Tarthang Tulku Rinpoche, Founder
Tarthang Tulku, Rinpoche
Tarthang Tulku, Rinpoche – Founder of Ratna Ling Retreat Center
Tarthang Tulku, referred to by his students as Rinpoche—a traditional title of respect—was born in Golok, East Tibet in 1935. Recognized at an early age as a reincarnate lama (tulku), he received an unparalleled education in Tibet before leaving for India. In 1958, Rinpoche followed his root teacher, Jamyang Khyentse Chokyi Lodro, to Sikkim and India. Unable to return to Tibet due to political turmoil, he found himself living in exile. In 1962, he represented the Nyingma tradition at Sanskrit University in Varanasi, India.
Rinpoche received transmissions of important Tibetan Buddhist lineages from nearly 40 masters, including extraordinary luminaries such as Jamyang Khyentse Chokyi Lodro, Adzom Gyalse Gyurme Dorje, Zhechen Kongtrul, and Tarthang Chogtrul. While in India, he also received rare teachings from H.H. Dudjom Rinpoche, H.H. Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, H.H. Trulshik Rinpoche, and H.E. Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, among others.
In 1968, Rinpoche chose Berkeley, California as his headquarters and established the Tibetan Nyingma Meditation Center there in 1969, becoming the first lama of the Nyingma lineage to settle in the United States. Recognizing America as a land of opportunity to preserve and transmit Tibetan Buddhist teachings, he founded over twenty organizations focused on spiritual education, sacred art, meditation practices, and the preservation of sacred texts.
Tarthang Tulku’s Teachings and Legacy
Rinpoche came to the United States because he saw it as a land of opportunity, where he could preserve and transmit the teachings that his highly accomplished teachers had passed on to him. He has focused on preserving sacred texts, writing works for a Western audience, and creating communities built around Buddhist principles. His family and students have taken on the awesome responsibility of sharing his vision with others and creating a vibrant and enduring home for the Dharma in the West.
Among Rinpoche’s notable achievements are the founding of Dharma Publishing and the Yeshe De Project, through which he has freely distributed over six million sacred texts since 1989, primarily at the Nyingma Monlam Chenmo World Peace Ceremony in Bodh Gaya, India.
Today, Rinpoche resides in retreat at Odiyan Country Center, Northern California, where he continues to oversee the editing, printing, and dissemination of sacred texts and provides spiritual direction to the global Nyingma community and its member organizations. His lifelong commitment to “wisdom-in-action” continues to shape the preservation and flourishing of Dharma teachings both in the West and in Asia.
