Is the Karmapa Ogyen Trinley about to breakaway from the Tibetan leadership after two decades of endorsement and support from them? What did the Tibetan leadership do, that led to this turn of events?

The opinion piece below was sent to dorjeshugden.com for publication. We accept submissions from the public, please send in your articles to [email protected].

By: Tyr Beswick

Generating big waves for the wrong reasons

Once again the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA; Tibetan leadership based in Dharamsala) and the Dalai Lama’s Karmapa Ogyen Trinley have made headlines, and not for positive reasons either as Ogyen Trinley finds himself the subject of a Taiwanese sex scandal.

2019 thus far has not been smooth-sailing for the Karmapa Ogyen Trinley, as he continues to deal with the fall-out of his ongoing absence from India and his taking up of a Dominican passport. The latest scandal that bears his name is an eye-popping, albeit tabloid-like, exposé that has surfaced in Taiwan, a country where both Karmapas (the Dalai Lama-endorsed Karmapa Ogyen Trinley and the Karmapa Thaye Dorje) have a large following.

According to numerous reports, it now appears that the Karmapa Ogyen Trinley has had many girlfriends in the past, and is currently in pursuit of another. In the most recent case, the girl involved has come out to reveal that she has an ongoing relationship with the Karmapa from five years ago and that they have had sexual relations three times! There is even a recorded conversation, purportedly between Ogyen Trinley and the girl, that adds credibility to the story (see below) and photos of the so-called couple were included too, for good measure.

Having seen this scandalous report, one wonders if Ogyen Trinley’s video for the recent Kagyu Monlam was in anticipation of this scandal blowing up – he had in his video, out of the blue, touched on the topic of sexual relations, a strange topic indeed to bring up during the Karma Kagyus’ largest annual event. Observers have wondered if this was a pre-emptive attempt on his part, to try and open people to the idea that it would not be such a foreign thing for him to have a girlfriend.

出生時’祥雲’降世顯神蹟！
擁千萬信徒’大寶法王’爆桃色糾紛
錄音黨曝光：我們酸甜苦辣都有｜【國際大現場】20190123｜三立新聞台

Or watch on server | download video (right click & save file)

The Karmapa was born amidst auspicious signs and has shown miracles. The Karmapa who has hundreds of thousands of followers, was exposed with a sex scandal. Audio shown: “Our relationship is a mixture of sour, sweet, bitter and spicy.”

Silence is not golden

While this scandal appears to have come out of nowhere, what continues to stun people is that there has not been thus far, any response from any party, be it the Karmapa Ogyen Trinley’s office, or parties with a vested interest in keeping Ogyen Trinley’s reputation pristine such as the Dalai Lama’s office (Kukey Yiktsang) and the CTA themselves.

Sex scandals have brought down entire empires and so it would be in the CTA’s best interests to strongly deny the Karmapa Ogyen Trinley’s involvement and dismiss the authenticity of the recorded call. After all, this scandal concerns the Karmapa candidate that they endorsed and wholeheartedly supported for over two decades, to the point whispers were heard about his possible assignation as the Dalai Lama’s successor. Even Tibetan state protector Nechung had given his endorsement of Ogyen Trinley as the right Karmapa candidate by taking trance and making offerings to him many times. So where is their defence of their candidate now?

Similarly, if the Karmapa Ogyen Trinley had absolutely no involvement in the scandal, and if the recorded call was faked, it would not be difficult and unusual for him or his office to issue a press release to that effect. The fact he remains silent has led observers to conclude that there may be an element of truth in the scandal.

Therefore a lack of response from the CTA, Dalai Lama’s office and Ogyen Trinley himself is bad public relations at best and, at worst, hurts Buddhism and creates a lot of doubt. In this scandal, it is clear that people’s true colors are showing – after all the schism they created in the Karma Kagyu lineage, the CTA are totally unconcerned about people’s faith in the Karma Kagyu lineage and the Karmapa, and that is why they remain silent on the matter.

A scandalous past

Some however, may not be too surprised about this latest expose as the Black Karmapa has previously experienced many scandals. For example:

1. He has been charged in India for money laundering, although there are rumors that the CTA coerced the Indian government into bringing these charges about because the Karmapa refused to cooperate with them. For the CTA to set the Indian government against people who have fallen out of favor is not unheard of – the CTA previously used this tactic against Serkong Tritul Rinpoche of Gaden Jangtse who, before he permanently moved to Taiwan, was arrested by the Indian government and held for four months. His only ‘crime’ was disobeying a CTA directive not to visit Taiwan, at a time when relations between the CTA and Taiwan were not friendly and had broken down.
2. He has always been suspected of being a Chinese spy, borne out of the fact that he is recognized by China as the rightful Karmapa and had escaped to India from China a bit too easily. This suspicion is furthered by the fact his official website is allowed in China while the Karmapa Thaye Dorje’s is not, as well as the fact millions of Chinese yuan were found in his possession when his Ladrang was raided by the Indian government in 2015.
3. He is said to have had many girlfriends in past. It has been claimed that this recent sexual transgression is not his first foray into relationships. In the phone call, the girl he is allegedly pursuing says that he has had many other girls.
4. He has also made a video where he confessed to being depressed and not having the freedom to pursue his own dreams – not the sort of thing a Karmapa usually confesses to. He also said that his education was lacking and he had not received an education typical of someone of his standing. Ordinarily, the Karmapa should have been educated by the four Karma Kagyu regents but due to the split created by the CTA, the four regents found themselves on opposing sides, each supporting different Karmapa candidates and not able to come together to educate just one. The implication is that the CTA is to be blamed for this.
5. He appears to have defected and run away from the CTA and Indian government and has been living in the United States for over a year, citing medical reasons. The question many have asked is what medical treatment a young, healthy person could be receiving when he has had no previous reports of ill health.
6. He secretly obtained a Dominica passport while living in the United States and surrendered his registration documents and yellow card issued by the Indian government to Tibetan refugees. He did so without so much as a ‘thank you’ to them. Interestingly, Dominica does not have an extradition treaty with India, therefore shielding him from extradition laws which might compel his return to India to face his many legal suits.
7. He has been engaged in a strange but obviously politically-charged to-and-fro between him and the Indian government when, with a Dominica passport, he was pressured to return to India to attend a Buddhist conference where he was to be one of the VIP attendees. This would have required a visa from the Indian authorities but to this day, there are contradicting accounts of why he did not get a visa in time to attend the conference. While Indian authorities say he did not apply for one, the Black Karmapa says he tried to apply but did not obtain one – apparently, the Indian consulate in New York had to check with Delhi. In still other media reports, it has been said that the Indian government will only allow him to enter India on the Tibetan refugee yellow card, a document which the Karmapa now refuses to use. The conference was eventually cancelled at the eleventh hour on the pretext that a Nyingma tradition leader had suddenly passed away and his funeral had to be attended to.
8. He claimed, in his Kagyu Monlam video, that he has not received full ordination vows and only has the novice monk vows. Whether it was a preemptive move to imply what he is doing with the girls is acceptable, is a moot point. Even if he has only novice ordination vows, one of the four root vows for a novice monk is to abstain from sexual relations with women. Breaking any of the four root vows means the person is immediately disrobed.
9. In the same Kagyu Monlam video, the Black Karmapa said that the novice monk vows had been given to him without his consent or awareness, and he had only been expecting the upasaka (laymen) vows from the Dalai Lama. Astute observers have surmised there can be only two things the Karmapa is trying to imply. The first is that the Tibetan leadership tried to dilute the Karma Kagyu lineage by introducing Gelug vows to their leader, since within the Karma Kagyu lineage there are many qualified preceptors from whom the Karmapa could (and should) have received the vows from. The second is that the Tibetan leadership were trying to control the Karma Kagyu lineage, by making their leader’s spiritual preceptor a Gelug lama and therefore someone he would be compelled to listen to.

Within the Karma Kagyu tradition responsibility to recognize the Karmapa lies with four regents. In recent times, three of these regents have recognized competing candidates, confusing followers all over the world. Orgyen Trinley Dorje (left) was recognized by Tai Situ Rinpoche; Trinley Thaye Dorje (middle) was recognized by Shamar Rinpoche; and Dawa Sangpo Dorje (right) was recognized by Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche. In-fighting between supporters of these candidates continues until today, a fact that has fractured the tradition deeply. Add to this the fact that the Dalai Lama interfered by backing Orgyen Trinley, a move with no traditional basis, the schism became a heated debate within the Tibetan community. In response, Shamar Rinpoche claimed that Orgyen Trinley’s recognition was incorrect, that he had evidence of this and that the Dalai Lama had no business in meddling in the affairs of the Kagyu lineage. Now Orgyen Trinley, who the Dalai Lama and the CTA nurtured for a decade has abandoned them and prefers to have freedom as a citizen of Dominica.

How did it come to this?

No matter how the situation is examined, things are not looking good for the CTA, the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. The Karmapa’s less-than-spectacular track record is turning into a bane, especially to the reputation of the Dalai Lama and his CTA government for it was the spiritually authoritative Dalai Lama who formally recognized the Black Karmapa, welcomed him on his arrival from China, and nurtured him in the Dalai Lama’s own Gelugpa Gyuto Monastery in Dharamsala.

Hence, if this latest in a litany of scandals turns out to be true, it will go down in history as a very shameful episode for the Dalai Lama who has apparently exercised bad judgement of character on multiple occasions. As it turns out, this Karmapa scandal is merely the tip of the iceberg as an increasing number of the CTA’s and the Dalai Lama’s monk friends are involved in sex scandals and have been accused of exploiting and abusing their positions. A shortlist of the more prominent offenders include names such as:

1. Sogyal Rinpoche;
2. Tenzin Dhonden, the Dalai Lama’s peace emissary in the United States;
3. Sakyong Mipham;
4. Gangten Tulku;
5. Lama Yeshe Nyingpo;
6. Lama Norlha;
7. Lama Choedak Rinpoche;
8. Rigdzin Namkha Rinpoche;
9. Lama Ogyen Kunzang Dorje;
10. Tulku Lobsang – yes, the list is long.

Even Lobsang Sangay who calls himself the President of the CTA, has also been called into question for his alleged multiple extramarital affairs with women like Dhardon Sharling, an investigation extensively covered by Tibetan author and journalist Mila Rangzen.

From the Karmapa all the way to Sogyal Rinpoche, and onwards to Lobsang Sangay, one thing all of these people have in common is the fact they were approved of and endorsed by the Dalai Lama. Lobsang Sangay’s candidacy for the position of Sikyong, for example, would surely have received the Dalai Lama’s approval before he was permitted to run.

That being the case, this latest Karmapa scandal is damaging for the Dalai Lama as people will think badly of his decisions. Many will also start to question his psychic abilities, asking if he is truly clairvoyant and how he did not know 20 years ago that all of this would transpire with the Karmapa Ogyen Trinley. This exposé of the Karmapa also comes at a time when the reputation of Tibetan Buddhism is on the decline, thanks to the actions of the aforementioned sexual abusers whose actions the Tibetan leadership have remained silent on and failed to condemn.

Let’s call a spade a spade

The Dalai Lama’s endorsement of Ogyen Trinley went against Karma Kagyu tradition and placed the ancient lineage on a collision course with itself.

Whether the Karmapa, or any monk for that matter, has novice monk vows (getsul) or a fully-ordained Buddhist monk’s vows (gelong) is irrelevant when it comes to sexual relationships. Whether a monk is a getsul or gelong, they all have four root vows:

1. to abstain from lying about any realizations of emptiness;
2. to abstain from taking the life of a human;
3. to abstain from taking something which is not theirs;
4. to abstain from sexual relations.

These four root vows are the very basics of the Buddhist monk code (vinaya), the universally-held standard which makes a clear distinction if someone is a monk or not. Hence, someone holding any level of monk vows should not be having any sexual relations with women, period. Even if the Karmapa were not a monk, the fact that he is wearing robes means he should still represent the monkhood well. His actions reflect on all Tibetan monks and creates the wrong idea in people’s minds that Tibetan monks can have relationships with women.

For people to doubt Tibetan monks and question if they are real is highly damaging to the Buddha Dharma as a whole for a number of reasons:

1. Whether spiritual teachers are married or have relationships is the choice of the individual. However, if they dress like a monk and profess to be a monk, regardless of whatever level of vows they hold, they should act like a monk and not mislead the public. It diminishes the faith of the people in the sangha as a whole.
2. It is not fair to good monks who are celibate and keep their vows clean for a lifetime, to be put next to spiritual teachers like this and have both be treated the same. The same standard should be held for all who profess to be monks, regardless of whatever tradition or Buddhist country they are from.

Since the CTA professes to be a Buddhist government, Tibetan teachers should follow the example set by monks from all other Buddhist nations such as Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Viet Nam and Burma where the public continue to have a very good opinion of their sangha.

In those predominantly Buddhist countries, if a monk has sexual relations with a woman, there are no exceptions whether they are high or low, senior or junior, scholar, royalty, eminent or not – they are immediately disrobed and no longer considered monks, according to the vinaya.

In fact, in those countries, never mind cohabiting with a woman, monks are not even allowed to touch or hold hands with a woman, so strict is their adherence to the vinaya code of conduct. This level of adherence protects the public from developing wrong view about the Buddha Dharma and encourages people to trust bona fide monks. Is it therefore any surprise that public opinion of the Tibetan monks is at an all-time low, when many lamas are abusing their students and the Karmapa is now embroiled in this Taiwanese sex scandal?

The question is where the CTA’s voice is in all of this. Since the CTA considers themselves a bastion of Buddhism, their Department of Religion’s silence over the sexual abuses of the aforementioned Tibetan Buddhist teachers, and the Karmapa’s sexual scandal is all the more shocking. After all, what else is the CTA’s Department of Religion responsible for if not to hold Tibetan teachers to the vinaya?

Time for Tibetan leadership to admit to their shortcomings

All these scandals do not bode well for the CTA and the Dalai Lama, who spend the majority of their time and effort vilifying the Chinese while neglecting their own polity. The CTA is so vocal in criticizing everything else but is silent as a mouse on this. They are outspoken against the Jonangpas, against Dorje Shugden practitioners, against China but they have yet to be heard in this.

The two Karmapas – on the top is the Chinese enthroned Karmapa Ogyen Trinley that the Dalai Lama endorsed. At the bottom is Karmapa Thaye Dorje whom the Dalai Lama refuses to endorse but has continuously received support from spiritual heads of other Tibetan Buddhists sects and also the royal family of Bhutan. Dalai Lama has never taken a picture with this Karmapa Thaye Dorje. Those who support Karmapa Thaye Dorje are considered against the Dalai Lama and called Chinese paid spies or working for the Chinese.

It is high time that the Tibetan government in exile enforce these vinaya rules since they consider themselves a Buddhist majority “country”. The Dalai Lama too has the full authority, as well as spiritual and temporal power, to enforce these rules if he wishes to. But strangely, the Dalai Lama and his government stay silent while major damage is being done to the reputation of Tibetan Buddhist teachers specifically, and the Tibetan community in general. This is certainly not the best way to preserve and turn the wheel of Dharma.

It is important especially now for the Dalai Lama to tell us which Karmapa is real and which is not. Should the people continue to trust the CTA-endorsed Karmapa Ogyen Trinley who has been involved in scandal after scandal, leading up to this latest Taiwanese one? Or should the people switch their allegiance and support to the CTA-rejected Karmapa Thaye Dorje, who has thus far remained scandal-free? Did the CTA endorse the wrong candidate? Or is there something else that is going on, which the public have been kept in the dark about?

With so much preexisting confusion, all this new scandal is doing is adding to the steady decline in the people’s trust in both Tibetan Buddhism and the CTA. The message is clear – if the CTA wants to survive this latest scandal, then we, the people, will REALLY need to hear from both the CTA AND the Dalai Lama.

【全文】驚傳違反戒律
大寶法王遭控交女友

Mirror Media (Taiwan)

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article (Source: https://www.mirrormedia.mg/story/20190123soc001)

[Translation]

Shocking revelation of Karmapa breaking vows and accused of having girlfriends

The 17th Gyalwa Karmapa has tens of millions of disciples worldwide. He has been seen as a “god” since he was young, and by right he should be holding his vows strictly. However, we received a complaint from a female disciple named H (pseudonym) who said that not only was the Karmapa having a relationship with her for five years, but they also had sex three times. According to H, the reason why she hooked up with the Karmapa was due to the introduction of another Rinpoche, who asked H to maintain a “close relationship” with the Karmapa. In order to prove herself, besides providing related photos and her WeChat conversation record with the Karmapa, the most crucial evidence is a lovers-like phone conversation voice recording. We have sent the audio recording to an expert laboratory for verification, and they confirmed that the man’s voice in the recording is really the Karmapa.

《鏡週刊 封面故事》驚傳違反戒律
大寶法王遭控交女友

Or watch on server | download video (right click & save file)

Mirror Media Cover Story: The Karmapa has broken his vows and is accused of having a girlfriend.

Just as one of the most important annual events of Tibetan Buddhism has ended – the 36th Kagyu Monlam – disciples worldwide gathered in India just so they could catch a glimpse of the Kagyu leader, the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa (Urgyen Trinley) and listen to his teachings. However, since the event on January 9th until it ended, the Karmapa did not show up, but just published a special teaching.

Together for 5 years, breaking vows

Besides being the leader of Tibetan Buddhism’s Kagyu sect, the 17th Karmapa is also lauded as the Tibetan Buddhist religious leader that has the most disciples after the Dalai Lama. He is 34 years old this year and has a high status in Tibetan Buddhism. Although he did not show up at the event, this did not lessen the disciples’ love and admiration for him. He constantly advocates vegetarianism and holding vows in his teachings and two years ago, at a nun ordination ceremony, he invited more than 20 nuns who had been ordained for more than 20 years, to start learning again from the very fundamentals of “Three Refuge and Five Precepts”.

Caption: The 36th Kagyu Monlam just ended, but from January 9th until it ended, the Karmapa did not show up

In the Buddhist scriptures, “Three Refuge and Five Precepts” are the vows that any ordained person has to hold. The Five Precepts include no killing, no stealing, no lying, no drinking alcohol, no sexual misconduct. Sexual misconduct means male-female relationship. Ordained disciples have to self-discipline and to cleanse one’s heart and limit one’s desires, so it is unbelievable that the Karmapa actually lead the way to break the vows.

We were contacted by a female disciple H (pseudonym) who exposed that not only she was with the Karmapa for five years, but they also had sex three times. Beside providing photos of herself with the Karmapa taken at a hotel, she also provided a conversation voice recording of 18 minutes 21 seconds, and content was like a conversation between lovers.

Caption: Female H said that she first had sex with the Karmapa on 13th September 2013, and the next day she met him again as his disciple

Nickname “Xiao Niu”, late-night room visit

To be cautious, we sent the audio recording to (American company) MuScene Voice Forensics Laboratory for it to be compared with two other voice recordings of the Karmapa – an online teaching from the Karmapa to Taiwanese disciples on 6th April 2018, and two videos from the public teaching at Canada’s Lingyanshan Temple on 29th June 2017.

First, the laboratory used the “listening method” to verify the accent, pronunciation habit and common points, etc. between the two audios, then they used software to check. They found that in the two audios, in terms of common vocabulary like “myself”, “it is”, “Taiwan”, etc., the basic frequency and the resonance peak shapes all matched each other, and the linguistic characteristics were even the same. The sample and the audio recording matched 99.9%, and the conclusion was that the voice belonged to the same person.

Caption: MuScene Voice Forensics Laboratory compared and confirmed that the audio recording provided by H is the voice of the Karmapa.

The problem is, how could a religious leader have love entanglement with a Taiwanese woman? When our reporter met H on 15th December last year at our office, H constantly and anxiously touched her hair. Her pretty face had an uneasy and nervous expression and after several deep breaths, she slowly opened her mouth and talked about the torture and pressure she experienced during her five-year relationship with the Karmapa.

Caption: We received a complaint from H, the ex-girlfriend of the Karmapa, saying that the Karmapa has sexual relationships with a few females, and that they were match-made by Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

That day was the first time our reporter heard the voice recording between H and the Karmapa. It was recorded when they communicated using Skype on 31st August 2018. In the conversation, the Karmapa’s tone was intimate. He wanted H to call him “Xiao Niu” and repeatedly said he hoped H would go and see him in the USA or Canada. He wanted to meet and talk to H “face-to-face” and even said that they needed to “communicate more” in their relationship.

H said that she had had sex three times with the Karmapa. The first time was on 13th September 2013 in The Grand New Delhi Hotel in New Delhi, India. At that time, all the world Buddhist leaders congregated at New Delhi for the 1st Founding Members’ Conclave of the International Buddhist Confederation. The event ended on the 12th, and on the 13th the Karmapa went to knock on H’s door late at night. That was the first time they had sex. On the 14th, H went to meet the Karmapa as his disciple and they took a photo in the room, as if nothing had happened in the previous night.

Three times love-making, intimate phone conversation

The second time was on 5th March 2015, at the New Delhi Hyatt Hotel. H remembered clearly that she could see the Karmapa’s private apartment from her room and when the Karmapa came to the balcony, they could see each other. The Karmapa also came to knock on H’s door late at night and later, they made love. The next day, H again reverted back to being a disciple and sent the Karmapa off to the USA together with the other disciples.

Caption: The Karmapa stayed at The Grand New Delhi when he attended the Confederation

The third time was in August of the same year at New Delhi’s Sheraton Hotel, on the 21st. H wore an all-white traditional costume to meet the Karmapa and late on the night of the 22nd, the Karmapa again entered the room of that female disciple. He flew off to Europe the next day on a Dharma tour.

We compared the Karmapa’s published itinerary, from the 9th to 12th September 2012, and the Karmapa was really at the Confederation in New Delhi; on 10th March 2015, the official website published that the Karmapa was in a Dharma tour in the USA for two months; on 23rd August 2015, he went to Germany to start his European Dharma tour; and it all matched. Nevertheless, we were not able to verify that they two of them really had sex.

Caption: The Karmapa was recognized when he was seven, and has tens of millions of disciples worldwide (picture taken from the Karmapa’s official flickr karmapaweb)

What confused H was that although her relationship with the Karmapa had clearly surpassed that of guru-disciple, the Karmapa remained neither close nor far with her. Regarding this, H questioned the Karmapa many times, “Why did you look for me?” and he constantly consoled H that she should change to a more gentle tone, and said he knew what she was thinking.

The Karmapa even said in the conversation that, “Actually, after saying all this, you are thinking of me” and he continued to talk to her like lovers do when they are in a relationship, with all “sour sweet bitter spicy flavor”, “when there is love, there is revenge”, and even felt that H was just throwing an unreasonable tantrum because she had feelings for him, and that they talked like lovers do. Although this showed that it was definitely not a normal guru-disciple relationship, but we could only investigate until here and could not verify the lovers’ relationship. Here is a part of their conversation for reference:

Index

[K] Karmapa
[H] His lover

---

[K] Between you and me, I think, is like, sigh…best if we meet and talk face to face
[H] Cannot, I am very unkempt today, I won’t video chat with you, it is very disrespectful to you
[K] No, what I mean is, if you are free, then come and see me, I mean, the best is you can come and see me
[H] Let me tell you, now I don’t have a single cent, it is impossible for me to go overseas and I also do not intend to take a flight to meet any guru
[K] You are not to meet guru
[H] I don’t know whether to call you Your Holiness, or Karmapa, I think even this is disrepectful
[K] No need to call me anything, you just call me…eh…eh…Xiao Niu!
[H] That time we were just being mischievious and talking nonsense, but we should have broken off then already
[K] Ok ok
[H] Why don’t you let me go?
[K] You don’t duhduhduh…are you in Taiwan now?
[H] What?
[K] Are you in Taiwan now?
[H] I am in Taiwan and let me tell you I am not going anywhere, I don’t travel.
[K] I know, and I am not asking you to travel.
[H] What is the relationship between you and me?
[K] The relationship between you and me…has all this: sour, sweet, bitter, spicy…type of relationship
[H] No lah
[K] Really
[H] I…
[K] Got sour, got sweet
[K] In your heart, what you are thinking, I know, I can feel it.
[H] Then you tell me, I can’t even feel it myself
[K] Actually, after saying all this, you are thinking of me
[H] No lah, I am not thinking of you. You don’t use the method you use on the other girls on me
[K] Tell me, yes or no
[H] My drama with you is over, I am not thinking of you, I have nothing to think of you, I only want to make it clear with you
[K] No, got got got
[H] If you have made it clear one year ago, I would have broken off with you long ago
[K] Wait wait, when there is love, there is revenge
[H] No no, you have your so many girlfriends, I am not desperate to become your what

Studying overseas and getting to know the Karmapa

H said the cause of her meeting the Karmapa was from the arrangement of Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche. When she was studying overseas 11 year ago, she was moved by Rinpoche’s Dharma teaching and decided to became a Buddhist and take Rinpoche as her guru and learn Vajrayana Buddhism from him.

After five years of being Rinpoche’s disciple, Rinpoche alluded to her that she should meet the Karmapa, and after H first met the Karmapa, he asked for her Skype, citing work purposes.

Caption: H said she mostly communicated with the Karmapa via Skype

H recalled that at first she Skype video chatted with the Karmapa. She viewed the Karmapa as a precious guru, and the Karmapa complained about his anguish of being constantly under surveillance and being followed. Then he changed the topic to ask if she had a boyfriend. H had very little romantic experience so she was shocked with this and ended the conversation abruptly.

Later, between 2013 and 2018, most of the time the Karmapa used Skype to maintain a guru-cum-lover relationship with H. In the middle of this, H also used WeChat to discuss with Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche the mode of her interaction with the Karmapa.

According to the WeChat conversation record provided by H between her and Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, when Rinpoche found out that H and the Karmapa were intimate, he then asked H to help to convey to the Karmapa his religious ideas, or asked her to forward to the Karmapa some articles that would benefit him.

Caption: In the Karmapa’s officially published article on 21st January, he talked about monks’ vows

However, later H found out that she was more like a tool being used by Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, and what was even more serious was that Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, who appeared serious and proper, was nothing short of a pimp who helped the Karmapa source for female disciples for his own personal gains.

Besides, we also hearn Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche’s name being mentioned in the conversation between H and the Karmapa,. H complained about Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche to the Karmapa, saying that she was sacrificed between the Karmapa and Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, but after the Karmapa heard about this, he always said good words about Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche. Below is part of the conversation between H and the Karmapa:

[H] Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche is scheming to change you, he is going all out to do this, his intention is to change you, Karmapa.

[K] Wait, listen to me. He wants to change me, he wants to become someone he portrayed in his mind or whatever, this is probably his own business, but it has nothing to do with me. This is his (one-sided) thinking. No, he has his own opinion!

Feeling lost, like a pawn

H experienced many struggles and even almost comitted suicide because she was feeling lost, but Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche still asked her to remain by the Karmapa’s side. When Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche noticed that H’s influence on the Karmapa had lessened, he turned from his usual serious and proper demeanor and mocked H to be “lacking in methods”. Only then did H realize that she was just his pawn, and decided to end the relationship with the Karmapa.

Caption: Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche (right) was accused of using a female as a tool to influence the Karmapa (left), and he even became the matchmaker

Before this, H messaged Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche and scolded him for being a “pimp”, and he he actually replied “yes”. Later, H confronted Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche and asked if he was pimping for the Karmapa. She said it was a shameful action and he replied “ho ho”.

Caption: H exposed Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche’s plot and accused him of being a “pimp”, and he replied “yes”.

From our investigation, Karmapa was recognized at 7, after he repeatedly manifested miracles, including finding a 300-year-old Hayagriva phurba in the Qinghai Lake when he was 15. He even successfully escaped to India under the heavy patrol of the border army. Furthermore, Tibetan Buddhism emphasizes reincarnation and once a child is recognized as the reincarnation of a high monk or tulku, he will be given a high religious status.

H felt she was not the only one, hence she came forward to tell her experience, so that this can awaken other females who have been hurt and they can boldly come forward to create changes in Tibetan Buddhism, to stop female disciples from becoming the gurus’ playthings.

Response:

We called Stephanie, the translator of Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche and she replied that all accusations of H towards Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche are false, and the WeChat record could also be fabricated. Stephanie said she has records of all her conversations with Rinpoche which show that Rinpoche did not know the Karmapa’s private life, Rinpoche does not have the Karmapa’s personal contact, and does not know the relationship between the Karmapa and H.

We also emailed the Karmapa’s contact email and at the deadline, we still had not received any response. However, the Karmapa was in retreat, and on the night of the 21st he gave a special teaching via his official website, saying that he only took the upsaka and noice monk’s vows, but he did not take the pratimoksha vows. He stressed that the real ordained vows are not about being restricted and not being allowed to do do this and that. The most important things are the mind of renunciation and to be liberated from cyclic rebirths. The Karmapa also said that recently, there has been no official news about him so there are some rumors and accusations out there, but he thinks the most important is we have to be honest with ourselves, to believe in ourselves, and that he will continue to work hard for the Dharma and sentient beings.

Till dealine, we tried our best hoping to contact the Karmapa himself, and we also tried via contacts who are close to the Karmapa hoping to get some response. Unfortunately the Karmapa was probably in retreat. Hence until dealine, we have not been able to get a response from the Karmapa.

- End of Translation -

Various Media Coverage

Click to enlarge (Source: https://www.mirrormedia.mg/story/20190122soc007/)

Click to enlarge (Source: https://www.mirrormedia.mg/story/20190122soc011/)

Click to enlarge (Source: https://www.upmedia.mg/news_info.php?SerialNo=56471)

Click to enlarge (Source: https://www.upmedia.mg/news_info.php?SerialNo=56464)

Click to enlarge (Source: https://tw.news.yahoo.com/法王桃花劫-遭罵皮條客-牽線的仁波切冷回yes-001120432.html)

Click to enlarge (Source: https://tw.news.yahoo.com/法王桃花劫-國際頂級聲紋鑑定-認證99-9-就是他-001134752.html)

Click to enlarge (Source: https://www.ettoday.net/news/20190123/1363340.htm)

Click to enlarge (Source: https://www.mirrormedia.mg/story/20190122soc005/?utm_source=feed_related&utm_medium=yahoo)

Click to enlarge (Source: http://www.chinapress.com.my/20190123/与大宝法王3渡春宵-台女爆料：或有更多受害者/)

Click to enlarge (Source: http://www.kwongwah.com.my/?p=631846)

Click to enlarge (Source: http://www.enanyang.my/news/20190123/藏传佛教精神领袖之一-大宝法王破淫戒/)

Click to enlarge (Source: https://www.ettoday.net/news/20190123/1363293.htm)

Click to enlarge (Source: https://tw.appledaily.com/new/realtime/20190123/1505599/)

Click to enlarge (Source: http://news.ltn.com.tw/news/society/breakingnews/2682155)

Click to enlarge (Source: https://www.setn.com/News.aspx?NewsID=489466)

Click to enlarge (Source: http://news.dwnews.com/china/news/2019-01-23/60114192.html)

Click to enlarge (Source: https://news.ebc.net.tw/News/society/149565)

Click to enlarge (Source: http://news.seehua.com/?p=423214)

Click to enlarge (Source: https://www.mitbbs.com/mwap/forum/article.php?board=Military&groupid=52511975&content_type=all)

Click to enlarge (Source: https://www.weibo.com/ttarticle/p/show?id=2309404331613696726739)

Click to enlarge (Source: https://www.weibo.com/ttarticle/p/show?id=2309404332346261272174)

Click to enlarge (Source: https://www.weibo.com/1214199295/HdyW3kMRQ?refer_flag=1001030103_&type=comment#_rnd1548401940766)

Tibetan Buddhist
lamas who sexually abuse

Sogyal Rinpoche

His Holiness the Dalai Lama has referred to Sogyal Rinpoche as “a good friend”.

These are perhaps the most well-known incidents of sexual abuse to hit the headlines and rock the Tibetan Buddhist community in recent times. Sogyal Rinpoche was the subject of a documentary in 2011 detailing his alleged crimes, and also the subject of a lawsuit that was settled out of court for an undisclosed amount. Despite all of this, the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan leadership continued to associate with him and make public appearances with him, thereby endorsing his activities and behavior.

In more recent times, the exposé against Sogyal Rinpoche by his own senior students has been so thorough and public, that he was forced to resign. A few months later, he announced that he was diagnosed with cancer. He has not been seen publicly since. While his victims continue to suffer the trauma of his abuse, and while he remains in hiding, the CTA has not issued any statements against his behaviour or disassociated themselves from him. How come they are silent over these atrocities, but are so vocal against Dorje Shugden which is not illegal anywhere in the world? How come they force people to disassociate from Shugden practitioners, and enforce segregatory policies against them, but have not disassociated themselves from someone who has been accused of abusing women for decades?

Lion’s Roar

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://www.lionsroar.com/letter-to-sogyal-rinpoche-from-current-and-ex-rigpa-members-details-abuse-allegations/

The Telegraph

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/thinking-man/sexual-assaults-violent-rages-inside-dark-world-buddhist-teacher/

Medium (Part 1)

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://medium.com/@tahlianewland/harvey-weinstein-and-sogyal-rinpoche-a-study-of-responses-part-1-management-f7413d904c0b

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://medium.com/@tahlianewland/harvey-weinstein-sogyal-rinpoche-a-comparison-part-2-culture-1fcc5bfc7599

Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche

His Holiness the Dalai Lama with Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche

Yet another leader of another large Tibetan Buddhist organization has been forced to step down after being accused of inappropriate sexual behavior with his students. In his statement, Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche took responsibility for everything, basically all but admitting to the actual acts. Still, Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche has enjoyed the Dalai Lama’s and the Tibetan leadership’s endorsement for many years, again despite the fact that rumors about his impropriety have existed for years. The Tibetan leadership will endorse anything, no matter how illegal it may be, if it has the potential to be financially lucrative. But as long as someone practices Dorje Shugden, they are bad and evil, no matter how much benefit they bring to others, just because they refuse to abide by the Tibetan leadership’s ban on the practice.

Tricycle

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://tricycle.org/trikedaily/sakyong-mipham-rinpoche-sexual-abuse/

Think Progress

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://thinkprogress.org/buddhist-leader-sexually-assaulted-students-report-finds-0d08e17cedd9/

Lion’s Roar

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://www.lionsroar.com/report-alleges-sexual-misconduct-by-leader-of-shambhala-community/

Tricycle

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://tricycle.org/trikedaily/shambhala-leaders-resign/

The New York Times

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/11/nyregion/shambhala-sexual-misconduct.html

CBC.ca

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/new-allegations-surface-against-shambhala-leader-1.4743325

Tricycle

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://tricycle.org/trikedaily/sakyong-mipham-rinpoche-sexual-assault/

Gangten Tulku

Hollywood actor Richard Gere with not one, but two lamas accused of sexual misconduct (Gangten Tulku and Sogyal Rinpoche).

As the head of 22 monasteries in Bhutan, Gangten Tulku is in a position of influence. He was even pictured with Hollywood actor Richard Gere, together with another sex offender, Sogyal Rinpoche. And while Gangten Tulku’s inappropriate activities are not as public as Sogyal Rinpoche’s, nevertheless within certain circles, his affairs have become very well-known. These are most notably recorded by Christine Chandler on her website extibetanbuddhist.com and in her book Enthralled: The Guru Cult of Tibetan Buddhism. Ms. Chandler is a trained social worker and psychologist, who specializes in the areas of sexual abuse and dysfunctional systems.

In an email to one of our sources, Ms. Chandler writes:

All of the residents who were Tibetan Buddhists, studied with all the lamas in Crestone. So I did about four or five 10 day retreats with Gangten. I was never close to him, but we all practiced and studied with all the Lamas there. During one of his drupdens, a really long mantra chanting experience, — he was very good at creating altered states of mind through mantra- a Bhutanese dance troupe that had been performing, was complaining about him groping the young Bhutanese women.

This information is mirrored in her book, in which she writes:

I also attended several retreats with a tulku from Bhutan, a master at creating altered states of mind through mantra chanting in his retreats. This high Bhutanese lama was the same married tulku, who was later called out by Tsultrim Allione for groping female Bhutanese dancers.

Source: Chandler, C. (2017). “Crestone, Colorado”, Chapter 22 of ‘Enthralled: The Guru Cult of Tibetan Buddhism’.

This paragraph in the book references some Bhutanese dancers being groped by a married tulku and although the married tulku’s name is not given, based on Ms. Chandler’s emailed reply, it can be safely concluded that the married tulku is Gangten Rinpoche. More importantly, this time the paragraph directly credits Lama Tsultrim Allione as the source of these claims about Gangten Rinpoche. Ms. Chandler writes that:

Allione had been raising women’s issues in the Tibetan sanghas quietly, before. But when she started complaining, openly, about a certain visiting tulku from Bhutan and his sexual gropings of young, Bhutanese women in a travelling dance group, after they came to her objecting, this Bhutanese high lama let her know that she had gone too far and she had better shape up, or be literally banished from the Tibetan Lamaist scene. She would no longer have the Tibetan lama ‘seal of approval,’ as a respected female Tibetan Buddhist teacher; helping the lamas spread Tantra in the West if she kept on complaining about their sexual abuses. This would destroy her niche in the Tibetan “Dzogchen” teacher circuit.

Source: Chandler, C. (2017). “The Dakinis and Their “Spiritualized Feminism”.”, Chapter 18 of ‘Enthralled: The Guru Cult of Tibetan Buddhism’.

Again, this references the groping of female Bhutanese dancers and again, it draws a connection to Lama Allione. Ms. Chandler says that Lama Allione was eventually browbeaten and threatened into silence. Given what we know about how the Tibetan leadership condones the abuse through their silence, and refuses to give their support to the victims, this conclusion is no surprise. It is merely another instance of power play at work, whereby the abuses surrounding Gangten Tulku are hushed up and brushed under the rug, while Lama Allione is silenced and forced to stop speaking up. An email from a close student of Lama Allione confirms this conclusion, saying:

Yes, unfortunately Gangten Tulku is one of the worst offenders. He has a history of abuse of female students, and I recently discovered that it’s a bit of an open secret that he’s also abused young monks in his monasteries. He’s been largely ousted from American dharma circles due to his impropriety, but still has a presence in Europe and Bhutan.

It would be logical that a close student of Lama Allione would be privy to the allegations about Gangten Tulku’s improper behavior, given their proximity to her. Once again, the Tibetan leadership shows that any behavior exhibited by a non-Shugden lama is acceptable, and they will not do anything to protect the victims (or even those trying to expose the abuses) as long as the lama does not practice Dorje Shugden. However, once a lama does practice Dorje Shugden, they become justified and open targets for vulgarities and abuse, simply because of their religious choices.

ExTibetanBuddhist.com

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://extibetanbuddhist.com/this-sexual-abuser-hollywood-doesnt-want-you-to-see/

ErikJampa.com

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://www.erikjampa.com/single-post/2017/11/11/Calling-Out-the-Guru-from-Afar-On-Dzongsar-Khyentses-Sex-Contract-and-Subsequent-Backlash-from-the-Buddhist-Community

Lama Norlha

Lama Norlha with the CTA-endorsed 17th Karmapa Ogyen Trinley Dorje

Here are even more allegations concerning yet another lama, regarding sexual impropriety and inappropriate relationships with students. Where is the Tibetan leadership’s voice in all of this? How come they are not funding and publishing statements, brochures, booklets and pamphlets that counsel and caution against this, but they will pay for videos, books, websites, etc. against Dorje Shugden?

If the CTA only speaks up against Dorje Shugden because they do not condone the practice, does it therefore mean that through their silence over these sexual allegations, the CTA condones this improper behavior?

Lion’s Roar

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://www.lionsroar.com/kagyu-thubten-choling-addresses-sangha-about-lama-norhla-rinpoches-sexual-misconduct-with-students/

Tricycle

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://tricycle.org/trikedaily/kagyu-thubten-choling-monastery-working-sex-impropriety/

Lama Yeshe Nyingpo

In the comments section of this post, people are cautioned against attending this teacher’s events, saying that he has been expelled from his monastery and has been banned from teaching under the Karma Kagyu banner. How come the Tibetan leadership do not speak up against this?

Little Bangkok Sangha

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: http://www.littlebang.org/lama-yeshe-nyingpo/

Lama Choedak Rinpoche

Lama Choedak Rinpoche with the Dalai Lama

A married teacher admits to several affairs, then leaves for retreat instead of facing the consequences. A teacher is supposed to unite families, and not be the factor that breaks relationships and drives loved ones apart.

While the Tibetan leadership has no comments about the importance of remaining faithful to one’s spouse (i.e. a private choice), they have plenty to say about people who opt to retain their Dorje Shugden practice and refuse to give it up in accordance with the ban (i.e. another private choice). How come the CTA feels qualified to comment on and police one private choice, but do not apply the same level of interference when it comes to other choices which are actually harmful? The hypocrisy is staggering.

BuddhistChannel.tv

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=49,10104,0,0,1,0#.W2Zc-i2B19I

Tenzin Dhonden

Tenzin Dhonden (left) was the Dalai Lama’s personal emissary to the United States

This monk, the Dalai Lama’s former emissary to the United States, was found to be selling access to the Dalai Lama. In this way, he ended up associating the Dalai Lama with a cult organization, NXIVM. For a US$1 million “donation”, he orchestrated the Dalai Lama’s appearance at a NXIVM event, where the Dalai Lama gave a talk attended by the group’s leader Keith Raniere who has recently been arrested and indicted on several charges including sex trafficking, sex trafficking conspiracy, and conspiracy to commit forced labor.

Tenzin Dhonden himself has also been accused of improper relationships and contact with women through his connection with NXIVM, although he is supposed to be a monk.

Someone who represents the Dalai Lama can sell access to His Holiness and have relations with women although he is a monk, and the Tibetan leadership will never say anything because it brings them money. But when a person protects their religious freedom and refuses to abide by the ban on Dorje Shugden, and refuses to give up the practice, the Tibetan leadership turns them into pariahs and paints them as deserving targets of violence and vulgarities.

FrankReport

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://frankreport.com/2016/02/13/should-lama-tenzin-be-defrocked-is-dalai-lama-to-blamed-for-endorsing-keith-while-tenzin-was-sleeping-with-sara-bronfman/

The Guardian

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/27/dalai-lama-tenzin-dhonden-tibet-monk-corruption-accusations

The Guardian

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the whole article. Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/nov/29/tenzin-dhonden-dalai-lama-corruption-celebrity-investigation

Rigdzin Namkha Rinpoche

Rigdzin Namkha Rinpoche with Sogyal Rinpoche, both of whom have been accused of sexual abuses

Many allegations have been made about his sexual impropriety with Nepalese nuns. Because none of the women have been willing to come forward to confirm them or denounce him, they remain as allegations. However, as the saying goes, where there is smoke, there is fire and people who have not been in compromising positions with people will never be accused of improper sexual conduct.

Complaints have been lodged about his conduct to the Office of the Dalai Lama, to no avail. Rigdzin Rinpoche also happens to be the only lama who came close to recognizing the American teacher Tara Wangchuk, who says she is the reincarnation of the Dorje Shugden lama Domo Geshe Rinpoche, a claim which has been widely discredited. It is said that Wangchuk grew close to him, wanting to use of his connection with the Dalai Lama in the hopes it would lead to a formal recognition. Even back then, members of her group complained about his “overt sexual presence” and “feelings of discomfort around him”. Ex-students have been active on social media complaining about his conduct, and implied that he has made use of his relationship with the Dalai Lama to continue unchecked.

Facebook

Cropped for brevity. Click to enlarge and read the full post. Source: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1459918927422287/permalink/1590324004381778/

Reddit

Click to enlarge (Source: https://old.reddit.com/r/Buddhism/comments/3pcnxe/rigdzin_namkha_gyatso_rinpoche/)

Lama Ogyen Kunzang Dorje

In 2016, following a 20-year trial, a Belgian national by the name of Robert Spatz a.k.a. Lama Ogyen was found guilty of rape and other sexual abuse, child kidnapping with aggravating circumstances of torture and money laundering, amongst many charges. During the trial, it was revealed that some members of the organization had been forced to make large financial contributions to the community, which Robert Spatz personally benefited from. He was tried in absentia, and given a suspended jail sentence of 4 years and his organization Ogyen Kunzang Choling (OKC) was also found guilty on a number of charges and ordered to pay damages to some 30 plaintiffs in civil proceedings.

Spatz appealed the verdict and as a result, an entire website has set up by the victims seeking justice: https://www.okcinfo.news/en/ Interestingly, the Dalai Lama visited OKC in Brussels in 1990, at the height of the abuse. OKC continues to operate unfettered and the Dalai Lama has never once condemned Spatz, an act which would surely help the victims in their quest for justice.

L’Avenir

Click to enlarge (Source: https://www.lavenir.net/cnt/dmf20180425_01161205/robert-spatz-un-imposteur-un-escroc-un-esclavagiste-des-temps-modernes-et-un-violeur)

DH.be

Click to enlarge (Source: http://www.dhnet.be/actu/faits/le-conseil-de-robert-spatz-le-gourou-de-la-secte-okc-plaide-l-acquittement-5aea0a22cd70c60ea6c2a9d0)