EXPLANATION OF

THE DHARMA LINEAGE OF THE DHARMA SOCIETY OF THE GLORIOUS WHITE PEACOCK

By Lama Drugpa Yeshe Thrinley Odzer

Under the auspices of the Very Ven. Kun Chab Si Chu Rinpoche

As I was raised and grew up a Buddhist I encountered a number of different schools of Buddhism.  As a Shingon Buddhist, literally from birth, I was well-tutored in the liturgies of the Shingon tradition.

In my teens and twenties I became familiar with the liturgies of the Pure Land School and of Tendai, due to my devotion to Buddha Amitabha.  After meeting Kun Chab Si Chu Rinpoche, I became familiar with the liturgies and devotional practices of the four major Tibetan Buddhist schools and that of the Chinese liturgy of the Za Ming school.

Since the discovery that my father made in 1945-6 of the Shingon / Reiki texts I have discussed with Kun Chab Si Chu Rinpoche the matter of a uniform liturgy and group of practices for public worship that would be in conformity with the best traditions of the Mahayana and leave no necessary form worship, devotion or activity out of the Lineage.

In the Tibetan liturgy, actual prayers of supplication are few and those which appear are generally taken from the old North Indian Dharma traditions.  Tibetan Buddhism concentrates an individual advancement on the spiritual path and is deeply concerned with yogic practices which lead quickly to enlightenment for the individual.

On the other hand, both Chinese and Japanese Buddhism emphasise the well-being of the society and spotlight the activities which an individual can perform while on this earth, in this human body, for the benefit of sentient beings.

Japanese Buddhism, surprising to some, emphasises the aspect of the Buddhist path which is enlightenment through service to others, not departing from the traditional North Indian format for Mahayana Buddhist practice, and taking into consideration that at that early time in Buddhism’s development there was no definitive line drawn between Sutra and Tantra for the general public in devotion and Sadhana practice.

Kun Chab Si Chu Rinpoche and I have set out and begun the monumental task of preparing a set of Sadhanas that incorporates North Indian, Chinese, Japanese, and Tibetan material.

Although the Sadhanas are new, they follow the ancient form, sometimes even the same wording as the major North Indian sources.  Their similarity to many Tibetan Sadhanas is not an indication that they have been copied in any way or are an attempt to plagiarise Tibetan material and corrupt it for our own benefit.  They do demonstrate, however, that the well-spring of the Dharma which flowed forth in Northern India was drawn upon by the great Tibetan Dharma fathers as well as the great Dharma fathers of China and Japan.

Following advice and prayer given in the Notes of Dr. Usui, and following the form given in both the Sutras and Tantras, yet not neglecting Western thought and mind set, we are establishing a Sadhana cycle of the Dharma cycle of the Dharma Society of the Glorious White Peacock.  Though principally for use in Men Chhos Reiki^©, the Lineage and practice of these Sadhanas, which reflect Mahayana thought, would be beneficial for any serious student of Dharma practice who has been given proper introduction to the texts.

Though sometimes in wording and format these Sadhanas nevertheless follow the ancient and given structure, they may be looked upon as a new and refreshing approach to the ancient Dharma truths.  As I hold both the Tibetan and Shingon empowerments and pith teachings of the deities invoked in these Sadhanas, and since I have the proper training and permission from the Drugpa Kargyu Lineage of Bhutan to transmit the empowerments of these deities, and since also I have received from my own personal teacher, Kun Chab Si Chu Rinpoche, special instructions concerning these Sadhanas, and since also I have received both empowerments and permissions from the Very Reverend Dr. Ajari Warrick in 1989 to transmit the Saito Goma and other Shingon teachings and Tendai teachings, especially those concerning Medicine Buddha and Amitabha, I do not consider it to be presumptuous on my part to prepare these Sadhanas and to empower others both in the practice and to teach these teachings.

Rinpoche has expressed the thought that in the West a new Dharma Lineage will eventually be established that takes into consideration the traditions and mind set of Westerners.  In the old times wherever Buddhism spread it was transformed by the culture and religion of its host country.  Look at the difference between Mahayana Buddhism in China, Japan, and Tibet, and you will see a great deal of outward diversity.  Nevertheless the basic Dharma truths and practices are preserved intact in all traditions.

Throughout the history of Buddhism in Tibet, compilers have come along and reworked the materials present in its tradition for the needs of the time.  Among these were Taranatha, Mingyur Dorje who reintroduced the teachings of Amitabha, Raga Ase Chakme Rinpoche, Drugchen Pema Karpo, Mipham, Jamgon Kongtrol Lodro Thaye, not to mention Tsonkapa and the Gelugpa scholars.  In recent times I have seen new Sadhanas written in the Gelugpa Lineage by the great expanders of the Dharma in the West, Lama Thubten Yeshe and Lama Zopa.

These Sadhanas show a clear adaptation of Western thought.  Now I am not speaking, and I want to make this clear, about the mixing of Western psychology and metaphysics with the Buddhist religion, for the two are distinctly incompatible, as the confusion produced by the union of Gunther, Trungpa, and Tharten Tulku has shown us.  Let me assure all of my students and students of Dharma that neither Rinpoche nor I have this as our intention.

The doctrine which is being taught by the Dharma Society of the Glorious White Peacock and by Men Chhos Reiki^© International, Inc., in no way, either in doctrine or is form, departs from traditional Mahayana teaching; nor is any attempt being made nor will be made, to bring about a religio-philosophical synthesis of Eastern and Western religious belief or philosophical view.

On the other hand, our aim is simply to offer a fresh yet traditional Dharma practice that, with understanding and full comprehension, can be utilized by Western students in the English language for their own spiritual advancement and for the benefit of the society around them and the advancement of Western spiritual thought.

You, therefore, may view these new Sadhanas and expositions of the ancient truths, like the Tibetans, as a mind treasure, or simply as a new exposition of the ancient truths.  In whichever way you choose to view them, let us assure you that the intention behind their preparation and publication is only that of thought for the benefit of all sentient beings.

Given on Wednesday, January 8, 1997, in O'Brien at the Hermitage of the Blue Peacocks.

Lama Drugpa Yeshe Thrinley Odzer

The Ninth Drugmar Rinpoche,

Regent for North America for Drugpa Kargyu Lineage of Bhutan

(Dr. Richard Blackwell, American Director, Dharma Society of the Glorious White Peacock,

Spiritual Director of Men Chhos Reiki^© International, Inc.  )