| Tibetan Buddhist monk offers
guidance in Madison by Lyrea Crawford A man wearing the simple robes of a Buddhist monk sits below brightly colored banners in an upstairs apartment in Madison, Wisc. He is the Venerable Younge Khachab Drodul Rinpoche -- a high Lama, meditation master and Rime scholar. He is here to offer Buddhist teachings and empowerments that are rarely available in this country, and to serve as the spiritual director of the Rime Shedrub Ling Tibetan Buddhist Meditation and Teaching Center. According to the introduction of the Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, the word "Rinpoche" translates as "the Precious One." It is a title given to a master. The Rime (pronounced ree-may) tradition of Tibetan Buddhism incorporates the views and meditations of the four main schools, and one who is recognized as a master in this nonsectarian tradition has had extensive training. Khachab Rinpoche's story is an interesting one. His family were refugees from Kham, Tibet, and he grew up herding sheep and yak in Dolpo, Nepal. His father was a sword-carrying freedom fighter for Tibet, a Lama and a Tulku. To those who are aware that the basic tenets of Buddhism include harmlessness and compassion, this may seem like a contradication. But Rinpoche explains that the situation was extreme. The Tibetan people were being treated like animals, and it was felt that the greater compassion and harmlessness was to try to protect the people. In 1974, the Younge family moved to the city. Rinpoche's father understood from dreams and omens that his eldest son was the seventh incarnation of Khachab Rinpoche, and so at age 13, as the 14th recognized Tulku in the Younge family lineage, the boy's formal training began. In 1976, at age 15, he was sent to Ganden in South India to attend the Shedra Monastic University. Two thousand started in his class, and when Rinpoche finished his geshe training in 1989, only 60 of the original group remained. The training was intensive and difficult. Students were continuously gleaned out through a selection process that required them to be able to publicly answer any question put to them on grammar, philosophy, math, astrology or medicine. After this, his training and testing continued with a traditional three-year, seven-month retreat in Sikkim. Rinpoche tells the story of an event that happened there. It was January and extremely cold. The monks had been studying Tummo -- the practice of generating the heat of bliss. Many people gathered and in spite of the cold, the monks walked slowly through the crowd, wearing only a thin white cloth. A shawl that had been soaked in ice water was wrapped around each of them. Those that had successfully mastered the Tummo practice were able to sit on the frozen lake and dry the shawl with their body heat, but many were soon shaking and shivering. Over the years, Rinpoche has received instruction from many highly recognized teachers. He has received pith instructions from His Holiness (H.H.) Dilgo Khyentse, H.H. Penor Rinpoche and H.H. Dudjom Rinpoche, as well as the Drikung Drubwang Rinpoche. In 1998 he was honored with an extended interview and philosophical discussion with His Holiness, the Dalai Lama. When asked if he has anything he would like to say to the American people, this highly respected and learned Tibetan Lama had this to say: "Keep an open mind. Cultivate true openness. Go and meet your neighbors." He explained that he has noticed that people in this country often do not know their neighbors. Many older people live and die alone here. He has observed that Americans have good manners, but they don't communicate well with one another. They think only of themselves, and this can be dangerous. To emphasize his point, Rinpoche got up and went over to a bicycle that was sitting in the entryway of the apartment. He indicated the lock on the bike, and said, "Many minds are like this. They are locked, but the key of true compassion can unlock the mind." Rinpoche's personal assistant explained this further. Her name is Hilary Wehlre, and she first met Rinpoche while she was doing research on women in tantric Buddhism in Nepal. She would come out of her living quarters while in Nepal to find 2-year-old children playing on the street, apparently unattended. At first she was taken quite aback at this, and then she realized that the shopkeeper across the street was watching the children, and another woman over there was watching. In fact, everyone was watching the children, and the parents were not afraid to simply walk away and do what they needed to, knowing that the children were safe and protected. In the Tibetan culture, everyone watches everyone else. Each person is constantly aware of all the others in the community, and if there is a need, they are able to respond. This is considered to be the beginning of compassion. Rinpoche also had some suggestions for people in this country who are studying Buddhism. He has found that often Americans will go straight to the most advanced Buddhist teachings they can find, and then after a while, they become frustrated because they are not making good progress. He cautions dharma practitioners to make sure they have good foundational studies, noting that personal instruction from a qualified teacher is invaluable. If possible, he suggests that serious dharma practitioners travel to Asia for instruction. He adds that proper instruction is a priceless gift, for it offers liberation from the ego. Younge Khachab Rinpoche offers a variety of teaching and empowerments, some of which are rarely given in this country. He travels as needed, and has a center in Montreal, Canada. In the Midwest, his teachings are available through the Rime Shedrub Ling Center and Windemere Institute of Healing Arts. Program information is available from Rime Shedrub Ling at (608) 243-8055 or www.rimeshedrubling.org, or by contacting Windemere Institute at 1 (800) 874-0905, WIHA@rconnect.com or www.windemere.org Lyrea Crawford is a Reiki Master/Teacher, a nationally certified Massage Therapist/Bodyworker, and a faculty member at Windemere Institute of Healing Arts in Decorah, Iowa. She teaches a meditation method called the Ishayas' Ascension at various locations in the Midwest. Lyrea may be reached at (608) 549-2023. Copyright © 2004 Lyrea Crawford |
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