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STUPA TO BE BUILT
IN HONOR OF VENERABLE GYATRUL RINPOCHE
Special Teaching by H.H. Khenpo Jigme Phuntsok Rinpoche
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Dear worldwide sangha community, friends, and associates of the Venerable Gyatrul Rinpoche,
We have all been deeply touched in many ways by Gyatrul Rinpoche’s precious presence during his life, living here among us on this planet—our temporary home. Rinpoche lived a very long life of ninety-eight years from 1925-2023, continuously blessing us with his nirmanakaya form as an authentic tulku (or intentional reincarnate). Rinpoche’s enlightened deeds remain accessible to us through many expressions and representations including videos and recordings of teachings and dharma activities as well as many reliquary monuments and sacred structures that Rinpoche bestowed upon us. Most important is the impression Rinpoche made on the minds of everyone he touched, always planting seeds of goodness that will continue to sprout and mature for centuries to come.
Now it is our responsibility to honor our precious master from Tibet who graced America and made this country his home by erecting a magnificent stupa in his memory and honor. We understand based on indications from our teachers who are alive, as well as from Rinpoche himself, that there is no time to waste in building this as an offering and expression of devotion and gratitude as well as giving everyone the chance to earn vast merit and purify karmic obscurations and shortcomings.
We have an opportunity now to connect with this level of great good fortune, and we sincerely hope that everyone will recognize the opportunity to generate merit and join together as one worldwide sangha community to help Tashi Choling accomplish the noble goal of building a stupa to last many, many generations.
~ Sangye Khandro
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The Importance of Erecting Stupas in the World
Please enjoy the following teaching by Khenpo Jigme Phuntsok Rinpoche from 1993 at the site of the Great Stupa of Awakening in Colorado.
The Buddha taught many skillful means through which one can accomplish the two goals of temporary happiness in the higher realms and the definitive virtue of full enlightenment. To accomplish these goals, one must accumulate merit and purify obscurations through four key methods: 1) to erect a stupa in a place where there is no stupa, 2) to offer or build a monastery for a sangha gathering, 3) to pacify disharmony within a sangha group, 4) to cultivate loving kindness towards all living beings equally. In all Buddhist doctrines, these four are the most supreme practices for accumulating merit and purifying obscurations.
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Among these four methods, the most important is to erect a stupa in a place where no stupa exists. As the Buddha taught in the sutras, besides the inconceivable amount of merit accrued from building a stupa, even if a child simply makes the image of a stupa with sand while playing, this act alone generates so much merit that it will lead this child eventually to the ultimate awakening of buddhahood. This merit itself can bring about incredible results without a doubt. | |
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In terms of the size of the stupa to be erected, as the sutras state, just to build a stupa in a size as small as a myrobalan seed will enable one to temporarily take rebirth as a chakravartin ruler possessing inconceivable wealth and happiness and ultimately to attain buddhahood in a short period of time. The merit of erecting a large stupa of fine quality will be even more inconceivable.
Such being the case, if you make a generous donation to the construction of a stupa, it goes without saying that the merit accrued will be extremely vast. Even a small donation equivalent to the amount of one percent of your food consumed in the three meals of one day will generate the merit that enables one not to be born as poor or displeasing but rather to always enjoy a pleasing appearance and material abundance life after life—and before too long to attain buddhahood.
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As for those who personally participate in the construction of a stupa, if they spend time undergoing the hardships and difficulties involved in building it, there is no doubt that they will accumulate an inconceivable amount of merit. Even just carrying one stone for building a stupa during a tea break will enable one to be born as a chakravartin ruler as many times as the number of atoms that make up that one stone, and eventually, to attain perfect bliss and ultimate peace free from the suffering of cyclic existence.
These are the overall benefits that building a Buddhist stupa brings about. If you construct a magnificent stupa specifically in honor of the guru, the merit generated is increased hundreds or even thousands of times. This is because the root guru is the union of the Three Jewels—his or her body is the sangha, his or her speech is the dharma, and his or her mind is the buddha. Further, if this stupa contains the precious relics of the root guru, it will produce the same merit as building relic stupas for all buddhas in countless worlds throughout the ten directions. Even if it is built with ordinary rocks and clay, you will still accumulate immeasurable merit comparable to building stupas for all buddhas and bodhisattvas with seven kinds of precious jewels.
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Since you are constructing this great stupa to honor the root master, you will accumulate merit and enjoy wholesome results as boundless as what I’ve just mentioned. In addition, making a donation or serving this project physically or verbally will accumulate boundless merit. Anyone who takes part in this project with the utmost energy and enthusiasm will enjoy longevity, good health, auspiciousness, and happiness in this present life; and in their next life, they will be reborn in a pure land such as Sukhavati in the West.
This teaching is the speech of the great Master Khenpo Jigme Phuntsok, a direct representative of the Buddha and all bodhisattva followers, who thus explains the great meaning and benefit of building a stupa in honor of one’s teacher.
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Generous Matching Grant Opportunity!
To launch this important project in honor of Gyatrul Rinpoche, we are very pleased to announce that a $100,000 matching grant has been pledged by a long-time devoted student of Rinpoche. That means every dollar that is donated will be doubled by the matching grant!
Through bountiful generosity and the sincere motivation to initiate the stupa project with a matching grant, the donor wishes to inspire all those who have a connection with Venerable Gyatrul Rinpoche to participate by making a contribution of any amount, even one dollar or five dollars. In this way, we can all join together in a vast pool of merit venerating our precious teacher, honoring him for generations to come, and allowing future disciples to always connect with his enlightened activity to benefit beings through the creation of this stupa.
The vision is to build a stupa of awakening (changchub chorten) approximately 32 feet tall and filled with tsa-tsas and other precious substances. If donations come in and we receive the matching grant in its entirety, we can begin the project in 2024. This is our great wish and aspiration.
In order to receive the full $100,000 that has been committed, we will need to raise the matching amount in donations. Together we can make this happen and together we will share the benefits for all future lifetimes!
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Various Ways to Donate
To make a PayPal donation (credit cards accepted),
please click the “Donate to Stupa Project” icon above.
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If you would like to pay by check,
please write the check to
Tashi Choling
memo: Stupa Matching Grant
Mail checks to :
Tashi Choling
Attn: Treasurer
PO Box 64
Ashland, OR 97520
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Tashi Choling is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. EIN# 93-1273454.
Please stay tuned for more emails after Losar about progress on this project.
Images of stupas in this email depict the style of stupa
to be constructed at Tashi Choling.
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