Dorje Shugden saved our land

This is the story of how Dorje Shugden rescued Kechara Forest Retreat.

It started back in 2013. For months, Dorje Shugden had already been kindly advising us to reinforce the slopes on our land. Earthworks during the initial building stages of Kechara Forest Retreat had removed much of native growth on our land.

With the removal of the trees and their accompanying roots, our soil was at risk of severe erosion and being in Bentong (known for its rainfall) meant we were sitting ducks for landslides. However, due to a lack of funds and the fact we still had ongoing building works that had to be paid first, the rectification works to Manjushri Hill were delayed because we simply could not afford them. (so donate to us, please!)

On May 4, 2013 Rinpoche asked me to walk around our land to take pictures of the buildings from different angles as he wanted to blog about them. So off I went shooting everything in sight, documenting what I saw. Little did I know these were the last shots of an undamaged land we would have for some time…

Just four days later, we had one of our heaviest rainfalls ever. It poured non-stop throughout the night, turning our land into a veritable quagmire in just a few hours. Still, we all went to sleep thinking nothing of the rain. We were indoors, our roofs were not leaking, the electricity was fine and we were all dry.

What was there to be so worried about?

Click to enlarge

Well, you can only imagine our shock and horror when we woke up on May 8 to be greeted by the sight of a huge landslide on Manjushri Hill. The amount of soil that had been displaced overnight was more than any of us had ever seen in our lives; we simply could not believe the scale of the problem.

Immediately Rinpoche sent a group of us up onto the hill to secure the soil. Clambering over the rocks and soil, we laid hundreds of feet of tarpaulin, pegging it deep into the ground so that any further rains would run off the plastic and not wash away more soil. We thought this solution would last for at least three or four months. However, just seven days later, another heavy rain ripped all of the tarpaulin into shreds.

Yep. It only lasted for seven days.

We did not need any more signs. Immediately, we consulted Dorje Shugden again through the oracle. Instead of admonishing us for being lax in carrying out his initial instructions, Dorje Shugden kindly prescribed us a list of pujas to complete. We would have to do these pujas every single day in Manjushri Hill (and nowhere else). Dorje Shugden also told us that through these pujas, he would help to hold up the hill whilst we engaged in the rectification works (now more urgent than ever).

So if y’all want to say Dorje Shugden takes revenge on people who give up his practice and do not follow his instructions, well this is proof that he does not. The harm that comes to us is when our karma ripens and we did not create the causes for Shugden to help us stop it from ripening.

Anyway, funds notwithstanding, we had learned our lesson. We quickly called in the engineers who told us the building was not damaged and the hill was not unstable, but that everything would have to be rectified for safety reasons, before any more rains came and any further damage could be done.

For months the contractors worked diligently to secure the hill. Given Dorje Shugden’s warning to us, no expense was spared and only the best were called in to finish the job. We were also warned to secure the main road leading into Kechara Forest Retreat, which was at risk of being washed away in the next heavy rains so we did that too.

Nearly a year later, when Martin arranged for a friend to shoot an aerial video of Kechara Forest Retreat, we were all in for a very nice surprise. Not only had Manjushri Hill been secured but now, with the completed drainage, it even looked like a leaf from the bodhi tree.

So Dorje Shugden helped us to find our land, then helped us to protect our land. For these reasons and so many more, we are very, very grateful to our Dharma Protector for his help, blessings, guidance and protection ALWAYS.

And the lesson of the day? For Pete’s sake when Dorje Shugden tells you to do something, just do it! It saves you a lot of grief in the long run!

p.s. if you wish to donate to Kechara Forest Retreat because you believe in what we do, you can do so here and here.

Life in Kechara: Behind The Scenes