Blessings for Longevity – Led by Drukpa Thuksey Rinpoche, monks, nuns, and lay followers from India and Nepal honored His Holiness the Dalai Lama with an Amitayus long-life prayer. His Holiness spoke on the importance of inner transformation, wisdom, and the flourishing of the Dharma in today’s world.
BY PC Bureau
In a gesture of deep reverence and spiritual devotion, monks and nuns from the Druk Sangag Choling Monastery in Darjeeling, India, and the Druk Amitabha Monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal, led by the esteemed Drukpa Thuksey Rinpoche, convened at the Tsuglagkhang (main temple) in Dharamshala on Wednesday to offer a traditional long life prayer to His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
According to a report in the Tibet Post, the elaborate ceremony, centered around an Amitayus ritual known as ‘One Life, One Vase,’ drew an assembly of approximately 5,000 individuals. This included around 400 monastics and lay practitioners from the Drukpa Kagyu tradition, alongside a diverse gathering of Tibetans, international visitors, and Indian devotees.
The prayer ceremony commenced with the resonant chanting of the ‘Prayer of the Three Continuums,’ led by a male and female chantmaster and underscored by the solemn rhythm of cymbals, horns, and drums. The spiritual ambiance was further enriched by the recitation of prayers beseeching a long life for the revered Lama, such as, “Please bless the Lama to live long; May the Lama live for 100 aeons,” and the inclusion of the sacred Seven-limb Prayer from the Samantabhadra Prayer.
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His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama attends a long life offering ceremony at Thekchen Choeling Tsuglakhang in Dharamshala, HP, India, on 2 April 2025. The ceremony is offered by Druk Sangag Choling Monastery, Darjeeling, and Druk Amitabha Monastery, Kathmandu. pic.twitter.com/9I3sf7TwrY
— Tibet.Net (@CTA_TibetdotNet) April 2, 2025
The Tibet Post detailed the traditional offerings made to His Holiness. Thuksey Rinpoché, accompanied by Tulku Sangyé Dorjé and Gyarawa Rinpoché, presented a significant mandala offering. This was followed by symbolic representations of the Buddha’s body, speech, and mind, including sacred implements like the vajra, bell, damaru, and phurba. A procession of individuals then reverently passed before His Holiness, bearing auspicious symbols and gifts such as books, fabric, and grain. The ceremony culminated with Thuksey Rinpoché’s presentation of the
Eight Auspicious Substances, followed by the offering of long-life pills and the nectar of longevity.
Following the prayer rituals, His Holiness the Dalai Lama addressed the assembled devotees. “Today, members of the Drukpa Kagyu have offered this Long-life Offering. As I was on my way here I felt glad and curiously elated to be attending this ceremony. You have been doing well serving the Buddhadharma so I felt happy to be here today,” His Holiness remarked.
འབྲུག་གསང་སྔགས་ཆོས་གླིང་དང་འབྲུག་ཨ་མི་ཏ་བྷ་བཙུན་དགོན་གདན་ས་གཉིས་ནས་༸གོང་ས་མཆོག་ལ་བརྟན་བཞུགས་བསྟར་འབུལ་ཞུས་པ།
His Holiness the Dalai Lama attended a long life offering (Tenshug) by Drukpa Kagyu monastic community pic.twitter.com/vXGtuzugq1— Voice Of Tibet (@VOT_Tibetan) April 2, 2025
He then elucidated the essence of Dharma practice, emphasizing inner realization over external displays. “When we pray for the Dharma to flourish, it’s not about building monasteries and temples, it’s about our own practice, about gaining confidence in our practice. Practice isn’t about external developments. It involves studying the content of the Three Baskets, the Three Collections of Teachings, and the realization of that is what we mean by flourishing of the Dharma.”
His Holiness underscored the importance of rigorous study, debate, and logical inquiry in the pursuit of wisdom, drawing from his own extensive scholarly journey. He encouraged practitioners to engage deeply with the teachings to cultivate inner peace and happiness. He also highlighted the transformative power of cultivating bodhichitta and understanding emptiness in overcoming life’s difficulties.
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Furthermore, His Holiness spoke on the enduring legacy of the Buddha’s teachings and their relevance in the modern world, particularly in dialogue with science. He encouraged followers to study the mind and emotions, drawing parallels with the harmonious early Sangha.
Sharing his personal morning practice of meditating on bodhichitta and emptiness, His Holiness spoke of the peace and clarity it brings. He also emphasized the value of sharing practical wisdom for cultivating peace of mind in the present life, a message appreciated by many, including modern scientists.
Concluding his address, His Holiness expressed his gratitude to the Drukpa Kagyu community for their heartfelt prayers. “I thank the Drukpa Kagyu for offering these prayers for my long life. I do my best with a sincere heart to benefit others. Of course, when we make prayers, with a sincere heart and dedication to the well-being of others, they will bear fruit,” he affirmed.
