Tsem Tulku Rinpoche (24 October 1965 – 4 September 2019) was a recognised

tulku A ''tulku'' (, also ''tülku'', ''trulku'') is an individual recognized as the reincarnation of a previous spiritual master (lama), and expected to be reincarnated, in turn, after death. The tulku is a distinctive and significant aspect of Tibet ...

of Kalmyk descent, an incarnate

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", ...

of 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 of

Tibetan Buddhism 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, Gorkhaland Territorial Administration, D ...

, and the founder and spiritual guide of Kechara House Buddhist Association with its headquarters in

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

. Rinpoche was born on 24 October 1965 in

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

to a Tibetan father and Mongolian mother, and was adopted by an American-Mongolian family. His adoptive name was Burcha Bugayeff. In 1987, at the age of 22, Rinpoche received full ordination from 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 became a monk of Ganden Shartse Monastery in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. Starting in 1992 Rinpoche lived in Malaysia where he commenced work on the establishment of

Dharma Dharma (; , ) is a key concept in various Indian religions. The term ''dharma'' does not have a single, clear Untranslatability, translation and conveys a multifaceted idea. Etymologically, it comes from the Sanskrit ''dhr-'', meaning ''to hold ...

Institutes. One of the institutes he founded is known as Kechara House Buddhist Association. He also founded a charity organization known as

Kechara Soup Kitchen Kechara Soup Kitchen (KSK) is a non religious, non-profit organization operating in Malaysia. It provides food, healthcare, education and other facilities to the homeless and urban poor. It was founded in 2006 by Tsem Tulku Rinpoche. Apart from ...

and the dharma retreat centre Kechara Forest Retreat. In the meantime, Rinpoche took a stand against the position of the

Central Tibetan Administration The Central Tibetan Administration (, , ) is the government-in-exile of Tibet, based in Dharamshala, India. It comprises a judiciary branch, a legislative branch, and an executive branch, and offers support and services to the Tibetan exile c ...

in the Dorje Shugden controversy and built the world's largest Dorje Shugden statue. Rinpoche strongly supported the

Dorje Shugden Dorje Shugden (, Wylie: ''rdo rje shugs ldan'', ), also known as Dolgyal and Gyalchen Shugden, is an entity associated with the Gelug school, the newest of the schools of Tibetan Buddhism. Dorje Shugden is variously looked upon as a destroyed ...

religious practice, prohibited in 1996 by the

, and was a critical voice advocating for the separation of politics and religion which is a feature of

. He was known for his advice against the self-immolation protests by Tibetans in China. For his dissenting opinions, he was marked as a controversial Buddhist teacher although Rinpoche simultaneously advocated devotion for both the

and the

religious practice. Rinpoche died on September 4, 2019, after a long illness.

Major works

* ''Gurus for Hire: Enlightenment for Sale'', Kechara Publications, 2005 * ''Faces of Enlightenment'', Kechara Publications, 2006 * ''Why I Make Myself Unhappy'', Kechara Publications, 2005 * ''Compassion Conquers All: Teachings on the Eight Verses of Mind Transformation'', Kechara Publications, 2007 , * ''Nothing Changes Everything Changes'', Kechara Publications, 2007 ,
Online
* ''If Not Now, When?'', Kechara Publications, 2008 * ''Snakes, Roosters & Pigs'', Kechara Publications, 2011 * ''The Living Buddha Within'', Kechara Publications, 2012 * ''The Promise (4th Edition)'', Kechara Publications, 2017

References

External links

*
Tsem Tulku
- Chinese Buddhist Encyclopedia entry. {{DEFAULTSORT:Tulku Rinpoche, Tsem 1965 births 2019 deaths Dorje Shugden lamas People from Taipei Buddhism in Malaysia American people of Mongolian descent American people of Tibetan descent Tibetan Buddhism writers Tibetan emigrants to India Tibetan emigrants to the United States Taiwanese expatriates in India Taiwanese emigrants to the United States