Karmapa
means "the one who carries out buddha-activity" or "the embodiment
of all the activities of the buddhas." In the Tibetan tradition,
great enlightened teachers are said to be able to consciously
arrange to be reborn as a teacher who can carry on the teachings of
a predecessor in a prior life. To date, the Karmapas have
incarnated in this way for seventeen lifetimes, and all have played
the most important role in preserving and propagating the Buddhist
teachings of Tibet.
Before the first Karmapa was born, both the historic Buddha Shakyamuni and the great tantric master of India, Guru Padmasambhava, had foretold the arrival of a Buddhist master who would be known as the Karmapa. Throughout the centuries, Karmapas have been the central figure in the continuation of Vajrayana Buddhism in general and the Kagyu lineage in particular, and have played a very important role in the preservation of the study and practice of Buddhism.
Birth and Early Years of the 17th Karmapa
In
1985 a male child was born into a nomad family in the Lhatok region
of Eastern Tibet. On the day of his birth, a cuckoo landed on the
tent in which he was born, and a mysterious conch-like sound was
heard by many throughout the valley where the child's family lived.
In Tibet, such events are considered auspicious signs of the birth
of an enlightened teacher.
The young nomad boy was called Apo Gaga. While his early years seemed, to his family, full of blessing, Apo Gaga did not talk of any connection to the Karmapas. However, in 1992, at the age of eight, he asked his family to move the location of their nomadic home to another valley, and told them to expect a visit from traveling monks. Soon after setting up their home in the new location, followers of the 16th Karmapa came to that valley in response to secret instructions given them by the 16th Karmapa, which were contained in his letter of prediction about his rebirth. The birth and the other details of Apo Gaga's life matched the predictions of the letter, and Apo Gaga was discovered to be the 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Drodul Trinley Dorje.
In addition to his letter of prediction, the 16th Karmapa wrote many poems, or songs, predicting that though he would leave his traditional main seat in Tsurphu, Tibet, he would soon return to Tsurphu again, that his root teacher would be His Eminence Tai Situ Rinpoche, and that he would study in India. After the death of the 16th Karmapa, it became clear that these predictions applied to his successor.
Furthermore, the 19th Century master Chogyur Lingpa made a number of predictions about the lives of the Karmapas, and for the 17th, Chogyur Lingpa's predictions matched the details of His Holiness's birth.
Since these predictions were to be fulfilled without recognition by any other master, it is traditionally said that the Karmapa is "self-recognized."
The Karmapa's Return To Tsurphu In Tibet, The Historic Seat Of The Karmapas
The 17th Karmapa did in fact return to Tolung Tsurphu Monastery in Central Tibet in 1992, where he was enthroned on September 27, 1992.
At Tsurphu, over 20,000 people assembled to witness the return of His Holiness Karmapa. The following morning, some 25,000 people filed before His Holiness to receive a personal blessing.
At Tsurphu, the Karmapa studied the Buddhist sciences of mind, learned ritual, and practiced sacred arts, such as dance. Each day he received hundreds of visitors from throughout Tibet and around the world. He eventually began to offer empowerments and participated in various rituals at the monastery. At the age of about 10, His Holiness recognized the rebirth of reincarnate teachers, including such eminent teachers as Pawo Rinpoche, Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche and the Dabzang Rinpoche.
While His Holiness was at Tsurphu, the monastery underwent extensive rebuilding to restore the temples, shrines, stupas, a shedra, and residences that had severely decayed and been neglected over the years, fulfilling one of the main duties of a Karmapa. As the years went by, however, His Holiness sought to receive the empowerments and transmissions of the lineage, but was unable to do so fully because many of the Kagyu lineage teachers remained in India. To fulfill his spiritual duty, he and a handful of attendants left Tibet for India.
Karmapa's Journey to India
After months of
careful planning, on December 28, the fourteen-year-old Karmapa
pretended to enter into a solitary retreat, and instead, donned
civilian garb and slipped out a window. Leaving Tsurphu Monastery
with a handful of attendants, he began a daring
journey by car, foot, horseback, helicopter, train and taxi, a
heroic journey which was to become the stuff of headlines
throughout the world. On January 5, 2000 he arrived, to the the
great surprise and overwhelming joy of the world, in Dharamsala,
India, where he was met by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. He
received refugee status from the government of India in 2001.
From 2000 through 2007, His Holiness continued to live near Dharamsala. He has been permitted by Indian governmental authorities to engage in tours to Buddhist sites in India, and annually traveled to Bodhgaya and Sarnath for important Kagyu ceremonies over which he presides. He has also travelled to Ladakh, Tibetan settlements in southern India, Calcutta and elsewhere in Himachal area. His Holiness still awaits permission from the Indian authorities to leave Dharamsala and return to Rumtek Monastery, the traditional seat of the Karmapas in India. In 2008, His Holiness received permission to travel to the United States to teach the dharma for his first time in the West.