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Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Khen Rinpoche Geshe Chonyi, and Kopan Lama Gyupa monks reciting the Guhyasamaja root tantra on Lhabab Duchen, November 7, 2020, Kopan Monastery, Nepal. Photo by Ven. Lobsang Sherab.
One of the four great holy days on the Buddhist calendar, Lhabab Duchen, took place this year on November 7. FPMT centers and students around the world took this opportunity to engage in meritorious activities as recommended by Lama Zopa Rinpoche.
Rinpoche is still at Kopan Monastery in Nepal and he, along with the Sangha there, offered a variety of prayers and practices on the special occasion.
Kopan Lama Gyupa monks created the sand mandala of Thirteen-Deity Yamantaka. They completed it the day before Lhabab Duchen. On Lhabab Duchen the monks do the Thirteen-Deity Yamantaka self initiation for three days. On the third day, they offered a peaceful fire puja and dismantled the sand mandala. The following day the sand went into the river. A naga puja followed.
Thirteen-Deity Yamantaka sand mandala constructed by the Kopan Lama Gyupa monks.
Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Khen Rinpoche Geshe Thubten Chonyi, and the Lama Gyupa monks also recited Guhyasamaja Tantra in Lama Gyupa gompa at Kopan Monastery next to the beautiful Thirteen-Deity sand mandala.
“The Guhyasamaja Tantra holds a special place in the tantric tradition. In the Root Tantra, in the section on the title, it states that every secret of the body, speech, and mind of every tathagata is contained within this tantra. Lama Tsongkhapa says just to read, study, or even come into contact with this tantra is of immense benefit, and that as long as the Guhyasamaja Tantra remains, the teachings of the Buddha remain also, because ‘it is the amulet carrying the Buddhadharma,’” Thubten Jinpa writes in the introduction to A Lamp to Illuminate the Five Stages by Lama Tsongkhapa.
Please enjoy this video of the recitation of the Guhyasamaja Tantra recitation including footage of the sand mandala:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=2P7s1gWZqI8
Extensive light offerings were also offered at the monastery in the evening.
“It is mentioned that if we make offerings of light or incense, do prostrations and so forth, we collect numberless great merits,” Lama Zopa Rinpoche said in Singapore in 2013, when discussing the benefits of offering light. “By making light offerings, you are able to dispel the darkness of ignorance and achieve wisdom. By offering light, you are never in darkness while you are circling in samsara. There will always be light. And offering light just one time to Buddha creates the karma to have great wealth for many hundreds or thousands of lifetimes. … [We also attain] a higher rebirth, in a pure land. We quickly achieve nirvana, and not only nirvana but also the great nirvana, enlightenment.”
Please enjoy this short video of the offerings:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBSaIOWaj3k&feature=youtu.be
Rinpoche has advised that because merit is multiplied by 100 million on wheel-turning days, we need to “wake up” and not waste the opportunity by being distracted by worldly pleasures and worldly concerns.
Please rejoice in these meritorious practices completed on this holy occasion of Lhabab Duchen this year. May these and all the virtuous activities offered around the world on this special day be the cause for all beings to experience peace.
Lama Zopa Rinpoche is the spiritual director of the Foundation for the Preservation of Mahayana Tradition (FPMT), a Tibetan Buddhist organization dedicated to the transmission of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition and values worldwide through teaching, meditation and community service.
Watch the video series “Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Teachings on Thought Transformation during the Time of COVID-19” and find links to videos in translation, transcripts, MP3s, additional practice advice, and more:
https://fpmt.org/fpmt/announcements/resources-for-coronavirus-pandemic/advice-from-lama-zopa-rinpoche-for-coronavirus/