Arjia Thubten Lobsang Rinpoche
Venerable Arjia Rinpoche is the founder and executive director of the Center for Compassion and Wisdom in Virginia.
In Tibetan Buddhism, “Rinpoche” is a title bestowed upon a tulku, recognized as the reincarnation of an enlightened practitioner. At the age of two, Arjia Rinpoche was identified by the Panchen Lama as the reincarnation of the father of Je Tsongkhapa, the great 14th-century Buddhist philosopher and practitioner. As a result, he became the Abbot of Kumbum Monastery in Eastern Tibet. Among Tibetans and Mongolians, it is considered a great honor for a child to become a monk and receive a Buddhist education.
In 1958, at the age of eight, Rinpoche faced humiliation under the Chinese Communist Party as a member of the so-called “exploiting class.” During the “Great Leap Forward,” he was forced to give up his monastic robes and attend a Chinese school, where he was indoctrinated with communist ideologies. However, under the influence of his teachers, he secretly maintained his Buddhist faith.
Between the ages of 12 and 14, when Chinese policies briefly eased, Rinpoche studied at Tashi Lhunpo Monastery in Shigatse, the monastery of the Panchen Lama. From age 14 to 27, during the Cultural Revolution, the political climate worsened again, and Rinpoche was subjected to hard labor in the fields alongside other lamas and monks.
In 1979, Rinpoche was reinstated as Abbot of Kumbum Monastery and rose through the ranks of the government. By 1998, he was on the verge of becoming the leader of the Chinese National Buddhist Association. However, facing a crisis of conscience, he fled from Beijing to Guatemala and, with the help of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, sought asylum in the United States.
Arjia RinpocheThe social status of a person is as light as a piece of paper, with little weight and easily blown away; however, compassion is a piece of gold, still shining even if it’s buried.
Rinpoche eventually settled in Mill Valley, California, where he established the Tibetan Center for Compassion and Wisdom (TCCW CA). In 2005, at the request of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, he became the director of the Tibetan Mongolian Buddhist Cultural Center in Bloomington, Indiana. He moved to Bloomington in February 2006, where he oversaw the renovation of the center, promoted Buddhist teachings, and organized cultural events for the Tibetan and Mongolian communities. He also hosted His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s visits to Bloomington in 2007 and 2010.
In 2010, Rinpoche published his memoir, Surviving the Dragon: A Tibetan Lama’s Account of 40 Years under Chinese Rule, which has since been translated into six languages.
In 2020, Rinpoche founded TCCW VA and relocated from Mill Valley to Virginia, while continuing to serve as the director of TMBCC. He remains dedicated to preserving Buddhist teachings and is currently working on a comprehensive catalog for the Lhasa Kangyur, a significant version of the Buddhist Canon.
This version enhances the clarity and flow while maintaining the original meaning.
