Bhumchu: The Holy Vase Water

PHURBA T. TSECHUTHARPA 

Among the many festivals of “Bayul-dre-mo-Dzong”, the hidden valley of Sikkim which is compared to the celestial abode of Buddha Akshobeya, Bhumchu is perhaps the holiest ceremony. It is held every year on the 15th day of first month of the Tibetan calendar at Drakar Tashiding. This year, the festival falls on 08 March when Tashiding will once again witness the arrival of thousands of people from all over the globe gathering to receive the holy water. Drakar Tashiding is perched on a hilltop in West Sikkim, guarded by mighty mountains and bounded by Rangit and Rathong river on two sides, decorated with thousands of prayer flags amidst a number of holy chortens.
The history of Tashiding dates back to the 8th century A.D. when Guru Padmasambhava, the lotus born Buddha who is also regarded as an embodiment of all Buddha, brought Buddhism to Sikkim through Tibet and Bhutan. Guru Rimpoche, a great guru of mysticism and well versed in Tantricism, an amalgam of Buddhism, while propagating the doctrines of the Sutras and Tantras in Tibet visioned through his divine power that in the future the noble teachings of Buddha would be a subject of conflict and reach the edge of disappearance due to growing human hatred and attachment, which could eventually lead people to forget the precious past and lose respect for Gurus and elders. Therefore, in order to protect Dharma from vanishing, Guru Rimpoche blessed several lands including Tashiding, so that when the barbaric times came, these blessed lands will come to the rescue and fortunate human beings could live peacefully and preserve and practice the noble teachings. For that, he concealed many treasures under the mighty protection of guardian deities with an instruction for a different Terten (treasure revealers) that would come in different stages and reveal these hidden treasures for the benefit of all sentient beings.
Guided by his divine vision and holy motive of safeguarding the Dharma, Guru Rimpoche, with his escort Yeshi Tshogyal, Berotsana and Twenty-Five disciples descended on the hilltop of Tashiding. He blessed and sanctified this place as a holiest of holy places and concealed many treasures here, protected from all the four directions and eight cardinal points of Sikkim. Furthermore, he brought local Gods, Nagas, Mara and Demons under his command and designated them to safeguard the doctrines of Buddha Sakyamuni according to their capabilities. Similarly, he appointed Khang-Chen-Dzo-Nga as the guardian deity of the upper valley, Pawo-Hungri as a guardian deity of midle part and Madue-Chamdral as the guardian deity of lower part of this hidden valley of rice. Eventually, in the medieval period of Buddhism the emanation of guru and king of all the treasure discoverers, Rid-zing-goe-dem-chen came to Sikkim and opened the sacred entrance of the various holy places. He is also said to have founded several Gonpas, Chortens and Hermitages at the place called Pawo-Hungri near Drakar Tashiding.  He was later followed by the second Rig-zing-leg-den-ze who propagated the sacred dharma in Sikkim. Ruins and remains of these two great masters still exist till today at Pawo-Hungri.
However, it was in the Seventeen century A.D when three pioneer lamas came from Tibet and met at Yuksam, in West Sikkim. They are not only credited for the coronation of first Chogyal, but also for spreading Buddhism all over Sikkim and establishing Buddhist monasteries everywhere under the royal patronage of Chogyal Phuntsok Namgyal. They hunted down all the concealed treasures and sanctified holy places of Guru Rimpoche and built temples there. Among the lamas, Nga-dag-sempa-chenpo or Nga-dag-sempa-phuntsok-rig-zing first built Lhakhang Marpu in Yuksam and later Tashiding Monastery in the year 1641. Besides building the Tashiding monastery, he also introduced Bhumchu festival in Sikkim, which he had brought from Tibet.      
The origin of the Holy Vase goes back to the time of Guru Rimpoche who was at the time in Tibet propagating the doctrines of Sakyamuni Buddha. Before his departure to the south-west demonic realm (Lho-nub-simpai-yul), Chogyal Tri-sung-deo-tsen had made a special request to Guru Rimpoche for the short but effective practice that could enable the king to gain supreme empowerment from the cyclic suffering and attain omniscient in that very life. The King’s request had come after his lack of time for the devout full time religious practice due to his responsibility to lead his Kingdom as a head. Guru Rimpoche accepted the king’s request and agreed to bestow a special initiation called Thuzi Chenpo Khorwa Ledrol (Teaching on compassion liberating from worldly existence). With his divine power he collected precious gems, special earth and water from all the holy places blessed by Buddhas and Bodhisattvas and instructed Thamchen Garalegpa to prepare a vase. He then performed twenty-one days of special rituals after the completion of Vase, wherein he invoked blessing and empowerment of Chenrezig, the lord of Compassion. While performing the Sadhna of Yidham Choe-Zig-Chal, the entire retinue deities are said to have appeared in the sky and subsequently immersed in the vase. The water contained inside the vase overflowed and spread in all four direction in the form of rays. The holy water was thus distributed to all those gathered including the King Tri-sung-deo-tsen. It was found that holy water in the vase never decreased and all those received became spiritually benefitted. The vase was then concealed into the sublime hidden treasure with the remains of holy water under the special protection of guardian deities with an instruction to be revealed in later period for the sake of all sentient beings. It was in the year, 1524, the great Terten Choki Gyalpo Garwang Zingpulingpa unearthed the Holy Bhumchu and conducted a grand prayers and rituals and kept at Thulnang Monastery in Tibet. Then in the year 1556, Terten Choki Gyalpo Zingpulingpa passed the Holy Vase to Terten Choki Gyalpo Takshyamchen. During the later part of his life Terten Takshyamchen entrusted the Bhumchu to Nga-dag-Sempa-Chenpo with special guidance that holy Bhumchu to be sited at Drakar Tashiding, the holiest and most sanctified land of Guru Rimpoche.
It was in Lhakhang Marpu (which Nga-dag-sempa-chenpo had first built this temple after his arrival at Yuksam) where he performed his first billion recitations of the mantra OM-MANI-PED-ME-HUNG for the holy Bhumchu (Vase Water). Second and third billion recitations are believed to have been performed at the Rinchenphong monastery in West and Bharphung in South Sikkim before the final recitations at Tashiding Monastery to enhance the power of Holy Bhumchu. Many unusual signs were observed on the completions of five billion mantra, such as Bhumchu never decreased, nor spoils and healed freshmen. The jubilant people gathered at the time were gripped with spiritual fervour and their mind dwelt on spirituality and happiness spread all over. Ever since the installation of Bhumchu at Tashiding monastery, special prayers are held every year following the lineage of great masters. During the erstwhile kingdom, the representatives of king used to come and check the seal, and open the lock as the key was then kept at the royal palace. However, after the merger, the responsibility passed to the Ecclesiastical Department.
The holy vase is opened amidst prayers and incantations in the midnight of 14th day of first month of Tibetan lunar calendar. Three cups of holy water are taken out for all the devotees, monks and public gathered. Earlier, three cups are taken out categorically for the royals, the monks and the public. However, those categorical practices have stopped now. After the distribution of holy water the whole of the next day, the holy vase is filled with three cups of clean water brought from Rathong Chu and the vase locked and sealed by the representatives of Ecclesiastical Department and kept secretly in the monastery.
In Conclusion, the holy text of Guru Rimpoche has said that whoever receives the holy water will be released from birth in the lower realms, such as hell, beasts and hungry ghosts and will be born either among Gods, demigod or Humans of upper world of realms. The power of Bhumchu is such that if one born in human life is adorned with seven virtuous qualities and where one could always have an opportunity to associate oneself with the noble teachings of Dharma, which could eventually give them a birth in the Zang-To-Palri, Abode of Guru Padmasambhava.
[The writer is a Research Scholar, Department Of Political Science, North Eastern Hill University, and currently serving as an Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science, Namchi Government College, Kamrang, South Sikkim]