Penor Rinpoche

Padma Norbu was formally enthroned by his root teacher, Thubten Chökyi Dawa (1894–1959) the second Chogtrul Rinpoche, and Karma Thegchog Nyingpo (1908–1958) the Fourth Karma Kuchen.

The Third Drubwang Padma Norbu Rinpoche, Thubten Legshed Chokyi Drayang, also known as Do-ngag Shedrub Tenzin Chog-lei Namgyal was born in 1932, the year of the Water Monkey, in the twelfth month, in the Powo region of Kham, East Tibet.

He was recognized in 1936 by the Fifth Dzogchen Rinpoche (Thubten Chokyi Dorje) and Khenpo Ngawang Palzang (also known as Khenchen Ngagi Wangchuk, Ngawang Palzangpo, or Khenpo Ngagchung).

In 1959, recognizing the situation in Eastern Tibet to be very tense, Penor Rinpoche left with a party of 300 for Pemako in Northeast India.

Only 30 of the original party survived.

In 1961, they were resettled in South India in Bylakuppe in a series of Tibetan camps where Penor Rinpoche initially built a bamboo temple to train a small handful of monks in 1963.

In the 1970s, Penor Rinpoche began to train Khenpos in the Nam Cho cycle.

By the 1980s Namdroling Monastery had many hundreds of monks.

He made his first visit to the United States in 1985, invited by Gyaltrul Rinpoche to Ashland, Oregon, to confer the Nam Cho cycle of teachings.

In 1987 he recognized Catharine Burroughs as the incarnation of Genyenma Ahkön Lhamo.

The historical Genyenma Ahkön Lhamo was the sister of the founder of Palyul, Kunzang Sherab.

In 1988 he gave the Kama teachings at Gyatrul Rinpoche's Yeshe Nyingpo center in Ashland, Oregon, followed immediately thereafter by the Longchen Nyingthig at Ven.

Peling Tulku Rinpoche's centre in Canada, Orgyan Osal Cho Dzong.

After this he gave the Rinchen Terzod empowerments at Kunzang Palyul Choling.

Towards the end of this cycle of empowerments he ordained 25 western monks and nuns.

After this trip, he sent Khenpo Tsewang Gyatso, who had previously taught in the U.S. in 1992, to establish centers in New York and other regions.

In 1993, a nunnery was added, and by 2004 there were 4000 monks and 800 nuns at the monastic center.

In 1995, was invited by John Giorno to give teachings and empowerments for a week in New York City.

He then traveled to Kunzang Palyul Choling to give the Nam Chö cycle.

He offered Kalachakra empowerments, first in Rochester in 1996 and next at his retreat center in 2007.

In 1998, he established the Palyul Retreat Center in McDonough, New York, offering a one-month retreat course that follows a similar if abbreviated curriculum to the one at Namdroling monastery.

He also granted the Nam Chö cycle of teachings in Austin, Texas, in 2002.

Within the Nyingma school there was no main throneholder; thus, upon onset of the Tibetan diaspora, there was a request from the Tibetan Government in Exile to the Nyingmapa followers to request someone to be such a representative: someone of the highest esteem who could be responsible for all of the Nyingma followers.

Request was usually made during Nyingma Monlam Chenmo in Bodhgaya.

Each year a prayer festival called "Monlam Chenmo" is held in Bodh Gaya, the place of the Buddha's Enlightenment.

Recognizing its importance, Penor Rinpoche headed a committee of monks, tulkus and khenpos who organized the yearly prayer ceremony.

He was responsible for an ever-expanding population of Himalayan monks and nuns who come to Namdroling Monastery based on the traditional cultural style of sending a son or daughter to the monastery for an education.

Many of the young monks and nuns come from extremely impoverished families located in Bhutan, Nepal or the Tibetan refugee camps in India.

The monastery provides full room, board, clothing, medical care and an education in the traditional Tibetan Buddhist canon.

The population of students exceeds several thousand.

He sponsored the pavement of the road leading from Bylakuppe to Kushalnagar.

He also built a small hospital that still requires equipment, but provides infirmary services to the local community.

A side benefit of his activities is that the temples he built brings busloads of Indian tourists to the area daily, increasing the income and economic activity in the area.

His main U.S. representative is Khenchen Tsewang Gyatsho Rinpoche, who maintains a yearly travel schedule that includes Canada, Singapore as well as Arizona, California, Florida, Montana, New York, Ohio, Texas, Virginia, and Washington, DC.

Centers for practice are located internationally, including India, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and the United States.

Monks and international students went on retreat with Penor Rinpoche and received teachings directly from him on two occasions per year.

Kyabjé Drubwang Padma Norbu Rinpoche, 1932 – 27 March 2009, was the 11th throneholder of the Palyul Lineage of the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism, and said to be an incarnation of Vimalamitra.

He was widely renowned in the Tibetan Buddhist world as a master of Dzogchen.

He was one of a very few teachers left from his generation who received all his training (in the traditional sense) in Tibet under the guidance of what Tibetan Buddhists consider to be fully enlightened teachers.

He trained at the Palyul Monastery in Tibet, studying and receiving teachings from numerous masters and scholars, including the Fourth Karma Kuchen, the 10th Palyul throneholder.