Tendrel : Lama Kunkyab, you worked with the painter Norbu when he came to Le Bost recently, who exactly is he?

Lama Kunkyab: Denzong Norbu spent his childhood in Sikkim. At a very young age he was taught by a painting master named Rigzin Lhadipa from the Menri tradition, one of the Tibetan painting schools.

When the 16th Karmapa came to Sikkim before the Chinese invasion he asked Norbu to accompany him to Tolung Tsurphu, the Karmapas' seat in eastern Tibet. There he studied Karma Gadri art whilst living next to and carrying out numerous works for the Karmapa. Then Karmapa fled Tibet seeking refuge in Sikkim and Norbu as his disciple went to live next to him in Rumtek. He remained in the Karmapa's service for over thirty years. His speciality is mural frescos and he has painted many throughout the world. He also paints thangkas for specific orders.

Norbu's devotion towards Karmapa is immense. He is totally commited to helping to continue his activity. He is a completely sincere and unambiguous person.

Recently he has been travelling in order to teach his art, particularly in Copenhagen, Germany and Russia. Following this Kunzig Shamar Rinpoche requested that he come to Le Bost's monastic hermitage in order to help us with the Temple's decoration.

Tendrel: What did he come to do at Le Bost ?

Lama Kunkyab: He came essentially to do the great Kalachakra mandala.It will be attached to the ceiling and will have a diameter of over seven metres.

It's a work that requires an investment and infrastructure that at times seem to be beyond our means. During a visit to Sikkim I met Umdze Ngedon Tenzin who lives with Norbu.

He is now diligently working to help us gather the textual information which will allow us to make this mandala a precise reference for future generations. By working on this mandala we wish to establish a connection with Norbu for the apprenticeship of thangkas. We will attempt to make this mandala in a much more traditional way than the rest of the temple's decoration.