Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche (Khyentse Norbu)

Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche (born 1961), widely known by his pen and filmmaker name Khyentse Norbu, is a Tibetan Buddhist lama, author, and film director born at Khenpajong in eastern Bhutan. At the age of seven, he was recognized by Sakya Trizin, the head of the Sakya school, as the third incarnation of the founder of the Khyentse lineage of Tibetan Buddhism, the great nineteenth-century master Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo (1820-1892). The Khyentse incarnation lineage is unique in Tibetan Buddhism for its close association with the Rime (non-sectarian) movement, and the current incarnation carries forward this tradition of crossing sectarian boundaries.^[1]

Khyentse Rinpoche is a rare figure in the Buddhist world: an enthroned incarnate lama who is simultaneously a working filmmaker, bestselling author, and founder of international humanitarian and educational organizations. He oversees dharma centres on four continents, supervises the restoration of his traditional seat at Dzongsar Monastery in Sichuan, and directs feature films that have screened at the Cannes Film Festival. His teacher was the renowned Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, from whom he received extensive transmissions and empowerments.^[2]

Incarnation Lineage

The first incarnation in the Khyentse lineage was Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo, who helped found the Rime movement alongside Jamgon Kongtrul Lodro Thaye in the nineteenth century. This non-sectarian approach sought to preserve and transmit the teachings of all schools of Tibetan Buddhism without partisan bias. The second incarnation was Dzongsar Khyentse Chokyi Lodro (1893-1959), a master of similarly vast learning who continued the Rime legacy. Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche, as the third incarnation, carries the responsibility of maintaining both the doctrinal breadth and the institutional commitments of this lineage.^[3]

Monastic Education and Teaching Activity

Khyentse Rinpoche received his traditional Buddhist education from some of the most eminent masters of the twentieth century, including Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche. He also studied at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London. He supervises his traditional seat of Dzongsar Monastery and its retreat centres in eastern Tibet, as well as monastic colleges he has established in Bir and Chauntra in Himachal Pradesh, India, and in Bhutan. When the political situation in Tibet eased in the 1980s, he began the restoration of Dzongsar Monastery, which had been completely destroyed during the Chinese Cultural Revolution.^[4]

Filmmaking Career

Khyentse Norbu's debut feature film, The Cup (Phörpa, 1999), became an international sensation following its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival's Directors' Fortnight. The film tells the story of young Tibetan monks in exile in India who become obsessed with watching the 1998 FIFA World Cup on television. Shot with a cast of non-professional actors, many of them actual monks, the film was notable for its gentle humour and authentic depiction of monastic life. It was the first feature film made in Bhutan (though set in India) and was selected as Bhutan's first-ever submission for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.^[5]

His second feature, Travellers and Magicians (2003), was the first film shot entirely in Bhutan and in the Dzongkha language. The film interweaves two narratives: a young Bhutanese government official who dreams of emigrating to America and an ancient Buddhist fable about a sorcerer's apprentice. It was praised for its contemplative pacing and its exploration of Buddhist themes of desire and attachment within a contemporary Bhutanese setting.^[6]

Subsequent films include Vara: A Blessing (2013), set in India; Hema Hema: Sing Me a Song While I Wait (2017), which explores identity and ego through Bhutanese masked dance; and Looking for a Lady with Fangs and a Moustache (2019), a contemporary Buddhist story set in Kathmandu. A biographical documentary about Khyentse Rinpoche, Words of My Perfect Teacher (2003), was directed by Lesley Ann Patten.^[7]

Published Works

As an author, Khyentse Rinpoche has written several widely read books that present Buddhist philosophy in accessible contemporary language. What Makes You Not a Buddhist (2007) became an international bestseller, offering a concise articulation of the four foundational views that define a Buddhist. Other works include Not for Happiness: A Guide to the So-Called Preliminary Practices (2012), The Guru Drinks Bourbon? (2016), and Living is Dying: How to Prepare for Death, Dying and Beyond (2020).^[8]

Humanitarian Work

Khyentse Rinpoche founded Khyentse Foundation in 2001, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting Buddhist study and practice worldwide. The foundation funds scholarships, translation projects, monastic education, and the preservation of rare Buddhist texts. He also founded Siddhartha's Intent, a network of Buddhist study and practice centres active across North America, Europe, Asia, and Australasia.^[9]

References

1. "Khyentse Norbu." Wikipedia.
2. "Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche." Khyentse Foundation.
3. "Khyentse Norbu." Wikipedia.
4. "Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche." Khyentse Foundation.
5. "The Cup (1999 film)." Wikipedia.
6. "Khyentse Norbu." Wikipedia.
7. "Khyentse Norbu." Wikipedia.
8. "Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse." Goodreads.
9. "Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche." Khyentse Foundation.