Venerable Shangpa Rinpoche and his lamas will be conducting the 5 days ceremony of Chod, 100 Deities Jang Chog and Gyashi pujas for good health, purification, longevity and prosperity of all participants and sponsors.

The essence of Chod practice is to develop the perfection of Wisdom. Buddha Sakyamuni had introduced the Chod practice in the 2nd and 3rd sermon in general. Later on, Dampa Sangye (an Indian Saint) and Machig Labdron (a Tibetan Master) extracted the teaching and introduced it with a unique method of cutting through ego clinging instantly. The practice flourished and became very popular. Countless masters and saints practice Chod and attained enlightenment in a lifetime.The Chod practice was introduced in Tibet by the Shijey Tradition, which was one of the eight Chariots of Practical Lineage at that time when Buddhism was introduced in Tibet. The main practice of Chod is to recognise the defilements of ego clinging, attachment to oneself and phenomena, which obstruct the Path to Enlightenment. The method used is to rid the roots of defilements such as HATRED, DESIRE and IGNORANCE.

The Chod puja is effective for purification of those people who have various sicknesses and especially, for the purification of disturbances caused by the evil spirits. It also benefits us in our daily needs such as prosperity, health and longevity. It is a whole day puja where the big drum and bells will be used; and the combination of a nice melody of the chanting that make the whole atmosphere blessed.

There was a king who executed his own spiritual Master and underwent immense suffering in the hell realms. Buddha showed compassion for him by conferring on him the teachings and practice of the 100 Deities Jang Chog. By just hearing the teachings alone, he was liberated and reborn in the heaven realms.

The 100 Deities are the attributes and activities of the 5 Buddhas and their female counterparts. They are the manifestations of our pure nature. By practicing the 100 Deities Chang Chog, one can gradually realize one's nature of mind. In the practice of Jang Chog, merit is accumulated through making offerings to the 100 Deities and this is transferred to the deceased for their purification and liberation. This practice helps the deceased in the bardo and shows them the path to enlightenment. At the end, the paper tablets of the deceased are burnt to purify their gross and subtle defilements and they enter the path of liberation.

Daily breaks 法会的休息时间:
Lunch 午餐时间: 12.30pm to 2.00pm
Dinner 晚餐时间: 5.00pm to 7.30pm

During Buddha Sakyamuni’s time, the Demi-gods (Asuras) often attacked the Heaven of King Indra. At one time, his kingdom was about to be conquered, his lifespan was about to end and he saw that his next rebirth will be in a lower realm. He became very desperate and requested Vajrapani to save his life and his kingdom. Vajrapani then seeked help from Buddha to protect his kingdom and increase his lifespan. With compassion, Buddha Sakyamuni taught the Gyashi practice. The king was freed from the Mara of the Death after he performed the practice. The practice taught by Buddha Sakyamuni and also the commentary given by Vajrapani were recorded both in the sutras and tantras. Based on these sources, Saint Khache Pandita composed the ritual version of Gyashi, and in the Karma Kagyud tradition, Karma Chagme collected all the essential teachings.

Gyashi Puja means 400 offerings puja, to pacify the 4 maras. All the obstacles that we had experienced were caused by them. These are mara of the son of god, mara of defilement, mara of death and mara of form which are represented by white, red, black and yellow color respectively. They symbolize the 4 types of obscurations. Through making offerings of 100 lamps, one would have pacified the mara of the son of god and be freed of the obscuration of knowledge. Similarly, by making offerings of 100 tsa tsa one would have pacified the mara of defilement and be freed of the obscuration of the five poisons. By making offering of 100 tormas, one would have pacified the mara of death and be freed of obscurations of karmic causes. And by making offering of 100 human form figures, one would have pacified the mara of form and be freed of the obscuration of habitual tendencies.

Benefits

The sutra and tantra have mentioned that when one performs the Gyashi practice, it will increase one’s lifespan and merits and purify one’s defilement and sufferings. In Tibet, this practice is performed when a person is severely sick, has a bad dream, encountering bad omen or misfortune and anticipating bad omen through prediction.

For Gyashi Puja, please pack in an ang pow for each person 1) hair strands, 2) a piece of fabric from clothing that has been worn by the person and 3) fingernail cuttings. For persons unable to attend personally, do pack a piece of dough which has been rubbed on parts of their bodies which have sickness. The dough should not be rubbed on the forehead or heart area.