The History of Dorje Shugden

In the commentary Heart Jewel, Geshe Kelsang explains the spiritual history of the Dharma Protector Dorje Shugden -- a short account that is deeply inspiring to practitioners and that evokes great faith. It is enough history for many who have faith in their spiritual teachers, lineage and Protector.

Now a new website has been completed, which gives more detail and historical context through which everyone, even the most skeptical, can hopefully start to see that Dorje Shugden has always been relied upon as a Buddha.

This website uncovers the texts, rituals, historical works and art dedicated to the practice of the Wisdom Buddha Dorje Shugden. As the author, Trinley Kalsang, explains:

"Although there are many texts that reveal the gradual development of the system of ritual for this deity, much of this has not been brought out in the open for examination."

Much of this material in fact has been deliberately suppressed because it proves that Dorje Shugden has been considered an enlightened being and the Protector of the Gelug lineage for several hundred years, since he first arose in this form; and this quite obviously undermines the 14th Dalai Lama's pronouncements of Dorje Shugden being a spirit of the dark forces, a Chinese demon, and so on.

Trinley Kalsang, a scholar of Tibetan, focuses on works from the time period before the 20th century. He leaves aside the works of Pabongkha Rinpoche and Trijang Rinpoche with the exception of various references to how these have drawn upon these earlier works. In particular, it can now be seen how the basic components of the practice were originally developed within the Sakya tradition and then incorporated into the Gelug tradition.

In particular, these translations and essays naturally disprove many of the fallacious ideas written in The Shuk-den Affair by Georges Dreyfus, who put the onus of the development and spread of Dorje Shugden on the individual figure of Pabongkha Rinpoche in the 20th century. He was not the first to do so, but he lent the Dalai Lama's claim Western academic credibility and enabled copy cat commentators, altogether doing a great deal of damage to the reputation of Dorje Shugden and his followers.

As Trinley Kalsang explains, the presentation of The Shuk-den Affair follows the same approach as that found in polemical Tibetan works, including the Brief History of Opposition to Shugden by the Tibetan Government in Exile's “Dolgyal Research Committee", the main thrust of which is to discredit the Dorje Shugden practice by discrediting Pabongkha Rinpoche. With this approach, the existing practice is presented as a whimsical device of one person rather than as a true spiritual practice with precedence. With The Shuk-den Affair, Dreyfus took this same pre-existing presentation and wrapped it in a seemingly scholarly package.

Dreyfus therefore got behind the Dalai Lama and his Government in Exile in discrediting the practice of Dorje Shugden and falsely accusing the highly revered Gelugpa Lama Je Phabongkhapa of possessing a sectarian agenda. Regrettably, some later Western commentators such as David Kay relied upon Dreyfus's work as the basis for their own inaccurate and defamatory accounts of the Wisdom Buddha without doing the original research that would have shown them that Dreyfus's work was full of problems and political bias to begin with. Consciously or not, these commentators' omission in doing decent research, relying so heavily on accounts by the Dalai Lama, TGIE and Dreyfus, seems to have arisen from trying to stay on the right side of the Tibetan power structure. It appears that they took as their starting point the assumption that the Dalai Lama must be right and skewed the history to fit with this. Had they found these collected works, and used them, they might have been able to tell a more accurate story.

The main sources for this website were originally collected by the Mongolian scholar and master Lobsang Tamdin (1867-1937), who gathered a number of earlier texts written by Mongolian and Tibetan masters. Regardless of where individuals stand on whether or not people should be allowed to continue their practice of Dorje Shugden, the translations on this website prove that Pabongkha Rinpoche did not invent any aspect of this practice, but merely absorbed and propagated it.The translations speak for themselves -- not a lot of added interpretation or polemics are required to challenge the views of the Dalai Lama, the TGIE, Dreyfus, and other detractors.

As the author says:

"In short, it has been revealed from historical sources that Dorje Shugden is the Three Bodhisattvas: Avalokiteshvara, Vajrapani and Manjushri. He is the sole protector ever to bear the title Protector of the Conqueror Manjunatha, having the responsibility to protect and promote the doctrine of the Second Buddha Jamgon Lama Tsongkhapa. "

Helmut Gassner on the Dalai Lama and Dorje Shugden

If you have not yet had the chance to read Helmut Gassner's speech at the Friedrich-Naumann-Foundation Hamburg, on March 26th 1999, it is well worth doing so.

Helmut Gassner is a long-term Western Buddhist monk, scholars and practitioner, and he was the interpreter (and chauffeur) for the Dalai Lama for 17 years. He has a unique inside understanding of the Dalai Lama's motives and so on, and personally knew all the original players in this drama.

According to a contemporary:

"Of those of us who had gathered around and subsequently left Geshé Rabten, the outstanding exception was Helmut Gassner. He stood loyally by Geshé and retains his robes to this day. He spends his time between the center in Switzerland and Trijang Labrang in Feldkirch, Austria. Helmut is notable for wading into the shocking Dorje Shugden scandal with his courageous speech to the Friedrich-Naumann Foundation in 1999."

Red Guards of Tibetan Buddhism

Resolutions by the Tibetan Youth Congress

This article shows how (at least certain elements of) the Tibetan Youth Congress (TYC) have taken it upon themselves to be the mouthpiece of the Dalai Lama and the TGIE and to pursue a witch hunt against Shugden practitioners. Here are a few examples:

Tibetan Youth Congress Enforces Dalai Lama's Ban on Dorje Shugden
Human Rights Violations of Dorje Shugden Practitioners
Background, history, analysis and stories about the Dalai Lama and Dorje Shugden

It is worth noting that the Dalai Lama's younger sister Jetsun Pema was one of the founders of the Tibetan Youth Congress (TYC). His youngest brother, Ngari Rinpoche, was the second president of the TYC. Ngari Rinpoche's wife Rinchen Khando Choegyal served as the president of Tibetan Women's Association (which has also harassed Shugden practitioners).

(1) Agenda of Meeting of the TYC

The local and central TYC will perform pujas for the Dalai Lama. When the Dalai Lama pays a visit to a local group, the local TYC must take care of the Dalai Lama's well-being and be very cautious of the followers of Dholgyal (Shugden).

Without any shame, the followers of Dholgyal are accomplishing the wishes of the Chinese government by directly protesting against His Holiness the Dalai Lama and so on. What a challenge for the Tibetan Youth Congress to carry!

Resolution

On the basis of our firm stance and resolution in 1996, over thirty thousand members of the TYC will take an oath and give their signature, to be witnessed by the Three Jewels, never to share religious and material resources with the followers of Dholgyal. Under the decree of the Tibetan Youth Congress, the local TYC must take oaths and give their signatures on the above matter.

Recently Dholgyal followers, the so-called Dorje Shugden Devotees Religious and Charitable Society, have brought legal action against the Dalai Lama and the Kalon Tripa, leveling baseless accusations against them. The TYC will single-pointedly protest against this. Our general body will send a letter that will reject and protest [the writ petition by Dorje Shugden Society].

With the stamp of TYC and signature of TYC president Tsewang Rigzin
July 5, 2008

(2) Letter to the Dorje Shugden Society of Delhi

To the executive members of Dorje Shugden Society of Delhi:

Recently, the 39th General Meeting of the governing body of the Tibetan Youth Congress was held in Kulu Manali, Himachal Pradesh, from July 1 to 5 of 2008. Ninety-two members from 45 local enclaves of India, Nepal, Bhutan, Taiwan and so on took part in this meeting. We have thoroughly discussed the principally related political agendas.

In the 2nd resolution of Agenda no 5, the governing body has resolved to send a letter to the effect that the Tibetan Youth Congress reject and single pointedly protest Dholgyal followers -- so called Dorje Shugden Devotees Charitable and Religious Society -- for taking His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Kalon Tripa Samdhong Rinpoche to the court on the baseless allegations.

During the time our brothers in Tibet, sacrificing one's life, engage in tremendous campaign of saving Tibet and protest against China, to our sadness, you have reversed the black and white, and accomplished the necessities of the Chinese government by protesting and criticizing when the Dalai Lama travels to the foreign country. Not only that but we, the head and locals of the Tibetan Youth Congress, do not accept that you have sued them with the baseless allegations, regardless of the kindness of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Kalon Tripa and Himachal government. Furthermore, this governing body will show the clear expression of our single-pointed protest.

In future we will remind you not to mistake friend and enemy, and to know the manner of maintaining Buddhadharma and living beings, as well as to know the purpose and benefit of the instructions given to the Tibetan public by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

39th General Meeting of the Governing Body of the Tibetan Youth Congress
July 5, 2008
Tserwang Rizin, Chairman
Seal and Signature
CC: Indian Government, Himachal Government, Private Office of the Dalai Lama, Department of Security of Tibetan government in exile.

(Letter sent on September 18, 2008)

The patriotic fervor, blind devotion to their leader, and elements of their behavior (threatening letters, wanted posters, arson, violence) ironically and sadly is reminiscent of the Red Guards of China. It is worth pointing out that these particular members of the Tibetan Youth Congress (and Women's Association) are not behaving like Buddhists in their political activities of repressing Shugden practitioners -- they are behaving like thugs.

Tibetan Youth Congress Enforces Dalai Lama's Ban on Dorje Shugden

"The Monasteries Have Been Cleaned!"
Report from an Eyewitness
Date: Early September 2008

A monk aged around 30 came from a Gelug monastery in Manali to Tibetan Children's Village's (TCV) vocational training center for Tibetans, Patikuhl in Kulu Manali.

He had been invited by the local Manali Tibetan Youth Congress (TYC) to persuade students to give their signatures and oaths rejecting the practice of Dorje Shugden.

[The TYC is an NGO that functions as the covert mouthpiece and enforcer of the government and the Dalai Lama.]

The monk gave a speech to the gathering of students and teachers:

"Drepung, Sera and Ganden monasteries have been cleaned. Our monastery is cleaned too. There is not the slightest doubt about it. … You should not worship the demon Shugden."

The monk brought a thangka painting depicting a Protector stamping on Dorje Shugden, who was lying down. He showed it to the students and teachers, saying:

"The reason why Shugden is being stamped on is because he is a demon. It is not because the painter drew whatever he liked.

Many people no longer worship this Deity. However, some organizations and people of Chating province dislike the Dalai Lama and so they do still worship Shugden. Therefore, you should cut all ties with the people from Chating province."

Everybody must follow the words of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, who is telling us not to worship this Deity. . .

I was invited here by the Manali Tibetan Youth Congress, who requested me to explain to you how bad the worship of Shugden is. Along with giving us your signatures, you must all swear in front of Palden Lhamo and the Three Jewels that you will not worship the Deity."

The staff and teachers first gave their oaths and signatures that they would not worship Shugden. Then the students were called in to give their signatures and oaths. Many students didn't know anything about it, but they were told:

"The Dalai Lama said that Shugden is a demon and you should not worship him; so you must come up here to sign your name and swear not to worship him."

Students then stood in line to sign their names and declare their oaths.

The monk and members of the Manali TYC left in the afternoon, saying that they had a signature and oath campaign to go to somewhere else.

Manali TYC also told the owners of shops and restaurants to come to the monastery to give their signatures and oaths not to worship Shugden nor maintain spiritual or material ties with Shugden followers.

A restaurant's owner spoke to the witness:

"If you worship Shugden you will have success and happiness in this life, but when you die you will go directly to hell!"

At around 5pm, the Manali TYC members came back to TCV and asked those who had not already signed and made their oaths to do so.

A Spanish journalist came to the Dorje Shugden Society to interview its members about the Shugden Issue. He was in Manali when the incident happened. He reported that the Manali TYC had forced the public to come to the monastery for their signatures and oaths, telling them that they needed to close their shops and restaurants and that, if any of them did not come, the public would be asked to boycott their businesses.

The journalist was shocked at hearing this.

"Tibetans are saying that they are proceeding on the path of democracy; but they are using coercive force.

I did not know much about Dorje Shugden. When I heard about the ban on Shugden, it made me want to find out more."

The journalist asked people in Manali who had organized this campaign what was the benefit of banning this Deity? He did not get an answer, and he said they sounded hostile towards him. He said he had discovered that Tibetan religion and politics are completely mixed.

Memorandum on Genuine Autonomy for the Tibetan People (including Shugden practitioners?)

Theoretically, there is much to recommend in this recent Memorandum (which came out prior to the recent meeting about Tibet in Dharamsala). However, the stumbling block in practice is the section on "Religion", where the Central Tibetan Administration (Tibetan Government in Exile) is asking the Chinese for something that they and the 14th Dalai Lama are not prepared to give themselves.

Religion
"Religion is fundamental to Tibetans and Buddhism is closely linked to their identity. We recognise the importance of separation of church and state, but this should not affect the freedom and practice of believers. It is impossible for Tibetans to imagine personal or community freedom without the freedom of belief, conscience and religion. The Constitution recognises the importance of religion and protects the right to profess it. Article 36 guarantees all citizens the right to the freedom of religious belief. No one can compel another to believe in or not to believe in any religion. Discrimination on the basis of religion is forbidden."

If everyone was indeed allowed "the freedom of belief, conscience and religion", it might would be possible to imagine once again "personal and community freedom" for all Tibetans in exile and even back in Tibet, as opposed to the division and confinement caused by the unconstitutional ban on Dorje Shugden (which breaks Article 36) and ostracism of Shugden practitioners.

How is the forced signature campaign compliant with this ideal "No one can compel another to believe in or not to believe in any religion"?

It is really hard to see how the TGIE can justify speaking these noble words when their deeds go in the opposite direction, away from the "freedom of religious belief" and right toward "discrimination on the basis of religion".

This is a telling and somewhat ironic statement:

"We recognise the importance of separation of church and state, but this should not affect the freedom and practice of believers."

The fact that church and state in the exile community are not separate is precisely what has "affected the freedom and practice of believers". This constitutional violation of religious freedom would never have happened if the Dalai Lama were not both a religious and political leader.

A patriotic Tibetan woman who is not a Shugden practitioner comments on the recent meeting in Dharamsala in He Has Got it Wrong. (This is based on Eliot Sperling's article of the same name.) Here are some extracts:

This meeting could have been both special and historic, if we had taken the bold and painful step that I believe is unavoidable: To allow the Dalai Lama to retire into the religious sphere, and set the stage for the separation of religion and politics.

We all know that Buddhism doesn’t claim to answer the world’s problems. And yet we are expecting the Dalai Lama to solve our political problems. We even elected another Lama, Samdong Tulku, to be our Prime Minister. But by having religious leaders doing political work, we have also been limiting ourselves in ways to struggle for the freedom of our country, which in essence is a worldly problem.

There were specific historical events which led to the emergence of a theocratic form of government in Tibet 500 years ago. But in the last 50 years, since external forces made us join the modern world, the geopolitical situation has become so complex, the demands to government so overwhelming that one guy alone at the top cannot deliver.

In our hearts, we know that worldly problems should be dealt with by worldly measures and by worldly people. As a consequence, let our Lamas return to their monasteries and resume their roles as spiritual teachers. This will clear the way for capable laypeople, men and women, to come forward and eventually, from their midst, a new leader will emerge who will unite and lead us in our struggle for freedom and justice.

In Dharamsala this month, we missed the opportunity to take charge. Now that would have made the meeting not only special but truly historic.

Human rights violations of Dorje Shugden practitioners

In her well researched book of the late 1990s, Exiled from Exile, Dr Ursula Bernis explains how the ban of Dorje Shugden and resulting persecution came about. An extract:

"In the summer of 1996, the Tibetan government in exile was accused of human rights violations by many Tibetans and some of their Western supporters. Since then most critics have been pressured into silence. Although two prominent human rights organizations expressed their concerns privately to the exile government, they refused to do so publicly for several reasons including that it could be seen as undermining the efforts of the Dalai Lama and the much larger and more serious issue of improving human rights in Tibet under Chinese control. I have seen one of the letters shown to me on condition I not disclose it and its source."

Here is one of many examples of the human rights violations Dr Bernis is talking about. For more first-hand interviews of people conducted at that time -- chronicling abuses that continue right through to the present day -- see Detailed reports of discrimination from inside India and elsewhere.

Extracts from An Interview with Jamphel Yeshe

"For all my life in exile, I have had the welfare of Tibetans and the idea of freedom constantly on my mind. As is well known in the Tibetan community, I worked towards that end in many different ways. All of this is destroyed now by the defamation campaign against me and my family. Because of death threats, I cannot go anywhere alone. I have to live in constant fear of losing my life, my family, my community, my access to religion, my livelihood, -- in short, everything that is dear to me and makes my life worth living....

Q: How has the ban affected you personally?
A: Since the ban we have endless inner turmoil, day and night. My situation is not exceptional. Each and every Tibetan Buddhist who is not able to relinquish faith in his or her Guru is in the same situation. Since the ban was imposed by the Tibetan exile government, families have broken down in every Tibetan community. Children broke relations with their parents and teachers and students have stopped speaking with each other.

These things happened because the Tibetan exile government started a signature campaign against our faith. We were asked to sign a list swearing that we will give up our reliance on the Dharmapala (Dorje Shugden) for this and all future lives. These lists were passed around very publically so everyone could see who signed and who not. When the government stopped the Women's Association and Youth Congress continued to push people to sign. Through the public nature of this campaign we have been completely marginalized. As the president of the Dorje Shugden Society, it was my duty to inform all Tibetans about the situation.

If a Tibetan speaks out, the automatic reaction now is to find out whether or not he relies on Dorje Shugden. If he does, then as a Tibetan I should not have any contact with him, according to the Tibetan exile government. Because of the atmosphere of distrust created this way, I have lost many of my former friends and business contacts. They all know I rely on Dorje Shugden. It has become a trend within the Tibetan exile community for people to declare openly that they want to go after me and finish me. Threats are also made openly against my colleagues in the Society and we experience this prevailing atmosphere of fear and distrust as a great burden.

I am a family man, I have three children. My oldest son is twelve years old, the second son nine years, and my daughter is six years old. The two older children were in school at the Tibetan Children's Village (TCV) in Dharamsala. I and my family received many explicit death threats. I found out through reliable sources -- I can't tell you who -- that an ex-military man and a member of the Tibetan parliament from Rajpur was discussing my two sons and their whereabouts in school in Dharamsala and my involvement with the Dorje Shugden Society with other Tibetans from a military background. Many Tibetans have joined the Indian army as part of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police after the CIA supported Khampa resistance ceased to be active. They have their own units, their own uniforms with their symbols but do not wear them publically.

He said they were well trained and that he and his colleagues would do whatever was necessary and whatever the Tibetan exile government wanted them to do against the Dorje Shugden people. For Tibetans who firmly believe that the Dalai Lama's life is threatened by those who rely on Dorje Shugden, these sentiments, and the willingness to act on them, are completely credible. So I took my children out of the school in Dharamsala and sent them to a safe place in another country. The perception was that anyone who wanted to attack us was free to do so.

The threat letters I received included statements like, "We will not spare your wife and children." One such letter says (in translation):

"To Tashi Dolma [Jamphel Yeshe's wife], from D.P. Gyatso. According to what I heard, your president husband, Chatreng Yeshe, has engaged in many plans regarding the Dalai Lama. Moreover, it is also said that you are going on a film shooting about the Dalai Lama, [Seven Years in Tibet] This being the case you are not permitted to participate in this filming. If you go, I will not spare you easily. We are youths of Darjeeling Voluntary Youth. If you don't believe it, you can come to Darjeeling anytime. Do you understand, slut. Secretary of Youth Group, Darjeeling, Kalimpong. P.S. Some of us are now in Delhi. You have to inform Chatreng Yeshi."

My wife and I received many threatening phone calls, and even our six year old daughter. When asked for a name, the answer was only "I am a man." Once, when they called, the child answered the telephone, as she often did, and the person on the other end told her, "There are fifteen of us here in Delhi and we will kill you and we will kill your father. We will destroy you." My daughter was very upset. She went to close all the doors and told me to stay inside. Early in the morning she would come to my bed and touch me. When I moved, she shouted, overjoyed, "Daddy is still alive."

Mixing Religion and Politics -- the Dalai Lama's ban on Dorje Shugden

There is currently a very well reasoned and interesting article on the unfortunate mixture of religion and politics in Tibetan society on Investigating the Campaign Against Dorje Shugden.

Here is an extract:

"The fact that the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan Government in Exile have been able to subject the Tibetan populace to an oath swearing campaign, whereby they promise not to engage in prayer to Dorje Shugden or have dealings with anyone who does, harkens back to the religious persecution in England during the 17th century whereby religious uniformity was mandated by the state.

That this oath swearing campaign initiated by the Dalai Lama has bypassed our conscience and our concept of religious freedom as an unalienable human right is a sign of a deeper crisis that has emerged in the Tibetan and Buddhist Community. ....

...In the Al Jazeera news footage, the interviewer asks Tsultrim Tenzin, member of the Tibetan Government in Exile, if the government debated the Dorje Shugden issue. He replied:

“There was no argument. If there was some opposition, then there will be some argument, but there is no opposition. We do not have any doubt about the Dalai Lama’s decisions. We do not think he is a human being. He is a supreme human being, and he is god, he is Avalokiteshvara, he has no interest [in] himself, he always thinks of others. Everybody is happy. Our system is everybody is happy. There is democracy, full democracy. Everyone can experience whatever he likes”

.... So what we have here is the divine right of the Dalai Lama versus the rights of individuals to practice the prayer of their choosing. Thomas Jefferson could not have scripted a better example as to why the divine right of kings and the divine right of individuals are incompatible governing principles...

Click here for the full article.