Lobsang Chokyi has been a student of His Eminence the 25^th Tsem Rinpoche for over 15 years. Through the years, Ani Chokyi 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 – Transforming the Ordinary into the Extraordinary

When Kechara Saraswati Arts (KSA) was just getting started, Rinpoche told us about his vision for a beautiful altar to the Buddha Saraswati. Rinpoche envisioned the central image as a stone-carved Saraswati statue with her two arms playing her veena (an ancient Indian string instrument). A few students were visiting Bali at the time to source items for Kechara. Rinpoche decided to join the trip and invited a few students to assist with the sourcing. It was a method of training students as well as locating a Saraswati statue for KSA.

Being invited to accompany Rinpoche on that trip to Bali was a tremendous honour. We weren’t going on a regular vacation or business trip; we were going on a holiday with Rinpoche! This added to the transcendental quality of the journey. You can imagine how excited everyone who went on the trip was. It was as if we were going on a vacation with a Buddha. It was also quite nerve-racking because we had no idea what to expect from Rinpoche. And it wasn’t a holiday, in the traditional sense of the word, for some of us. Rinpoche actually used the trip to teach students in the Ladrang (household) how to serve a lama while travelling so it was to be both educational and mystical at the same time.

Rinpoche carried his mala with him wherever he went in Bali. Rinpoche constantly chanted mantras and appeared to bless certain figurines at times.

We spent the first night in Ubud at a resort surrounded by lush green mountains. We were awakened in the middle of the night by a strange knock on our room door. When we opened the door, JP and Beng Kooi were going around asking if any of us had brought a vajra and bell with us. They were required for Rinpoche’s tsok (tantric offering) puja in the morning. Rinpoche’s assistants had forgotten to pack his vajra and bell for the journey.

We awoke to a beautiful Balinese breakfast buffet, after which we were rushed to Rinpoche’s room. Rinpoche was in the midst of tsok and asked us to sit quietly. Rinpoche then gave a brief meditational teaching following the puja. Rinpoche guided us by asking us to close our eyes and think about everything we saw, heard, smelled, tasted, and touched. Everything that was beautiful and comfortable, from the beautiful surroundings we saw to the lovely breakfast we ate, the breeze we felt in the room, the birds chirping outside, to the soft comfortable bed we slept on the night before. Then Rinpoche instructed us to offer these experiences to the Buddhas.

With our eyes closed, Rinpoche’s voice guided us to imagine the Buddhas accepting our humble offerings, transporting us to a pure land. Rinpoche explained that in this way, we can transform anything we want, anything we find pleasing, anything in samsara into an offering to the Buddhas. This is how we can continuously generate merits with everything we do. Everything from a simple cup of coffee, to a warm bed, to the sight of a beautiful girl passing by can be an offering to the enlightened beings. We should appreciate everything around us because they are precious. By offering them to the Buddhas, we create the conditions for us to let go of our attachment to them. We create the conditions for good fortune and comfortable living. We are able to learn and practise the Dharma because of such favourable conditions, so that we may be able to awaken to our own Buddha-nature.

So right there and then in Rinpoche’s bedroom, seated at the feet of our beloved Guru, Rinpoche showed us how to transform anything we experience through our five senses (eyes, ears, nose, taste and touch) and that pleases us, into pure offerings to the Three Jewels. Yes, even if we see a beautiful girl or boy, we can visualise them transforming into a dakini or a daka and offer them to the Buddhas. This was not a meditation that could only be done at that moment in time with Rinpoche guiding us, but something that we could henceforth do at any time.

In this way, Rinpoche was teaching us how we can constantly make offerings, accumulate enormous amounts of merit, and create the conditions for positive outcomes. Because this type of offering is based on how aware and creative we are, the sky is the limit. We need creativity because we can turn any object into an offering to the Buddhas, even if we do not normally consider it an object that can be offered.

Then Rinpoche asked us to rejoice from the bottom of our hearts that we were able to make such lovely offerings, rather than simply indulging ourselves and increasing our attachments. In fact, by making such offerings, we actually create the conditions to cut future attachments to such objects. Rinpoche then guided us through a dedication prayer before sending us out to get ready to start our very first day in Bali.

Rinpoche in one of the many shops we visited on our Bali trip. Rinpoche was explaining how Vajra Yogini stands and the significance of her pose. Rinpoche never stopped sharing the precious Dharma with us no matter where we went with him. This added to the significance of the trip. Click on image to enlarge.

This teaching was extremely profound and now that I am taking the Lamrim class, I appreciate and understand how valuable it is even more. Rinpoche essentially gave us a condensed version of the Indian master Shantideva’s ancient text A Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life. It is all about transforming everything we encounter into a means for us to generate merit, transform ourselves, and eventually achieve enlightenment.

The Bali trip was full of wonder and excitement as Rinpoche nurtured, trained, and blessed us while we shopped for Dharma items. One of the reasons we went to Bali was for Rinpoche to find a suitable Saraswati Buddha image for the newly renovated Kechara Saraswati Arts Department (KSA). I was in the midst of decorating KSA, which was nearly finished. The only thing that was missing was a Saraswati statue. Rinpoche considered a stone-carved Saraswati statue to be the perfect idea. As a result, going to Bali was the ideal working vacation for some of us.

We went to the Maha Pita Resort to get ideas for the type of environment Rinpoche envisioned for our future retreat centre. This retreat centre later took the form of Kechara Forest Retreat. Rinpoche was heavily involved in all aspects of its creation.

For some, it was an opportunity to get to know Rinpoche and the group better. Others saw it as a test of their efficiency in serving the Lama and others, coordination skills, resourcefulness, and, most importantly, attitude when confronted with problems in a new environment. I recall going to a small local restaurant for dinner one night and discovering that they did not have enough cooks. As a result, it took a long time for them to prepare our meals. Everyone was ravenous, and Rinpoche’s gastritis was acting up. We needed to do something, so a few of us went into the kitchen and immediately became helpers. We assisted them with whatever they required in order to get the food cooked, plated, and served. We would have had to wait two hours or more to eat if we had not pitched in. Rinpoche was pleased that we did something rather than just sit and wait to be served. It demonstrated that we were concerned enough. As Ladrang staff, we must always be prepared to do whatever it takes to solve any problem. I was not a member of the Ladrang team at the time, but I learned that nothing is impossible.

Another reason we went to Bali was Rinpoche wanted us to experience the environment and atmosphere in order to get ideas for our future retreat centre. Rinpoche had the idea for Buddha gardens after seeing so many beautifully carved stone Buddha statues. The plan was to place a large Buddha statue in our garden area. It was not intended to beautify our garden, though it certainly did. Rinpoche explained that it was done to give many beings, from animals to unseen beings, the opportunity to receive Buddha’s blessings.

We should always look for ways to help others, to plant seeds of enlightenment in the minds of others, because we have the ability to do so. That is the greatest gift we can give someone. In this way, we assist them and provide them with the opportunity to awaken to their enlightened potential in the future. Many of us were inspired by Rinpoche to invite 3 to 5-foot stone-carved Buddha statues for our gardens back home. Kecharians began to invite stone Buddha statues for their gardens after that. It became somewhat of a trend.

Rinpoche and Pastor David (left) examine some magnificent stone-carved Buddha statues

We visited numerous stone-carving shops in search of Buddha statues, but we were unable to locate the correct Saraswati statue for KSA. Rinpoche wanted KSA’s Saraswati statue to have two arms rather than the more common four-armed depictions that are more reminiscent of Hindu iconography. This made the task even more difficult, especially since the Balinese are Hindu so it would only be natural for them to create statues of the four-armed goddess Saraswati.

We spent about two days looking for an appropriate statue, and I believe we visited over twenty different locations. I cannot remember the exact number but it was a variety of stores. Then, as it was getting late on our final day of statue hunting, we went to the last shop and decided that if we did not find a Saraswati statue there, we would just call it quits. Perhaps we lacked the karma to locate the appropriate statue in Bali.

At that last shop, unfortunately, we did not find anything suitable so we finally gave up and prepared to return to our hotel.

While we were driving back, everyone was thinking about the day’s events when Rinpoche suddenly yelled. From sitting inside a moving van, Rinpoche had spotted a two-armed Saraswati statue amongst many others lined up in front of some shops! It was as if she called out for Rinpoche to notice her. Rinpoche yelled something along the lines of, “Hey, I saw a Saraswati!” (I cannot remember Rinpoche’s exact words, but it was something along those lines) We all became excited and motioned for the driver to stop. Everyone dashed out of the van to see the perfect statue, and it was exactly as Rinpoche had envisioned her to be. She had two arms and was not sitting on a swan, and she was also the perfect size – two-feet. The statue would be ideal for the enclave we had created in KSA. To say we were overjoyed to invite her back to Malaysia would be an understatement.

The two-armed Saraswati (top left) that Rinpoche spotted in Bali and invited back to Kechara’s Saraswati Arts department. The statue, which is still in the art department today, is very sacred. Rinpoche made strong prayers that anyone who comes to see her holy image in the art department will be blessed by her. Click on image to enlarge.

I vaguely recall Rinpoche looking at me and saying something along the lines of, “See… I told you we’d find her, don’t give up!” when he spotted the statue. I took that advice, as well as the amazing discovery, which was like a miracle, to always persevere and not give up, even when things appear bleak and hopeless. Things will always come around and work out if you have the right motivation. This has happened numerous times in my 20 years of working with Rinpoche. As the saying goes, “after the storm comes the rainbow,” so we should never give up on our Guru or the Dharma.

Bali was my first trip out of the country with Rinpoche, and it will always be one of the most memorable ones. On this trip, Rinpoche was more like a friend, trying to bond with his students, getting to know some of the new ones better so he could help them better. At that time Rinpoche was still in lay clothes, having just finished his modelling phase before manifesting a more traditional appearance. After dinner, Rinpoche would walk with us and casually chat with us, while also keeping an eye out for us as it was late at night. He would warn us to be on the lookout for cars or bikes that were closing in on us quickly. And there were times I would see Rinpoche stop in certain places and appeared to be communicating with “something”. For example, there was one night when we were walking back to our hotel and Rinpoche abruptly stopped right outside the entrance to the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary. Rinpoche was gazing at the two guardian figurines outside the temple gate, chanting mantras and blowing on them. Then Rinpoche said something to them. I am not sure exactly what was said as I was standing some distance away, but I am sure it was something to help them and plant some Dharma seeds in them.

We did not have smartphones back then, so I could not photograph Rinpoche blessing the two figurines outside the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary’s gate. This is the best representation of the two guardians I could find.

After dinner one night, Rinpoche invited a few of us clowns to hang out in Pastor David’s room, where he began telling us about how haunted our hotel was and how Bali is full of mysticism and ancient spirits. Then Rinpoche abruptly informed us that there were two ancient spirits outside Pastor David’s window. Rinpoche went on to describe them, saying they were very tall, huge, and had very long sharp nails and long hair while dressed in traditional Balinese sarongs. One of them appeared to be holding a parang (a large, heavy knife). Rinpoche did an excellent job of describing them, and it was truly terrifying…there were even sound effects! When Rinpoche said their nails were long, he scratched the sides of the rattan wall, which was extremely creepy. Rinpoche said they were looking directly at us, into the room, and getting closer.

Because the window was closed, my imagination was free to run wild. It was as if we were in a horror film, and a swarm of clowns were about to be slaughtered by some ancient spirits haunting them. Rinpoche stated that they were waiting to enter the room but were unable to do so because Rinpoche was present. “So, who wants me to leave right now?” Rinpoche inquired. We were all frozen. We were so exhausted and it was late, but no one dared to say “goodnight Rinpoche” and leave the room. Poor Pastor David could not sleep because we were all on his bed, in his room.

Nobody wanted Rinpoche to leave the room! Rinpoche laughed heartily at all of us big chickens! Pastor David, who was terrified at the time, had to go to the toilet to relieve himself and Rinpoche had warned him that Rinpoche would scare him if he went to the toilet. Even after being warned, Pastor David was startled when Rinpoche jumped out from behind the door to scare him when he came out! Rinpoche was a natural entertainer. Now that I think about it, Rinpoche was so kind to come down to our level and relate with us, joke with us, play with us, and make us laugh so we would be more open to receiving the Dharma and instructions that would help us transform our minds and change our lives.

Some of us who went to Bali with Rinpoche. This picture was taken at the airport when we arrived back in Malaysia. (Left to right) JP Thong, Beng Kooi, His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche, Maliwan, Pastor David and myself.

A strange and frightening thing happened when we returned from our trip. After landing, we went straight to Rinpoche’s house to unload all of our purchases. While we were unpacking in Rinpoche’s audience room, we heard a loud knocking sound coming from Rinpoche’s throne. We all looked at Rinpoche, and he looked back. I assumed Rinpoche was the perpetrator but Rinpoche said, “It wasn’t me!” At the time, Rinpoche was sitting away from the throne’s backrest, so Rinpoche couldn’t have knocked on anything. “They are here,” Rinpoche said, “They came back with us because they are attracted to Pastor David.” All of us froze. “Don’t worry”, Rinpoche said, “They won’t hurt anyone, they’re just curious.”

We quickly finished what we were doing so we could go home. As Pastor David walked to his car, Rinpoche continued to tease him, saying, “They’re following you!” All of the teasing and scaring Rinpoche was doing, was done to demonstrate how big our egos are, which Rinpoche has said to us many times. We have such strong self-preservation instincts that even though we have taken refuge, we are still afraid of being harmed. This strengthens our self-cherishing, and I believe Rinpoche wanted to test us to see our minds and reactions so he could help us transform more effectively.

There was always something new to learn and discover about ourselves when we spent time with Rinpoche. Rinpoche used every opportunity to come up with new ways to teach us Dharma, and show us what we needed to improve and how to work on ourselves. Going to Bali with Rinpoche was life-changing for me because it brought me closer to Rinpoche. I also became more committed to Dharma work as we embarked on a journey to build something historic: a retreat centre that serves as a sanctuary for people’s mind, body and spirit. My faith in Rinpoche grew stronger because I believe that if we do our part, everything Rinpoche said will come true.

For more interesting information:

• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – No Offering Too Small
• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – Social Media to Enlightenment?
• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – Eating Out with Rinpoche
• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – Tsem Rinpoche, My Protector
• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – Looking for That Switch!
• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – Taboo Words
• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – Cooking For Rinpoche
• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – Vajra Yogini or Anger?
• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – The Assignment
• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – Change Karma
• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – Creating The Causes
• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – Buddha Images and Imprints
• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – Food and Dharma
• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – Spreading Dharma in Jonker Street
• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – What’s the New News?
• Rinpoche Through My Eyes – Mission Impossible

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