PART 10: BARDO PRAYER AND BIOGRAPHY OF GYALWANG KUNGA PALJOR

The Bardo Prayer was composed by Gyalwang Kunga Paljor, the Second Gyalwang Drukpa. Here is a short bio of Gyalwang Kunga Paljor.

May the merit accumulated through this practice benefit all sentient beings; May all sentient beings have the opportunity to practice diligently to be able to swiftly go through the stages of the bardo between death and rebirth and be born in the Pureland of Buddha Amitabha.

Gyalwang Kunga Paljor, the Second Gyalwang Drukpa
Gyalwang (Je) Kunga Paljor was born in 1428 to Yab (father) Sherab Zangpo, the 12th Throne Holder of Ralung and Yuenmo (mother) Kunga Dzom. His birth took place in the Gya lineage of Ralung, more than two centuries after the passing away of the first Gyalwang Drukpa Tshangpa Gyare.

Gyalwang Kunga Paljor was known for his attainment of philosophy, sanskrit and translation skills. From a very young age, Gyalwang Kunga Paljor was known for his ability to learn and understand the mainstream scriptural traditions (གཞུང་ལུགས). He also received Drukpa lineage teachings from his father at a very young age and was recognized as the 2nd reincarnation of Tsangpa Gyare Yeshe Dorji at the age of eight in 1436. He was then enthroned as the 13th abbot of Druk Ralung in the same year and was said that numerous auspicious signs occurred during the enthronement. He gave a teaching on the condensed version of the Hevajra tantra (two segments -བརྟག་གཉིས) to the gathering at his enthronement.
Gyalwang Kunga Paljor received various teachings and vows from many great masters. He received his novice vow and teachings of Pratimoksha (personal liberation) sutra on aspiration toward supreme enlightenment (janghub sem ked) and Rechungpa’s advice on oral transmission from Khenpo Arhat (Drachompa) Gangchen Kunga Pel. He later received Bikshu vow from Dondrup Pel, principal of Jogdan Monastery. He also received teachings on the doctrines of Maitreya (བྱམས་ཆོས) and Kadampa teachings from Ngarigpa Yonten Singye, and Taklung teachings from Taklung Ngawang Drakpa.

After his father passed away in 1438, Je Kunga Paljor took Thrulsik Namkhai Naljor as his Root Guru from whom he received teachings of Six Yogas of Naropa (naro choe druk), the Equal Taste of Elements (jungwa ro yom) and Mahamudra (chagjachenpo) which he accomplished.
Amongst many enlightened activities of visiting auspicious sites and masters, Gyalwang Kuenga Paljor’s visit to Lam Ngoktoe Jangchub Pel was one of the most significant. Lam Ngoktoe Jangchub Pel granted Gyalwang Kunga Paljor the totality of the articles transmitted in the lineage of Ngok and offered him the Six Ornaments and the initiation vase of Lama Ngok, amongst other treasures. By proclaiming him the holder of his articles, he finally declared: “The Dharma returns in the hands of its Soverreign!” and he then announced that the Victorious Dragon was the incarnation of Lord Naropa. Gyalwang Kunga Paljor also met Penchen Ngagi Rinchen from whom he received teaching on chedrel gi kor sum and did the practice. It is said that Gyalwang Kunga Paljor was very thankful to Penchen Ngagi Rinchen for clearing all his doubts on the practice.

He not only received teachings from the Drukpa lineage tradition, but also received teachings from the Lams of Nyingma, Gelug and Shakya which he practiced and realized successfully.

Gyalwang Kunga Paljor had a vision in which Gampopa himself conferred the supreme authority upon him as the chief of Gampopa’s order. His outstanding disciples were the famous Three Divine Madmen of Tibet, Drukpa Kunley, Unyon and Tsangnyon, as well as yogi Thangthong Gyalpo.

Gyalwang Kunga Paljor passed into parinirvana at the age of 49 in 1476 with tremendously auspicious signs such as appearance of status, relic pills and Avalokiteshvara six mantras from his body.

[Sridevi.]

I lost my son 31 January 2024.please pray for him.

[DidzYbanez]

I had a very weird experience with this prayer. I am a Catholic who turned Buddhist in August 2018. My grandmother died last November 2021. I wasn’t there when she was dying on her death bed, in a hospital, because I live in a different city which takes about an hour flight and an hour and 30 mins of car ride away. Since she was a Catholic Christian, as part of Catholic traditions we had her wake (also known as vigil) in a funeral home for 5 days. During those days, I came to the wake in the afternoon and stayed there until around 8 or 9 PM. During the afternoons, we don’t get a lot of visits from friends and relatives, and that is a perfect opportunity for me to listen (using a headset) and almost silently recite the bardo prayer, aside from also telling her this prayer: “'Grandma, now you are dead, you have left your body and entered the bardo of death. You cannot return; do not attempt to go back; go forward. Today such and such will happen. There will be appearances, vivid lights, sounds. Do not fear. They cannot harm you. They are projections of your mind. See them for what they are and go towards the bright light. Merge with the bright light; it is your enlightened mind.' On the third day of doing so, suddenly a beetle came inside the funeral home, it was circling the coffin, and it kept on crashing itself to it as if it wanted to go inside. I just recited the same prayer, and after a moment, the beetle flew going outside. For 49 days, I recited the same prayer and offered food and placed them where the wild animals can get to it, and another weird experience happened, on the 49th day, I dreamed of her, she was on a stage playing the piano (she was also a pianist) in front of so many audiences. In my dream, I know that she was already dead, so I just watched her from a distance at her back, and she turned her head towards me and she just smiled. The experience that I had gave me such joy/happiness, that based on my beliefs, she is now on a better place, and that she may have seen the light.

[SonamPhuntsho-il]

བླ་མ་ལ་སྐྱབས་སུ་མཆིའོ།། 🙏🙏🙏

May the noble and compassionate heart of our revered lama shine brightly like the full moon, illuminating the path of wisdom and compassion for all beings.
May your life be long and free from all obstacles, so that your teachings may continue to guide us on the path of enlightenment.
May your wisdom be boundless, like the vast ocean, and may your compassion be as infinite as the sky.

May the blessings of all the Buddhas, bodhisattvas, and spiritual protectors surround you, empowering you to spread the Dharma and bring peace to the world.
May you remain in perfect health and live for many years, continuing to lead us with your profound teachings and compassionate example.

May your efforts to dispel suffering and guide beings toward liberation.

May the teachings of the Dharma, which you so selflessly share, reach countless beings and bring them the peace and wisdom that lead to ultimate liberation.

With deep respect and devotion, we offer our prayers for your long life and the continued flourishing of your sacred work.

This prayer can be recited in gratitude for the lama's presence and to support their long life and ongoing spiritual influence.❤❤❤

[jigmetchosphel]

May this prayer bless all the death animals 🙏🙏🙏 and human🙏🙏🙏

[gautamtamang]

Listen this monlam as much as you can when alive.This monlam, earnest prayer certainly help the deceased on his or her Bardo dangerous journey to reach Dewachen and earn massive merit by recitors.

[lhakpabhuti]

Thank you Rinpochay la and team member .who made this Bardo Monlam available for everyone.on our finger tips. English translation is brilliant idea.Passing away my beloved father yesterday on 04/15/2022 made me look for bardo monlam. I play this monlam for all sentient beings.

[Tsechen]

Play this for those deceased, they will need guiding in Bardo state ( intermediate state )

[numbernine]

Yes. So peaceful, soothing. I just hope all of us will eventually understand it with our soul and.. smile.

[charlottematshikanawezi]

Je vous suis très reconnaissante d'avoir pris la peine de nous mettre une traduction...c'est tellement beau que j'en ai versé quelques larmes, touché en plein cœur❤️🙏🕊️

[ladakhi_girl]

Chaktsal tsava lama khen nyrang jal way monlam his holiness galwang dokhampa khen tseva Lama khen 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

[Ugez]

When d light dims while visual cease but photons remain in the subtle mind for a while before the soul depart from body n to the next form of life

[kajimanyonjan]

Tashi Dhele Dhokhamba Rinpoche Khenno Om Ah Hung Bajra Guru Padma Siddhi Hung

[makalichamundakaithal]

Thanks a million times for sharing this
I was searching for

[sonamlamo]

Thank you for this enlightening video, gives peace to my soul🙏🙏
I have this request if the video could be a little slower for us to keep up with😅

Chak tsal lama Khen 🙏🙏