If you don't see something or understand, doesn't mean that it doesn't exists

[DSFriend]

A Teaching Given By His Eminence Shenpen Dawa Rinpoche (on Nyingma Protector Shenpa)
http://dorjeshugden.com/wp/?p=5592

Do read this article.

The stories and teachings in this article totally blows my mind away. I love reading stories of the workings of the wisdom beings. Some people say we should not put faith in miracles...but miracles happen and are workings of extraordinary beings. It is called a miracle not because it's not normal...it's just not normal to us just because we don't understand and can't see them.

Just like what Shenpen Rinpoche said, "First, just because you don’t visually see or understand something doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Remember this one. Second, what you don’t see is your limitation, not an expansion of your awareness."

Reading this article makes me gain more faith in my very kind and compassionate protector, Dorje Shugden whom I believe to have saved my life  and brought me to the path of the Dharma, not only that, but have done much to help me stay on the path. The testimonials and stories helps me gain faith, gratitude and that I am not alone on this journey but have divine help.

How would our conduct, confidence in the 3 jewels, and our practice be different if we were to be able to see our Protector, and see how he helps and protect us?

[jessicajameson]

(extracted from the text DSFriend gave the link to)

For example, once, in His Holiness’ temple, a man named Pedma Longdu used to beat the dharmapala drum every evening and make offerings. He had made a commitment to His Holiness to perform this offering ritual, and it was his routine. One night he got drunk and didn’t make the offering. He went to sleep. In the middle of the night my mother woke up, maybe around 2:00 a.m., when the dharmapala drum began beating on its own. She woke up my father and asked him, “Did you ask for a special extension of the practice? What is going on?” Rinpoche just got up and smiled, and said, “It doesn’t matter. No, it doesn’t matter.”

The drum beat the whole night, and all the people surrounding the temple could not sleep. The dharmapala had become very violent, hitting the drum, because the offering had not been put there.

The next morning Rinpoche called Pema Longdu, who is now the head lama of the Buddha Monastery in Kaleekoh, and asked him, “Why didn’t you do the dharmapala practice last night?” The lama became arrogant and said, “If I miss one day’s practice, are they going to get so hungry?”

The next day Pema Longdu was hit by a fever, becoming violently ill and almost losing his life. This was because he talked about the protectors as if they were hungry for an offering, and were so attached to that offering that they couldn’t go even one day without it. Right after he said that his blood started warming up. He couldn’t sleep all night, and his heart kept on beating, beating, beating. The next morning, he started vomiting blood. So Rinpoche told him to go straight away into the temple and make prostrations to the protectors, or they would take his life.

The protectors can take your life force. It really is in their hands. Why? The life force we are talking about in the Chi Med Tsog Thig is the protector. There is nothing other than that. It wasn’t that the dharmapalas missed the offering. They just showed him that he had lost his discipline in the training of his mind. That is why the dharmapala showed its hand. It can be a very costly affair.

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How come they can get angry (or manifest as being angry)? Are the dharmapalas in this context not enlightened beings?

Thanks

[Big Uncle]

How come they can get angry (or manifest as being angry)? Are the dharmapalas in this context not enlightened beings?

Thanks

The Dharmapala in your story is unclear whether he is enlightened or not. They are proclaimed enlightened or not by high Lamas who have clairvoyance and ability to look deeper into the motivation and mind of the Protector. All Buddhas, Lamas and Protectors can manifest anger but because of their motivation, it is always to benefit. Somehow, something good will come out of this wrath. So, if one has a lot of faith in the Lama or Protector, wrathful actions can purify a lot of negative karma and perhaps, bring realisation and higher levels of practice.

[WisdomBeing]

I thought that enlightened Dharmapalas, being emanations of Buddhas, would never 'demand' offerings and punish people for not making them...

Although from this quote: "It wasn’t that the dharmapalas missed the offering. They just showed him that he had lost his discipline in the training of his mind. That is why the dharmapala showed its hand. It can be a very costly affair.", perhaps it was a parable or lesson to show the effects of not fulfilling a commitment.

I tried to google for more info on this Nyingma protector but there wasn't much info at all, unlike Dorje Shugden, who seems to have loads of pages of info, facebooks and all! I would think Dorje Shugden is the Dharmapala who probably has the most info online from a wide variety of sources!

[DSFriend]

I thought that enlightened Dharmapalas, being emanations of Buddhas, would never 'demand' offerings and punish people for not making them...

Although from this quote: "It wasn’t that the dharmapalas missed the offering. They just showed him that he had lost his discipline in the training of his mind. That is why the dharmapala showed its hand. It can be a very costly affair.", perhaps it was a parable or lesson to show the effects of not fulfilling a commitment.

I tried to google for more info on this Nyingma protector but there wasn't much info at all, unlike Dorje Shugden, who seems to have loads of pages of info, facebooks and all! I would think Dorje Shugden is the Dharmapala who probably has the most info online from a wide variety of sources!

Symbolism is very helpful in that it shows us the nature and qualities of the particular deity. Whenever we read about the Protector, it is helpful to familiarize our mind with his form and activities. Just like what you said, we are fortunate in that this website provides us with so much information about our Protector.

Do check out symbolism on Dorje Shugden http://dorjeshugden.com/wp/?p=4276

[WoselTenzin]

I think this story is more like an illustrated version of how a Dharmapala will bring us back on track of our practice when we slip.  In this story, the drum beater lost his discipline (got drunk) and became arrogant (refuting the Lama of his temple and justifying his degenerated actions).  As a method to bring him back on track of his practice, the Dharmapala created conditions such that the drum beater became extremely ill.   He had no choice but to go back to the temple to make prostrations to Shenpa to show his humility and to repent and make amends in order to heal.  In that way, Shenpa has brought the drum beater back on the track of his spiritual path and protected it from degenerating.

I do not know for sure whether Shenpa  is an enlightened Dharma protector but in this story all that had happened seem to point to that direction.  Shenpa created conditions for the drum beater to become very ill to make him humble himself to seek help for cure.

A real Dharmapala does not have anger in their mindstream but they manifest wrath to speed up the mind transformation process of practitioners.  If the condition wasn't created for the drum beater to fall so sick, he most probably would remain arrogant and degenerated in his discipline.

In extreme cases, if he does not repent, got so sick and die, this could also be the Dharmapala creating conditions to end his life so that he does not created any more negative karma for himself.

This is just my little theory of the workings of a Dhamapala.  Any comments anyone? 

[Positive Change]

A real Dharmapala does not have anger in their mindstream but they manifest wrath to speed up the mind transformation process of practitioners.  If the condition wasn't created for the drum beater to fall so sick, he most probably would remain arrogant and degenerated in his discipline.

In extreme cases, if he does not repent, got so sick and die, this could also be the Dharmapala creating conditions to end his life so that he does not created any more negative karma for himself.

This is just my little theory of the workings of a Dhamapala.  Any comments anyone?

I find this extremely interesting as I would have just looked at it from my own limited scope. I was thinking, yes the Dharmapala manifested wrath to create the conditions for the drum beater to fall sick in the hopes he would realise and 'repent' hence transforming.

I did also ask myself what if the drum beater would have been stubborn and NOT realise and hence did not transform and actually did die because of that... and would that not be a negative choice? Surely the Dharmapala would not set the drum beater out to fail!

Upon reading what Wosel Tenzin said above makes so much sense... we need to take into account the BIG picture. If the drum beater was indeed stubborn, he would have accumulated more negative karma eventually hence either choice manifested by the Dharmapala was indeed good for the drum beater coming from a midstream with a higher purpose. Either way, the drum beater would have been 'saved' from creating more negative karma for himself.

I shall reflect on this strongly and if I can apply even the slightess inclination of that kind of thought, surely my actions and focus will be so much different. WOW! This is a light bulb moment for me!!!

[triesa]

The workings of the dharmapala, is really beyond our imagination.

Whether it be favourable conditions or unwanted obstacles along the spiritual journey of a practitioner, is all for the longer benefits. Even we may not like it, in the case of obstacles, we have to see them as means to purify our negative karma and hence go along with the obstacles with a change in our mind set.

If favourable conditions are manifested, of course as practitioners, we rejoice. But at the same time, all the more to be humble and should continue to transform and improve in order to serve the three jewels even better.

[kurava]

To me this thread teaches us to keep an open mind, have faith on our Guru & the three jewels and not to be limited by our gross senses.

Our  senses are often not as reliable as we believe. Science has proven this - hundreds of years ago, telecommunication would be unthinkable as people had not been able to tap into the power of radio wave. Yet this source of energy had been there for as long as time began.

From a spiritual angle, we must be humble enough to admit that due to our low merits there are many things we can't see , hear or touch like buddhas , bodhisattvas, dakas , dakinis etc. However, if we have faith and persevere with our spiritual practice; we shall definitely perceive all these holy beings one day.

[Big Uncle]

Actually to me, the original thread says it all. Just because we don't see wrathful actions as compassionate, it doesn't mean it is not compassion in action. Most people have very fixed view of what compassion is all about. Hence, when they read or hear of such stories, they have negative thoughts about the Protector. A wisdom protector like Dorje Shugden works on a very high level and he always act based upon the capability of the practitioner. Hence, if Dorje Shugden would to cause such wrathful actions like sickness, it would mean that the person is ready for such actions and can think deeper.

[Gabby Potter]

Oh wow, I agree very much with the statement : "If you don't see something or understand, doesn't mean that it doesn't exists", very well said! It's like how most of us can't see or understand spirits/ ghosts, but it doesn't mean that they don't exist right? It's the same thing. Just because most of us can't see Lord Dorje Shugden or understand Him ( well of course because we are just ordinary human beings ), just because we do not have the merits to see Him and understand His sacred practise, it doesn't mean that He is bad and that doing His practise is a form of demon worshiping, I mean how could people say that? Why can't ourselves be the ones who have problems? Why must we blame it on someone or something to make ourselves "feel better"?