Lama Padma Karma Rinpoche

Patrul Jigme Dorje Rinpoche

Kyabje Chatral Rinpoche

Khenpo Chowang Rinpoche

Dorlop Kunzang Rinpoche

Lama Gyaltsen Rinpoche

Apprentices

Khenpo Chowang of Gonjang Monastery, Sikkim, India, is one of the most highly respected khenpos within the Tibetan Buddhist system. He was a student at the University of Varanasi from 1969-1978, doing extensive work on Buddhist philosophical texts, especially in the Nyingma tradition. He also studied Buddhist history as well as the Sanskrit, English, and Tibetan languages.  Khenpo's studies were carried out under the spiritual guidence of renowned Nyingmapa khenpos like Khenpo Palden Sherab and Khenpo Tsundu.

He received all Nyingma empowerments and oral transmissions from Kyabje Dodrupchen Rinpoche, Kyabje Dilgo Kyentse Rinpoche, Kyabje Taklung Tsetrul Rinpoche, and Kyabje Penor Rinpoche.  He also spent three years in retreat in Sikkim, India.  

Since 1985, he has been giving lectures on philosophy at Sikkim Institute of Higher Nyingma Studies. In the year 1990, Shantineketan University, Calcutta, India awarded him the Doctor of Philosophy degree for his work "The Ancient Doctrinal Views of Tibetan Buddhism".  Khenpo Chowang has also written a temporal and spiritual history of Sikkim, one of Guru Padmasambhava's most sacred Hidden Lands, published by the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology, Gangtok, Sikkim, 2003.  

Khenpo Chowang has taught in many countries, including the United States, Europe, Singapore, and Taiwan.

See photos of his visit in May 2009

Khenpo Chowang, New Haven, CT 2009

Khenpo Chowang, New Haven, CT 2009