A quote from His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse, Rinpoche:

"Stupa is called a dharmakaya stupa. Within it, the guru dwells unchanging. The Buddha said that whoever sees a dharmakaya stupa will be liberated by the sight of it. Feeling the breeze nearby the stupa liberates one by its touch. The sound of the tinkling of the small bells hanging on the stupa liberates one by their sound. having thus seen or experienced this stupa, by thinking of one's experience of it, one is liberated through recollection."

"The stupa that enshrines the teacher's physical remains is at once a reminder of the teacher and the embodiment of the pure and all-pervasive aspect of the awakened state. As His HolinessDilgo Khyentse Rinpoche has said: "When a great being passes away, his body is no more. But to indicate that his mind is dwelling forever in an unchanging way in the dharmakaya, one will erect a stup as a symbol of the mind of the budhhas."

As the Buddhist teachings point out, every element of a buddha's physical body is pervaded with enlightenment. Thus, even after cremation, the teacher's remains are considered sacred, because they are the distilled essence of his or her physical form and are therefore themselves the embodiment of enlightenment. Because it enshrines these relics, the stupa is powerful.

It is said that in venerating the stupa, one can "meet" the teacher. The visual impact of the stupa on the observer brings a direct experience of inherent wakefulness and dignity. Stupas continue to be built because of their ability to liberate from confusion simply upon seeing their structure.

The shape of the stupa represents the Buddha, crowned and sitting in meditation posture on a lion throne. His crown is the top of the spire; his head is the square at the spire's base; his body is the vase shape; his legs are the four steps of the lower terrace; and the base is his throne.

The stupa also symbolizes the five elements and their relationship to enlightened mind. These are the essential attributes of a fully realised human being: the base of the stupa signifies earth and equanimity; the dome, water and indestructibility; the spire, fire and compassion; above the spire, wind and all-accomplishing action; and at the very top, the jewel represents space and all-pervading awareness. The stupa is a mandala.