Mingyur Rinpoche, the teacher of unbreakable stability
By Padma Dorje (Eduardo Pinheiro)
Translated by Christa Maas
This master of Dharma holds precious affirmations, timeless and profound, the final and most secret teachings. (Tai Situpa, in his prayer for long life for Mingyur Rinpoche.)
The term “mingyur” in Tibetan means “immutable”. Some people may wonder how, if in Buddhism everything is impermanent, a teacher can be called “immutable”.
There are a few ways to interpret this. The first way would be to read it as we would read poetry, immutability is not literal; it is an aspiration and a praise for a teacher who is extremely stable. This stability relates to the practice of meditation, but also to the fact that he has been infallible over many lives, always expressing the supreme qualities of a guide who leads beings to temporary and final happiness. It also refers to the fact that he keeps alive the teachings during difficult periods when they tend to become degraded.
The second way to see this immutability is referring to the most fundamental nature of the mind, which is not made up of parts, has no beginning or end, and does not change with time. The teacher is one aspect of this mind, coming before us to remind us of this aspect, the mind which has no owner, and is neither here nor there.
If we are able to recognize at least one being on the horizon, reflecting this quality, then this is due to vast amounts of merit (good deeds) accumulated during several successive lives, and we should rejoice.
The current manifestation of stability and immutability was born in 1975 and was promptly recognized by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche (one of the Dalai Lama’s teachers and Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche) as an emanation of the seventh Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche and Kangyur Rinpoche. He is the son of Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, and brother of Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche, Tsikey Chokling Rinpoche, and Tsoknyi Rinpoche. He is also Phakchok Rinpoche and Yangsi of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche’s uncle. (Tsoknyi Rinpoche and Phakchok Rinpoche have taught in Brazil).
His principal teachers in this life were Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche, Saljey Rinpoche, Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche and Trulshik Rinpoche. Tai Situ Rinpoche, one of his main teachers, is one of the most important figures in the Karma Kagyu lineage.
For someone who does not really know the world of Tibetan Buddhism, or who is accustomed to hearing only about the Dalai Lama, it is worth remembering that all teachers mentioned here are immaculate holders of the Buddha’s teachings. Each of them is an ocean of learning and achievement in practice. The young and approachable Mingyur comes from this lineage.
Mingyur Rinpoche knows the modern world and the dominant scientific way of thinking in modern culture. He teaches meditation in a very clear way, according to the current needs of beings — in a context both secular and traditional, which agrees with the listener.
Rinpoche became known in the world press as the “lama of happiness” when a study was done about the subject using brain imaging.
In Buddhist circles, Rinpoche became famous also for his unusual retreat which ended only recently. In June 2011 he just disappeared, leaving only a letter stating that he was well and that no one was to look for him. Not even the people closest to him knew of his plans. Rinpoche then spent four years as an unknown wanderer, begging for food in the regions of the Himalayas in India and Nepal.
This retreat is considered unusual because until today almost no practitioner or master had done this kind of practice. Although it is a traditional way of retreat, what we usually recognize as retreat practice is a relatively comfortable isolation at a pleasant dharma center, with heating and three meals a day. Tsoknyi Rinpoche joked in his teachings in Brazil that nowadays is not unusual to find espresso machines on the lists made in “preparation” for retreats.
Still, even with some facilities it is already considered quite inconceivable for people, who do not have a strong spiritual priority, to undertake a secluded retreat for few years, where meditation is practiced for more than 10 hours a day. Now, can you imagine a retreat where not only do you have to practice a lot, but you also need to beg for food, most likely suffer from the cold, as well as fear for your safety?
Mingyur Rinpoche had already done several years of more “conventional” retreat during his Buddhist training. He had already completed the traditional three-year retreat before the age of 17. Most of the lamas enjoy a good period of retreat — during which they do not have to deal with the practical administration of their centers, and they find the intense practice invigorating. However, in general, for a few centuries there has been criticism within the Tibetan tradition as to the comfort level of teachers — particularly when they are so obviously attached to this comfort.
Let me explain. It is clear that no student worth his salt would want any kind of discomfort for his teacher, but in The Words of My Perfect Teacher and other texts, we read some criticism about the luxurious lives some spiritual masters lead. And the problem is not just the luxury itself; the problem is the attachment to comfort. An accomplished teacher may have the best surroundings, but he must show unchanging satisfaction, regardless of external conditions.
Mingyur Rinpoche definitely shows that he doesn’t have that kind of problem. A wandering retreat in this style means that you must move on as soon as people recognize you, or give you a name. You do not make friends. You have no bank account or credit cards. You may not work for money but only beg — which makes this type of practice unfeasible in countries like ours — or in almost all the modern world, where begging (and showing generosity towards beggars) is not necessarily associated with any spiritual practice as it is in some countries in Asia.
But what is the purpose of retreats of any sort? Is it not some kind of escape, or abandonment by beings?
Some people always end up asking this. It’s a fair question.
No. The goal of any meditation practice is to overcome mental afflictions, such as anger and pride, and develop enlightened qualities such as compassion and contentment which does not depend on any conditions. Only when we are, to a point, free of these afflictions and reveal these qualities to some extent do we become able to effectively help others.
Our daily formal practice, the period set aside for meditation and reciting of devotional poetry or aspirations, chants of spiritual fulfillment of masters from the past, and so on, is also a “small retreat” of some kind. And our practice in everyday life is what makes our formal practice (whatever duration it may have) significant, and vice versa. One is not possible without the other — at least not before the state of achievement is reached, where no distinction is made between meditation and non-meditation. Until then, we alternate between formal practice space and our dealing with the world.
If we have the desire to do a formal practice almost every day for several days, months or years in a row, then this is very meritorious. We can gradually amass the circumstances to make something like this possible for us, under the supervision of qualified teachers. But in no way should we think of a retreat as a way to run from our problems or merely make life easier, and particularly not to escape the difficult people we all know so well. The best way to go into retreat is with all beings in mind and with the aspiration to develop the mental tools to be of benefit and eventually to be able to set an example.
And it’s important to know that a retreat will end. It would be very sad to just press the "pause" button on our lives and not to enrich it in any way with the experience. But this is a possibility and therefore it is important to know how to practice and to have the right motivation from the very beginning — to bring benefit to all beings.
In any case, as long as we can connect — create interdependence — with great beings such as Mingyur Rinpoche, we must not miss the opportunity. You can read the book being released (‘Alegre Sabedoria’), or go to watch one of his lectures when he comes. Or at least recognize for a moment how good it is to live in a time when these teachings are available and there are authentic teachers.
Anyway, we aspire to the immutability of these good conditions, because we do not know when we will be able to take advantage of them. We know that everything is unstable, and therefore, when something shows itself to be insistently valuable, we must rejoice.
This July (2016), Mingyur Rinpoche is visiting Brazil again (as he did in 2006, 2007 and 2009) for a series of meetings and teachings. Check out the schedule and how to sign up at this link.
The book, Alegre Sabedoria (Joyful Wisdom), is available in Portuguese for order on the site Lúcida Letra and also at Amazon.com. Click here and guarantee your copy (pre-sale, shipping 29/07).
