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- Was
born in Debkhok in Derge Province of east Tibet to a noble family
called Athup.
- His
mother had stayed in a holy cave where once was used by Guru Rinpoche
and waited to give birth under the instructions from different
masters in Derge.
- At
one point toward the very end of the pregnancy, the future
Karmapa disappeared entirely from his mother's womb for a
whole day and returned the day before his mother gave birth.
- The
details of the birth coincided with those in a prediction
letter given by the fifteenth Karmapa and the eleventh Tai
Situpa soon recognized the child as being the new reincarnation
of the Gyalwa Karmapa and sough confirmation from His Holiness
the Dalai Lama.
- Received
first ordination and then bodhisattva vows from Tai Situpa
and Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche. At age of eight, he received
the Black Crown and ceremonial robes of the Karmapa then
was accompanied by Tai Situpa on the long journey to Tsurphu.
- Dalai
Lama had a vision of the ever-present wisdom crown above the Karmapa's
head while performing the hair-cutting ceremony at Tsurphu
- Received
the full Kagyu lineage transmissions from Tai Situpa and Jamgon
Kongtrul and mahamudra transmission from Jamgon Kongtrul and many
other great masters of the time.
-
Accepted an invitation from the king of Bhutan the Karmapa and
his party visited Bumthang and other areas in Bhutan engaging
in many spiritual activities.
-
Received invitation from the king of Sikkim to visit Rumtek, the
monastery founded by the ninth Karmapa at the end of sixteenth
century, Karmapa was unable to accept the invitation but said
that he would go there in the future when it would be needed.
- Foreseeing
the Communist Chinese invasion of Tibet and the inevitable destruction
of Buddhist institution there, the Karmapa informed the Dalai
Lama of his intention to leave his home land and finally, the
party arrived safely in northern Bhutan bring with them sacred
statuses, painting, reliquaries, and other precious item of the
lineage of the Karmapas.
- The
king of Sikkim extended a formal invitation to the Karmapa to
establish his seat there. With several sites proposed by King
Tashi Namgyal, the Karmapa chose to settle at Rumtek.
- Construction
of Rumtek was funded primarily through the generosity of the Sikkimese
royal family and Indian government and completed in four years.
- In
1974, the sixteenth Karmapa set out on his first world tour, visiting
the United States, Canada, and Europe. Accompany by other teachers,
and a full entourage of monks and staff, he performed the Black
Crown ceremony in the Western hemisphere for the first time.
- The
Karmapa's last world tour began in May 1980 and took him to Greece,
England, the United States and Southeast Asia, where he gave teachings,
Black Crown ceremonies, empowerments, interviews, and many beneficial
activities.
- On
November 5, 1981, the sixteenth Karmapa passed into parinirvana
at the American International Clinic in Zion, Illinois. His kundung
was flown back to India and the cremation ceremony took place
at Rumtek Monastery on December 20th.
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