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Arjia Rinpoche is 21st reincarnation in the line of abbots of Kumbum Monastery in Amdo,one of the six great Gelug monasteries. The first Arjia Rinpoche was the reincarnation ofthe father (the Tibetan wordarjia means “father”) of Tsongkapa, thefounder of the Gelug order.
Arjia Rinpoche was recognized at the age of 10 by Panchen Rinpoche and enthroned in1952. He served as a number political and religious liaisons between Tibet and China invarious state departments and colleges but left Tibet in 1998 due to political pressure.He now resided at his center, theYellow HatBuddhist Center, in Mill Valley, California. He is fluent in Tibetan, Chinese andMongolian and has started teaching in English.
Rinpoche excels in Tibetan Buddhist arts - especially in mandala design. He recentlypresented a Kalachakra mandala to the Dalai Lama at the Smithsonian Institute.
