7th Karmapa Chödrag Gyamtso

Chödrag Gyamtso’s root teacher was Jampäl Zangpo, who passed on many of the important Kagyü lineage transmission to him when he was a child and lived in the monastery of Karma Gön.

Gyaltsab Paljor Döndrub, however, was the one who recognized and enthroned him as the new Karmapa incarnation before. Chödrag Gyamtso later received the full lineage transmission for the second time from him, probably after returning from the seven-year retreat that he began at the age of 17. He later went on to spend a large part of his life in full or semi-retreats.

The 7th Karmapa was well known far beyond the country’s borders for his scholarship. He always traveled throughout Tibet with a huge entourage of practitioners and set up camps with thousands of tents. He also taught, gave empowerments and wrote many texts, especially on the theory of perception. He said of himself that he was Dharmakirti in his previous life and was able to prove this (see stories).