Filled with merit

Filling of the Statues through the autumn and winter of 2024-2025

In November 2024, sangha members gathered in Minling Lotus Garden under the guidance of Minling Jetsün Khandro Rinpoche and Minling Jetsün Dechen Paldrön to continue working to bring the new temple to completion.  Within a matter of days, the temple was cleaned thoroughly and transformed into a sacred environment. The statues of Buddha Shakyamuni, Guru Rinpoche, Chögyal Terdag Lingpa, and Kyabje Minling Trichen were prepared for filling, and the offerings, thrones, seats, and tables filled the shrine room for the first time as the victory banners and pillar ornaments were hung.

On the 22nd of November, the auspicious day of Saga Dawa and Minling Jetsun Dechen Paldon’s birthday coincided to make it a doubly precious day for the Mindrolling sangha.  Rinpoche, Jetsünla, Minling Jetsün Rinpoche, Minling Dungse Rinpoche, monks of Mindrolling, nuns of Samten Tse, and Western Mindrolling sangha members all gathered in Mindrol Gatsal, the Joyous Garden of Ripening and Liberation, the newly named temple.  This joyful gathering of the Mindrolling lineage and sangha of Mindrolling made extensive offerings, prayers and aspirations to mark the Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and parinirvana as well as the birthday of our teacher Jetsünla.  It was a wonderful, auspicious first day for Mindrol Gatsal as a place of practice. 

For the following weeks, Lotus Garden was a land of joyful dharma activity, lively with all the various activities to prepare the statues for the temple.  For statues to be authentic objects veneration, they must first be filled with zung and consecrated, which is an extensive process involving elaborate and precise rituals.  The zung includes the dharanis, or mantras, placed inside the statues or behind the thangkas and murals. The zung also includes medicinal herbs, and other precious items.

For the past year, the nuns of Samten Tse have been preparing much of the zung for the statues for Mindrol Gatsal.  To prepare them, the dharanis are first washed with saffron water, cut, glued together and rolled into continuous rolls of unbroken mantras. Finally, they are adorned with cloths of the appropriate colors according to the mantra.  The Samten Tse nuns prepared over 750 kg of zung which was shipped from India to the United States. This work was then continued in Lotus Garden, as further zung was prepared by the Mindrol Lekshey students under the supervision of our teachers and senior monks and nuns.

Dharanis constitute the main part of the filling of the statue, but as specified in the works of the great Lochen Dharmashri, various other substances are needed. Relics, blessing pills, and various valuable and medicinal substances are among them. The 5 grains, the 5 five nectars, medicinal herbs, the 5 fragrances, cloths, precious substances of various spices and grains, the three kinds of fruits, precious jewels, dry fruits, nuts, and fragrant boughs such as juniper are all required, and each one holds specific meaning and symbolism. All offerings were gathered in great quantities of the highest quality the washed, dried, and wrapped in five colored cloths and other containers to be placed in the statues.  Hundreds of tsa tsa were made by the monks, nuns, and Lotus Garden residents to be placed inside the statues as well.

At the core of every statue is the sog shing or life force tree. Carved from a juniper tree from our blessed land of Lotus Garden, each of the sog shing was made on site by the skilled hands of senior Mindrolling monks. The sog shing were carved, dried, painted, and inscribed with the sacred syllables and mantras in gold paint.

It is said that to engage in the work of filling and consecrating sacred representations is incredibly meritorious.  While the monks, nuns, and those at Lotus Garden physically engaged in this activity, the entire Mindrolling International sangha was also fully engaged in bringing this to fruition.  Sangha members from around the world generously donated to the Mindrol Gatsal project throughout the year.  Through the Danabox and other ways, the funds that were raised made it possible for all of this to happen, and none of it would have been possible without the worldwide sangha’s care, generosity, and pure aspirations. 

This season of meritorious activity was made even more joyful by celebrating the next generation of the Mindrolling Lineage.  On the morning of the first snowfall of the season, the full moon day of the 15th of December, the sangha celebrated Minling Jetsün Rinpoche’s birthday with prayers, offering of body, speech, and mind, and aspirations for Jetsün Rinpoche’s long life and vast activities.  The worldwide sangha again gathered to make donations to the wonderful dog shelter in Bhutan that has been able to accomplish so much benefit with minimal resources and donations.  The offerings that the Mindrolling International sangha has sent them have allowed them to vastly upgrade their facilities, vehicles, and services for the dogs.  We very much look forward to supporting them for years to come.

In parallel to all the happenings and events at Lotus Garden, Jetsün Khandro Rinpoche bestowed teachings and instructions on the practice of Guru Yoga to sangha members worldwide through the Dharmashri Online Portal.  This online program incorporated practice sessions and teachings in Mindrol Gatsal that were translated into many languages by the Mindrolling International Dharma Instructors so that sangha members around the world could receive and understand these profound teachings.  The program culminated on the 1st of January with the worldwide sangha joining the sangha at Lotus Garden via livestream to practice Guru Yoga together to gather all auspiciousness for the New Year.

During this time, Rinpoche, Jetsunla, and Britton la were also making sure that all other aspects of Lotus Garden are properly prepared for the next phase of development.  This includes additional landscaping around the temple and at the entrance to Lotus Garden.  All landscaping is being done with Rinpoche’s vision of the Four Immeasurables gardens that progressively lead practitioners from loving-kindness to compassion, to sympathetic joy, and finally to perfect equanimity represented by Mindrol Gatsal itself.  The area in front of the temple is being graded to provide a welcoming outdoor space for teachings and practices.   This eastern side of the temple now has proper drainage and a paved path to access the temple.  Additionally with the new temple Rinpoche, and Britton la foresaw the need for additional storage space at Lotus Garden.  To this end, two new storage buildings have been built on the North side of the land.  The Buddha Park is also being prepared for improvements and is joined with the circumambulation path that encircles Lotus Garden.  Furthermore with the new temple, the water needs for Lotus Garden have greatly increased and additional wells are being sited and will be dug in the coming weeks.

After weeks of preparations and effort to prepare the dharanis and gather the necessary substances, all the zung were amassed and placed in the main shrine room Mindrol Gatsal. On the auspicious Guru Rinpoche Day, the 10th of January, the ritual of zung drub, consecration of zung, took place. Led by Rinpoche and Jetsunla, all monks, nuns and sangha members present joined in this practice of consecrating the zung.  Following this, for four consecutive days, the statues were filled one by one.  Rinpoche, Jetsunla, and the two young Rinpoches placed the sog shing in each statue. The appropriate dharanis and substances then filled every little space of every statue, not leaving even the smallest gap. As soon as the doors of the temple would open each day, the pervasive fragrance of the mixture of herbs and camphor would immediately evoke the sacredness of the contents and profound activities taking place.

After the statues had been filled and sealed, final applications of gold were offered by the Mindrolling monks. Gold thrones and the rainbow-colored ornaments were placed in the shrine to prepare for the statues to take their seats in Mindrol Gatsal.

After midnight, in the early hours of the full moon day, the 13th of January 2025, everyone gathered to place the newly filled statue of Shakyamuni Buddha, its weight estimated close to a thousand pounds and place it on its throne in the main shrine. The room was filled with anticipation, and precise coordination and mindfulness would be essential for this important moment. Invoking the blessings of the three jewels and three roots, Rinpoche directed the entire process and after a few minutes, with all those gathered acting as one body under the command of the guru, the Buddha Shakyamuni was seated on the central throne. The remaining statues then followed one by one and by the next day all five had been placed on their respective thrones.

Over the coming days, everything was stored and covered for the winter so that the remaining construction work on the temple can continue.  The statues, now filled during this auspicious astrological time, will again be uncovered in the coming year, when the formal consecration takes place.

Led by Rinpoche and Jetsunla, Mindrol Gatsal has come to fruition due to the countless streams of devotion, dedication, generosity, diligence, and exertion of so many.  In particular, Britton la has devoted years to overseeing, and without his care and diligence, it would not have been able to happen.  There are too many individuals to name who have been critical in bringing the project this far.  Like many streams joining to form a vast river, so many have contributed to this effort including the Mindrolling monks, the nuns of Samten Tse, and the Mindrolling International Sangha.  

As a sangha we are now looking forward to the consecration and official opening of Mindrol Gatsal this year.  To have everything ready, Rinpoche has set a fundraising goal of $250,000.  Rinpoche has said that the DANABOX group will stay open so we can all join in this wonderful undertaking together.  If you have not joined the DANABOX WhatsApp group and would like to do so, you can join using the link below.

If you wish to simply make a donation using a card or PayPal, you can click the button here:

If you have any questions or wish to make a donation another way, please email the Lotus Garden Finance Office at donations@lotusgardens.org.

As a sangha we can look at what has been accomplished together and rejoice that through the blessings of the Gurus and the effort of the sangha, something so unequivocally good is being created in this world where ignorance and negativity are rampant.  May Mindrol Gatsal be the authentic source of the vast river of wisdom, benefit, and happiness for beings, and may the entire sangha’s aspirations, efforts, and merit join with the ocean-like activities of the buddhas and bodhisattvas for the benefit of all beings.