Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche

Dilgo Khyentse (Rinpoche) (1910–1991) was one of the greatest Tibetan Buddhist luminaries of the twentieth century. He was a highly accomplished meditation master, scholar, and poet, and a principal holder of the Nyingma lineage. Dilgo Khyentse was respected by all schools of Tibetan Buddhism and was widely regarded as one of the greatest Dzogchen masters of his time. He taught many eminent teachers, including His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Dilgo Khyentse worked tirelessly to uphold the Dharma through the publication of texts, the building of monasteries and stupas, and by offering instruction to thousands of people throughout the world. His writings in Tibetan fill twenty-five volumes.

Dilgo Khyentse was born in 1910 in eastern Tibet to a family descended from the royal lineage of the ninth-century king Trisong Detsen. He was recognized as a tulku or incarnation by the illustrious teacher Mipham Rinpoche and was later enthroned as an emanation of Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo, an important tertön (treasure-finder) and writer of the nineteenth century. At age eleven, he entered Shechen Monastery in Kham, one of the six main monasteries of the Nyingma School.

He had many great teachers, including his root guru, Shechen Gyaltsap. From age fifteen to twenty-eight, he spent his time meditating in silent retreat, living in isolated hermitages and caves, or under the shelter of overhanging rocks in mountains. He later spent many years with Dzongsar Khyentse Chökyi Lodrö (1893–1959), receiving empowerments and teachings.

In the late 1950s Dilgo Khyentse and his family fled Tibet and were welcomed in Bhutan by the Bhutanese Royal Family. He became the foremost Buddhist teacher in Bhutan, where he built stupas and statues, gave numerous teachings, and did retreat. In 1983 he founded Shechen Tennyi Dargyeling Monastery in Nepal, to continue the rich Shechen tradition of practice and study.

Rinpoche traveled throughout the Himalayas and the West, transmitting and explaining the teachings to his countless students. He was a dedicated exponent of the nonsectarian Rimé movement. His books have been translated into many Western languages, and his inspiration is still strongly felt today.

brilliant moon: glimpses of dilgo khyentse rinpoche [trailer] from peter fineberg on Vimeo.

directed by: neten chokling

narrated by: richard gere and lou reed

mix, sound design, sound fx and soundscapes for animations, for both the trailer and the feature, by: peter fineberg

Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche 1976 to 1990 from jampa gyatso on Vimeo.

Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche 1976 to 1990 in Belgium and France.