Khenpo Sonam (known as Professor Sonam, ordained monastic name) has been Thrangu Monastery Canada’s resident Khenpo (monastic preceptor and scholar) since March 2013. He is one of 6 siblings, and describes his birthplace as an especially clean and scenic area.
Khenpo became a monk at the age of 7. He remembers being very happy living at the monastery as a child. In shedra (Buddhist college), he was known as an outstanding student in many subjects, but he especially excelled in debate. He then travelled to South India to learn with scholars of other Tibetan Buddhist lineages, refining his debating skills and deepening his philological studies.
He is now teaching Buddhist philosophy to our monastery’s members. He has offered instruction on classic Tibetan texts such as Shantideva’s Way of the Bodhisattva and Lord Gampopa’s Precious Garland of the Supreme Path. Following in the footsteps of Kyabje Thrangu Rinpoche, Khenpo Sonam is a true scholar and devoted practitioner.