Kyabje Ling Rinpoche was a Tibetan buddhist

Tibetan Buddhism

Tibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhist religious doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and India . It is the state religion of Bhutan...

 scholar and teacher

Lama

Lama is a title for a Tibetan teacher of the Dharma. The name is similar to the Sanskrit term guru .Historically, the term was used for venerated spiritual masters or heads of monasteries...

.

Born in Tibet

Tibet

Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...

, northwest of Lhasa

Lhasa

Lhasa is the administrative capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China and the second most populous city on the Tibetan Plateau, after Xining. At an altitude of , Lhasa is one of the highest cities in the world...

, he also was the 97th Ganden Tripa

Ganden Tripa

The Ganden Tripa or Gaden Tripa is the title of the spiritual leader of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism, the school which controlled central Tibet from the mid-17th century until 1950s. He is identical with the respective abbot of Ganden Monastery...

 and senior tutor to His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama

Dalai Lama

The Dalai Lama is a high lama in the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" branch of Tibetan Buddhism. The name is a combination of the Mongolian word далай meaning "Ocean" and the Tibetan word bla-ma meaning "teacher"...

. The Ganden Tripa

Ganden Tripa

The Ganden Tripa or Gaden Tripa is the title of the spiritual leader of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism, the school which controlled central Tibet from the mid-17th century until 1950s. He is identical with the respective abbot of Ganden Monastery...

 is the spiritual head of the Gelug

Gelug

The Gelug or Gelug-pa , also known as the Yellow Hat sect, is a school of Buddhism founded by Je Tsongkhapa , a philosopher and Tibetan religious leader...

pa Sect, the largest sect in Tibetan Buddhism

Tibetan Buddhism

Tibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhist religious doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and India . It is the state religion of Bhutan...

. Kyabje Ling Rinpoche was one of the four main disciples of Pabongka Rinpoche

Pabongka Rinpoche

Pabongka Rinpoche , Jampa Tenzin Trinlay Gyatso, was one of the great Gelug lamas of the modern era of Tibetan Buddhism. He attained his Geshe degree at Sera Monastic University, Lhasa, and became a highly influential teacher in Tibet, unusual for teaching a great number of lay people...

. Kyabje Ling Rinpoche was the Ganden Tripa for about 14 years. He served at the request of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama and the Tibetan people for the longest period that anyone sat on the Gaden throne. Together with Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche, he is considered to be root guru of the 14th Dalai Lama. Kyabje Ling Rinpoche died in 1983.

Prior to Kyabje Ling Rinpoche, three earlier incarnations of Ling Rinpoche were tutors for previous Dalai Lamas, including the 13th, the 12th and the 6th Dalai Lamas. Three incarnations of Ling Rinpoche were also Ganden Tripas. Over many years, the Ling Rinpoche incarnations founded many monasteries in Tibet and taught students in every sect of Tibetan Buddhism

Tibetan Buddhism

Tibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhist religious doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and India . It is the state religion of Bhutan...

. Many of the monks in Ling Khangtsen come from these monasteries.

The current incarnation of Ling Rinpoche is the spiritual head and leader of Ling Khangtsen.
He was born in India in 1985 and is studying at Drepung Loseling Monastic University, Mungod, Karnataka. He is known as Ling Choktul Rinpoche.

List of Ling Rinpoches

S.No	Name	Life Span	Gaden Tripa and tutor to the Dalai Lama
1	Trichen Dhondup Gyatso, the 1st Kyabje Yongzin Ling Rinpoche Tehor Nagtsangpa	1655–1702	The 48th Gaden Tripa and tutor to H.H. the 6th Dalai Lama
2	Gedun Tenpai Gyaltsen, the 2nd Kyabje Yongzin Ling Rinpoche	1728–1790	Conferred the famed title of ‘Ertini Dalai Hothothu’ for his illuminating examplary service to Dharma
3	Lobsang Tenpai Gyaltsen, the 3rd Kyabje Yongzin Ling Rinpoche	1791–1810
4	Ngawang Lungtok Yonten Gyatso,the 4th Yongzin Ling Rinpoche	1811–1853	the 75th Gaden Tripa and Tutor to H.H. the 11th Dalai Lama
5	Lobsang Lungtok Tenzin Thinley, the 5th Kyabje Yongzin Ling Rinpoche	1856–1902	Sharpa Choeje and tutor to H.H. the 13th Dalai Lama
6	Thupten Lungtok Namgyal Thinley, the 6th Kyabje Yongzin Ling Rinpoche	1903—1983	the 97th Gaden Tripa and tutor to H.H. the 14th Dalai Lama
7	Tenzin Lungtok Thinley Choephak, the 7th Kyabje Yongzin Ling Rinpoche	Current incarnation

Further reading

• The Jewel-garland Biography of the 97th Gaden Throne Holder Kyabje Yongzin Ling Rinpoche by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama
• Brief Biographies of Kyabje Yongzin Ling Rinpoche (incarnate lineages) --compiled by Yongzin Ling Ladrang Management