After weeks of daily rituals and prayers, the last rites for one of the greatest Bodhisattvas of the 21st century, Mahapandita Yongzin Prof. Sempa Dorje, took place on 18th of August 2022 (the 22nd day of the 6th lunar month) at the Crematorium Katwaria Sarai.
The cremation ceremony with jinsek was led by His Holiness the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa Thaye Dorje who performed the Gyalwa Gyatso puja to the east, and his heart disciple Ngedön Mingyur Drakpa Senge, His Eminence the 4th Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche, conducting the Mitrugpa puja to the north.
Gyalwa Gyatso (Skt. Jinasagara, Engl. Ocean of Victorious Ones) is a four-armed manifestation of red Chenrezig with his consort, whose practice is of particular importance in the Karma Kagyu tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. A yidam deity of the father tantra class of the highest yoga tantra, the practice of Gyalwa Gyatso emphasizes the development of compassion or skilful means (upaya).
Buddha Mitrugpa (Skt. Akṣhobhya, Engl. The Unshakeable) is one of the Buddhas of the five families. Within the four classes of tantra, which reflect increasingly subtle levels of relating to the true nature of reality, the practice of Mitrugpa is part of the highest tantra, the Anuttarayoga tantra. He is invoked as representing the non-dual wisdom of the enlightened mind of Buddhahood.
The ceremony was attended by representatives of various monasteries, delegations of associated centres and institutions, all our KIBI members, as well as a large number of Genla’s relatives and devotees who had assembled to pay their final respect. During the last rites for our deeply revered KIBS president, tutor of His Holiness the Gyalwa Karmapa Thaye Dorje, one-of-a-kind practitioner, and teacher to numerous students from around the globe, the entire gathering lined up for offering katak and kora.
Though it was a sad moment to bid our final farewell, it was also a moment of joy, gratitude, and aspiration – joy for having had the great fortune to meet Genla, a Dharma practitioner of the kind that is as rare as stars during daylight; gratitude for not only the profound knowledge he so generously shared with everyone who sought out teachings from him, but also to have witnessed his living example of how each and every one of us can transform our ordinary lives into a Dharma practice; and aspiration in jointly offering our sincere prayers for his swift journey, continuous expansion of his activities and benefitting of countless of beings.
His immense compassion, welcoming warmth & wisdom will remain in our hearts. May his stainless example encourage us to follow in his footsteps, again and again. For the sake of all sentient beings, may he swiftly reincarnate on this planet.
