Supramundane or enlightened protectors

Supramundane protectors are emanations of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas who have taken on this role to avert inner and outer obstacles to the practice of Dharma. In Vajrayana practice, along with the “Three Jewels” (Buddha, Dharma and Sangha), there are the “Three Roots” – Guru, Yidam, and protector. The Guru gives blessing, the Yidam attainments and the protector creates conducive conditions. When we look at a refuge tree, the Yidams are up and the protectors below, but that doesn’t mean that one is higher than the other. Maybe one could say that one prepares a fertile ground and the other provides the sunlight. In any case, both of them are needed, just like merit and wisdom make up the “two accumulations” that lead to Buddhahood. And both are ultimately emanated from the Guru’s enlightened mind.

Famous supramundane protectors are Palden Lhamo ( Tara ), six-armed Mahakala (Avalokiteshvara), four-armed Mahakala, Kalarupa and Dorje Shugden (Manjushri), and Setrap Chen (Amithaba).

Mundane or un-enlightened protectors

Mundane protectors are generally spirits that have been subjugated and bound by oath by great masters.

NECHUNG

The most famous of these is Nechung/Pehar. Pehar, originally from Persia , was a spirit who tried to keep Guru Padmasambhava from establishing the Buddhist teachings in Tibet . Pehar tried to kill Guru Rinpoche by crushing his head with a rock; however, the great Yogi subjugated him with his tantric powers and appointed him to protect the Dharma in Tibet . HH the Dalai Lama has had a special relationship with Nechung over many lifetimes as he serves as state oracle.

When speaking against Dorje Shugden, part of the reasoning was that there is the danger of Buddhism degenerating into spirit worship. Yet no major decision is made by the Tibetan government in exile without consulting the state oracle, inspite of the many fatally wrong predictions made and advices given by Nechung. The latest big one of these was the famous statement hat Tibet would be free by the year 2000. How devastating for all Tibetans, of whom probably most believed that the news came directly from His Holiness’ clairvoyant mind.

Nechung has been scolded, slapped and his oracles (the person trained to transmit his messages) sacked many times in his history.

His Holiness has mentioned that the problem with oracles is that they are not always reliable. Indeed, where was the state oracle at the crucial moment in 1959, when it was thanks to Dorje Shugden’s urging that His Holiness escaped at the last moment, via a route that had been kept free by Khampa guerilla (as adviced by Dorje Shugden two years previously)? Apparently, Nechung’s repeated advice was for His Holiness “to stay in the land”! Not only that, but a vengeful spirit is suspected to impersonate Nechung at times and give false advice.

“After the Thirteenth Dalai Lama passed away, Lungshar tried to establish a constitutional monarchy in Tibet. He was charged with involvement in a Bolshevist conspiracy and to be executed while his sons were to have their hands cut off. Pabongka Rinpoche interceded and then he was pardoned.

Nonetheless, some time later, Lungshar’s eyes were gouged out. Demo Rinpoche, the regent during the days of the Thirteenth Dalai Lama’s youth and his friend Nyagtul, a Nyingma master, were accused of resorting to black magic against the Thirteenth Dalai Lama. Demo Rinpoche died in a prison cell so small, one could not lie down in it. Nyagtul had the skin torn from his chest, the chest ripped open while still alive, and tied to a post on the circular path for circumambulating Lhasa , he was left there exposed to people’s mockery and to die a slow excruciating death.

Close to the end, Nyagtul is said to have uttered, “This government has killed me although I am free from guilt. I shall take my revenge on it, just wait and see!” Thus arose the belief that occasionally, during the invocations of the State Oracle, Nyagtul’s spirit enters the oracle’s body instead of the deity Nechung to give the government disastrous advice. The story is still very much alive today. There are important people nowadays among Tibetans who associate the State Oracle’s repeated fateful pronouncements also at the origin of the Dorje Shugden defamation with Nyagtul’s tragic assassination.

From Helmut Gassner’s speech at the Friedrich Naumann foundation

The only protector to whom an entire monastery is dedicated is Nechung.

 René de Nebesky-Wojkowitz writes in his book “Oracles and Demons of Tibet” (written around 1955), chapter 22, The State Oracle:

“Though Nechung Gompa is an establishment of the Nyingmapa sect, religious – and also political – ties link it closely to Drepung, and most of the ceremonies carried out at the first-named establishment are therefore a mixture of Nyingmapa and Gelugpa practices.”

The southern gate is held closed in accordance with an old tradition that the chokyong Dorje Shugden is waiting at this entrance for the day to come on which he will be allowed to enter the monastery, to succeed Pehar as the chief dharmapala of Tibet…

His Holiness the Dalai Lama – position of protectors

His Holiness the Dalai Lama made the following remarks clarifying the position of protectors in the Gelugpa tradition during an explanation of the Offering to the Spiritual Master at the main temple in Dharamsala to a large gathering of Tibetan and Western disciples in 1986.

As I have already mentioned one should rely on the category of wrathful protectors according to the form in which they appear to the disciples. As this is the case and as the most inconceivable matters are beyond our perception, the situation will only change when we have gradually gained insight into wisdom and method on our mind streams and have reached a point where we are individually capable of analysing each and every situation with wisdom. Until we reach a point where we understand the most inconceivable secrets, we must go along with what conventionally appears to us as disciples. Therefore this is the basis on which I am talking to you now.

Due to the antagonism between the Ganden Phodrang of the Fifth Dalai Lama and the upper chamber of Tulku Drakpa Gyaltsen and because of inner and outer inauspiciousness this problem arose.

There is no reason why I personally should say “Gyalchen Shugden you have done good or bad” – for I personally do have some relationship with him, but after sometime this became inappropriate in my dealing with questions of Tibet ‘s religion and politics. Not only that, but even in terms of merely Gelugpa matter it seems there is some problem in the context of Damchen Choegyal’s position. Therefore, we should deal with these things based on an awareness of their conventional appearance to ordinary disciples. We Gelugpas consider the validity of conventionality to be very important, don’t we? When we speak of the validity of conventional appearances, the importance lies in the perception of the initial level of beings. Why? because reasons should accord with the principles of causality.

There is still one thing I should tell you, we are not forbidden to rely on these categories of wrathful deities, local protectors and earth deities, we are permitted to propitiate them. But when propitiating them we do so in the way we would treat our close friends. For instance, if we hire a worker, we give him food and ask him to help for just that day, which is not like relying on a guru or even like a refuge. We simply hire a fellow. Similarly, offer a ritual cake to those wrathful protectors at the place where you practise and seek their virtuous activity. This is the way it is permissible to rely on them.”

Nechung shrine with Dharma text and serkym (golden drink) offering in the foreground, plenty of offerings, silver bowls, khatas etc

Question: The practitioner of Dorjee Shugden, will they be permitted to the Kalachakra?

Answer: Now here, you need lot of explanation. Basically, for the last more than 300 years, this controversy remained. And then particularly in the last 60 years, lot of controversial things happened. Here controversy means, lot of sectarian, unhappy things occurred in eastern Tibet , Central Tibet , and Southern Tibet . In any way, in my own case, due to my ignorance, I practice this spirit. I practiced worship of this spirit. Eventually I realised that this is not the right way, this is a mistake. Then I carried further investigation. I found, the fifth Dalai Lama actually considered this spirit to be a malevolent force which may have been born as a result of misguided aspirations.”His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s response to media a question on Shugden at the press conference in Indianapolis on August 16, 1999

Like we stated earlier, his Holiness has to please many people. But it is hard to believe that the Dalai Lama would do something out of ignorance, and that He had to do further investigations to know what His famous predecessor thought. And to say that the unmistaken reincarnation of Panchen Sonam Drakpa – the only Lama in Tibetan history to have served as abbot of all three main Gelukpa monasteries, as well as Gaden Tripa – could have arisen as “malevolent force as result of misguided aspirations”, amounts to saying that a Buddha can become a demon.

And then many Tibetan masters, particularly among the Geluk tradition, yellow hat tradition, like Purchok Ngawang Jampa, one great master, very famous; and then the teacher of the seventh Dalai Lama, Trichen Ngawang Chokdhen, very famous.

Since 1996 His Holiness has cited the names of Trichen Ngawang Chogden and Changya Rölpa’i Dorje as having proscribed Dorje Shugden. He cites a passage in Changya’s biography composed by the master Thuken wherein Trichen Ngawang Chogden supposedly had an image of Dorje Shugden removed from Ganden Monastery. On closer scrutiny, however, it appears that in Changya’s original rendering of the story about Trichen Ngawang Chogden, to which Thuken refers, Dorje Shugden is not at all mentioned, while reference is made to a local spirit instead.
From Helmut Gassner’s speech

“Then another Tibetan lama, of course, well known, Kyangja Rolpai Dorjee, and then the teacher of the eighth Dalai Lama, Yongzin Yeshi Gyaltsen. All these and other masters considered this an evil force.”

Surprisingly, His Holiness’ own Guru, HH Trijang Rinpoche, and Trijang Rinpoche’s root Guru, HH Pabongkha Rinpoche, the most famous of all Gelukpa Lamas, and their view, are not mentioned here.

“So then things became clear. And also, as mentioned before, for the last 300 years, particularly in the last 60 years, if you investigate and meet more people from all major four Buddhist traditions of Tibet, then you will get the clearer picture, what really happened in the last few centuries and particularly in the last few decades. So the basic thing is firstly, I mean there are three points. Number One, Since the fifth Dalai Lama considered this an evil force, evil spirit, and he once tried to destroy that. So therefore, me as the Dalai Lama, the 14th incarnation of the Dalai Lama, I am among the lineage of the Dalai Lama, so I have to follow. It is logical. It is better to follow the fifth Dalai Lama and also the 13th Dalai Lama. The 13th Dalai Lama also placed restrictions on this evil spirit. So then I realised my mistake and then I stopped completely worshipping this.”

Dorje Shugden had advised the Thirteenth Dalai lama to renovate the eastern and western stupas. Following this advice, the Thirteenth Dalai Lama undertook major renovations of the Potala and the stupa of the great master Je Tsong Khapa at Ganden Monastery, as is mentioned in Purchog Jampa Rinpoche’s biography of the Thirteenth Dalai Lama. 

From Helmut Gassner’s speech

Number Two. As you know I always try to promote non-sectarian spirit, not only among Tibetan Buddhist traditions, but also among other religious traditions, as many people by now know. Particularly among the four Tibetan Buddhist tradition, I myself receive teachings from Nyingma tradition, Sakya tradition and Kagyud tradition.”

His Holiness has also stated very clearly that He has to do so because of His position. And as for the rest of us, we should stick to one tradition, as it is demanding enough (and sufficient, one might add) to master one. Like Atisha said, Tibetans do a hundred practices and gain zero realizations, while smart people do one practice and gain all the realizations.

“So this is my approach. So this spirit, you can see from some books in order to praise this spirit, it is made very clear that if one follower of the yellow hat sect, if that even touch the scripture of the Nyingma tradition, this spirit will destroy you. In fact the ninth, no the eighth Panchen Lama, because he practised the Nyingma tradition, follower, I mean worshipper of this spirit believe that this spirit destroyed the eighth Panchen Lama because he practised the Nyingma tradition.

So you see in my effort in promotion of non-sectarianism this becomes a great obstacle. So this is Number 2 reason.”

In making references to Guru Padmasambhava and the Nyingma tradition he discusses the Dorje Shugden side as the sectarian one. Dorje Shugden is originally a deity of the Sakya tradition. There is a belief that no ordinary being ever appears as throne holder of this tradition but rather that all Sakya Dagchens (Lords) are emanations of the eighty great Siddhas and the sixteen Arhats. The one before the last Sakya throne holder, Dragshül Trinley Rinchen, was the most prominent Sakya master of this century. He called his father a manifestation of Avalokiteshvara, the Buddha of compassion, because before his father was born, his grandfather had received signs that Dorje Shugden himself would come as his son. The master proves the connection between Dorje Shugden and Avalokiteshvara by citing from the Nyingma tantra Rinchen Na-Dün, rnying.rgud rin.chen sna.bdun, “Dolgyal, Dolgyal he who is thus called is by nature undeceiving, because he is the Great Compassionate One himself.”

The defamation of Dorje Shugden constitutes a grave offense to the Sakya tradition and surely the Dalai Lama is aware of it. Thus he mentioned to some people that in his dreams the four-faced deity Mahakala appears annoyed at the restrictions against Dorje Shugden.
Four-faced Mahakala is one of the most important guardian deities of the Sakya tradition.
From Helmut Gassner’s speech)

“Then Number 3, unfortunately among Tibetans, our Tibetan Buddhist tradition is actually very rich and very authentic. However, there is a sign of danger of degeneration of this rich Buddhist tradition into spirit worship. It is a great pity. And then that spirit is also not reliable, very controversial and many great lamas considered this an evil force.”

See NECHUNG, on top of this article…

Nechung, with khatas and offerings

“So, therefore, I put restrictions. Then some people who practice this distorted my standpoint.”

The Tibetan government in exile, proclaiming that practicing Dorje Shugden harms His Holiness (who has repeatedly denied in the meantime that this practice harms him)etc., would be a tough act to follow in distorting standpoints.

“Since I carry this attitude with sincere motivation and sufficient reason, so I want to continue with the stand. Therefore, now in religious tradition, in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition there is a concept known as the importance of the sacred bond between the teacher and the disciples. So in order to be safer for the students side, if you worship this spirit then please don’t come to listen to my teaching because it is for their own sake. So this is no change. My position is still like that. Same.”

“In the Tibetan Buddhist tradition there is a concept known as the importance of the sacred bond between the teacher and the disciples”
– we sincerely hope for the benefit of all those whose faith in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition has been shaken if not shattered by this unholy political spectacle, that the names of His Holiness’ Gurus will soon be cleansed of the incredibly destructive defamations they have been subjected to. We are confident that His Holiness will soon show a way to reconcile what now seems irreconcilable.

Nechung and Dorje Shugden

…the traditional Tibetan State Oracle has been consumed by jealousy against Dorje Shugden for generations. It would have been the State Oracle’s duty to offer the Dalai Lama help during the critical events of 1959. According to all trustworthy eye-witnesses I know and consulted, the State Oracle did not provide any help on that occasion. After the Dalai Lama and his retinue had fled, the State Oracle only found out the following day that he had been left behind. His own escape was later organized by monks from Drepung Monastery. Once in exile, his role lost prominence until the early 1970′s, when that oracle started to quietly persuade the Dalai Lama that he should take his distance from Dorje Shugden. In other words, the origin of Dorje Shugden’s current level of defamation is not the Dalai Lama’s own idea but rather the State Oracle’s, who in his prophesies over the following twenty-five years made Dorje Shugden responsible for all the tragedies that befell Tibet and the Tibetans.

From Helmut Gassner’s speech

One might add that no such thing has ever been heard vice versa; it seems that enlightened beings have, somewhere along the way, lost the need to blame and defame, or maybe they are just too busy helping and teaching.

Having quoted vastly here from Helmut Gassner’s speech, which we also post in its entirety on this site, we would like to add this quote by Stephen Schettini, who studied alongside with him, Stephen Batchelor, Alan B. Wallace and George Dreyfus, under Geshe Rabten, from his website www.schettini.com.

“Of those of us who had gathered around and subsequently left Geshé Rabten, the outstanding exception was Helmut Gassner. He stood loyally by Geshé and retains his robes to this day. He spends his time between the center in Switzerland and Trijang Labrang in Feldkirch , Austria . Helmut is notable for wading into the shocking Dorjé Shugden scandal with his courageous speech to the Friedrich-Naumann-Foundation in 1999.

Geshé died in 1986. The centre was renamed Rabten Choeling and Geshé’s ward Gonsar Tulku took over as abbot. The monastery soon welcomed Tenzin Rabgye Rinpoché as Geshé Rabten’s reincarnation. Since then the center has experienced a renaissance and is now home to a new generation of Tibetan and Western monks pursuing the traditional course of Buddhist studies, Gelukpa style.”

© 2003 Stephen Schettini