Tag: Relics

By: Dorjé Lopön Dr. Lye 

In Drikung Dharmakirti’s (First Kyabgon Chungtsang) “Ocean of Merit and Wisdom: Instructions for Filling Sacred Objects,” it is stated that among the five types of sacred relics necessary for filling a stupa or statue, the mantra script is the most important as they are the “dharmakaya relics” (chos.sku.ring.bsrel). The mantras are first printed on sheets of paper, cut to fitting-sized strips, painted over with a mixture of saffron and medicinal spice (such as the “six good ingredients” and camphor), rolled up into tight little rolls of mantras and in this case, put into the “bhumpa” (the vase-shaped) part of the stupa alongside with whatever of the other four types of sacred relics that might be available.