Farewell to a great master: H.E. Khejok Rinpoche

By Poleen Wu

Dorjeshugden.com has received news that the Venerable Abbot of Dhe-Tsang Monastery, H.E. Khejok Rinpoche, entered clear light at Dhe-Tsang Monastery on the 16th of October 2013. Dhe-Tsang Monastery is located at the Abba Tibetan Autonomous County in the Sichuan Province of China.

Khejok Rinpoche went into clear light meditation at approximately 8.30am in the morning of October 16th and for the many hours that ensued, Rinpoche’s body remained warm and supple with no sign of rigor mortis setting in. Finally on the 18th of October, with all the sangha of Dhe-Tsang Monastery in attendance doing Guru Puja prayers, Rinpoche’s consciousness left his body.

One of the highest and most renowned Lamas of the Gelug sect has left us and this is indeed a great loss for all disciples who have received the Dharma from this great master directly and indirectly. Having said that, as a Buddhist practitioner, we understand that death is not the end, but a prelude to a new beginning. One of the last teachings Rinpoche gave to his disciples was,

In a real Guru-disciple relationship, there will only be short separation, not a real farewell”

H.E. Khejok Rinpoche was an ardent Dorje Shugden practitioner all his life and remained so till the very end. In Khejok Rinpoche’s Australian residence, a special prayer room was commissioned specially for Khejok Rinpoche to worship the King Protector and it was in this secret room that Rinpoche had many audiences with Dorje Shugden.

In the years since the Shugden ban, Khejok Rinpoche passionately spread Je Tsongkhapa’s lineage and with it, the practice of Dorje Shugden and by the time Rinpoche passed into clear light, there were at least 200 students in Australia, Taiwan and around the world who had received the Dorje Shugden’s lineage from him, so profound was Rinpoche’s love and care for his students.

The funerary ceremony of H.E. Khejok Rinpoche, which followed the highest traditions, was held on 23rd October 2013. Dorjeshugden.com has received the photos of the cremation ceremony of Khejok Rinpoche which we are sharing with everyone here, and we ask for everyone to pray for Khejok Rinpoche’s swift return to continue to turn the wheel of Dharma.

Dhe-Tsang Monastery

Many came to help with the cremation ceremony

Traditional offerings

Despite the extreme cold weather, devoted students of Khejok Rinpoche still came to help

Setting up the sensory offerings

Lay students helped to build cremation pyre too

Cremation pyre in progress

Painting the cremation pyre

Many people came to pay their respects and lined the path along Khejok Rinpoche’s funeral procession

Khejok Rinpoche’s holy body on a palanquin

Azha Rinpoche leads the monks carrying Khejok Rinpoche’s body in the palanquin

Before the day of the cremation, Khejok Rinpoche’s body was placed at the center of the top level of his Ladrang for everyone to make prostrations, pay their last respects and collect merits. Traditionally, visitors will touch the five-colored rope for blessings

Khejok Rinpoche’s face is covered with a red cloth and his body is adorned in full ceremonial robes

The cremation is about to start

Monks carry the palanquin to the cremation pyre

Khejok Rinpohe’s holy body is placed inside the cremation pyre

Many came to pay last their respects to Khejok Rinpoche and to witness this solemn occasion

High Lamas conducting puja for the cremation ceremony

Azha Rinpoche was the ritual master for Khejok Rinpoche’s cremation ceremony

The cremation of Rinpoche’s body

Many sangha were also present for the cremation

By the tremendous care and reverence Khejok Rinpoche’s disciples and students took in conducting His funeral, following strict tradition, they created the causes for Khejok Rinpoche reincarnate and return swiftly. With their prayers and supplications as well as the funerary ceremony, Khejok Rinpoche will return sooner.

Keeping samaya clean with the Lama, taking care of the Lama when He is alive and similarly taking care of His body when He has passed on are very important if students of the lama wish for his swift return. In fact, the body of the Lama is an embodiment of Dharma and so it is also a means for students to collect merits when they attend to its well being with proper motivation.

This is the room in Khejok Ladrang where Rinpoche entered into clear light

The hat that Khejok Rinpoche wore

Khejok Rinpoche’s personal ritual items – mala, vajra, bell, damaru and – and his personal cup

Short biography of H.E. Khejok Rinpoche

Extracted from: http://www.dorjeshugden.com/great-masters/recent-masters/his-eminence-khejok-rinpoche/

Rinpoche was born in 1936 in the Gyalrong district of eastern Tibet, now known as Sichuan Province. At the time of Rinpoche’s birth, the sun, the moon and many stars were simultaneously visible in the sky, a celestial configuration which was regarded as most auspicious, signifying the birth of an important person. The location of the house where Rinpoche was born was immediately next to Zarthu Monastery of the village. This small monastery was headed by the successive incarnations of the Khejok Tulkus.

As a young boy he was recognized as the reincarnation of the late Rinpoche, and earmarked to be the successor to the Khejok Lama lineage. After the recognition, he was given formal training at the native Dhe-Tsang Monastery and Sermey Monastic University in Tibet. Subsequently, he was enthroned as the abbot of Dhe-Tsang Monastery, the second oldest monastery of the Gelugpa lineage and the spiritual headquarters of all Gelugpa monasteries in Eastern Tibet.

At the age of 17, His Eminence entered the prestigious Sera Monastic University in Lhasa, one of the three largest monastic universities in the world. Later, he graduated as a Geshe (a title of scholarship equivalent to a Doctorate degree). It is worth mentioning that the very famous and one of the most influential Lamas in Tibetan Buddhism who practices Dorje Shugden in His past life and still practicing in this current life, His Holiness Trijang Rinpoche, is the root Guru of Khejok Rinpoche. Like any other Gelug Lamas in this era, Khejok Rinpoche received many teachings from the late Trijang Rinpoche.

After graduation, Rinpoche served the monastery as a resident elder, being widely respected by both the ordained and lay assemblies of Tibetans for his wisdom, compassion and practical advice. 
His Eminence is also known for his vast knowledge on statue-making, astrology divination and has been certified as a practitioner of traditional Tibetan Medicine by the Tibetan Government.

Since 1986, Rinpoche taught in Australia to Western students and has established over 12 Buddhist education centres bearing the common name of Institute of Buddhist Learning & Practice (IBLP), in Australia, Canada and Asia (Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong). There are also two centres of healing natural medicines. Rinpoche also made annual teaching tours to Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Taiwan, China, Canada and around Australia.

Khejok Rinpoche in his Hong Kong center a few months before entering into clear light

Khejok Rinpoche leads the puja in his Hong Kong center a few months ago