His Holiness the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, Orgyen Trinley Dorje (born 1985), was born to a nomadic family in eastern Tibet. He was recognized by the Dalai Lama as the reincarnate Karmapa and enthroned in 1992. He was recognized as well by the People's Republic of China, which allowed him to travel in Tibet and twice to China. His education proceeded at Tsurphu Monastery until such time as the government refused permission for his main teacher to visit from India.
The Karmapa then designed and arranged his escape from Tibet, arriving in Dharamsala, India on January 1, 2000. He currently lives in a monastery near His Holiness Dalai Lama, and made his first trip outside India – to the U.S. – in May, 2008.
