text that dragons, goblins and earth-deities are told that if after they have accepted offerings through the performance of this Dharma, and if they still harm sentient beings, they will be punished. Vajrapani will impose the punishments on them. I have conducted a retreat of Vajrapani, and this is why I can perform such a Dharma. Hayagrīva (a diamond-king with horse-head), Dragon King or garudas (birds), that dragons very much afraid of, will come inflicting the punishments on these dragons.

Performing this Dharma is in the hope to unravel the resentments between humans and dragons. Because human beings have harmed dragons, performing this Dharma can compensate dragons for their grievances; it is also hoping that dragons can make amends for the harms they have done to sentient beings. We hope that after dragons have obtained the offerings and almsgiving of wealth, the Dharma and fearlessness, they will accept the Right Dharma. For those dragons that do not accept it, the practitioner who performs this Dharma will implore Bodhisattvas of Vajrayana to punish these dragons.

You will say, ‘Aren’t the Buddha and Bodhisattvas compassionate? Why will they punish those dragons?’ If all your issues have been solved, but you still do not listen and still want to harm sentient beings, then with great compassion, the Buddha and Bodhisattvas will impose punishments on you to let you know the fear so that you will not act on bad deeds any more. Many people think that learning Buddhism is to gain benefits and all practitioners will give you what you want. However, as mentioned earlier, they will give you things, giving alms and making offerings to you, but they want you to be able to benefit sentient beings. After you have been given things this way, if you still do not listen and if you still have senses to harm sentient beings, such as liking quarrelling with your elders, talking back to them, being disobedient or arrogant, et cetera, you will have Bodhisattvas of Vajrayana ‘coming’ to you. It is not necessarily that Bodhisattvas themselves will come. They have many family members, who will be coming to warn you, letting you know that you are wrong; they might make you sick.

Although I know how to perform these types of Dharmas, I do not plan to use them. I have also conducted many retreats of wrathful yidams, and they are all the yidams in my practices. As a Rinpoche, what I do every day are benefiting sentient beings. Even if some of things I have done are not as you wish or make you feel uncomfortable, you will give rise to the sense of hatred. Once this sense is arisen in your thoughts, the family members of these yidams will possibly come to punish you. Punishing you is not to let you die. What are written in this Dharma text are ways of dealing with dragons – to make them sick. However, the ways to deal with humans will not be like these. What have been written in the Dharma text are not to threaten disciples; rather, those words are to tell people that the guru continuously gives alms to sentient beings, therefore, if there are any of them thinking to harm the guru, the Buddha and Bodhisattvas will stop such acts. Because a guru can benefit innumerable sentient beings, the Dharma text is then to remind all people not to give rise to the sense of hatred towards their guru.

Once, when Shakyamuni Buddha went out, someone was up at the edge of a precipice with a big rock ready, wanting to push the rock down to harm Shakyamuni Buddha. Then the Mighty Vajra Deity appeared, smashed the rock and blocked up the crushed stones so that Shakyamuni Buddha would not be hit by them. The Deity not only saved the Buddha but also protected this person so that the person would not have caused blood to flow from the body of the Buddha. If that had happened, this person would have fallen into Five Uninterrupted Hells. The Buddha and Bodhisattvas are too compassionate. They do not wish to see any sentient beings falling into Five Uninterrupted Hells or great hells. The Buddha and Bodhisattvas let you know that there will be difficulties so that you will retreat, not to do negative deeds. If things around you are run smoothly for you, you will continue to do bad acts. If you are given, or have encountered, some difficulties, you will then know that you should not commit negative actions.

This Dharma text is not for ordinary people to implore for. Weather-wise, it had continuously rained just now, but then the sun came out after this Dharma had been performed. This is a good sign. It indicates that the Dharma has been performed to a perfect completion. Dragons have been delighted, feeling that the rain had fallen about enough, so they made the rain stop.

I hope that on what I have expounded today, you could have gotten that through your head. If you have and if you can amend yourself, you will master your practices in the future. If you have not gotten what I have taught through your head and if you will still continue living your life with your own thoughts, then sooner or later there will be issues happening to you. For example, there are instances recorded in many biographies in Tibet; people, who had wanted to harm their gurus, had problems occurring to them as a result. Do not misunderstand it. It is not that I am afraid of harms from you; I am not afraid of them. I have only told you this, in accordance with what is mentioned in the Dharma text and sutras: Buddhas and Bodhisattvas do not wish for any sentient beings to fall into the Hell Realm. They will punish you a little to let you know that you have done something wrong so that you will not continue doing it. Then if that happens, you will not reach serious situations to fall into hells.

Now you know why I have often punished you; there is a basis for it. It is not that I have meant to deliberately ‘fix’ you. It is mentioned very clearly that if you have done things wrong, Vajrapani or Hayagrīva will come to ‘fix’ you. The Great Bodhisattvas will do this, let alone me, an ordinary person.

Next Sunday, August 1st, is the birthday of the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang. We will have the Amitayus performed, praying and imploring for His Holiness to have good health and maintain an eternal presence in this world. For every disciple of mine, you cannot have any reasons for not attending the puja.”

Postscript.

During the past two days, Typhoon In-fa had been approaching northern Taiwan, bringing torrential rains for days. Today, Rinpoche performed the Ritual of Dragon King. When the puja came to a perfect completion, the heavy rain instantly stopped and a halo around the sun suddenly appeared; it was very auspicious. Also, a cloud in a shape of a dragon appeared in the sky with a ‘dragon head’ clearly and obviously seen, radiating a blue light; it was a dazzling sight and people were amazed in admiration. When a great practitioner has performed a Dharma to a perfect completion, there are auspicious signs frequently appearing; it is truly unfathomable!

Today when the puja came to a perfect completion, a cloud in a shape of a dragon appeared in the sky, and the position of the ‘dragon head’ radiated a blue light; it was a dazzling sight.

The puja of today had just been completed. The heavy rains of past few days instantly stopped and a halo around the sun suddenly appeared.

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Updated on April 19, 2022