Rinpoche Through My Eyes – What’s the New News?
Joy has been a student of His Eminence the 25th Tsem Rinpoche for over 15 years. Through the years, Joy has witnessed Rinpoche’s compassion and the unconventional methods he uses to benefit others. Some of the short stories she shares will tell interesting miraculous events that Rinpoche will not mention due to his humility. She hopes these stories will serve as an inspiration in your own spiritual journey.
Rinpoche Through My Eyes – What’s the New News?
If you were ever around Rinpoche long enough, you would have experienced being asked this famous question: “What’s the new news?” This was probably the most often asked question to those who worked closely with Rinpoche. It may sound catchy and funny at first but it was a skilful method Rinpoche used for many reasons.
When I first heard Rinpoche ask my sister this question, I thought how hilarious it was for a Tibetan lama to ask such a question. Why or what could Rinpoche be interested to know? In fact, I thought it was kind of odd that Rinpoche appeared to be encouraging people to gossip. I thought Rinpoche was just being entertaining but little did I know that it was another unconventional way that Rinpoche used to find out more about someone, so he could find a way to benefit that particular person.
A few years later I heard Rinpoche asking other students this same question in the same hilarious way. They struggled to tell Rinpoche any ‘interesting’ news because after each story they told, Rinpoche candidly asked for more ‘news’. Rinpoche did this until they told a really good ‘story’ or shared something interesting. It was amusing watching them but not long after knowing Rinpoche, I too was asked, “What’s the new news?” I was so dumbfounded, I did not know what say, thinking of what news I could possibly tell Rinpoche that would be appropriate and interesting. When I look back now, it is really amazing how this one simple question from Rinpoche could make you realise so many things about yourself and others.
At times, through the news and stories we shared about other people, Rinpoche got a premonition about that person and asked us to pass some advice to them. We would never know the importance of our stories, because the news we shared could have possibly saved someone’s life. Sometimes I feel Rinpoche already knew something about a certain someone and asked “what’s the new news?” as a triggering point for us to share with Rinpoche about the person or event. Hence, from our stories, Rinpoche would be able to help the particular person or give advice about a particular situation that was happening. In this way, it could even change someone’s karma and help them avoid a certain misfortune.
This was one of Rinpoche’s all-time favourite humorous cards. What I think Rinpoche was trying to convey from this card was to lessen our “self-pitying”, our complains and gossiping. It becomes gossip when one speaks with a bad motivation, or talks for the sake of talking without thinking how it can benefit or cause harm. Hence, this card has a very powerful message for us to be mindful of.
This question was, therefore, another way Rinpoche reached out to help people he did not even know. This is how much Rinpoche cared and it dawned on me that Rinpoche was trying to find out who he could help through this creatively skilful method. But that was just one side of the coin. The other side was that Rinpoche was also trying to benefit the person telling the news, which we sometimes forgot when we were the narrator.
Rinpoche was also observing our mind, our thoughts and what our interests were like through the stories we shared. What our hang-ups were, what disturbed us, our likes, dislikes, what made us happy or sad, and so on. What we shared with Rinpoche told Rinpoche a lot about us. Most of the time we did not even realise how we were thinking until Rinpoche pointed it out.
It was even a meter for our ego because the more nervous we were, it showed how big our ego was and this translated as bigger insecurities about telling our stories to Rinpoche. For some, it could be a fear of speaking up and the fear of being judged, which most often creates a lot of obstacles in our own daily lives. This ego was the main issue Rinpoche was indirectly trying to help us resolve.
From listening to our stories, Rinpoche was able to know the areas we needed to work on and what he needed to do to help us improve. It was a way to show us how aware we were, and how much we observed or cared about another person.
There are times Rinpoche asked us over and over again for ‘new news’, it was a way of pushing us to think more creatively. Eventually, the act of telling ‘new news’ could be another form of giving. By having to think and share some ‘news’, was actually giving one’s time to someone; in this case, I was giving my time to my Guru.
While we were feeling challenged to think of some interesting news to tell Rinpoche, our Rinpoche was compassionately using his time, his life, his being, to actually teach us another form of giving – caring and focusing out on others and what they need. No one would have ever thought that telling stories or ‘new news’ could have been an act of giving and caring, but this is how skilful our Guru was.
It is truly amazing how creative Rinpoche was in his methods to benefit people. From one simple question, “what’s the new news?”, it was a powerful teaching to know so much about ourselves and others.
So “what’s the new news?” was not about gossiping but about helping others and ourselves. Rinpoche once told me when we change our motivation, the whole act of ‘new news’ becomes another way for us to do good and help others. In the end, Rinpoche’s main intention for asking this simple yet profound question was always to benefit someone, whether it was the news-giver or the subject of the story. It was always about benefiting others.
For more interesting information:
- Rinpoche Through My Eyes – Mission Impossible
- Rinpoche Through My Eyes – Invoking the Buddhas to Come Forth
- Rinpoche through my eyes – Food and Dharma
- I Witnessed the Compassion of Tsem Rinpoche
- Stories from a Chela – Spiritual Nourishment for All
- Stories from a Chela – Supernatural Protection
- Growing up with Rinpoche: Necessity, not convenience
- Tales With My Lama : Audience With Tsem Rinpoche
- Tales With My Lama : Laugh Away Your Ego
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Haha, reading your story really brought back the request by Rinpoche to get to know the MH writers during my time in DA Ladrang kitchen (public side then). Then Chris and I had to report back with what’s new. Yes, I agree that Rinpoche uses this information to help. Rinpoche really engaged in every possible method to learn where help/guidance is needed. Rinpoche is truly the living ‘kindness’ & ‘compassion’ and an example for us.
Thank you Joy for this fun and interesting sharing on why Rinpoche likes to ask students to share “what’s the new news” I would love to share with Rinpoche new news with him as i have a very inquisitive mind and loves to think of beneficial methods to help people when they needs it. 👍😘👏
A creative way of how Rinpoche train students to be aware of the surrounding and also helping others. Just a simple questions but the teaching can be extended to various aspect. Thank you Joy for sharing. It is a also a lesson for us to learn this to learn to care for the others. When we start to open our eyes and mind on what’s really happening around and instead of just focusing on ourselves, we will start to look outward.
“what’s the new news?” when I read the heading I thought what’s its all about. Well reading it further it had me understand better . Thanks Joy for this sharing for us to know and understand better of Rinpoche through the eyes of his students. Simple question from Rinpoche yet there’s more meaning behind it. It was a powerful teaching to know so much about ourselves and others. Nice sharing for us like me to know Rinpoche better of how and the way rather methods to bring Dharma and benefits to others.
At first I thought Rinpoche asking “what’s the new news?” mean he is very alert about what is happening around the world, he hopes his students care the world enough for humanity, etc. He could know how his students thought about the new news, they would always have discussions and keep things interesting. Then when I read further, I find he was actually also trying to know more about the person, then he can show care in his skillful ways?
It can be a very meaningful conversation which full with insights if we have good intentions. When we speak about others, it always a reflect what is going on in our inner world too.