Dear Eric,

I am not aware of any present day oracles that take trance of Shangmo Dorje Putri. However, it is not outside of the realm of possibility. As enlightened protectors such as Dorje Shugden, Kache Marpo, etc, can take trance in oracles, it is very possible that Shangmo Dorje Putri can as well because she is unenlightened. Her energies are not as powerful for the body of an oracle to accommodate. I hope this helps. Thank you.

Dear Eric,

Thank you for your interesting questions. Yumar Gyalchen does not wear an oracles melong, it is actually the other way around. Many of the protective deities wear melongs, in the manner of a warrior’s breastplate as part of their armour. A melong actually has a very precise meaning in Buddhist iconography. It represents the clarity of consciousness and of emptiness. As a mirror it reflects all appearances within samsara, both good and bad, but it remains unaffected. In this way it symbolises that whatever happens, the enlightened mind remains unaffected by samsara, but at the same time firm in its resolve to aid sentient beings transcend all experiences, whether good or bad, and to achieve enlightenment. Enlightenment itself is beyond all concepts, including that of good and bad. As symbols the melong also represents the faculty of sight, therefore represents the protector’s ability to into the past, present and future. As such in some divination practices melongs are used to gaze into the future, to see signs and give advice.

Many of the ‘melong/breastplates’ belonging to Dharma protectors are inscribed with the seed syllable associated with them and their practice, for example, Setrap’s breastplate is adorned with the syllable HRI.

I am glad that you liked the Shangmo Dorje Putri article. She is indeed a very powerful protector. Even though she is under the entourage of Kache Marpo, she is still an unenlightened being. Therefore, we do not engage in her practice unless authorised to do so by a high lama who can explain the practice to us. Sadly, I do not have such authorisation therefore I am not aware of her mantra, only what was written in the article. As a Bamo spirit, she can cause great harm to those who are not qualified enough or authorised to interact with her as she requires a practitioner to have reached a certain degree and stability in their practices, especially in their guru devotion. I hope this helps. Thank you.

Dear H,

Thank you for your question. According to strict Buddhist practice, images of the Buddhas are only placed with images of other enlightened beings. The traditional layout of Tibetan Buddhist altars would be an image (painting, picture, statue, etc) in the middle, representing the Buddha’s body; a Dharma text placed to the left, representing the Buddha’s speech; and a stupa placed on the right, representing the Buddha’s speech. So a traditional Buddhist altar would consist of three or more items representing the Buddha’s body, speech and mind, and also various offerings.

However, any image of the enlightened beings such as the Buddha Manjushri will be beneficial wherever they are placed. That is because the enlightened beings are not offended or particular how they benefit us. They operate from the pure and highest form of compassion for us, so will help no matter what. But in order for us to build a connection with them we must be respectful.

It is entirely up to you if you want to place Manjushri with statues of Sai Baba, Shiva and Ganesh. There will be no clash or problem in doing so. Manjushri is after all enlightened and Shiva and Ganesh are the highest of the gods, and Sai Baba taught compassion, love and tolerance.

Therefore if you want to place together there is no problem. The main point of setting up an altar is to create a place where you can create a connection to the enlightened beings through your own actions, for example, being respectful towards the altar, cleaning the altar regularly, making offerings and doing your prayers with the altar are your focus. When we do this, together with transforming our minds to be more compassionate people, blessings will flow into our lives. I hope this helps. Thank you.

Hello Asha,

Thank you for your question, it shows you take setting up your altar seriously and that it matters to you. Actually, you can set up your altar anywhere in your apartment, as long as it is not in the bathroom. If it is near your bed, the best thing would be to put it inside a cabinet with doors, which can be closed when you are sleeping, etc. From the side of the enlightened beings they do not take offense at where they are placed, but from our side, for our own practice it is best to be as respectful as possible. This respect on our side, is an extension of our own practice.

As for which direction your altar should face, this is actually up to you. As long as the images on your altar are of enlightened beings, they will never be upset and there are no rules in which direction they should face. Enlightened beings do not take offense or bring beneficial energies into you life or home if they only face a certain direction. Whatever direction your altar faces it will be beneficial and their energies will pervade you home as long as you are respectful towards it.

There is an old article here with a video but it is extremely useful when setting up an altar and may give you more ideas how to do so: https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/buddhas-dharma/how-to-set-up-altar-make-offerings-prostrate-to-the-buddha-meditate-etc.html I hope this helps.

Thank you

Dear Eric,

I meant no disrespect with my previous reply. Of course Yumar Gyalchen is highly respected and revered. But you must understand that everything in Panglung Ritroe came about due to the kindness of sponsors. There may not have been a thangka of Yumar Gyalchen in the video but there are images of Yumar Gyalchen there now. But if you or anyone else would like to sponsor a thangka to be offered to Panglung Ritroe, you are more than welcome. In any case, since Yumar Gyalchen is the special protector of Panglung Ritroe, he is there anyway since he is a formless being. What is more indicative of his presence is actually the oracle’s throne. As the oracle sits on the throne to take trance of this great being, the throne represents his presence within Panglung Ritroe. As the Panglung Kuten also takes trance of Dorje Shugden, the throne also represents Dorje Shugden’s presence as well.

We do thank Yumar Gyalchen for his protection and revere him as a great protector. In fact certain pastors go there on a regular basis to make offerings and recite prayers to Yumar Gyalchen on a regular basis. I do hope this clears any misunderstanding. Thank you.

Hello Eric,

The thangka that you saw is actually of Kache Marpo, you can download it here: https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/archive/deitypics/kachemarpo-02-s.jpg. Since Yumar Gyalchen is another form of Kache Marpo, it is quite apt for it to be in Panglung Ritroe don’t you think?

Unfortunately, at the moment we do not have the daily practice of Yumar Gyalchen. The prayer that we do have is available here: https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/buddhas-dharma/lightning-fast-yumar-gyalchen.html this can be recited on a daily basis, and you can recite the mantra too. Daily offerings you can make are the same type of offering to other Dharma protectors such as Dorje Shugden.

As far as I am aware this is no specific retreat text for either Yumar Gyalchen, Methar or Namkha Barzin. For Yumar Gyalchen, you can recite the prayer and mantra as your retreat. However, for Namkha Barzin and Methar, since they are unenlightened, I am assuming that if there are retreat texts for them, this would entail Guru Yoga and invocations of the enlightened beings. For Namkha Barzin this may even include prayers to DS after the Guru Yoga and invocations of the enlightened beings. I hope this helps. Thank you.

Hello Eric,

Good questions. Usually when an oracle takes trance of the attendants of Dorje Shugden, they usually end up taking trance of the main forms of Dorje Shugden due to the training process an oracle. As you may be aware, Dorje Shugden oracles can also take trance of other deities associated with him, such as Kache Marpo, Yumar Gyalchen, Setrap, Namkha Barzin, etc.

In some cases, there are oracles that do not take trances of Dorje Shugden, but solely of one of these other protectors. In that case, when engaging in retreats, they would start with Je Rinpoche, Yamantaka or Hayagriva. Instead of focusing on Dorje Shugden, they would focus on the practice of the deity that they are to take trance of or have taken trance of (to further purify their body and strengthen the trance process).

In the case of oracles that primarily take trance of Dorje Shugden but also take trance of other protectors, yes their gurus can ask them to engage in the retreats of those protectors to create a stronger connection with them.

As far as I am aware, there is no daily practice written for Methar. I have not come across mention of it before. I hope this helps!

Dear Eric,

Yes, Yumar Gyalchen also protects the line of Panglung oracles, and also the Panglung Rinpoche’s. If you read the history of the oracles, they were named Panglung oracles, because they were based in the hermitage of the Panglung Rinpoches, where the tradition arose and they were trained. As you probably already know, the original Panglung hermitage was destroyed in Tibet but has come to be re-established in Kechara Forest Retreat due to Tsem Rinpoche’s kindness.

There are many other Dharma protectors within Dorje Shugden’s retinue. The main, as you have already mentioned would be Kache Marpo (and Yumar Gyalchen), Namkha Barzin, and Methar. But one thing people also forget is that Dorje Shugden has a very close connection with Setrap, whom he used to propitiate in his previous lifetimes. Therefore, when you invoke Dorje Shugden, Setrap will also come the aid of practitioners. For example, when you engage in the Serkym (golden drink) offering to Dorje Shugden, there are verses for Setrap. There are even verses for Kache Marpo/Yumar Gyalchen, and Namkha Barzin.

There are many other protectors, both enlightened and unenlightened that come to air practitioners. This includes the likes of the unenlightened Shangmo Dorje Putri (https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/buddhas-dharma/shangmo-dorje-putri-the-bamo-of-sakya.html). She was bound by Domo Geshe Rinpoche and established in the entourage of Kache Marpo. So when you invoke Dorje Shugden, since Kache Marpo is his main ‘attendant’ he would also bring his own ‘attendants’ and this includes Shangmo Dorje Putri.

Therefore, as we have seen, when you invoke Dorje Shugden, a whole bevy of other Dharma protectors come to aid the practitioner as well. This is not something that is unusual, even Palden Lhamo’s retinue includes the Tseringma goddesses and the 12 Tenma goddesses. However, the difference with Dorje Shugden is that because he has such a close connection with other enlightened Dharma protectors, these also bring their own retinue of Dharma protectors when they come to aid practitioners. I hope this helps.

Hello Eric,

The method in which the deity aids in divination depends on the actual mechanism of divination. In the case of Dorje Shugden’s dice divination, the deity does not enter the person doing the divination, but guides the dice to land on the right side to give an accurate answer. Some forms of divination require the practitioner to have developed some form of clairvoyant ability and others require faith in the particular deity. The Dorje Shugden divination dice relies on the latter.

There are actually quite a few guidelines to be followed, not just in the training one must undergo to receive the dice, but in the process of making the dice, and the process in which one uses the dice. Over all, it must be done without a selfish mind, but one that seeks benefit for others. The same applies for other forms of divination, such as mala divination.

As for divination methods relying on Namkha Barzin, I have not come across mention of this before. However, the Dorje Shugden divination is much more reliable because Dorje Shugden is an enligtened being and therefore his clairvoyant ability is much more advanced than Namkha Barzin because the latter is not enlightened. In fact Dorje Shugden’s clairvoyance is the highest, as he is a Buddha.

As for mala divination relying on Dorje Shugden, this is also possible because he is an enlightened being, though I have not come across a tradition or system of mala divination based on Dorje Shugden before.

In regards to Rinpoche training people in divination, none of Rinpoche’s students have completed the entire training process necessary, with all the other per-requisites, at this time. I hope this helps.

Dear Eric W,

Thank you for your question. There are two ways to view our bodies, one is from the sutric system which just talks about the physical body and the mind. The second is from the tantric system, which talks about multiple bodies and the mind.

In the tantric system there are two major bodies, the physical or gross body and the energy or subtle body. The physical body is made up of the elements: earth, water, fire and air. The subtle body however is made up of the winds (sanskrit: prana), channels (sanskrit: nadi), and the drops (sanskrit: bindu). The subtle energies move along the channels. There are many different types of energies known as “winds or breaths”. Within the Highest Yoga Tantra (sanskrit: Anuttarayoga) there are meditations which are used to penetrate these energy channels in order to bring about higher states of mind and spiritual realisations. Meditations that work with the subtle body and energies include the Inner Fire, and Six Yogas of Naropa meditations. However, one can only engage in the meditations after receiving empowerment into the Highest Yoga Tantra practices, and having received the commentaries and instructions on how to practice properly.

It is believed that the mind or consciousness rides on these subtle energies. Just like a jockey rides on a horse. In this case, the mind is the jockey and the subtle energies are the horse. Therefore, with meditation we can control where and how these energies move.

At our level, since the mind is what ultimately directs the winds, we should work with our minds in order to make it more stable. In that way we can also develop more compassion, so that when we are confronted with situations that we are not comfortable with, such as when people invade our energy fields, we can deal with it in a better manner. In fact, one way of doing this is by engaging in various forms of meditation such as breathing meditation (https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/buddhas-dharma/the-accidental-meditator.html). You should give it a try. It will end up balancing your own energy field. That is one side-effect of breathing meditation that people are not aware of. I hope this helps. Thank you.

Dear Eric,

Your questions are thought provoking, as always. When Dorje Shugden or his retinue take trance of either the Panglung Oracle, the Gameng Oracle, or any other oracle for that matter, they speak in the language that the oracle speaks. For example, if the oracle himself speaks Tibetan, and as Dorje Shugden temporarily inhabits the body of the oracle, he uses the faculties of the oracle’s body to speak in Tibetan.

Similarly, if Dorje Shugden was to take trance in an oracle that spoke English, he would communicate with practitioners in English. And you are right in saying that neither the Panglung or Gameng Oracles speak in a “Twilight” language. In fact, they both speak in very clear Tibetan when in trance, as both oracles speak and communicate in Tibetan primarily.

Now, for Nechung, he does indeed speak in a “Twilight” language when in trance of his oracle. Therefore, his predictions and what he says requires ‘translation’ into ordinary language. This ‘translation’ is done by the oracle’s assistants who are said to have been trained in understanding this language. The strange thing is that it is not clear who actually teaches these assistants this “Twilight” language. On top of that since the ‘translation’ comes from ordinary monks, instead of through the oracle and therefore directly from Nechung himself, they can be swayed by outside influence. Therefore you are totally correct is deducing that they could indeed be pressured or bribed into ‘translating’ something entirely false. I hope this helps. Thank you.

Dear Eric,

It is really nice to see you here again. As far as I am aware there are no ‘recognised’ oracles that can channel, and the reason for this is that taking full and complete trance is considered a higher ability within Tibetan Buddhism, as it allows the deity complete control over the body and speech of the oracle, in order to communicate with practitioners.

The ability of channeling would necessarily be a part of an oracles training. As it takes time for the oracle’s mind to leave their body completely so that the deity can enter. As you probably already know, when an oracle takes trance their consciousness leaves the body completely, allowing the energies of the deity to enter. Channeling is different in that the consciousness of oracle does not leave completely, therefore there can be some degree of mental awareness on the part of the oracle during the process. I hope this helps. Please do post again if there is anything more specific you would like to know. Thank you.

Dear Jean,

Thank you for posting another question. I’m glad that you have read the Dorje Shugden post. According to Buddhist philosophy there is no way that anyway can steal your merits or good fortune. Merits are your own, and good fortune is based on karma, which is again your own. These cannot be stolen by anyone, because it belongs to us and everyone has their own karma and merits.

Now, when we are cursed with black magic and it seems that our good fortune goes down, what is actually happening. At this point, due to the effects of the black magic, our karma to experience good fortune takes a back seat, while our karma to experience suffering ripens and we feel its effects. But why does this happen?

To experience karma, either good or bad, the causes and conditions for it to arise must be there. For example, you have the karma to eat apples. If you live in a land where apples grow, or can be imported from other countries, then you are able to eat apples. But if you live in a country where apples do not grow, and there is no way to get apples from other countries, even though you have the karma to eat apples, you will not be able to eat them.

Similarly, when we are cursed by black magic, the conditions are there for us to experience the negative effects of our karma. Therefore it seems that our good fortune has declined, or that someone has stolen it. This isn’t the case, but it’s that the conditions are there for our negative karma to manifest.

That is why in Buddhism an emphasis is placed on purifying negative karma, and in not creating further negative karma by leading a good life. When we do that, in the future we will not suffer.

However, before then, if we are afflicted by black magic, the compassionate enlightened beings have appeared in forms that can help us alleviate the effects of our karma. These practices work by purifying the karma that causes us suffering and at the same time generating vast amounts of merit, which overshadow the effects of our negative karma, so that our situation improves. One such practice is the practice of Trakze Dorje Shugden, which you can find here: https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/buddhas-dharma/trakze-to-dispel-black-magic-spirits.html

I hope the above explanation helps. Do post again if you have further questions. Thank you.

Dear Eric,

Thank you for your very interesting question. Karma and reality according to Buddhist philosophy is a very deep subject, and one that requires some amount of study to understand. Therefore, I would just like to being by saying that whatever I write here will not do it justice because the space is very limited. If I may, I would like to suggest that you read the sections on Karma in Pabongka Rinpoche’s text called Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand. Pabongka Rinpoche’s explanation is much more comprehensive, and later on in the same book, the subject of emptiness is dealt with. That text will provide you with a much better understanding of this. There is also an excellent teaching on karma given by His Eminence the 25th Tsem Rinpoche available here: https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/buddhas-dharma/discovering-yourself-a-teaching-on-karma-mindstream.html. It describes how we actually can live by the law of karma in our daily lives to better ourselves.

To start off, in the case of murder, the one who is murdered themselves created the karma to be murdered in previously lives. Perhaps they killed someone themselves. But this karma needed a trigger to be opened, and that is the situation that arose that led them to be murdered. If the situation was different, then obviously they would not have been murdered. Now the murderer, him or herself created the karmic propensity to murder people, so perhaps in many previously lifetimes they killed people again and again. This left what is known as a negative imprint in the mindstream, which is to murder someone. So you see karma is not so straightforward as most people believe. If there are two people involved, then it is actually the karma and imprints of both of these people that leads to the outcome.

In the case of someone randomly hitting you. You have the karma to be randomly hit, which comes from previous lives, but the person who hit you also has the karma and karmic imprints of violence within their mindstream so that they are violent enough to hit a complete stranger.

In regards to reality, there is what is known as conventional reality, which is what we live through due to our karma and delusions, but there is also an ultimate reality. Pabongka Rinpoche’s explanation of this in the text I mentioned before will provide a better understanding of this for you.

So you see, karma is multifaceted and not simply a 1-for-1 rule. In any situation, it depends on all the people/beings involved, as well as the situation, and the karma and imprints from previous lives. I do apologise if this explanation does not make too much sense, but it is hard to explain all of this in such a short space. The text Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand will provide you a much better understanding. You can find this book at bookshops that have a large section on Buddhism or you can also order it online here: https://www.vajrasecrets.com/lamrim-liberation-in-the-palm-of-your-hand.

I hope this helps you. Thank you.

Dear Eric,

It is really nice to see you here again. You’re right about the fact that the 31st Sakya Trizin, among many other Sakya masters recognised Dorje Shugden as a Dharma protector.

Technically speaking, the person who official recognised Dorje Shugden as a Dharma protector within the Gelug tradition is actually His Holiness the 5th Dalai Lama, who offered the site of Trode Khangsar, in Lhasa to Dorje Shugden. This was one of the Dalai Lama’s ‘picnic’ sites, which he offered to Dorje Shugden for a shrine to be built there. It lies off the side of the larger circumambulation path of the Potala Palace in Lhasa. His Holiness the 5th Dalai Lama even composed a prayer to Dorje Shugden in the form of a Dharma protector, which you find here: https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/dorje-shugden/the-14th-dalai-lamas-prayer-to-dorje-shugden.html

Trode Khangsar was later entrusted to Riwo Choling Monastery, and had 11 monks and an oracle stationed there at all times for the purposes of propitiating Dorje Shugden. So even though Dorje Shugden became an important protector practice within the Sakya tradition, it had already been established within the Gelug tradition. Many great masters of the Gelug tradition composed prayers to the protector, but it really wasn’t until Pabongka Rinpoche and his gurus did the practice really take hold throughout the entire tradition. I hope this explanation helps.

Thank you.

Dear Jean,

Thank you for your question. Yes, actually the images of the Buddha in the Bhumisparsha Mudra and Shakyamuni Buddha are one and the same. There is no difference between the both of them.

The Bhumisparsha Mudra (meaning “earth-touching” mudra) is representative of very moment of Buddha Shakyamuni’s enlightenment. It is said that at the moment of enlightenment, he touched the earth and called upon her to witness his enlightenment. Therefore, this image of the Buddha is very common.

Either Shakyamuni Buddha in meditative posture, or in the Bhumisparsha Mudra is perfect for one’s shrine at home. Which representation you choose is up to you personal preference, because both are the same, just represented in a different manner. I hope this helps. Thank you.

Dear Valdakir,

Thank you for your question. It is interesting that your Karmic Debt number was not found according the Numerology calculator. Actually when your number if ‘0’. This is what it means when you have no Karmic Debt number. In the system of numerology, this means that in this life, you do not have an over-riding karmic influence that you need to overcome.

For example, those with the Karmic Debt number 16, in previously lives they were extremely irresponsible and so hurt many people. In this life, they need to overcome this Karmic Debt by developing humility. For those with a Karmic Debt of “0”this basically means that they have no major over-riding karma that they need to overcome in this lifetime. This is not to say that they have no karma, it is just that in this life it has not manifested in a big way. However, those with a Karmic Debt of “0” just need to deal with situations however they arise.

All of the above is from a Numerology point of view. From the point of view of Buddhism and therefore Tibetan Astrology, we all have huge amounts of karma from previous lives. And the only way to truly be free of this karma is by gaining enlightenment. I hope this helps.

Thank you.

Dear Eric,

Thank you for your question. There are no current oracles that take trance of yidam deities, as far as I am aware. Though yidams taking trance of oracles is not outside the realm of possibility. However, this would be extremely difficult to accomplish due to the pure strength of their energy.

Whereas protectors that take trance in oracles are in worldly formly, eg. within the realm of samsara, yidam deities exist outside of samsara as they are enlightened beings. However, they do have Sambhogakaya forms (enjoyment body forms), which we commonly visualise in our meditations and depict in images. Though this has a form, technically speaking it is not of samsara, therefore for this form to enter an oracle can be extremely difficult.

This difficulty comes not only from their particular energies being too much for a normal corporeal form to handle, but also the karma of practitioners to be able to communicate with them. I hope this helps!

Dear Eric,

Yes, you are right to say that both Shinjachen and Tsangpa Karpo are silent in that they have not chosen their respective oracles to take trance of. There could be a number of reasons for this:

1. The protectors are still waiting for a suitable candidate to be born with the family lineage of oracles. Even though historically oracular ability has been passed down from father to son, there is no reason to believe that it must be this way. It may and can skip a generation or two until the protector thinks that there is someone suitable to become and oracle.

2. The community is lacking the karma to be able to communicate with the protectors hence they have not manifested their next oracle.

3. The protectors are not pleased with the behaviour in general within the community or what is happening within the government (as they are primarily entreated to give advice to the government). Therefore they remain silent.

These are just three examples of why the two protectors remain silent, but there can be many causes. I hope this helps. Thank you.

Dear Dan,

Thank you for your question. Both titles can be used to refer to our root guru or high lamas. The word Kyabgon is actually more respectful than the word Kyabje, though they both have the same meaning. Within the Tibetan language there are varying levels of honorific titles. Though they have the same meaning, some words from a linguistic perspective show more respect.

Both Kyabje and Kyabgon both refer to someone that helps us, that can guide us and liberate us from cyclic existence (samsara) and ultimately achieve complete enlightenment. I hope this helps.

Thank you.