Thubten Zopa

Rinpoche Rinpoche, also spelled Rimpoche (), is an honorific term used in the Tibetan language. It literally means "precious one", and may refer to a person, place, or thing—like the words "gem" or "jewel" (Sanskrit: '' Ratna''). The word consists of '' ...

(; born Dawa Chötar, 3 December 1945 – 13 April 2023) was a

Tibetan Buddhist Tibetan Buddhism is a form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet, Bhutan and Mongolia. It also has a sizable number of adherents in the areas surrounding the Himalayas, including the Indian regions of Ladakh, Darjeeling, Sikkim, and Arunachal Prades ...

lama Lama () is a title bestowed to a realized practitioner of the Dharma in Tibetan Buddhism. Not all monks are lamas, while nuns and female practitioners can be recognized and entitled as lamas. The Tibetan word ''la-ma'' means "high mother", ...

in the

Gelug file:DalaiLama0054 tiny.jpg, 240px, 14th Dalai Lama, The 14th Dalai Lama (center), the most influential figure of the contemporary Gelug tradition, at the 2003 Kalachakra ceremony, Bodh Gaya, Bodhgaya (India) The Gelug (, also Geluk; 'virtuous' ...

school. He is known for founding the

Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition The Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (FPMT) was founded in 1975 by Gelugpa Lamas Thubten Yeshe and Thubten Zopa Rinpoche, who began teaching Tibetan Buddhism to Western students in Nepal. The FPMT has grown to encompass ...

and

Maitripa College Maitripa College, founded in 2005 as Maitripa Institute, is a Tibetan Buddhist college located in Portland, Oregon. It is an affiliated member of the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition The Foundation for the Preservati ...

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

Biography

Thubten Zopa Rinpoche, also called Lama Zopa Rinpoche has an extensive biography of him in the book ''The Lawudo Lama'' by Jamyang Wangmo. Lama Zopa Rinpoche was born in Thangme, Nepal, in 1945. Early in life, he was recognized as the reincarnation of the Lawudo Lama Kunzang Yeshe, from the same region (hence the title "

"). At the age of ten, he went to

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ), or Greater Tibet, is a region in the western part of East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are other ethnic groups s ...

and studied and meditated at Domo Geshe Rinpoche's monastery near

Pagri Phari or Pagri (; ) is a town in Yadong County in the Tibet Autonomous Region, China near the border with Bhutan. The border can be accessed through a secret road/trail connecting Tsento Gewog in Bhutan () known as Tremo La. the town had a popu ...

. He took his monastic vows at Dungkar Monastery in Tibet. Lama Zopa Rinpoche left Tibet in 1959 for Bhutan after the

Chinese occupation of Tibet There are two political debates regarding the relationship between Tibet and China. The first debate concerns whether Tibet Autonomous Region, Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) and parts of neighboring provinces that are claimed as political Tibet sh ...

. Lama Zopa Rinpoche then went to the Tibetan refugee camp at Buxa Duar,

West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...

, India, where he met

Lama Yeshe Thubten Yeshe (1935–1984) was a Tibetan lama who, while exiled in Nepal, co-founded Kopan Monastery (1969) and the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (1975). He followed the Gelug tradition, and was considered unconventi ...

, who became his closest teacher. The Lamas met their first Western student, Zina Rachevsky, in 1967 then traveled with her to Nepal in 1968 where they began teaching more Westerners. Lama Zopa met

Choekyi Gyaltsen, 10th Panchen Lama Lobsang Trinley Lhündrub Chökyi Gyaltsen (born Gönbo Cêdän; 19 February 1938 – 28 January 1989) was the tenth Panchen Lama, officially the 10th Panchen Erdeni (), of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. According to Tibetan Buddhism, ...

, in Nepal in 1986 and in Tibet. Lama Zopa is most noteworthy as the co-founder, with Lama Thubten Yeshe, of

Kopan Monastery Kopan Monastery is a Tibetan Buddhist monastery near Boudhanath, on the outskirts of Kathmandu, Nepal. It is a member of the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (FPMT), an international network of Gelugpa dharma centers, a ...

and the

(FPMT). In 1972 he along with Lama Yeshe founded

Tushita Meditation Centre Tushita ཏུ་ཤི་ཏ་ཐེག་ཆེན་སྒོམ་སྒྲུབ་བསྟི་གནས་ཁང་ is a centre for the study and practice of Buddhism from the Tibetan Mahayana tradition in Himachal Pradesh in northern In ...

near

McLeod Ganj McLeod Ganj or McLeodganj (pronounced ) is a suburb of Dharamshala, in the Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh, India. It is known as "Little Lhasa" or "Dhasa" as the Tibetan government-in-exile is headquartered here and there is a significant p ...

at village Dharamkot in

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...

. Since the 1984 death of Lama Yeshe, Lama Zopa has served as the FPMT's spiritual director. FPMT is involved with a number of charitable activities including "offering food to ordained Sangha; providing scholarships to study Buddhist philosophy; offering to the main teachers of the Lama Tsongkhapa tradition and sponsoring annual debates; offering grants for social services such as to old age homes, schools, hospitals and monastic institutions; providing comprehensive Dharma programs; translating Dharma texts; sponsoring holy objects: statues, stupas and prayer wheels, and saving animals."

Death

From 10 April 2023, Lama Zopa Rinpoche stayed up in the mountains in the

Tsum Valley The Tsum Valley is a valley situated in Gorkha district of western Nepal at an altitude of . The valley lies inside the jurisdiction of the Manaslu Conservation Area which was established in 1998. The valley has 33 villages with 529 households an ...

. Due to altitude sickness he had to be brought down urgently. On arrival back in

Kathmandu Kathmandu () is the capital and largest city of Nepal, situated in the central part of the country within the Kathmandu Valley. As per the 2021 Nepal census, it has a population of 845,767 residing in 105,649 households, with approximately 4 mi ...

, Rinpoche stopped breathing. The main doctor at Karuna Hospital tried for some time to revive him, but was not successful. Rinpoche died at about 9.30 am

Nepal time Nepal Standard Time (NPT) is the time zone for Nepal. With a time offset from Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) of UTC+05:45 all over Nepal, it is one of only three time zones with a 45-minute offset from UTC.The others are Chatham Island Sta ...

, 13 April 2023, at the age of 76.

Teachings

Lama Zopa Rinpoche's books are published by

Wisdom Publications The Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (FPMT) was founded in 1975 by Gelugpa Lamas Thubten Yeshe and Thubten Zopa Rinpoche, who began teaching Tibetan Buddhism to Western students in Nepal. The FPMT has grown to encompas ...

and Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive. Free transcripts of some of his teachings are available from the Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive. Lama Zopa Rinpoche offered spiritual advice on a range of topics to students, many of which are available on the FPMT and LYWA websites.

Lineage

Lama Zopa Rinpoche was a Gelugpa lineage holder, having received teachings from many of the great Gelugpa masters. His Root Guru is HH

Trijang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso The Third Trijang Rinpoche, Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso (1901–1981) was a Gelugpa Lama and a direct disciple of Pabongkhapa Déchen Nyingpo. He succeeded Ling Rinpoche as the junior tutor of the 14th Dalai Lama when the Dalai Lama was nineteen ...

since he was a young boy studying in

Buxa Buxa is a village in the Alipurduar district of West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the ...

, India. Lama Zopa Rinpoche was a devoted student of the

14th Dalai Lama The 14th Dalai Lama (born 6 July 1935; full spiritual name: Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, shortened as Tenzin Gyatso; ) is the incumbent Dalai Lama, the highest spiritual leader and head of Tibetan Buddhism. He served a ...

and has outlined that offering service to the Dalai Lama as much as possible and to be able to fulfill his wishes is the highest priority for the FPMT organization.

Published books

Lama Zopa Rinpoche has a number of books published by

and Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive including the following titles: * ''How To Enjoy Death: Preparing to Meet Life's Final Challenge without Fear'' * ''The Four Noble Truths: A Guide to Everyday Life'' * ''Bodhichitta: Practice for a Meaningful Life'' * ''Dear Lama Zopa: Radical Solutions for Transforming Problems into Happiness'' * ''Ultimate Healing'' * ''The Door to Satisfaction'' * ''Transforming Problems Into Happiness'' * ''The Heart of the Path Book: Seeing the Guru as Buddha'' * ''Teachings From the Medicine Buddha Retreat Book'' * ''Sun of Devotion, Stream of Blessings Book'' *''How Things Exist: Teachings on Emptiness''

References

External links

Lama Zopa Rinpoche's biography

Information on Lama Zopa Rinpoche on the FPMT website

Many of Rinpoche's books and online teachings at LYWA

Teachings and Advice of Lama Zopa Rinpoche at LYWA

Books by Lama Zopa Rinpoche published by Wisdom Publications
*
Lama Zopa Rinpoche Video Teachings on Youtube
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zopa Rinpoche, Thubten 1946 births 2023 deaths Tulkus Tibetan Buddhists from Nepal Rinpoches Tibetan Buddhist spiritual teachers Gelug Lamas Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition 20th-century lamas People from Solukhumbu District Tibetan emigrants to India