A Personal Account of Events with My Teacher – The Bodhisattva Has a Thousand Arms
Martin has been a student of His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche since 2010 and in that time he has had the privilege of closely witnessing how Rinpoche works, the unfathomable things Rinpoche does for people quietly, how lives have miraculously changed because of Rinpoche’s Dharma and what drives Rinpoche. As someone who came to the Dharma at a mature age, Martin shares interesting insights, stories and his experiences with Rinpoche both from a secular as well as a spiritual perspective.
The Bodhisattva Has a Thousand Arms
From school to college to university and beyond, the roles of our teachers are much the same. Each specialises in a particular subject or skill and mainly, teachers impart knowledge of that speciality. Some passionate teachers may go a few steps further to inspire and encourage us. But it is almost impossible to find a teacher that makes it his purpose of living to make sure we succeed in life and even beyond this life. Truly, this is one aspect of H.E. Tsem Rinpoche that is unlike any teacher or indeed anyone you would come across in your life.
Whether or not we realise it, trauma and distress from our personal experiences and even vibes from our environment affect us over time. Buddhism teaches that ‘harmful mental states’ are the root of all human suffering. Anger, attachment, longing, shame, fear, pride, jealousy, hurt and laziness scar us and we exhaust ourselves mentally and emotionally grappling with them.
These mental states get stronger because we act on them; this empowers them and allows them to create a deeper imprint on our minds, perpetuating the cycle. After a while, we don’t even notice them and they become part of our character.
Friendships and relationships become the silent art of avoiding confrontations, accepting each other’s bad points and learning to work around them. No one does anything to remove these roots of our suffering and they remain in our minds, using every opportunity to afflict us.
When we are alive, they act like malware in a computer system, preventing us from achieving our true potential. In the bardo, they activate as causes that hurl us into the lower realms.
These mental afflictions do not fade on their own accord and only end if there is a conscious effort to weaken their grip and ultimately remove them altogether. So, if we wish to live a happy life and succeed in our Dharma practice, we must know how to engage in battle with these negative mental states.
We don’t because we may not be aware of them, we live in denial or simply because we don’t know how.
And it is here that Rinpoche’s compassion is most radiant, sometimes so much so that our samsaric eyes become blinded by the glare. The prickly issues that even our parents and spouses avoid because they are too difficult, the very poisons that the Buddha warned about, become food for this true Bodhisattva.
And so, over and above everything else that Rinpoche has to do – teach the Dharma, build and maintain Kechara and Kechara Forest Retreat, secure sponsorships, perform pujas and prayers, give blessings, perform exorcisms and protect the pure Gelug lineage from distortion – Rinpoche also commits to fighting these bad mental states on our behalf.
Rinpoche uses a range of methods, including gentle persuasion, teachings that spark specific contemplations and humour that allows people to see themselves in funny and casual situations. Amid myriad other methods, Rinpoche even shares hours upon hours of documentaries that examine the human condition and movies that relate to these afflictions.
For those who are insecure, Rinpoche is a fountain of comfort, always ready with creative ways to help boost their self-esteem. As for those who have been hurt and thus become insular, defensive or angry, Rinpoche is an endless stream of love and gentleness, always guiding them to identify the source of their pain and soothing away the hurt and guilt.
For those who are lethargic or lazy, Rinpoche injects excitement in a multitude of ways and enrols them in activities that draw them out of their idle state. For those who are gripped by arrogance and driven by ambition, Rinpoche deftly directs their energy into noble works and virtuous enterprises that they can be proud of.
The list is endless because afflictive mental states come in many expressions and guises, so Rinpoche’s methods have to be similarly endless.
When it is absolutely necessary, Rinpoche uses wrathful methods which may colour the way that the uninitiated perceive Rinpoche. But even when someone is being rebuked, the intention is always pure and Rinpoche goes to extreme lengths to ensure that all sessions end in healing. In essence, these sessions are powerful pujas performed by the kindest of lamas with the volume and tone rising to a crescendo like the cymbals and long horns of the traditional Tibetan ritual, and ultimately falling on the gentlest of absolutions. To have undergone this is to be personally blessed by Lord Yamantaka, no less.
In the final analysis, Rinpoche uses genuine love and care to combat these afflictive emotions because he understands that they arise from trauma.
Healing is never a one-off session or simply casual advice made in passing. Instead, these sessions are epics that go on for years with each sitting going for hours at the expense of Rinpoche’s rest and practice. Why? Because we hapless beings too often resist what is good and because these afflictions are so deeply buried within us.
It takes time, effort and supreme love and patience to remove them. This is not something I have seen anyone else attempt to do. Taking on the hurt that plagues others and absorbing endless neuroses, then turning them into powerful instruments for good is incredibly taxing and it consumes one’s own life force. But therein lies the difference between a man and a Bodhisattva.
For more interesting information:
- The Promise – Tsem Rinpoche’s Biography Now in eBook Format
- A Personal Account of Events with My Teacher – Perfect Clairvoyance
- Mr. Sugihara – Conspiracy of Kindness
- How to Bless Buddha Images Youself
- Kyabje Pabongka Rinpoche’s Clairvoyance
- I Witnessed the Compassion of Tsem Rinpoche
- Dr. Edward Conze: In Pursuit of Wisdom
- Protection From Supernatural Entities When Sleeping
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Thank you, Martin for sharing these incredible accurate explanations of how Rinpoche help each and every single sentient being that he came across. Rinpoche was indeed a bodhisattva with a thousand arms that had the ability to do many things at once and yet precise. Rinpoche also have the ability to handle so many different kinds of neurosis in his students and dissect them down to the core of the problem and then heal it. There is no one in the world that I have met that can do and willing to do such a thing. May Rinpoche take a swift rebirth and come back to us.
Thank you Martin for sharing this wonderful post. I would not be who I am today without Rinpoche’s teachings. I thank Rinpoche every day for giving me such a strong spiritual blessing in my life. He was very sympathetic and cordial to even an unknown person. He was truly a living Buddha who has a thousand arms. He has a strict and humor method to teach us and we won’t feel been left out. I do enjoyed his Dharma teachings in You tubes and reading Rinpoche’s blog. Rinpoche is truly a spiritual legacy infused with his divine power and blessings.
Thank you Martin for sharing this beautiful article. Indeed our Guru care so much for all beings and in order to bring us to the right path, Rinpoche use all sorts of method to suit our stubborn mind. Rinpoche is so skillful in tackling our mind and because of his compassion and kindness that we are able to learn and practise dharma from him. We should not take Rinpoche’s teaching for granted but to continue practicing and transforming our mind to be better.
Dear Martin,
It’s wonderful to see another great highlight from you about our dearly beloved Rinpoche. I do agree with you that Rinpoche has skillful methods to transform people in different ways. I noticed that over the years my mum has grown to be more on the softer side through Rinpoche’s kindness. And just few weeks before Rinpoche’s passing, Dad had a dream that Rinpoche took him down to see the sufferings in the hell realms. And this has also transformed him to realisation. Dad knows what the dream was about. Thank you very much Rinpoche and Martin for this lovely article. ?????