by the Drukpa Council: Khandro Thrinlay Chodon was born in Lahaul (Tib. Garsha), known in the sacred texts as the ‘Land of the Dakinis’. 
Her great grandfather was none other than the great Drukpa yogi, Drubwang Shakya Shri (1853-1919), who was a realized master in both Dzogchen and Mahamudra and was widely renowned for skillfully combining these two views. Her father, the late Kyabje Apho Rinpoche (1922-1974), was responsible for reviving the Drukpa Lineage in Lahaul, Ladakh, Manali, Zanskar and Pangay, where he established several retreat centers. He was also one of the first spiritual masters who began teaching students from the West.
Khandro Thrinlay Chodon’s mother, Sangyum Urgyen Chodon (1931-1985), was also an accomplished yogini, who first sowed the seed for her daughter’s enduring passion for the spiritual teaching and practice in daily life. She was trained as a child with the late Yogi Gegen Khyentse, a master of the Six Yogas of Naropa and Mahamudra, from whom she received all the empowerments and transmissions of the Drukpa lineage. She also studied with the late Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche and has practiced in solitary retreat in the mountains of Nepal, at Tato Pani Bhakang under the guidance of the late Kyabje Sengdrak Rinpoche (1947-2005), a master known for his humility and ascetic practices.
In 1986 Khandro Thrinlay Chodon earned her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Punjab University in Chandigarh, India, and in 1998 graduated with a Master’s degree in East-West Psychology from the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco, California.
In 1998, Khandro Thrinlay Chodon married His Holiness the Ninth Shabdrung Ngawang Jigme Rinpoche (1955-2003). She assisted in the establishment and management of Shabdrung Rinpoche’s monasteries in Bodhgaya, Kalimpong and Manali. ‘Khandro’ is a title received through marriage to Shabdrung Rinpoche and means ‘Dakini’ in Sanskrit. This title refers to the wisdom quality within the feminine essence.
Sadly Shabdrung Rinpoche passed away on 4th April 2003, and since his unfortunate death, Khandro Thrinlay Chodon has been devoting herself to her vision of establishing Khachodling, which means ‘Blissful Land of the Dakinis’. She sees this project as an outer and inner spiritual practice. In order to bring this project to life she has been traveling and teaching in Europe, Argentina, the United States, Australia and Taiwan. In her travels she has inspired many people by the depth of her devotion and wisdom of her lineage.
