Types of Burnt-Offerings in Tibetan Buddhism

by Dorjé Lopön Hun Lye 

In general, there are three distinctive but often overlapping types of burnt offerings practiced in Tibetan-Himalayan Buddhism. They are the sangchö (bsang mchod བསང་མཆོད་) , surchö (gsur mchod གསུར་མཆོད་) and jinsek (sbyin sreg སབྱིན་སརེག་). Among these three, jinsek is the most specialized and complicated and is only performed by those who are properly and formally trained, often after having completed a required period of personal retreat. Jinseks are “fire-offerings” and are historically related to the homa-rites of ancient Indian, Vedic traditions. In a jinsek, various substances are put into a ritual fire and this fire is seen as the means to transfer the offerings from our realm to the divine realms. Any jinsek can be identified by both the specific vajrayana deity it is dedicated to (usually but not exclusively a deity from the unexcelled yoga tantra level such as Chakrasamvara, Hevajra or Yamantaka) and by the function of the specific jinsek. These are the four ritual-activities: for pacification of negative conditions, increase of positive factors, control over circumstances or destruction of hostile forces.

On the other hand, the other two types of burnt-offering practices are common, daily observances that cut across all levels of ritual expertise and spiritual commitments. From solitary hermits meditating in caves to householders raising families in cities, from ordinary monks and nuns serving the community to monastic scholars training the next generation in seminaries, whether nomads roaming the vast plains or town-dwellers cultivating lands, surchö and sangchö are both part of the ritual-staple of every Buddhist in Tibet and the Himalayan region.

Surchö is the practice of providing nourishment for spirit-beings - in particular those who have recently passed but have yet to be reborn into another life. These and other spirit-beings are said to feed on aroma and scent. This offering of aroma through burning food and creating food-scented smoke is alluded to in Indian Buddhist texts. The Indian Buddhist classic Abhidharmakosha by Vasubandhu for example, refers to beings in limbo in the intermediate state as “gandharvas” or literally “scent-eaters” although this text does not actually tell its readers how to offer aroma or scent to spirit-beings. In the Tibetan and Himalayan regions surchö is offered by burning a simple mix of roasted barley flour with what’s known as the “three sweets” (sugar, honey and molasses) and the “three whites” (milk, butter and curd) - all part of the staple diet in these regions. In some surchö, bits of meat might also be included and when they are included, they are called “red sur” in contrast with the “white sur” where only vegetarian offerings and dairy are offered. Whether white or red surchö, the offerings are burned in a way to create maximum smoke carrying the scent of the food offered - unlike jinseks where you want a strong and hungry fire to burn and therefore transfer the offerings to this or that Buddha-figure and to their particular retinue. Finally, surchö is offered at dusk and they should be offered in “soft” burning vessels such as a clay bowl, avoiding the use of “hard” containers made of iron for example. This is because the weaker spirit-beings are said to fear hot metals and therefore will not be able to receive the offering.

Sangchö - as I shared in my last post on this subject - is a hybrid ritual that has one foot in the indigenous, native, pre-Buddhist world of Tibet and another foot in the principles of buddhadharma. Whereas jinsek and sangchö are offerings, surchö are primarily for cleansing. And they are done often in the mornings. In surchö, Padmasambhava and many who came after him was able to translate principles in Buddhadharma into a ritual and emotional vernacular that resonated with peoples of the Himalayan and Tibetan regions. The great feat of translation that occurred when the buddhadharma arrived in Tibet wasn’t just about turning texts of one language into another. More than that, it was a translation of ethos and a translation of worldview. And in sangchö we have what I think is a great example of a “successful” translation.

When performing sangchö, our stated goal is to remove, to clear and to eradicate the harmful contaminants (sgrib pa, སགརིབ་པ་) that have attached themselves to us over this and many other past lifetimes. These contaminants/obscurations afflict us and when we are afflicted, we suffer. Furthermore, the contaminants cause the natural protective “gods” that we each have (if you prefer: think of these “gods” as the personification of our basic immune system that is constantly hard at work protecting and defending us against demons/infections/maladies/sufferings) to depart from us because these contaminants are afflicting not only us but also these personal guardians. Thus the five “congenital gods” (go wa’i lha nga, འགོ་བའི་ལཧ་ལནགའི་) each human is said to be endowed with at birth are forces that guard over a different domain or area of our being. But when these gods are afflicted or contaminated, they become weak and incapable of guarding us and sometimes even turning into negative, malevolent forces who might attack our interests out of resentment or vengeance. Sangchö is also a means for resolving conflict - conflict between humans and non-humans, between and among humans, between humans and our environment. It is also a means for reestablishing balance and harmony in situations where these factors have been disrupted. The particular sangchö text popularized by Kyabjé Garchen Rinpoché of the Drikung Kagyu known as “Source of All Auspicious Goodness” gives a robust list of the many functions of sangchö. Even if you already have a sangchö text that you use, I strongly recommend doing a search on the Internet for this text as in my opinion it is the most instructive sangchö text that’s available in English. This liturgy is a terma of Padmasambhava revealed by the 17th Drikung Kagyu throne-holder, Gyalwang Rinchen Puntsok (1509-1557).

The most famous and widely used sangchö text among Nyingma and Kagyu circles these days is probably the Riwo Sangchö (“Mountain Smoke Offering”), also a terma of Guru Rinpoche but revealed by Lhatsun Namkha Jikmé (1597-1653) as part of a larger cycle of termas known as Rikzin Sokdrup. There are lengthy, middling and shorter versions of this practice but the one that’s most commonly used today is one that was arranged by the previous Kyabjé Dudjom Rinpoché. There are several translations of this version that one can easily find online and also some commentaries on it that have been translated that are also easily available online.

In short, sangchö has many different functions and it is one practice within the Buddhist traditions of the Tibetan and Himalayan regions that I find to be most accessible, meaningful and impactful. May you find it to be so as well!