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On March 13, at the request of the Tibetan Children’s Village Senior Secondary School in Suja, Guru Vajradhara the 12th Chamgon Kenting Tai Situpa visited the school. At 9 am, Guru Vajradhara bestowed the triple wrathful yidam empowerment of Hayagriva, Vajrapani and Garuda to an audience of over two thousand devotees, which was headed by the TCV Suja School’s principal and included the School’s teachers, staff and students, the TCV Director, representatives of various Tibetan associations and a large gathering of local Tibetans. After the empowerment, Guru Vajradhara gave an extensive teaching about the importance of understanding the roles of different religious traditions, remembering the kindness of our forefathers and preserving our ancient cultural heritage. Guru Vajradhara emphasised the urgency of engendering respect, admiration and an impartial pure perception towards all religions of this world, because they all carry the same message of peace and harmony for all humanity. He pointed out that the fact that having the fortune of encountering the Dharma the moment they are born is not something that came about merely by chance for the Tibetan and Himalayan people, but it is the result of the past great Dharma kings, translators and panditas having dedicated life and limb to accomplish this. Therefore, he advised the audience to never forget their kindness, because being aware of their ancestors’ graciousness will bring about the realisation of the value of the cultural tradition they left behind, as well as the determination to preserve it. Guru Vajradhara continued by mentioning that mainly due to the kindness of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the flourishing of Tibetan religion and culture is even greater than in the past. Therefore, he urged, we have to properly safeguard our cultural heritage from falling under the influence of inner and outer adverse circumstances. Recognising that education is the main cause that brings out innate human potential as well as the foundation of the progress of civilisation, he advised that we need to make a firm resolve to continue to further improve the quality of our already outstanding education under the guidance of numerous sincere, good-hearted and determined leaders, teachers and hard-working individuals. He concluded by saying that we all—each individual as well as our community as a whole—have to do our best in every possible way and do whatever we can to perform rituals for the long life of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. However, he emphasised that there is no better longevity practice than fulfilling His Holiness’s instructions, and thus it is the responsibility of each and every one of us to follow his guidance.
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