16th Karmapa’s monastery, Sikkim 1971

The 16th Gyalwa Karmapa, Rangjung Rigpe Dorje was the spiritual leader of the Karma Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. He is of the oldest line of reincarnate lamas in Vajrayana Buddhism known as the Karmapas, whose coming was predicted by the Buddha in the Samadhiraja Sutra.