An historic week-long Recitation of the Words of the Buddha commenced at Pal Thubten Shedrub Ling (also known as the Thousand Buddha Temple) in Lumbini, Nepal, on Tuesday, coinciding with Lhabab Düchen—the festival celebrating the Buddha’s return to the human realm after entering Tushita. The event is being held to mark the inauguration anniversary of Pal Thubten Shedrub Ling, led by the esteemed Tibetan Buddhist teacher and Dzogchen adept Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche.
“Reciting the Collected Words of the Buddha is a powerful meritorious event,” Rinpoche’s Shedrub community explained. “Even more so as it will take place in the birthplace of the Buddha, beginning on Lhabab Düchen, the great festival day which honors the return of the Buddha Shakyamuni to our world from the heavenly realms, where he had been giving teachings.” (Shedrub)
Lhabab Düchen (Tib. ལྷ་བབས་དུས་ཆེན་) is one of the four most important Buddhist festivals in the Tibetan lunar calendar, falling on the 22nd day of the ninth lunar month. The festival celebrates Shakyamuni Buddha’s return to Earth after teaching in Indra’s realm, known in Sanskrit as Tushita, where, according to tradition, he taught the Dharma for three months.
Taking place from 11–17 November, this weeklong recitation celebrates the one-year anniversary of the inauguration of Pal Thubten Shedrub Ling, bringing together teachers and practitioners from around the world in a shared offering of the Buddha’s words.
The occasion also marks the first time that the full collection sutras from the Tibetan Kangyur—a collection of sacred texts representing the collected teachings of the Buddha—translated into English by the non-profit 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha, have been recited.
“The full collection of 84000’s published sutras from the Kangyur will be recited in English, echoing the Buddha’s words across Lumbini,” Shedrub stated. “The Recitation will take place in all of the different languages simultaneously. In addition to Pali, Chinese, Tibetan, and English, participation in the recitation will be made possible for readers of all languages into which the seminar is translated.” (Shedrub)
A global nonprofit initiative founded by the renowned Bhutanese lama, author, and filmmaker Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche, 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha is a long-term undertaking to translate and publish all surviving canonical texts preserved in the Classical Tibetan language: 70,000 pages of the Kangyur (the words of the Buddha) in 25 years and 161,800 pages of the Tengyur (commentaries on the Buddha’s teachings by the great Indian Buddhist masters and scholars) in 100 years. According to 84000, less than 5 per cent of the canon had hitherto been translated into a modern language, and due to a rapid decline in the knowledge of Classical Tibetan and in the number of qualified scholars, the world is in danger of losing an irreplaceable cultural and spiritual wisdom legacy.
This sacred event is being streamed on Pal Thubten Shedrub Ling’s YouTube channel and Facebook page.
“If you would like to recite the words of the Buddha at home, visit the 84000 Collection and select any sutras that you would like to recite, Shedrub shared. “Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche has said all of the sutras are beautiful and meaningful and 84000 has been translating them with great care, so please choose any of them to recite.” (Shedrub)
Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche is considered to be one of the greatest living masters of the Dzogchen or “Great Perfection” tradition of Vajrayana Buddhism—a gentle yet imposing figure whose presence is one of warmth and compassion. The eldest son of the revered Dzogchen master Kyabje Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche and the devoted practitioner Kunsang Dechen, Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche was born in Tibet in 1951. He was recognized as the seventh incarnation of the Drikung Kagyu lama Gar Drubchen, a Tibetan mahasiddha and an emanation of the second-century Indian Buddhist philosopher Nagarjuna.
Following the invasion of Tibet, Rinpoche spent his youth in India, studying for 11 years under the care of His Holiness the 16th Gyalwang Karmapa at Rumtek Monastery. He also studied and practiced under the venerated masters Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, Dudjom Rinpoche, Khunu Lama Tenzin Gyaltsen, as well as his own father, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche. In 1974, Rinpoche joined his parents in Kathmandu, where he assisted them in establishing Ka-Nying Shedrub Ling, a monastery on the outskirts of the city, just a short walk from the benevolent gaze of the venerable Boudhanath Stupa. Rinpoche became the abbot of Ka-Nying Shedrub Ling in 1976, at the age of just 25, and has since overseen the welfare and spiritual education of many hundreds of male and female monastics.
Ka-Nying Shedrub Ling, a dedicated sanctuary for studying and practicing the Buddhadharma, lies at the heart of Rinpoche’s growing mandala of Dharmic activities. Among his numerous initiatives and projects, Rinpoche, now 72 years old, has authored several books and founded a network of meditation centers around the world. In 1997, Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche established the Rangjung Yeshe Institute within the grounds of Ka-Nying Shedrub Ling. The institute affiliated with Kathmandu University in 2002 to form the Center for Buddhist Studies. Today, the center offers a range of courses at various levels, including BA, MA, and PhD degrees in Buddhist studies and Himalayan languages, with classes held at the monastery’s monastic college.
See more
Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche (Facebook)
Pal Thubten Shedrub Ling Monastery – Thousand Buddha Temple (Facebook)
Pal Thubten Shedrub Ling Monastery (YouTube)
Rangjung Yeshe Institute
Shedrub
Reciting the Words of the Buddha & The 45th Annual Fall Seminar (Shedrub)
Related news reports from BDG
Online Dharma: 84000 Celebrates 15 Years of Translating the Words of the Buddha
Online Dharma: Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche to Lead Recitation of the Collected Words of the Buddha and Muni Mantra Accumulation
Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche Inaugurates Pal Thubten Shedrub Ling, Thousand Buddha Temple, in Lumbini
Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche Inaugurates New Dharma Center in Lisbon
Special Report: Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche Marks Vesak with First-Phase Consecration of New Monastery in Lumbini
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