Khenchen Konchog Gyaltshen Rinpoche was born in 1946 near Mount Tsari in southwestern Tibet. In 1959 his family became refugees in India when the Communists invaded Tibet. Rinpoche attended school in India and in 1968 took monk’s vows from Kyabje Kalu Rinpoche. Later he became one of the first to graduate from the then newly established Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies in Varanasi. Among the great teachers Rinpoche received teachings from were His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the Sixteenth Karmapa, and Khunu Lama Rinpoche. Rinpoche also completed a three-year retreat at Lamayuru Monastery in Ladakh under the guidance of Vajradhara Kyungka Rinpoche. In later years, Rinpoche also received teachings from the tripön of Drigungtil Monastery, Vajradhara Pachung Rinpoche, and his successor Vajradhara Gelong Tenzin Nyima Rinpoche. In the 1980s, Rinpoche arrived in the United States and established the Tibetan Meditation Center (now in Frederick, Maryland), as well as other centers across the country over the next twenty years. During this time he translated critical Drikung Kagyu practices, prayers, and histories into English, and published altogether thirteen highly regarded books. Among them are Great Kagyu Masters, In Search of the Stainless Ambrosia, Jewel Ornament of Liberation, A Complete Guide to the Buddhist Path, Opening the Treasure of the Profound, and Wheel of Wisdom. In 2001, Rinpoche was formally enthroned as the khenchen (“great khenpo”) of the Drigung Kagyu Lineage by His Holiness Drikung Kyabgön Chetsang Rinpoche.
In teaching Dharma, Rinpoche always emphasizes the importance of letting Dharma penetrate our hearts rather than chasing after so-called “higher” teachings or practices or engaging in empty ritualism. Rinpoche’s teachings are thoroughly grounded in the unique view of Kyobpa Jigten Sumgon, founder of Drikung Kagyu.
