H.E. the Very Venerable Kalu Rinpoche was born in eastern Tibet in 1904. He was considered the supreme meditation master of the Kagyu Lineage of Tibetan Buddhism and the activity emanation of Jamgon Kongtrul the Great. Having spent more than one-third of his 80 years in solitary meditation he became an expert on the nature of the mind. From 1971 until 1989 he traveled many times to numerous countries giving teaching and empowerment and also establishing many centers like KSK. He placed many on the path to freedom and omniscience by always giving refuge wherever he went. Renowned as a great retreat master in Tibet, he continued this tradition by establishing three-year retreats in Bhutan and India, and in 1976 he founded the first three-year retreat for Westerners in France. There are now many such retreats in Europe and North America where students can receive intensive training in traditional Buddhism. In 1989, H.E. Kalu Rinpoche passed from this life.