Mipham Rinpoche (also translated as Mipon Rinpoche) (1846–1912) was a great modern-day practitioner of the Nyingma school who excelled in both realization and understanding. The name "Mipham" means "Victorious and Unconquerable," and thus Mipham Rinpoche is also referred to as the Unconquerable Master. From a young age, he demonstrated extraordinary faith in the Dharma, endowed with innate qualities such as renunciation, great compassion, and wisdom, which are the hallmarks of the Mahayana lineage. More than a thousand years ago, Guru Padmasambhava prophesied that he would become the "Sun of Dzogchen Enlightenment." Across the various schools of Tibetan Buddhism, the omniscient Mipham Rinpoche is widely revered as an emanation of Manjushri, the Bodhisattva of Wisdom.

Mipham Rinpoche was an extraordinary practitioner and a Khenpo (abbot) of Dzogchen Monastery. His realization and profound wisdom, as expressed through his extensive writings, influenced the entirety of Tibetan Buddhism. His works are regarded as authoritative not only within the Nyingma school and Dzogchen Monastery but also by other schools, establishing him as a shining jewel of Tibetan Buddhism.

The great protector King Gesar, like a body and its shadow that are inseparable, constantly protects the master. This scene has been personally witnessed by many with karmic connections. He also once requested the Gade protector deity to guard the place where he resided. At that time, many yaks in the area had been stolen by bandits. After requesting the protector deity to safeguard the area, Gade Protector personally appeared before the bandits and reclaimed all the stolen yaks.

(Source: 全知米滂仁波切略傳,  Orignal in chinese, translated to english)


Mipham Rinpoche is widely considered one of the greatest scholars and accomplished masters in the history of Tibetan Buddhism, and he is also one of the most influential teachers of the Nyingma school today. However, until recently, information about his life was limited to a few brief biographies, available in both Tibetan and English. Throughout his life, aside from his visions and miracles, Mipham Rinpoche lived a relatively uneventful life. He once wrote an autobiography documenting these visions, but out of humility, he chose to burn it.

For a long time, the main sources of Mipham Rinpoche's life were Essential Hagiography by Khenpo Kunpel and a collection of stories compiled by Khenpo Jigme Phuntsok. In 2010, a biography of Mipham Rinpoche written by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche in 1939 was discovered and published in India in 2013. This biography was translated into English by the Padmakara Translation Group under the title Lion of Speech. Another booklet worth reading is Miracle Stories of Mipham Rinpoche by Khenpo Jigme Phuntsok. These biographies clearly demonstrate what makes Mipham Rinpoche so special and why his teachings are so valuable.

Mipham Rinpoche is often referred to as a "polymath," with some even comparing him to "Tibet’s Leonardo da Vinci." While such descriptions may intrigue people about this great master, they still fall far short of capturing the true depth of his achievements. It has been said that Mipham Rinpoche was an emanation of Manjushri, the Bodhisattva of Wisdom, and he himself once remarked that he was a bodhisattva in his final life before enlightenment. While this may sound self-aggrandizing, the following story provides an explanation:

H.H Jigme Phuntsok's collection of stories recounts an event where, the night before Mipham Rinpoche debated with the famous Mongolian scholar Lobsang Phuntsok, Manjushri appeared before him. The sword and book held by Manjushri transformed into five-colored spheres of light and dissolved into Mipham Rinpoche’s heart. From that moment on, he became fluent in all the Buddhist teachings in Tibet and gained a profound understanding of their meaning. This fact was witnessed by many of his contemporaries and is supported by his writings. Thus, Mipham Rinpoche was not merely a polymath but an individual with the realization to directly access the wisdom of the Buddhas, using it to teach, debate, and write on Buddhist doctrine.

Mipham Rinpoche’s Contributions:

In the West, Mipham Rinpoche is often regarded as a great philosopher. In fact, one of his significant contributions was writing the most influential textbooks for monastic colleges (shedra) in the thousand-year history of the Nyingma tradition. This aligns with the relatively recent establishment of shedra institutions in Nyingma monasteries over the past 200 years. He had a unique ability to present the most profound topics with clarity, always remaining faithful to the Buddha’s teachings, while also revealing the depth and harmony of different levels of the teachings.

However, unlike philosophers, Mipham Rinpoche did not establish his own philosophical system. What he presented was the Buddha’s teachings, designed to help students understand and practice the path more easily while avoiding potential pitfalls. Therefore, describing him as a philosopher does not fully reflect his complete accomplishments. Above all, he was a great Vajrayana adept. Writing shastra commentaries was merely an incidental task given to him by his teacher, Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo.

For most of his life, Mipham Rinpoche lived as a yogi in seclusion in the wilderness, accompanied only by his lifelong attendant, Lama Ösel. He spent only a few hours a day writing, yet he produced a vast collection of works on the nature of reality. These accomplishments might lead non-Buddhists to view him as a philosopher—someone attempting to propose new ideas or refine the theories of others. However, for Buddhists, especially practitioners of the Nyingma tradition, Mipham Rinpoche is regarded as a bodhisattva whose sole aim was to help others achieve enlightenment. This perspective is crucial for understanding the teachings he left behind.

As Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche explains, Mipham Rinpoche’s profound realization meant that his writings were not the product of an ordinary mind but the direct expression of the dharmakaya wisdom of the Buddhas. For this reason, his works are considered equal in value to the great Indian Buddhist texts, such as the sutras, tantras, and shastras.

Mipham Rinpoche’s Collected Works contain many treasures. Fortunately, an increasing number of excellent English translations are now available, allowing his teachings to reach a broader audience. These writings cover a wide range of topics, including (primarily) shastra commentaries, Vajrayana explanations, Dzogchen teachings, and even the art of governance.
The unbroken lineage of realized masters has made Tibetan Buddhism one of the most relevant spiritual traditions in the world today. While other religions have often struggled with tensions between scholars and mystics, Tibetan Buddhism has always valued the authority of realized masters as supreme. Their wisdom, derived from direct realization, surpasses mere intellectual knowledge.

This perspective contrasts with the culture prevalent in other traditions, such as academia or Western religions, where significant contributions to a field of knowledge are often recognized with titles like "Doctor of the Church." In Tibetan Buddhism, such recognition is unnecessary because the dualistic mind of an ordinary person, no matter how learned in spiritual matters, cannot fully grasp, let alone improve upon, the Buddha’s teachings.

The contributions of Buddhist siddhas (accomplished masters) have preserved the authenticity of the Buddha’s teachings. From time to time, an enlightened being arises to correct humanity’s intellectual deviations from wisdom. Mipham Rinpoche was one such guide.



Ju Mipham Rinpoche was born in 1846 to an aristocratic family in the Kingdom of Derge. His mother, Sing Chungma, was a descendant of the Mukpo Dong clan, the family lineage of King Gesar. Mipham began studying the Dharma at an early age, and at the age of 12, he took novice vows and joined Ju Mohor Sang Ngak Chöling Monastery, a branch of the renowned Shechen Monastery.

According to records, he was a child prodigy, and his extraordinary talents were quickly recognized. Before long, he was known in the monastery as "the little scholar monk."

Around 1861, the young Mipham Rinpoche undertook an 18-month retreat on Manjushri at Junyung Hermitage. He later told his close disciples that from that time onward, he no longer needed to study any subject in depth; he could fully comprehend any text or knowledge simply by receiving a brief transmission of explanation. Shortly after completing this retreat, Mipham Rinpoche went on a pilgrimage with his uncle to Central Tibet to escape the turmoil of the war in Nyarong, which had caused unrest in the Kham region. In 1863, Gompo Namgyal, the chieftain of Nyarong, invaded Derge. His defeat in 1865 brought an end to two years of war and famine in the region.
During his pilgrimage, Mipham Rinpoche studied Gelug teachings for a month at the famous Ganden Monastery in Central Tibet. On his way back to Kham, he encountered the two most important teachers of his life: the great master and scholar Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo and the renowned Dzogchen teacher Dza Patrul Rinpoche. Mipham Rinpoche regarded Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo as his root teacher, and during his lifetime, he offered all of his belongings to Khyentse Wangpo seven times. To be near his teacher, Mipham Rinpoche spent considerable time at Dzongsar Monastery.
Soon after, Khyentse Wangpo requested him to write shedra textbooks for the study of the shastras (treatises) from the perspective of the Nyingma tradition. These textbooks later became the foundation of shedra studies in all Nyingma monasteries, and many of them are now available in English translations.

Mipham Rinpoche's WritingsMipham Rinpoche's writings cover a wide range of subjects, including teachings on the Sutras, Vajrayana Dharma, Dzogchen instructions, detailed scholarly commentaries, as well as practical advice that is both precise and accessible. His works often summarize and clarify the essence of the Sutras and Tantras in a fresh and clear manner.
In addition to spiritual teachings, he also wrote extensively on the traditional sciences, such as crafts, magic, medicine, divination, and astrology. Through these works, Mipham Rinpoche provided many methods for practitioners to skillfully utilize interdependence and create favorable conditions for the path of Dharma.

Mipham Rinpoche also showed a strong interest in the literary sciences, writing authoritative texts on grammar, poetics, dramaturgy, and prosody. He even devised a grand lama dance centered on King Gesar, which would be performed over several days.

His Final Years and PassingIn his later years, Mipham Rinpoche wrote about a severe illness that had afflicted him for the last decade of his life, bringing him immense suffering. At the end of his life, he stated that despite the pain, he had chosen to remain in the world for the benefit of sentient beings, but now there was no longer any reason to stay.

On Friday, June 14, 1912, in the evening, he sat with his legs lightly crossed, one hand in the mudra of meditation and the other in the mudra of teaching. As the sun set, he entered the inner expanse of primordial luminosity and passed away at his hermitage in Ju. He remained in tukdam meditation, a state of meditative absorption, for approximately twelve days.

Mipham Rinpoche and King GesarFrom an early age, King Gesar was Mipham Rinpoche's primary protector deity. As Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche wrote, "Unlike ordinary children, his mind was entirely focused on his yidam deity, Manjushri in both peaceful and wrathful forms, and on Gesar, his protector."

In 1864 or 1865, during his return journey to Kham from Central Tibet, Mipham Rinpoche received the "entrustment of the life force" (tsé wang) of Gesar Sengchen Dorje Tsegyal. This transmission was based on the pure vision of Lharik Dechen Yeshe Rölpa Tsal and was given to him by Lap Kyapgön Gyerap Dorje.

Lap Kyapgön (1832–1888) was the head of the Gelug monastery of Lapgön in Yushu, Kham. He was also one of the five chief disciples of Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje and the teacher of Loter Wangpo. During this time, the young Mipham Rinpoche met Loter Wangpo and became his disciple.

After receiving the transmission from Lap Kyapgön, Mipham Rinpoche went to Loter Wangpo's hermitage, Pema Sangak Dechen Gakyil, where he completed the practices of White Manjushri and Hayagriva, displaying signs of accomplishment. He also began to propitiate King Gesar and took him as his chief protector.

Mipham Rinpoche authored many profound and vast teachings related to King Gesar, which are included in his collected works. According to the colophons of these texts, Mipham Rinpoche wrote his first teaching on King Gesar in 1865, shortly after receiving the transmission of Lharik's terma.



Source:( Gesar: Tantric Practices of the Tibetan Warrior King, Original in english adstracted and tranlated to chinese)


THE ENCIPHERED MIRROR OF JEWELS
The Extraordinary Story of the Horse Race (By Mipham Nampar Gyalwa)
OM SVASTI
Within the play that accomplishes welfare and well-being in Jambudvipa,
Through the blazing glory of the garland of light rays of the wisdom jewel,
The great and powerful sorcerer has subjugated the enemy demons of the dark side—
Supreme being Great Lion King, grant auspiciousness!

At the moment the lotus emerges from the mud,
The garland of lightning dawns in the center of the red mirror.
Thanks to the roar of the dragon, the heroes ride the swift mounts of the wind.
I pray to the one who can bring everyone under his control!

It is Hayagriva who appears as the Sorrel Steed,
The four-legged miracle captured by the magical lasso.
From the illusory treasury, you amassed the treasures of the three.
I supplicate you who are respected by all the great ones.

Racing like tigers, lions, dragons, garudas, and herds of elephants
All seeming madly intoxicated by the strongest of liquors,
The heroes appeared to be so splendid as they competed.
But the one lagging behind hidden by disguise, it is to you that I supplicate.

Just like the images projected by a flawless crystal,
Sung to so many, your myriad songs of experience
Have clarified the mind and desires of each individual—
I supplicate to the magical spectacle that you display.

In the presence of the hosts of beautiful youthful gods,
Like the movements of the sun, moon, planets, and stars,
The force of the mighty wind stirs
The waving banner of fame, to which I supplicate.

On the luminous shore of the brightly shining sun and moon of happiness and well-being,
Under the royal banner of victory in all directions,
The thunderous roar of your fame shakes the great earth—
I supplicate the one who holds the great throne of the kingdom.

Just as the sun appears from the clouds
Or a youthful lotus emerges from its casing of mud,
Your stainless, supreme body is favored by the gods and all who live—
I supplicate you who now truly appears in front of us.

No matter how arrogant they may have been made by their power,
In your presence, as one they bow their topknots to the ground,
And the great classes of maras bemoan their defeat—
I pray to the victor of the forces of good.

Then samsara and nirvana helplessly surrender their essence
To this wish-fulfilling kaya,
Who is permanent, stable, and naturally free from old age and decay—
I supplicate the one who propagates the well-being and benefit of the teachings and all beings.

By the karmic power of this prayer
To the king of the dralas, the manifestation of the Lotus-Born and the three protectors,
May you dwell in the center of the youthful utpala flower of my heart,
And may you bestow the siddhi that accomplishes whatever mind desires!

On the tenth day of the waning phase of the moon, the day the dakinis gather,
The twenty-fifth of the eleventh month of the Wood Dog year of the fifteenth sixty-year cycle (1874),
The yogi devoted to the Warrior of Ling, Mipham Nampar Gyalwa, wrote this excellent prayer.

Source:( Gesar: Tantric Practices of the Tibetan Warrior King, Original in english adstracted and tranlated to chinese)