New beginning, same Light
Dear Vajra Dharma Friends,
Our beloved and respected Guru has guided us on the unmistaken and complete path to enlightenment across many lifetimes — as Mahasiddha Darikapa, Mahasiddha Lakshminkara, Trobu Lotsawa, Panchen Zangpo Tashi, Kachen Sapen-la, and most recently as Drubwang Gangchen Rinpoche.
Drubwang Gangchen Rinpoche lived a life of immense benefit for countless beings throughout this world. As a beacon of light in times of darkness, he guided us, illuminating the path to inner, world, and environmental peace. He blessed us with the reliable and accessible methods of NgalSo Tantric Self-Healing practices. Through his boundless love and profound wisdom, he touched the hearts of thousands. We rejoice and express our deepest gratitude for his most excellent life.
On the 13th April 2020, before departing his physical form, Rinpoche gave precise instructions regarding how his reincarnation should be found and by whom. He stated clearly that I should look for his reincarnation, that he should be recognized by Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche and other Lamas, and that I should in the future take care of his reincarnation as a father to his own child.
I am filled with happiness and profound emotion to announce that under the enlightened guidance of Kyabje Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche and Kyabje Phabongkha Choktrul Rinpoche, following precisely tradition and the will of Lama Gangchen Rinpoche, the search for his reincarnation has reached its conclusion.
Over the past three years, we have conducted a meticulous and thorough search, identifying nearly fifty children from both the East and West. Our great masters undertook a detailed process of careful examination. Through the blessings of the Lineage Gurus, Yidams, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, the enlightened activity of our great Dharmapalas, and above all, the wisdom and compassion of Kyabje Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche and Kyabje Phabongkha Choktrul Rinpoche, we have reached this sacred conclusion:
In early December 2022, under many auspicious signs,
a boy named Francesco Naropa was born in northern Italy
to parents
Elisa and Alessio.
He has been definitively established,
without error,
as the reincarnation of Drubwang Gangchen Rinpoche.
I am filled with immense joy to share this wonderful news with all of you. Yet along with great gifts comes great responsibility. As direct and indirect disciples of Lama Gangchen Rinpoche, we bear the sacred duty to support and protect this child, allowing him to flourish in the best way.
Given his tender age, we must be mindful not to burden his young shoulders with expectations of being anyone other than who he naturally is in this moment. We must guard against projecting our own hopes and wishes upon a child, instead allowing him to grow with joy and health alongside his family in a loving environment.
Rinpoche instructed me to care for his reincarnation in the same manner he cared for me — like a father and mother tend to their own child. He told me, “I have profound respect for you, recognizing in you the reincarnation of one of my masters, yet I do not place you in a position of excessive veneration.” Using a traditional Tibetan proverb, he said precisely: “I did not wrap you in brocade, and you should not do so with my reincarnation. I supported you and enabled you to manifest your inherent qualities, nurturing the seeds you carried within your mindstream from previous lives. You must do the same for me in the future.”
We recognize a Tulku and take care of him because there is the same mental continuum from life to life, bringing all the imprints and profound qualities. Even though these imprints will ripen, and it is the same mental continuum from life to life, the gross mind and the body are different from one life to the other. It is not the same person, so we should not expect a reincarnation to be the continuation of the same person as in the previous life.
We must all allow Francesco Naropa to be authentically himself, to reveal and manifest his natural qualities. We pray and aspire that in due time, he will freely choose to embrace the role of a Lama, guiding sentient beings along the path to enlightenment through the precious teachings of Dharma.
You will all have opportunities to meet him in time. For now, I respectfully request that everyone remain calm and patient, and especially that you honor the privacy of both him and his family.
Above all, we should direct our prayers and merit dedications toward Francesco Naropa, our precious Tulku of Lama Gangchen Rinpoche. We pray that he may grow with happiness and good health, and that all the sacred imprints he carries within his mental continuum will manifest swiftly for the benefit of all beings.
I offer my profound gratitude and deepest respect to our Lineage Gurus, Kyabje Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche and Kyabje Phabongkha Choktrul Rinpoche, for illuminating our path and recognizing the reincarnation of our most precious Guru.
May the holy teacher have a long life.
May the enlightened activities be fully displayed in the ten directions,
and may the radiant teachings of Lama Tsongkhapa
continuously dispel the veil of darkness covering the beings of the three realms.
Gangchen Chophel Ling
Lama Gangchen Albagnano Healing Meditation Centre, Italy
On the auspicious 16th lunar day of the seventh month, September 8th, 2025.
With affection and gratitude,
Official letter from H.H. Trijang Chogtrul Rinpoche and H.H. Phabongkha Chogtrul Rinpoche
Regarding the unmistaken discovery of the reincarnation of the supreme Drubwang Gangchen Rinpoche:
In accordance with the testament of Rinpoche himself, Lama Michel Rinpoche from the Reincarnation Committee instructed that both myself and His Holiness Pabongkha Choktrul Rinpoche must undertake this responsibility.
Following their guidance, over approximately three years, we examined the names and backgrounds of nearly fifty children from various regions and localities. Through earnest prayers to the ocean of Three Jewels and systematic examination and verification of names and records, along with extensive ritual procedures for removing obstacles, the examination results of both Rinpoches reached complete agreement.
The child born in Italy, in the Turin region, on December 6, 2022, named Francesco, has been definitively confirmed as the unmistaken reincarnation of Drubwang Gangchen Rinpoche. The successive stages necessary for him to be able to uphold the biography of his predecessor must certainly be accomplished.
From America, Trijang Tenzin Lobsang Yeshe Gyatso
On the auspicious day of March 26, 2025
signed by:
H.H. Trijang Chogtrul Rinpoche
H.H. Phabongkha Chogtrul Rinpoche
