Kyabje Rinpoche

Kyabje Khensur Kangurwa Lobsang Thubten Rinpoche (25 December 1925 – 22 January 2014), was a Buddhist monk, Abbot of Sera Jey Monastery, and the founder of Tibetan Buddhist Institute (Adelaide). Khensur means "former abbot" and Rinpoche means "precious teacher."

Former Abbot of Sera Je monastery, Holder of the transmission lineage of the Kangyur, considered widely as the greatest scholar of Abhidharma of his age and, perhaps, the foremost Vajrayogini practitioner, Kyabje Khensur Kangyur Rinpoche was one of the last great practitioners and scholars largely trained in Tibet. He was known at Sera Je as one of the "Three Greats."

Rinpoche taught all over the world including India, Australia, USA, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Singapore. Because of his extremely high qualifications, advanced knowledge and spiritual insights so rarely found in Lama's today, Rinpoche was often requested to teach at Sera monastery, where thousands of monks flocked to hear him speak.

On 17 March 1959 the 14th Dalai Lama escaped in disguise and started his journey to Sikkim, India and Nepal. The day before, the Chinese had fired 2 tank bombs into the Norbulinka, and on 18 March bombs had landed at Sera, the day after he had escaped to India.

The situation in Lhasa had become desperate, and Rinpoche and Geshe Ngawang Dhargey went into Lhasa to see for themselves. Because of this, they were not in Sera when the Chinese had come to the monastery and arrested monks coming back from the city. In Lhasa, there were bombs, tanks fire, machine guns and flame throwers, especially around the Norbulinka. A day later, Rinpoche made the decision to leave, although many others senior monks did not, and most perished in the ensuing onslaught. There were 35 in the group, and only 3 Senior Monks. It was an honour that Rinpoche was asked to throw the Mo to find the way to go to lead them all to safety. Chinese aircraft were patrolling to see if there were any monks escaping ... "it was very frightening". The group travelled day and night for about a month. "Our feet hurt, our eyes were heavy and we had pains in our legs". We made it to Pempo and a Chinese plane appeared and started firing down on everyone around the village, many of whom were trying to escape.

Along the way, the group came across Rinpoche's teacher, Gyurme Urgyen Tsetan Rinpoche, and he then joined the party, making 4 Senior Monks in all. They reached Samye in the Lodkhar area, then ferried across a very large river in a yak hide boat. It was here that fortune smiled again. After taking a short detour to visit a Tara statue, they were given as much food as the donkeys could carry. It was extremely dangerous and now urgent that they leave Lodkhar. They eventually made the border into India, and arrived 24 days after the Dalai Lama's party. The locals were amazed to see that they had travelled across the mountains in winter which were covered in ice ... this was unheard of.

Life in India Source: of Sera from July 1983 until June 1987. The Abbot has to take care of everything, including the overseeing the building projects, the buying of supplies for the monastery, meeting with business people and many meetings of the various Abbots to decide the future of the study programs in India.

Sera Je School

In 1984, during his time as abbot, which has resulted in an extremely high standard and diverse curriculum, achieving exemplary results in examinations. Because it was only for monks, many children from the nearby Tibetan settlements became monks in order to attend.

Australia

In 1986, when Jampa Gendun (Australian monk) arrived with a letter requesting Rinpoche to teach in the West ... "I was asked to stay for 3 years, but I thought 1 year would be enough, however His Holiness advised that perhaps I should stay for 2 years". He then spent 6 months teaching at Kopan Monastery, and from there travelled down to Delhi, then to Singapore and Adelaide arriving on 11 September 1988. Rinpoche eventually spent over 2 decades in Australia.

Buddhahouse

Rinpoche settled in Adelaide South Australia to teach at Buddha-house, an FPMT centre in Fullarton. Rinpoche was asked to teach at many other FPMT centres in Australasia and overseas. By doing this, Rinpoche was fulfilling the wish of the 14th Dalai Lama, to spread the Buddha Dharma to as many sentient beings as possible. Rinpoche taught twice a week on most of the Buddhist Canon, and gave many Initiations and retreats. Rinpoche initially only planned to teach at BuddhaHouse in Adelaide for a year, but stayed as the resident spiritual teacher for over a decade. Under Rinpoche's guidance, BuddhaHouse grew in stability, prosperity and educational strength.

1992 visit of the Dalai Lama to Australia

A highlight of Rinpoche's Australian stay was the visit in May 1992 of the Dalai Lama to Australia. As the senior resident monk it was Rinpoche's privilege to welcome him and accompany him around much of the country. "To be here in a western city so far away from Tibet welcoming the Dalai Lama was very strange. In Tibet it was almost impossible to sit next to him as I did in the Adelaide cathedral, and making a speech of welcome would have been impossible".

Tibetan Buddhist Institute (TBI)

The Tibetan Buddhist Institute in April 2005 by Kyabje Rinpoche, in order to fulfil the wishes of the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet. In March 2009, Tibetan Buddhist Institute found a home with the purchase of the Uniting Church building at Flinders Park South Australia.

Geshe Jampa Gyaltsen

Geshe Jampa Gyaltsen is a student of Rinpoche and is now the resident teacher at Tibetan Buddhist Institute. Geshe Jampa Gyaltsen was born in 1966 and raised in the Tibetan village of Rumbatsa, within the broader district of Trěhor Kham, original site of the now legendary Dhargyay Monastery, and birthplace of founder Khensur Kangyurwa Rinpoche Lobsang Thubten, along with several other great Tibetan scholar-yogis of the 20th century.

Dalai Lama visit to Tibetan Buddhist Institute

At the request of Rinpoche, the Dalai Lama visited the Tibetan Buddhist Institute in Adelaide Australia on Thursday 20 June 2013.

Charitable works

Tibetan sponsorship scheme

In response the many requests from senior monks for assistance, Rinpoche established a monk sponsorship scheme. With over 950 monks, nuns, lay Tibetans in India and Gyalten Charity School in Tibet on the scheme (December 2005) and over 550 sponsors from 6 countries, the Khensur Kangyurwa Rinpoche Sponsorship Schemes is perhaps the largest and among the most successful Tibetan Sponsorship schemes in the world today. The Tibetan sponsorship scheme (previously Monk Sponsorship Scheme) was originally established to help support exiled monks at Sera Monastery escaping repression in Tibet, and also their relatives who live nearby in camps in India. Today the scheme sponsors exiled Monks, Nuns and lay Tibetans in India, Nuns, at two nunneries in Tibet, and students at Gyalten Charity School in Tibet.

Monastery in Kham, Dhargye Gompa

Rinpoche has also successfully helped to raise funds to rebuild his first monastery in Kham, Dhargye Gompa, which was destroyed twice during the Chinese invasion and occupation. In addition, he has raised money to support the important philosophical debating program at Sera Je.

Gyalten Charity School in Tibet has approximately 280 children are enrolled in the school. Mostly monks are sponsored in Rinpoche's schemes, however there are also nuns in India as well as nuns at Nyagye Nunnery in Tibet and many Lay Tibetans in India. Khensur Rinpoche also set up the Emergency Medical Fund, which was established for any monk or lay Tibetan in India that is in urgent need of medical assistance.

Death and reincarnation

On 31 December 2013, the Dalai Lama, personally visited the former abbot of Sera Je Monastery, Thubten Rinpoche just prior to his death (video ) at his Labrang. After meeting with Kyabje Khensur Kangyur Rinpoche, before the beginning of the Lam Rim teachings, in front of approximately 10,000 monks and lay people the Dalai Lama detailed Khensur Rinpoche's realizations stating: "His entire life was dedicated to Dharma from childhood. He has all the qualities of Scripture and Realization" before mentioning his advanced realizations of the Completion Stage of Heruka.

Rinpoche died on 22 January 2014 in India. The cremation ceremony and offering of a fire puja to Kyabje Khensur Kangur Lobsang Thubten Rinpoche's Holy Body, was held at Sera Monastery and attended by hundreds of monks and lay people.

In January 2016 one hundred Geshes in Rinpoche's Labrang at Sera Jey Monastic University dedicated a Heruka Guru Puja for his reincarnation. The 14th Dalai Lama informed that there were no obstacles to the reincarnation, wherever that may be, of Lobsang Thubten. He advised that Rinpoche has appeared, but "there is no rush to find him".

Books and published works

The Bodhicittavivarana by Nagarjuna

The Bodhicittavivarana by Nagarjuna with commentary of Khensur Kangyur Lobsang thubten in conjunction with a rare 14th century commentary, Ngawang dragpa's ‘Garland of Jewels’, as well as the oral commentary of the lineage holder of the Tripiûaka,

Buddha House to Buddhahood

In 1994 teachings of Khensur Rinpoche were printed in the book Buddha House to Buddhahood: teachings during the wood-dog year at Buddha House Centre for Advanced Buddhist Studies / Kagyurwa Geshe Khenzur Lozang Thubten Rinpoche.

Jamgon Publishing

Jamgon Publications was established support the publication of bilingual Tibetan-English editions, of the works of Kyabje Rinpoche, lineage-holder of the Kangyur (the totality of the Buddhist corpus attributed to Buddha Shakyamuni).

Biography

Kyabje Rinpoche and Jen Gibson, 2000; Unpublished Work "Fire and Stone; The Life of a Tibetan Abbot"