Lama Dorje Rinchen
The main point of pilgrimage is that one must have first resolved that external appearances are inseparable from mind. This is the homework you must accomplish prior to the pilgrimage.
This means that you have done a considerable amount of practices and gained a certain amount of confidence whether in terms of the meditative view or through accumulation of a certain number of mantras while meditating on the deity. If this condition is met, your experience during the pilgrimage will be spiritually elevated. The encounters would be of an entirely different order.
A Gelukpa scholar Gendun Chopel said, “Without sufficient accumulation of merits or mantras, simply going for a pilgrimage does not bring any special experiences or attainments.” However, if you have done the necessary accumulations of mantra or already developed some insights into emptiness, the pilgrimage will be totally transformed.
The proof of this is that when the past great masters went on pilgrimage, they would see the Dakas, Dakinis, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas appearing. This does not mean that Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are biased and only show themselves to particular persons, such as to these masters who were themselves emanations of Bodhisattvas, while ignoring the ordinary people. The deities do not give such preferential treatment, they show themselves unreservedly to everyone, but if your karma obscures you, you simply can’t see them.
Once, when the Rinpoches were released from jail (at the end of the cultural revolution), to compensate them, the government treated them to a trip to Mount Putuo which was an island sacred to Kwan Yin or Chenrezi. The local guide brought them to two caves and told them that many people have seen the various manifestations of Chenrezi and other strange appearances in these caves. The guide then told them to try their luck since they were Buddhists. All the Rinpoches recited the Mani mantra and some supplication prayers to Chenrezi in the caves but no-one saw anything, so they went on with the journey.
A Rinpoche from Golok was present with the previous Adeu Rinpoche. They had been incarcerated together for about 20 years and were good friends. This Golok Rinpoche declared, “Impossible! It’s impossible that we can’t see anything. It’s impossible to have no response. We should pray properly again.”
Among the group, only Adeu Rinpoche and Golok Rinpoche were left behind, so they went into one cave each and started praying earnestly. Adeu Rinpoche said that he suddenly began to see a black shadowy blob in front of him. As he continued to pray, the shadow gradually became clearer and clearer until it revealed the form of Four-armed Chenrezi. Adeu Rinpoche was still astonished at the vision when he heard a cry from Golok Rinpoche in the next cave, exclaiming, “I saw it! I saw it! Come quickly!”
Adeu Rinpoche went over quickly and the Golok Rinpoche said, “See! Such a resplendent form of Thousand-armed Chenrezi, I have never seen anything so beautiful in my life.” All Adeu Rinpoche could see was darkness in the cave. But Golok Rinpoche insisted strongly saying, “See, here is the head, here are the arms holding the Dharma implements. So beautiful, so exquisite!” Adeu Rinpoche still could see nothing.
Everyone’s karma is different, the two Rinpoches each saw different manifestations of Chenrezi. Of course, the nature of these appearances is one and the same. Pilgrimage is like that. If we lack the merits or lack the sincerity, the pure qualities of mind cannot manifest externally as these holy appearances, then we cannot see anything...
These two masters had absolute faith in the Triple Gems. To the Tibetans, the Triple Gems are infallible and will never deceive or let them down. They had this kind of unshakable faith. They had the confidence that the Triple Gems would definitely take care of them and protect them. They would also take any suffering or setback to be a blessing of the Triple Gems. There is no notion of blaming the Triple Gems or thinking, “I have been so faithful, I have recited so many mantras, I have been so generous in giving, why am I still facing such obstacles?” Such thoughts would never occur to them.
A great Drukpa Kagyu master Gotsangpa was said to complain to the Triple Gems whenever he was feeling hale and hearty, saying, “Where are your blessings? You did not bless me today.” But if he felt unwell that day, he would thank the Triple Gems for their blessings, feeling that he has finally received their care and compassion.
Gotsangpa regarded sickness or suffering as a way to quickly exhaust his negative karma. He felt that since he had accumulated a great deal of negative karma since beginningless time, how could he possibly be well and healthy? So, he saw good health as a lack of blessing. Instead, whenever he felt tired, sick or had some obstacles, he regarded that as a true blessing from the Triple Gems. These great masters had this kind of uncontrived faith.
Therefore, when Adeu Rinpoche and Golok Rinpoche went to Chenrezi’s holy place and could not see anything. They did not think it was a fault of the holy place, they felt it was their own lacking or their own obscurations. What they needed to do was to be even more diligent and sincere. Because, to them, the Triple Gems would never let them down as long as they had total faith. The Tibetans had this type of unquestioning faith. Tokden Ajam often told me stories of the great practitioners in the past, they were sometimes quite incredible and I often responded with some skepticism, “Is that really true?” Ajam would reply, “Ah, you foreigners have very little faith in the Triple Gems.” But they Tibetans had doubtless faith.
