Dear Dharma Friends,

 

Recently I received news of the rapidly declining health of His Eminence Gar Mingyur Rinpoche, the ultimate great Yogin and vajra-holder of the three vows, born in 1940. I arranged for several ceremonies to prolong his life. To this end I have truly done everything possible. Receiving the sad news this morning of his physical manifestation’s dissolution into the dharma-sphere, I am full of sorrow.

 

Mingyur Rinpoche is not only a lama of my monastery, but in times when the teachings of the Buddha had declined he bestowed monastic ordinations in many monasteries without sectarian bias. Therefore, he is a great holder of vinaya who restored the foundation of the vinaya teachings.

 

He is the life-force holder of the ultimate Buddhadharma. He is a great pillar of the teachings of my monastery. From childhood until now, throughout my entire life, we have been through a great deal together. He is my vajra brother with whom I have shared a loving samaya that has never been tarnished, even in the slightest. It is because of his great pure compassion that he took a following of dedicated monastics and faithful laity at our main monastery and its branches under his skillful care.

 

Even though our minds may be anguished by the pain of endless grief, stirred by our certainty in the nature of compounded phenomena, I encourage everyone to bring to mind your individual yidam deity. In knowing that this yidam is inseparable from the lama, commit to recite a certain number of mantras of that deity within the next fourty-nine days. Committing to this practice of mantra accumulation will bring vast benefit to all others and oneself. Thus, I ask you to please take this to heart.

 

While their minds never move from the totally-pervasive dharmadhātu sphere, I also ask you to pray deeply for the two form bodies of the glorious and holy lamas to continue to appear for the welfare of sentient beings until the end of cyclic existence.

 

Written by Gar Konchog Gyaltsen on September 8th, 2018.