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{{Person
|MainNamePhon=Apang Terton Choying Dorje
|SortName=Apang Terton Choying Dorje
|MainNameTib=ཨ་པཾ་གཏེར་སྟོན་ཆོས་དབྱིངས་རྡོ་རྗེ་
|MainNameWylie=A paM gter ston chos dbyings rdo rje
|OtherNames=དཔའ་བོ་ཆོས་དབྱིངས་རྡོ་རྗེ་; ཨ་པང་གཏེར་སྟོན་
|PersonType=Abbots; Authors of Tibetan Works; Classical Tibetan Authors; Tertons; Tibetan Buddhist Teachers; Tulkus
|bio='''Apang Terchen Orgyen Trinlé Lingpa (1895-1945)'''

Choktrul Lozang Tendzin of Trehor studied with the lord Kunga Palden and the Chö
master Dharma Seng-gé, and Apang Terchen in turn studied with Lozang Tendzin.
Apang Terchen, also known as Orgyen Trinlé Lingpa, was renowned as the rebirth of
Rigdzin Gödem. He was reputed to have been conceived in the following way: Traktung
Dudjom Lingpa focused his enlightened intent while resting in the basic space
of timeless awareness, whereupon Apang Terchen's mother experienced an intense
surge of delight. This caused all ordinary concepts based on confusion to be arrested
in her mind for a short time, and it was then that Apang Terchen was conceived in her
womb.2 From that moment on, his mother constantly had dreams that were amazing
omens. For example, she found herself among groups of dakinis enjoying the splendor
of ganachakras, or being bathed by many dakas and dakinis, or dwelling in pavilions
of light, illuminating the entire world with her radiance.

The child was born one morning at dawn, in the area of Serta in eastern Tibet, his
mother having experienced no discomfort. Her dwelling was filled with [2.188a] and
surrounded by light, as though the sun were shining brightly. There were also pavilions
of light, and a fragrance pervaded the entire area, although no one could tell
where it came from. Everyone saw numerous amazing signs on the child's body, such
as a tuft of vulture feathers adorning the crown of his head.3 The mother's brother,
Sönam Dorjé, asked, "What will become of this boy who has no father? How shameful
it would be if people saw these feathers!"4 But although he cut the feather tuft
off the child's head several times, it grew back on its own, just as before. This upset
Sönam Dorjé even more, and he berated his sister angrily, saying on numerous occasions,
"How could your child have no father? You must tell me who he is!" His
sister retorted, "With the truth of karma as my witness, I swear I have never lain with
a flesh-and-blood man of this world. This pregnancy might be a result of my own
karma." She became so extremely depressed that her fellow villagers couldn't bear it
and used various means to bring a halt to her brother's inappropriate behavior.

From an early age, this great master, Apang Terchen, felt an innate and unshakable
faith in Guru Rinpoché and had a clear and natural knowledge [2.188b] of the ''vajra guru'' 
mantra and the Seven-Line Supplication. He learned how to read and write
simply upon being shown the letters and exhibited incredible signs of his spiritual potential
awakening. For example, his intelligence, which had been developed through
training in former lifetimes, was such that no one could compete with him. As he
grew up, he turned his attention toward seeking the quintessential meaning of life.
He studied at the feet of many teachers and mentors, including the Nyingtik master
Gyatsok Lama Damlo and Terchen Sogyal, studying many of the mainstream traditions
of the sutras and tantras, especially those of the kama and terma.

The most extraordinary lord of his spiritual family was Trehor Drakar Tulku,5
with whom he studied for a long time, receiving the complete range of empowerments,
oral transmissions, and pith instructions of the secret Nyingtik cycles of utter lucidity.
He went to solitary ravines throughout the region, making caves and overhangs
on cliffs his dwelling places, taking birds and wild animals as his companions, and
relying on the most ragged clothing and meager diet. He planted the victory banner
of spiritual practice, meditating for a long period of time. He was graced by visions of
an enormous array of his personal meditation deities, [2.189a] including Tara, Avalokiteshvara,
Mañjushri, Sarasvati, and Amitayus. He was not content to leave the
true nature of phenomena an object of intellectual speculation, and his realization
progressed in leaps and bounds.

Apang Terchen bound the eight classes of gods and demons — including such spirits
as Nyenchen Tanglha, Ma Pomra, and Sergyi Drong-ri Mukpo6 — to his service.
He communicated directly with Tsiu Marpo, the white form of Mahakala, Ganapati,
and other protective deities, like one person conversing with another, and enjoined
them to carry out his enlightened activities. So great was his might that he also bound
these protective deities to his service, causing lightning to strike and so forth, so that
those who had become his enemies were checked by very direct means, before years,
months, or even days had passed.

Notably, he beheld the great master of Orgyen in a vision and was blessed as the
regent of Guru Padmakara's three secret aspects. On the basis of a prophecy he received
at that time, Apang Terchen journeyed to amazing holy sites, such as Draklha
Gönpo in Gyalrong, Khandro Bumdzong in the lowlands of eastern Tibet, and Dorjé
Treldzong in Drakar, where he revealed countless terma caches consisting of teachings,
objects of wealth, and sacred substances. He revealed some of them in secret,
others in the presence of large crowds. In these ways, he revealed a huge trove of profound
termas. [2.189b] Those revealed publicly were brought forth in the presence of
many fortunate people and in conjunction with truly incredible omens, which freed
all present from the bonds of doubt and inspired unshakable faith in them. Apang
Terchen's fame as an undisputed siddha and tertön resounded throughout the land, as
though powerful enough to cause the earth to quake. His terma teachings are found
in the numerous volumes of his collected works and include ''The Hidden Treasure of Enlightened Mind: The Thirteen Red Deities'', 
practices focusing on the Three Roots, cycles concerning guardian deities and the 
principle of enlightened activity, and his large instruction manual on Dzogchen teachings.

Apang Terchen's students, from Dartsedo in the east, to Repkong in Amdo to the
north, to the three regions of Golok and other areas, included mentors who nurtured
the teachings and beings, masters such as those known as the "four great illuminators
of the teachings," the "four vajra ridgepoles,11 the "four named Gyatso," the "great
masters, the paired sun and moon," and Jangchub Dorjé (the custodian of Apang
Terchen's termas).7 He also taught important political figures who exerted great
influence over the people of their areas, including the "four great chieftains of the
region of Dza in the north," [2.190a] that is, Getsé Tsering Dorjé of Dza in the northern
reaches of eastern Tibet, Gönlha of Akyong in Golok, Mewa Namlo of the Mé
region of Golok, and the chieftain of Serta in Washul. Apang Terchen's students also
included countless monks, nuns, villagers, and lay tantric practitioners. He transmitted
his own termas and the great Nyingtik cycles of the Dzogchen teachings, and so
numerous were those he guided that he truly embodied the enlightened activity of
one who held sway over the three realms. In these times of spiritual degeneration, he
alleviated problems caused by disease, famine, border wars, and civil unrest. In such
ways, Apang Terchen rendered great service to the land of Tibet. His kindness to the
Tibetan people as a whole was truly extraordinary, for he worked to ensure a glorious
state of peace and well-being.

During a pilgrimage to Jowo Yizhin Norbu, the statue of the lord Shakyamuni in
Lhasa, Apang Terchen paid respect to many tens of thousands of ordained members
of the sangha, sponsoring ganachakras, making offerings, and offering meals, tea,
and donations at such monastic centers as Sera, Drepung, and Ganden. He sponsored
the gilding of statues in these centers and in such ways strove to reinforce his positive
qualities. Everyone could see that no matter how many avenues he found to extend
generosity, his resources of gold, silver, and other valuables [2.190b] continued to
increase, as though he had access to a treasure mine.

Among his heart children and intimate students were his sons, Gyurmé Dorjé,
Wangchen Nyima, and Dotrul Rinpoché; his daughter, Tare Lhamo; and the custodian
of his termas, Jangchub Dorjé. Until recently, Tare Lhamo lived in eastern Tibet,
maintaining the teachings.8

Thus did Apang Terchen benefit beings with his incredible compassion and activities.
As his life was nearing an end, he remarked, "For the sake of the teachings and
of beings, I must enter the bloodline of the glorious Sakya school." This fearless lion's
roar proved to be his last testament, spoken with an unobscured awareness of past,
present, and future. He then manifested incredible miracles and departed for the
great palace of Pema Ö.


Source: Richard Barron translation of Nyoshul Khenpo, A Marvelous Garland of Rare Gems: Biographies of Masters of Awareness in the Dzogchen Lineage, Padma Publications, 2005, pages 488-491.
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|yeardeath=1945
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|affiliation=Katok Monastery
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|PersonalAffiliation=Father of TA re lha mo (1938-2003)
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|pagecreationdate=28 March 2017
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