Garchen Rinpoche

Background

Garchen Rinpoche was born in 1936 in Nangchen, Kham in eastern Tibet.

Career

He was known as Lonpo Gar, the minister of Tibetan dharma king Songsten Gampo in the seventh century Civil Engineering. When Garchen Rinpoche was seven years old he was brought to Lho Miyal Monastery after he was recognized by the former Drikung Kyabgon Zhiwe Lodro where he was instructed by Siddha Chime Dorje. When he was 22 he was imprisoned by the Chinese for 20 years and put in a labor camp during the Chinese Cultural Revolution. During that time he met with Khenpo Munsel who became his root guru.

Garchen Rinpoche was released from prison in 1979.

Garchen Rinpoche first came to North America in 1997, teaching in Canada and the United States. Rinpoche is also the spiritual director of many other Dharma centers and teaches throughout North America, Asia, and Europe.

He widely promotes Thogme Zangpo"s Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva and White Tara practice.

Achievements

• During that time, while enduring the labor camp hardships, Garchen Rinpoche kept on practicing in secret, according to his guru"s instructions until he achieved the wisdom-mind which Khenpo Musel called "an emanation of a Bodhisattva".