Chagdud Rinpoche met Khenpo Ngaga, one of his root lamas, only once. Yet Rinpoche has said that the experience was so powerful, he can remember every detail as if it had just happened this morning. And although Chagdud Rinpoche’s time with him was brief, he did have the opportunity to study extensively with Khenpo Ngaga’s heart student, Khenpo Dorje.
After Khenpo Ngaga’s death in 1941, Khenpo Dorje set out to find his teacher’s new incarnation, following the instructions he had left before his death. These included the father’s name and that of a temple near what would be his birthplace. But when Khenpo Dorje met the young son of the man named in the letter, he felt that the child did not have the qualities befitting an incarnation of Khenpo Ngaga. As it turned out, his impression was correct. Khenpo Dorje soon discovered that this man had fathered a different child with another woman.
When Khenpo Dorje saw this mother enter the local temple with a child on her back, he moved toward her to offer a katak to the child. But she stepped away from him—perhaps out of shyness—before he could make the offering. As she turned her back, the child looked directly at Khenpo Dorje and said, “AH, AH, AH,” extending his hand with each recitation of the syllable. Khenpo Dorje was filled with joy, knowing that the child was the reincarnation of Khenpo Ngaga. Khenpo Dorje also realized, as the child was carried away, that he would not meet him again in his lifetime.
Rinpoche tells a more recent story of this incarnation, known as Khenpo Ngagchung, that further demonstrates the power of this great lama’s mind. When a band of horse thieves stole several of Khenpo Ngagchung’s horses, many of his monks were enraged. They passionately vowed to hunt down the thieves and punish them. But Khenpo Ngagchung stopped them and, despite their protests, went off to retrieve the horses by himself. He rode his horse directly to the thieves’ hideout and demanded the return of the other horses. When the thieves swore they hadn’t stolen them, Khenpo Ngagchung proceeded to recount in precise detail exactly what each of the thieves had said and done since the horses were stolen, down to the moment when one of them smoked a cigarette. It finally occurred to the thieves whom they were dealing with, and they immediately gave the horses back. As if Khenpo Ngagchung’s clairvoyance hadn’t been enough, his own horse left an impression of its hooves in the rock as he rode it away.
The next day, the thieves appeared at Khenpo Ngagchung’s monastery to beg his forgiveness. He severely chastised them for their wrong livelihood and the fact that they hadn’t repented until they’d been caught. Then he gave each of them some money and sent them on their way.
While he was at Rigdzin Ling this spring, Chagdud Rinpoche said that Khenpo Ngagchung had requested our help in building a drubdra, or retreat facility, at his monastery in eastern Tibet, where he has already established a thriving monastic college. Rinpoche told us that this would be a wonderful way of repaying, if only in a very small way, Khenpo Ngagchung’s kindness as the incarnation of Khenpo Ngaga, for it is from Khenpo Ngaga that our Dzogchen lineage has been passed down, first to Khenpo Dorje, then to Chagdud Rinpoche, and now to us.
The cost of building a temple and cabins for the drubdra would be $35,000; several thousand dollars have already been raised. Tulku Jigme Rinpoche will carry the funds to Khenpo Ngagchung when he travels to Tibet in early August. Contact Kim at Rigdzin Ling if you wish to contribute.
By Kim McLaughlin
Chagdud Rinpoche met Khenpo Ngaga, one of his root lamas, only once. Yet Rinpoche has said that the experience was so powerful, he can remember every detail as if it had just happened this morning. And although Chagdud Rinpoche’s time with him was brief, he did have the opportunity to study extensively with Khenpo Ngaga’s heart student, Khenpo Dorje.
After Khenpo Ngaga’s death in 1941, Khenpo Dorje set out to find his teacher’s new incarnation, following the instructions he had left before his death. These included the father’s name and that of a temple near what would be his birthplace. But when Khenpo Dorje met the young son of the man named in the letter, he felt that the child did not have the qualities befitting an incarnation of Khenpo Ngaga. As it turned out, his impression was correct. Khenpo Dorje soon discovered that this man had fathered a different child with another woman.
When Khenpo Dorje saw this mother enter the local temple with a child on her back, he moved toward her to offer a katak to the child. But she stepped away from him—perhaps out of shyness—before he could make the offering. As she turned her back, the child looked directly at Khenpo Dorje and said, “AH, AH, AH,” extending his hand with each recitation of the syllable. Khenpo Dorje was filled with joy, knowing that the child was the reincarnation of Khenpo Ngaga. Khenpo Dorje also realized, as the child was carried away, that he would not meet him again in his lifetime.
Rinpoche tells a more recent story of this incarnation, known as Khenpo Ngagchung, that further demonstrates the power of this great lama’s mind. When a band of horse thieves stole several of Khenpo Ngagchung’s horses, many of his monks were enraged. They passionately vowed to hunt down the thieves and punish them. But Khenpo Ngagchung stopped them and, despite their protests, went off to retrieve the horses by himself. He rode his horse directly to the thieves’ hideout and demanded the return of the other horses. When the thieves swore they hadn’t stolen them, Khenpo Ngagchung proceeded to recount in precise detail exactly what each of the thieves had said and done since the horses were stolen, down to the moment when one of them smoked a cigarette. It finally occurred to the thieves whom they were dealing with, and they immediately gave the horses back. As if Khenpo Ngagchung’s clairvoyance hadn’t been enough, his own horse left an impression of its hooves in the rock as he rode it away.
The next day, the thieves appeared at Khenpo Ngagchung’s monastery to beg his forgiveness. He severely chastised them for their wrong livelihood and the fact that they hadn’t repented until they’d been caught. Then he gave each of them some money and sent them on their way.
While he was at Rigdzin Ling this spring, Chagdud Rinpoche said that Khenpo Ngagchung had requested our help in building a drubdra, or retreat facility, at his monastery in eastern Tibet, where he has already established a thriving monastic college. Rinpoche told us that this would be a wonderful way of repaying, if only in a very small way, Khenpo Ngagchung’s kindness as the incarnation of Khenpo Ngaga, for it is from Khenpo Ngaga that our Dzogchen lineage has been passed down, first to Khenpo Dorje, then to Chagdud Rinpoche, and now to us.
The cost of building a temple and cabins for the drubdra would be $35,000; several thousand dollars have already been raised. Tulku Jigme Rinpoche will carry the funds to Khenpo Ngagchung when he travels to Tibet in early August. Contact Kim at Rigdzin Ling if you wish to contribute.
By Kim McLaughlin
Chagdud Rinpoche met Khenpo Ngaga, one of his root lamas, only once. Yet Rinpoche has said that the experience was so powerful, he can remember every detail as if it had just happened this morning. And although Chagdud Rinpoche’s time with him was brief, he did have the opportunity to study extensively with Khenpo Ngaga’s heart student, Khenpo Dorje.
After Khenpo Ngaga’s death in 1941, Khenpo Dorje set out to find his teacher’s new incarnation, following the instructions he had left before his death. These included the father’s name and that of a temple near what would be his birthplace. But when Khenpo Dorje met the young son of the man named in the letter, he felt that the child did not have the qualities befitting an incarnation of Khenpo Ngaga. As it turned out, his impression was correct. Khenpo Dorje soon discovered that this man had fathered a different child with another woman.
When Khenpo Dorje saw this mother enter the local temple with a child on her back, he moved toward her to offer a katak to the child. But she stepped away from him—perhaps out of shyness—before he could make the offering. As she turned her back, the child looked directly at Khenpo Dorje and said, “AH, AH, AH,” extending his hand with each recitation of the syllable. Khenpo Dorje was filled with joy, knowing that the child was the reincarnation of Khenpo Ngaga. Khenpo Dorje also realized, as the child was carried away, that he would not meet him again in his lifetime.
Rinpoche tells a more recent story of this incarnation, known as Khenpo Ngagchung, that further demonstrates the power of this great lama’s mind. When a band of horse thieves stole several of Khenpo Ngagchung’s horses, many of his monks were enraged. They passionately vowed to hunt down the thieves and punish them. But Khenpo Ngagchung stopped them and, despite their protests, went off to retrieve the horses by himself. He rode his horse directly to the thieves’ hideout and demanded the return of the other horses. When the thieves swore they hadn’t stolen them, Khenpo Ngagchung proceeded to recount in precise detail exactly what each of the thieves had said and done since the horses were stolen, down to the moment when one of them smoked a cigarette. It finally occurred to the thieves whom they were dealing with, and they immediately gave the horses back. As if Khenpo Ngagchung’s clairvoyance hadn’t been enough, his own horse left an impression of its hooves in the rock as he rode it away.
The next day, the thieves appeared at Khenpo Ngagchung’s monastery to beg his forgiveness. He severely chastised them for their wrong livelihood and the fact that they hadn’t repented until they’d been caught. Then he gave each of them some money and sent them on their way.
While he was at Rigdzin Ling this spring, Chagdud Rinpoche said that Khenpo Ngagchung had requested our help in building a drubdra, or retreat facility, at his monastery in eastern Tibet, where he has already established a thriving monastic college. Rinpoche told us that this would be a wonderful way of repaying, if only in a very small way, Khenpo Ngagchung’s kindness as the incarnation of Khenpo Ngaga, for it is from Khenpo Ngaga that our Dzogchen lineage has been passed down, first to Khenpo Dorje, then to Chagdud Rinpoche, and now to us.
The cost of building a temple and cabins for the drubdra would be $35,000; several thousand dollars have already been raised. Tulku Jigme Rinpoche will carry the funds to Khenpo Ngagchung when he travels to Tibet in early August. Contact Kim at Rigdzin Ling if you wish to contribute.
By Kim McLaughlin
Chagdud Rinpoche met Khenpo Ngaga, one of his root lamas, only once. Yet Rinpoche has said that the experience was so powerful, he can remember every detail as if it had just happened this morning. And although Chagdud Rinpoche’s time with him was brief, he did have the opportunity to study extensively with Khenpo Ngaga’s heart student, Khenpo Dorje.
After Khenpo Ngaga’s death in 1941, Khenpo Dorje set out to find his teacher’s new incarnation, following the instructions he had left before his death. These included the father’s name and that of a temple near what would be his birthplace. But when Khenpo Dorje met the young son of the man named in the letter, he felt that the child did not have the qualities befitting an incarnation of Khenpo Ngaga. As it turned out, his impression was correct. Khenpo Dorje soon discovered that this man had fathered a different child with another woman.
When Khenpo Dorje saw this mother enter the local temple with a child on her back, he moved toward her to offer a katak to the child. But she stepped away from him—perhaps out of shyness—before he could make the offering. As she turned her back, the child looked directly at Khenpo Dorje and said, “AH, AH, AH,” extending his hand with each recitation of the syllable. Khenpo Dorje was filled with joy, knowing that the child was the reincarnation of Khenpo Ngaga. Khenpo Dorje also realized, as the child was carried away, that he would not meet him again in his lifetime.
Rinpoche tells a more recent story of this incarnation, known as Khenpo Ngagchung, that further demonstrates the power of this great lama’s mind. When a band of horse thieves stole several of Khenpo Ngagchung’s horses, many of his monks were enraged. They passionately vowed to hunt down the thieves and punish them. But Khenpo Ngagchung stopped them and, despite their protests, went off to retrieve the horses by himself. He rode his horse directly to the thieves’ hideout and demanded the return of the other horses. When the thieves swore they hadn’t stolen them, Khenpo Ngagchung proceeded to recount in precise detail exactly what each of the thieves had said and done since the horses were stolen, down to the moment when one of them smoked a cigarette. It finally occurred to the thieves whom they were dealing with, and they immediately gave the horses back. As if Khenpo Ngagchung’s clairvoyance hadn’t been enough, his own horse left an impression of its hooves in the rock as he rode it away.
The next day, the thieves appeared at Khenpo Ngagchung’s monastery to beg his forgiveness. He severely chastised them for their wrong livelihood and the fact that they hadn’t repented until they’d been caught. Then he gave each of them some money and sent them on their way.
While he was at Rigdzin Ling this spring, Chagdud Rinpoche said that Khenpo Ngagchung had requested our help in building a drubdra, or retreat facility, at his monastery in eastern Tibet, where he has already established a thriving monastic college. Rinpoche told us that this would be a wonderful way of repaying, if only in a very small way, Khenpo Ngagchung’s kindness as the incarnation of Khenpo Ngaga, for it is from Khenpo Ngaga that our Dzogchen lineage has been passed down, first to Khenpo Dorje, then to Chagdud Rinpoche, and now to us.
The cost of building a temple and cabins for the drubdra would be $35,000; several thousand dollars have already been raised. Tulku Jigme Rinpoche will carry the funds to Khenpo Ngagchung when he travels to Tibet in early August. Contact Kim at Rigdzin Ling if you wish to contribute.
By Kim McLaughlin
Chagdud Rinpoche met Khenpo Ngaga, one of his root lamas, only once. Yet Rinpoche has said that the experience was so powerful, he can remember every detail as if it had just happened this morning. And although Chagdud Rinpoche’s time with him was brief, he did have the opportunity to study extensively with Khenpo Ngaga’s heart student, Khenpo Dorje.
After Khenpo Ngaga’s death in 1941, Khenpo Dorje set out to find his teacher’s new incarnation, following the instructions he had left before his death. These included the father’s name and that of a temple near what would be his birthplace. But when Khenpo Dorje met the young son of the man named in the letter, he felt that the child did not have the qualities befitting an incarnation of Khenpo Ngaga. As it turned out, his impression was correct. Khenpo Dorje soon discovered that this man had fathered a different child with another woman.
When Khenpo Dorje saw this mother enter the local temple with a child on her back, he moved toward her to offer a katak to the child. But she stepped away from him—perhaps out of shyness—before he could make the offering. As she turned her back, the child looked directly at Khenpo Dorje and said, “AH, AH, AH,” extending his hand with each recitation of the syllable. Khenpo Dorje was filled with joy, knowing that the child was the reincarnation of Khenpo Ngaga. Khenpo Dorje also realized, as the child was carried away, that he would not meet him again in his lifetime.
Rinpoche tells a more recent story of this incarnation, known as Khenpo Ngagchung, that further demonstrates the power of this great lama’s mind. When a band of horse thieves stole several of Khenpo Ngagchung’s horses, many of his monks were enraged. They passionately vowed to hunt down the thieves and punish them. But Khenpo Ngagchung stopped them and, despite their protests, went off to retrieve the horses by himself. He rode his horse directly to the thieves’ hideout and demanded the return of the other horses. When the thieves swore they hadn’t stolen them, Khenpo Ngagchung proceeded to recount in precise detail exactly what each of the thieves had said and done since the horses were stolen, down to the moment when one of them smoked a cigarette. It finally occurred to the thieves whom they were dealing with, and they immediately gave the horses back. As if Khenpo Ngagchung’s clairvoyance hadn’t been enough, his own horse left an impression of its hooves in the rock as he rode it away.
The next day, the thieves appeared at Khenpo Ngagchung’s monastery to beg his forgiveness. He severely chastised them for their wrong livelihood and the fact that they hadn’t repented until they’d been caught. Then he gave each of them some money and sent them on their way.
While he was at Rigdzin Ling this spring, Chagdud Rinpoche said that Khenpo Ngagchung had requested our help in building a drubdra, or retreat facility, at his monastery in eastern Tibet, where he has already established a thriving monastic college. Rinpoche told us that this would be a wonderful way of repaying, if only in a very small way, Khenpo Ngagchung’s kindness as the incarnation of Khenpo Ngaga, for it is from Khenpo Ngaga that our Dzogchen lineage has been passed down, first to Khenpo Dorje, then to Chagdud Rinpoche, and now to us.
The cost of building a temple and cabins for the drubdra would be $35,000; several thousand dollars have already been raised. Tulku Jigme Rinpoche will carry the funds to Khenpo Ngagchung when he travels to Tibet in early August. Contact Kim at Rigdzin Ling if you wish to contribute.
By Kim McLaughlin
