In the year 2424...

M Machine, turned into Moloch, Fritz Lang's Metropolis

The Kālacakra Tantra belongs to the Unexcelled Yoga Tantra class, and is the Tantra of the deity Kālacakra, “Wheel of Time”. The Tantra has three subject matters: The Outer Wheel of Time, the Inner Wheel of Time, and the Other Wheel of Time. The Outer Wheel concerns the univers, with “the procession of the external solar and lunar days”. Astrology plays an important part. The Inner Wheel concerns the inner universe, the subtle yogic body with the inner channels, elements, and movements of the winds, and the mastery thereof. The Other Wheel of Time concerns the “initiations and paths of Shri Kalachakra, together with their results”.[1]

Śrī Kālacakra drew largely on the Kalki myths, purposely so according to Alexander Berzin[2]. The Tibetan translation of Kalki (or the reconstructed term “kulika”) is “rigs ldan”, which also happens to be the title of the various Kings of Shambala. The last Kalki will ride in on a white horse.

CT getting ready for 2424

“King Manjushri-yashas prophesied another barbaric invasion for the year 2424, when anti-spiritual forces will wage a galactic war of conquest and destruction not limited to this planet. He advised the people of that future era to unite in the same way as his own subjects. He also predicted that forces from Shambhala, led by the twenty-fifth Kalki ruler, would arrive at that time in flying ships to turn the tide of battle and defeat the invading hordes.” Berzin

The esoteric Kālacakra Tantra is said to have been taught to King Suchandra from Shambhala[3], at exactly the same spot and at the same time the Buddha taught the system of the Perfection of Wisdom. During the XIth century, it was gradually introduced into Tibet, through various lineages. The Jonang School specialized in the practice of the six Vajra Yogas, the Inner Wheel, until the government of the 5th Dalai Lama (1617–1682) outlawed the Jonang school in the 17th century. The Dalaï-lama’s always had a special interest in the Kālacakra Tantra (Other Wheel), and used to give its initiation to large audiences[4].

Kalou Rinpoché à Vincennes en 1981 (selon Kagyu Dzong)

The first one to give the Kālacakra initiation (Other Wheel) in the West (in Paris 1980[5]) was Kalu Rinpoché (1905–1990), an unofficial tulku of Jamgon Kongtrul the Great (1813–1899), who systematized the Kālacakra system of the Jonang School[6]. It is likely he did this on the request of Karmapa XVI (1924-1981). “In 1982, at the urging of the Sixteenth Gyalwang Karmapa, Kalu Rinpoche bestowed the complete Kalachakra initiation in New York City”[7]. The 3rd Jamgon Kongtrul (1954–1992) gave the initiation publicly in North America on at least one occasion (Toronto 1990).

“The Dalai Lama [ ] gave the Kālachakra initiation twice in the West, near Madison, Wisconsin, in 1981 to fifteen hundred persons; and in Rikon, Switzerland in 1985 to three thousand.” (Hopkins)

Leh, Ladakh 2014

The “Other Wheel” Kālacakra initiation seems to have been given in the West principally from 1980 until 1990. Initiations to big audiences have continued in Asia, including by the Dalaï-lama, but in the West it has been given more confidentiality in smaller scale settings. The Kālacakra buzz seems over for the moment. Trungpa Rinpoche (1939-1987), crowned as the King of Shambala (Sakyong) in 1982 by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche died in 1987, which makes it a short rule. His succession hasn’t been a success, and Trungpa’s son, Sakyong Mipham[8] has judicial problems. Big hopes had been invested in the Surmang Tulku by Karmapa XVI, Dilgo KR and others, as “the Padmasambhava of the West[9]”, and the “Earth protector” but to no avail.

So what exactly was the Kālacakra buzz? What was or is so special about this tantra ? Why is it no buzz anymore?

“We always hear that the Kalachakra empowerment is for world peace. Some people even choose Kalachakra over other anuttarayoga tantra systems because of this association. But what exactly is the connection between Kalachakra and peace, and why do so many people attend? Although empowerments for other tantras are intended for only a small number of disciples at a time, there is a historical tradition of conferring the Kalachakra initiation to large crowds of people.”

“According to the Kalachakra presentation of historical cycles, barbaric hordes periodically invade the civilized world and try to eliminate all possibilities for spiritual practice. A future invasion is predicted for the year 2424 of this common era, when it is said there will be another brutal world war. At that time help will come from Shambhala to defeat the barbarians. A new golden age will dawn, with everything conducive for spiritual practice, particularly of Kalachakra. All those who have previously received the Kalachakra initiation will be reborn at that time on the victorious side. The highest motivation for receiving the empowerment is to be able to practice the Kalachakra methods now in order to achieve enlightenment in this very lifetime. Nevertheless, people have traditionally flocked to the initiation with the motivation of planting karmic seeds to connect themselves with this future golden age so as to complete its practice then.” (Berzin)

Tibetans very much believe in establishing future connections through contacts with masters, rituals, etc. The simple fact of receiving the Kālacakra initiation creates an indestructible link between the Initiator and the initiates, with the deity Kālacakra, the kingdom of Shambala, its legendary messianic king and the World war preceding a golden age (“The Age of Aquarius” for some[10]). Giving the initiation to many Westerners is a way of enrolling them, in another life, in the World War[11] on the side of the legendary king. This king and his troops will end the war and install World peace, the sort of peace of the Pax Romana, Pax Shambala.

“The Dalai Lama may have found a more efficient technique for populating Shambhala and recruiting troops for the army of the twenty-fifth king, an army that will defeat the enemies of Buddhism and bring the utopia of Shambhala, hidden for so long beyond the Himalayas, to the world. It is the Dalai Lama’s prayer, he says, that he will someday give the Kālacakra initiation in Beijing.” Donald Lopez, Prisoners of Shangri-La

In 1989, the 14th Dalaï-lama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. He had expressed his ideas on Peace in a little booklet published by Wisdom Publications London : A Human Approach to World Peace (1984). At the end of the booklet two other works by the Dalaï-lama are presented, one being the Kalachakra Tantra, Rite of Initiation, translated in English by Jeffrey Hopkins, presented thus:

“This is the first detailed commentary and translation of a Highest Yoga Tantra initiation rite to be published in the West.

Of the hundreds of Buddhist tantras, this is one of the most important. In Tibet - where these esoteric teachings have been practised purely for a thousand years - and now in the West, the Kalachakra tantra has come to be especially associated with the Dalai Lama, one of the greatest Buddhist teachers alive today.” A Human Approach to World Peace

In 1985, the Dalaï-lama gave the Kālacakra Initiation in Rikon, Switzerland to three thousand people.
I was present at the first Kālacakra Initiation (1980) in Paris by Kalu Rinpoche. As a monk working at the publishing house (Yiga Tcheu Dzinn) of Kagyu-Ling (Kalu Rinpoche’s main center in France) I was involved in the preparation and the printing of the documentation around this initiation (a presentation booklet and the pecha of the short daily practice). The residing lamas had never practiced Kālacakra before and didn’t know much about its history. The publishing house had to do the research about the tantra, its origin, the prophecies concerning Shambala etc. For the ritual side a former Chant master (tib. dbu mdzad) from Pelpung Monastery in Tibet came over to teach the rituals. It was clear that at that time the Kālacakra Tantra wasn’t a common practice in Himalayan monasteries. It was not part either of the 3-year retreat program.

Building the subtle body, Inner Wheel Cycle (Metropolis)

The initiation and associated deity practice (daily sādhana, not the associated Inner Wheel cycle) seem to be specially handpicked mainly for a Western audience. First of all, to offer them the possibility to be reborn in the presence of the future King of Shambala and to fight on his side against the Barbarians (mleccha), and secondly by practicing Kālacakra, they would be able to evolve spiritually and achieve peace in themselves and contribute to World Peace. Many participated at the initiations, but those who would do the daily sādhana practice, were much fewer. Nonetheless, because of the spiritual link (tib. rten ‘brel), they will be on the right side of the great battle to come. The Dalaï-lama has enrolled in total 2,109,800 (I counted) initiates with his initiations (see the table at the end of Introduction to the Kalachakra on the website dalailama.com), ready to fight for World Peace in 2424 on the side of the King of Shambala.

Conceiving the Shambala Vision

While these initiations took place, another more concrete and immediate project was carried out on the American Continent around Chogyam Trungpa (CT), “the Padmasambhava of the West” (Karmapa XVI) and “a great tertön” (Dilgo KR). As the Padmasambhava of the West CT revealed the special teachings of the West, called the Shambala Vision: “enlightened society as not purely mythical, but as realizable by people of all faiths through practices of mindfulness/awareness, non-aggression, and sacred outlook.” And also Shambala boot camps (“Warrior Assembly”)

“At the first Kalapa Assembly in the fall of 1978, during one of our translation sessions with the Vidyadhara, Larry Mermelstein engaged him in an interesting discussion about the nature of the Shambhala texts he was presenting to us. When asked whether they were terma (“treasure teachings” hidden long ago to be discovered at an appropriate time in the future), he replied, “Yes, sort of.” When we asked whether we should include the terma mark to indicate terma in our translations, his response was, “Not yet; maybe later.” In fact, this did not come to pass until after his death, when Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche instructed us to include this in our future publications of these texts, and he confirmed with no hesitation that they were indeed authentic terma. When we asked the Vidyadhara whether these texts originated with Padmakara, the source of the vast majority of treasure teachings, at that time we didn’t know that other teachers also hid dharma as termas. So when Rinpoche replied that these texts were more likely from Gesar, we were understandably puzzled. But after a long pause Rinpoche added, “And of course Gesar was an emanation of Padmakara, so that should take care of things for you!” When we asked about what meaning Gesar had in terms of the Shambhala teachings, Rinpoche exclaimed: “Gesar is the vanguard of Shambhala.” (...in other contexts, the Vidyadhara indicated that the Shambhala terma had originated with the Rigden kings, Shiwa Ökar[12], or Gesar of Ling.)”

Adoration of the Loving Lady

Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche played a very important role in the making of tertön CT as the “King of Shambala”. He crowned him with the same ritual as he crowned the King of Bhutan, he declared CT’s termas to be “authentic termas” (see above), he defended CT’s Vajra Regent Thomas Rich, when he came under attack after the AIDS scandal and in the aftermath. Dilgo KR’s Yangsi, defends CT still now. The future general of the armies of Shambala, Dilgo KT, took all this quite seriously, judging by the witness statements of Dzongsar JKR and Orgyen Topgyal Rinpoche:

“On another trip to the United States, Trungpa Rinpoche came with hundreds of students to welcome Dilgo Khyentse in the airport near Boulder; the cars all carried flags right and left. Rinpoche stayed at Marpa House and gave a few empowerments and reading transmissions. The main ceremony during his stay was the enthronement of Trungpa Rinpoche as King of Shambhala, which was done with great pomp and grandeur at Dorje Dzong. Trungpa in return gave Dilgo Khyentse the rank and emblems of a general of Shambhala. Each of his attendants also got an official rank in the Shambhala army. When we returned to his room, Khyentse Rinpoche said, 'Attach my emblem to the cloth wrapper of my daily chant book:' After a few days it disappeared.” Brilliant Moon - The Autobiography of Dilgo Khyentse by Dilgo Khyentse, Ani Jinba etc. p.218

For Tibetan clercs the mythological and legendary figures Shambala and Gesar of Ling are a model for a contemporary enlightened society, there is no doubt about it.

“The [Shambala] teachings cover art, society, and politics and the goal of creating an enlightened society. This is thought of not only as a social and political process but a practice requiring individuals to develop an awareness of the basic goodness and inherent dignity of themselves, of others, and of the everyday details of the world around them. This is facilitated by cultivating gentleness and bravery.” Shambala Training Wikipedia

“The Dalai Lama, Kalu Rinpoche, and others have stated that the public exposition of this tantra is necessary in the current degenerate age. The initiation may be received simply as a blessing for the majority of those attending, however, many of the more qualified attendees do take the commitments and subsequently engage in the practice.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalachakra

How this initiation constitutes a “blessing” for those who receive it as such is clear for Tibetans : they will be fighting in the Shambala armies in their future lives in 2424.

Preparing for the Great Battle

But the project met some obstacles, because of the unavoidable forms of abuse of power inherent in the hierarchical setup of the whole project. The King of Shambala died in 1987, his grey eminence and future general died in 1991, Karmapa XVI already died in 1981. The authority of Trungpa’s regent, Thomas Rich, was challenged because of the scandal he caused and because of internal fights. Dilgo KR intervened[13] and asked all CT’s students to stand behind the Vajra Regent. CT’s son and successor as King of Shambala, Sakyong Mipham, had his own lot of scandals, which led to the reselling of assets of the organisation. So that part of the project is currently on hold. The Dalaï-lama continued to give the Kālacakra Initiation (the last one was in Bodhgaya in 2017). It’s unlikely he will travel around to give this initiation. What lama will become the next active initiator, to keep the project going? Jamgon Kongtrul IV (karma kagyu) is no longer a candidate. Young Kalu Rinpoche (shangpa), or Yangsi Bokar Rinpoche ?

Berzin: Introduction to the Kalachakra Initiation by Alexander Berzin, Dalai Lama
Hopkins: Kalachakra Tantra Rite of Initiation by Dalai Lama, Jeffrey Hopkins   

***

[1] Introduction to the Kalachakra, website of the Dalaï-lama.

[2] “In order to unite his people, King Manjushri-yashas followed Buddha’s example by using the language and metaphors of the audience he taught. Since the majority of his subjects were Hindu, he freely borrowed Hindu images, concepts and terminology. He styled himself and his descendants as Kalki rulers. Kalki is the tenth and final avatar or incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu who will come in the future as a messiah to fight in an apocalyptic war. In the Hindu purana literature, Kalki will be born in Shambhala, located in the mountains of present-day northern Uttar Pradesh, India. Perhaps Manjushri-yashas just borrowed the name Shambhala to refer to his kingdom and it was never actually called by that name. It hardly matters. The important point is that for achieving peaceful cooperation among people of different cultures and religions, it is unwise to try to force everyone to speak our own language, use our own cultural metaphors and convert to our own religion or political philosophy. The way to encourage others to be open-minded and receptive to the message of peace is to appeal to the specific aspects of their own culture, religion and political philosophy that naturally resonate with this aim.” Berzin

[3] “The Buddha gave the assembly the excellent Dharma-the worldly and transcendental initiations-and prophesied that they would obtain buddhahood, then he taught them the Paramadibuddha, the twelve thousand verse Kalachakra Basic Tantra. King Suchandra wrote it down in a volume and miraculously returned to Shambhala.” Berzin

[4] “The present Dalai Lama gave the Kālachakra initiation twice in Tibet at his summer palace, the Nor-bu-ling-a, in 1954 and 1956, each time to approximately one hundred thousand persons. He has given it seven times in India – at Thekchen Choeling, Dharamsala, in 1970 to thirty thousand; in Bylakuppe, Karnataka State, in 1971 to ten thousand; in Bodh Gaya, Bihar State, in 1974 to one hundred thousand; in Leh, Ladakh, in 1976 to forty thousand; in Derang, Bomdila, Arunachal Pradesh, in 1983 to ten thousand; and again in Bodh Gaya, Bihar State, in 1985 to two hundred thousand persons. The Dalai Lama also gave the Kālachakra initiation twice in the West, near Madison, Wisconsin, in 1981 to fifteen hundred persons; and in Rikon, Switzerland in 1985 to three thousand.” Introduction, Jeffrey Hopkins, Chapter 5 History of the Kālachakra Tantra

[5] “C'est en 1980 que Kalou Rinpoché, qui vient de donner à la Pagode du bois de Vincennes, pour la première fois en Occident, la grande Initiation de Kalachakra suivie par une très nombreuse assistance, rencontre Jean Ober, secrétaire général de l'Institut international bouddhique, qui souhaitait en améliorer l'animation. Ainsi naît le projet du Temple Kagyu-Dzong, dont la première pierre est posée le 20 mars 1983 et qui est construit en 2 ans.” Wikimonde

[6] “The chief Kālacakra lineage holder for the Kagyu lineage was Kalu Rinpoche (1905–1990), who gave the initiation several times in Tibet, India, Europe and North America (e.g., New York 1982[147]). Upon his death, this mantle was assumed by his heart son, Bokar Tulku Rinpoche (1940–2004), who in turn passed it on to Khenpo Lodro Donyo Rinpoche. Bokar Monastery, of which Donyo Rinpoche is now the head, features a Kālacakra stupa and is a prominent retreat center for Kālacakra practice in the Kagyu lineage.” Wikipedia

[7] Source : , originally http://www.simhas.org/kalu.html

[8] “Mipham was able to claim power through ancient Tibetan rituals. Penor Rinpoche, a revered Tibetan teacher, decreed Ösel Mukpo in 1995 to be the reincarnation of Mipham the Great, a scholar who had previously stated he would not reincarnate. The recognition gave Mipham the Tibetan credentials to try and live up to his father’s legacy — and his new name.” The Denver Post, July 7th 2019, Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, Boulder-bred ‘king’ of Shambhala, chosen by his father to lead Buddhist community

[9] As reported by Naomi Levine. Video Mick Brown (44:50).

[10] Berzin : “The new golden era that dawns will begin in 2424, a date which corresponds within a few years to the start of the astronomical age ol Aquarius, although the Kalachakra literature does not call it by that name.”

[11] “According to the Kalachakra presentation of historical cycles, barbaric hordes periodically invade the civilized world and try to eliminate all possibilities for spiritual practice. A future invasion is predicted for the year 2424 of this common era, when it is said there will be another brutal world war. At that time help will come from Shambhala to defeat the barbarians. A new golden age will dawn, with everything conducive for spiritual practice, particularly ol Kalachakra. All those who have previously received the Kalachakra initiation will be reborn at that time on the victorious side. The highest motivation for receiving the empowerment is to be able to practice the Kalachakra methods now in order to achieve enlightenment in this very lifetime. Nevertheless, people have traditionally flocked to the initiation with the motivation of planting karmic seeds to connect themselves with this future golden age so as to complete its practice then.” Berzin.

[12] “Shenlha Ökar (Wylie: gshen lha 'od dkar) or Shiwa Ökar (Wylie: zhi ba 'od dkar) is the most important deity in the Yungdrung Bon tradition of Tibet.” Wikipedia

[13] Letter 17th October 1989

“I have recently learned that the conflicts occuring within the Vajradhatu Sangha have still not been resolved. This has caused me great concern and I am very much unhappy that these problems continue.

As I have communicated to you earlier, it is my deep conviction that the Vajra Regent 'Csel Tendzin was carefully appointed by Trungpa Rinpoche and was confirmed by His Holiness Karmapa. It is my feeling that all students having had a connection with Trungpa Rinpoche should respect his appointment and in this way follow Trungpa Rinpoche’s instructions.

If they follow the Regent’s instructions that is good, since in doing so that is serving Trungpa Rinpoche. Trungpa Rinpoche appointed the Regent knowing his capacities and seeing completely his capabilities to continue his lineage. Those who are experiencing difficulties following the Regent now should realize that it is necessary to do so in order to follow Trungpa Rinpoche’s instructions.

Everyone is aware that Vajradhatu is quite well-known for its grandness and for how well organized it is. Among the four schools of Tibetan Buddhism it is one of the biggest and most highly regarded organizations and it has taken great Bodhisattva activities to create this.

You should all realize that because of your own problems you may be damaging the Sangha that Trungpa Rinpoche created.

As for officials of Vajradhatu who were appointed by Trungpa Rinpoche the purpose of this was so that you would Take responsibility for his teachings to flourish. Following the leadership of the Regent as you were instructed to by Trungpa Rinpoche will be only the way to sustain Vajradhatu.”