About Us

The Post-Graduate level Nyingmapa higher Buddhist studies centre, called Sikkim Institute of Higher Nyingma Studies, an organ of the Human Resource Development Department, Govt. Of Sikkim, and affiliated to Sampurnananda Sanskrit Vishwavidyalya, Varanasi (U.P), came into being in the year 1964 as the Nyingma Sheda as an outcome of the visionary efforts of the then Chogyal of Sikkim Sir P.T. Namgyal. It was supposed to be an organization to act as a catalyst towards preserving and promoting the centuries old distinct religious and cultural heritage of Sikkim, germinating from the time when the most revered Guru Padmasambhava, the presiding deity of the place, had visited this holy land with his twenty five esteemed disciples and the great saints ShantaRakshita and PanditVimalaMitra, blessed it and named it BeyulDemojong. This Sheda was a P.G. level centre of learning in then Kingdom of Sikkim.

The various learning centres established in Sikkim over time contributed greatly towards making additions to and preserving Buddhist Philoshophy , literature and other components of the cultural heritage of Sikkim. To give additional fillip to the ongoing process, in the backdrop of the fast advancing times with ever changing trends , this Institute – commonly known in the days of yore as Nyingmasheda, Thupten Donga Choeling- was brought into existence under the Ecclesiastical affairs deptt, Govt. of Sikkim.

Besides being one of the repositories of the age old Nyingmapa traditions and customs, this institute equips learners to get on with the business of life in a meaningful way , hand in hand with inculcating in them an attachment to the warm glow of the great Buddhist path. As far as formal instructions is concerned , it imparts class room teaching in Buddhist Philosophy (Mool- shastra) , Nyingma philosophy (sampradayashastra ) , Tibetan/Bhutia language , Sanskrit and Pali, English /Hindi,Environment studies , Buddhist Religious History and Buddhist Astrology .

When NyingmaSheda came into being on 2nd May 1964 , it started its activities with just 10 (ten) students under the stewardship of Ven. KhenpoRinchen , a great scholar from the Sheda of khamShichen in Tibet . After his retirement in 1966 , Ven. KhenpoDaser , Ven. KhenpoTsondu and Ven. Khenpo D. Dorjee looked after its running for varying periods. The present incumbent Khenpo L. Tshering took over the reins of the Institute in early 1997 and has been steering it till date in the capacity of Khenpo(Principal).

A need was felt to affiliate the Instt. to a university formally, so it was affiliated to Sampurnanda Sanskrit Vishwavidyalya in the year 1983 (letter No. G.682/4766/83, dated August 30th, 1983.The Sikkim Institute of Higher Nyingma Studies was granted permanent affiliations by Sampurnanada Sanskrit Vishwavidyalaya in the year 1995 later No.G2173/94-95 dated 23/07/1995 It also came to be granted recognition by the University Grants Commission as a post –Graduate level institution under section 2(f) and 12 –(B) in the year 2000 (UGC letter No.F.8-16/2000 (CPP-I), dated 11th May 2000. These factors have added to its halo of uniqueness , leading to an increase in the numbers of students , gradually but steadily, over the years .There aresome 227 students in the current 2015 Academic session. Students who have or whose guardians have an abiding faith in the Nyingmapa way of life come to study in the institute , which acts as a full fledged avenue of providing socially meaningful and useful education . The UG and PG degrees acquired by student here are at par with degrees awarded by any other institution anywhere in the country in the humanities stream .The students are helped in their studies by the fact that the government earlier provided stipend to some 125 students. The amount of the stipend was raised to Rs. 200 each from the earlier amount of Rs 150 quite a few years back. Recently, the stipend rates have been revised further. The students of classes Selop and above up to UM-II will get Rs. 500/-p.m. and the students of Shasteri and Acharyawill get Rs. 800/-pm (Govt. of Sikkim notification no.267/SCH/HRDD, dated 25th July 2015.

The Institute made its education more broad based by starting to induct female students as well from the academic session of 2013.It is entirely a matter of personal choice for passed out student as to how they would like to conduct their lives –whether they would remain in the religio- philosophical field or would like to do something else. Among those who have chosen to seek formal employment in the general way in the government or private sector , many have been contributing greatly to the sphere of education itself . Former SIHNS students have been working in most of the government schools , colleges, monastic schools as teaching faculty and some have reached even high positions .Others have been serving in the field of administrations in any number of state and central government organizations/offices in lower middle and higher echelons.

The Principal as well as all the teaching faculty members of the Institute have been enjoying UGC norms and have been governed by its provisions all through the years.There are altogether 13 Teaching staff members including the Principal and 15 non-teaching staff members including the Administrative Officer working in the Institute .Besides the posts existing before 1994 some new teaching and non-teaching posts were created in due course and quite a few new appointments have been made by the government so far.The Institute had been thriving all along since its inception at Deorali, Gagntok in close proximity with the Chorten Monastery and the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology from 2nd May 1964 to 6th April 2015. However, the Government has been pleased to allow it to shift to its new permanent location at Pangthang, Taktseon its exclusive piece of land, adjacent to the Armed Police Camp.

Core Values of the Institute

The Institute aims at moulding the students, who come from far away nooks and corners of this hilly border state to study here in to knowledgeable, aware, large hearted and compassionate human being citizens of the future. The students are supposed to understand different aspects of the origin and efflorescence of their traditional religious and philosophical heritage, especially in respect of this state o Sikkim. Only if they themselves understand and acquire thorough knowledge of their Mahayana Religion in general and the Nyingmapa branch of it in particular, can they be capable of carrying the unique tradition in to future. Besides this main objective, the students of the Institute also acquired solid purposeful degrees to faced life head on with confidence like the students of all other institutions. The invaluable human values of truthfulness, honesty, integrity, compassion, deep introspection through meditation to understand and remove ills from human life and society are all part of the teaching done in the institution.