By Chuck Pettis
| Photo courtesy of Wonderlane |
On Sunday, December 13, 2009, Sogyal Rinpoche, author of The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, kept a sold-out audience captivated, entertained, and entranced with his teaching on the significance of Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche) and the Tso Kor Feast Offering Ritual. Sogyal Rinpoche was invited by Sakya Monastery to give this teaching. H.H. Jigdal Dagchen Sakya requested specifically that he teach the Padmasambhava Tso Kor practice. H.H. Dagchen Rinpoche and Sogyal Rinpoche have a long time dharma connection as they share the same teacher, H.E. Jamyang Khyentse Chokyi Lodro Rinpoche and received teachings from him at Dzongsar Monastery in East Tibet in the early 1950’s.
Guru Rinpoche was an Indian tantric master who brought Buddhism to Tibet and is considered by many to be the Second Buddha. Here are a few of the key points that Sogyal Rinpoche made about Guru Rinpoche:
• Guru Rinpoche is the embodiment of the compassion, the blessings, and the enlightened activity, of all the buddhas – all in one.
• Guru Rinpoche is the active manifestation of enlightenment, whose powerful energy is invoked as a source of refuge and protection amidst the confusion and turmoil of this difficult age.
• If we have devotion and if we pray to Guru Rinpoche, the blessings of his compassion will immediately and certainly enter us.
The Tso Kor practice is one of the central practices of Tibetan Vajrayana Buddhism. On the 10th lunar day of each month, a special feast offering (Tso-Kor) is made to Guru Rinpoche at Sakya Monastery. Sogyal Rinpoche said that the Tso Kor Feast Offering is a powerful method for accumulating merit and wisdom, purifying obscurations, and healing our Samaya link with the master, the practice and our fellow practitioners. Everyone who has taken Refuge is invited to the monthly Padmasambhava Tso Kor practice at Sakya Monastery. Check the calendar for actual dates and times.