Iron Phurba
Ngak’chang Rinpoche’s personal Gar’cham phurba
This phurba belongs to Ngak’chang Rinpoche and Khandro Déchen. It has been used in the personal practice of Ngak’chang Rinpoche since 1972. This cast-iron phurba is 21 inches long and the makara’s face is gilded. The green silk – the robe of the phurba which hides the faces of Dorje Phurba – was given to Ngak’chang Rinpoche by Lama Yeshé Dorje Rinpoche in 1975 and came from the lining of Lama Yeshé Dorje Rinpoche’s father’s chuba (Tibetan coat). This phurba is now kept in the phur khang at ‘Aro Taktsang’ in Wales. When phurbas are authenticated for practice, their handles (which portray the three faces of Dorje Phurba) are very rarely seen by anyone apart from the practitioner. The secrecy involved here is an aspect of practice which instils energy in terms of the seriousness of phurba practice. One employs the phurba to destroy one’s aggression, anger, and irritation – in order to liberate the fundamental fear of the non-dual state.
