Kalachakra Bodhgaya Initiation.
Over the next four days, you will participate in the Kalachakra initiation – a profoundly rich experience where dance, monastic prayer and sacred relics intertwine in the build-up to one of the highest Buddhist ceremonies.
The initiation is a rite of passage for all monks, nuns, and pilgrims. The teachings will unveil the Kalachakra mandala and the kingdom of Shambala – the source of compassion, purification and peace. The Dalai Lama will offer instruction to draw all people on to the path of wisdom.
The initiation will be in three parts, with further explanation by Geshe Tsering in the evenings.
Part One: Rebirth
Experience ‘rebirth’ amongst thousands of Buddhist devotees.
Before the Dalai Lama commences the Kalachakra initiation, the Vajra Master must request permission from the gods, goddesses, and local spirits to use their home – the Kalachakra mandala.
During this first ritual, you will observe monks dressed in brocade tantric tiaras and bone jewellery performing sacred dances to connect with the energy of the Kalachakra deities.
Part Two: Entry – Being at One with the Mandala
You will participate in a pledge to free all beings from the cycle of duality. Monks will distribute red headbands to the devotees, who will place them across their foreheads.
The removal of the headbands represents the purification of our negativities and our entry into the mandala. Endowed with clear, compassionate motivation, you will be ready to receive the Kalachakra initiation.
Next you will participate in a meditation on the theme of the nature of ‘emptiness’, with a mirror symbolizing the purification of consciousness.
Part Three: Seven Kalachakra Initiations Analogous to Childhood Events
The Dalai Lama will conduct seven symbolic initiations, providing a full commentary on each of his movements and gestures.
- The Water Initiation symbolises the first bath given to a newborn baby by its mother, to purify the five bodily elements of earth, water, fire, wind and space, and transform them into deities. The Dalai Lama represents this by pouring water into a consecrated vessel.
- The Crown Initiation is associated with tying the hair on the top of a child’s head. The hair represents the thousand of the threads that binds us to duality, which we cut when taking monastic vows. By knotting the hair at the crown of the head, one is freed from ‘seizure’ and ‘appropriation’.
- The Silk Ribbon Initiation cleanses the psycho-physical defilements that circulate in our autonomic nervous system, which determines motor-neuro function of the joints and the act of walking.
- The Vajra and Bell Initiation symbolises a child’s acquisition of laughter and the ability to articulate sounds. It is linked to the enunciation of ideas via speech and is represented by the Dalai Lama’s ringing of bells.
- The Conduct Initiation corresponds to the teaching of a child as he/she discovers the world of the senses. It represents the realisation of emptiness.
- The Name Initiation symbolises a child’s naming ceremony, and purifies our faculties of action.
- The Permission Initiation corresponds to the lessons that a father teaches his child. The lessons we receive enable us to act appropriately. This final initiation empowers us to benefit others by teaching the Dharma, which in turn frees us from pain.
The ritual will conclude with a meditation on the theme of emptiness, as represented by a mirror – the symbol of purified consciousness.