Drikung logo

[kalden yungdrung]

Tashi delek DW members,

Below the explanation of the Drikung Logo.


Best wishes
KY

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By:
The Glorious Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang Konchok Tenzin Kunzang Thinle Lhundrub,
this was composed on the 15th of January 1981
@ Yungdrung Tharpa Ling monastery in Ladakh.

Drikung logo.jpg (226.1 KiB) Viewed 2280 times

The Outer Meaning:
- The sun and moon symbolize the Physician of Dagpo and Rechungpa, the sun-and moon-like heart sons of the Great Jetsun Milarepa, the crown jewel of the Practice Lineage in the Land of Snow; it is symbolized that the sun-and moon-like Kagyud gurus bless one's mind.

The syllable Hung in the center of the logo symbolizes the seal of the Drigung Kyura clan.
It is popularly known that this seal, which is the syllable Hung, was among the many divine substances that descended with Kyura Namchen Karpo, the trailblazer of the Kyura clan, when he was dropped onto earth from heaven by the gods.

Until today, the syllable Hung has been the royal seal of the Drigung lineage.
As legend goes, people who knew its great significance considered even ordinary documents as a protection Chakra if it had the Hung seal on it.
They believed that the seal was able to dispel the harms and curses caused by gods, ghosts, demons, obstructers, enemies, and dacoits, and always kept the sealed documents close to their bodies.

For this purpose the hung became designed as a seal.

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Inner Meaning:

- The white moon is Achi Chokyi Drolma in essence, the Dharma protectress of the Drigung Kaygud Lineage.
- The deep blue Hung Syllable symbolizes Mahakala, the Lord of Primordial Wisdom.
- The red sun symbolizes Dharmapala Tseumar.
- The three of them together symbolize that Achi, Mahakala, and Dharmapala protect the Buddha-dharma.

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Secret Meaning:

- On the moon-seat of bodhicitta, the blue Hung syllable symbolizes Chakrasamvara's essence, which is the “aspect of clarity” as skilful means.
- The red sun symbolizes Vajrayogini's essence, which is the “aspect of emptiness” as wisdom.
- The two together symbolize the co-emergent father and mother, the union of skilful means and wisdom, which is the essence of Sambhogakaya form.

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The Absolute Meaning

The blue Hung syllable symbolizes the minds of the Buddhas of the three times. It has the nature of space, which is blue, clear, unceasing, empty, and brilliant.
In essence it is the Dharmakaya, the nature of reality-as-it-is, which is beyond the scope of words, thoughts, and expressions.

- The circle [at the top of the syllable] symbolizes Akshobya and the dharmadhatu wisdom.
- The crescent moon symbolizes Vairocana and the mirror-like wisdom.
- The top symbolizes Ratnasambhava and the equality wisdom.
- The letter HA symbolizes Amitabha and the discriminating wisdom.
- The Aa and U symbolize Amoghasiddhi and the activity accomplishing wisdom.
- Thus the syllable Hung in essence represents the five Buddha families.

Disguised as a Hung syllable
is the holder of the five primordial wisdoms.
By the power of experiencing the unification,
of the generation and completion stages,
May I accomplish the state of Vajradhara in this very life.

[Loren Enders]

The Mani man

[meepmeep]

I have a small moon tattoo on my back which needs to be corrected. I had thought to cover it with this symbol as I've taken refuge in the drikung tradition, but would this disrespectful?

[Palzang Jangchub]

meepmeep, attitudes on tattoos vary widely among Tibetans and serious practitioners alike, so there aren't many hard and fast rules. One prominent Sakyapa lama had tattoos on his hands prior to leaving Tibet during the mass exodus. Most that I know who have Dharma ink are Western practitioners, though. When I asked in the past about getting something Dharma-related inked on me, opinions of my lamas ran the gamut from "It's not necessary," to "Do 1 million mantras instead," to "It's fine if you have the right intention." Two of those quotes are specifically from Drikung lamas, and you can PM me if you'd like to know who said what. A translator friend of mine told me it would attract demons and obstructers who like going after Dharma practitioners. The younger Tibetans I hung out with in McLeod Ganj seemed to be fine with it for the most part, and there are plenty of tattoo parlors there run by Tibetans. On the flip-side, a friendly Gelukpa monk frowned upon it, saying that regular Tibetan words were fine, but that Dharma-related words and symbols were a no-no since you do impure things with your body.

In the end, you have to weigh the options for yourself, and decide what you think is best having considered all angles. Ask the lama(s) you trust most, whether they be Tibetan or Westerners, as you wouldn't want them to look down on you for having such ink. The responses you get will no doubt vary from the ones I got, as I was asking hypotheticals about getting totally new ink. Mention that you're looking to turn a non-Dharmic tattoo already on your body into a Dharmic one. And look into the justifications behind the Thai monastic tradition of tattoos if you want to know the scriptural basis for Dharma ink, even though the symbol and your practice are Tibetan. Realizing that your body is just as impermanent as anything else, and that not using the ink to solidify your ego-clinging or your identity as a practitioner is important. Also, ink isn't a replacement for practice, but rather should serve as a reminder to do it. I personally experienced some of my most profound sessions of meditation and recitation while getting my arm inked, and believe that displaying the Dharma on one's body can be a great way to get others interested in it.

If you're located near Dharamshala, or will be visiting anytime soon, consider Snowlion Custom Tattoos, which is where I got mine done. Pasang was a thangka artist for 5 years before he turned to tattoos, and is a native Tibetan, so you know you'd be in good hands. You might even find my ink in the portfolio on his website, http://www.tibetantattoo.com/ or his Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/Snowlion-Custo ... 769693786/

Another great resource is calligrapher Tashi Mannox's website, https://www.inkessential.com/. Tashi is a westerner based in Scotland who was formerly a monk in the Karma Kagyu lineage for approximately 17 years, and he has a list of tattoo artists he's affiliated with that he trusts to ink his work. He's been in on the Tibetan tattoo trend for years, and advocates respectful spiritual art. On his 'Sacred Integrity' page, Tashi says:

Because mantras and sacred words are worthy of respect, there needs to be careful consideration where a mantra is placed on the body as a tattoo.
As ones body is ones own temple, the advice given is to place mantras and sacred words high up on the body and not below the waist line, not to place back-to-front or up-side-down.

Then there's also Jamyang Dorjee Chakrishar, master calligrapher and social worker, whose site is http://www.tibetancalligraphy.com/. I have both Jamyang and his son's personal emails, so PM me if you'd like to get in touch with either of them.

Lastly, I'll mention calligrapher Dorje Jampel. He's an up-and-coming artist based in Italy who's studied under both his lama and Tashi Mannox. His portfolio can be found at http://dorjejampel.daportfolio.com/, and his Facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/dorjejampel/.