Enthronement of the
42nd Sakya Trizin, His Holiness Ratna Vajra Rinpoche
Anne Wisman
Buddhistdoor Global | 2017-04-05 |
On
the 9 March, the 42nd Sakya Trizin was enthroned at the Sakya
monastery Magon Thubten Namgyal Ling in India. His Holiness Ratna
Vajra Rinpoche is the oldest son of the His Holiness the 41st Sakya
Trizin, and the first Sakya Trizin to be enthroned under the new
succession system announced in May 2014. The enthronement ceremony
was streamed live via Facebook.
The Sakya Trizin is the head of the Sakya School
of Tibetan Buddhism, which was founded in 1073 by Khön Konchok
Gyalpo, a member of the Tibetan noble family Khön, who established
a monastery in the region of Sakya (present-day Shigatse
Prefecture), Tibet. Leadership of the school has always remained in
the Khön family, who are said to descend from Gods of the Realm of
Clear Light that entered the human realm. Today, the Sakya School
is one of four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism.
Traditionally, the office of Sakya Trizin or
“Sakya Throne-holder” is held for life. Succession usually occurs
after the death of the previous Sakya Trizin, and candidates for
succession are drawn from the Khön family line. In 2014, however, a
new system, proposed by the former Sakya Trizin and agreed upon by
both the Phodrangs—the two palaces of the Sakya school; Dolma
Phodrang and Phuntsok Phodrang—was adopted, with the agreement of
His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. In its revised form, the tenure
of the Sakya Trizin lasts only three years, with the possibility
that an office holder may take office more than once in his
lifetime. Qualifications for the position include: “the complete
fulfillment of studies of all the basic courses of Rites and
Rituals of the Sakya; studies in all the major philosophies; having
received empowerments, reading transmissions, and pith
instructions; having studies the teachings of the ancestral Dharma
teachings of Lamdre Ts’ogshey and Lamdre Lobshey, along with other
important teachings and empowerments; and having accomplished the
basic recitation retreat on Hevajra and other important tutelary
deities.” (Official website of His Holiness the Sakya
Trizin)
Candidates for the position continue to be drawn
from Khön family descendants, and future office holders are already
in training. “The new system is based on the one used by the abbots
of Ngor Monastery, which is a part of the Sakya school. The great
master Dzongsar Khyentse Chökyi Lodrö [1893–1959] once suggested
that the Sakya Trizins should follow Ngor’s approach, and now they
will do that.” said Lama Migmar Tseten, Buddhist chaplain at
Harvard University and founder of the Sakya Center in Cambridge,
Massachusetts, in a 2015 interview. (Lion’s Roar)
His Holiness Ratna Vajra Rinpoche is the first
to be enthroned under this new system, having met all the
aforementioned requirements. Born on 19 November 1974, the
42-year-old Sakya Trizin is the 42nd in an unbroken lineage dating
back to 1073. His Holiness has been educated in the Sakya school
since birth by his father, the His Holiness the 41st Sakya Trizin,
and many other lineage masters. In 1998, he completed a kachupa
degree (equivalent to a bachelor's degree in Buddhist philosophy),
which he studied under Khenpo Ngawang Lekshey Kunga Rinpoche (also
known as Khenpo Migmar Tsering, 1955–99). In addition, he has
studied various esoteric and exoteric traditions and is, at
present, considered one of most qualified masters in the Sakya
school. In 2002, His Holiness Ratna Vajra Rinpoche married Her
Eminence Dagmo Kalden Dunkyi, selected via the age-old Sakya
tradition of holy divination. They have two daughters and a
son.
His father, the previous Sakya Trizin, Ngawang
Kunga Tegchen Palbar Trinley Samphel Wangyi Gyalpo, born in 1945 in
Tsedong, near Shigatse Prefecture, will continue to provide
guidance to his son in the years to come.