Diamond Way Buddhism is a worldwide network for lay people from all walks of life, who incorporate Buddhist practice in their daily lives.
Diamond Way Buddhism belongs to the thousand-year-old Karma Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. Lama Ole Nydahl, a Western Buddhist master born in Denmark, established Diamond Way Buddhism in the 1970’s, together with his wife Hannah Nydahl. Their main teacher the 16th Karmapa asked them to teach what they had learned and to start Buddhist centers in the West.
The 16th Karmapa, Rangjung Rigpe Dorje
H.H. the 16th Gyalwa Karmapa, Rangjung Rigpe Dorje (1924 -1981), known as “The King of Yogis”, was the holder of the Karma Kagyu lineage and is the object of our main practice.
H.H. the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, Trinlay Thaye Dorje was born in Tibet in 1983. He was the first son of the 3rd Mipam Rinpoche, a great Nyingma Lama, and Dechen Wangmo, the daughter of a noble family descending from King Gesar of Ling.
H.H. the 14th Kunzig Shamar Rinpoche Mipam Chokyi Lodro
An emanation of Buddha Amitahba, H.H. the 14th Kunzig Shamar Rinpoche (1952 – 2014) is second to Gyalwa Karmapa in the spiritual hierarchy of the Karma Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism.
Lopon Tsechu Rinpoche (1918 – 2003) was born in Bhutan in 1918. When he was 13 years old, he left Bhutan to study and practice under the spiritual guidance of his uncle Lama Sherab Dorje in Nepal.
Sherab Gyaltsen Rinpoche, a highly respected lama of the Kagyu lineage, is a “Maniwa’, a title given to masters of the Chenrezi practice who have accomplished at least a billion Om Mani Peme Hung mantras. Rinpoche was ordained in Rumtek by the 16th Karmapa, Rangjung Rigpe Dorje.
Lama Ole Nydahl’s synthesis of modern style and ancient wisdom has demystified Buddhist teachings for thousands of students around the world. His approach is joyful and uncompromising. He is not always politically correct, but his motivation is clearly always for the benefit of others.
Hannah Nydahl (1946 – 2007) and her husband Ole were the first Western students of H.H. the 16th Karmapa. A qualified Buddhist teacher, Hannah also interpreted for the highest Karma Kagyu teachers such as the 16th Karmapa, Lopon Tsechu Rinpoche and Kalu Rinpoche, and translated many Tibetan Buddhist texts.