UPDATE: Abbots Urgently Sent to the USA

I would not be the only one sensing that the tide is changing, and strongly as well. For decades, Dorje Shugden lamas and practitioners have had to endure the assault by the CTA and Dalai Lama’s Office against a deity and religious practice which they have lived and sworn by, which translated into all-out hostilities against their livelihood and freedom. Even Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche was not spared.

What disappoints me most about this latest news is how recalcitrant the CTA, Dalai Lama’s Office and anti-Shugden lamas and monasteries still are about a mistake that should have rectified a long time ago. Instead of showing any sincerity, they are still trying to maneuver this very process of inviting Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche to return to India and manipulate the situation, for e.g. by presenting a desperate request as if it is a noble offer to pass the lineage practice to the young Trijang Rinpoche. It is also shocking that the Dalai Lama’s office would assume that Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche could be tricked or bought. I think this itself shows how little the Tibetan leadership think of their own Tibetan people. At the same time, perhaps it also shows that the Dalai Lama’s people are not coming to grips with the fact that His Holiness’s influence is fast waning due to too many unfair practices and inconsistencies over the decades, and they still think that the name of the Dalai Lama is sufficient to summon lamas action. The ban very much damaged the Dalai Lama’s and the Tibetan authority’s credibility.

By not presenting the Dalai Lama’s request to Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche on the Dalai Lama’s Private Office letterhead as is the correct protocol, I guess the Dalai Lama and his minders already guessed that the request would be denied by Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche. And yet they went ahead and sent a senior monk to literally embarrass himself with such a ridiculous suggestion. What is it that the CTA and Dalai Lama’s office are so fearful of that they should seek to go all out to try and bribe Trijang Rinpoche to return?

All honest Tibetan people and any good ministers and politicians left in the CTA, as well as Tibetan scholars and observers must take good note of this latest move by the Tibetan leadership, and force the question to be answered by the Dalai Lama. Why this change? Why invite a significant Shugden lama to return to the land and monasteries from where they were expelled and pretend as if no injustice had occurred after an entire community of people have been torn apart and after the holy sangha has been split from within.

I very much feel that we are seeing the tail end of a religious ban and with that, the fast fading control that the Dalai Lama’s office and CTA have exacted on the Tibetan people for too long.

hi im dalsing tamang k garnu jindagi ly manx kaha bata kata puraudo raheyx jati jati umerey dhalkedaigaya thiy ti nai manx lai afuno dharma pati ra khyl gardo rahey x

@ Thomas: Nice poetry but what does Dromo Geshe Rinpoche have to do with this article?

On the 5th of November the Ganden Shartse Abbot wrote a response in the Comment section of the article “Abbots Urgently Sent To The USA”. The Khenpo’s Comments is posted below verbatim, and since the Khenpo’s statement is plagued with such grave irregularities, I feel it is incumbent upon me to set the record straight and accordingly, my response to the Khenpo appears below after the Khenpo’s Comments. I sincerely hope that the Khenpo would in turn provide answers to the questions I raise, and I thank the Ganden Shartse Khenpo in full anticipation.

The Ganden Shartse Khenpo’s Comments:

Dear Melisa Sands and Kay Beswick,

I hope you are in great health. I send you wishes for prosperity and happiness.

Please note I am sending this clarification reply to you on your baseless reports published on September 26, 2013 Abbots Urgently Sent to the USA and November 2, 2013 UPDATE: Abbots Urgently Sent to the USA.
I think this is right time to clear the misleading information to enlighten public. Please don’t mislead public by writing baseless reports. At least try to spend little more time to find authentic information before reporting it to public.

Thanks for adding up final paragraph on November 23 report. I am happy to read that paragraph of your report on me as great blessings from you.

1. I and my colleagues at Gaden were concerned about the gap between His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Trijang Chogtrul Rinpoche. That motivated us to take this initiative to bridge the gap but alas.
2. I was never ordered or appointed by Kuger Yigtsang or anyone to request Trijang Chogtrul Rinpoche to return to participate any program, anywhere. I personally and as an abbot of Gaden Monastery took initiatives to meet Trijang Chogtrul Rinpoche to talk to him. In great kindness Trijang Chogtrul Rinpoche gave me plenty of time to talk and be with him. Please note, Kuger Yigtsang never delegated or appointed me to reach Trijang Chogtrul Rinpoche.
3. On meeting Trijang Rinpoche I requested him to re-consider his stand on Shugden issue for various important reasons. Though he didn’t say yes or no to my request, but he didn’t told me “Gaden monastery has ‘forgotten’ about him”.
4. How and why some people left Gaden Monastery and Gaden Shartse in 2008 is well-known fact. No one can change the truth by twisting the story after five years. It is very simple. Some people chose to abandon the monastery for personal interest and benefit and the monastery failed to stop them from doing that.
5. Since, I travelled to meet Trijang Chogtrul Rinpoche to Vermont, USA on personal initiative and as abbot of Gaden with messages from Gaden Shartse Monastery and Gaden Lachi, why should I relay any reply to those messages to Kuger Yigtsang. This is just an insane comment from the reporter. I have no knowledge about what email Trijang Chogtrul Rinpoche want to send to His Holiness the Dalai Lama and CTA in Dharamsala.
6. What is curious about letter being written on the letterhead of Gaden Lachi and Gaden Shartse Monastery? As a senior abbot of Gaden, I represent Gaden Lachi and as abbot of Gaden Shartse Monastery I represent Gaden Shartse Monastery. Messages of these two organizations definitely comes on their letterhead. Why should it come on the stationary of the Kuger Yigtsang? His Holiness the Dalai Lama don’t need to request Trijang Chogtrul Rinpoche to return to some where. His Holiness has achieved unimaginably great achievements through his own efforts. If some one returns or not, won’t make any difference to him. Please don’t try to mislead people by writing baseless comments.
7. We felt it is really important to revive relationship between Kyabje Trijang Chogtrul Rinpoche and His Holiness the Dalai Lama. The holy relationship between these two historic figures are buildup for many lifetimes and we believe it is not good to let it break now. Therefore, I and my colleagues felt it is good to try to have presence of Kyabje Trijang Chogtrul Rinpoche in upcoming teachings of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in Sera Monastery. Thus we planned it solely in our own initiative. To His Holiness the Dalai Lama, if Trijang Chogtrul Rinpoche attends these upcoming teachings in Sera or not won’t make any difference at all. Most important issue for me and my colleagues are to restore relationship between two holy man. But it is really a great disappointment to see some people doing everything possible to stop or topple our efforts.

Gaden Shartse Khenpo
Topanga, California, USA

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

My response to the Khenpo:

This post is in response to the Ganden Shartse Khenpo’s comments on an article “Abbots Urgently Sent To The USA” that appeared in DorjeShugden.com on the 26th September 2013 and a more recent update, “Update: Abbots Urgently Sent To The USA”, published on 2nd November 2013. In his comments, the Shartse Khenpo has sought to imply that DorjeShugden.com is an unprofessional and disingenuous site that publishes “baseless reports” without making any effort to “find authentic information”.

The fact is, more often than not, this site is extremely sensitive to the feelings and reputations of the lamas it may report on, as the site’s main objectives are to create awareness of an unfair, unholy and illegal ban on the practice of the Dharma Protector, Dorje Shugden, and to provide facts and supported information to anyone who may wish to learn the truth about Dorje Shugden and the events surrounding the banning of this ancient practice. The site has no interest and indeed finds no necessity to twist facts, when the truth itself provides an abundance of material to write about. However, and quite alarmingly some, such as the Shartse Khenpo have not respected this and continue to mislead the public with distorted information, most of which can be easily proven to be false.

The report on the Shartse Khenpo being sent to the USA was based on facts communicated by people who are very familiar with the circumstances surrounding his visit. Some were even present when the Khenpo visited Trijang Rinpoche. The Shartse Khenpo’s plan to visit Trijang Rinpoche was not public information and was not available on his personal website, his Facebook, Ganden Shartse’s website, the CTA’s website nor the Dalai Lama’s website. It was known only to a small selection of people within the monasteries and for DorjeShugden.com to have come to know of the visit even before it took place is an indication of how reliable and authentic the site’s sources are. What the Khenpo must realize is that there are still honest monks who wish to have the truth being told, and there are still serious Dharma practitioners who realize how wrong the Shugden ban is, and how the efforts to hide the truth from the people have placed the sanctity of Tibetan Buddhism on a slippery slope to extinction.

In response to the Shartse Khenpo’s fallacious statement, we would like to highlight a number of observations.

1. To begin with, the Khenpo’s attempt to repair the damage between the Dalai Lama and Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche, by his own statement, is a clear indication that he acknowledges that there IS a serious problem that has been caused by the ban. The illegal ban forced on the sangha caused deep fractures and schism within the sangha community and ruined many relationships, including that of many gurus and their students. The “gap” between the Dalai Lama and Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche was not the only one created by the ban. If the Khenpo recognizes the significance of a guru-student relationship, then he should not selectively contain this matter of great import to merely the relationship between the Dalai Lama and his teacher, but to all similar relationships.

2. The Khenpo, if he were to be true to his proclamation, should look into repairing the multitude of relationships torn asunder by the Shugden ban that he has condoned thus far. But the Shartse Khenpo has not done anything to that end and therefore it is intriguing that he should, after so many years – each presenting a multitude of opportunities, suddenly make a surprising, feeble and short-lived attempt now. Why only now is the Khenpo interested in this problem that has been festering right under his nose all this time? Why hasn’t the Khenpo done anything about damaged guru-student relationships closer to his own monastery, for instance the individual and collective relationships between Ganden Shartse and Shar Ganden monks? Is the Khenpo only interested in relationships and matters that involve the Dalai Lama?

3. The Shartse Khenpo’s comments in fact does not say anything much of substance. But the Khenpo’s vehement and emphatic denials are reminiscent of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, and like the guilty Queen Getrude in the play, the Khenpo “doth protest too much…” a phrase that has come to mean to “insist so passionately about something not being true that people suspect the opposite of what one is saying”. What or who here is the Shartse Khenpo protecting by his insistence?

4. Assuming the Shartse Khenpo did act on his own accord to approach Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche instead of doing so in carrying out the Dalai Lama’s instructions, then it does raise an interesting point. The Dalai Lama himself had made an exception to exempt Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche from the Shugden ban (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWi1fJkTA9Q ). And if the Dalai Lama had decided thus, who is the Khenpo to second-guess the Dalai Lama’s decision on this matter? Instead of respecting the Dalai Lama’s decision, the Khenpo, if indeed he acted on his own accord, presumed to know better and this is just pure and unadulterated arrogance.

5. The truth is, Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche was forced to choose between continuing his devotion to Dorje Shugden (whom his predecessor Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche was famous for among other great achievements), or to remain on the good side of the Dalai Lama, which meant being able to remain in Ganden Shartse. Sources close to Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche confirm that at the onset of the ban, the young Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche had asked if he could remain in the monastery should he choose to keep his Shugden practice. The answer was a resounding ‘No’.

6. As a young lama living in Ganden Shartse, Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche’s life was threatened on a number of occasions for his refusal to abandon Dorje Shugden. Monks in Trijang Ladrang had to stand guard 24 hours a day to protect him. So serious were the death threats that some of the monks were quite certain that they would not have made it out alive if not for Dorje Shugden. The very monks who watched over Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche relayed accounts such as these and of how Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche’s life was placed under threat whilst in Ganden Shartse personally to DorjeShugden.com. Things have not changed since then and the ban is still in place. Dharamsala, and the world at large, is still a dangerous place for Shugden practitioners. After all, the CTA’s official decree effectively sanctioning the use of violence against Shugden practitioners is still in place!

Given that conditions have not changed and the CTA and Dalai Lama’s office have not reversed a terrible injustice, how can the Shartse Khenpo even hope that Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche would return to India?

7. The Shartse Khenpo’s statement that Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche “didn’t say yes or no” to his request is dishonest and mischievous and is designed to imply that Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche may have considered his request. This would not be the first time Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche has encountered attempts to bribe him to abandon his protector practice. Many have tried, including the Dalai Lama who promised fame and position if Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche agreed to drop his practice of Dorje Shugden.

Ten years ago (2003), in a meeting with a young Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche in Graz, Austria, the Dalai Lama had told the young lama pointedly “If you give up this deity [Shugden], myself and all Tibetan people will appreciate it very much and our protector Nechung will take care of you and make you more successful and famous than ever. If you do not give up this deity, then your monastic career, like receiving the full monk’s ordination and taking Geshe examinations will not be possible. So I leave it to your judgement.” Then the Dalai Lama issued an ultimatum to Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche in English: “YES or NO?” It was ‘No’ then and it is still ‘No’ now Khenpo-la. But then you knew that for sure.

8. But it was not enough for the Shartse Khenpo to mislead the people with falsities that he should also chose to insult the innocence and intelligence of many monks who suffered under the ban. The Shartse Khenpo said in his comments: “some people [monks] chose to abandon the monastery for personal interest and benefits…” Personally this is the unkindest and most sinister cut of all. The Shugden monks did not choose to leave. They were expelled! Any suggestion otherwise is an outright lie.

In this video [ see: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wxUTbsKo-0, the Dalai Lama went on record to say: “Recently monasteries have fearlessly expelled Shugden monks where needed. I [Dalai Lama] fully support their actions. I praise them. If monasteries find taking action hard, tell them the Dalai Lama is responsible for this…”

Shugden monks were thrown out of the only homes they knew after having renounced all worldly life. Many disrobed very simply because they could not remain as monks without support. Others, like the 450 monks from Dokhang Khangtsen, had no choice but to separate from Ganden Shartse and went on to found Shar Drokhang Draktsang (Shar Ganden) so that they can keep practicing the pure Ganden lineage, which includes the worship of Dorje Shugden. These monks endured tremendous hardships having lost their monastic homes, gurus, brothers, friends, and sponsors because of the heinous acts of the CTA, which was fully supported by the Dalai Lama’s office. The monks from Dokhang Khangtsen’s practice of Dorje Shugden was bestowed upon them by none other than Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche himself and therefore even before the Shartse Khenpo could think of suggesting to Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche to return to Ganden, the Khenpo should have invited and welcomed the return of the monks of Dokhang Khangtsen (now Shar Ganden) who were expelled, back to Ganden Shartse. The Khenpo after all is the Abbot of Ganden Shartse and is therefore authorized to effect such a reconciliatory move. But no such acts of sincerity ever took place.

The Shartse Khenpos’s statement is an affront to all things truthful and honest. It is an insult to the memory of Je Tsongkhapa himself. It shows the Shartse Khenpo’s true character.

9. On another point, the Shartse Khenpo seemed quite interested to have Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche attend the Dalai Lama’s upcoming teachings in Sera Monastery. Notwithstanding the Khenpos’s interest in the guest list of Sera Monastery, which is not under his scope of responsibility nor is it his affair, the Khenpo contradicts himself. On the one hand, he spent a significant sum of money travelling with an entourage to Vermont to request Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche’s attendance at the upcoming teachings, and presumably to reconcile with the Dalai Lama. But on the other hand, the Khenpo concluded that whether “some one returns or not won’t make any difference to the Dalai Lama”. This itself reeks of insincerity and deception on the Khenpo’s part and obscene recklessness on the Dalai Lama’s part. [See Note 1 below] And yet in the same breath, the Khenpo felt that it is “really important to revive the relationship between Kyabje Trijang Chogtrul Rinpoche and His Holiness the Dalai Lama”.

It appears that if the Khenpo truly believes in the importance of closing the gap between the Dalai Lama and the present incarnation of the Dalai Lama’s guru, even though it matters not to the Dalai Lama whether Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche returns to India, then it should be the Dalai Lama that the Shartse Khenpo must work on, instead of flying at great costs of sponsors’ money to Vermont.

Surely, one way of securing the return of Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche and indeed those of the many great Shugden lamas (who are the true treasures of Tibet), and repair the rift between the Dalai Lama and Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche (and that of other gurus and disciples who were affected by the ban) is to convince the Dalai Lama to abolish the Shugden ban that has caused such tremendous damage to the delicate fabric of Tibetan secular and monastic community in exile. But this, the Khenpo has not even begun to do and yet he speaks of the importance of repairing relationships.

[Note 1: The great Trijang Rinpoche was a holder of Ganden Oral Lineage and whether directly or indirectly, Trijang Rinpoche is the guru to all Gelug lamas today. In the Lama Chopa itself, it is stated that:

“The Guru is Buddha
The Guru is Dharma
The Guru is also Sangha
The Guru is the source of all joys”

And unless faith and complete reliance as taught by the Buddha is no longer the root of the spiritual path and the heart of Tibetan Buddhism, then the presence of Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche does matter in no uncertain terms. Where would the legitimacy of the Gelugpa lineage’s be, if Trijang Rinpoche’s line, which is so central to the Gelugpas, were to be repudiated . It is shocking that the Shartse Khenpo would utter such thoughtless remarks. In fact, it is just downright dangerous].

10. The Shartse Khenpo recognizes that he is the “senior abbot of Ganden” and that he is the representative of Ganden Shartse but he failed to remember that Je Tsongkhapa formed the Gelugpa lineage in response to and in defense of monastic codes that were undergoing severe corruption at that time. Those codes had at their core, the upholding of the truth. Ganden Shartse was meant to be a fortress against the degeneration of monastic codes and therefore an Abbot of Ganden Shartse is supposed to be an example of the sangha that Je Tsongkhapa established, not the epitome of the degeneration that Tsongkhapa fought against. The many attempts to divert the course of the truth and the many distortions of facts in the Khenpo’s comments are all proof of this corruption.

The Shartse Khenpo’s comments are plagued with inconsistencies but then, this is very much the characteristic of statements built on the shaky foundation of lies and mistruths. In fact the entire range of reasons given for the Dorje Shugden ban is flawed with incongruities. What is most unfortunate is the impact the ban has had on the sangha. Apart from the heinous schism it has wreaked, the ban has also forced (and in the Khenpo’s case, perhaps even willingly) many monks to abandon their devotion to their gurus and protector, and defend lies that in turn create even more lies. Some uninformed readers may be taken in by this deception and wonder how can monks who are bound by vows even dare to lie? The Buddha did warn after all that the destruction of the Dharma would eventually come from within the sangha.

Still, the Khenpo’s haphazard response to his failed mission, flawed with endless discrepancies would indicate that the Khenpo was forced to issue a statement of denial that the Dalai Lama was involved in the doomed enterprise. That the Shartse Khenpo should attempt this feat on his own and without the sanction of the Dalai Lama, would make this one of the most ridiculous stories ever to be told of a senior monk. If it is true that the Khenpo acted on his own, he would be directly countering the Dalai Lama’s instruction that Shugden practitioners not be allowed to attend his teachings. How then can the Khenpo invite Trijang Rinpoche to the Dalai Lama’s teachings in Sera Mey? This is absolute insubordination and would surely call for immediate disciplinary action by the Dalai Lama. Clearly, there is a lot more to this story than the Khenpo has led on but without doubt, the whole truth shall be uncovered very soon.

This is a very enlightening and well-thought out article. I rejoice to read and comprehend so clearly. I completely concur that at this point with how Trijang Rinpoche responded to Khenpo’s “amicable” request, the abbot has really no choice but to claim he acted independent of HH Dalai Lama. Personally the audience was more like a “slap slap” session to the Abbot. Personally I find it rather entertaining that such ignorance can prevail in the Abbot.

I also see a division in the sense that should the Abbot be acting independently, could it be there is discord in Garden Shartse from Kukey Yigtsang? Hmm… is the Abbot being sneaky? Then again from what is said of this unpopular Abbot I do not think that he has any thoughts of uniting the DS practitioners with the monastery. Sad but true.

I thank Kay Beswick and this amazing website for providing us practitioners a place to learn and express. A sanctuary of information and knowledge. Such compassion from the people administering this website. May abundance merits be dedicated to your long lives.

It is interesting to see how people on this website say such negative things about Khen Rinpoche Jangchup Choeden. What benefit does it have to state, “just ask any of the monks there,” it feels much like gossip to me. Especially the side note in the article. What does the so-called perception of this abbot have to do with the fact he visited Trijang Chocktrul Rinpoche? Mere gossip.

When he travels abroad, people here say, “oh he’s traveling too much, he should be in the monastery.” Then when Zong Chocktrul Rinpoche travels to Singapore people here say, “Oh, why is Zong Rinpoche traveling to earn funds for the monastery, shouldn’t the abbot do that?” Seems like whatever short of siding with Dorje Shugden will satisfy the people on this website.

Yes it is good to learn and express by having a place to do so, but just harping on someone’s perceived negative qualities isn’t learning. I suppose it is expressing gossip if that’s what this website is about.

Rejoice Khen Rinpoche visited Trijang Choktrul Rinnpoche. This shows the world, and inparticular those who reject Dorje Shugden, that Trjiang Chocktrul Rinpoche is in fact still a valid and important lama. To me that is great use of monastery funds. Also, who on this website has the clairvoyance to see what is a waste of monastery resources???

The divine play of fully enlightened beings is merely to show fully our own true demons. The demon isn’t Dorje Shugden, the demon isn’t HH the Dalai Lama, it is our own self-cherishing/grasping that causes us to perceive there is conflict, when in fact it is merely imputed by our own limited mind of attachment, hatred, and especially our own ignorance.

Stop the finger pointing and spread the power of the virtuous actions from your protector and lead by example through kindness in all actions instead of being attached to the “right” side.

Zong Rinpoche visited Singapore for just one month out of 365 days. Ask how many days abbot spent outside monastery in year?, then you will know. When one become abbot and take oath infront of HH Dalia lama, one swears to look after monastery more spiritually than politically. To spiritually run monastery , one need to stay in the monastery for the majority of time in year , give discourse, attend evening debate session and oversee the annual examination. The abbot has failed to do these duty.

@ Heartfelt: I agree with you that gossip within the monastery is ultimately a mere imputation by self-grasping, but conventionally it is still one of the 10 non-virtuous actions. Just because gossip of the perceptions of this Gashar Khenpo may be true in some people’s minds, doesn’t mean it isn’t gossip any more.

I agree that monks in the monastery should be able to critique their own abbot, but this website is not a monastery, and correct me if I’m wrong, but I don’t think the author of this article is a monk at Shar Ganden or Shartse, which amounts to a person outside of the monastery spreading rumors about the so-called perception of this abbot on the internet. The author should have just stuck with the news story and not the gossip side note.

Finally, much respect you as a Venerable, but if you are a monk at Shar Ganden, then the Shartse Khenpo isn’t technically your abbot and it isn’t in your purview to critique his handling of Shartse.

May both Gaden Shartse and Shar Gaden be successful in their activities to preserve and spread the Dharma, and may we all transform our ordinary perceptions of negative situations into that which benefits all sentient beings regardless of what protector they do or do not choose to practice.