How could one possibly hope to show the full extent of one’s heart, the immeasurable gratitude we feel towards our teachers and their immense and never-ending gifts to all sentient beings cannot easily be put into words. The wheel of Dharma is constantly being turned, being spread far and wide across this earth, in this life and all that have come before and afterwards.
They are our guides, our inspirations, our constants in a world where everything is impermanent and ever changing faster than we could try and comprehend. Our teachers deserve our deepest respect, our limitless and unconditional love, our support in all things, as we all walk this path together. The boundless gifts that we receive in this life are so precious, this human existence is so precious - the good fortune to have our paths cross with teachers such as Karmapa and Sherab Gyaltsen Rinpoche in this life are beyond imagination in benefit and rarity. We are so extremely blessed to have them, they will not always be with us as they are now and we must celebrate with great earnest to make the best of every single moment we have. To see the way they pay each other respect brings tears to my eyes, as they offer beautiful symbols of devotion, deep prostrations, but I can see clearly that what they offer each other is far more than this. Watching as Rinpoche gives an incredible Buddha statue to Karmapa is an offering of enormous weight to my heart, and I am touched so very deeply, but underneath I know there is more. How could I ever hope to offer something as powerful as this when I too have received such immeasurable gifts? We can only offer the whole of our hearts with nothing held back. We can offer to practice the Dharma and try our best to benefit all sentient beings with every breath we take. We can offer our deepest respect to our teachers by living our lives as best we can, with compassion and grace, and making the best out of this incredibly precious human life we have been given. These past few days have opened my mind to so much beauty. This world is full of immeasurable possibility. This world is full of love, overflowing with it, love for all beings without exception. In this moment I am so incredibly grateful to have been part of this in some small way, to have partaken in such glorious celebration has been the greatest joy and such an honor for me. I wish to try and express my deepest gratitude to you all as well, for with your support and incredible kindness we have made this event, this dream of all of ours, a glorious reality. It has become so much more than any of us could have ever hoped or imagined.
From the bottom of my heart, with my deepest thanks and immeasurable respect, I thank you.
-Tokpa
Dhagpo Sheydrub Ling
