Kyabjé Drubwang Padma Norbu Rinpoche, 1932 – March 27, 2009, was the 11th throneholder of the Palyul Lineage of the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism, and said to be an incarnation of Vimalamitra. He was widely renowned in the Tibetan Buddhist world as a master of Dzogchen. He was one of a very few teachers left from his generation who received all his training in Tibet under the guidance of what Tibetan Buddhists consider to be fully enlightened teachers.
Biography
Life in Tibet
The Third Drubwang Padma Norbu Rinpoche, Thubten Legshed Chokyi Drayang, also known as Do-ngag Shedrub Tenzin Chog-lei Namgyal was born in 1932, the year of the Water Monkey, in the twelfth month, in the Powo region of Kham, East Tibet. He was recognized in 1936 by the Fifth Dzogchen Rinpoche and . Padma Norbu was formally enthroned by his root teacher, Thubten Chökyi Dawa the second Chogtrul Rinpoche, and Karma Thegchog Nyingpo the Fourth Karma Kuchen. He trained at the Palyul Monastery in Tibet, studying and receiving teachings from numerous masters and scholars, including the Fourth Karma Kuchen, the 10th Palyul throneholder.
In 1959, recognizing the situation in Eastern Tibet to be very tense, Penor Rinpoche left with a party of 300 for Pemako in Northeast India. Only 30 of the original party survived. In 1961, they were resettled in South India in Bylakuppe in a series of Tibetan camps where Penor Rinpoche initially built a bamboo temple to train a small handful of monks in 1963.
Life in India
In the 1970s Penor Rinpoche began to train Khenpos in the Nam Cho cycle. By the 1980s Namdroling Monastery had many hundreds of monks.
Teachings in Western countries
He made his first visit to the United States in 1985, invited by Gyaltrul Rinpoche to Ashland, Oregon, to confer the Nam Cho cycle of teachings. In 1987 he recognized Catharine Burroughs as the incarnation of Genyenma Ahkön Lhamo. The historical Genyenma Ahkön Lhamo was the sister of the founder of Palyul, Kunzang Sherab. In 1988 he gave the Kama teachings at Gyatrul Rinpoche's Yeshe Nyingpo center in Ashland, Oregon, followed immediately thereafter by the Longchen Nyingthig at Ven. Peling Tulku Rinpoche's centre in Canada, Orgyan Osal Cho Dzong. After this he gave the Rinchen Terzod empowerments at Kunzang Palyul Choling. Towards the end of this cycle of empowerments he ordained 25 western monks and nuns. In 1995 he was invited by John Giorno to give teachings and empowerments for a week in New York City. He then traveled to Kunzang Palyul Choling to give the Nam Chö cycle. After this trip, he sent Khenpo Tsewang Gyatso, who had previously taught in the U.S. in 1992, to establish centers in New York and other regions. In 1998 he established the Palyul Retreat Center in McDonough, New York, offering a one-month retreat course that follows a similar if abbreviated curriculum to the one at Namdroling monastery. He offered Kalachakra empowerments, first in Rochester in 1996 and next at his retreat center in 2007. He also granted the Nam Chö cycle of teachings in Austin, Texas, in 2002.
Head of the Nyingmapa
Within the Nyingma school there was no main throneholder; thus, upon onset of the Tibetan diaspora, there was a request from the Tibetan Government in Exile to the Nyingmapa followers to request someone to be such a representative: someone of the highest esteem who could be responsible for all of the Nyingma followers. Now the request is usually made during Nyingma Monlam Chenmo in Bodhgaya.
Dudjom Jigdral Yeshe Dorje, was unanimously requested to become first Head of the Nyingmapas and served from the 1960s until his death in 1987.
Dilgo Khyentse, was requested to become second Head of the Nyingmapas and served from 1987 until his death in 1991.
Drubwang Padma Norbu Rinpoche, was requested to become third Head of the Nyingmapas and served from 1991 until retirement in 2001.
Mindrolling Trichen, was requested to become fourth Head of the Nyingmapas and served from 2003 until his death in 2008.
Chatral Sangye Dorje was requested to become fifth Head of the Nyingmapas, but declined.
Trulshik Rinpoche served as the fifth Head of the Nyingmapas from 2010 until his death in 2011.
In Feb 2020 at the Nyingma Monlam, Rabjam Rinpoche declined the position and it remains unfilled.
Activities
Monlam Chenmo
Each year a prayer festival called "Monlam Chenmo" is held in Bodh Gaya, the place of the Buddha's Enlightenment. Recognizing its importance, Penor Rinpoche headed a committee of monks, tulkus and khenpos who organized the yearly prayer ceremony.
South Indian Monastery
He was responsible for an ever-expanding population of Himalayan monks and nuns who come to Namdroling Monastery based on the traditional cultural style of sending a son or daughter to the monastery for an education. Many of the young monks and nuns come from extremely impoverished families located in Bhutan, Nepal or the Tibetan refugee camps in India. The monastery provides full room, board, clothing, medical care and an education in the traditional Tibetan Buddhist canon. The population of students exceeds several thousand.
He sponsored the pavement of the road leading from Bylakuppe to Kushalnagar. He also built a small hospital that still requires equipment, but provides infirmary services to the local community. A side benefit of his activities is that the temples he built brings busloads of Indian tourists to the area daily, increasing the income and economic activity in the area.
Worldwide
His main U.S. representative is Khenchen Tsewang Gyatsho Rinpoche, who maintains a yearly travel schedule that includes Canada, Singapore as well as Arizona, California, Florida, Montana, New York, Ohio, Texas, Virginia, and Washington DC. Centers for practice are located internationally, including India, Taiwan, Hong Kong and America.
Retreats
Monks and international students went on retreat with Penor Rinpoche and received teachings directly from him on two occasions per year. The first was in the 2nd month of the lunar calendar at Namdroling Monastery in South India. The second was in the United States at Palyul Ling. The retreats consisted of the teachings as structured within the Nam Chö cycle beginning with Ngondro, followed by the Inner Heat practice of Tsa Lung, and then Dzogchen Trekcho and Togyal.
The Successive Incarnations of the Drubwang Padma Norbu Rinpoche
The First Drubwang Padma Norbu Rinpoche. The 3rd Throne Holder of the Palyul Tradition.
The Second Drubwang Padma Norbu Rinpoche, Padma Kunzang Tanzin Norbu also known as Thubtan Chokyi Langpo, also known as Rigzin Palchen Dupa. The 9th Throne Holder of the Palyul Tradition.
The Third Drubwang Padma Norbu Rinpoche, Thubten Legshed Chokyi Drayang also known as Do-ngag Shadrub Tanzin Chog-las Namgyal. The 11th Throne Holder of the Palyul Tradition.
Penor Rinpoche Yangsrid: The Fourth Drubwang Padma Norbu Rinpoche, Mingyur Dechen Garwang Zilnon Dorje of Tibet. Enthroned on July 31, 2014.
The Palyul lineage was founded in 1665 by Kunzang Sherab. It is based out of Palyul Monastery, one of the six "mother" monasteries of the Nyingma lineage. The primary teachings followed by Palyul Monasteries were revealed by Terton Migyur Dorje, a "Dharma Treasure Revealer" who received teachings mystically. The works of Migyur Dorje have been passed down from teacher to disciple as the Nam Chö or "space treasure" cycle of teachings. It was these teachings that HH Penor Rinpoche followed and transmitted to his students along with some texts from the Longchen Nyingthig cycle. Penor Rinpoche died March 27, 2009 at around 9.30 PM at his residence at the Namdroling Monastery. Well in advance of his death, Penor Rinpoche requested the Fifth Karma Kuchen Rinpoche, his designated successor, to establish his seat at Palyul Monastery in Tibet. The Fifth Karma Kuchen is 12th and current Palyul throne holder.
Monasteries
Palyul Monastery
has been rebuilt in Tibet since the Cultural Revolution. The temple was re-inaugurated in 2006 by HH Penor Rinpoche's schoolmate, Tulku Thubsang Rinpoche.
Namdroling Monastery
His main monastery and most recent "seat" was the Namdroling Monastery, located in South India, home also to the Ngagyur Nyingma Institute, where hundreds of monks study and graduate from a ten-year shedra program which includes a three-year retreat afterwards. Three senior khenpos, Khenchen Pema Sherab Rinpoche, Khenchen Namdrol Rinpoche, and Khenchen Tsewang Gyatsho Rinpoche oversee the education of the thousands of monks and nuns enrolled in study at shedra.
There are many small branch monasteries throughout Tibet. There are also dharma centers across the globe including , England, Germany, Hong Kong, , Macau, Taiwan, Singapore, Philippines, and the United States that were founded under HH Penor Rinpoche's guidance.
