Namkhai Norbu Biography

Namkhai Norbu (Tibetan: ཆོས་རྒྱལ་ནམ་མཁའི་ནོར་བུ་) is a Dzogchen teacher, who was born in Derge, eastern Tibet on 8 December 1938. When he was two years old, Namkhai Norbu was recognized as the 'mindstream emanation', a tulku, of the great Dzogchen teacher Adzom Drugpa (1842-1924). At five, he was also recognized as a mindstream emanation of an emanation of Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyel (1594–1651). From an early age, Namkhai Norbu undertook an accelerated course of study, attending monastic college, taking retreats, and studying with renowned teachers, including some of the most important Tibetan masters of his time. Under the tutelage of these teachers, he completed the training required by the Buddhist tradition in both Sutrayana and Tantrayana. At the age of sixteen, he met master Rigdzin Changchub Dorje (1826-1961/1978), who became his principal Dzogchen teacher.