The Ritual “Bilgin zürknä üüdnäs shulms härülh yosn” Was Held at the Central Khurul of Kalmykia
Today, before the Kalmyk holiday of Tsagan Sar, the traditional prayer service “Bilgin zürknä üüdnäs shulms härülh yosn” (Sherning dudog) was held in the Dugan of the Central Khurul of Kalmykia “The Golden Abode of Buddha Shakyamuni” — averting obstacles through the “Heart Sutra of Prajnaparamita,” timed to coincide with the Tsagan Sar holiday.
Before the start of the prayer service, the senior administrator of the Central Khurul, Yonten Gelong, addressed the believers. In his speech, Yonten Gelong explained the meaning and essence of the ritual and, on behalf of the Shajin Lama of Kalmykia and the monastic community, congratulated everyone on the approaching holiday.
During the ritual “Sherning Dudok,” the monks recite the “Heart Sutra of Prajnaparamita” a large number of times. The ritual is aimed at removing four obstacles originating from worldly deities, from the obscurations of consciousness, from a person's own body, and from premature death. The main meaning of the prayer service is that people should be free of the aforementioned four obstacles not only throughout the year, but that, by thus removing obstacles, favorable conditions should be created for people to carry out the spiritual practice of the Buddha's Teaching. During today's prayer service, the believers also recited the Heart Sutra of Prajnaparamita in the Kalmyk language together with the monks.
The Heart Sutra is one of the most widespread texts belonging to the Prajnaparamita section — teachings on perfect wisdom — in which the ultimate view is directly set forth. Through comprehension of its meaning, it becomes possible to be completely freed from ignorance, which is the foundation of all obscurations — the kleshas — and the root of samsara. Since obscurations and karma arise from delusion regarding the true mode of existence of phenomena, freeing oneself from this delusion and cultivating the comprehension of the view is able to save us from the ocean of samsara. Attaining this wisdom of the unity of interdependence and emptiness, of which the sutra speaks, is an indispensable condition for attaining Awakening.
