“Friends, the Buddhist world has been cast into darkness. Tibetan Buddhism has lost, in this life, one of its greatest torchbearers and masters, His Holiness Kunzig Shamar Rinpoche. The Karma Kagyü tradition has lost a supreme leader, and one of our lineage holders. And I have lost my teacher, my personal spiritual father”
Thaye Dorje, the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, in a recorded message from the
Karmapa International Buddhist Institute in New Delhi in June 2014.
In the early morning of June 11, at his main European seat in Renchen-Ulm, Germany, the 14th Shamarpa, Mipham Chökyi Lodrö, passed away at age sixty-two from heart failure, leaving his innumerable disciples across the world in deep shock. He had just completed several days of teachings.
Upon his passing, his mind entered the post-mortem meditation state known as tukdam. Two days later, on the auspicious full moon day of Saga Dawa, Shamar Rinpoche left this state, showing all the signs of Buddhahood. Many Rinpoches, lamas and practitioners from across the world joined in prayers and practices at the Renchen cemetery hall in the presence of his kudung, an honorific term designating the remains of an accomplished teacher.
In his message on the day of Shamar Rinpoché’s passing, the Gyalwa Karmapa wrote:
Even the greatest beings, including Lord Buddha himself, pass away. The impermanence of life is among the core teachings and message of the Buddha dharma. […] His Holiness Shamar Rinpoche was and continues to be our teacher, and his aspirations and blessings will remain with us always. […] We must ask for his return, in order to benefit and guide us all towards enlightenment.
The Gyalwa Karmapa then travelled to Germany to accompany Shamar Rinpoche’s remains to India—Delhi and Kalimpong, the Kingdom of Bhutan and Nepal, over the course of forty-nine days of mourning, before his cremation in Kathmandu on July 31 (to be covered in our July retrospective).
In his final teaching given just a few days prior to his passing at Renchen-Ulm, Shamar Rinpoche affirmed:
You don’t need to be afraid of death if you know how to practice in death.
Counselling grieving disciples, the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa says :
And so it is in life. As long as we focus on our practice, stay true to our core, our Inner Wealth, our innate values of compassion and wisdom, there is no need to be afraid. For there is a great teaching in Shamar Rinpoche’s passing. The teaching of impermanence. The lesson that all beings, even the Buddha himself, must pass. Friends, it is very important that as practitioners we are not led by emotion. Therefore, this is a time for wisdom, a time for responsibility. Right now, our focus must be on practice.
His Holiness assured his disciples that:
As a superior Bodhisattva, Shamar Rinpoche will be reborn due to the power of his compassion for all beings, and his prayers to benefit others. May we all pray and meditate together for the benefit of all beings, bound together by loving kindness and compassion.
In Audacity and Tradition[1], a tribute to the 14th Shamarpa, Karma Trinlay Rinpoche, recalls that long before his death, Shamar Rinpoche told many of his disciples that he would not live very long and was going to leave us soon, while at the same time speaking about many projects.
In retrospect, this now appears to me like his final will, his last instructions on what he wanted us to accomplish. This was his way of skillfully associating his disciples to the great merit of his vast awakened activity. […] Shamar Rinpoche has shown us how the meaning of life is found through cultivating bodhicitta. His own practice of this should inspire us all to emulate his example.
In his last interview, given at Dhagpo Kagyu Ling two weeks before his parinirvana, Künzig Shamar Rinpoche gave us a prescient lesson on impermanence.
Everything, everything is impermanent. Nothing is permanent, you should be aware of it.
Therefore, you should not be surprised when you see that something changes.
On October 20, 2019, Trinley Thaye Dorje and Ogyen Trinley Dorje issued a Joint Long Life Prayer for Kunzig Shamar Rinpoche’s reincarnation.
In the dharma expanse, the broad sky
of unchanging bliss and emptiness,
She grants the glory of life,
the pure essence of peace and existence,
Through the display of the unceasing
magical net.
May the Bhagavati Tara Wish-Fulfilling Wheel
grant auspiciousness!
You possess the trove of secrets
of body, speech, and mind
Of the Karmapa, who embodies
the activity of all victors.
You are the nirmanakaya
Mipham Gargyi Wangchuk,
The teacher and student inseparable –
may you live long!
May the pith instructions of the true lineage
of realization flow into your mind.
May you be rich in the ocean of qualities
of both study and practice.
May you ripen and liberate beings
who see, hear, or remember you.
May you live long as the guru,
meaningful to all who make a connection.
May I, in this birth and in all my lives,
Follow the Karmapa and his heart sons inseparably,
Accomplish all my intentions according to the dharma,
And ultimately merge my mind with theirs as one.
Like a swiftly approaching sunrise, the reincarnation of the all-knowing holder of the Red Crown, Mipham Chökyi Lodrö, is soon to appear. With the fervent aspiration that he may live long, that his activity may flourish, and that by the power of this, the teachings of the Practice Lineage of the Karma Kamtsang may be united, the two of us, known as Ogyen Trinley and Thaye Dorje, have written this prayer together. We have concluded it with the true words of Gyalwang Mikyö Dorje adorning it as the final stanza. May this work aid in spreading the teachings and bringing happiness to beings, and may the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas make it so.
Written in Europe on the twenty-second day of the eighth Tibetan month of the female Year of the Pig, October 20, 2019.
[1] Karma Trinlay Rinpoche. Audacity and Tradition : Shamar Rinpoche. Portrait of a Master of our Time. Rabsel Publications. La Remuée. 2019
These photos come from our archives or were collected as part of the research for Dhagpo Kagyu Ling’s 50th anniversary. We have not been able to identify all the authors. The use of these photos is solely for informational purposes within the context of Dhagpo Kagyu Ling’s 50th anniversary celebration. Their use is limited to this event and our website and is not for commercial purposes.
Event
To commemorate this event, we will gather for a day of practice in the Temple, followed by a Talk on the life of Künzig Shamar Rinpoché given by Trinlay Rinpoche in the Institute. It will be streamed online and translated into several languages.
These photos come from our archives or were collected as part of the research for Dhagpo Kagyu Ling’s 50th anniversary. We have not been able to identify all the authors. The use of these photos is solely for informational purposes within the context of Dhagpo Kagyu Ling’s 50th anniversary celebration. Their use is limited to this event and our website and is not for commercial purposes.