Khenpo Shenga
Encyclopedia
Khenpo Shenga Rinpoche was a prominent scholar in the Nyingma
and Sakya
traditions of Tibetan Buddhism
.
, Thubten Chökyi Dorje, to teach at the Shri Singha Shedra at Dzogchen Monastery. His skill as a scholar soon burnished his reputation and attracted many students.
From Dzogchen he went to Palpung monastery at the behest of Tai Situ Rinpoche, where he composed his best known works and established a shedra. A few years later he was invited by Jamyang Khyentse Chökyi Lodrö to become the first khenpo of the new shedra at Dzongsar Monastery
, inaugurated in 1918. He later founded another shedra at the Sakya monastery of Kyegön Döndrub Ling.
spirit of returning to Indian textual sources. He also taught a number of lamas who would become illustrious in their own rights.
Nyingma
The Nyingma tradition is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism . "Nyingma" literally means "ancient," and is often referred to as Nga'gyur or the "old school" because it is founded on the first translations of Buddhist scriptures from Sanskrit into Tibetan, in the eighth century...
and Sakya
Sakya
The Sakya school is one of four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism, the others being the Nyingma, Kagyu, and Gelug...
traditions of Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhist religious doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and India . It is the state religion of Bhutan...
.
Life
Khenpo Shenga he undertook religious study at a relatively young age under the tutelage of Önpo Tenzin Norbu. Eventually he was recognized as an incarnation of that lama's uncle, a scholar named Gyalsé Shenphen Thayé. Upon the death of his guru, he remained at Gemang hermitage until 1902 when he was invited by the fifth Dzogchen RinpocheDzogchen Rinpoche
Dzogchen Rinpoche is the head lama of Dzogchen Monastery, one of the largest monasteries in eastern Tibet which was destroyed in 1959 and rebuilt in the 1980s....
, Thubten Chökyi Dorje, to teach at the Shri Singha Shedra at Dzogchen Monastery. His skill as a scholar soon burnished his reputation and attracted many students.
From Dzogchen he went to Palpung monastery at the behest of Tai Situ Rinpoche, where he composed his best known works and established a shedra. A few years later he was invited by Jamyang Khyentse Chökyi Lodrö to become the first khenpo of the new shedra at Dzongsar Monastery
Dzongsar Monastery
Dzongsar Monastery is a Buddhist monastery in Dêgê County in the Garzê Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Sichuan, China, southeast of the town of Derge and east of Palpung Monastery. Historically it lay in the Kham region of Tibet...
, inaugurated in 1918. He later founded another shedra at the Sakya monastery of Kyegön Döndrub Ling.
Legacy
Khenpo Shenga is remembered for his annotated commentaries on the thirteen primary texts of the Nyingma shedra curriculum, which are now the standard. He did much to revitalize scholarship in the Rime movementRime movement
Rimé is a Tibetan word which means "no sides", "non-partisan" or "non-sectarian". In a religious context, the word ri-mé is usually used to refer to the "Eclectic Movement" between the Buddhist Nyingma, Sakya, and Kagyu traditions, along with the non-Buddhist Bön religion, wherein practitioners...
spirit of returning to Indian textual sources. He also taught a number of lamas who would become illustrious in their own rights.
External links
- Khenpo Shenga — at Rigpa Wiki.
- The Life of Khenpo Shenga (1871-1927) - at Lotsawa house