From February 17 to 23, 2024, the Nagarjuna Cultural Center organized a pilgrimage trip to Sri Lanka for nearly 100 fellow Buddhist practitioners. The itinerary included two significant locations: Adam's Peak, a sacred mountain revered as the origin of Tantric teachings by Buddhists, and the Temple of the Tooth, a Buddhist temple in Kandy known to house a relic of the Buddha.
Adam's Peak
Adam's Peak, known as Mount Malaya in Tibetan, is considered the birthplace of Tantrayana. In The Seven Chapter Prayer of the Guru Rinpoche, there is a verse that says: On the blazing meteorite summit of Mount Malaya wrathfully liberating Mara and Matram Rudra and entering into union with the host of rakshasis, sprung from the Secret Mantra Doctrine, to the very one who will be tamed I prayand to the Lotus-Born Lord of Uddiyana I pray.
It is said that when the Buddha was about to pass into parinirvana, he made a prophecy. He foretold that Vajrapani, the embodiment of the Buddhas' power and the holder of Tantrayana, would descend upon Mount Malaya. There, Vajrapani would personally bestow the Tantric teachings to five wise individuals who would be a good fit for studying and practicing them.
Additionally, this place is also considered to be where the Hayagriva transmitted Tantric teachings.
Not only that, according to some Terma teachings (concealed treasure), this place is also called the Land of Rakshasas. Here lies the Noble Copper-Colored Mountain, revered as the pure land of Guru Rinpoche.
To make most of our pilgrimage, at the foot of Adam’s Peak, our fellow pilgrims are gathering around our Dharma teacher and chant The King of Aspiration Prayers and The Self-Radiance of Indestructible Awareness and Emptiness: An Aspiration towards the Meaning of the Indivisible Ground, Path and Fruition of the Great Perfection Manjusri.
The Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic
The Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic is in Kanty city, Sri Lanka. It is a world-renowned place of worship, where the left Canine tooth of Gautama Buddha is enshrined. The temple carries a lot of value to Buddhists all over the world also has immense cultural value.
In “Best foot forward: a pilgrim’s guide to the sacred sites of the Buddha,” Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse said as Buddhist practitioners, the practice of remembering the Buddha isn’t merely an opportunity to daydream about our teacher. To remember the Buddha is to think about every one of his teachings, because Buddha isn’t just the teacher, Buddha is the teaching. The important thing about pilgrimage is to help us remember all the Buddha’s teachings.
Just before the Buddha passed into parinirvana, his closest disciples asked him, “As Buddhists, how should we describe you to other people? What should we say about you?” Buddha responded: You must tell the world that an ordinary person, Siddhartha, came to this earth. He achieved enlightenment and then taught the path to enlightenment. After that, he didn’t become immortal, but instead he passed into parinirvana. He made four statements just before he passed into parinirvana.
1. Although sentient beings are defiled and therefore ordinary, we all have buddha nature.
2. Our defilements are not us; our hang-ups and conditioning are not our true nature and are therefore removable, which means we can all become
buddhas.
3. A path exists that shows us how to remove our defilements and attain enlightenment.
4. By following that path, we will attain liberation from all extremes.
To make the most of our pilgrimage to the Temple of the Tooth Relic, before entering, we gathered around our Dharma teacher and chanted The King of Aspiration Prayers and The Self-Radiance of Indestructible Awareness and Emptiness: An Aspiration towards the Meaning of the Indivisible Ground, Path and Fruition of the Great Perfection Manjusri. After that, we carried out a 30-minute long sitting meditation.
