17/04/2026
Authentic Tummo Practice - Third Lachen Gomchen, 1915
Fantastic photo of the Third Lachen Gomchen, Master of Alexandra David Neel
། བླ་ཆེན་སྒོམ་ཆེན་སྐུ་འཕྲེང་གསུམ་པ་ཆོས་རྗེ་ལ་ཆེན་སྔགས་དབང་ཀུ་བཟང་རིན་པོཆེ་ །།
(bla/la chen bsgom chen sku 'phreng gsum pa chos rje la chen sngags dbang kun bzang, 1867-1947)
Third Lachen Gomchen Ngawang Kunzang
This photo shows Lachen Gomchen Rinpoche, teacher of Alexandra David Neel, while she remained in Sikkim for three years (1914-1916). Although he received the title gomchen (bsgom chen) or great meditator because his extended stays as secluded practitioner in strict retreat he was a great repa (ras pa) or cotton clothed practitioner according to the Kagyü tradition, who practiced tummo (gtum mo), lit. 'Fierce Lady', the practice of inner heat and pleasurable sensations in order to generate heat and bliss.
When not in retreat, he wears a white lower skirt-like cloth or shamthab as well as a white shirt characteristic for repas wearing only white cotton or silk clothes known in Tibetan as gökar (gos dkar). Furthermore, in other photos we clearly recognize his uncut hair made into braids coiled upon the top of the head which is known as canglo (lcang lo).
Lachen Gomchen Rinpoche was born in Namok, North Sikkim. He became monk of Labrang monastery above Phodong where he received the name Kunzang Nawang Rinchen (kun bzang ngag dbang rin chen), The Precious and Powerful Voice Which is Enterily Well. Phodong Kusho instructed him bevore he became a disciple of Lama Kesang living in Southern Tibet. As he spent many years in solitary retreat in caves practicing meditation or gompa (bsgom pa) near Namok and Rangrang he became known Great Meditater or Gomchen (bsgom chen), a title often bestowed on retreatans living for years alone in caves or small huts. As he reside mainly above the monastery of Lachen he was quite well-known as Lachen Gomchen or the Great Meditator from Lachen. However, despite his devoted and serious practice in solitary places Gomchen made frequent trips to Tibet via Lachen to receive teachings from his Master.
The people of Lachen were impressed by his religious scholarship and requested him to stay at Lachen Monastery for three years to guide the people. The Gomchen, during his stay in Lachen, renovated the monastery and also imparted many teachings to the monks. On the completion of three years, he was again requested to stay on in the monastery and finally he remained there or in his retreat hut until he passed away in 1947.
Lachen Gomchen Rinpoche is also regarded as the sec ond icarnation of the great practitioner Gnazor Pema Tsenzang from Pemayangtse, Sikkim. He became quite well-known world-wide through the writings of the French explorer Alexander David Neel who was his disciple and the book of Anagarika Govinda. For three years Alexander David Neel studied Tibetan Buddhism with Lachen Gomchen during her stay in Phodong monastery, North Sikkim in 1914-1916]. As she found the Gomchen so impressive and powerful that she even considered to take him out of Sikkim. However, this had been but was prevented by the local people.
More photos look in the album.
Improved photo via Pasang Sherpa, Thank You!
