Vajra Parrot, in a unique position

You may have seen a denunciation of Ngak’chang Rinpoche that begins:

I am in the unique position to answer questions on Chogyam. He came to Cardiff in 1976 . . .

The author used the pseudonym “Vajra Parrot.” I will use that, instead of his real name, to save him embarrassment.

Ngakpa Chögyam is another name for Ngak’chang Rinpoche.

Most of what Vajra Parrot said is factually incorrect. Below, I go through it and explain these factual errors.

More interesting are his conceptual errors. We can learn from those. It is easy to get facts straight, but samsara makes it difficult for all of us to avoid errors in thinking.

A long time to hold a grudge

Mr. Parrot’s story might be summarized:

1. I knew Ngak’chang Rinpoche casually thirty years ago, and he was a bad guy then.
2. Therefore, he is still a bad guy.
3. Therefore, what he teaches is false.

I doubt Ngak’chang Rinpoche was a bad guy thirty years ago. But let’s suppose he was. Even then, neither of these “therefores” work. People change; someone who was a bad guy thirty years ago might be a good guy now. And anyone who has been through high school math knows that some bad guys can teach accurately enough.

More profoundly, each “therefore” contradicts Buddhist principles.

Why be a hater when you can be a lover?

To be a Buddhist is to accept that enlightenment is possible. The Fourth Noble Truth is that there is a path, and that it works. The path works even for bad guys.

Milarepa was a bad guy. He was a mass murderer, in fact. He became fully enlightened after twelve years of Vajrayana practice. Even if Ngakpa Chögyam actually was a bad guy when Vajra Parrot knew him, he has been practicing Vajrayana for another three decades. That is enough to have improved a bit, based on Milarepa’s example. Saying “Ngakpa Chögyam must still be a bad guy” is saying “I don’t believe Buddhism really works.”

Saying “I knew Ngakpa Chögyam, and he is a bad guy” is also saying that he has a solid, continuous, well-defined existence. That contradicts the truth of emptiness—the only absolute truth in all Buddhism. Ngak’chang Rinpoche, like everyone and everything, is a flickering illusion, constantly changing, with no definite characteristics. To say otherwise is to reject the closest thing Buddhism has to a central dogma.

Looked at this way, the business of denouncing people goes straight to the heart of the Dharma. There is much more to say about this. Luckily, someone has already said it better than I can.

I recommend highly Tröma Rigtsal Rinpoche’s essay “Why be a hater when you can be a lover?”, which explores the Buddhist perspective on denunciation in depth.

Bad guys and termas

Vajra Parrot’s second leap of logic—“therefore he is a fraud”—also fails the common-sense test. Many of the greatest teachers and discoverers in Western history were generally considered unpleasant people or did things generally thought unethical. But again, there is a specifically Buddhist reason to reject Mr. Parrot’s reasoning.

Ngak’chang Rinpoche teaches the Aro gTér, a terma or Tibetan Buddhist “revelation.” Vajra Parrot called him “a total fraud who has totally entered his own self created deluded world”. I think his implication is that the Aro gTér is a fake terma. I have discussed that issue in detail elsewhere.

Tibetan experts stress that moral character has zero relevance to whether your terma is valid. Dodrupchen Rinpoche wrote:

One cannot judge Tertons as inauthentic because of their imperfect and mercurial character, even to the slightest extent.

Among the false Tertons there are many who are harmonious with people, who seem to have disciplined conduct, and are fortunate and charismatic. At the same time, among the authentic Tertons there are many who are loose in speech and behavior and who, without the least hesitation, get involved in many activities that people will condemn.

Vajra Parrot, line-by-line

Here I go through Vajra Parrot’s denunciation in detail, pointing out the factual errors. I have put his writing in green. I have left all his typographical, spelling, and grammatical errors as-is.

I am in the unique position to answer questions on Chogyam.

Mr. Parrot knew Ngakpa Chögyam casually, for a couple of years, three decades ago. This does not put him in a good position to answer questions about Ngak’chang Rinpoche. I myself have known Ngak’chang Rinpoche reasonably well for the last ten years. That is longer than Vajra Parrot. Recent experience is also more relevant to what Ngak’chang Rinpoche is like now than is experience from 30 years ago.

There are several people who have known Ngak’chang Rinpoche continuously and closely from about the same time Vajra Parrot met him. They actually are in a unique position to answer questions about him. Apart from Rinpoche himself, my major sources are Ngala Nor’dzin Pamo and Ngala ’ö-Dzin Tridral. They are quite familiar with Mr. Parrot, as well as knowing Rinpoche very well. I have checked the facts below with them. The opinion of Johannes Frischknecht also seems more significant than that of Vajra Parrot.

They might all be lying, of course. You will have to decide for yourself whether they or Mr. Parrot are more credible.

He came to Cardiff in 1976 and became involved ina buddhist group that formed under thr guidance of the Ven. Geshe Damcho Yonten of the Lam rim buddhist centre South Wales.

At this time, Ngakpa Chögyam was mainly involved with the non-sectarian Cardiff Buddhist Group. With the leader of that group, he invited Geshé Damchö to teach in Wales. That led to the founding of the Lam Rim Centre. Ngakpa Chögyam then often taught at the Centre himself. He was never a student of Geshé Damchö, however.

We met properly when his Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche first came to London at the invitation of Tsogyal Rinpoche. Later we both bacame students of Tsoygal Rinpoche and remained so for several years.

I am fairly sure there is no such person as Tsogyal Rinpoche. Probably Mr. Parrot is referring to Sogyal Rinpoche. This is rather basic mistake: Yeshé Tsogyal is a female yidam and consort of Padmasambhava; Sogyal Rinpoche is a contemporary male Lama.

Ngakpa Chögyam was never a student of Sogyal Rinpoche. The two were “vajra brothers,” meaning that they were both students of Düdjom Rinpoche. For that reason, Ngakpa Chögyam helped Sogyal Rinpoche by organizing his first few visits to Wales.

During this time, as his students we recieved teachings from many great Masters such as H.H. Sakya Trinzin, Trangu Rinpoche, Shenpen Rinpoche and others. In Cardiff, we formed a group under Tsogyal rinpoches'. Together with others, we travelled around Britain and recieved many teachings and initiations from all lineages.

Ngakpa Chögyam certainly did receive many teachings and initiations from many great lamas. As it happens, Thrangu Rinpoche and Shenphen Rinpoche were not among them. Ngakpa Chögyam had a car at the time, and sometimes gave Mr. Parrot long distance rides to Buddhist events in London and in Scotland. They did not regularly travel together.

During this tme, Choygam maintained a great facination for all things Tibetan

Ngak’chang Rinpoche is still greatly fascinated with all things Tibetan. I think that’s pretty useful in a teacher of Tibetan religion.

He is also greatly fascinated by unusual string instruments, frogs, blues music, nineteenth-century firearms, twentieth-century painting, leather handicrafts, horse riding, Shakespeare, and, in fact, every aspect of the phenomenal world.

That is the essence of Vajrayana: that emptiness is not better than form, that we can fall in love with everything in the universe, and that we should be massively enthusiastic about absolutely everything and everyone, everywhere.

and delighted in dressing up like on.

Ngak’chang Rinpoche has always worn the traditional dress of the ngak’phang sangha when he teaches formally, or attends teachings with other lamas. That is because he was told to by Düdjom Rinpoche. He actually prefers to wear Western clothes.

He always said that he intended to become famous.

Vajra Parrot tried to dominate the Cardiff Buddhist scene in the late ’70s and early ’80s. He had little success. He was eager to teach, but did not attract students. He seems to have regarded Ngakpa Chögyam (among others) as an obstacle—although Ngakpa Chögyam tried to be helpful to everyone.

In this denunciation, he seems still to be jealous of Ngak’chang Rinpoche’s teaching career. Rinpoche says he “prefers to be a tiny fish in an ocean.” His slight worldly “success” could only seem impressive to someone who considers himself a failure.

His refuge name which he recieved from Lama Chime [Kargyu] of Kam house Essex, was extended to Nakpa Choygam which although raisding a few eyebrows and smiles, didn't bother anyone.

He was given the name “Ngakpa Chögyam” by Lama Yeshé Dorje Rinpoche in 1975, before Vajra Parrot met him. He did attend a refuge ceremony with Chime Yönten Rinpoche, but he received an unrelated name (“Karma Yar’phel”) on that occasion.

He was always regarded as a bit 'off the wall'.

He is still regarded as a bit off the wall. That’s the way enlightenment looks to ordinary mind. Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche was regarded as completely off the wall. He was also regarded as fully enlightened, and one of the greatest Buddhist teachers of the Twentieth Century.

Trungpa Rinpoche manifested “crazy wisdom.” Ngak’chang Rinpoche manifests “mildly eccentric wisdom.”

Then, after a retreat with Tsogyal Rinpoche at my house, rinpoche gave myself and a few others, including Chogyam, prmission to teach. I hasten to say onlysutra and tantric preliminaries related to the Dudjom Tersa Ngondro. Choygam later wrote off to rinpoche asking if it was o.k for him to teach and rinpoche told him yes, if he felt confidant. This was in writing. As we know, a piece of paper with few words can be made to seem more than it was. Rinpoches' reply was only confirmation of what he had already said.

None of this is accurate.

Ngakpa Chögyam did not need permission from Sogyal Rinpoche. He was given permission to teach by Düdjom Rinpoche long before he met Sogyal Rinpoche. If Sogyal Rinpoche gave a group of students permission to teach, Ngakpa Chögyam was not one of them. The supposed letters between Ngakpa Chögyam and Sogyal Rinpoche did not happen.

Very soon, Choygam was cultivating students.

Ngakpa Chögyam had already been teaching at the Bath Buddhist Group and at the Lam Rim Centre before this was supposed to have happened.

Later they we calling him rinpoche.

The use of “Rinpoche” was confirmed by Lama Tharchin Rinpoche, and several other Nyingma Lamas.

He also went to indian for a short time. i belive only a couple of months. This later became much longer with the claim of doing long retreats.

Ngakpa Chögyam spent about half his time in Nepal and the Indian Himalayas throughout the 1970s. Usually he alternated a few months in Britain with a few months in Asia, due to financial constraints. Because Vajra Parrot knew him only briefly, he may have seen only one of Rinpoche’s periods away.

during this visit, he met Lama Yesh Dorje, the official weather man of H.H the Dalia Lama and recieve a Cho transmission. Later he was giving his students this transmission claiming that he had this lamas' permission. If you check the first book he wrote with someone else, you will find that he calls Lama Yeshe Dorje his root master.

The transmission Ngakpa Chögyam received from Lama Yeshé Dorje Rinpoche was the Düdjom Tér Tröma Nakmo (which includes chöd). He received the same transmission from Düd’jom Rinpoche and from Chhi’mèd Rig’dzin Rinpoche, with permission to give it to students.

Sometime later, at Tsoygal rinpoches' first Rigpa centre. Lama Yesh Dorje was doing a secial Cho ritual for cleasing us all of negativities. At the end of the ritual, he called Choygam into the centres office and using Brian Berisford [deceased] as a translator, he asked Choygam what he was doing. He said he did not give him permission to give transmission of his initiations. He was very angry.

None of this happened.

Mr. Parrot’s story is very loosely based on an actual event, however. Lama Yeshé Dorje Rinpoche did become angry at Ngak’chang Rinpoche. That is the only accurate part of this paragraph. His anger was for an unrelated reason. (I will discuss this elsewhere.) Vajra Parrot was not present or involved in the event, which did not occur at the Rigpa Centre. What he said here is a very confused retelling of third-hand rumors.

Guess what? in Chiygams next book Yeshe Dorje was replaced by Chime Ridzin as the root lama.

Five Lamas were all Root Lamas to Ngak’chang Rinpoche, while they were still alive. Chhi’mèd Rig’dzin Rinpoche offered to write the foreword to Spectrum of Ecstasy, and Ngak’chang Rinpoche of course gladly accepted.

Not too long after, Choygam cut himself off from all his Vajra Brothers and sisters in Cardiff and disappeared to resurect later as a tulku!

Ngakpa Chögyam was in Cardiff then because he was taking an art teacher training course. He did not yet have any strong ties there. His main Buddhist connection was with the leader of the Cardiff Buddhist Group, who moved away.

Ngakpa Chögyam was publicly recognized as the tulku of ’a-Shul Pema Legden by Kyabjé Chhi’mèd Rig’dzin Rinpoche in 1988.

Be sur that he is a total fraud who has totally entered his own self created deluded world.

Uh . . . Whoa. Why would we be sure of this, even if everything else Mr. Parrot had said was true?

There is a slight gap there.