Every Guru Rinpoche day for the last 12 years or so, Phakchok Rinpoche has been sending out letters to remind his students to be mindful, and to bring them back on the path.
Rinpoche already has begun to cover the visionary journeys of great practitioners to Copper-Colored Mountain (check out News for past stories), and Nekhor continues sharing on this Guru Rinpoche day. This, the fourth of the year’s series, recounts Ratna Lingpa’s journey to Copper-Colored Mountain:
Dear friends near and far,
As always, I hope this message finds you well, happy and healthy. Today we will continue our accounts of great masters’ visionary journeys to Zangdok Palri with Ratna Lingpa (1403-1478), one of the great early treasure revealers.
One day, in a dream-like meditative state, Ratna Lingpa saw five ḍākinīs arriving in the sky from the south-west, fully bedecked with ornaments and accompanied by the sounds of ḍāmarus and bells. The ḍākinīs invited the tertön to Zangdok Palri and carried him through the sky on a white silk carpet.
They arrived in Zangdok Palri at sunrise. The mountain was shaped like a torma imbued with all excellent qualities. On top was the palace of Lotus Light, spontaneously present wakefulness. There, darkness was unknown and all was filled with light. Flower gardens, pools, and groves surrounded the palace, and birds sang the song of Dharma.
At the gate of the palace, Ratna Lingpa was welcomed by Yeshé Tsogyal. He bowed his head to her feet with great devotion. Then, entering the palace, the tertön saw Guru Rinpoché in the midst of awareness-holders and ḍākinīs, further surrounded by rakshas come to receive empowerments. Upon seeing the Lotus Guru and his retinue, the tertön felt such bliss as comes upon reaching the first bodhisattva ground of Perfect Joy. Touching the feet of Guru Rinpoché, he supplicated with intense devotion and received countless teachings from the Lotus Guru.
Ratna Lingpa stayed to participate in the deity accomplishment practices that were being held there for twenty-one days. The tertön also received many teachings on philosophical tenets, paths of training, and applying Dharma in daily life from Yeshé Tsogyal and the assembled awareness-holders.
Finally, Ratna Lingpa felt it was time to go home. He flew back in the northwestern direction and awoke from the state of dream-like vision.There is a saying that Guru Rinpoché sleeps over the head of all who have faith in him. Keep this in mind as you supplicate with devotion, and aspire for rebirth in Zangdok Palri.
Sarva Mangalam,
Kyabgön Phakchok Rinpoche