Yamantaka Vajrabhairava ____________________________________   Dearest Friends @ CAS,   Our precious Guru, the 100th Ganden Trisur Rinpoche has clearly indicated the need to emphasise "quality" over "quantity": the overwhelming importance of the students' sincerity in Bodhicitta and honest practice than hordes of greedy gropes to pluck off supposed spiritual blessings in the collection of yet another whooping empowerment !!   This year, the Dharma programmes we hosted are relatively serious and entail liberating albeit stipulated, strict commitments.   We rejoice in the "popular" blessing initiations so excellently bestowed by compassionate masters and am certain they will serve to benefit deeply the attending students, leaving positive imprints to be ripened in the future, near or far.   Then, it seems that someone will need, too, to provide Dharma programmes that students can relate to in a much deeper level and which can chart a wider spiritual territory, all the way to perfect, complete Buddhahood.   We are terribly glad, therefore, at the bestowal of the complete and full empowerment of Lord Manjushri's unique, Highest Yoga Tantra cycle of the Vajra Terrifier - the Conqueror of the Lord of Death: Yamantaka Vajrabhairava by one of Tibet's foremost monastic leaders and one of the holy Gelugpa Lineage's seniormost Lineage-Holders, the great Abbot Emeritus of Drepung Loseling Monastery, Khensur Lobsang Gyamtso.  ( See Khensur Lobsang Gyamtso at Drepung Loseling's inauguration with HH the Dalai Lama, enthroned beside the Sharpa Choje, the Jangtse Choje and Ling Rinpoche Yangsi: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gKLC-cJekSY&feature=related )    To assure the students' protection in the temporal and especially spiritual sphere, Khensur Rinpoche will also be bestowing the entrusting empowerment of Tibet's foremost Protector, Palden Lhamo - Queen of the War Sickle. Palden Lhamo is prophesied by the great tertons as the most effective protector of the Dharma and Dharma practitioners in this Degenrate Age: the darker and crooked the obstacles, the stronger and mightier shall reign Palden Lhamo's power.   From the Manjushri-Vajrabhairava Root Tantra, the Buddha Himself declared Her to be the Chief Protector of the 1,000 Buddhas of this aeon and who will be unsurpassably skilful and unusually powerful in Her divine activities for the preservation of the holy Dharma.      It is especially pertinent given that the Yamantaka Vajrabhairava is Khensur Rinpoche's specially dedicated "Heart Practice" throughout more than half the century, being transmitted impeccably and perfectly from Yongdzin Ling Rinpoche ( HH the Dalai Lama's Senior Tutor ) and the Palden Lhamo is the Chief Protector of Khensur Rinpoche, Gelugpa's greatest monastic stronghold -- the Drepung Monastery ( quoting Je Tsongkhapa Himself and of which Khensur Rinpoche is the Head Emeritus ) as well as the Spiritual Head of Tibet, His Holiness the Dalai Lama.   These, then, are the reason for this Special Issue, the Dharma programme for the serious practitioner, the path to Buddhahood, shown by a qualified spiritual guide, a rare gem, a shining jewel, a holy Master, an apex and culmination of Lord Buddha's teachings.   bb & all students  @ CAS in homage, guided by Lord Vajrabhairava.      ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________   "The Kingly Tantra of Lord Yamantaka"   The symbolic account from the "Kingly Tantra of Lord Yamantaka" opens with the great Manjushri manifesting in His supremely wrathful aspect of the Vajra Terrifier -- Vajrabhairava -- the pan-ultimate, wrathful form, terrifying even the greatly powerful, wrathful lords of the samsaric and enlightened spheres and the wrathful ones dropping their implements in shock, homage and surrender to Him.       Buddha Vajradhara praised the practice of Lord Yamantaka Vajrabhairava as the "extraordinarily wrathful tantra" which is uniquely effective in triumph over every obstacle -- outer, inner, secret, ultimately secret -- to Buddhahood.     ________________________________________________________________________________________________________   The Five Unique Features of Yamantaka Vajrabhairava   The practice of Yamantaka Vajrabhairava has 5 uncommon features superior, relative to all the other great tantric systems such as Hevajra, Kalachakra, Heruka Chakrasamvara and even the Supreme King of Tantras of the Guhyasamaja.   The practice of Yamantaka Vajrabhairava is one of the most effective practices for attainment of Buddhahood ever taught by the Buddha, from the point of the Buddhist tantras.   Yamantaka Vajrabhairava encompasses practices of both the Father and Mother tantras in a singular form as symbolised by implementary aspects of the entrails and the brazier.   It possesses especial blessings for melting of the "white bodhicitta" within the Central Channel, the generation of Great Bliss simultaneous with Emptiness through practice of the "Tummo" or "Inner Fire".    Its implementary aspect of an impaled corpse symbolises its uniquely effective and complete transformation of even the "worst" sentient being who has committed the "Five Heinous Sins" into the Dharma path and ultimate Buddhahood.   Yamantaka Vajrabhairava, being a supremely wrathful tantra, ensures successful traversing, to the end, the Dharma path and He raises threatening forefingers at the Enlightened and Worldly Deities, exhorting their subservience and assistance to any practitioner of His path. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________   The Great Blessings of Yamantaka Vajrabhairava   Long-Life The practice of Vajrabhairava bestows long-life. Lord Manjushri manifests as Yamantaka in symbolic triumph over the Lord of Death, ultimately, the Fundamental Ignorance of all sentient beings.    The Special Yidam of the Gelugpa Lineage Being the unique aspect of Lord Manjushri, the synthesized Wisdom Aspect of Buddhas of the Three Times, the practitioners of Vajrabhairava receive special blessings for generation of Wisdom. The Gelugpa practitioners especially rely upon Manjushri as the Teacher ( Je Tsongkhapa ), the Yidam as Manjushri ( Yamantaka Vajrabhairava ) and the Protector as Manjushri ( The Oath-Bound King of Dharma -- Kalarupa ).    Je Tsongkhapa's presentation of Yamantaka Vajrabhairava is unqie in it being His special "Heart Practice" and His having received the practice seamlessly, directly from Lord Manjushri.   Countless Luminaries The Gelugpa Lineage is well-known for its especial mastery of Yamantaka Vajrabhairava. Literally, throughout the centuries, countless practitioners amongst their high-reincarnate masters, the general ordained assemblies and lay students, achieved the highest, perfect accomplishments through complete reliance upon the path of Yamantaka Vajrabhairava.       "Victory Over Evil" Je Tsongkhapa's presented the practice of Vajrabhairava through the extremely renowned text, "Victory Over Evil", the practice, uniquely powerful over negative obstacles. [ See "A Great Yogi in our Modern Age":  http://www.casotac.com/download/yogi.doc ]   Completion Stage The Completion Stage of Vajrabhairava as presented through Je Tsongkhapa's teachings, too, is unique in their presenting of the "Triply Nestled Heroes", a means of very effectively clinching Buddhahood through achieving and uniting the Illusory Body and the Clear Light.        Worldly Accomplishments The late Sharpa Choje, Gyuto Khensur Lobsang Nyima, taught of practitioners of Vajrabhairava enjoying worldly as well as spiritual attainments: economic sustenance and affluence, respect, influences and progresses.    __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________   Pre-requisites   Students should be possessed of the Three Prinicple Aspects of the Path: 1) Renunciation of Samsara  2) Uncommon Bodhicitta - wanting to be Buddha fastest for highest good of all mother beings 3) Understanding of Inter-Dependence   [ See Gen Wangchen-la, the Teacher of Ling Rinpoche Yangsi, teach on the above: http://www.casotac.com/audio.html ]     Subsequent Commitments Students should be able to keep the Three Sets of Vows: 1) Pratimoksha Lay Five Precepts 2) Bodhisattva Vows 3) Tantric Vows   [ See Khensur Lobsang Gyamtso teach on the above: http://www.casotac.com/audio.html ]  [ See also Alexander Berzin: http://www.berzinarchives.com/web/x/nav/n.html_184879529.html ]   Students should be able to: 1) Complete daily 6 sessions of Guru Yoga practice. ( reciting a single A4 size page text six times daily -- taking between 10 to 20 min )  2) Complete daily short sadhana of Yamantaka Vajrabhairava ( reciting a 4 A4 size page text - taking between 15 to 30 min )    __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________   Programme Details   www.casotac.com   ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________   Technical Details   Registration will be required. Email CAS at contact@casotac.com   Volunteers are needed to ferry Khensur Rinpoche from His residence to the programme venue/s from 21 to 27 November ( !! ).   Course fee of S$200/- per student will be imposed for the full programme. Students will individually offer the course fees into the "Dharma Propagation Fund" box during the programme. Fees will be waived for ordianed Sangha and financially challenged students.     Offerings / Sponsorships to the programme are needed for air ticket costs ( 4 monks !! ), the translator costs ( about S$1,000/- ), food ( S$400/- )   ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________   Do pray & dedicate for the highest good to come of the Dharma programme !!   "Namo Amituofo !!"