Spring Festival 2016

the final day of the Festival

Maybe it’s the blessings but the woods this morning look impossibly beautiful: a citadel of illuminated leaves, a symphony of melodious birdsong, the receding waters of the estuary glittering like countless diamonds. The tents are coming down; it’s the final day of the Festival. Across a branch a drying towel’s slogan announces ‘Be awesome today!

Good idea but how? In the succinctly guided retreat we keep familiarizing ourself with the special view of the Festival: Dorje Shugden as the synthesis of Guru Tsongkhapa, Heruka, and the Dharma Protector, recognizing that this view leads to all attainments. So simple, so powerful. We gently sit with this view in meditation experiencing so much encouragement and positive energy.

Occasionally Gen Losang gives advice: Rather than be discouraged when we see problems or deluded behavior at our Center we can be encouraged . Look how the tradition is flourishing even though we are still so new. Imagine how it will be when we have more experience. This will encourage us to set a good example with which to encourage others. Be awesome today.

The Festival is over. What an awesome festival – like a visit to Dorje Shugden’s pure land. A wonderful preparation for the Summer Festival coming soon. We’ve learnt so much and have so much to bring home with us in such a simple way. ‘Be protected, stay connected.’ All the attainments I made desire arise from merely remembering you!

Till next time. Thank you Geshe-la!

From merely remembering you

“All the attainments I desire arise from merely remembering you. ” We recite this line 3x every day as part of Heart Jewel. The problem is, Gen Losang points out, we immediately forget the moment we recite it. That’s why we need to recite it twice more, he joked.
‘Remembering’ here, Gen Losang explains, means with the special view that Venerable Geshe-la has given us as the special instruction of this Festival: seeing Dorje Shugden as the synthesis of Guru Tsongkhapa, Heruka, and the Dharma Protector himself. It is this view that will naturally give rise to the ‘attainments’ of Heruka, mahamudra. So simple. Or as Gen Losang says, Unbelievable!

Meditating on this view is the main focus of our Festival retreat. It is wonderful to abide in this view with a temple full of Sangha friends. As a ‘special treat’ in the second session Gen Losang reads out slowly as a guided meditation the description of Dorje Shugden’s mandala from the extensive sadhana Melodious Drum. Just as when listening to a story the image of Dorje Shugden’s pure land forms naturally in our minds. So lyrical, rich and profound … What a beautiful practice!

The continuing sunshine makes for pure enjoyments during the meditation breaks. People stroll in the woods, sit by the bay, or lounge on the daisy and buttercup resplendent lawn, quietly contemplating or discussing Dharma. It’s a wonderfully relaxed festival. Good feelings and blessings abound as radiant as the sunshine.

 

Are you sunbathing or meditating?

“Are you sunbathing or meditating?” Gen-la asked a festival goer. The answer: “Both.” “Beautiful answer,” Gen-la told us in this morning’s teaching. We should always be able to say this: showering or meditating? working or meditating? Both! This is the essence of modern Buddhism: It looks like sunbathing or working but inside it’s meditation.

Gen-la continued with her commentary of Heart Jewel. Among many things, she explained the meaning of the different types of offering, emphasizing how the main offering is the practice of compassion. She also gave a sublime explanation of the ‘heart commitment’. In the final teaching she spoke about the longer sadhanas of Wishfulfilling Jewel and Melodious Drum. She explained that when the sadhanas refer to enemies it always means the inner enemies of the delusions and mistaken appearance. Kadampas have no outer enemies. Living beings are always objects of love and compassion.

As always her teachings were full of inspiration and amazing quotes from Venerable Geshe-la. Particularly inspiring was Geshe-la’s devotion to Je Tsongkhapa aand how he has dedicated his life to repaying Je Tsongkhapa’s kindness by helping to spread Kadam Dharma throughout the world. And how he has given us the opportunity to participate in this extraordinary endeavor. I think we were all inspired to ‘give energy’ to helping Kadam Dharma flourish in our own hearts and beyond.

The evening ended with the first session of retreat with Gen Losang, a guided meditation on Heart Jewel. After encouraging us to stop distraction and focus our mind on the meaning of the words, the meditation began. The Festival has entered its final phase and those of us who are able to stay and participate are feeling very fortunate.

Be protected. Stay Connected.

‘Be protected. Stay Connected’, Gen-la Dekyong relayed a message she’d seen about wifi in a hotel. ‘Almost the first thing we do when we arrive somewhere is to check if there is a connection. We should be doing that with our connection to our Spiritual Guide.’

Based on a special message she had received from Venerable Geshe-la for this Festival, Gen-la’s teaching on faith in Guru Je Tsongkhapa and Dorje Shugden was truly inspiring. She reminded us that Geshe-la had said that if asked whether he had any realizations he would say, ‘Yes, I have faith and confidence in the Wisdom Buddha Je Tsongkhapa.’ From this faith all other realizations will come, and relying on Dorje Shugden will naturally increase our faith in Je Tsongkhapa.

There is so much pure enjoyment here at the Festival; lovely, meaningful conversations being had over lunch, in the cafes, on walks, while volunteering … whether spending time with old friends or people you’ve just met. Walking among the splendidly kept Manjushri KMC gardens, to the tune of birdsong, in the brilliant Cumbrian light, it is easy to feel that we are not far from a pure land.

In the afternoon teaching, Gen-la Dekyong began explaining how to rely on the Dharma Protector Dorje Shugden based on the book Heart Jewel. She described in detail the visualization and symbolism of his body. In the evening we had the opportunity immediately to put the teaching into practice as together we practiced Wishfulfilling Jewel with tsog offering. It is a special thing to do puja with a 1000 people, dedicating these blessings to all living beings. May everyone experience such good fortune.

Empowerment Day

Another lovely sunny day! Gen Chokga, in her light-hearted way, leads two meditations in the morning based on Gen-la’s teachings the night before. In the second one, the object of meditation is the wish to rely on the Wisdom Buddha Dorje Shugden, setting us up for the afternoon’s big event.

As the queue forms outside the temple, a stormy looking cloud appears in the previously blue sky, like the line from the sadhana about ‘the red and black fire and wind’ (or at least the black wind bit!) which accompanies the arrival of Dorje Shugden. Inside the temple, the empowerment begins with the group practice of ‘Wishfulfilling Jewel’. When we reach the section on dispelling obstacles, to the thunder-like sound of more than a 1000 people simultaneously engaging in a single handclap (symbolizing remembering emptiness), the sun bursts through the clouds splendidly illuminating the room. It feels like a good sign! Obstacles are being dispelled….

Who is Dorje Shugden?, Gen-la Dekyong asks. He is same as our Spiritual Guide Je Tsongkhapa, our Tantric Deity Buddha Heruka, and the Dharma Protector. We need to see these three as one. This is our special wisdom view. She explains we will receive the empowerment of Dorje Shugden’s body, speech, and mind through which we purify our ordinary body, speech and mind, and sew the seeds for the attainment of Buddha’s body, speech and mind. During the empowerment Genla guides us skillfully into a focused and peaceful state. The empowerment feels profoundly healing. As one Sangha friend put it: You just felt like you could relax and let Dorje Shugden do all the work.

The day ended with a new event: a q&a with Gen-la Khyenrab on the Heart Jewel practice. Gen-la Khyenrab made sure that lots of laughter accompanied the good advice. One such gem: If you get bored in your daily practice, just as in an ordinary relationship, you need to make a special effort and have a ‘date night’ with your Dharma Protector!

This is your life

“This is your life”, Gen-la Dekyong says near the beginning of her talk on Friday night, the first teaching of the International Spring Festival 2016. “Whether our life is meaningful or meaningless is up to us. It’s our choice, our responsibility.” The blue sky is clearly visible through the windows in the upper tier of the magnificent Kadampa Temple. The birds are singing in the distance. The evening light (the sun sets late here!) fills the temple.

Gen-la begins her teaching by reminding us that Venerable Geshe-la had requested us back in 2009 to ‘keep the intention” to come to the International Festivals year after year, generation after generation. “By being here,” Gen-la says, “we are keeping that intention and helping Kadam Dharma to flourish throughout the world.”

A lovely light energy fills the Temple. At this Festival, Gen-la explains, we will receive the blessings of the Wisdom Buddha Je Tsongkhapa Dorje Shugden and learn how to rely upon him. We need this because “there’s a momentum in our mind that can cause us to waste this life because we have done this countless times before.” The only way to fulfil our common wish for pure happiness and permanent freedom is to follow “correct internal paths which are only explained in Dharma.” How can external paths accomplish that, she asks? Seeking happiness in external things will never pacify our “restless, discontented mind.” Even if we take a spaceship to the other side of the universe we will never succeed in ‘getting away from it all” because we take the causes of suffering with us. With “more wisdom we will have less ignorance, and with less ignorance we will have less suffering.” Therefore we need use our life to go for refuge in the Wisdom Buddha.

It’s still light as we leave the temple. The spires of Manjushri KMC look stunning against the clear evening sky. Hugs and greetings abound. The teachings are eagerly discussed. The queue for the veggie burgers is already forming. Yes, we are back at the Festival, enjoying a spiritual holiday at our spiritual home. We’ve made a good choice!