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Tsem Tulku Rinpoche (24 October 1965 – 4 September 2019) was a recognised tulku of Kalmyk descent, an incarnate lama of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism, and the founder and spiritual guide of Kechara House Buddhist Association with its headquarters in Malaysia.

Rinpoche was born on 24 October 1965 in Taiwan to a Tibetan father and Mongolian mother, and was adopted by an American-Mongolian family. His adoptive name was Burcha Bugayeff. In 1987, at the age of 22, Rinpoche received full ordination from the 14th Dalai Lama and became a monk of Ganden Shartse Monastery in India. Starting in 1992 Rinpoche has lived in Malaysia where he commenced work on the establishment of Dharma Institutes. One of the institutes he founded is known as Kechara House Buddhist Association. He also founded a charity organization known as Kechara Soup Kitchen and the dharma retreat centre Kechara Forest Retreat.

In the meantime, Rinpoche took a stand against the position of the Central Tibetan Administration in the Dorje Shugden controversy and built the world's largest Dorje Shugden statue. Rinpoche strongly supported the Dorje Shugden religious practice, prohibited in 1996 by the Central Tibetan Administration, and was a critical voice advocating for the separation of politics and religion which is a feature of Tibetan Buddhism. He was known for his advice against the self-immolation protests by Tibetans in China. For his dissenting opinions, he was marked as a controversial Buddhist teacher although Rinpoche simultaneously advocated devotion for both the 14th Dalai Lama and the Dorje Shugden religious practice.

Rinpoche died on September 4, 2019, after a long illness.

Major works

• Gurus for Hire: Enlightenment for Sale, Kechara Publications, 2005 ISBN 978-9834188788
• Faces of Enlightenment, Kechara Publications, 2006 ISBN 978-9834188764
• Why I Make Myself Unhappy, Kechara Publications, 2005 ISBN 978-9834188726
• Compassion Conquers All: Teachings on the Eight Verses of Mind Transformation, Kechara Publications, 2007 ISBN 978-9834188795,
• Nothing Changes Everything Changes, Kechara Publications, 2007 ISBN 978-9834188771, (Online)
• If Not Now, When?, Kechara Publications, 2008 ISBN 978-9834339944
• Snakes, Roosters & Pigs, Kechara Publications, 2011 ISBN 978-9675365317
• The Living Buddha Within, Kechara Publications, 2012 ISBN 978-9675365416
• The Promise (4th Edition), Kechara Publications, 2017 ISBN 978-9675365850

References

1. Archived 2020-09-21 at the Wayback Machine, Kechara official website
2. Socialite becomes a volunteer in Malaysian soup kitchen, BBC
3. Datuk May Phng, Malaysia Tatler Society 20 Jan 2016
4. Helping to keep mozzies at bay, The Star Malaysia
5. The journey of a lifetime, The Star Malaysia
6. Malaysia — Fun-loving teacher Tsem Tulku Rinpoche, Buddha Channel TV
7. More than just feeding the homeless, The Star Malaysia
8. Why These Local NGOs Are Making A Real Difference And Standing Out From The Crowd, The Malaysian Digest
9. Phng Li Kheng on planting inner peace with Kechara Forest Retreat Archived 2018-06-27 at the Wayback Machine, Malaysia Tatler
10. Largest Dorje Shugden in the world, Tsem Rinpoche Official Website
11. Shugden acolytes decry ostracism within Buddhist ranks, Huffington Post
12. When Machiavelli dons Tibetan robes, Huffington Post
13. Dalai Lama and the Panchen Lama quarrel: The way for rapprochement with China, Modern Diplomacy
14. A statement on stopping self-immolations by H.E. Tsem Tulku Rinpoche, Reuters
15. The violently peaceful struggle for Tibet, Modern Diplomacy
16. His opinions on "Why Are Tibetans Leaving India?"
17. Controversial Buddhist Teachers & Groups, viewonbuddhism.org
18. Parinirvana of His Eminence the 25th Tsem Rinpoche, Kechara official website

External links

• Official website
• Tsem Tulku - Chinese Buddhist Encyclopedia entry.

• 1965 births
• 2019 deaths
• Dorje Shugden lamas
• Buddhism in Malaysia
• American people of Mongolian descent
• American people of Tibetan descent
• Tibetan Buddhism writers
• Tibetan emigrants to India
• Taiwanese expatriates in India