Patrul Rinpoche (
Wylie: ''dpal sprul rin po che'') (1808–1887) was a teacher and author from the
Nyingma
Nyingma (literally 'old school') is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It is also often referred to as ''Ngangyur'' (, ), "order of the ancient translations". The Nyingma school is founded on the first lineages and trans ...
school of
Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism (also referred to as Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Lamaism, Lamaistic Buddhism, Himalayan Buddhism, and Northern Buddhism) is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion. It is also in majo ...
.
Biography
Patrul Rinpoche was born in
Dzachukha, a nomadic area of Golok Dzachukha, Eastern Tibet in 1808, and was recognized as the
reincarnation
Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the philosophical or religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new life in a different physical form or body after biological death. Resurrectio ...
of Palgé Samten Phuntsok and was given the name Orgyen Jikmé Chökyi Wangpo. With Dola Jikmé Kalzang, Jikmé Ngotsar,
Gyalsé Shenpen Thayé and other teachers, he studied
Longchen Rabjam
Longchen Rabjam Drimé Özer (), commonly abbreviated to Longchenpa (1308–1364, an honorific meaning "The Vast Expanse") was a Tibetan scholar-yogi of the Nyingma school ('Old School') of Tibetan Buddhism. According to tibetologist David Germ ...
's ''Trilogy of Finding Comfort and Ease'', ''The Way of the Bodhisattva'' (''
Bodhicaryavatara''), ''Secret Essence (
Guhyagarbha) Tantra'' and many other works related to
sutra
''Sutra'' ( sa, सूत्र, translit=sūtra, translit-std=IAST, translation=string, thread)Monier Williams, ''Sanskrit English Dictionary'', Oxford University Press, Entry fo''sutra'' page 1241 in Indian literary traditions refers to an ap ...
and
tantra
Tantra (; sa, तन्त्र, lit=loom, weave, warp) are the esoteric traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism that developed on the Indian subcontinent from the middle of the 1st millennium CE onwards. The term ''tantra'', in the India ...
, as well as the ordinary sciences. From Shechen Öntrul Thutob Namgyal, he received the reading transmission for the Translated Word of the Buddha (
Kangyur) and teachings on
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...
grammar. He received the transmissions for the
Kangyur and
Tengyur in their entirety, together with the writings of many masters of the
old
Old or OLD may refer to:
Places
*Old, Baranya, Hungary
*Old, Northamptonshire, England
* Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD)
*OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, M ...
and
new translation schools.
He received instruction on the
Longchen Nyingtik Ngondro some twenty-five times from Jikmé Gyalwé Nyugu, and Patrul Rinpoche completed the required practices the same number of times. In addition, he received instruction on ''
tsa-lung'' practice and
Dzogchen
Dzogchen (, "Great Perfection" or "Great Completion"), also known as ''atiyoga'' ( utmost yoga), is a tradition of teachings in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism and Yungdrung Bon aimed at discovering and continuing in the ultimate ground of existence. ...
, and studied many of the cycles of practice found in the canonical scriptures (''kama'') of the
Nyingma
Nyingma (literally 'old school') is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It is also often referred to as ''Ngangyur'' (, ), "order of the ancient translations". The Nyingma school is founded on the first lineages and trans ...
Vajrayana
Vajrayāna ( sa, वज्रयान, "thunderbolt vehicle", "diamond vehicle", or "indestructible vehicle"), along with Mantrayāna, Guhyamantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism, are names referring t ...
.
Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje introduced him to the pure awareness of
rigpa
In Dzogchen, ''rigpa'' (; Skt. vidyā; "knowledge") is knowledge of the ground. The opposite of ''rigpa'' is ''ma rigpa'' ('' avidyā'', ignorance). A practitioner who has attained the state of ''rigpa'' and is able to rest there continuously i ...
while exhibiting wild and eccentric behaviour. He trained for a long time in the Longchen Nyingtik ''tsa-lung'' practices, and he received many teachings from Dzogchen Rinpoche Mingyur Namkhé Dorje and other masters.
While remaining for long periods near
Dzogchen Monastery in the isolated hermitages of Rudam, such as the
Yamantaka
Yamāntaka ( sa, यमान्तक Yamāntaka) or Vajrabhairava (; ; ko, 대위덕명왕 ''Daewideok-myeongwang''; ja, 大威徳明王 ''Daiitoku-myōō''; mn, Эрлэгийн Жаргагчи ''Erlig-jin Jarghagchi'') is the "destroyer of ...
Cave and the Long Life cave, he put his energy into the practice of meditation and, it is said, attained a realization that was as vast as space.
From the age of thirty, he travelled to
Serthar,
Yarlung Pemako and other places, teaching extensively on the ''Secret Essence Tantra''. To assemblies in Serthar and in the upper and lower regions of the Do valley he taught on ''
The Way of the Bodhisattva'', ''
Maṇi Kambum'', ''Aspiration Prayer of Sukhavati'' and so on. He made efforts to put an end to robbery and banditry and abolished the custom of serving meat at special gatherings. He also went to Dzamthang and studied the
Six Yogas with Tsangpa Ngawang Chöjor, and he went to
Minyak, where he had extensive discussions with Dra Geshe Tsultrim Namgyal on the
prajnaparamita
A Tibetan painting with a Prajñāpāramitā sūtra at the center of the mandala
Prajñāpāramitā ( sa, प्रज्ञापारमिता) means "the Perfection of Wisdom" or "Transcendental Knowledge" in Mahāyāna and Theravāda ...
and other topics.
In Shri Singha college at
Dzogchen Monastery and at Pemé Thang and other places, he turned the wheel of Dharma uninterruptedly, teaching on the treatises of
Maitreya
Maitreya (Sanskrit: ) or Metteyya (Pali: ), also Maitreya Buddha or Metteyya Buddha, is regarded as the future Buddha of this world in Buddhist eschatology. As the 5th and final Buddha of the current kalpa, Maitreya's teachings will be aimed a ...
, the
Middle Way
The Middle Way ( pi, ; sa, ) as well as "teaching the Dharma by the middle" (''majjhena dhammaṃ deseti'') are common Buddhist terms used to refer to two major aspects of the Dharma, that is, the teaching of the Buddha.; my, အလယ်� ...
,
Abhidharma
The Abhidharma are ancient (third century BCE and later) Buddhist texts which contain detailed scholastic presentations of doctrinal material appearing in the Buddhist ''sutras''. It also refers to the scholastic method itself as well as the f ...
, ''Secret Essence Tantra'', ''Treasury of Precious Qualities'', ''Ascertainment of the Three Vows'' and other topics. In particular, when he taught on ''The Way of the Bodhisattva'' in the vicinity of Dzogchen Shri Singha for several years in succession, large numbers of flowers called Serchen, with between thirty and fifty petals, blossomed all of a sudden, and they became known as ‘bodhicharyavatara flowers.’
He went to Kathok Dorje Den, where he offered
prostrations
Prostration is the gesture of placing one's body in a reverentially or submissively prone position. Typically prostration is distinguished from the lesser acts of bowing or kneeling by involving a part of the body above the knee, especially ...
and '
circumambulated' (Wylie: ''skor ba'') the reliquaries of the three great masters Dampa Deshek, Tsangtön Dorje and Jampa Bum. At the request of Situ Choktrul Chökyi Lodrö and others, he gave extensive explanations on ''The Way of the Bodhisattva'' to the whole assembly of monks. He went to major monasteries of the Riwo Gendenpa tradition such as Sershul, Labtridu, Chuhor and others and taught elaborately on ''The Way of the Bodhisattva'' and other topics.
Patrul Rinpoche established a teaching centre in the vicinity of Dzagyal Monastery and he repaired the large complex of walls of ‘
mani stones' (Wylie: ''do-bum'') built by his previous incarnation Palge Samten Phuntsok, which thereafter became known as the Patrul Dobum.
His disciples included masters of the
Nyingma
Nyingma (literally 'old school') is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It is also often referred to as ''Ngangyur'' (, ), "order of the ancient translations". The Nyingma school is founded on the first lineages and trans ...
school such as
Kathok Situ Choktrul Chökyi Lodrö, the Fifth
Dzogchen Rinpoche
Dzogchen Rinpoche () is the head lama of Dzogchen Monastery, one of the largest monasteries in eastern Tibet which was destroyed in 1959 and rebuilt in the 1980s.
The current Dzogchen Rinpoche, who is enumerated as the seventh in the lineage of ...
Thubten Chökyi Dorje, Gyarong Namtrul Kunzang
Thekchok Dorje, the second and third Dodrupchens, Jikme Phuntsok Jungne and Jikmé Tenpe Nyima, Dechen Rigpé Raldri, who was the son of
Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje,
Khenpo Shenga, Adzom Druktrul Droddul Dorje,
Tertön Sogyal Lerab Lingpa,
Jamgon Ju Mipham Gyatso,
Khenpo Pema Vajra, Nyoshul Lungtok, Alak Dongak Gyatso and others. In addition, his disciples included many masters of the Sakya, Gelugpa and Kagyü schools, such as Sershul Lharampa Thubten, Palpung Lama Tashi Özer and Ju Lama Drakpa Gyaltsen.
Patrul Rinpoche died on the eighteenth day of the fourth lunar month in the Fire
Pig year of the fifteenth calendrical cycle (1887).
Patrul Rinpoche's writings were not collected by the master himself or by his attendants, and thus many of them were never carved into printing blocks. Those which were printed and which are now to be found comprise six volumes. These include works of various styles and genres, including commentaries on and structural outlines (sa bcad) for the treatises of Maitreya, ''The Way of the Bodhisattva'', ''Treasury of Precious Qualities'' and other texts, such as ''The Words of My Perfect Teacher'', and miscellaneous writings including ''The Drama in the Lotus Garden'', which was written to console a young nobleman from
Derge called Trashi Deleg whose young bride had been killed in an epidemic.
The essence of his teachings
Use the time of your life.
Develop your inner happiness.
Recognize the impermanence
of all outer pleasure.
Live as a
Yogi
A yogi is a practitioner of Yoga, including a sannyasin or practitioner of meditation in Indian religions.A. K. Banerjea (2014), ''Philosophy of Gorakhnath with Goraksha-Vacana-Sangraha'', Motilal Banarsidass, , pp. xxiii, 297-299, 331 Th ...
Do your spiritual practices.
Work as a
Bodhisattva
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood.
In the Early Buddhist schools ...
for a happy world.
Become an
Amitabha
a Buddha of love and light.
Turn your world into the paradise
Sukhavati,
by unfolding the enlightenment energy within you.
Search for a spiritual master,
who knows the goal of
enlightenment.
Change your world into a place of grace,
by understanding all the phenomena as spiritual exercises.
Dedicate your actions to the benefit of all beings.
Send all beings light.
Live for the
happiness
Happiness, in the context of mental or emotional states, is positive or pleasant emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy. Other forms include life satisfaction, well-being, subjective well-being, flourishing and eudaimonia.
...
of all beings.
So you get the energy of light.
Publications
*
*
(Free download here)(Free download here)
See also
*
The Treasury of Lives: Biographies of Himalayan Religious Masters
References
Sources
*
*
*
*
Further reading
*
External links
A Guide to the Works of Patrul Rinpoche in English*
Patrul Rinpoche Series on Lotsawa HousePatrul Rinpoche: Advice from Me to MyselfPatrul Rinpoche's current reincarnation Home Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rinpoche, Patrul
Dzogchen lamas
Nyingma lamas
Nyingma tulkus
Tibetan Buddhists from Tibet
Patrul Rinpoche
19th-century Tibetan people
19th-century lamas
Qing dynasty Tibetan Buddhists
Tibetan Buddhist monks