Back, Leg and Joint Conditions
Myopathy, Oral Transmission and Guru Relationship
A student asked whether they needed to see someone as a guru because that person had given an oral transmission of the nyung nä text at the end of a retreat. The student, who had myopathy, a muscular disease that required the use of a wheelchair, also requested practice advice.
My very dear one,
I am sorry for the long delay in replying to you.
If you didn’t look at that person as your guru at all when they gave the oral transmission, then they don’t become your guru. For example, there can be children, dogs or puppies who can hear that person, but don’t take them as guru.
If you took the eight Mahayana precepts from that person—if they gave the precepts during the nyung nä and you took the precepts from them—then you have to regard them as guru. But if you took the precepts from the altar, then you don’t have to [see them as your guru].
Regarding your health, it is very important for you to take the precious pills called “Thirty-seven Aids to Enlightenment”. These will be very, very good for you. Take two pills every two days for one month.
White Umbrella Deity (Dukkar): Recite this prayer five times. If possible, you should try to take the White Umbrella initiation and recite White Umbrella prayer and mantra.
You should also recite The Dharani of Glorious Vajra Claws, with the motivation that you are not harming anyone and that it is not against bodhicitta. You can think the dharani is not directed at sentient beings but at their delusions. Whatever negative words there are in the text are for the delusions, not sentient beings. Please read it three times.
I am also making prayers for you. Please continue living your life with the thought of bodhicitta night and day, and in everything that you do.
With much love and prayers ...
Pujas for Hip Surgery and Retreat Advice
A student asked Rinpoche about having a hip operation and also requested advice for retreat.
Dear one,
Rinpoche checked regarding your hip operation and said without doing these pujas it looks negative, so you need to do:
- Extensive Medicine Buddha puja: twice. [This is the text by the Fifth Dalai Lama.]
- Middle-length Medicine Buddha puja: twice. [This is the regular Medicine Buddha puja done at the centers.]
- Cittamani Tara puja: one time.
- Vajra Cutter Sutra recitation: five times.
[You can find links to these texts in the FPMT Catalogue.]
All these are to be done at the center with Geshe-la and Sangha there. When doing the pujas and recitations, combine this with the protector prayers each time. The pujas and recitations need to be done well and carefully.
Rinpoche said don’t delay these pujas and recitations. Please do them as soon as possible; don’t think that you have time to wait.
Regarding your retreat, Rinpoche is suggesting that you do retreat essentially on renunciation and bodhicitta, particularly at the beginning, then you can start to include tonglen. Bodhicitta is the main thing for you to emphasize. You can be guided by Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand. Then gradually go into meditation on the generation stage, do more on that, and completion stage just briefly.
This is Rinpoche’s advice for your retreat.
Spinal Stenosis
A student requested a prayer or practice to help relieve their spinal pain. They had spinal stenosis as a result of vertebral disc degeneration.
My most dear, most kind, most precious, wish-fulfilling one,
I checked regarding your health and you need:
- Hayagriva Tsog puja, to be done twice by Sera Je Monastery
- Recite and wear the Vajra Armor mantra
If you are not already doing so, please start the daily motivation, How to Make My Lives Wish-Fulfilling: The Method to Transform a Suffering Life into Happiness.
I am making prayers for you. Please continue to make your life most meaningful with the thought of bodhicitta day and night and in everything that you do.
With much love and prayers ...
Cervical Herniated Discs
A student had cervical herniated discs in the C5–C6 and C6–C7 vertebrae in their neck, which compressed the nerves and spinal cord and caused numbness in their fingers. They also had cervical stenosis due to disc and bone degeneration.
My most dear, most kind, most precious, wish-fulfilling one,
I checked and it is very good if you take the jüng nga precious pill four times a day for four days. Take one pill very early in the morning, then one pill at around 9 or 10am, another one after lunch at maybe 2 or 3pm and one pill in the evening time.
Before you take the pill recite some Medicine Buddha mantras. Visualize from all the ten directions the buddhas manifest as Medicine Buddha and bless the pill, then white beams are emitted and absorbed into the pill. The pill is blessed totally and it immediately heals your sickness and spirit harm, and purifies your negative karma and obscurations collected from beginningless rebirths.
Recite some mantras and prayers to the seven Medicine Buddhas. If you can, recite the seven names seven times—that is best. Do that at least once a day.
Then at other times just think of the seven Medicine Buddhas and bless the medicine, or you can just [visualize] the main Medicine Buddha. Think all the buddhas are there, blessing the medicine. Also think of His Holiness the Dalai Lama; actually you should think all the ten-direction buddhas are His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
With much love and prayers ...
Intense Pain and Limited Mobility
Rinpoche advised these practices for a student who had major health concerns and was dependent on heavy medication. The student was in severe and constant pain, with limited ability to move or walk.
- Kangyur: To be read by the monks at Shekar Monastery in Boudha, Nepal, or Thubtob Monastery in Swayambhunath. You can choose and then discuss the offerings, etc., and see if you can manage.
- Chanting the Names of Manjushri (Jamphel Tsenjö): To be read one hundred times by Geshe-la and anyone else who can read Tibetan and also those who read English can do it. You can get a group of people and count the recitations, and in this way it can be done one hundred times. You could read it once or twice each day and dedicate for the purification of the defilements collected from beginningless rebirth, and to be free from inner and outer harms. Inner harms are the delusions and outer harms are spirits. Then next one, dedicate for all sentient beings to achieve enlightenment.
- Chag sum: To be done three times by Geshe Tenzin Zopa.
- Lü tor (torma offering to the nagas): To be done five times. Request Geshe Thubten Jinpa at Kopan. If you are able to email Kopan to request this, explain a little about your health and tell them this is advice from Rinpoche.
Back Pain Caused by Nagas
This advice was given to a builder who had very bad back pain. Rinpoche said it was caused by nagas.
The following practices need to be done:
- Naga puja (lü tor): five times
- Tea offering to the Eight Classes (Degyä)