Drikung Kagyu

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Drikung Kagyu or Drigung Kagyu (Wylie: 'bri-kung bka'-brgyud) is one of the eight "minor" lineages of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. "Major" here refers to those Kagyu lineages founded by the immediate disciples of Gampopa (1079-1153) while "minor" refers to all the lineages founded by disciples of Phakmo Drupa (1110-1170), one of the three main disciples of Gampopa. The first and main Drigung Kagyu monastery is Drigung Thil Monastery, founded in 1179 by Drigung Kyobpa Jikten Gönpo Rinchen Päl (1143-1217) approximately 150 miles east of Lhasa. Aside from the Drigung Valley in Central Tibet, Drikung Kagyu has a strong presence in Nangchen in eastern Tibet, in western Tibet (including Kailash) and Ladakh. Tsari and Lapchi - two important sacred sites for all Tibetan Buddhists - also have a strong Drikung Kagyu presence. Among the so-called "four major and eight minor" Kagyu lineages, Drikung Kagyu is one of four Kagyu lineages that continue to exist as independent institutions, (the other three being, Karma Kagyu, Drukpa Kagyu and Taklung Kagyu).

A sub-school of the Drikung was the Lhapu school, established in western Bhutan in the 12th century. The Lhapu followers built the earliest dzongs in Bhutan. It is unclear if the Lhapu exists today in Bhutan.

From the founding of Drigung Thil Monastery in 1179 to the present day, the lineage has been led by a succession of spiritual heads ("throne-holders"). The current head of the lineage, His Holiness Drigung Kyabgön Chetsang Rinpoche, Könchok Tenzin Kunzang Trinlay Lhundrup (b. 1946), the 37th Drigungpa resides at Drikung Kagyu Institute at Dehra Dun, India. The 36th Drigungpa, His Holiness Drigung Kyabgön Chungtsang Rinpoche, Könchok Tenzin Chökyi Nangwa (b. 1942) lives in Lhasa, Tibet.

The unique doctrines of Drikung Kagyu as taught by its founder, Jikten Gönpo is preserved in "The Single Intention" (Wylie: dgongs gcig) and "The Essence of Mahāyāna Teachings" (Wylie: theg chen bstan pa'i snying po). The main practices of Drikung Kagyu are “The Five-fold Profound Path of Mahamudrā,” and “The Six Dharmas of Nāropa.”

The Drikung lineage is popularly known for its development of the practice of Phowa, in which a practitioner learns how to expel his/her consciousness or mindstream through the fontanel at the top of the skull at the moment of death. One of the Six Dharmas of Naropa, this practice is said to aid the practitioner in remaining aware through the death experience, thus aiding one in attaining enlightenment in the Bardo (the state in between death and the next rebirth) or in achieving a birth conducive to the practice of Dharma.

Another unique feature of the Drikung lineage is its female protector Achi Chokyi Drolma. The great-grandmother of Drigung Kyobpa Jikten Gönpo Rinchen Päl, she prophesied Jikten Gönpo's birth and vowed to protect those in his lineage. She is unusual in that she is both a female protector and an enlightened bodhisattva that can be taken as one's personal yidam in meditation practice. She is depicted either sitting on a horse or standing with a kapala in her left hand and a mirror in her right hand. Achi's practice became so popular that she has been included in other lineages, such as the Karma Kagyu.