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Religious
Ceremonies
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Thri
in Punakha January 2007 |
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| Her
Majesty Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuck is among the 13,000 devotees who have
gathered in Punakha to attend the Thri (admonition ceremony), which began
on Monday, 22 January 2007.
During
the two-week long admonition ceremony His Holiness the 70th Je Khenpo,
Truelku Jigme Choeda, will elucidate the moral precepts and the teaching
of the Buddha to the devotees to set them on the path to enlightenment
or salvation. |
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"We
expected about 8,000 devotees," said the Punakha Dzongkhag Yargye Tshogdu
(DYT) chairman, Namgay Phuntsho. "The number has almost doubled and we
are facing problems of accommodation and sanitation."
HM
Queen Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuck
and
HRH Ashi Kesang Wangmo Wangchuck
2004 |
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limited hotels and guest houses are packed, people have camped in the fields,
on the ridges, and almost every space available in Khuruthang.
The
second Thri to be held in Punakha is being organised and sponsored by Yab
Ugen Dorji and Yum Thuji Zangmo who are also attending the ceremony. |
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Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuck said that it was her long cherished
aspiration to receive the admonition from His Holiness the Je Khenpo. "I
am glad that I am fulfilling it today," Her Majesty said.
Tenzin,
79, said he received the admonition when he was young. "I could not understand
the significance then because I was young," he said. "I didn't want to
miss this occasion, it will be my last."
At
the end of the seventh day of the Thri ceremony His Holiness will unite
13,000 devotees from all walks of life into one family as the seven Dorji
Puens (spiritual brothers and sisters) on January 27.
Devotees
will be united in groups of seven including a monk or a lay monk. But according
to organisers there were not enough monks and gomchens (lay monk) at the
Thri. There are about only 600 monks, gomchens and nuns attending the ceremony,
which will conclude on February 5.
His
Holiness the late 67th Je Khenpo, Nyienzer Truelku Thinley Lhendup conducted
the first Thri ceremony in Punakha, 28 years ago in 1978.
Thri
or the admonition ceremony is supposed to lead all sentient beings on the
path of enlightenment or ultimate liberation from the cyclic existence
and suffering in the samsara (khorwa) through spiritual means. The empowerment
of the Thri is of paramount importance to those who wish to enter into
the sacred path of Tantra.
The
transmission of the Thri can be traced back to His Holiness Choejay Dagpo
Rinpoche, who is also known as gampopa, from whom originated several Kagyue
lineages. Choejay Dagpo Rinpoche had upheld the two aspects of Mahamudra
(Chagja Chhenpo): Mahamudra of Sutra (Do) and the Mahamudra of Mantra (Ngag).
This lineage was transmitted in the Drukpa Kagyue tradition. The main text
of the Thri was Dagpa Thargen, a text containing the essence of all Drukpa
Kague teachings.
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Meaning
of Thri
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According
to His Holiness the Je Khenpo, the meaning of Thri was to lead all sentient
beings on the path of enlightenment or ultimate liberation from the cyclic
existence and suffering in the samsara (khorwa) through spiritual
means.
"The
empowerment of the Thri is of paramount importance to those who wish to
enter into the sacred path of Tantra. The transmission of the Thri can
be traced back to His Holiness Choejay Dagpo Rinpoche, who is also known
as gampopa, from whom originated several Kagyue lineages.
Choejay
Dagpo Rinpoche had upheld the two aspects of Mahamudra (Chagja Chhenpo): Mahamudra
of Sutra (Do) and the Mahamudra of Mantra (Ngag). This lineage was
transmitted in the Drukpa Kagyue tradition. The main text of the Thri was
Dagpa Thargen, a text containing the essence of all Drukpa Kague teachings,"
His Holiness said.
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| Contributed
by Tshering Wangdi, KUENSEL, Bhutan's National Newspaper 2007 |
| Information on Bhutan |
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