Chögyal Namkhai Norbu was born in Derghe, eastern Tibet, in 1938. As a child he was recognized as the reincarnation of the great Dzogchen Master Adzom Drugpa (1842-1924) and later by the sixteenth Karmapa as a reincarnation of Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal (1594-1651), the first Dharmaraja of Bhutan.
The Dzogchen teachings are neither a philosophy, nor a religious doctrine, nor a cultural tradition. Understanding the message of the teachings means discovering one’s own true condition stripped of all the self-deceptions and falsifications which the mind creates.
The Dzogchen Community is made up of those who are interested in following and practicing the Dzogchen teachings. It was founded by Chögyal Namkhai Norbu in Italy in the second half of the seventies and rapidly developed in various countries around the world, taking on a completely international dimension.
Santi maha sangha
Santi Maha Sangha is a course of study and practice in nine levels that was started by Chögyal Namkhai Norbu in 1994. The aim of Santi Maha Sangha, which in the ancient language of Oddiyana means "Dzogchen Commmunity", is to guarantee the continuation of the Dzogchen teaching as it was originally transmitted by Garab Dorje, and as the Master has been transmitting it for more than thirty years within the Dzogchen Community. After the “Base” level, whose contents are presented in The Precious Vase, there are three levels dedicated to Semde, three to Longde and the final three to Mennagde or Upadesha.
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