Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, Bylakuppé, Karnataka, India - This morning prayers for his long life were offered to His Holiness the Dalai Lama at Tashi Lhunpo Monastery based on the prayer ‘Homage and Offerings to the Sixteen Elders’. When His Holiness came down from his rooms on top of the temple, he was received as he entered the assembly hall by the Tashi Lhunpo Abbot, Zikyab Tulku, who was serving as the Vajra-master for today’s ceremony and Kachen Lobsang Tseten, Former Abbot of the monastery. They escorted him to the throne as monks played horns and a ceremonial golden umbrella was borne aloft. Sikyong Penpa Tsering stepped forward to greet His Holiness and introduce friends.
After His Holiness had taken his seat, the long life ceremony according to the sutra tradition began with these lines:
I and all mother sentient beings equal to the expanse of space take refuge in the holy Lamas, we take refuge in the Buddhas. We take refuge in the Dharma. We take refuge in the Sangha. We take refuge in the Venerable Arya Tara and her retinue. We take refuge in the Dharmapalas who possess a wisdom eye.Reciting the following verse, the Vajra-master offered His Holiness a cushion marked with a crossed-vajra.
Reciting the following verse, the Vajra-master offered His Holiness a cushion marked with a crossed-vajra.
How fortunate and wonderful,
Our Buddha has arrived here.
May you accept our heavenly gifts,
Think of us and bless us all.
The ceremony continued with the customary praise of the Buddha, ‘The Prayer of Three Continuums’, followed by the verse for taking refuge and cultivating bodhichitta. The way to visualize the pure realm where Samantabhadra offerings actually displayed and imagined, could be made, was recited. The Buddhas were invited and offered first an ablution, then water to drink. A mandala offering was made.
Tea and ceremonial sweet rice were distributed among the congregation and verses to offer and bless them were said.
The prayer to the Sixteen Elders, also known as the Sixteen Arhats, began by inviting them to come forth together with the Buddha, in order that the Buddha’s teaching may continue to flourish. The seven-limb prayer of Samantabhadra was chanted, followed by a mandala offering requesting the Guru to live for a hundred aeons for the benefit of the doctrine and sentient beings.
The Vajra-master Zikyab Tulku accompanied by two Tashi Lhunpo monks offered His Holiness a mandala requesting him to live long. He then offered him representations of the enlightened body, speech and mind, the two yellow monastic robes, the Namjar and Chögö, a lower robe (shamthab), a hat, a mattress (dingwa), an alms bowl, a monastic staff (kharsil used to alert householders to a monk’s arrival at their door begging for alms), emblems of the seven royal symbols, the eight auspicious symbols, and the eight auspicious substances. Additional offerings included a white conch and a hat. There was a Tsaru Tsog Offering.
As has become customary, the prayer for His Holiness’s long life composed by his two Tutors, Kyabjé Ling Rinpoché and Kyabjé Trijang Rinpoché was chanted. Then came the homage and offering to the Sixteen Elders.
His Holiness addressed the gathering. “Today, here at Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, you have offered prayers for my long life. I am a reincarnation of Gyalwa Gendun Drup, the First Dalai Lama, Gyalwa Sonam Gyatso, the Third, and the other Dalai Lamas who came before me. Sometimes in my dreams, and so on, I feel I do have the blessings of my predecessors. I feel I have a connection with them.
“Moreover, the Dalai Lamas have a special connection with Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, so I feel honoured that you have offered these prayers here on my behalf. Over many lifetimes we have had connections with each other due to our karmic links and past prayers.
“Although I was born in the Do-mé Amdo region, I have a close connection with Tashi Lhunpo. So, it’s very auspicious that you have offered these prayers for me and I would like to thank you. That’s all.”
The prayers concluded with aspirations, expressed in verses from several sources, for the continued flourishing of the Dharma.
While the Abbot, Zikyab Tulku, presented offerings to His Holiness, Ven. Lobsang Dorjee, a senior monk of Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, read a tribute to His Holiness in support of the requests that had been made that he live long. “Your Holiness, you took responsibility for Tibet and its spiritual and worldly affairs and worked hard. Your universal compassion has brought widespread benefit, despite the great hardship and difficulties you have faced. You have worked hard for the benefit of all beings, for which we would like to thank you.
“As you reach 90 years old, we, human and non-human beings of Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, both inside Tibet and in exile, wanted to offer these prayers for your long life. To this end we have saved the lives of 113 sheep and goats, as well as 111,113 fish.
“In order to honour Your Holiness during your 90th year we are offering you this statue of Gyalwa Gendun Drup, the First Dalai Lama. In the right hand of this image is a vase containing the nectar of immortality, while the left holds a Dharma Wheel. We present this gold and silver statue to Your Holiness.
“We have prepared a collection of accounts of the lives of all the Dalai Lamas from the First to the Fourteenth in 29 volumes. We invite Your Holiness to launch this publication here, today. We pledge, in the future, to compile stories from Your Holiness’s life and publish them too.
“We have also published a book, a copy of which we have given to you, which contains works of admiration and praise for Your Holiness composed by students of Tashi Lhunpo Monastery.”
The tribute noted that His Holiness will have stayed at Tashi Lhunpo for almost two months for his health and well-being. During that time His Holiness has graciously given audience to the elderly and infirm from the Tibetan community. He also gave Bhikshu ordination to many monks, presided over prayers commemorating the passing away of Gyalwa Gendun Drup, as well as attending the grand debate that was held here. Tomorrow His Holiness will give the White Tara long life initiation.
“You not only visited the debate sessions we regularly hold here, but also looked in on the monastery school. We feel that your going here and there, inspecting the various aspects of our studies and our monastic life, have had the effect of blessing the monastery.
“One special quality of the omniscient Gyalwa Gendun Drup is that he not only founded Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, but even in his old age, he continued to teach the monks of the monastery. Your Holiness helped us reestablish and build this monastery, with its temple and so forth. You have been steadfast in your support. Your kindness to us has been inconceivable. We cannot repay you, even if we were to fill the three thousand worlds with precious stones.
“Nevertheless, you have provided us, monks of Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, both inside Tibet and in exile, the opportunity to make this long-life offering to you. Once again, we pray for Your Holiness’s long life in the aspect of Amitayus. May the great waves of your enlightened deeds benefit the world at large, and, before long, through Tibetans increasing their merit, may Your Holiness be united once more with Tibetans in Tibet. May that sun-filled day dawn soon.
“Finally, we make a fervent request to Your Holiness to come again and again to Tashi Lhunpo Monastery in the future. This is the appeal of Abbots, former Abbots and monks of the monastery—with our heartfelt thanks.”
His Holiness was escorted from the temple by the Abbot, former Abbot and monks playing horns and returned to his rooms on the upper floor.
