From the Sakyong in 2011 »
Ladies and Gentlemen of Shambhala,
To celebrate this day when we remember and reflect on the life of the Dorje Dradül Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, I have written this poem, which arose from the aspiration for all in this world to benefit from his profound gift of Shambhala. I believe we are finally strong and mature enough to realize the vastness of the Dorje Dradül’s vision, and we are also on the cusp of being able to manifest it. Please draw blessing and inspiration on this day by reflecting that this sentient being existed—and that the reason for his existence was to bring about goodness.
With blessings,
The Sakyong
Among the great clouds of drala warriors,
It is you, supreme among gods and humans,
Who coalesced the 84,000 dharmas
Into a single, indestructible life force.
The resilience of this profound truth
Was forged in the cauldron beyond hope and fear,
Pounded by relative and absolute virtues.
The single essence of all beings arose
As the razor Ashe, this weapon of goodness—
Your gift to humanity.
On this day when we celebrate
Your brilliant karmic wake,
We vow to perpetually uphold
Your command to be good.
If occasionally we delve into foolish behavior
And stop caring for one another,
Remind us that kindness to others is king,
And gentleness to oneself is queen.
When in sudden inspiration
We become self-possessed,
Daring to raise the banner of goodness
On top of this heap of the setting sun,
Blow your fierce wind of lungta
To catch our flag of integrity and decency
For the world to see it fly.
Liberate us from thinking that spirituality is about ourselves.
Relieve us of this contrived confusion.
Shine the brilliant light of the Great Eastern Sun
For us to see the multitude of beings
Who smile and frown, wince and hiss.
Give us vast and open-heart surgery
So that nothing seems impossible.
On this day
We, your descendants,
The ladies and gentlemen of Shambhala,
The boys and girls of the good tradition of warriorship,
Will leap now—suddenly, playfully, and devotionally—
Beyond the three times.
Not thinking that you existed in the past,
Not sentimental without you in the present,
And not fearful of your absence in the future.
Like the good garuda,
Hatch our minds from the egg of conceptuality.
Let us expand our wings of fearlessness and celebration,
And come to the brilliant conclusion
That you are the Ashe in the center of our heart.
KI KI SO SO!
Written on the occasion of the 24th Parinirvana Day of the Sakyong Dorje Dradül.
© Kalapa Media, 2018