In the Footsteps of Guru Rinpoche: Pilgrimage to Asura cave in Pharping, Maratika cave, Boudha and Swayambhunath with Sogyal Rinpoche and Orgyan Tobgyal Rinpoche

Asura Cave

As Sogyal Rinpoche explained himself later on, Orgyan Tobgyal Rinpoche had been encouraging him for several years to do retreat at the great sacred place of Asura cave above the small village of pharping, in Nepal. In May 2014 all the conditions finally came together and Sogyal Rinpoche, together with Orgyan Tobgyal, a few monks and a few dozen of Sogyal Rinpoche’s students came together to practice the terma revelation of Terton Sogyal, Yang Nying Pudri, at the very place where Guru Rinpoche attained enlightenment while practicing Vajrakilaya. Tulku Sangye Dorje from Tulku Pegyal’s monastery also joined us with a few monks from Tulku Pegyal’s monastery and Dzogchen Monastery.

Orgyan Tobgyal practicing in the cave the day before the practice started

The original plan was to start a bit later, but the plan was changed and we started straight away on the 3^rd. Since it was a tsokbum, meaning a hundred-thousand tsok offerings, we had to gather huge amounts of tsok everyday. The first few days the weather was creating a lot of obstacles. But despite the weather, Orgyan Tobgyal was intend on practicing outside in front of the cave, instead of in the temple which was located slightly below the cave. After having moved the whole practice setup with shrine and everything up to the cave and then down again to the temple, a plastic rooftop was created to protect us from the rain. However the second or third day the rain turned into a storm, the rooftop was blown away and the practitioners had to quickly evacuate their seats. Orgyan Tobgyal was unmoving though, and despite the darkness that had descended we continued the practice, although some had to follow from a somewhat dryer place. 

Orgyan Tobgyal continuing the practice steadfastly

Besides the weather other obstacles did also arise. Some stomach bug was circulating, probably enhanced by the bad weather and some dodgy local foods, and more than half of the practitioners, including Sogyal Rinpoche himself, where struck with some stomach bug or food poisoning.

The last few days of the practice the local spirits seemed to have turned more favorable to us, and except for a few drops the weather became quite agreeable.

 The sun finally breaking through

Chopon and drummer relaxing in the break

Everyone focused on accumulating the tsok prayers

Some happy practitioners in the break

 When the days progressed more and more practitioners arrived, and at the last day the courtyard in front of the cave was filled to the brim with practitioners. Before the final tsok Orgyan Tobgyal  Rinpoche gave a teaching on the importance of pilgrimage, with Rinpoche translating himself.

Orgyan Tobgyal giving teaching on pilgrimage with Sogyal Rinpoche translating

Sogyal Rinpoche teaching the day after the practice finished

The audience; students and tourists

Sogyal Rinpoche giving blessings to some local pilgrims

Maratika cave

While the practice was going on at Asura cave, Orgyan Tobgyal and Sogyal Rinpoche formed the idea of visiting Maratika cave and doing Chime Phakme Nyingtik practice there. The Rinpoche’s would go in a helicopter, together with most other students, and those with a bit smaller wallet would go with jeeps one day earlier. 

Jeeps stopping for a break

We left with the jeep on the 11^thof May. The first part of the road was pretty good, much better than expected. A Japanese company is working on making this road. However after a few hours at some parts the road was not finished, and we had to start taking stony mountain roads. That was the prelude for the last part of the trip, where there was nothing but bumpy mountain roads. After fourteen hours of driving in desert like blazing hot mountains we were thoroughly shaken and exhausted, but we’d arrived. At arrival we found out the luxurious hotel we’d been promised by our tour operator seemed to be no more than empty 300 rupee (2 euro’s) rooms, just with a bed. Back to reality, we were in the middle of the mountains, in the middle of nowhere. Water was a big problem in the town, the only water source was down below the lower Maratika cave, and people had to carry all their water up the hill for about 15 minutes. 

The Maratika cave from outside

Then we had a big job to do: prepare the practice place, set up the shrine and anything else needed before Sogyal Rinpoche would arrive the next day at around twelve! We had one contact, the main lama of the only monastery in the area, lama Karma Wangchuk, who could provide us with some tables, cushions, shrine items and so on. Unfortunately he was not there, but there was one other lama, lama Pasang, who was taking care of the monastery and who he had appointed to help us

Maratika Chimey Takten Choling Monastery

The next day early morning we quickly realized that without lama Pasang we would not have gotten much done. He arranged all the things we needed for the practice, which we could all borrow from their main prayer hall. But not only that, he also provided a crucial link with the local Hindu priests who are controlling the cave. He asked permission for us to practice in the cave, and also paid for some tribute we had to pay the local priests for practicing inside the cave itself. 

Looking outside the cave

We set up the shrine, bought tsok and did as much as we can. However much had prepared, Sogyal Rinpoche and Orgyan Tobgyal arrived a bit earlier and when they arrived the main cave was still a big mess with left over hindu offerings all over the place, and offering fires filling the cave with a thick and suffocating smoke.  But with everyone also having arrived now, with many hands the cave was quickly made suitable for our practice to commence.

The cave was not exactly empty, thousands of Hindu pilgrims arrive daily

Maratika cave is the cave where Guru Rinpoche attained the level of a vidyadhara with power over life through his practice with the consort Mandarava. As it says in A Great Treasure of Blessings:

“Returning to Zahor, Padmasambhava took the royal princess Mandarava as his consort, and they then went to the Maratika cave, where for three months they practised the sadhana of longevity. The Buddha of Limitless Life, Amitayus appeared, empowered them with longevity, and blessed them as inseparable from him. They both accomplished the second vidyadhara level, ‘vidyadhara with mastery over life’.”

Therefore, there is no better place in the world to practice for the long life of the masters, and ourselves.  On top of that, we practiced the ‘Chime Phakme Nyingtik’, or in English ‘The Heart Essence of the Sublime Lady of Immortality’.  

Practicing in a smoky cave

As the Rigpa wiki informs us, “Jamyang Khyentse revealed the terma of Chimé Pakmé Nyingtik at his seat Dzongsar Tashi Lhatse in a vision of the three masters who attained the level of vidyadhara with power over life: Guru Rinpoche, Vimalamitra and Shri Singha.Through its power and blessings, many masters, including the great Jamgön Kongtrul, have been able to remove obstacles. In fact, according to prophecies, the life of Jamgön Kongtrul would have had many obstacles, and he would not have lived very long, but for this practice of Chimé Pakmé Nyingtik. The highly respected master Jamyang Khyentsé Chökyi Lodrö, in his biography, said that he received this transmission about ten times, and held this as his most important practice. It was also the main heart practice of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, who completed all the required practices seven times in retreat. More recently, one of the main holders of this practice was Kyabjé Trulshik Rinpoche, who every year spent at least a month in retreat practising Chimé Pakmé Nyingtik at Maratika cave in Nepal.”

Offerings being made for Sogyal Rinpoche’s long life

Although we did not have the time to prepare the special long life pills ourselves, auspiciously we had been able to acquire some made by the doctor of Chatral Rinpoche, Amchi Tsering Zangcho.

After the practice was finished, the Rinpoche’s together with the other people who came with the helicopters had to leave quite quickly again.

Helicopters departing again

Opposite the main cave, high up a prayer flag hill, is another cave called Chenresig cave. It is said that these days many lama’s actually do retreat here in this cave.

Prayer hill opposite the cave. To the right one can find
another cave, called Chenresig cave

After our Rinpoche’s left, I was fortunate to meet another Rinpoche. I stumbled into a group of pilgrims headed by an old lama. I was told it was Pema Yangtse Rinpoche. It sounded very familiar, but I could not recall exactly where I heard the name before. I offered the Rinpoche some alcohol from the tsok. Later I met the group again, and after they told me they were from Sikkim it finally dawned on me. Pema Yangtse Rinpche is the abbot of Pema Yangtse Monastery in Sikkim, which is the oldest monastery in Sikkim and founded by Lhatsun Chenpo, the revealer of the Riwo Sancho practice. When visiting Sikkim with Orgyan Tobgyal a few years before, we had visited the monastery. At the time it was empty though, because the lama and all the monks where doing Drupchen at Tashi Ding with Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche. I received the transmission for the root text of Riwo Sancho, the Mountain Smoke Offering. Later I met Rinpoche again, and on my request he gave a short teaching on the benefit of Riwo Sancho. He said all the lama’s of the past, like Jamyang Khyentse Chokyi Lodro, Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche en Dudjom Rinpoche, all spoke about the tremendous benefit of practicing Riwo Sancho. By offering substances like red and white sandalwood, Artemisia, musk, the three fruits Amalaki, Bhibitaki and Haritaki (Yellow, Beleric, and Emblic Myrobalan), barley, butter, the three whites (curd, butter and milk) and so on, to all the deities, protectors, the owners of the earth and local deities, the guardians of treasures, the benefit is incredible.

Pema Yangtse Rinpoche

In the lower Maratika cave some practitioners were doing retreat.

Practitioners in the lower cave

There is a very nice video about Maratika, made when Lama Zopa Rinpoche made a pilgrimage to the cave in 2010, where we can see the main cave, the lower cave and the Avalokiteshvara (Chenrezig) cave above the prayer flag hill. As it says in the video, just seeing this cave once is extremely beneficial. A student of Zopa Rinpoche also wrote a shortarticle about the cave for Mandala Magazine. He writes: “Maybe people will generate the thought to come here to practice. Coming here, visiting holy places, it is better if people do practice, not just take pictures.” That is probably good advice !

Boudha and Swayambhunath

The last few days of our pilgrimage were spent around the Boudha stupa and in Swayambhunath. The first day we payed our respect to the relics of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche at Shechen Monastery.  Rinpoche was a bit tired and thus we did not stay very long. The second day we visited Dudjom Rinpoche’s monastery. The old secretary of Dudjom Rinpoche was there and we received a warm welcome. We all sat down in the main temple, and Rinpoche was very inspired. He spoke about the importance of devotion. Then together with the monks of the monstery, we practiced Calling the Lama from Afar by Dudjom Rinpoche. Also we were all offered special Damdrip Nyepa Kunsel pills, the recipe of which Dudjom Rinpoche wrote himself and which the monks at the monastery make themselves. 

Sogyal Rinpoche in front of Dudjom Rinpoche’s monastery

The third day we visited the ancient stupa of Swayambhunath. There is much to be said about this stupa, but in fear of writing to much I’d better leave it for another time.

Sogyal Rinpoche walking up to Swayambhunat

Rinpoche making aspiration prayers in front of the great stupa

 I hope this short story will fill the hearts of those who were not able to come with joy and inspire anybody to visit the holy places of Nepal!

Many of the pilgrims were students of the Rigpa Shedra. Visit us in Nepal or online.

Written by Han Kop in Pharping on the days after, and finally finished in Bir, India, during Saga dawa.