Written by Gelong Palzang

One of the questions that often comes up for Western practitioners is why is lineage important?  As long as you find a teacher you like, what difference does it make if he or she has a lineage or not?

Here is what His Holiness, the 12th Gyalwa Drukpa, [...]]]>

Migyur Dorje

Written by Gelong Palzang

One of the questions that often comes up for Western practitioners is why is lineage important?  As long as you find a teacher you like, what difference does it make if he or she has a lineage or not?

Here is what His Holiness, the 12^th Gyalwa Drukpa, head of the Drukpa Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism, has to say about that:

Many years ago in India, Tibet, Japan, Korea, and Thailand many people got enlightened, with the support and encouragement of wise and experienced teachers. Not many people are experiencing this kind of spiritual enlightenment in the West, in modern life and times. Why not? Because they are depending too much on the intellect; they’re not depending on the lineage blessings and experience. You can learn, you can know, but not necessarily be accomplished. You can be very big in your head, but that doesn’t mean anything, except your head will be very heavy. And the teachings won’t go to the heart because there’s no lineage, no transmission of the authentic mind-to-mind non-conceptual blessings, from wisdom heart to your heart.

Q. What is it about authentic lineage that is passed on or transmitted?

A blessing. The blessing is something very mysterious, actually. It is not only mysterious, it has a lot of substance. There are also years and decades, centuries of experience here, amidst the blessings and teaching. There’s an unbelievable sense of transformation of your mental state, liberating your mind and opening your heart. How can I express it, because it’s like tasting honey? It’s sweet. But sweet means what? It’s inexpressible. I feel very happy, delighted, delicious, but I can’t express it—until you taste it, and then we can share something of the experience together. This is one aspect of the blessing, of course, which a book cannot give you.

But this is not the only important aspect. What I care about is that the blessing is truly transforming. Your life transforms into the divine state of mind. Even though you live the same way, everything is different—concepts, precepts, everything is different. Yesterday maybe you were unhappy; perhaps you were stealing, cheating, drinking, or simply dissatisfied or depressed. But last night perhaps by good karma you have seen the appropriate guru and have been inspired to change and today you have changed.

This is not necessarily overnight, it may take years or decades but time doesn’t matter. It changes everything, the whole world, your whole attitude. Your whole life can be transformed. From my point of view, if there is no guru, there is no way to get enlightenment. I’m one hundred percent sure. You have to have a personal transmission from a qualified genuine guru, one who has the lineage and is qualified to give this. If you don’t have the lineage, your practice and path is uncooked, unfinished. If you don’t have a human master who gave you the lineage, it cannot be received from a book.  (From an interview, “Blessings Like Honey”, with His Holiness by Lama Surya Das)

So His Holiness is saying that without a lineage, there is no blessing to be passed on to the student.  Without a lineage of masters behind the teacher, the teacher really is not qualified to teach.

Karma Chagme (Raga Asya) was a well-known Drikung Kagyu lama who also served as Tertön Migyur Dorje’s attendant for years.  Tertön (Treasure Revealer) Migyur Dorje was the founder of the Palyul Lineage of the Nyingma School.  He revealed many teachings that he received directly from the deities themselves.  He started receiving them when he was just a young boy.  Karma Chagme literally followed the young tertön around to write down everything that was revealed to him as the revelations could happen at any time.  Here is what Karma Chagme had to say about lineage:

The crucial, primary qualification of a spiritual mentor is stated by Naropa, “The qualification of a spiritual mentor is that he possesses the lineage.” The Single Meaning of the Vajra Speech states, “There is great profundity in the connection within the lineage of the holy Dharma.” The real lineage of the realization of this Dharma, which transfers blessings, is the unbroken rosary of Buddhas. (From A Spacious Path to Freedom, by Karma Chagme , commentary by Ven. Gyaltrul Rinpoche, translated by Alan B. Wallace, Snow Lion Publications, Ithaca, New York, 1998, p.22)

The Palyul Lineage became known in Tibet for the purity of its teachers and the level of accomplishment they had.

Each of the great throne and lineage holders of the Palyul tradition became well known as great scholars of sutra, tantra and the outer and inner sciences. The successive throne holders and monks of the mother and branch Palyul monasteries practice the vinaya code of ethics as the foundational discipline. Upon this foundation, the second root practice, the mind training of the great vehicle of Mahayana called bodhicitta is placed. The aspirant trains to develop both aspirational and practical bodhicitta for the purpose of benefiting all sentient beings.

The tradition of practice that these highly disciplined monks strictly enforced has caused The Palyul Lineage to become known as the tradition of accomplishment.  (From www.palyul.org)

Therefore when one is examining a teacher, it is crucial to also examine his or her lineage.  If there is no lineage, there can be no accomplishment by the student.  Jetsunma says that lineage gives the student security, the trust that the teachings are authentic and have been proven over time again and again.  Without that, as sentient beings we do not have the ability to discriminate between true teachers and false teachers.

Click the link above to hear the prayer

NAM DAG TEN PA DAR WA PAL YUL GON

Palyul Monastery is the place where pure teachings of the buddhas have flourished,

GYAL WAI NAM TRUL JON PA KHA CHOD ZHING

And the sky-land where the buddhas [...]]]>

Prayer for the Preservation of the Palyul Lineage

Click the link above to hear the prayer

NAM DAG TEN PA DAR WA PAL YUL GON

Palyul Monastery is the place where pure teachings of the buddhas have flourished,

GYAL WAI NAM TRUL JON PA KHA CHOD ZHING

And the sky-land where the buddhas have manifested.

DREL TSED CHANG CHUB LAM DREN DU DE CHE

Whatever connection occurs with the gathering of this sangha leads toward enlightenment.

CHO LING DI NYI SID TAR TEN GYUR CHIG

May this land of dharma remain firm until the end of existence.

The following are tweets by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo from December 7, 2009 on the importance of lineage

The dumbest thing you can do is build the ego by claiming spiritual capacity about oneself. Better others to say from experience.

The Buddha taught that to claim enlightenment without attaining it is [...]]]>

His Holiness Penor Rinpoche

The following are tweets by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo from December 7, 2009 on the importance of lineage

The dumbest thing you can do is build the ego by claiming spiritual capacity about oneself. Better others to say from experience.

The Buddha taught that to claim enlightenment without attaining it is a heinous fault. A lie to others + oneself, harmful.

I have never claimed for myself anything other than what my Tsawei Lama and our Lineage has said. What would be the benefit?

Be extremely careful with a “teacher” who recognizes themselves without the benefit of Guru and Lineage. They may be harmful to you.

Most important to know- who is their Guru! What is their lineage? Where is their Sangha? Where is their accomplishment of benefit?

And certainly one should examine their qualities. Are they truly compassionate, care for others? How? Do they have wisdom? Or just B.S.?

When we think we have found a suitable Lama/Guru we should take time to examine them, their activities. Check- today we have Google!

When walking the path to Liberation the last thing we need is a snake-oil salesman. And they are out there. I know of some.

You have to be a major CREEP to seduce innocent spiritual seekers when you have nothing true to offer. A con artist!

If the need to be a Guru is so strong that one is compelled to invent one’s status then one is Not a Guru, but is an egomaniac.

If you meet such a one as that RUN for your #spiritual life! Fast! Never put your #PATH in the hands of a charlatan!

There are many pure Lamas who willingly show their credentials and teach from a purely preserved line of accomplished Masters, or Lineage.

It is through that unbroken line of accomplished Masters that the essential mind ripening blessings are passed. Not from ego.

So be careful out there! In today’s spiritual supermarket they are selling a LOT of BALONEY! Google, search, watch, be sure.

You can find out more about Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo on the About Us page, and also on Tara.org.  A Garland of Immortal Wish-Fulfilling Trees: The Palyul Tradition of Nyingmapa provides a more complete discussion of the Palyul lineage and the lives of the extraordinary Palyul lineage holders.

His Holiness Karma Kuchen Rinpoche is coming to the Washington D.C. area tomorrow, October 12th.  His Holiness is the 5th Karma Kuchen Rinpoche, recognized by His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche and Penor Rinpoche and enthroned as the 12th Throneholder of the Palyul Lineage.  You can read more about this Precious Master here.

To see the [...]]]>

His Holiness Karma Kuchen Rinpoche is coming to the Washington D.C. area tomorrow, October 12th.  His Holiness is the 5th Karma Kuchen Rinpoche, recognized by His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche and Penor Rinpoche and enthroned as the 12th Throneholder of the Palyul Lineage.  You can read more about this Precious Master here.

To see the schedule for his visit to Washington D.C. please click here.

To see the schedule for his world tour you can visit Palyul.org here.