Most Kind and Holy Khensur Rinpoche,

We prostrate to our most perfect guru. As it is solely from your kindness that the Buddha’s words are taught, we, your humble disciples, wish to express from the depths of our hearts our gratitude for the precious teachings you have given us over these past six weeks.

Rinpoche, there are no words in our language to match your qualities. Like the moon in the sky, our thoughts cannot reach you, yet your pure and soothing light is always shining down to cool our minds and beautify the world. Like the force of gravity, constant but gentle, your presence pulls us continually towards virtue. Though you come bringing us the highest teachings of tantra, with loving care you first prepared the rough ground of our unruly minds with peerless sutra teachings, leading us gradually along the path towards your own state.

Thank you, Rinpoche, for coming to Deer Park, your second home, and for so kindly and lovingly teaching us and blessing our minds with this pure profound Mahayana Dharma. For some of us, the very possibility of practicing the extraordinary path of highest yoga tantra has only arisen with your visit. For others who had already taken tantric initiation, you have added a richness to every part of the sadhana of the Venerable Vajrayogini and perfectly expounded the root of the path, guru yoga. Your explanations of the graduated path to enlightenment have been clear and compassionate—in particular, we have found the explanations of Mahayana motivation and perfect human rebirth extremely compelling, as they have reminded us of the tremendous responsibility we have to use this rare fortune well.

Most kind and precious guru, while your clarity is unsurpassed, our ability to understand is so limited, and yet you have taught us with immeasurable patience. You have held us close with your holy mind of loving kindness, gently leading us onto the path of virtue. Like the shining sun, the rays of your compassion warm us as we take our first uncertain steps. And like a flash of lightning in the sky at night, the force of your wisdom illuminates reality exactly as it is, eradicating the obscurations of our ignorant minds.

When a Buddha manifests in the form of the Guru and takes the throne to proclaim Vajra Speech, we bow and supplicate at your feet, we offer all that we have—both inner and outer—we confess our many failures and non-virtues, we rejoice in all your accomplishments, we request that you return often to share your wisdom by teaching us, and we dedicate whatever merit we have accumulated by attending and listening to your teachings to the goal of becoming just as you are, so that we might be of true benefit to others.

Please bless our minds always that we may practice your teachings with the purest motivation and use our precious human rebirths to benefit all sentient beings as much as possible. Please bless our minds that we may in all our lifetimes never be parted from you, our Supreme Vajra Master, that we may always please your Holy Mind, and that we may attain the Pureland of Vajrayogini as soon as possible for the benefit of all sentient beings. Please live a long and healthy life and remain in the world until Samsara’s end, forever turning the wheel of Dharma for all sentient beings. And please, please, please always quickly return to teach us.

Most kind and precious Rinpoche, as your devoted disciples, we most sincerely request from the depths of our hearts that you return to Deer Park in 2003 when you travel to the West, and that, as the kind doctor chooses whatever medicine is most beneficial for the ailing patient, at that time you bestow upon us whatever teachings of sutra and tantra would be most beneficial to tame our minds. Most precious teacher, from the depths of our hearts, we, your humble disciples, beseech you to remain in this world for the benefit of beings, to live a long life, and return to bless Deer Park with your wisdom and compassion. For a third time, we beseech you to live a long life and swiftly return to Deer Park to teach us until we attain enlightenment.

As long as space remains
As long as sentient beings remain
May the glorious guru remain
To dispel the miseries of the world.