On Jun 24, 2009, at 3:15 PM, Vaj wrote:
Yeah, it's one of our favorite shows.
It interesting in that I've been reading the Chakrasamvara Tantra in
it's excellent translation and introduction by David B. Gray. He
goes into how the hotbed of the Siddha movement and the
hybridization between Kapalika Shaivism and Tibetan Vajrayana used
demonic and vampiristic forms to subdue not only external evil, but
to tame and subdue those same tendencies inside oneself. And some
ati-yoga adepts were even referred to as vampires, probably as they
learned to live without food with the advanced yogas they were
performing in the wilds of the Himalayan high country.
An interesting story--take it as you will--from the memoirs of the
late great Lama and Yogi, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, touches on another,
oft considered mythical phenomenon we've discussed here before: zombies.
My uncle Tersey told me the following story when I was a kid. He was
one of my teachers and never lied. If he hadn't personally witnessed
it with his own eyes, I certainly wouldn't have believed it. But he
assured me that this did happen.
Many strange people visited the encampment of Shakya Shri, Once there
was a big commotion and crowds began to gather. Tersey went out to see
what all the fuss was about.
An old lama from the distant Golok province had just entered camp.
After a while, his attendant arrived carrying his baggage. The
attendant caught up with him in the center of the camp.
Then the lama shouted "Phey!" and the attendant just fell flat on the
ground. Much to everyone's amazement, the lama nonchalantly took the
luggage off the attendant's body and set about cooking dinner for
himself under the open sky.
"Don't get too close. Just leave that body alone!" the lama shouted to
the crowd. Uncle Tersey was present when the lama later explained to
Shakya Shri what was going on. "I have come from Golok on foot, and
that body is my benefactor's corpse. After death he became a
rolang--"a walking dead"--and now I'm taking his corpse to one of the
big charnel grounds in India to dispose of it there. Since the zombie
can walk, I thought it might as well carry my bundle. Don't let anyone
near it. Tell them to leave the corpse alone and not make a commotion."
But of course no one could be kept away. Everyone wanted to see the
corpse that carried luggage. It was as dry as a stick, its eyes were
closed, and all the skin and flesh on the soles of its bare feet had
worn down to the bone. No one could quite believe it.
The next morning, the lama woke up and made some breakfast. When he
was done eating, he performed the ritual of burnt food, probably to
"feed" the zombie on the fumes, as it didn't eat or drink anything.
Then he packed his bags on the back of the corpse and shouted "phey!"
The corpse immediately stood straight up and, unable to keep its
balance when standing still, started to stagger slowly, one foot after
the other. The lama headed off with the zombie trailing behind him,
the bones of its feet creaking and clacking and making scraping noises
against the pebbles and hard ground.
"It always walks at the same slow pace." he had told Shakya Shri. "I
have to keep within view, otherwise it loses its way. When I climb to
the top of a mountain pass, I have to wait there until the zombie
slowly climbs up after me. Then, I continue on down the other side and
wait below until it catches up. I'll come visit again on my way back
from India'
The old lama didn't ask for any teachings nor did Shakya Shri ask him
any questions. He simply had his morning meal and left.
After he had disappeared from sight, Shakya Shri exclaimed, "Wow! Now
that's incredible!" This was one of the amazing feats that someone can
perform after attaining stability in the awakened state.
After a year passed, the lama came back through the encampment.
"My kind benefactor's body carried my provisions all the way to
India," he said, "I left his remains there at the Cool Grove charnel
ground and walked back by myself. On the way down, I had to be careful
to keep the zombie in sight all the time because I noticed that people
fall unconscious if they touch it; some even become paralyzed or go
mad for a while. So how could I have let him walk about in Tibet? The
gravest danger with a zombie is that you too will become a zombie if
it has the opportunity to touch you on your head. That's why people
shouldn't touch him."
Uncle Tersey later told me, "I was never really sure if this lama
wasn't just playing a joke. Who knows? Maybe there wasn't a mind in
that dead body. Someone who has reached a certain degree of stability
in the awakened state can move material objects around at will.
Nevertheless, if the lama was playing a big joke on everyone, it was
quite a remarkable joke!"
He must have been an accomplished yogin--not because he was able to
animate a corpse but because he didn't need to ask Shakya Shri any
questions. That's what has stuck in my mind all these years.
fr. Blazing Splendor: The Memoirs of Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche
