Drupchen of the Lion-Headed Female Deity from the Longchen Nyingthik treasures. Ranyak Patrul Rinpoche received the transmission of the Longchen Nyingthik cycle primarily from Kyabje Drukpa Tulku Rinpoche.

In 2019, Ranyak Patrul Rinpoche introduced three additional drupchen retreats. Singha Mukha was one of the profound practices that he initiated. The first Singhamukha drupchen took place in October 2019 in his Portuguese centre Palgué Nyishar Ling.

For the first time, the cost of the drupchen in Portugal was almost entirely covered by sponsors. In Tibet it is a common practice that a person, a family or an organisation requests some particular teaching and covers the cost of organising that, thereby giving the opportunity for many to attend. Participants often have to manage their own accommodation and food, but sometimes even this is offered as well. It has been Rinpoche’s wish for a long time to organise retreats and courses in this way in the West too. If you have a wish to sponsor the drupchen, please see HERE.

Singhamukha is a wrathful lion-faced female deity. On the dharmakaya level, she is Samantabhadri; on the sambkogakaya level she is Vajravarahi; on the nirmanakaya level she is Singhamukha. She is surrounded by a mandala of dakinis. In the inner circles there are six ‘tramens’, female deities with animal heads (here, different bird heads). In the outer circle there are thirty-two dakinis standing on lotus petals. There are different and powerful beings all around. This drupchen practice is a profound method of destroying clinging to self, eliminating attachment and aversion, purifying impure perceptions and cultivating non-duality.

The Singhamukha sadhana shares many common features with Yumka Dechen Gyalmo: its concluding part (the tsok offering) is the same as Yumka’s liturgy. Moreover, during drupchen, the branches and addition to the sadhanas of the Longchen Nyinthik (Yumka, Rigdzin Düpa and Singhamukha) are the same.

The particularity of these drupchens is that Patrul Rinpoche has been the first who, year after year, taught Westerners how to perform all aspects of a drupchen sadhana. Patrul Rinpoche is the Vajra Master, sometimes assisted by Lopön Tsering Gönpo as Vajra Assistant, while his students perform all the necessary tasks to perform the sadhana: chant leader (umze), instruments, ritual service (chopön), tormas, etc.

The Singhamukha Drupchen took place in:

• Palgué Nyishar Ling, Portugal, October 2019