Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche was born in 1951 in the Nangchen region of Kham, Eastern Tibet. He is the son of the Third Neten Chokling Rinpoche (1928-1973), a revered master of the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism whose main seat, Neten Gön, was established in the mid-nineteenth century.
Following the upheavals in the region at the end of the 1950s, Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche left Tibet with his parents, travelling around Sikkim, Nepal, India and Bhutan, for almost 10 years before finally arriving at the small Himalayan town of Bir in Himachal Pradesh, India. It was here, in 1967, that the family laid down their trunks and Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche’s father, with the support of foreign aid, set about puchasing land for a new Tibetan Settlement to be formed. Shortly after, he also started work on rebuilding a new Neten Chokling monastery where the spiritual traditions of the Chokling lineage could be upheld (Pema Ewam Chögar Gyurme Ling).
Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche with his father, Third Chokling Rinpoche
Tragically, in 1973, the Third Neten Chokling Rinpoche passed away prematurely in a road accident on his way back to Bir. Subsequently, responsibility for completing the monastery fell upon the young shoulders of Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche at the tender age of twenty-two. Thanks to his courage and resolve, the monastery was successfully completed and is now home to a thriving community of monks.
During his lifetime, Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche received teachings and transmissions from some of the greatest Tibetan masters of the times, including Jamyang Khyentse Chökyi Lodrö, the Third Neten Chokling (his father), Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, Khamtrul Rinpoche Döngyu Nyima, the 16th Karmapa Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche, and His Holiness Kyabgon Gongma Trichen Rinpoche, to name but a few.
He spent many years attending his root teacher, Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, from the late 1960s until Kyabje Rinpoche’s passing away in 1991. Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche was a truly outstanding master whose knowledge and realization were revered by all. It was by serving as ritual assistant and chant master to this unparalled master that his knowledge of the complex rituals, practices and initiations of the Vajrayana path reached new heights, as evident today. It was also by accompanying Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche on his travels that he first voyaged to the West, beginning with a visit to the Dordogne, France, in 1975. A trip to the United States in the following year, 1976, at the invitation of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, expanded his horizons still further and allowed him to directly witness how the Buddhadharma was being transmitted in the West.
Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche (top row, 2nd left) with Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche & Eighth Khamtrul Rinpoche at Tashi Jong
Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche first gave teachings in Dordogne, France, at Pema Wangyal Rinpoche’s centre. When his mother heard that his teachings had been recorded she asked for the tapes. When she listened to them, she was amazed at her son's knowledge, because she had never seen him study much before. Since those first trips abroad, Rinpoche has traveled extensively across the world, assisting great lineage masters in their Dharma work, conducting rituals and drupchens, sharing teachings and advice, and visiting numerous sacred pilgrimage sites.
Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche has also made frequent visits to Tibet where he was able to oversee the rebuilding of his father’s monsatery, Neten Gön, as well as its associated retreat centre. Rinpoche was also a Member of the Tibetan Parliament in exile for the region of Kham, first elected in 2000 and re-elected in 2005, earning him a formidable reputation as a skilled orator.
Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche was trained at an early age in the art of thangka painting and his appreciation of the arts associated with Tibetan Buddhist practice never wavered. He has commissioned numerous sets of thangkas associated with various Dharma lineages, including the Life of the Buddha, the Jataka Tales, Masters of the Four Schools of Tibetan Buddhism, the terma revelations of Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo, and many more besides. He continues to offer these thangkas, made with exacting care and precision, to his contemporary masters and makes them freely available to Tibetan monasteries in printed form. He brings the same artistic flair to the making of statues and other representations of the Buddha’s body, speech and mind.
Rinpoche is a staunch upholder of the Ngagyur Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism much revered and respected by his contemporaries. He is well known for his incredible memory and the depth of his knowledge, particularly in the field of Vajrayana practices and rituals, and history. Presently, Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche still resides in Bir, India, together with his family, focussing his time mainly on practicing drupchens at his home temple, Tsering Jong, and at sacred sites across Asia.