The Gyalwang Drukpa

Our beloved Kyabje Satrul Rinpoche chatted with me a couple of days ago. I was very concerned about the situation in Gyekundo and also I could not really believe that none of our monasteries were affected, because I read a lot about the situation and I felt very painful to even think that many of the sacred places were destroyed within seconds. As you all know, I went to Nangchen for the first time in 2007 and we all had to stay in Gyekundo to transit. I had such a great time with all my friends and students and all my colleagues who were there. So thinking that some of the holy structures were totally gone really reminds me the law of karma and impermanence. I have already asked all of our monasteries and nunneries in the Himalayas to make prayers and also dedicate all the prayers for the unfortunate ones.

I am very happy that Chinese government and many Tibetan masters are doing a lot, in terms of fundraising. Therefore for the time being, besides praying and sending our heartfelt wishes, we are not doing as much fundraising as we did for Myanmmar cyclone and many other tragedies and natural disasters. What we can do from our side, I have already asked many of my schools, monasteries and nunneries to do urgent prayers for those spirits who just died in the earthquakes, but not only that I am thinking that on Tashi Dawa which falls in the month of October, I will lead all the followers and devotees, walking down to Bodhgyaa and to do an intensive prayer dedicated for this tragedy. This is just a thought that came up in my mind awhile ago, I have not said to anybody, except here. At the same time, I am requesting those people who have sympathetic mind and heart to reserve your time, effort and resources for the prayer in Bodhgaya during Tashi Dawa. I hope and pray and trust you will join in the dedication in Bodhgaya. Even though you may not be able to walk with us, by just joining us there and participating in the prayers for 2 to 3 days is also good enough. Some of you may not be able to make it personally, by supporting the retreatants of Druk Amitabha Mountain to take on this journey, the dedication and effect will still be the same.

The time when we were finishing the 13 koras at Swayambhunath, the bad news of the earthquake came. I still remember when I passed through Gyekundo on the way to Nangchen, the authorities and people there were so kind to welcome me and my entourage in a very warm and grand way. I still remember very clearly that all the traffic was blocked, the people were coming out on the street and really wanted to get blessing from me, therefore I have great trust and confidence that because of the karmic link that we had built while they were alive, our prayers will be able to benefit them. We will be doing intensive prayer on 22nd Tibetan day of the Tashi Dawa, in Bodhgaya, even though it is going to be little later, the spirits will definitely be benefited no matter how late it is.

The amazing thing I heard directly from Kyabje Satrul Rinpoche was that our little Kyabje Adeu Rinpoche was in the residence when the earthquake happened. People in the house were running down in the shaky staircase. It was shaking like nobody's business, yet no one was injured. I am very sure that it's due to the blessing of the small Kyabje Adeu Rinpoche. Of course, he is physically very small, to think of him having the ability to protect all the beings is very difficult. But blessing is something very mysterious and beyond our imagination. His previous life was the greatest protector of our lineage, he spent his entire life preserving our lineage's teachings, empowerments, initiations, texts, paintings, etc, even when he was in the prison, his activities did not stop. When I met him the last time in 2006 in Beijing, we both had such a great hope and aspiration to strengthen the lineage and to benefit many beings through the blessing and teaching of all of our beloved heroes of past and present. This burning wish of his, I am sure, managed to carry forward to his present life. I am also very moved that Kyabje Satrul Rinpoche and many of our Rinpoches are very busy helping the victims and all the suffering beings right now.

In order not to have any problem with reincarnation of himself or to give myself and my colleagues a lot of headaches looking for him, before he passed away, the late Kyabje Adeu Rinpoche provided such a long and clear detail of his own rebirth, profoundly saying when he was going to be born and where he was going to take rebirth. This is how great a spiritual master can be when he is fully enlightened. Therefore, I have complete confidence that even in a child form, Kyabje Adeu Rinpoche's enormous blessing is very effective in helping every being who is suffering so much due to the unexpected earthquake.

This is the main reason why I keep saying repeatedly like a naggy old man, "Appreciate and rejoice, without any expectation." It doesn't matter if people are nasty to you, it doesn't matter if people betray you, it doesn't matter if people don't even say "Thank you" to you, by appreciating everything around you, from happy experience to upsetting experience, your life would be so meaningful, full of understanding, full of happiness, full of joy, full of strength and full of fearlessness. No one can harm you, nobody can hurt you, because you even appreciate negative experiences and like a hero, you welcome all the negative experiences and reactions. I always think and feel that those people who are only happy to hear good things, good news, nice words are very weak spiritually. Spiritually strong people should be able to accept both good and bad things.

Since the 2nd ADC finished, I have not had the chance to thank Kyabje Khamtrul Rinpoche Jigme Pema Nyinjadh, Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo, our beloved Rinpoches, Khenpos, Ashi Kesang and her team, all of our monks and nuns for their presence and their hard work. I have not even thank all the hardworking volunteers, but I think by appreciating themselves, if they know how to do that, that alone is much better than me thanking them, one by one.

You have to know how to appreciate yourself, this is the most important thing. If you don't know how to appreciate yourself, how to encourage yourself and how to make yourself happy, everyone else and everything else that is external will end up eventually being the cause of your unhappiness.

Therefore, I was very appreciative of everything at the 2nd ADC. There were some complaints, some nice things, some accidents, some small failures, some people were angry, some people were very happy, some people were very excited, some people were very stressed. Well, if you don't know how to appreciate the process of the development of these emotions and to look beyond all the negative parts and to transform your own negative perceptions, even Buddha cannot help you, even God cannot help you.

Anyway, I know none of you, my friends and students, are bothered about whether I thank you or not, but I want to tell all of you that your presence and support mean a lot to me, to my colleagues and all the beings who are volunteering tirelessly for the lineage. It is because of your support that we have been able to continue our spiritual legacy for more than 800 years, or even more than 1000 years. Mutual support is very much needed, especially in this time where self-appreciation and appreciation for others are very weak and lacking and need a lot of development.

We all deserve a big THANK YOU and we all will continue to support each other through the activities of ADC, Zangchod Boom, Hemis Festivals, etc. We will keep seeing each other and support each other. So whoever didn't make it for 2nd ADC, we will meet in Ladakh for the 3rd ADC, with our most respected and capable Kyabje Drukpa Choegon Rinpoche Tenzin Chokyi Gyatso as our Chairman!

Some gossips I heard during the 2nd ADC that I would share with you. Several people, including some of my friends from foreign countries, were complaining that we had less teaching sessions and we had too many cultural shows and the Live to Love Mini Concert. Some people who were there were even saying that Cultural Shows were okay, but to have a concert was too much, and they had to walk out and they felt it was too outrageous and too noisy. I can understand what they are going through and I appreciate that at least they came and joined together. Actually, this shows the level of spiritual understanding these people have, in the name of discipline, they are actually practising uptightness, which is one of the main obstacles to effective meditation and also effective spiritual practice. Without being relaxed, you cannot be a genuine spiritual practitioner. But I appreciate their disagreement and their complaints, because everyone is entitled to having their own opinions, we should appreciate and respect. This is a tough and rough dirt road that we are driving on. If one gets used to it, that means one has passed the examination. These things have to be broken through, this is the practice that we have to go through.

Here are some photos of 2nd ADC that I personally like and pick up from FaceBook, since I am one of the biggest copy cats!