The Successive Incarnations of the Shamarpas, the Red Hat Lama
The 4th Karmapa affirmed to the 2nd Shamarpa:
"You are the one manifestation, while I am the other. Therefore, the responsibility to maintain the continuity of the teachings of the Karma Kagyu lineage rests equally on you as it does on me."
The Karmapa 'Black Hat' Lineage and the Shamarpa 'Red Hat' Lineage
In the spiritual hierarchy of the Karma Kagyu School, the Shamarpa is second to the Gyalwa Karmapa. He is the emanation of Amitabha, the Buddha of Limitless Light; a living example of the appearance of Amitabha in our world in the form of a Mahabodhisattva. The Tibetan title of Shamar means 'the lama of the ruby-red crown', named after the replica of the Karmapa's own crown which he bestowed on the Shamarpa. The successive incarnations of the Shamarpas are also known as the 'Red Hat Karmapas'.
In the Bhadrakalpa Sutra, Buddha Shakyamuni prophesised; In future, a Mahabodhisattva with a ruby-red crown shall come to the suffering multitude, leading them out of their cyclic bewilderment and misery." In the Shamarpa, the Buddha's prediction was fulfilled. The activity of the Shamarpas as a successive incarnation line has been to preserve the entirety of the Buddha's legacy, especially the teachings coming from the great Indian mahasiddhas and Tibetan masters. Over centuries in the Kagyu lineage, the Karmapas and Shamarpas have reciprocally recognised each other, their relationship being that of a master and disciple.
His Holiness the late 14th Shamar Rinpoche, Mipham Chokyi Lodro
The 14th Shamarpa was born on the 27th October, 1952 in the Kingdom of Derge, Eastern Tibet. In 1956 he travelled with his brother, Jigme Rinpoche, to Tsurphu Monastery, the main seat of the Karmapas, where they stayed for two years. In the summer of 1956, at four years old, he revealed his identity as the Shamarpa by recognising old monks from Yangpachen Monastery, the ancestral seat of the Shamarpas. Later that year, the 16th Karmapa and his entourage, including Shamar Rinpoche and Jigme Rinpoche, travelled to Bodhgaya, India where they had been invited to participate in the 2,500th Buddha Jayanthi celebrations.
Having travelled for several months in India and Nepal, they returned to Tibet, visiting Yangpachen Monastery on the way. It was the first time in this incarnation that Shamar Rinpoche had set foot there. The monastery had been converted to the Gelugpa sect during the time of the Tibetan government's ban on the institution of the Shamarpas. The statues of the former Shamarpa incarnations remained, however it is said that their red hats had been replaced with yellow ones. Pointing to the statues, the young Shamar Rinpoche exclaimed, "This is me", and placed on his head a red hat that had rested in the lap of one of the statues. Much later in his life, Shamar Rinpoche would re-establish Yangpachen once again as a Karma Kagyu monastery, due to the strong wishes of the Gelugpa monks who resided there for it to become Karma Kagyu once again.
After the Communist Chinese invasion of Tibet in 1959, Shamar Rinpoche joined the Karmapa on his flight into exile, first crossing into Bhutan and then settling in the Kingdom of Sikkim at the invitation of the Chogyal. From the beginning of the 1960s, Shamar Rinpoche started his education and training at the old Rumtek Monastery established in the time of the 9th Karmapa. In the following years he received the complete teachings and transmissions of the Karma Kagyu School from the 16th Karmapa.
The reinstitution of the Shamarpas
On the 16th Karmapa's request, the 14th Dalai Lama had informally agreed to reinstitute the Shamarpas, and in 1958 in Tsurphu, the 16th Karmapa privately enthroned him. Known at that time only as 'Dorje Rinpoche', his identity still had to be concealed.
1964 marked the official lifting of the ban on the Shamarpas institution by the Tibetan Government in Exile. Shamar Rinpoche was officially enthroned and placed by the 16th Karmapa as a lineage holder on the highest position after himself. The 16th Karmapa considered the reinstatement of the Shamarpas after a ban of 170 years to be one of his main achievements. In the same way, following the death of the 16th Karmapa in 1981, Shamar Rinpoche stood as a single figure – for truth and against the overwhelming political might of great nations, to find the genuine incarnation of the 16th Karmapa and preserve the authentic Karma Kagyu Lineage.
In the same way, in conformity with the spiritual traditions of the lineage, he formally recognised Trinley Thaye Dorje as the 17th Karmapa, enthroning him in the Karmapa International Buddhist Institute (KIBI) in New Delhi in 1994. In the following years, he returned to Karmapa the entirety of the lineage transmission, fully training and empowering him.
Shamar Rinpoche's activities
Beneath the Red Crown there was indeed a great man. He was an exceptionally realised lama, able to display his activities on so many worldly levels.
Shamar Rinpoche was a great humanist and philanthropist. His book "Creating a Transparent Democracy" which lays out a framework for establishing a genuine democratic system of governance that promotes the welfare and prosperity of a population, was written from the motivation that someone might use its ideas to help a small country like Nepal. Rinpoche was not concerned with politics per se, but generally in the happiness and well-being of humankind at individual and societal levels.
Shamar Rinpoche really could be called a genius. His love of learning and constantly inquisitive mind endowed him with exceptional knowledge of the world. He was hugely respectful to academics and those who studied. His ability to explore, deeply analyse and reflect on everything, from culture, science, physics, history, and politics, combined with his deep intelligence, enabled him to connect all information he gathered in life to arrive at very particular, individual conclusions. His interest in all outer disciplines and inner emotional phenomena gave him great insight into the universe and people.
Rinpoche's concern for the happiness of others was not limited to humans, but also towards animals and the planet itself. He founded the Infinite Compassion Foundation to promote the humane treatment of animals raised for consumption of meat and other products such that they will not be forced to live and die in brutal conditions. Seeing animals caged in unpleasant conditions would have him to personally intervene to improve their conditions, and feeling the power of his compassion, sick animals in the wild would intuitively come to him for help.
As a teacher of Dharma, Rinpoche travelled extensively around the world to propagate the Dharma. In the mid-1990s, Rinpoche established a network of Bodhipachis centres in America, Europe and Asia.
Shamar Rinpoche was a fountain of knowledge and practice. His vision of Buddhism was vast and non-sectarian; he chose as his main emphases Mind Training (lojong), Mahamudra, Calm-Abiding meditation and classical Buddhist philosophy. He sought out and received the transmissions of Calm-Abiding and Insight meditation from all living masters of all Tibetan lineages. His teachings were most often associated with Mahamudra, which he expounded with unsurpassed mastery. His approach to Dharma was precise and scientific, and he practised exactly in the way he taught: setting an example of not simply believing, but analysing and testing the validity of the teachings for oneself.
On top of this, the immense power of his blessing could be experienced particularly through the initiations he gave, for example, into Amitabha, the Buddha of Limitless Light, whom he would manifest unmistakably in person, introducing to his fortunate students the timeless radiance of his realisation.
Rinpoche's passing
On 11th June 2014 our beloved teacher, the 14th Kunzig Shamar Rinpoche Mipham Chokyi Lodro, passed away in his cherished environment of Renchen Ulm, Germany, in the presence of his close family members and some of his closest students. The sudden loss to the world in general, to Buddhism in particular, and especially to his students, is profound and far-reaching.
Upon the tragic news of his master's passing, His Holiness Karmapa Thaye Dorje, writing from KIBI, evoked the Buddha's core teaching on impermanence, but also proclaimed that while Shamar Rinpoche's physical manifestation has left this world, his role as a teacher continues, and his aspirations and blessings will remain forever.
In the immediate aftermath of his death, sincere messages of condolence for Shamar Rinpoche's students and family, particularly for his brother Jigme Rinpoche, streamed forth from many eminent Buddhist figures with whom Shamar Rinpoche held a close bond. From Nepal, the lamas of Ka Nying Shedrup Ling Monastery, led by Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche, echoed the feelings of countless Dharma practitioners everywhere: "It is as though the blackness of night has suddenly swallowed up our world."
On the direction of Karmapa Trinley Thaye Dorje, hundreds of Karma Kagyu centres and monasteries worldwide commenced the practice of Amitabha, the Buddha of Limitless Light.
Last teaching
Shamar Rinpoche was a truth-holder, beyond any manipulation, and as such he could know everything. In full consciousness, with clarity and foresight, in the final teaching before his passing, he said, "You don't have to be afraid of death if you know how to practise in death."
Shamar Rinpoche's unique manifested qualities will be missed. In such degenerate times, we are rare and blessed to have met them, and to have understood for ourselves just how vast they were.
Finding the next incarnation of Shamarpa, H.H. the 15th Shamar Rinpoche
Like all previous Shamarpas, his next manifestation will be authenticated in accordance with the principle of reciprocal recognition, by the Karmapa that he himself recognised, i.e. H.H. the 17th Karmapa Trinley Thaye Dorje.
In the same way as the Shamarpa's recognition of Karmapa Trinley Thaye Dorje, this process will proceed as an internal, spiritual matter within the authentic Karma Kagyu Lineage. As such, it will not be influenced by third parties seeking to bring forth a candidate for political objectives.
On 27th October 2014, H.H. Karmapa announced that, in accordance with tradition, he has accepted requests from Jigme Rinpoche, Shamarpa's brother, as well as 700 Karma Kagyu Buddhist centres, monasteries and institutes around the world, to find the next rebirth.
Karmapa says,
"It is my solemn duty and responsibility alone to find the authentic incarnation of His Holiness Kunzig Shamar Rinpoche."
As part of his spiritual preparation to find the next Shamarpa, Karmapa will spend up to six months on retreat, each year for the next three years. He will also consult other great living masters; engage in intense Dharma (Buddhist) activities, including meditations and recitations. Historically, Karmapas and Shamarpas have also left each other clues, in the form of letters or oral instructions, about where the next incarnation will be found.
Karmapa says that the positive aspirations of Buddhists and others around the world will be helpful in the recognition process, and a 'Prayer for the Swift Rebirth of Shamar Rinpoche' has been posted on www.karmapa.org, for students to download and recite.
KKDSKL, 22nd May 2016
Installation Ceremony of His Holiness the late 14th Shamar Rinpoche's Relics Stupa
The 14th Kunzig Shamar Rinpoche, Mipham Chokyi Lodro passed away in Germany on 11th June 2014. His cremation ceremony was performed at SharMinub Monastery in Nepal on 31st July 2014. Many auspicious signs appeared during the cremation and many relics were found after the cremation.
Buddhists believe relics embody a Buddhist master's spiritual qualities of compassion and wisdom. They are also holy objects that are deliberately produced and left behind by the master after death. Therefore, paying respect and making offerings to the relics are like seeing and making offerings to the master himself.
KKDSKL received the sacred relics of H.H. the late 14th Shamar Rinpoche on 14th March 2015. These relics consist of bone relics, ash relics and pearl-like relics. They were offered to the centre by Venerable Jigme Rinpoche and personally delivered to the centre by Ven. Drubpon Nyegyan Rinpoche. These relics were then placed in a temporary stupa.
In the morning of 22nd May 2016, H.H. Karmapa will conduct the Relics Stupa Installation Ceremony of H.H. the late 14th Shamar Rinpoche. The relics of H.H. Shamarpa will be transferred from the temporary stupa to a new permanent stupa by H.H. Karmapa. The ceremony will then be followed by offerings and prayers to pay and wish for the swift rebirth of H.H. Shamarpa. So please come and join us in this special occasion to pay respect and make offerings to the relics of H.H. Shamarpa, also to pray for his swift return to guide us.
Deepen Your Connection
Email Us
info@karmakagyuds.com
Visit the Center
Karma Kagyu Dharma Society Kuala Lumpur
No 2, Lorong Jubilee off Jalan Loke Yew. 55200 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Call Us
Tel: +603 9222 1540
Fax: +603 9221 9810