Annual Hundred Thousand Accumulation of Ganachakra Puja, 25 - 27 Feb, 2021
Boudhanath, Kathmandu, Nepal
Wed Feb 24 2021 18:15:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
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Fri Mar 26 2021 18:15:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
This Ganachakra offering is one of the main practices of Simdha Getul Rinpoche over the years. He would make it the point that where ever he goes to the pilgrimage, he offers Ganachakra at all those holy places. Besides, Rinpoche too assemble few tens or hundreds of monks at a holy place like Mahaboudhi temple, Boudhanath stupa, Tsopema and Bhutan to offer Ganachakra. At many occasions, these Ganachakra offerings has been done in Boudhanath Stupa but since last few years, Rinpoche has decided to do this annual 100000 accumulations of Ganachakra offering to be done in different holy places. In year 2018, it was done in Tsopema and in year 2019, it was done at Boudhanath Stupa. Due to Pandemic, it is still risky to travel so again this year we did at Boudhanath Stupa.
Simdha Getul Namdak Choying Rinpoche has led the Kunchok Chidu 100000 accumulation of Ganachkara Puja which we say bumtsok in Tibetan for three days. The final day of the Bumtsok was on the auspicious day of Choetrul Duechen. The Chötrul Düchen celebrates the fifteen days during which the Buddha displayed miracles for his disciples so as to increase their devotion. During Chötrul Düchen month ("Great Day of Miraculous Manifestations"), it is believed that the effects of both positive and negative actions are multiplied ten million times.
Konchok Chidu is a very profound and wide cycle of teachings. There are many ways to accomplish Guru Rinpoche’s mind, but this is one of the highest and most secret way. Guru Rinpoche says: If someone even just opens a book of this text, the surroundings become rich and peaceful, and all wars become reduced. If you have devotion and wish to practice this text, even if you are an animal, it helps you to attain a pure land. For the beings of this degenerate time, receiving this precious, unbroken, and blessful teaching is rarer and more precious than finding a wish fullfilling jewel. An individual practitioner who even just holds these teachings, offers to its deities or listens to these precious teachings, is a son to all Tathagats gone to bliss, and his karmic defilements become pure like a washed white conch. His two accumulations increace like the stars in the sky. His life, accumulations, bodhichitta mind and wisdom increase limitlessly. When death comes, one can recognize ones own natural state and be liberated in the bardo. There is no question about the benefits if you practice or accomplish this text. These are words of Padmasambhava. The Konchok Chidu, or “Gathering of All Precious Jewels”, is a Guru Yoga practice which involves four aspects of Padmasambhava’s activities, and encompasses all Three Roots: the Lama, the Yidam, and the Kandro, in the forms of Tsokye Dorje, Guru Drakpo, and Senge Dongma Singhamukha, respectively. The beneficial attributes of this extraordinary practice are removing harmful influences, generating positive circumstances for the environment and all beings, increasing virtue, and clearing away ignorance are among many others.
All practices on the path to buddhahood are methods for gathering the accumulations of merit and wisdom and for purifying our obscurations. These two processes of accumulation and purification go hand in hand; as we accumulate more merit and wisdom, our obscurations automatically diminish. The Secret Mantra Vajrayana features countless skilful and powerful methods which, if they are practised in the proper way, can make the process of accumulation and purification incredibly swift and direct. One such method is the practice of tsok, which is primarily a practice of offering. It is not just a practice of offering however; it is also a powerful method for purifying our samaya. Sometimes it is said that the best method for purifying samaya is the fire offering, and tsok practice is the ‘inner fire offering.’ Tsok is a very rich practice with many layers of meaning, and it can be practised on various levels. It is said that as ordinary beings we are only able to imitate the real tsok practice, which is performed by the dakas and dakinis.
The Sanskrit word for tsok practice is ganachakra, which in Tibetan is ཚོགས་ཀྱི་འཁོར་ལོ་ tsok kyi khorlo. The word ཚོགས་, tsok means ‘an accumulation’ or ‘a gathering, an assembly or group’, and the word འཁོར་ལོ་, khorlo literally means ‘wheel.’ So the literal translation is something like ‘wheel of accumulation.’ According to the great master Jamgön Kongtrul, this term relates to the inner level of tsok practice, and the generation of vast ‘gatherings’ of bliss that are like ‘wheels’ which cut through the web of our deluded thoughts and tainted emotions. The main benefit of Ganachakra Puja (Tsok practice) mentioned in the tantras is the accumulation of merit with conceptual focus as well as the accumulation of wisdom beyond focus. In the termas, we also find mention of unimaginable benefits. There could be no greater benefit than this. For example, it is said that Guru Rinpoche himself will come and bless the tsok practitioners, or that the place where tsok is performed will become exactly the same as the Zangdokpalri "Copper Plated Mountain" - the heaven of Guru Rinpoche. And Khandro Yeshey Tsogyal said that to practice tsok just once closes the door to lower rebirths. Practise of Ganachakra Puja removes all the obstacles and also could be considered as wish fulfilling. It is also considered that one Ganachakra puja done has greater benefit than hundreds of Puja of "Invoking of wealth".
There were so many participants from around the world who participated in this sublime and profound accumulation of 100,000 Ganachakra Puja. We finished our target by the morning of the third day itself and even after that, number kept adding up and we would like to thank all the participants and beenfactors of this event wholeheartedly.
This accumulation of one hundred thousand of ganachakra puja (bumtsok) of Kunchok chidu has great virtue and immense merit. We would like to dedicate all it's merit for the long life our guru Simdha Getul Rinpoche, all the genuine dharma gurus who are working tirelessly for the benefite of all mother sentient beings, all our benefactors, all the disciples of Simdha Getul Rinpoche and lastly not the least, to all mother sentient beings.
Apart from the accumulation of the 100,000 Ganachakra Puja, we did offer thousands of Butter lamp dedicating to all mother sentient beings. The Arya Maitreya Sutra states, "Those who offer one thousand lights or one thousand blue Utpala flowers or who make the pinnacle of a Stupa, or who make the Holy Form will be reborn when Maitreya Buddha shows the deed of gaining enlightenment, and receive his first Dharma teaching"
Apart from the benefit of offering of butter lamp in the future, there is found mention In the Tune of Brahma, the 10 benefits of offering lights mentioned by Shakyamuni Buddha :
1. One becomes like the light of the world
2. One achieves clairvoyance of the pure eye as a human
3. One achieves the Deva's eye
4. One receives the wisdom to discriminate virtue from non-virtue
5. One is able to eliminate the concept of inherent existence
6. One receives the illumination of wisdom
7. One is reborn as a human or deva
8. One receives great enjoyment wealth
9. One quickly becomes liberated
10. One quickly attains enlightenment
It is also said, in the second chapter of the Root Tantra of Chakrasamvara: "If you wish for sublime realization, offer hundreds of lights"