Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen - Incarnation Lineage

Incarnation Lineage

Dragpa Gyaltsen is usually considered to be the 4th incarnation of Panchen Sonam Dragpa (wylie: Pan-chen bSod-nams grags-pa), who was the 15th Gaden Tripa. Some say he has been the second reincarnation of Sönam Drakpa, who, before his death in 1554, had established his own estate, the Upper Chamber (Zimkhang Gongma), which was named because of its location at the top of Drepung, just below the Ngakpa debating courtyard.

According to Lindsay G. McCune the "Gelukpa authorities" agreed that he was the incarnation of Sönam Gelek Pelzang (1594–1615), the fourth incarnation, or trülku, in the Drepung Zimkhang Gong ma line.

His short "incarnation lineage" includes:

0. Buton Rinchen Drub (1291–1364) - Seat: zhwa lu dgon monastery/Shalu monastery

1. Panchen Sonam Dragpa (1478–1554)

2. Sonam Yeshe Wangpo (1556–1592) - Seat: Drepung monastery

3. Sonam Gelek Palzang (1594–1615) - Seat: Drepung monastery

4. Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen (1619–1656) - Seat: Drepung monastery

Drakpa Gyaltsen (1619–1656) was born at Ge Khasa in Tolung in 1619 to his mother Lak Agyal and father Namsey Norbu. The Fifth Dalai Lama was asked to write a prayer to Dragpa Gyaltsen mentioning his previous lifetimes. "His chamberlain, Sonam Chöpel, who when he became involved in politics became known as Sonam Rabten, objected ... and he created disturbances ... saying that prayer ... was wrong. This stirring of conflict and division made it so that the fifth Dalai Lama did not compose prayer."

Tibetan historian Samten Karmay writes that after the death of Dragpa Gyaltsen the search for his reincarnation was banned. Thus the Drepung Zimkhang Gong ma line ended and the estate founded by Panchen Sönam Dragpa (also called Dakpa) in 1554 at the Upper Chamber of Drepung ceased to exist in 1656. Later on he (Dragpa Gyaltsen) appeared as Dorje Shugden.