In 2013, H.E. Tsem Rinpoche re-visited Turkey Swamp, one of his favourite childhood places in New Jersey, where he would regularly engage in Chenrezig meditations. During the 2013 visit, Rinpoche was also inspired to give a teaching on the Medicine Buddha practice.

Since a very young age, my teacher His Eminence Tsem Rinpoche has had a special attraction to Chenrezig, also known as Avalokiteshvara, who is commonly referred to as the Bodhisattva of Compassion. When Rinpoche lived in Howell, New Jersey in America, he would often visit Turkey Swamp Park with his friend Marc Reed, when they were in their early teens. Rinpoche’s primary purpose for going to Turkey Swamp was to engage in meditations on Chenrezig. As Rinpoche recounts,

“I would sit under the shade of the tree at the edge of the lake. I would pretend/visualise I was a hermit or yogi. I would, in my mind’s eye, stare out into the brilliant waters that were actually in front of me…

From the centre of the lake in my imaginations, a Four Armed Avalokiteshvara (Lokeshvara) would be under the water sitting calmly on a lotus. I would chant OM MANI PEME HUNG and ‘call’ to Him. He would hear me and, very slowly, rise out of the water. It was a gentle rising. As He rose, the waters would slowly cascade off Him and He would be dry. His holy face would be facing down with four arms as He rose… His left hand (from our side) held a mala, right hand a lotus and two hands were folded at His heart with a wish-fulfilling jewel. His majestic black hair would cascade down His shoulders and the other half was tied up on His head, bejewelled. He would wear princely silken clothes partially covering the upper portion of His body and a silk skirt covering the bottom. He would be sitting in full lotus posture atop a gentle, large brilliant pink lotus. His body was white like yoghurt/snow and shiny and brilliant. Millions of light rays would shine out from His holy body suffusing the area and me.

I would do this visualisation and hold it. I would recite His mantra furiously and pray to be in communion with Him. To be blessed and one with Him. As I did this, I would visualise His face very, very slowly looking up and then facing me. His face was like a polished mirror with the sun reflecting from it… it was so bright that I could hardly look at it. When He faced me from the middle of the lake and I saw His holy face directly, gentle, calm and perfect, I would be filled with happiness, joy and forgiveness, tingles covered my body, and I had no problems. I would ‘feel’ lights from His face shining directly towards me and filling my body, and I would tingle all over.

I would sometimes be in tears as I ‘communed’ with the Arya Lokeshvara, the Mahasattva of Great Compassion in this way… I wanted to be like Him, full of love, compassion, forgiveness, courage and acceptance. As the light shone from His holy visage to me, I would chant His mantra and hold this visualisation as long as I could. I was around 11-12 years old at the time, I think…”

Source: https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/me/avalokiteshvara-turkey-swamp-marc-me.html

It was through such meditations on Chenrezig and his qualities of compassion, along with the teachings that Rinpoche received from his teacher, His Eminence Kensur Rinpoche Lobsang Tharchin, that Rinpoche was able to tolerate and even forgive his mother for the mental, physical and emotional abuse that she put the young Rinpoche through. A couple of years later in 1979, when Rinpoche was 14 years old, Rinpoche had the great fortune to attend a teaching by His Holiness the 14^th Dalai Lama in Washington, New Jersey. That particular teaching was on the Eight Verses of Thought Transformation and it was also during that time that Rinpoche received the oral transmission of Chenrezig’s mantra, OM MANI PEME HUNG, from His Holiness.

With all of this in mind, I wanted to share a nice thangka of Chenrezig with everyone. This thangka is important because through it, one can see the holy forms of not only Chenrezig but also various other important deities. By understanding the iconography of these deities, we can understand how to progress on our spiritual paths. After all, the artistic tradition of thangkas is not only supposed to aid our meditations and prayers but also teach us the Dharma through sacred imagery.

Beatrix Ooi

The Main Deity

The Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, 1800–1900. Tibet. Thangka; colours on cotton. Courtesy of the Asian Art Museum, Gift of the Friends of Richard Davis, 1988.34. Click on image to enlarge.

The main image in this thangka is the Bodhisattva of Compassion, Avalokiteshvara or Chenrezig, who is also the primary patron deity of Tibet. It is widely believed that the line of Dalai Lama incarnations (as well as Karmapa incarnations) are emanations of Chenrezig.

In this particular depiction, Chenrezig is white in colour and has four arms representing the Four Immeasurables, which are loving kindness, joy, equanimity, and compassion. Just like one’s limbs are a part of one’s body, Chenrezig has become one with the realisation of these qualities that he uses to benefit sentient beings.

He has two hands folded in prayer while holding a brilliant sky-blue wish-fulfilling jewel at his heart. This represents that he holds Bodhicitta or altruistic love for all sentient beings close to his heart. His other right hand gently holds aloft a crystal mala (Buddhist prayer beads), while his other left hand holds a pristine lotus. This reminds us of his promise to manifest continuously in a multitude of ways to benefit sentient beings, like the steady momentum of counting prayer beads.

Skilfully appearing in ordinary guises throughout the various realms of existence in order to benefit others, he is not just unstained by worldly matters but, in fact, thrives in such surroundings, like a pristine lotus growing from muddy waters. This unstained Bodhisattva is royally attired with six jewelled ornaments consisting of a crown, earrings, bracelets, necklace, belt and anklets. Like the jewelled ornaments which beautify his body outwardly, on the inside he has mastered the Six Perfections or Six Paramitas, inspiring practitioners to practise them too. These are the qualities of generosity, morality, patience, joyful endeavour, meditation and wisdom. All of these are necessary to become truly beautiful from the inside out.

What is a Bodhisattva?

A Bodhisattva is someone who has abandoned selfishness and seeks only liberation for all sentient beings. The Bodhisattva understands the fact that, as long as he or she remains within the cycle of birth and death known as samsara, it would be impossible to save others from suffering due to their own attachments and negative conduct. Therefore, out of their strong concern for the welfare of all sentient beings, a Bodhisattva takes on and pursues the spiritual path to Enlightenment, which involves:

1. The Perfection of Generosity: Giving to others with the pure motivation to benefit sentient beings
2. The Perfection of Morality: Avoiding harmful actions towards others and only engaging in activities to help others
3. The Perfection of Patience: Never allowing anger to take over one’s emotions and accepting the harm caused by others
4. The Perfection of Effort: Always persevering to engage in virtuous activities that benefit sentient beings
5. The Perfection of Concentration: Training of the mind to focus and maintain calm and clarity free from all distractions
6. The Perfection of Wisdom: Seeing things for what they truly are without dualistic and conceptual perceptions

Bodhisattvas can emanate in various forms — a person (either human or divine), an animal, a formless being and even an inanimate object.

What are “Peaceful” and “Wrathful” Deities?

Buddhas and Bodhisattvas usually manifest in accordance with the karma of practitioners. For those who seek spiritual and mundane assistance, most of the time the deities appear in peaceful and benevolent forms. However, for those whose motivations are negative and who engage in activities that harm others, the deities will generally manifest in wrathful forms in order to subdue these beings and lead them onto the correct path.

From a psychological point of view, wrathful deities represent the powerful processes of Buddhist meditation that can eliminate the underlying causes of all suffering including ignorance, hatred, greed, jealousy, desire and many other negative qualities.

Who Are the Other Deities in the Painting?

Click on image to enlarge

[1] Chenrezig   [2] Green Tara   [3] White Tara
[4] Vajrapani   [5] Manjushri   [6] Lama Tsongkhapa
[7] Khedrup Je   [8] Gyaltsab Je   [9] Offerings

Manjushri

Manjushri

At the lower left corner of the painting is Manjushri [5], who is known as the Buddha of Wisdom. He is orange in colour and in his right hand he wields a flaming sword, which represents the sharpness of prajna or wisdom that cuts through the root cause of suffering and the net of wrong views which binds us to the three lower realms. The flames on his sword signify the dispelling of the darkness of ignorance by the light of wisdom. In his left hand, he holds a magnificent blue lotus flower in full bloom, on which rests the Prajnaparamita Sutra (Perfection of Wisdom Sutra). The lotus in full bloom represents Manjushri’s promise that we can rise from the mud of delusions and afflictive emotions if we follow the Buddha’s teachings. He sits on a lotus throne with a moon cushion.

For those with children, a picture or icon of Manjushri in a child’s bedroom or study room has the effect of quicker and better understanding in their studies. In China, his holy mountain is Wu Tai Shan in the province of Shanxi. It is written in the sutras how Buddha predicted that Manjushri would reside in the mountain of Wu Tai Shan. Thus, the people of China regard this mountain as the sacred abode of Manjushri and the Chinese have built many temples there for the worship of Lord Manjushri.

Vajrapani

Vajrapani

At the lower right corner of the thangka is Vajrapani [4], who is in a wrathful form. He is deep blue in colour with three bulging eyes, sharp fangs, and hair standing on end that appears to be ablaze. His right hand is raised in a threatening gesture and in it he holds a vajra, which gives him his name, Vajrapani (vajra in hand). In his left hand, he holds a lasso that binds demons. He dances ecstatically within a magnificent, blazing transformative fire, exorcising the ugly demons of greed with a threatening gesture. He also transforms hatred into wisdom through his diamond vajra that symbolises the indestructibility of awareness that is beyond concepts.

Vajrapani is one of the great protectors of Buddhism; his ferocity comforts practitioners and terrifies demons whose intention is to harm others and interfere with their path towards liberation. He is an emanation of the Buddha Akshobya and, historically, he was a great patron of Buddha Shakyamuni’s teachings. It was Vajrapani who requested the Buddha to teach many of the Tantras that are still practised today. Vajrapani is also part of the triple deity practice of Trakpo Sumtril, the other two deities being Hayagriva and King Garuda. Vajrapani will also be the last of the Buddhas to manifest complete enlightenment during this fortunate aeon, which is an indication of how immensely fortunate we are to make a connection with Lama Tsongkhapa, the embodiment of Chenrezig, Manjushri and Vajrapani.

The three deities together, Chenrezig, Vajrapani and Manjushri are known as the Three Great Protectors of Tibetan Buddhism (Wylie: rigs gsum mgon po), and they represent compassion, sacred power and wisdom respectively.

Green and White Tara

Green Tara

Sitting above Chenrezig are the goddesses of compassion and long-life, Green Tara [2] and White Tara [3]. Green Tara made the vow to always return in human form as a female Bodhisattva. She is resplendent in her aura of emerald green, splendid in the swiftness that the colour represents. She is radiant with the attainment of all the Six Perfections and bright with her ever-compassionate care for all sentient beings. She wears slender, bright pants, like women in ancient India used to wear, to show us that even though she is enlightened, she works through samsaric conventions to help us overcome our sufferings.

Because of her strong karmic connection to all sentient beings in samsara, the Buddha Green Tara tilts towards us in her great compassion. She listens to our prayers, grants us our virtuous wishes and protects us as a mother would protect her child. Her ability to come to our assistance as we invoke her presence is instant — we need only think of her to have her compassionate heart with us. Interestingly, Green Tara does not sit in meditative pose; instead her right leg extends outwards, to show us that she is ready to step forward to help us in our time of need.

White Tara

White Tara has eyes of watchful compassion on her forehead, the palms of her hands and the soles of her feet, watching over us like a mother over her child. Her right hand is in the mudra of unconditional giving, while her left holds a blue utpala flower, blessing her children with fearlessness. Her divine body’s radiance is like that of a full moon on an autumn night, cooling, calming and soothing, and the moonbeams of her love shine forth to every aspect of our lives. Her all-forgiving and soft smiling eyes invoke instant faith and the deepest trust.

Throughout India, Tibet, China and Japan, Lady White Tara is famous for granting long-life and averting life-threatening situations. This special quality can be attained through the recitation of her sacred mantra — her spiritual energy in the form of sound that helps to transform our mind.

Both Taras hold the stems of lotuses that blossom above their shoulders, and their right hands are lowered with the palm upward in a gesture of bestowing boons and gifts. They are both popular objects of prayer and veneration because of their ability to bestow merits, wisdom, protection, longevity, and spiritual attainments. Both Taras too have some historical significance. It is said that the two princesses — Bhrikuti from Nepal and Wen Cheng from China whom the Tibetan king Songtsen Gampo married are the manifestations of Green and White Tara. These two princesses helped to bring Buddhism to Tibet and it was Bhrikuti who introduced the practice of Tara to Tibet.

Lama Tsongkhapa and Sons

Lama Tsongkhapa and his two heart sons

At the top of the thangka, sitting above Green and White Tara are Lama Tsongkhapa (middle) [6] and his two heart sons, Khedrup Je (right) [7] and Gyaltsab Je (left) [8]. Lama Tsongkhapa plays an extremely important role in Tibetan Buddhism; he was the founder of the Gelug lineage and also established the three main monasteries of Gaden, Drepung and Sera where, to this day, many attained masters uphold his enlightened tradition and share it with the world. He is also the author of many texts unsurpassed in depth and clarity, most famously his work “The Stages on the Path to Enlightenment”.

Hailed as the second Buddha by contemporary Buddhist masters of his time, Lama Tsongkhapa came from the mystical Land of Snows, Tibet. He is an incomparable and pure monk, scholar and great teacher to thousands then and millions now. His image is well known to have a calming effect on aggressive minds and those with destructive emotions. Making offerings to him and engaging in his meditations and practices allows us to cultivate the inner qualities of wisdom, compassion and strength. His presence in this thangka indicates that this work belongs to the Gelugpa order.

The Offerings Below the Main Image

Offering of the five senses

The five objects below the main image [9] are known as the Offering of Five Senses:

1. The mirror represents sight
2. The silk beneath represents touch
3. The fruit represents taste
4. The perfumed conch shell represents smell
5. The pair of cymbals represents sound

This is a common offering presented to peaceful deities. For wrathful deities however, a different set of offerings is usually presented consisting of a skull cup heaped with eyeballs, nose, ears, tongue and a heart of demons.

How Is a Traditional Tibetan Thangka Mounted?

A thangka is a painting or depiction of a certain Buddhist deity. It is traditionally created for religious purposes and made precisely according to strict codes of iconography. A thangka should be framed with silk brocade and consecrated by a qualified lama. It has a string attached at the top for hanging purposes and a wooden pole running across the bottom edge.

There is normally a yellow silk covering that hangs over the thangka to protect it, but this is usually folded and draped at the top when the thangka is displayed. Thangkas like this one are usually hung behind the altar in a house, temple or monastery. Real offerings of water, flowers, incense, light, perfume, fruits and sometimes tormas (ritual cakes) are usually made as well.

The unique design of thangkas allows them to be rolled up and carried from place to place for ceremonies and rituals, as the nomadic Tibetans used to do.

The Importance of Chenrezig

Another version of the same Chenrezig thangka with vintage effect. Click to enlarge.

According to His Holiness Kyabje Zong Rinpoche, the practice of Chenrezig is extremely powerful. This great master is known to have bestowed the initiation of a particular form of Chenrezig known as Chenrezig Ngesung Kundrol many times.

According to Kyabje Zong Rinpoche, if we have strong guru devotion, hold our vows well and are diligent in our practice and commitments, even if we are supposed to fall into the three lower realms, we will not through our practice of Chenrezig Ngesung Kundrol. For one lifetime only, we are delayed from suffering an unfortunate rebirth and instead are blessed to take a fortunate rebirth in order to continue our Dharma practice. In this manner, we have the opportunity to purify our negative karma and further progress on our spiritual path towards Enlightenment. Therefore, Chenrezig’s practice is extremely powerful for stopping unfortunate circumstances, as well as igniting the qualities of compassion, love, wisdom and Enlightenment within our minds.

Semnyi Ngalso Chenrezig. Click on image to enlarge or click here for more beautiful thangkas.

References:

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-asia/himalayas/tibet/a/the-bodhisattva-avalokiteshvara

For more interesting information:

• Avalokiteshvara, Turkey Swamp, Marc & Me | 观音菩萨、火鸡沼泽公园、马克和我
• Medicine Buddha teaching at Turkey Swamp
• All About Manjushri | 关于文殊菩萨
• The Life Story of Lama Tsongkhapa in art
• TRANSCRIPT: TSONGKHAPA explained
• The Mind and Lama Tsongkhapa
• Tsongkhapa Prayers
• Lord Tsongkapa, King of the Dharma
• Benefits and Miraculous Signs of Lama Tsongkhapa’s statues
• Homage to the Supreme Mother Tara
• Suryagupta’s 21 Taras
• Spectacular White Tara…
• Heroic Red Tara (Suryagupta Lineage)
• 7 FEET-1000-armed Avalokiteshvara arrived!!
• China’s Huge Buddha Statues
• 1000-armed Kuan Yin-Foo Hai Ch’an Monastery
• Falling down’s A Good Sign
• Holy Place of Kuan Yin
• Visiting the Huge Kuan Yin in Pinang
• Deaf, Blind and Mute transforms into 1,000 arm Chenrezig
• Sacred Mountain of Manjushri
• Chenrezig Ngesung Kundrol
• The Buddhist Protectors of Chinese Zodiac
• Mantras-Holy words of Power
• My Short Bio in pictures

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