Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche is the eldest son of the late Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, one of the most beloved Dzogchen masters of the twentieth century, and the elder brother of Tsoknyi Rinpoche, Mingyur Rinpoche, and the late Chokling Rinpoche. He was recognised by HH the 16th Karmapa as the seventh incarnation of the Drikung Chökyi Nyima tulku line.
In 1976 he founded Ka-Nying Shedrub Ling Monastery beside the Great Stupa of Boudhanath in Kathmandu. The monastery is now home to over four hundred monks and is one of the most visible centres of Vajrayana practice in the Kathmandu valley. The annual Boudhanath Seminar, which he convened for over four decades, became one of the principal gateways through which Western practitioners entered the Vajrayana — a generation of teachers, scholars, and translators trace their first contact with the lineage to that seminar.
Rinpoche is a master of the Dzogchen pointing-out instructions in the family style of his father, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, who was famous for his ability to introduce the nature of mind directly. He teaches with a warmth and accessibility that has made him a beloved figure across both monastic and lay communities. His weekly teachings at Ka-Nying are open to the public and are broadcast worldwide via Bodhi Television.
He is also the founder of the Centre for Buddhist Studies, Rangjung Yeshe Institute, an affiliate of Kathmandu University which offers BA and MA degrees in Buddhist studies and Himalayan languages. The institute has trained generations of translators who now work with Khyentse Foundation, 84000, and the Padmakara Translation Group.
His teaching cycle moves through the four seals, the four reminders, bodhicitta, the six paramitas, and the Mahamudra and Dzogchen view, returning each year to the foundational texts: Shantideva's Bodhicaryavatara, the Aspiration of Samantabhadra, and the Thirty-Seven Practices of a Bodhisattva. His patience with beginners is legendary; his teachings to advanced students are uncompromising.
Applications for personal interview are received through Ka-Nying Shedrub Ling on a quarterly cadence. Pilgrim Circle members of The Promised Studios receive priority routing.
