The first Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, Namkha Ösel, was a great Nyingma yogi and meditation master who inherited the lineage of Padmasambhava's teachings. He co-founded Dzogchen Monastery, Ugyen Samten Choling in Derge, Kham, Eastern Tibet in the Seventeenth century. The Dzogchen Monastery, with its numerous related branch monasteries and affiliated institutions, is one of the Six Major Seats of Nyingma,1 and has been the home of many great meditation masters, such as the Dzogchen Patrul Rinpoche. Throughout the centuries the unbroken lineage of Padmasambhava was kept alive with intensive study and meditation practices developed at the institution of Dzogchen. The Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoches have been and continue to be one of the three principle abbots of Dzogchen Monastery.
The second through the fifth Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche incarnations all served Dzogchen Monastery as abbot, trained in the study and practice of the buddhadharma and oversaw the affairs of the monastery. They were known for their meditative ability and spent many years in retreat. Each was instrumental in carrying on the lineage of Dzogchen teachings and keeping alive the vision of Guru Padmasambhava.
Thupten Jigdral Tsewang Dorje, the sixth Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, was born as the brother of His Holiness the Sixteenth Karmapa, head of the Kagyu Lineage. In addition to his duties at Dzogchen Monastery, he spent a lot of time with His Holiness the Sixteenth Karmapa at Tsurphu Monastery, the main seat of the Gyalwa Karmapas in Central Tibet. In 1959, the Sixth Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche and the Sixteenth Karmapa escaped together from Tibet to Sikkim, India, the location of Rumtek Monastery, and the seat of the Gyalwa Karmapas in India. The Sixth Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche stayed at Rumtek until his death in 1962.
The current Dzogchen Ponlop, Rinpoche, the Seventh, holds both the Dzogchen lineage of the Nyingma school and the Karma Kagyu lineage. As abbot of Dzogchen Monastery, Rinpoche is a high-ranking Nyingma master. In addition, in 1979 at Dharmachakra Center, Rumtek, Sikkim, India, His Holiness, the Sixteenth Gyalwa Karmapa, supreme head of the Kagyu lineage, formally empowered and officially proclaimed The Seventh Dzogchen Ponlop, Rinpoche as one of the lineage holders of the Karma Kagyu school and heart son of His Holiness Karmapa. Next to the four Eminences, Rinpoche is the highest ranking Rinpoche at Rumtek Monastery.
1 The Six Major Seats of the Nyingma School in Tibet are: 1.Ugyen Mindrol Ling, founded in 1676; 2. Thubten Dorje Drak, founded in 1632; 3.Dzogchen Ugyen Samten Choling, founded in 1685; 4.Shechen Tennyi Dhargye Ling, founded in 1735; 5.Kathok Dorje Den, founded in 1159; 6.Palyul Namgyal Jangchub Ling, founded in 1665.
