[1] Born in Kham in 1932,[1] Tenga Rinpoche was recognized as a reincarnation of Lama Samten[1][2] at the age of seven.
[1] As he grew older, he studied at Benchen Monastery[2] and was eventually given the name Karma Tenzin Thinle Namgyal from Situ Rinpoche.
[1][2] In 1976 Tenga Rinpoche settled in Swayambhunath, Nepal, where he founded a second Benchen Monastery and a retreat center in Pharping.
[2] He visited France regularly, giving teachings at Kagyu-Dzong in Paris and Vajradhara-Ling in Aubry-le-Panthou, Normandy.
[6] Nyima Döndrup, the yangsi (reincarnation) of the previous Tenga Rinpoche was born 14 December 2014 in Nepal.