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Birth and Death of the Trivial Kind

There is magic in birth and death. In birth, the magic is in the enormous potential of the unknown. When you look at your newly born child, there is no way you can know what he or she will become. Later on, you might have some glimpses of their future selves, but in that very first moment, all that there is, is hope, the potential for greatness. It is very similar, and yet very different at the same time, when we look at death. On one side, it is the end; on the other it is the beginning for something new. But above all, it is an opportunity for closure. Even in the very last moment of a life, the dying person can say or do something that could change the lives of the ones present. A simple look sometimes can make us see things in a different light. I will never forget my dad’s last days. We took him to a terribly expensive and a terrible private hospital in Bulgaria. I had the feeling that the staff there only wanted to extract the maximum amount of money from us without giving much b...
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News from Nangchen


This is a report from Kunga Gyaltsen, a friend of mine, who is at the moment in Tibet with Lama Karma Thinley Rinpoche and I thought that his story might be of interest for you. Here it is:

'Today KTR made the long journey over some very high passes (4,700 metres), to visit his birthplace.
Rinpoche was born in the Bongsar Palace at a place called Yeyang Sumdo, in the high mountain grasslands of Nangchen, Kham.


The palace no longer exists, and the Bongsar family have recently erected a large stupa there to mark the spot. 




Behind and above the palace there was a retreat centre, for monks, nuns and family members to do long retreats. This has recently been restored by Beru Khyentse Rinpoche.

The highest and most powerful mountain on the ancient Bongsar lands is the Jowo Menpa Tsesum, the three-peaked Lord of Medicines. It is famous for the many medicinal herbs that grow on its slopes. 



This picture shows the stupa built on the very place where KTR was born. His birth was marked by a white rainbow appearing above the house. In the background is the Jowo Mountain in all its glory.







The altitude of this place is about 4,000 metres!


KTRs neice Onyo, handing out the tsampa and yoghurt.




























Our picnic was in a carpet of edelweiss.

Close to the site of Rinpoche's birth is an inconspicuous hillside, behind him in this picture. This is the site of the monastery called Sharyak Dorje Ling. It was the monastery that belonged to Rinpoche's previous Sakya incarnation, Beru Kunrig. It had already fallen into disuse in the 1950s. Rinpoche plans to build a small commemorative stupa here.




The road passes through a long narrow gorge. This roadside shrine has been recently installed by locals. The Mani wheels are water driven. The images are carved into the rock and painted.


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