Dear Anonymous,

There was no comment per se about learning about other religions or systems. However for practicing Buddhists there is a commitment we take when we take Refuge and that is not to seek refuge in God/Gods or systems that contradict the teachings. For example, Buddhists believe in karma. Practicing Buddhists can learn about other religious systems that don’t believe in karma, but in terms of practice shouldn’t practicing those systems because they contradict the Buddhist teachings.

If you are a spiritual seeker searching for what to practice, you should learn up about various religions/systems of practice, etc. Then make an informed decision about which you want to practice and then commit to practicing that one tradition/religion all the way, without mixing with anything else. A lot of time these days, people mix religions, belief systems, etc. This will just lead to confusion or mistaken practices. Practice one religion/system all the way and you will achieve spiritual progress, but commit to that particular path. That is the way that they are supposed to be practiced for spiritual progress to occur. Hope that helps to answer your question.

Dear a

Thank you for your question. For those with monastic ordination vows, then yes masturbation is considered sexual misconduct and actually breaks one’s ordination vows.

In regards to a lay person, who has taken the refuge and perhaps even the layman vows, this would depend on the advice of your teacher. In some traditions it is considered to be sexual misconduct and in others it is not. The Buddha never actually prohibited masturbation for a lay person.

That being said there are some very important points to remember when discussing sexual misconduct. The main point of sexual misconduct is that the action does not cause harm, either to others or oneself. So if the particular instance does cause harm then it is considered sexual misconduct.

There is nothing inherently wrong with the action itself if it does not cause harm, however it obviously does encourage more sexual desire. Desire in any form is to be eliminated on the path towards enlightenment as it serves as a cause to remain bound in samsara. As such it can be argued that it does ‘harm’ you because it keeps you in samsara and therefore can be classed as sexual misconduct.

Whatever the case may be, what is most important here is that if anyone is engaging in the act then they should work with their own mind to lessen their sexual desire. But there are many levels of practice. We work on what can first and then progress from there. For some people it’s easy to stop, for others it’s not. For those people, they should put effort into cutting attachment to sexual desire and physical gratification if they can.

In terms of spiritual energy, yes, execessive masturbation can cause energetically imbalances in the body, leading to different things happening energetically and this can impact the physical body too.

Hope this helps to answer your question. Thank you.

Hi there Brendon,

Thanks for your questions.

Yes, of course you can offer Serkym to Setrap. When reciting the prayers, you pour the tea when reciting the 3rd and 4th line of each verse. Start this during the first verse, all the way until the last verse. During the last verse, you pour throughout the entire verse.

In regards to the tea offering for Vajra Yogini, yes, even if you are not initiated, you can still do the practice. You can find out how to do it here: https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/buddhas-dharma/tea-offering-to-vajrayogini-for-the-1st-time.html

For using the vajra and bell, it is usually rung when pouring the tea during the particular verses. If you are not able to get to a Dharma centre to learn how to use them properly, it is permissible to use them at home. But they should never be used when other people are around, because it will disturb them and from the spiritual side of things traditionally you do not play instruments when in a private setting only during public pujas, groups retreats, that sort of thing. It is a mark of humility, however if you are alone and no one else is around, you can play, it’s permissible.

As for the rice, cookies or crackers into the top layer of the serkym, it symbolises abundance. Here in Kechara, we don’t have that tradition as Tsem Rinpoche did not include it. If at all, it is usually just a couple of grains of rice but usually this is only done by our visit Sangha from other monasteries. Hope these answers help. Thanks.

Dear Sirius,

I’m sorry to read about your current spiritual depression. It happens to all of us on the spiritual path at some point or another. And I understand that things are hard for you spiritually speaking, because you are the only pracitioner in your area.

There are some things that you can do to help you get out of this and make you feel less lonely, because you are not alone. We may be very far from you physically, but in we are standing right next to you in our hearts. And more than that, the enlightened beings are always there, with you, seeing what you are going through and they are waiting for you to know that they are there with you.

There are certain things that you can do to help you through this difficult time:

> If you don’t already have an altar, and are able to, set up and altar to the Buddhas. Whichever Buddhas you like or are drawn to. You put an image of Buddha Shakyamuni or Lama Tsongkhapa to start off with. You can print out an image and frame it. We have many different images available for download here: https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/downloads/buddha-images.html.

> Make offerings daily. This can be a full set of water offerings, or just a simple drink, food, fruit, incense, candles, whatever you like. The key is to make at least one offering a day, even if it is small. This will help you generate merit. This merit can help you break through the situation so things improve.

> Even though you don’t feel good about spiritual practice, make it a habit to engage in daily prayer. Even if at first it’s just like a robot, keep doing it. The Buddhas will help you improve.

> You can engage in the practice of Dorje Shugden to help clear the obstacles that are creating you to feel this way: https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/buddhas-dharma/new-simplified-daily-prayer-to-dorje-shugden.html

> You can also read the Lamrim teachings and contemplate/meditate on them, especially the teachings on impermanence and death. This will help you overcome the spiritual depression you are going through.

I hope all this helps. Do keep us informed about how you are doing. We are here. You can also email Care@Kechara.com if you would like to talk more.

Thank you

Dear Irwanto,

Thank you for your kind words. We are very happy to read that you find our work useful. It make our effort worthwhile.

At the bottom of this particular section, there is a donate button with a link to paypal. You can help sponsor our work there. The button is just above the “Meet the Pastors” section on this page. Thank you.

Dear Curt,

I hope you enjoy your trip to Nepal! Our main temple is actually in Malaysia, but we do have some small chapels in Kathmandu. And you are more than welcome to visit them to make offerings, though they are quite small, so for formal practice it may a little cramped. Please visit during the day time. You can find more information about the chapels here: https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/buddhas-dharma/bhagawan-dorje-shugden-chapels-in-kathmandu-nepal.html

Hope that helps!

Hi Confused,

This section is answered by the Pastors, who were trained by Tsem Rinpoche.

According to Buddhist cosmology, when we pass away, we take rebirth into various realms of existence due to the force of karma. This process of rebirth is uncontrolled because we have not attained higher states of consciousness. Therefore, we do not meet up with our family members, spouses, etc. We all take rebirth in different places according to our karma. According to Buddhist belief, this is a universal law, no matter what your belief or faith, etc. Other religious systems of course have their own beliefs. I hope that helps to answer your question according to Buddhist through.

Dear Anup Kumar,

Tsem Rinpoche passed into Parinirvana over three years ago. His students now run this website and his organisation.

Since you are suffering from such painful diseases, you can rely on the practice of Shize for healing as well as removal of all obstacles.

You read an extensive explanation of Shize’s practice and find the prayers to help you here: https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/downloads/shize-a-practice-for-healing-and-long-life.html

Dear Mark,

Samaya is form with a guru through ceremony, such as taking initiations, vows, initiations, etc from the Guru. However the core of each of these ceremonies is the feeling from the heart that you are making a connection with the guru, and the creation of such a bond through a particular action or ceremony. Therefore, samaya can be formed from the heart and in taking that particular person as being your guru.

When looking for a guru and analysing their actions, works, etc, you can be analytical for sure. All the teachings on the guru-disciple relationship. However once you make the connection you have to have the view that the guru is a Buddha. The Kalama Sutra is used in the Theravada and general Mahayana traditions to exemplify critical thinking. However, when it comes to the Vajrayana tradition, once it is an integral part of practice to view the guru as being a Buddha. The path of practice is such, that if you don’t have such view then the meditations will not be successful. That is why it is very important to be analytical and have critical thinking before making a formal guru-disciple relationship with a teacher. I hope that this explanation helps. Thanks.

Dear Tommy,

Sometimes when a guru assigns us a practice, it may be hard for us to develop faith in that particular deity, because we may not feel that affinity for whatever reason. However, if we stick to the practice and engage in it diligently, that faith will grow because we will see the effectiveness of the practice. Usually when assigned a practice, we see the benefits more easily than other practices because we actually do have an affinity with that deity, it’s just that for us at our level we may not feel it yet.

In regards to Medicine Buddha’s practice, even though his form is not semi-wrathful, or fully wrathful, his practice include immense energies of protection. This are all listed out in the full Medicine Puja – protection from spirits, negative energy, from physical danger, from accidents, from environmental disasters, from negative delusions, from lower rebirth, protection from poverty. The list goes on and on. He is actually a supreme protector. Usually we only equate his practice with healing and health, but his practice is one of the most profound practices in Buddhism. In fact, Tsem Rinpoche used to assign Medicine Buddha to people with spirit disturbances or in difficult situations to cure their obstacles and his practice really worked. I hope this helps.

Hi there Harry,

Thank you for letting us know. I’ll forward this link to our team for them to have a look.

And thank you for your prayers!

Dear Haneef,

Sorry for the late reply. Please email Care@Kechara.com, you can answer your questions privately there. I hope that helps.

Dear Bhavisha,

From a Buddhist point of view, initiation is impossible without having a guru. The blessings of the practice must be transmitted from guru to disciple through the process of initiation.

Some traditions do have intiiations online. However, from the point of view of lamas of our specific tradition, deity-initiations need to take place in person. There are certain procedures and things that initiates need to do during the ceremony and recieving the blessings physically, etc.

Dear Jeredy,

You can continue reciting the prayers that you reciting. Start off by taking refuge, then continue to Buddha Shakyamuni, Dzambala and then Dorje Shugden, finish with a completion dedication. You can take this to be your daily sadhana.

Usually, however in Kechara, most people use the Diamond Path as their Daily Sadhana – https://www.vajrasecrets.com/diamond-path

Alternatively, Tsem Rinpoche composed a new general daily sadhana here: https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/buddhas-dharma/new-simplified-daily-prayer-to-dorje-shugden.html

Hope this helps. Thanks.

Dear Tyler,

If you have been assigned the prostration preliminary, please do check regarding this with your Guru. In general however, the prostration preliminary is always full-length. However, your guru may give you an exception. Please do check with him or her. Thank you.

Dear Ananya,

Of course! This will be very good for you! Both Green Tara and Vajrasattva are extremely powerful and beneficial. If you want to go one step further you can set a small altar, with both of their images and make offerings to them daily. This will help to generate merit. If you want you can also engage in their practice and mantra recitation to call more of their energies into your life.

You can find high-resolution images that you can print out and frame here: https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/downloads/buddha-images.html

Dear A,

The system of tarot cards is not related to Buddhist practice. The original tarot system came from part of very specific ideology and religious systems in Europe. Over time it has been distorted by influence of new age theories and mixing of various traditions and beliefs.

Within the Buddhist tradition, everyone takes rebirth. Hence, ‘ancestors’ have taken rebirth in varying realms throughout samsara. You would not be able to connect with them according to what other systems of belief say. However, if they are born in higher realms and have memory of their previous lives, they may have the power to help their descendants from previous lives. However, it is very difficult to be born in such realms and take tremendous amounts of positive karma. Hence you do not find any form of ancestor worship within Buddhist traditions. Hope this helps.

Dear Aaru,

That is the goal and ideal of Bodhisattvas, to eventually empty samsara completely, so that all sentient beings achieve nirvana. When that occurs, then Samsara will stop as no beings will have the karma to make samsara exist. All sentient beings will be enlightened.

There is a famous verse in a dedication prayer from Chapter 10 of Shantideva’s Bodhisattvacharyavatara text:

“For as long as space remains,
For as long as sentient beings remain,
Until then may I too remain
To dispel the miseries of the world.”

From the above verse we can see first the mindset of a Bodhisattva and two infer that eventually samsara will stop. Hope that helps.

Dear Gigi,

It’s better not to think in this way if you don’t have the appropriate initiation. Hence, when you are praciting, try to think that energies are different. Over the course of the visualisation, you can think and visualise that Vajrasattva is making your own energy/essence pure through his practice. At the end of the practice, you can think that your energy/essence has been completely purified by Vajrasattva’s energy. I hope that helps.