The Chod Damaru

The mission and vision of DamaruWorks is 5-fold:

• To perpetuate and preserve the traditions of Vajrayana Chod though the accurate creation and dispersal of ancient Tibetan ritual crafts with absolute integrity.
• To provide the highest quality traditional practice materials and damaru to serious Vajrayana practitioners, especially Chöpas, Ngakpas and Yogis and Yoginis—lay practitioners of the West. Such materials are increasingly rare as commercial, low quality goods have become the norm, East and West.
• To support the best traditional craftsmen, who are few in number, so that they may flourish and continue their work, passing on their art to future generations of skilled workers.
• To provide financial support for our Tibetan, Bhutanese and Nepalese lamas who coordinate the acquiring these sacred and precious items, related to Chod.
• To use funds from sales to further unique projects, related to the acquiring and archiving of various texts, translations, audio and video archives and so on. In fact, 100% of all profits are to be used to benefit the Dharma, and most specifically the various lineages of Chod.

The idea of a “brand” (before it became co-opted by greed and deceit) was a way to guarantee the quality and integrity of a product or service. It probably can be traced back to the guild, craftsman or skilled artist who signed their work to demonstrate its authenticity and true identity. That is still the case to a large degree; You can choose to buy a Honda car, or a Gibson guitar. Or an Apple computer. These names have reputations and are valued or trusted accordingly. And most people will not buy a no-name appliance, or fly a non-name airline!

When it comes to our sacred Vajrayana practice materials, or the Chod Damaru, how much more careful should we be in assuring an impeccable level of quality. However, within the realm of such implements there has been no such identification or “branding” system, and practitioners have not had the opportunity to acquire high level, authentic tantric instruments.

Herein is a handful of important items, especially for practitioners of Chod of all lineages and persuasions. These items are not found in any “stores,” East or West. They are made to order, by hand, individually and subjected to my personal oversight and interaction. I know each of the craftsman well and most are hand carried by myself from Nepal or Bhutan. Thus arose Damaru Works, as a way to preserve this superior level of ritual objects.

Furthermore, ALL profits from sale of these items are ploughed directly back into Dharma projects. It is hoped you will truly appreciate and enjoy the dynamic and vibrant items offered here, that are simply found nowhere else. May the traditions, values and meaning of the MaChik’s sacred dharma reach to the farthest realm!

Lama Jinpa

The vision of Lama Jinpa (Asa Hersh) is to disseminate and perpetuate the vast traditions of Chod, in the context of our modern world.

The Journey of Lama Jinpa

Born into a middle-class Jewish family, in the (then) quiet and higly virtuous city of Toronto, Lama Jinpa entered into the field of holistic healing arts, becoming a renowned Naturopath and Chiropractor. In 1978, he was a founder of the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine, forever changing the face of health care in Canada, and affecting the lives of many millions. His spiritual search had already begun, however, and he absorbed as much information and training as he could on matters of energy healing, alternative spirituality and the like. But it was not until 1980 that Lama Jinpa had a life-changing encounter with Tibetan Buddhism.

Lama Jinpa Meets Karmapa

After meeting his Holiness, the 16th Karmapa in 1980, Jinpa experienced his first Chod ritual under the auspices of Lama Namse.