The Panchen Lobsang Chokyi Gyaltsen (1570 – 1662) was the pre-eminent scholar of his time. Lobsang Chokyi Gyaltsen was the teacher and mentor who trained and guided Lozang Gyatso who became known as the Great Fifth Dalai Lama. It was the Great Fifth who gave his teacher the monastery of Tashilhunpo and it was also the Great Fifth who accorded the title Panchen (short for Pandita chen mo, meaning Great Scholar) to his teacher. The Fifth Dalai Lama in his wisdom and clairvoyance not only recognized his teacher to be the incarnation of Buddha Amitabha but also to have hailed from the illustrious line of incarnations tracing back to Khedrup Je himself.
The significance of this line of incarnation cannot be understated for it was Khedrup Je who on five occasions met his master the great Je Tsongkhapa himself in mystical states, after Tsongkhapa passed into clear light. Panchen Lobsang Chokyi Gyaltsen wrote many important Buddhist texts as did his past incarnation as Khedrup Je. Amongst some of the key works by Khedrup Je was the text on the Kalachakra tantra, which is still being used by the present and 14th Dalai Lama as the basis for His Holiness’s empowerments into the Kalachakra practice.
The Great Fifth Dalai Lama’s veneration and devotion to his teacher was well known and when Panchen Lobsang Chokyi Gyaltsen passed into clear light, the Great Fifth himself composed a special prayer asking for his teacher and mentor to return, and further instructed all monks from the great monasteries to recite the special prayer. There is no doubt that the Fifth Dalai Lama had tremendous love and trust for his teacher.
Having established the undoubted greatness of Panchen Lobsang Chokyi Gyaltsen, it is significant to note that it was none other than this highly accomplished master who recognized his other heart student and contemporary of the Great Fifth Dalai Lama, Tulku Drakpa Gyaltsen to be who he really was, i.e. Manjushri himself. This was clearly illustrated in the book “A Great Deception”, page 127 in which it is written:
“The Panchen Lama Losang Chokyi Gyaltsen (1570-1662), the Spiritual Guide of both Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen and the Fifth Dalai Lama, had written a prayer listing Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen’s previous incarnations as including Venerable Manjushri, Mahasiddha Bhiravapa [Biwawa or Virupa], Sakya Pandita Kunga Gyaltsen, Buton Rinchen Drub, Duldzin Dragpa Gyaltsen, Panchen Sonam Dragpa, Sonam Yeshe Wangpo and Sonam Geleg Pelsang. The same line of predecessors has since been confirmed by Kyabje Phabongkhapa Dechen Nyingpo (1878-1941), and Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche (1900-1981)”
Source:
http://www.westernshugdensociety.org/files/A_Great_Deception_2011-08.pdfTherefore it is extremely wrong and maliciously misleading for anti-Shugden proponents to refer to the Fifth Dalai Lama as a source in alleging that Dorje Shugden is merely an evil worldly spirit. Perhaps, being an extremely strategic thinker the Fifth Dalai Lama felt it was necessary to play up on the fears of the people knowing full well that Dorje Shugden as an enlightened being could not be destroyed. In that manner the eventual veneration by the Great Fifth of the Protector would have its full effects. It was impossible for the Fifth Dalai Lama to have genuinely believed that Tulku Drakpa Gyaltsen's spirit returned as a demon as was alleged by his enemies. For that to be true, the Great Fifth would have had to regard his beloved and trusted master to be wrong about Tulku Drakpa Gyaltsen. It would mean that Panchen Lobsang Chokyi Gyaltsen made a gross error in recognizing who Tulku Drakpa Gyaltsen was. The opposite is true and in fact the Fifth Dalai Lama composed a beautiful prayer in praise of the Protector, affirming that both the Great Fifth Dalai Lama and his teacher knew the truth about Tulku Drakpa Gyaltsen. (
http://www.dorjeshugden.com/prayers/dorje-shugden-prayers/prater-by-the-fifth-dalai-lama-to-gyelchen-dorje-shugden/).
To claim that Dorje Shugden is a demon maligns not only the Buddha Of Wisdom, but also a host of highly attained masters including Panchen Chokyi Gyaltsen and the Great Fifth Dalai Lama. Does it make sense that an entire pantheon of Buddha emanations and great masters over the centuries have to be wrong in order for the twisted tales of a few people to be right? His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama is both a scholar and a historian. In making a preposterous claim, His Holiness was in fact inviting people to dig deeper into the history of Dorje Shugden's line of incarnation to fully appreciate this great Dharma Protector. To this end, the present Dalai Lama is living up to the genius of his predecessor the Great Fifth. May His Holiness lift the ban soon, seeing that a great cause to spread the Dharma during the degenerate age initiated centuries ago, has begun to take its own course. May His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama live long and work openly with the great Protector to spread the teachings of Lama Tsongkhapa far and wide.
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