As the Buddha lay on his deathbed, he instructed his disciple, Chenrezig, to carry the Path of Enlightenment to the highest land of the world. The Enlightened One, who could see through lives past and future, knew that from those high mountains and plateaus, his wisdom would flow like rivers to all of humanity. Although the task was daunting for the land was harsh and ruled by demons, Chenrezig went forth with an open heart to the wild kingdoms of Tibet.

Knowing the journey would be long and hard, Chenrezig packed a donkey with supplies for many days.  Under the shade of his master’s favorite boddhi tree, he carefully filled his bags and tied them to his donkey. Suddenly, a little monkey jumped from the tree onto his shoulder and whispered into his ear.

“Take me with you and I will help you outwit your enemies.”

Normally, the sudden appearance of a talking monkey would have shocked Chenrezig, but there was something of the voice of his master in the monkey’s words and having experienced miracles in the presence of his master before, he could not deny the monkey’s request.

“Very well, but what nourishment should I pack for you?” Chenrezig asked.

The monkey then jumped onto the back of the donkey and said, “I will need only one boddhi leaf for each day of our journey. In all, that will be sixty-four since the tree will give you no more.”

Chenrezig picked sixty-four of the largest and most luxuriant boddhi leaves he could find and sealed them in a bag with a cloth soaked with water blessed by his master, the Buddha, before his death.

The monkey did a joyous flip and landed on the donkey’s head and said, “You have chosen well, now let’s go.”

For many days, Chenrezig and his monkey companion traveled eastward up steep slopes covered with sharp rocks, through deep gorges cut with icy rivers and over high passes blanketed with knee-deep snow.  Throughout the journey, the monkey kept to his word, keeping Chenrezig and his donkey safe from danger, which was especially important when his master performed his daily meditations. The monkey was skilled at smelling the approach of snow lions or bears. He even headed off an attack by a group of murderous bandits by cleverly leading them into the maze of a blind gorge.

On each day after his meditation, Chenrezig would reach into his bag and give the monkey one boddhi leaf.  After slowly chewing and swallowing the leaf, the monkey would perform his joyous flip and say, “Ah! I understand!”

The journey went without challenge until the sixty-second day when Chenrezig entered the highest and most powerful kingdom in Tibet ruled by a merciless rock demon.  Chenrezig was not unfamiliar with demons; his master spoke of demons and other manifestations of the Eighty-thousand Negativities.  Such creatures used brutality, deceit, and seduction to dominate, but those who learned the Path of Enlightenment could not be subjugated.

Leading his donkey and its monkey passenger, Chenrezig followed a road that led to a walled fortress built high upon a rocky hill and there he halted at a great closed gate.  On the walls overhead, barely human creatures, dressed in horrific armor, stood on guard seemingly oblivious to Chenrezig’s presence.

“They have never seen such as us, so they cannot see us,” the monkey said. “The unenlightened rarely see what they don’t understand. You will have to make some noise for them to notice you.”

Chenrezig cupped his hands to his mouth and yelled, “Hey! Hey up there!”

There was a clatter of armor as several helmets peered over the wall looking for the source of the cry. After a few moments search, the guards suddenly noticed Chenrezig and his animal entourage.  Hastily, they nocked arrows and pointed them at the strange sojourners.

“What do you want?” A black helmet growled.

“I come to present your king with a great gift of knowledge.” Chenrezig answered.

There was a prolonged time of gruff laughter from the ramparts before the helmet spoke again. “I’m afraid we must kill you, since it is unlikely that an ignorant dolt like you can teach our queen anything.”

At that point, the monkey climbed onto Chenrezig’s shoulder and said, “It is time to sit and meditate.”

Chenrezig did not question, but immediately sat before the imposing gate and entered a deep state of meditation. During his daily practices on his mountain journey, he noticed that he had reached a deeper awareness of existences and achieved the ability to move between realms like his master. As Chenrezig sat in meditation, the monkey leapt onto the donkey and grabbed the bag containing the last of the boddhi leaves. Before jumping off, the monkey bit the tired donkey on the hindquarters.  Offended, the donkey cried “Hee Haw!” then kicked and galloped back down the road. Meanwhile, the monkey scrabbled behind a pile of stones.

The guards on the wall watched the scene with a certain bemusement, but when the excitement seemed over, the black helmed leader ordered, “Shoot!”, and a shower of arrows fell upon the place where Chenrezig sat.  Miraculously, the arrows either missed, or harmlessly bounced away from an invisible shield surrounding the disciple. When the guards had exhausted their arrows, cries of frustration replaced their jeers of insolence.  The day passed and every weapon available to the demon queen’s army had been laid upon Chenrezig, including a great vat of burning oil.  The night passed and when the sun fell upon the gate the next morning, the guards saw Chenrezig sitting quietly, unharmed and undisturbed.

The monkey watched the whole affair from the safety of his rock pile. Before taking his rest, he slowly chewed and swallowed the sixty-third boddhi leaf and said, “Ah! I understand!” He slept well despite the awful noises coming from the fortress walls and was wide-awake when the black helmets peered over the wall to find Chenrezig sitting comfortably in the morning sunshine.

“Summon the queen!” cried a helmet.

Soon afterward, cries of commotion arose behind the gate, followed by more harsh orders. Suddenly, the gate shuddered and cracked open to the sound of grinding gears. When the gates finally parted, a fearsome woman stepped through the opening. She was nearly twice the height of a man and dressed in bizarrely decorated armor. Her beast-like eyes were set in a sloping forehead above a long nose and jutting jaw set with sharply pointed teeth. A girdle of various skulls hung about her waist and a necklace of bones lay upon her bosom. A crown of gold set with a blood red jewel sat upon her head. In her hands, she held a long, barbed spear, which she pointed at the figure violating her doorstep.  Unmoved, Chenrezig remained seated with his eyes half-closed and his face bearing a serene expression.

“I am Daughter of Rock and Queen of Mountains! Leave my realm or die!” ordered the demon in a voice that roared from the earth.

Chenrezig seemed to smile in response.

Outraged, the queen thrust her terrible spear at the insolent figure only to be blinded by a flash of white light and repelled backward by her own force.

In that moment, the monkey suddenly emerged from the safety of his rock pile and dashed to the open gate.  He leapt over Chenrezig and was standing upon the demon queen’s bosom before anyone noticed.  When the demon queen’s vision returned, a small monkey holding a leaf looked into her eyes.

“What is this!” she cried in amazement.

The monkey needed only one word to shove the sixty-fourth boddhi leaf into the mouth of the demon queen.

There was a prolonged silence as the demon queen tasted and swallowed the unexpectedly pleasant meal. Her eyes closed and then opened with a different light within.

“Ah! I understand!” she said.

The monkey jumped down and scurried out of the fortress to perch upon Chenrezig’s shoulder and whisper his last human words. “It is time for you to return now.”

Chenrezig opened his eyes fully and looked up. The gate that had blocked his way was now open and instead of a demon, before him stood a beautiful queen with jet-black hair encircled by a golden crown set with a single ruby. The jewel and her gown glowed in the morning sunshine.

“Welcome husband,” she said.

The children of Bodhisattva Chenrezig and the Rock Queen became the new people of Tibet. To this day, the Path of Enlightenment runs through their land and blood, flowing to the rest of humanity from the highest place on earth