Prerequisites: The Preparation Empowerment on Friday evening is required for the Main Empowerment on Saturday afternoon.

 

Commitments: 

1. You must take Zasep Tulku Rinpoche as your Vajra master and Guru.

2. Refuge vow

3. Bodhisattva vow

4. Tantric vow

5. Recite 6 session Guru Yoga sadhana every day for life.

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Excitement is in the air! Get ready to be part of something extraordinary at Gaden Choling. His Eminence Venerable Zasep Tulku Rinpoche will bestow the precious empowerment Thirteen Deity Vajrabairava-Yamantaka!

 

Yamantaka is the most wrathful form of Buddha. He is an emanation of Manjushri, the embodiment of the wisdom all the Buddhas. He is also known as Vajrabhairava. He is a fierce, buffalo headed meditational deity of Vajrayana Buddhism. He is the opponent of Yama the Lord of Death, which is why symbolically he has a buffalo face, thirty four arms and sixteen legs.

 

In the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism, he is one of the three principle meditational deities, those being: Yamantaka, Chakrasamvara and Guhyasamaja.

 

The lineage of Yamantaka was introduced by the great Mahasiddha Ra Lotsawa Dorje Drak (1016-1128?), and since then, the Yamantaka Tantra has been practiced in Tibet. He is the most popular Yidam deity in Tibet and Mongolia. Yamantaka practice is considered an auspicious and important practice for all Gelug lineage practitioners because Lama Je Tsongkhapa is the incarnation of Manjushri, who is the peaceful aspect of Yamantaka. Yamantaka practice is a non-dual Tantra so one could obtain the essence of realization of both father Tantra method and mother Tantra wisdom. Yamantaka practice is an advanced and Highest Yoga Tantric practice and the most powerful deity yoga that removes all aspects of the obstacles to Dharma practice in these times of degeneration.

 

Verses composed by masters of the Yamantaka sadhana:

 

As the wisdom-body of non-dual emptiness and bliss you are extraordinary and all pervasive

As the compassion extending equally to all, you are the father of all the victorious Buddhas.

As the non-dual sphere of all things, you are likewise mother of all Buddhas.

As a wisdom-being, you act as all the Buddhas’ sons.

I prostrate to you glorious Manjushri, in whom everything is complete

Although in the Dharmakaya there is neither attachment or anger, yet

In order to tame all harmful ones of the three realms, without an exception,

You display the form of the king of anger (Yamantaka) as a compassionate means.

I prostrate to you glorious Vajra Bhairava, Yamantaka.

 

13 Deity Yamantaka and Solitary Yamantaka are basically the same deity, but 13 Deity Yamantaka has a consort as Yab Yum. This practice has elaborate visualizations and the mantras of all 13 deities which makes it profound and powerful.

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When Venerable Zasep Tulku Rinpoche was only 10 years old he received 13 Deity Yamantaka empowerment at Sera monastery in Tibet in 1958 from his root Guru Kyabje Trijang Dorje Chang along with 8,000 monks including Rinpoche’s Geshes. Zasep Rinpoche did a 3 month Yamantaka retreat with his teacher Geshe Thubten Wangyal in the winter of 1964 in Dalhousie in India.

 

Zasep Rinpoche will offer 13 Deity Yamantaka Preparation Empowerment on July 25th at 6:30pm (Toronto time).

 

The Main Empowerment will be given on July 26th at 1pm (Toronto Time).