The Great Mystic Virupa
Virupa (Main figure)
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(Top to bottom): Virupa and Dorje Shugden
Deity: Virupa (Sanskrit)
Tibetan: Drubchen Birwapa (Tibetan)
The Mahasiddha Virupa was born to a royal family of India around the 7th Century CE. His name was Dharmapala but he later became known by various other names including Biwawa, Virupa or Birwapa.
He entered Nalanda Monastery and was eventually appointed its abbot. He was also a great practitioner of the Chakrasamvara Tantras. However, he almost gave up the practice because he received many negative dreams. He threw his mala in the latrine but recovered it because of a vision of the goddess Nairatmya who explained that he was about to attain realisation soon. He became enlightened soon afterwards.
When he engaged in tantric rituals like tsog offerings, dakinis entered his chambers to partake of the offerings. The other monks saw them as ordinary women and so he was expelled from Nalanda because they thought that he had consorted with women. After that, Virupa roamed India as a dishevelled yogin and performed many miracles to subdue people’s minds. He met many people who became his disciples and amongst them was a boatman who later became known as the Mahasiddha Drombi Heruka.
Of all the miracles he performed, the most famous was when he created the illusion of stopping the sun with a simple hand gesture. He did that seemingly because he promised to pay the amount of beer he drank at a tavern at sundown. Since the sun never set, he didn’t need to settle the bill and the sun remained in the sky for days. Finally, the king along with his ministers begged Virupa to release the sun and eventually became his most ardent disciples. Virupa’s Vajra Verses became the basis for the Lamdre teachings of the Sakya School of Tibetan Buddhism. He is considered one of the earliest lineage masters of the Sakya School and an earlier incarnation of Dorje Shugden as well.
Deity: Dorje Shugden (Tibetan)
Alternative name: Vajra Rudra (Sanskrit)
Dorje Shugden is an emanation of the Buddha of Wisdom, Manjushri. He took the form of a Dharma Protector in order to safeguard the Buddha’s teachings, especially the important teachings on the Middle Way View. Reminiscent of Manjushri’s form, Dorje Shugden carries a meandering sword and rides a snowlion that represents the fearlessness of a fully enlightened Buddha. Thus, he has great strength to overcome obstacles of the body, speech and mind, and create suitable conditions for our spiritual practice to flourish. Furthermore, he carries a jewel-spitting mongoose and a vajra hook to symbolise that he has the tremendous ability to bestow wealth and resources.
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Virupa is the second incarnation of H.E. the 25th Tsem Rinpoche, Just like Rinpoche, Virupa also used the very unconventional way to spread Dharma to the group of people who does not has the chance to receive Dharma, and they can eventually bring them into Dharma. Beisde this, they have many resemblance too, such as left home a very young age to become a monk, left the monastery and live outside to spread Dharma to the public, etc.
Thank you Rinpoche for reincarnate back lifetime after lifetime to teach us Dharma tirelessly, because of Rinpoche, we have at least done something meaningful in our life, may we all continue to connect back to Rinpoche every lifetime and learn the Dharma until we reach to the state of no suffering.