Karmapa

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Karmapa

The Karmapa (officially His Holiness
His Holiness

His Holiness is the official style or manner of address in reference to the leaders of certain religious groups. In Christianity, specifically the Coptic Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church , the style is used when respectively referring to the Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria and to the Pope....
the Gyalwa Karmapa) is the head of the Karma Kagyu

Karma Kagyu

Karma Kagyu , or Kamtsang, is the largest Lineage within the Kagyu school, one of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The spiritual head of the Karma Kagyu is the Gyalwa Karmapa....
, the largest sub-school of the Kagyupa (Tibetan

Wylie transliteration

The Wylie transliteration scheme is a method for transliteration the Tibetan script using only the letters available on a typical English language typewriter....
Bka' brgyud), itself one of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism

Tibetan Buddhism

Tibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhism religious doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and India ....
.

The historical seat of the Karmapas is Tsurphu Monastery

Tsurphu Monastery

Tsurphu Monastery is a Tibetan Buddhism monastery which served as the traditional seat of the Karmapa. It is located in Gurum town of Doilungd?q?n County in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China, 70 km from Lhasa....
in the Tolung valley of Tibet

Tibet

Tibet is a Tibetan Plateau in Asia, north of the Himalayas, and the home to the indigenous Tibetan people and its related ethnic groups. With an average elevation of 4,900 metres , it is the highest region on Earth and has in recent decades increasingly been referred to as the "Roof of the World"....
. His Holiness' principal seat in exile is the Dharma Chakra Centre at Rumtek Monastery

Rumtek Monastery

Rumtek , also called the Dharmachakra Centre, is a Tibetan Buddhist monastery located in the Indian state of Sikkim near the capital Gangtok....
in Sikkim

Sikkim

Sikkim is a landlocked States and territories of India nestled in the Himalayas. It is the least populous state in India, and the second-smallest in area after Goa....
, India

India

India, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and outlying territories by total area country by geographical area, the List of countries by population country, and the most populous liberal democracy in the world....
. His regional monastic seats are Karma Triyana Dharmachakra

Karma Triyana Dharmachakra

Karma Triyana Dharmachakra is a Tibetan Buddhism monastery in Woodstock , New York, NY, USA, which serves as the North American seat of His Holiness the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, head of the Karma Kagyu lineage....
in New York

New York

The State of New York is a U.S. state in the Mid-Atlantic States and Northeastern United States regions of the United States and is the nation's List of U.S....
, Dhagpo Kagyu Ling in France

France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
and Tashi Choling in Bhutan

Bhutan

The Kingdom of Bhutan is a landlocked nation in South Asia, located at the eastern end of the Himalaya Mountains and is bordered to the south, east and west by India and to the north by the Tibet Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China....
.

Due to a controversy within the Karma Kagyu school over the recognition process, the identity of the current 17th Karmapa is disputed.

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Encyclopedia

Karma Kagyu

Wylie transliteration

Tibetan Buddhism

Tsurphu Monastery

Tibet

Rumtek Monastery

Rumtek , also called the Dharmachakra Centre, is a Tibetan Buddhist monastery located in the Indian state of Sikkim near the capital Gangtok....
in Sikkim

Sikkim

Sikkim is a landlocked States and territories of India nestled in the Himalayas. It is the least populous state in India, and the second-smallest in area after Goa....
, India

India

Karma Triyana Dharmachakra

New York

The State of New York is a U.S. state in the Mid-Atlantic States and Northeastern United States regions of the United States and is the nation's List of U.S....
, Dhagpo Kagyu Ling in France

France

Bhutan

Karmapa controversy

The recognition of the Seventeenth Karmapa, the head of the Karma Kagyu sect of Tibetan Buddhism Buddhism, has been the subject of controversy. Since the death of the Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, in 1981, two candidates have been put forward:...
for details.

Origin of the lineage

The 1st Karmapa, Düsum Khyenpa

Düsum Khyenpa

D?sum Khyenpa was the 1st Gyalwa Karmapa, head of the Karma Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism.D?sum Khyenpa literally means "Knower of the Three times" ....
(Dus gsum Mkhyen pa) (1110-1193), was a disciple of the Tibetan master Gampopa

Gampopa

Gampopa "the man from Gampo" ? who was equally well known in Tibet as Sonam Rinchen , Dagpo Lhaje , Nyamed Dakpo Rinpoche , and Da'od Zhonnu , ? established...
. A gifted child who studied dharma

Dharma

The term , is an Indian Indian philosophy and Indian religions term, that means one's righteous duty or any virtuous path in the common sense of the term....
(Buddhist teachings) with his father from an early age and who sought out great teachers in his twenties and thirties, he is said to have attained enlightenment

Bodhi

Bodhi is both the Pali and Sanskrit word traditionally translated into English language as "enlightenment." The word "Buddhahood" means "one who has achieved bodhi." Bodhi is also frequently translated as "awakening."...
at the age of fifty while practicing dream yoga

Dream yoga

Dream Yoga or Milam ) ? the Yoga of the Dream State are a suite of advanced tantric sadhana of the entwined Mantrayana lineages of Dzogchen . Dream Yoga are tantric processes and techniques within the trance Bardos of Dream and Sleep and are advanced practices of Yoga Nidra....
. He was henceforth regarded as the Karmapa, a manifestation of Avalokitesvara

Avalokitesvara

Avalokitesvara is a bodhisattva who embodies the compassion of all Buddhahood. He is one of the more widely revered bodhisattvas in mainstream Mahayana Buddhism....
(Chenrezig), whose coming was predicted in the Samadhiraja Sutra and the Lankavatara Sutra
Lankavatara Sutra

The is a sutra of Mahayana Buddhism. According to tradition, these are the actual words of the Gautama Buddha as he entered Sri Lanka and conversed with a bodhisattva named Mahamati....
.

The source of the oral lineage is traditionally traced back to the Buddha Vajradhara

Vajradhara

Vajradhara is the ultimate Primordial Buddhahood, or Adi Buddha, according to the Gelug and Kagyu schools of Tibetan Buddhism.Vajradhara displaced Samantabhadra who remains the 'Primordial Buddha' in the Nyingma, or 'Ancient School' and the Sakya school....
, was transmitted to the Indian master of mahamudra

Mahamudra

Mahamudra literally means 'great seal' or 'great symbol'. Mahamudra is an advanced form of Buddhism meditation practice, comprising methods of attaining a direct introduction to the nature and essence of the mind....
and tantra

Tantra

Tantra , or tantram is a religious philosophy according to which Shakti is usually the main deity worshipped, and the universe is regarded as the divine play of shakti and shiva....
Tilopa

Tilopa

Tilopa was born in either Chativavo , Bengal or Jagora, Bengal. He was a tantra and mahasiddha. He developed the mahamudra method, a set of spiritual practices that greatly accelerates the process of attaining bodhi ....
(989-1069), through Naropa

Naropa

Naropa or Naropa was an Indian Buddhism yogi, mysticism and monk. He was the disciple of Tilopa and brother, or some sources say partner and pupil, of Niguma ....
(1016-1100) to Marpa

Marpa

Marpa may refer to:* Marpa Lotsawa, Tibetan Buddhist teacher credited with the transmission of many Buddhist teachings to Tibet from India.* MARPA, Modification and Replacement Parts Assocation....
and Milarepa

Milarepa

Jetsun Milarepa , is generally considered one of Tibet's most famous yogis and poets, a student of Marpa Lotsawa, and a major figure in the history of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism....
. These forefathers of the Kagyu (Bka' brGyud) lineage are collectively called the "golden rosary".

The 2nd Karmapa, Karma Pakshi

Karma Pakshi

Karma Pakshi was the 2nd Gyalwa Karmapa. He was a child prodigy who had already acquired a broad understanding of Dharma philosophy and meditation by the age of ten....
(1204-1283), is often said to be the first person ever recognized and empowered as a tulku

Tulku

A tulku is a Tibetan Buddhism lama who has, through phowa and siddhi, consciously determined to be reincarnation, often many times, in order to continue his Bodhisattva vow....
(sprul sku), a reincarnated lama

Lama

Lama is a title for a Tibetan teacher of the Dharma. The name is similar to the Sanskrit term guru . The title can be used as an honorific title conferred on a monk, nun or advanced tantric practitioner to designate a level of spiritual attainment and authority to teach, or may be part of a title such as Dalai Lama or Panchen Lama a...
(bla ma).

The Black Crown

The Karmapas are the holders of the Black Crown

Black Crown

The Black Crown is an important symbol of the Karmapa, the Lama that heads the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. The crown signifies his power to benefit all sentient beings....
and are thus sometimes known as the Black Hat Lamas. This crown (Tib. rang 'byung cod pan, lit. self-arisen crown), is traditionally said to have been woven by the dakinis from their hair and given to Karmapa in recognition of his spiritual realization. The physical crown displayed by the Karmapas was offered to the 5th Karmapa by the Chinese Yongle Emperor

Yongle Emperor

The Yongle Emperor , born Zhu Di , was the third emperor of the Ming Dynasty of China from 1402 to 1424. His era name "Yongle" means "Perpetual Happiness"....
as a material representation of the spiritual one.

The crown was last known to be located at Rumtek Monastery

Rumtek Monastery

Rumtek , also called the Dharmachakra Centre, is a Tibetan Buddhist monastery located in the Indian state of Sikkim near the capital Gangtok....
in Sikkim

Sikkim

Sikkim is a landlocked States and territories of India nestled in the Himalayas. It is the least populous state in India, and the second-smallest in area after Goa....
, the last home of the 16th Karmapa, although that location has been subject to some upheaval since 1993 causing some to worry as to whether or not it is still there. An inventory of items remaining at Rumtek is purported to be something the Indian government is going to undertake in the near future.

List of previous Karmapas

Düsum Khyenpa
Düsum Khyenpa

D?sum Khyenpa was the 1st Gyalwa Karmapa, head of the Karma Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism.D?sum Khyenpa literally means "Knower of the Three times" ....
(?????????????????) (1110–1193)
Karma Pakshi
Karma Pakshi

Karma Pakshi was the 2nd Gyalwa Karmapa. He was a child prodigy who had already acquired a broad understanding of Dharma philosophy and meditation by the age of ten....
(?????????) (1204–1283)
Rangjung Dorje
Rangjung Dorje

Rangjung Dorje was the third Karmapa, an important figure in the history of Tibetan Buddhism. He reportedly produced a spontaneous Black Crown at the age of three and declared himself to be the mindstream reimbodiment of Karma Pakshi....
(?????????????????) (1284–1339)
Rolpe Dorje
Rolpe Dorje

Rolpe Dorje was the fourth Gyalwa Karmapa. According to legend the fourth Karmapa's mother, while pregnant, could hear the sound of the mantra Om Mani Padme Hum while the child was in her womb and the baby said the mantra as soon as he was born....
(????????????????) (1340–1383)
Deshin Shekpa
Deshin Shekpa

Deshin Shekpa , also Deshin Shegpa, was the fifth Gyalwa Karmapa, head of the Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism.Deshin Shekpa was born in Nyang Dam in the south of Tibet....
(????????????????)(1384–1415)
Thongwa Dönden
Thongwa Dönden

Thongwa D?nden also Tongwa Donden, was the sixth Gyalwa Karmapa, head of the Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism.Thongwa D?nden was born in Ngomto Shakyam near Karma Gon in Kham....
(???????????????) (1416–1453)
Chödrak Gyatso
Chödrak Gyatso

Ch?drak Gyatso , also Ch?drag Gyamtso, was the seventh Gyalwa Karmapa, head of the Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism.Ch?drak Gyatso was born in Chida in the north of Tibet....
(?????????????????) (1454–1506)
Mikyö Dorje
Mikyö Dorje

Miky? Dorje , also Mikyo Dorje, was the eighth Gyalwa Karmapa, head of the Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism.Miky? Dorje was born in Satam, Kham....
(??????????????????) (1507–1554)
Wangchuk Dorje
Wangchuk Dorje

Wangchuk Dorje was the ninth Gyalwa Karmapa, head of the Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism.Wangchuk Dorje was born in Treshod, Kham. According to legend, he said after being born: "I am Karmapa." He received his education from Shamar K?ncho Yenlak, the fifth Shamarpa, in a nomads camp which traveled through Tibet but also passed through pr...
(?????????????????) (1556–1603)
Chöying Dorje
Chöying Dorje

Ch?ying Dorje , also Choying Dorje was the tenth Gyalwa Karmapa, head of the Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism.Ch?ying Dorje was born in Khaytri Tang in the kingdom of Golok in Amdo....
(???????????????????) (1604–1674)
Yeshe Dorje
Yeshe Dorje

Yeshe Dorje was the eleventh Gyalwa Karmapa, head of the Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism.Yeshe Dorje was born in Maysh?, Kham. He was discovered by Minjur Dorje and recognized by Shamar Yeshe Nyinpo, the seventh Shamarpa....
(????????????????) (1676–1702)
Changchub Dorje
Changchub Dorje

Nyala Rinpoche Rigdzin Changchub Dorje was a teacher of Dzogchen, terton and practitioner of Tibetan medicine. He was born in the Nyarong region of East Tibet ....
(????????????????) (1703–1732)
Dudul Dorje
Dudul Dorje

Dudul Dorje was the thirteenth Gyalwa Karmapa, head of the Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism.Dudul Dorje was born in Champa Drongsar and recognized by Gyaltsab Rinpoche at the age of four....
(??????????????????) (1733–1797)
Thekchok Dorje
Thekchok Dorje

Thekchok Dorje , also Thegchog Dorje, was the fourteenth Gyalwa Karmapa, head of the Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism.Thekchok Dorje was born in Danang, Kham and was recognized because Drukchen Kunzig Chokyi Nangwa received a letter from Dudul Dorje, the thirteenth Karmapa, detailing where his next reincarnation would be born....
(?????????????????) (1798–1868)
Khakyab Dorje
Khakyab Dorje

The fifteenth Karmapa, Khakyab Dorje , spoke the mantra of Chenrezig "Om mani peme hung" at his birth in Sheikor village in Tsang province in Central Tibet....
(????????????????) (1871–1922)
Rangjung Rigpe Dorje
Rangjung Rigpe Dorje

The sixteenth Gyalwa Karmapa, Rangjung Rigpei Dorje was spiritual leader of the Karma Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. He was born in Denkhok in the Derg? district of Kham , near the Yangtze River....
(?????????????????????????) (1924–1981)
(Controversy
Karmapa controversy

The recognition of the Seventeenth Karmapa, the head of the Karma Kagyu sect of Tibetan Buddhism Buddhism, has been the subject of controversy. Since the death of the Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, in 1981, two candidates have been put forward:...
over whether Ogyen Trinley Dorje (?????????????????????????) (b. 1985), Trinley Thaye Dorje
Thaye Dorje

Trinley Thaye Dorje is recognized by many as the 17th Karmapa.The Karmapa is head of the Kagyu school, one of the four main schools of Tibetan Buddhism....
(???????????????) (b. 1983) or both is the true Karmapa.

External links

The history of the Karmapa lineage, including biographical details of the historical Karmapas, can be found at the following web sites. Notice that the websites are written to those loyal to one or other of the rival 17th Karmapas, and their accounts of previous incarnations may not be written from a neutral point of view.

on karmapa.org, the website of Thaye Dorje
Thaye Dorje

Trinley Thaye Dorje is recognized by many as the 17th Karmapa.The Karmapa is head of the Kagyu school, one of the four main schools of Tibetan Buddhism....
on kagyuoffice.org, the website of Ogyen Trinley Dorje
from khandro.net, a website supporting Ogyen Trinley Dorje
, from Simhanada, supporting Ogyen Trinley Dorje
, from Nalandabodhi, Canada
, includes commentary from high Kagyu lamas.