The 37th Nyingma Monlam Chenmo (Great Prayer Festival) commenced in Bodh Gaya on 19 January and will run until the 28th. It is being organized by the Nyingma Monlam Chenmo International Foundation. Morning sessions during the Monlam Chenmo are running from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., while afternoon sessions will run from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Images released by the official Nyingma Monlam Chenmo International Facebook account highlighted the opening proceedings at Bodh Gaya, consisting of a two-day consecration ceremony (rabne) of the newly built Padmasambhava Temple. It was led by Shechen monks and nuns and Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche, grandson of HH Kyabje Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche (1910–91). Aside from being the spiritual heir of Shechen Monastery in Nepal, Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche is also the chairman of the Nyingma Monlam Chenmo International Foundation.
The official opening of the Padmasambhava Temple, which is providing accommodation for monks, nuns, and ngakpas (tantric practitioners) attending the Monlam Chenmo, will be on 23 January during the main event. (Facebook) Padmasambhava, or Guru Rinpoche the Lotus-Born Master, is a key figure in Vajrayana Buddhism but particularly in the Nyingma-pa, which sees him as the 8th-century founding teacher of the school.
Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche arrived in Bodh Gaya a week before the 19th for various activities, including visiting the extension of Shechen Karuna Bodh Gaya Bihar, and also inspecting the Padmasambhava Temple ahead of the consecration and 23 January. He also visited the old dwelling of HH Kyabje Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, and reunited with lamas at the older Shechen Monastery in Bodh Gaya, which was built in 1996.
During the Monlam Chenmo, there will be a wide and diverse range of rituals and ceremonies, including the recitation of sutras and mantras, such as those of the Lotus-Born Master and other major deities like Chenrezig and Tara. Texts recited will include The King of Prayers, Samantabhadra’s Aspiration, and The Aspiration of Good Deeds. There will be tsok offerings (feast rituals) and butter lamp ceremonies to dispel the darkness of the world, as well as long-life prayers for Nyingma lineage holders and masters, who hold the key to preserving the tradition and the Dharma as a whole.
The Shechen bond with Bodh Gaya strengthened in the 1980s when the modern Nyingma Monlam Chenmo was revived under the guidance of HH Kyabje Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, Penor Rinpoche (1933–2009), and other Nyingma masters to preserve and promote the tradition. (Punpun Trails)
In the 1970s, HE Tarthang Tulku Rinpoche Rinpoche (b. 1934) aspired to hold the Nyingma Monlam Chenmo in Bodh Gaya, but it was an auspicious connection between HH Dodrub Rinpoche and Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche in 1982 that inspired further action. Eventually, Tarthang Tulku Rinpoche came to India in 1989 to formally launch the first “Ngagyur Dorden Monlam Chenmo” for world peace under the Bodhi Tree and the vajrasana (Diamond Throne). A great inaugural ceremony was attended by the Nyingma monasteries of India, Nepal and Bhutan. Attendees included the greatest Nyingma names of our time: HH Kyabje Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, Penor Rinpoche, HH Minling Thrichen Rinpoche (1930–2008), HH Chatral Rinpoche (1913–2015), HH Taklung Tsetrul Rinpoche (1926–2015), and HH Thrulzhig Rinpoche (1923–2011). (International Nyingma Foundation)
All major schools of Vajrayana Buddhism have their own interpretations of the Monlam Chenmo, which directly translates to “Great Prayer Festival,” and they can be held in different places (for example, the Central Monastic Body of the Drukpa Kagyu in Bhutan holds its Monlam Chenmo throughout the country). The tradition is said to have been established by Gelug founder Je Tsongkhapa (1357–1419) in 1409, at Lhasa. But different schools, such as the Kagyu and Nyingma, have distinct practices distinguishing their Monlams from their Gelug counterpart.
See more
Nyingma Monlam Chenmo International (Facebook)
37th Nyingma Monlam Chenmo International (Punpun Trails)
How the Nyingma Monlam Chenmo International Foundation Came In To Existence (International Nyingma Foundation)
Nyingma Monlam Chenmo
Buddhist devotees pray for world peace in Bodh Gaya (The Times of India)
Related features from BDG
A Manifestation of Profound Wisdom and Compassion—Remembering Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche
A Tribute to Kyabje Trulshik Rinpoche
Related blog posts from Tea House
Thoughts from Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche: Opening of Shechen Center Hong Kong
