- 2. Katok Monastery
- 2.1 Chokyi Lodro’s Childhood / A vision from a Previous Life / The Incident with the Quicksilver / Tulku Lodro Examines His Dreams
- 3. Tulku Lodro is given to Dzongsar
- 3.1 Khyentse Wangpo’s Bed
- 3.2 The Khyentse Tulku Controversy
- Jago Tobden Gets Involved
- 4. Regent of Katok Monastery / The Expulsion of Women from Katok Monastery / Chokyi Lodro’s Last Visit to Katok Monastery
- 5. The Founding of Khamje Shedra
- 6. The Early Years at Khyentse Labrang
Katok Monastery
According to Dilgo Khyentse, it was Jamgon Kongtrul Lodro Taye Who recognized all five emanations of Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo, and so it was to Jamgon Kongtrul that Katok Situ Chokyi Gyatso wrote, begging for a Khyentse tulku to be sent to Katok: “A Khyentse tulku would be an indispensable asset to the monastery.”
“There aren’t any Khyentse tulkus left!” replied Jamgon Kongtrul. “There is one boy who might be of benefit to Katok Monastery…but it’s probably not a good idea for me to name him.”
Of course, Katok Situ immediately sent many more messages to Jamgon Kongtrul begging him to identify the boy and was eventually summoned to Jamgon Kongtrul’s residence.
“You keep asking me to appoint a Khyentse tulku to Katok Monastery,“ Said Jamgon Kongtrul. “Katok Monastery is a very sacred place. Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo is believed to have said that had it been possible for him to live at Katok, it would have been the second best way for him to spend his life. The best would have been for him to live as a homeless wanderer, in which case he would have built a large monastery for several thousand monks somewhere on the border of U and Tsang before attaining rainbow body at a place called Tsang Oyuk. But circumstances were against both those options.
“I don’t know why Khyentse Wangpo couldn’t live at Katok. It may have been an obstacle created by four-faced Mahakala, or perhaps his positive activities outside Katok were so beneficial that it was impossible for him to retire to the monastery.
“Whatever the reason, right now Katok Monastery needs a Khyentse tulku. You must therefore take into your care the grandson of the great Terton of Ser he is unquestionably the activity emanation of Khyentse Wangpo. But don’t build him a labrang or load him down with the responsibilities of a labrang. And don’t make him head of the monastery or impose any of those kinds of duty on him. If he can be left to nurture spontaneity and yogic discipline, he will without doubt become an incomparable mahasiddha in the Land of Snows. So don’t ever entrust him with weighty responsibilities! Not before you’ve really thought about whether it’s truly appropriate or even necessary.”
Jamgon Kongtrul gave the letter, protection cord, and scarf to Katok Situ and bestowed on Chokyi Lodro the name Lodro Gyatso. Katok Situ took it all to Tswang Chokdrup, the son of the old Terton of Ser, then returned to Katok with Chokyi Lodro, who lived there until he was thirteen years old.
Gongna Tulku told me it was snowing the day Khyentse Chokyi Lodro arrived at Katok. Situ Labrang looked huge from the outside, but inside it was virtually empty, and Rinpoche was given a very shabby room. The following day the snow was so deep that the local villagers were unable to leave their homes, which was very unusual for the region and considered by many to be a good omen. He was quickly enthroned in a simple ceremony.
The following year, Katok Situ traveled with many of his monks to Tsadra Rinchen Drak where Jamgon Kongtrul was to give the great empowerment of the General Essentialization of All the Wisdom of the Buddhas. Chokyi Lodro longed to go, but Katok Situ wouldn’t take him. “You are just a child, there’s no need for you to go,” he said, Chokyi Lodro didn’t dare argue and later said that missing his only opportunity to meet Jamgon Kongtrul was his greatest regret. This is not mentioned in the Great Biography.
Dilgo Khyentse said that Rinpoche never admitted to being a tulku of Khyentse Wangpo, in fact, Rinpoche insisted it wasn’t possible. He had been born in the year of the snake and Khyentse Wangpo had passed away only eight months earlier in the first month of the dragon year. He even backed up his assertion with quotations from the Treasury of Abhidharma and other texts. This is clearly stated in the Great Biography.
Khyentse Wangpo’s Bed
That night, Chokyi Lodro wandered through the labrang until he found a bedroom with a monk’s bed in it. It wasn’t until much later that he discovered the bedroom he had chosen was Khyentse Wangpo’s and therefore the most important room in the labrang. At the time there didn’t seem to be anywhere else for him to sleep, so he moved in. And none of the labrang staff said a word about whose room it had been.
The following year, Katok Situ visited Dzongsar for the second time.
When Chokyi Lodro politely asked him to sit down once more. And again Katok Situ refused.
“I could not possibly sit on that bed,” said Katok Situ, and instead accepted a thick cushion.
“Where do you sleep?” asked Katok Situ.
“The only bed I could find when I first arrived was this one, and I’ve slept here ever since,” replied Chokyi Lodro.
“Adzi!” exclaimed Katok Situ. “They say ‘a dog sleeps on a man’s bed,’ and it’s true!”
Chokyi Lodro said nothing.
“Adzi!” cried Katok Situ a moment later. “The saying ‘a dog sleeping on a man’s bed’ is true!”
He repeated the adage several times, until eventually Chokyi Lodro asked him why he kept saying it.
“This is the bed of Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo, the Sovereign Lord of all the teachings of the Buddha. And you sleep in it!” said Katok Situ.
Chokyi Lodro said he suddenly felt very uncomfortable. Although he had already slept in that bed for many nights, he asked Katok Situ if he should find somewhere else to sleep.
“As you are already sleeping here, you should continue to do so,” replied Katok Situ. And he couldn’t have been that unhappy about it because later he said he felt an auspicious circumstance had been created.
Katok Situ was immensely kind to Kyentse Chokyi Lodro. He talked with him at length and gave him a great deal of advice and guidance on the outer and inner practices. But Jamgon Kongtrul’s prophecy about the most auspicious option for Chokyi Lodro’s life that he live the life of a wanderer never came to be.
When Shechen Gyaltsab visited Dzongsar, Chokyi Lodro invited him to sit on Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo’s bed. Shechen Gyaltsab instantly declared that he would do no such thing. Instead he offered three prostrations, placed his forehead against the bed, then gave Chokyi Lodro an empowerment I think it was for a sadhana called the Perfectly Accomplished Guru from the treasure teachings of Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo. Only then, as he gave the empowerment, did Shechen Gyaltsab acquiesce; and when he was offered the previous Khyentse’s hat to wear, he accepted that too.
“Apart from the previous incarnation of Gyaltsab,” said Rinpoche much later, “no one dared sit on Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo’s bed. Thinking about it now, I lacked all the qualities that would have qualified me to sleep in the bed pf such a supremely excellent and unique master. But as I had already slept there for a number of years, what else could I do?”
The Khyentse Tulku Controversy
Background
As I’ve already mentioned, when Khyentse Wangpo died the prophecies predicted five incarnations, and it was Jamgon Kongtrul who recognized the tulku who was initially taken to Dzongsar Monastery as its throne holder (the body incarnation) – the tulku who died prematurely in the arms of Dzogchen Rinpoche.
While the First Khyentse Tulku was living at Dzongsar, another Khyentse tulku was also taken to live there, and a rumor quickly spread that he had been recognized by Ponlop Loter Wangpo himself. This other tulku was known as Khyen Trukma. Truk means “small” and in this context is a little impertinent, but that’s what they called him.
In the meantime, Katok Situ’s determination to bring a Khyentse incarnation to Katok Monastery had only increased. As I’ve already said, the activity incarnation of Khyentse Wangpo had yet to be recognized and enthroned when Jamgon Kongtrul recognized Khyentse Chokyi Lodro, but not before imposing the condition that the young tulku should not be burdened with the responsibilities of running a big labrang or monastery.
After the First Khyentse Tulku passed away, Kalzang Dorje wrote that strong letter demanding that Katok Situ send Khyentse Chokyi Lodro to Dzongsar. But then Kalzang Dorje died, which made things very difficult for Katok Situ. Had Kalzang Dorje lived, Katok Situ would have been able to tell him about Jamgon Kongtrul’s condition, and together they would have come up with a solution that worked for both monasteries. But as he was dead, Katok Situ’s only option was to comply with Kalzang Dorje’s final wish.
Yangsi Rinpoche Thubten Chokyi Gyatso said that from what he’d heard, Khyen Trukma was never fully accepted as the monastery’s throne holder by all the Dzongsar monks. This is true. Dzongsar is a Sakya monastery, and the monks who accepted Khyen Trukma only did so because he was a Sakyapa. But the all-powerful Khyentse Labrang, which was entirely separate from Dzongsar Monastery, emphatically did not. (Khyentse Wangpo never had much to do with Dzongsar Monastery.) This was why Kalzang Dorje, who was Khyentse Wangpo’s nephew, regent, and the interim head of Khyentse Labrang, demanded that Katok Situ send Khyentse Chokyi Lodro to Dzongsar. And this is how two incarnations of Khyentse Wangpo ended up living at the same monastery at the same time. Khyentse Labrang and Regent Kalzang Dorje looked after Chokyi Lodro, and Dzongsar Monastery looked after Khyen Trukma.
I don’t know if there were any clashes between those close to the tulkus, but as the rumor that Khyen Trukma had been recognized by Loter Wangpo was never verified, a dispute arose between Dzongsar Monastery and Khyentse Labrang, so serious that many of the monks armed themselves with daggers.
At the height of the hostilities, Katok Situ arrived at Dznogsar to speak with Chokyi Lodro.
“Jamgon Kongtrul made a prophecy about you,” said Katok Situ, over a cup of tea. “But it seems this monastery doesn’t want you. They tell me there are even people here who actively dislike you. So if you want to, you can come back to Katok with me, because I really need you.”
Chokyi Lodro, who had grown up a bit by then, thought deeply before he replied.
“I can only ever agree to anything Rinpoche asks me to do,” he said.”But first, I would like to say something.”
“Ah!” said Katok Situ. “What is it?”
“Rinpoche, you’ve asked me to go back to Katok with you. Had I not already been given to Dzongsar, that would be a very reasonable course of action. But I have been given to this monastery and I’ve settled here. It’s true, there are problems. But if I leave without resolving them, worldly people won’t hesitate to criticize me. On top of which, my dreams indicate that if I do stay, I will be able, in some small way, to benefit the Buddhadharma. As far as Katok is concerned, I could never do more than you, Rinpoche, while you live, as you do everything so much better than I do. But should there be a time when you are no longer at Katok, I promise I will serve the monastery for a full fifteen years.”
Katok Situ remained silent long after Chokyi Lodro finished speaking. He rested his gaze in the sky, and tears flowed down his cheeks.
“We human beings always fall into the same trap!” he said finally. “I thought that being older and more experienced than you, I was somehow greater and more far-sighted. But you have exceeded me both spiritually and temporally, I see now that you should not leave Dzongsar. You must remain here.”
So Chokyi Lodro stayed at Dzongsar.
Yangsi Rinpoche Thubten Chokyi Gyatso said he’d heard that when Chokyi Lodro was first sent to Dzongsar, Katok Situ had not agreed to give the tulku outright, only to lend him to Dzongsar for fifteen years. But I’ve not found a single account to corroborate this detail. All I’ve ever been told is that Khyentse Chokyi Lodro pledged to serve Katok Monastery for fifteen years – which is also mentioned in the Great Biography.
Tulku Lodro is given to Dzongsar
I will now tell you a few of the stories I heard from Dilgo Khyentse, exactly as he told them to me. The First Khyentse Tulku was receiving the transmission of Precious Chokyi Dorje, at Dzogchen Monastery, when suddenly, just as the Guru section was drawing to a close, he fell violently ill. As the tulku had a high fever, they all thought it was a flu virus, but it soon became obvious that his illness was rather more serious. His attendants called Dzogchen Rinpoche to his bedside.
“The reincarnation of my root guru is dying,” whispered Dzogchen Rinpoche, as he laid the young tulku’s head in his lap and wept. Not long after, Dzogchen Rinpoche announced that the tulku had passed away.
The First Khyentse Tulku had been the body emanation of Khyentse Wangpo, but his subsequent incarnation was never recognized. Many suspected it was Dilgo Khyentse, but when I asked him directly, he denied it.
Kalzang Dorje was Khyentse Wangpo’s nephew and became the regent of Dzongsar Monastery after Khyentse Wangpo passed away, so it was his job to care for the First Khyentse Tulku. After the tulku died, Kalzang Dorje wrote to Katok Situ:” My Dzongsar Khyentse Tulku has passed away quite suddenly, like a brilliant sun eclipsed by the moon. I am ill and close to death. Please,come what may, give me the grandson of the great Terton of Ser, the boy you have at Katok. If you care about the samaya between us brothers, and the samaya between you and your uncle, Khyentse Wangpo, you have no choice but to do as I ask. Send the tulku to Dzongsar Monastery. These are my dying words.”
Regent Kalzang Dorje passed away the day after he wrote this letter. Nevertheless, it was dispatched to Katok and delivered by hand to Katok Situ.
At first Katok Situ said nothing. Then he summoned Chokyi Lodro into his presence.
“Jamgon Kongtrul instructed me not to entrust you with any kind of responsibility not for the monastery, the labrang, or any other institution. But today I received a letter from Kalzang Dorje instructing me to give you to Dzongsar Monastery. If he were still alive, we could discuss the situation, but he is dead, and the only way I can maintain a pure samaya connection with both him and Khyentse Wangpo is to do as he asks. In fact, I have no choice, because this is the one samaya I lack the courage to ignore. So, as I can’t think of an alternative, I’m afraid you will have to go to Dzongsar.”
Chokyi Lodro replied that although he felt no great desire to go to Dzongsar, neither was he completely unmoved by the prospect. So, shortly after they spoke, Katok Situ and Chokyi Lodro, accompanied by six or seven attendants, made the journey to Dzongsar.
Khyentse Labrang was in possession of all of Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo’s wealth and belongings but did not display its riches ostentatiously.
When Chokyi Lodro first arrived at Dzongsar, the residents of the monastery didn’t go out of their way to welcome him. But later, on an auspicious day, the officials and attendants of the labrang stacked a few thick cushions on a throne in the empowerment hall, and Katok Situ preside over Chokyi Lodro’s enthronement.
The Early Years at Khyentse Labrang
When Khyentse Wangpo was at Dzongsar, he lived in houses offered by the Somo and Dumo families. When Khyentse Chokyi Lodro first moved to Dzongsar, he lived in a house that had originally belonged to the Dilgo family, where an old monk and relative of Khyentse Wangpo had once lived, and from time to time, Khyentse Wangpo must have visited him there. I think there’s still a stone fixed above the door with “Chime Drupe Gatsal” carved into it, like mani mantras are carved into rock. All these buildings were made of bamboo mats and stood side by side, once Khyentse Chokyi Lodro had settled permanently at Dzongsar, doorways were cut through the walls to make one large structure, which was then known as Khyentse Labrang. Here are some of the stories I’ve heard about life in the labrang.
Intially Rinpoche didn’t have many attendants, just a cook, a solpon, and Tsejor. He didn’t like having laypeople in the labrang. If he heard that a layperson was staying there, he would say,”What is he doing here, eating my food and misusing offerings? Tell him to go away!”
In those days, Derge Tsang did not send important emissaries to Dzongsar, and generally life was far less busy than it would later become. Tsejor said that Rinpoche’s mind seemed perfectly at peace and very clear, and that he was able to guide a multitude of activities, both large and small. He would practise from early morning until midday in complete silence, relax a little after lunch, then practice again in the late afternoon. His attendants also lived pleasant, leisurely lives.
“That was when I was truly happy,” said Rinpoche to Tsejor one day.
“You were happy, even though you had so few attendants and no wealth?” exclaimed Tsejor, a little surprised.
“However much wealth I now own,” replied Rinpoche, “I never experience the kind of peace and happiness I enjoyed in those early days.”
The Life and Times of Jamyang Khyentse Chökyi Lodrö
By Dilgo Khyentse, Orgyen Tobgyal
English version Translated by Drubgyud Tenzin Rinpoche & Khenpo Sonam Phuntsok
Chinese version drafted/translated by
