Tergar Shrine Hall veranda
1 March 2025
Each year, if Losar falls during the Arya Kshema Winter Gathering, nuns from Palmo Drubdey Chӧkyi Dingkhang, the late Khenpo Tsultrim Gyamtso’s nunnery in Bhutan, perform this ritual for the protector Sangharāma. Because Sangharāma is a mundane protector, the ritual cannot be performed in a sacred space so it is performed on the veranda outside the main entrance to Tergar Monastery Shrine Hall. This ritual, which used to be performed annually at Tsurphu Monastery in Tibet, was revived by the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa, who composed the melodies which the nuns sing. The Karmapa’s original compilation contains sections in Mandarin Chinese as well as Tibetan, but the nuns perform the ritual solely in Tibetan.
In the afternoon, thirty nuns wearing full ceremonial dress gathered either side of the altar bearing a statue of Sangharāma. The beat of a Chinese drum provided the rhythm, and the harmonies were punctuated by the clash of cymbals, and the ringing of a handbell.
In the final section of the puja, which focuses on the long-life prayer for the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa composed by the previous Bokar Rinpoche, multiple Chinese firecrackers were set off for auspiciousness!
For more information on Sangharama:
https://www.aryakshema.com/index.php/en/category-lists/en-articles/8th-arya-kshema/ritual-offering-to-the-tsurphu-protector-sangharama
https://kagyumonlam.org/en/component/content/article/losar-day-three-the-sangharama-ritual?catid=14&Itemid=111
You can watch the full ritual with both Chinese and Tibetan at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbFV8L8FANM
