The Protector Sokra

Sokra (Sok-ra) is one of the oath-bound protectors especially associated with Drigung Kagyu and in particular to Drigung-til. As such, it is extremely unlikely to find much or any information on him in anything written in English. In fact, I doubt there is much on him even in Tibetan. My first encounter with this deity was during my first trip to Drigung-til. While visiting the Achi Protector Shrine I noticed this extremely wrathful red-colored protector riding on a horse. When I asked the caretaker monk who that was, he replied “Sokra” and gave me a look that seemed to say “surely any Drigung Kagyupa of any worth would have known that!”

This time around, when Sokra’s name came up, I knew I had to ask. So Balok Rinpoche kindly shared a bit of what he knew about this deity. Sokra is said to have originated from China and he is colloquially called “The Chinese Protector” or something to that effect. When Jikten Sumgon was teaching at Drigung-til, many disciples came from far and wide. These disciples came from all different parts of Tibet, from China and Central Asia. Not only did human disciples come but also non-human disciples and among these was Sokra. Sokra came to Jikten Sumgon and soon became his disciple and took the upasaka (Tib. genyen) vows. He was given the name Genyen Dorje Jangchup and pledged to protect Drigung-til. Instead of returning to his original dwelling place in China, Sokra remained in the vicinity of Drigung-til since then. In fact, his spirit palace moved to Tsa-ug – an area in Drigung where Jikten Sumgon spent a good part of his life in retreat.

Sokra figures quite prominently in the ritual-life of Drigung-til Monastery. Apart from the daily-offerings and prayers dedicated to him at the Achi Protector Shrine, he is also an important character in the annual cham festival. At the very end of the cham in the evening, the Sokra dance takes place.

These days, Sokra is danced by Balok Rinpoche (seen above) and the Sokra mask currently used was made by Angon Rinpoche – Balok Rinpoche’s father. Rinpoche invited me to come to the Sokra dance but unfortunately I wasn’t able to. In any case, most Tibetans who come to attend the annual cham make it a point to wait till the Sokra dance is completed before they leave. The main reason is because at a certain point in that dance, Sokra scatters special barley-seeds that serve as powerful protective amulets. The Drigung laity place great confidence in these blessed barley-seeds and thus will wait at all cost for this grand finale just to obtain a few grains of precious barley.

P.S. This blog was inspired by a question about Sokra that Rick F. recently asked me over email. Thanks Rick! And if anyone reading out there has more info on Sokra, please add comments!