The Life Story of Khentrul Rinpoché Jamphel Lodrö
Khentrul Rinpoché is considered to be the third incarnation of the great Kalachakra adept Ngawang Chözin Gyatso. From his humble beginnings as a nomadic yak herder, Rinpoché's life has exposed him to some truly extraordinary experiences. The following timeline highlights some of the key events which have helped shape the person he is today.
Key Events
In 2018, Khentrul Rinpoche established Dzokden, an international network of individuals, practice groups, training institutes and retreat centers. His mission is to generate the causes for global peace and harmony by practicing in accordance with the teachings of the Kalachakra Tantra. While Dzokden embraces the vast diversity of wisdom traditions
In the summary of 2014, after many years of sustained effort introducing the Kalachakra Dharma to Western students, Rinpoché met a Canadian man named Joe Flumerfelt who soon moved to Melbourne in order to work with Rinpoché. Together, the two focused on expanding the materials Rinpoché had already established in
Upon returning to Australia, it became clear to Rinpoché that in order to help his fledgling community continue to grow, the Rimé Institute needed a permanent location that they could call home. For this purpose, he began to look for a property that could function as the basis for a
Seven years after Rinpoché had made his promise to his precious guru, Lama Lobsang Trinlé; Rinpoché had finally created the conditions to return to Tibet and re-connect with his family. Due to the kindness of the donations that Rinpoché had received from his Western students, he had raised enough money
By the start of 2005, Rinpoché received word that his mother had fallen ill and was in need of an operation. Wishing to help her, he sent out a request within the Buddhist community for donations to pay for her operation. As a result of this request, Rinpoché met Julie
Upon arriving back in his village, it didn’t take long for the community to start requesting Rinpoché to perform many tantric rituals for their benefit. After two weeks of rituals, Rinpoché began to feel a strong desire to see his Lama. He could feel that something important was happening and
Later that year, Rinpoché went to visit one of Lama Lutrin’s most accomplished students, Kyangnak Kontsul who was in life-long meditation retreat. When the two met, Kyangnak told Rinpoché that he had experienced a very auspicious dream the night before his arrival and then the two proceeded to have a
After more than two years visiting monasteries and supporting the people in his home village, Rinpoché finally returned to Chöthang to be with his Root Lama. At this time, Rinpoché began to learn more about the astrological systems of Tibet. Namely the Naktsi system which emerged from China and the
Following the three-year retreat, Rinpoché began to wander from monastery to monastery, participating in a wide variety of teachings and retreats. With an unquenchable thirst for the Dharma, he did not limit himself to any single tradition, but instead focused on learning many of the teachings from the major schools.
When Rinpoché was twenty-three he was fortunate enough to gather all of the conditions necessary to enter into a three-year retreat at Chöthang Monastery on the Kalachakra completion stage. As is customary in the Jonang Tradition, every monk is expected to do at least one three year retreat. At this
After many years of working with obstacles arising out of the internal politics of the monastery, Rinpoché made the decision that it was time to leave Dharthang. On the final night there, Rinpoché had a dream in which he encountered a huge, dark river with steep, overhanging cliffs. Making his
After taking some time to visit his younger brother in Kirti Monastery, Rinpoché returned to Dharthang for winter retreat. During that time, he engaged in the preliminary practices of the great Nyingma Tertön known as Lama Namchö Mingyur Dorjé. This cycle was mainly propagated within the Palyul Tradition and was
Eager to begin his training as a monk, Rinpoché approached his Vow Preceptor and requested teachings on the complete set of two hundred and forty vows that are presented in the Buddhist monastic discipline (Vinaya). Greatly pleased by Rinpoché’s pure intention, Tulku Katag proceeded to give Rinpoché and handful of
After many years of prohibition, the Tibetans were eventually allowed to begin rebuilding their monasteries. Rinpoché’s father volunteered to help in the reconstruction of Denung Monastery and travelled a great distance to contribute what he could. Some time past and Rinpoché decided to join his father. When Rinpoché finally arrived,
At the age of eight, Rinpoché was responsible for herding the family’s yaks. Accompanying his father, they would spend long days in the mountains watching over the animals. One day, a pack of wolves attacked the herd and killed eight of the yaks. With great devotion Rinpoché prayed to the
As a young child, Rinpoché continued to demonstrate unique traits. When he was only one year old, Rinpoché is said to have recited the mantra of Manjushri as his first words. After learning to walk he would make his way into open spaces where he recited mantras underneath the many
Before Rinpoche was born, his parents both received auspicious signs that a very special being would soon be born to the family. On one occasion, Rinpoché’s father went to visit a highly realised yogini named Tare Lhamo who was considered to be an emanation of the great Yeshe Tsogyal. Before