Ordination Advice

My most dear one,
Thank you very much for your kind letter and concern about life. I did a divination and it comes out best for you to become a monk.

You have to know, we have received a perfect human rebirth that is qualified with eight freedoms and ten richnesses just about one time, and the most important thing is that we don’t take it for granted. This perfect human rebirth is so precious and it is just for a short time. It can be ended this year, next month, next week, tomorrow or even today, in the next hour or the next minute. We can never tell. We have to think about this every day, with mindfulness. Not only have we received this precious human body, but a perfect human body.

As you know, nothing else at the death time benefits—not the world, the family, surrounding people, wealth or even our body that we cherish most among the numberless sentient beings. Being attached to those things only brings harm and makes it very difficult and [we will] be born in the lower realms. What helps at that time is only Dharma, nothing else.

You have to know that we have had sex—even sex with anybody, man or woman—numberless times from beginningless rebirth. We have suffered and experienced the sufferings of human beings, devas, suras, and particularly the sufferings of the lower realm beings—hell being, hungry ghost and animal—numberless times.

That means if you don’t become monk, if you don’t abstain from sex, you will experience the endless suffering of samsara again, particularly in the lower realms. It’s a big decision for your mind, whether you want to experience the endless suffering of samsara again, particularly the lower realms, or whether to become a monk, and particularly to abstain from sex.

Life is short and we can die, even today, next minute, not sure. There are many people in the world who die without having cancer, without having any disease. There are many people dying without that. They die suddenly, all of a sudden, probably every day, so many people die, you have to know that.

If you practice Dharma and become a monk, then [you will achieve] happiness. The lower realms continue, but when you achieve the ultimate happiness, freedom from samsara, the blissful state, and especially when you achieve the peerless happiness, buddhahood—the cessation of obscurations and completion of all realizations—then you are able to free numberless sentient beings from the oceans of samsara suffering and bring them to the peerless happiness, buddhahood.

Actually, we are cheating ourselves. Actually, there is no time for attachment to arise, but only for Dharma practice, renunciation of attachment, anger and even the root of samsara, ignorance and the self-cherishing thought. This is the foundation of the Buddha’s tantra. In tantra we abandon ordinary concepts, ordinary appearance and ordinary subtle wind and mind, which creates samsara. This is according to Highest Yoga Tantra.

With much love and prayers ...

My most dear, precious, kind, wish-fulfilling one,
Thank you for your kind email, I am sorry for the long delay. You becoming a nun is unbelievable, unbelievable, unbelievable. Thank you a billion, zillion times. Thank you very much.

Try to know the vows and live in the vows. That is the foundation for all the path to enlightenment. That is the basis for the bodhisattva vow and the bodhisattva vow is the foundation for the tantric vow. The bodhisattva vow is to achieve enlightenment for numberless sentient beings, to free the numberless sentient beings from the oceans of samsaric suffering and bring them to full enlightenment. The tantric vow is to achieve full enlightenment as quickly as possible. Even in this one lifetime of degenerate time, and you can enjoy the life.

This is the way to make the life most happy and beneficial for all sentient beings. Thank you very much.

With much love and prayers...

Student's Letter 

After residing at Nalanda Monastery last year, participating in the Basic Program, I realized quite clearly that Nalanda was not the best fit for me. I also discovered a very strong urge to study and practice the early teachings of the Buddha as preserved in the Pali Canon. I visited several Western Theravada monasteries of the Thai Forest tradition in England and the USA and in December of last year took up residency at one of these. I know that I have found the monastic environment most conducive for my progression along the path. I have requested the samanera ordination from the abbot and this should take place in late July. In one year's time I intend to request the full (bhikshu) ordination in this tradition.

I have written to His Holiness the Dalai Lama to inform him of my decision. I am not returning the getsul vows I took from His Holiness (nor was I asked to do so). I am merely re-ordaining as a novice. Because I am dedicating the rest of this life to following faithfully and purely the Buddha's teachings, as a monastic, and that I daily recollect my motivation for doing so—namely, for the ultimate benefit of myself and all sentient beings—I have no doubt that you will accept my decision. I often contemplate the good fortune that enabled me to find my way to you and to His Holiness the Dalai Lama. I would be grateful for your blessing as I move into this next phase of my spiritual journey.

Rinpoche's response

My very dear Robert,
Thanks for your letter about your life and interests, according to your karma. Please do what His Holiness the Dalai Lama says.

Buddha has allowed us to check up on Buddhist teachings, but I think other religions do not allow this. So, check up if one way has mistakes or not. Check up whether you find mistakes. Or maybe the person finds mistakes and then gets very confused and completely lost. If you don’t check, then this way may have some benefits, but there may also be mistakes. Please check up if the mistakes or the benefits are greater.

With much love and prayers...

Being a gelong brings many more extra benefits. It says in the text: “The merit a lay person can collect in 100 years, an ordained person can collect in one day. These are the benefits of living in ordination, every day is like that."

Great son of the Victorious, Shantideva, said the only medicine to heal the suffering of the transmigratory beings and the originator of all happiness is the teaching of the Buddha. That depends only on the existence of the Sangha, who correctly preserve the Dharma. Therefore, one can see how important, how essential, is establishing a monastery and its existence. Also, the holy Khedrub Gelek Palsang, Lama Tsongkhapa’s heart disciple, said every single panacea and happiness of all the embodied ones came from the teaching of the Victorious One. The foundation to increase the ocean of the teachings of Buddha, the Sangha, is the great treasure of this ocean.

Normally, it is said that the teachings of the Buddha exist in a country if there is a monastery with a group of monks holding the lineage of the pratimoksha vows and practicing the vinaya. A monastery is a place for monks to practice, preserve the Dharma, and spread the Dharma. By practicing the vinaya, they preserve and spread the Dharma. By building a monastery, the Sangha has the opportunity to practice the vinaya, and preserve and spread the Dharma. This has unbelievable blessings and benefits for the world, the country, and the area.

My very dear Jonathon,
Thank you very much for your kind letter. This decision you are going to take regarding your life is GREAT!!! Of course, you know this. Every second you get closer to death and to the lower realms, to the most unbearable and frightening suffering in samsara. Once we are there we can't do anything, and one can be there in any minute. So, it is a very wise decision that you have taken.

I am sure you know this, as you are an old student, but once you enter this path, than you must stick with it. You should learn the vows and practice seriously. Put all your effort until you die into doing this.

Living in the vows is the basis of all success, of all the lamrim realizations and shiné realizations. It is the basis of success in tantra, in realizing the two stages, and is also the best thing for peace in the world, as well peace and happiness in countless universes and for all sentient beings.

Also, this is the best way to repay the kindness of all sentient beings, including your kind parents. This is the best way to repay their kindness to you, from whom you received this precious human body, which allows you to practice, to now take vows, and to be able to achieve liberation.

Wherever you are, in the city or in the mountains, once you take the vows you must put all your effort into understanding the shortcomings of not living in the vows and the benefits of living in the vows. Then, you should enjoy your life every day, every minute, every second.

With much love and prayers...