'Katok Tsewang Norbu' (1698–1755) was a Nyingmapa who championed the view of 'extrinsic emptiness' or Zhentong (Wylie: gzhen-stong) which he propagated amongst his tradition. His seat was the Katok Monastery

Katok Monastery

Katok Monastery is listed in various enumerations as one of the six principal Nyingma monasteries, one of the main lineages of Tibetan Buddhism.Katok Monastery was founded in 1159 by a younger sibling of Phagmodrupa, Katok Dampa Deshek...

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Contextualising Zhentong

After the suppression of the Jonang school and its texts and the texts of Sakya Chokden by the 5th Dalai Lama in the 17th century, various Shentong views were propagated mainly by Karma Kagyu

Karma Kagyu

Karma Kagyu , or Kamtsang Kagyu, is probably the largest and certainly the most widely practiced lineage within the Kagyu school, one of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The lineage has long-standing monasteries in Tibet, China, Russia, Mongolia, India, Nepal, and Bhutan, and current...

 and Nyingma

Nyingma

The Nyingma tradition is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism . "Nyingma" literally means "ancient," and is often referred to as Nga'gyur or the "old school" because it is founded on the first translations of Buddhist scriptures from Sanskrit into Tibetan, in the eighth century...

 lamas. In particular, the 8th Tai Situ Rinpoche (Situ Paṇchen Chökyi Jungné (si tu paṇ chen chos kyi 'byung gnas) (1700–1774)) and Katok Tsewang Norbu (kaḥ thog tshe dbang nor bu) (1698–1755), close colleagues and Karma Kagyu and Nyingma lamas respectively, were very instrumental in reviving Shentong among their sects. He influenced his student Situ Panchen

Situ Panchen

Situ Panchen , also known as the 8th Tai Situ Rinpoche, was an influential Tibetan painter, writer and medical innovator as well as a notable figure in the histories of Karma Kagyu and the Kingdom of Dêgê, where he served as senior court chaplain...

 in the study, who accordingly spread his beliefs; according to 2003's The Budda from Dolpo, "[i]n the end it would be Situ more than anyone who would create the environment for the widespread acceptance of the Zhentong theories in the next century. This revival was continued by Jamgon Kongtrul Lodro Thaye, a 19th century Rime

Rime movement

Rimé is a Tibetan word which means "no sides", "non-partisan" or "non-sectarian". In a religious context, the word ri-mé is usually used to refer to the "Eclectic Movement" between the Buddhist Nyingma, Sakya, and Kagyu traditions, along with the non-Buddhist Bön religion, wherein practitioners...

 ('non-partisan') scholar and forceful partisan of Shentong, and were also advanced recently by the eminent Kagyu Lamas Kalu Rinpoche

Kalu Rinpoche

Kyabje Kalu Rinpoche was a Buddhist meditation master, scholar and teacher. He was one of the first Tibetan masters to teach in the West.-Early life and teachers:...

 and Khenpo Tsultrim Gyamtso Rinpoche

Khenpo Tsultrim Gyamtso Rinpoche

Khenpo Tsultrim Gyamtso Rinpoche is a prominent scholar yogi in the Kagyu tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. He teaches widely in the West, often through dohas composed by Milarepa and other masters of the past...

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