WHY THE SILENCE OF OUR LAMAS

[Ute]

(Translation from Tibetan)

Himalayan Buddhist Cultural Association & Himalayan Cultural For Action on Tibet.
(South India Branch)

Dated  03/04/2008

Announcement to the honorable representative of Bylakupee Tibetan settlement, Chanting master, disciplinarian, and abbot of monastic establishments, Rational Tibetan Youth Congress, Ragional Tibetan Woman Association, the head of council for self truth struggle, all the people, who are rich with patriotism and resolute intention


During the course of past hundred years, under the shadow of kindness of Avalokiteshvara, our brothers in Himalayan regions of India, Nepal and Bhutan received opportunity to study Buddhism in various monasteries, and Tibetan Great monasteries in Tibet. Not only that, after 1959, few thousands of Himalayan people got golden opportunities like our Tibetan brothers to study Tibetan Buddhism in monasteries in India. And we, all the Himalayan students, bear in our heart the incomparable kindness of Tibetan government and Tibetan brothers.

On July 7, 2006, Gaden Trichen Dorje Chang, Sharpa Choejey, Jangpa Choejey, and all abbots and delegates of three great monasteries, Gyutoe and Gyume tantric collages, Tashilunpu, and Ratoe monasteries have passed a resolution of banning the worship of Dholgyal (Dorje Shugden) in the Gelugpa Charter. Last year, all the Gelugpa monasteries have given volunteer signatures and oath not to share religious and material resources with Dholgyal followers. However, under the spearheading by some Dholgyal worshippers, the evil persons and sectarian, prayers and so on in Sera-May monastery has been prohibited.


Therefore, all the people of Himalayan region who are under this religious body will initiate some campaigns for the sake of Tibetan politics and religion:

The sad thing right now is: as the result of the pressure from some Dholgyal worshippers and their related persons in Sera-May monastery, it was not allow the purification day, the practice of Vinaya, and the pujas for the patrons of alive and death, as well as the puja for religio-politices of Tibet in Sera Lachi monastery. Such a sad development occurred.
As per the decision by the general meeting of Sera-Lachi monastery, it was resolved to hold the purification day and pujas in Sera Lachi monastery. As such, we hope that we could hold the day without any conflict from Dholgyal worshippers, and we strongly appeal those Dholgyal worshippers not to attend the purification day and so on. If you continue to pose hindrance, all the Himalayan people will protest peacefully. The following Dholgyal worshippers have responsibility to ensure that there is no conflict at that time.

1   Thupten Kunsang   2   Thupten Samphel   3   Jampa Choegyal
4   Wangyal      5   Ngawang Thapkhe   6   Jampa Khetsun
7   Dakpa Loden      8   Lobsang Yeshi   9   Tenzin Dakpa
10   Tsering Dhondup   11   Ngawang Namgyal


Because of above reasons, over 200 young Himalayan students and all the monks of Sera-May, were not able to hold puja and debating class for last two months. The school and kitchen had to be closed; Therefore, you must sincerely abandon (what is wrong) and take up (what is right) in view of the time of puja and studies being wasted. In case you do not give attention to that, we will appeal and announce the matter to every Himalayan people in general and Himalayan people of Indian citizenship, and thereby give pressure to Indian Government. We will conduct consistent campaigns that Chinese evil spirit Dholgyal worshippers are initiating the campaigns of prohibiting directly and indirectly the freedom of our Buddhist studies and our peaceful conduct.

[a friend]

Please friends, I can see very few are seeing into this matter any more, but the monks in Pomra are in real trouble.

Furious because the equanimous stand of the Indian commissioner, that told the monks to share the Sera temple and go back to the old ways, otherwise the monastery might even get closed, the followers of the Dalai Lama are organizing the associations of the Tibetan settlements in order to physically attack the monks and the Pomra buildings.

Why does not the Dalai Lama call on them to stop?

This is a criminal intent that only a big pressure from us might help stopping.

We beg you to please write to the Indian authorities.

Deputy Commissioner Mysore
[email protected]
Fax: 91-821-2429012

CC: to S.P. of Police Mysore Ravi
[email protected]

BCC: National Human right commission
Akhil Kumar Jain
[email protected]

[Ute]

India/post
administrator
Tibetan Affairs

Dear Sir,

I am writing to plead that all precautions be taken to secure the safety of the Dorje Shugden clergy that has only your graciousness to protect them from the Tibetan Vigilante Hate Group.
Another extension of a non democratic exiled government living on your country's good graces. Taking advantage and generating even more necessity and expense to the government of India.
The absurdity of the Westerners protesting for a Free Tibet is a total farce. Because no place as a free Tibet has ever existed.
The Dalia lama has no working understanding of democracies like we share in common.
Because he is not a democratic leader and never has been.
He stomps all over the America's Founding Father's "Bill Of Right and Speech", with the very mantles he wears around his neck as a totalitarian potentate from a medieval  absolute monarchism that only survived on the backs of the slave and indentured servitude masses over the centuries.
I met HHDL, in Dharmasala of 1971 and gifted him a 100 acres in Bloomington,Indiana USA in 1979 and helped him until 1996 with building of a Stupa and workshops for people to learn.
After I understood he has no belief in the basic freedoms that we enjoy and persecuted his own clergy . I have found that he is no longer the person I once admired. He is now sick with too much self adorations of movie stars and is not practicing his precepts as a Buddhist. Therefore he is not the Dalia lama or a Buddhist practicing the Buddhas precepts.

He showed the utmost hostilities to me during the Kalachakra in 1999. While in my home town of Bloomington, Indiana, his security squad assaulted with all types of intimidating techniques towards me and my family. 
His silent penalties for not obeying his command to desist any support for the DS issue.
Insisting that I  ignore his violation of human rights.
Because he is a Buddha and he said so.
I believe he plays in our world and other than he really is.
Once again we all pray for the safety of the Dorje Shugden People, Which is assured in your capable hands.

In Kind Regards
Thomas Canada

[Ensapa]

There is a question Polartortoise asked some time ago that was not adequately answered. Here what he asked:

Why did the gelug leaders not take earlier action, why did they silently allow the dalai lama to destroy their heritage? (Kundeling Rinpoche's) answer baffled me then and still does now. He said that the tibetans did not want to publicly oppose the dalai lama as they wanted to resolve it internally. For 20 years, it was an issue of face??

I found an answer in Dr. Ursula Bernis' book. Of course, as she says somewhere else, this matter has so many layers and is treated with such irrational approach both by the DL and the Western scholars that tried to justify his actions, that no simple answer is enough. It's good, though, to read what she wrote a decade ago about this serious question. And, Polartortoise, I hope it helps you at least to rest assured that our Lamas did not remain silent in order not to loose face.

FROM DR. URSULA BERNIS BOOK

One of the most disturbing components I found in trying to make sense of this complexly layered phenomenon is the intolerant out of hand rejection of any interpretation other than the official one. This forces anyone open-minded and inclusive into a position of having to disagree with the Dalai Lama instead of merely presenting a different perspective on an issue. It is deeply disturbing that the global Buddhism the Dalai Lama has dedicated his life to constructing rejects so absolutely any interpretation of the most learned Gelugpa Buddhist masters other than that of ignorant devil worshipers. It makes a rational approach practically impossible. [...]
In addition, the most educated Gelugpas affected by the ban remained silent. I respect their contemporary wisdom of refusing to compete in the global market place with discussions about esoteric Buddhist subjects where they are inevitably misunderstood. The government's rejection of any reasoned debate about the subject condemned them to silence. From the beginning of the crisis in 1996 the Dalai Lama was determined to destroy the practice. Whether or not to continue Dorje Shugden was never subject to debate or negotiation. This type of intolerance is foreign to Buddhist principles. While a Buddhist teacher may advise the disciples not to do certain practices for religious reasons, the Dalai Lama's political status empowered his government, made up of many social groups, to enforce it. Hence, since a religious issue was displaced into the political domain in order to destroy a tradition, the official literature on the conflict is full of contradictions and unproven accusations. It is fragmentary and incoherent because it is primarily supported by appeal to authority in an attempt to prove the unprovable, not by facts or reasons.

The Dalai Lama himself did not add anything to help find a reasonable approach to this subject. In answer to my repeated request to provide reasons Westerners could understand so that they may judge for themselves why this conflict was occurring, he talked quite emotionally about evil spirits, spirit worship, and the mental instability of Western Buddhists [Interview, December 8, 1997, Dharamsala]. Hardly a rational approach.

...

The Gelug leaders are unable to take action because if they went against the Dalai Lama, they are going against the man who help re-establish the monasteries in india. without the Dalai Lama, we would not have lamas now, including the Dorje Shugden ones because the monasteries of Ganden, Sera and Drepung would not have been re-established and there will not be any training ground for lamas to manifest. Also, it is also Trijang Rinpoche's direct instructions to not go against the Dalai Lama in any way, but to quietly do Dharma practice without drawing attention. One of the Lamas who successfully did this is the 101st Ganden Tripa whose skill and wisdom in defecting to Shar Ganden after serving his term shows us that it is possible. Another example is Samdhong Rinpoche. They are examples we can follow on how to deal with this issue, as Dharma practitioners.

[Rinchen]

Yes, and not only that, there are lamas that go for protests to free DS from the ban. It is not that they are not doing anything. They are not being silent.

Instead what they are doing is that they teach people about DS so that we will know who really is DS and not just by rumors and speculations that are around us. With the knowledge we will be able to judge by ourselves and we will know, helping to bring the ban down.

There are lamas and practitioners that go on non-violent protests to bring the ban down, apart from the teachings that are being conducted.

It is just like this website, it is created to teach and benefit all that come to this website from their doubts, gaining new knowledge as they read. Allowing them to understand and make their own judgement.

[Ensapa]

As much as there are people who discriminate against Dorje Shugden and who are the hardcore fans of the Dalai Lama, there are many more who are not. These Dorje Shugden Lamas are tapping into that market and they are doing so very successfully. not everything revolves around the Dalai Lama and the CTA. There are many other avenues to promoting Dorje Shugden without crossing paths (or swords) with the Dalai Lama or his followers and with that said, even more people will gain access to Dorje Shugden from here onwards.

[Rinchen]

There are also many lamas that by Dalai Lama's side that practice DS. Spreading and giving initiations secretly to not be affected by the ban.

And if DS is really bad, it goes back to the question of why Dalai Lama never stop these lamas that are near and close to him? Since Dalai Lama has clairvoyance, he will definitely know who are the ones that are practicing DS secretly. Why did he not say anything and still allow them to spread DS under his nose.

[Ensapa]

There are also many lamas that by Dalai Lama's side that practice DS. Spreading and giving initiations secretly to not be affected by the ban.

And if DS is really bad, it goes back to the question of why Dalai Lama never stop these lamas that are near and close to him? Since Dalai Lama has clairvoyance, he will definitely know who are the ones that are practicing DS secretly. Why did he not say anything and still allow them to spread DS under his nose.

The Dalai Lama's brother is actually the reincarnation of Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen, Ngari Rinpoche. And Samdhong Rinpoche, who is the ex kalon tripa of the CTA, and also a very close assistant of the Dalai Lama, is a known emanation of Dorje Shugden which was declared by Trijang Rinpoche himself. So why is it that if Dorje Shugden is really that evil, that the Dalai Lama have 2 people around him that are directly connected to Dorje Shugden? It is also interesting to note that the Dalai Lama fanatics are unable to see this point at all.