Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche was born in 1951 in Riwoche, Kham, Eastern Tibet, as the eldest son of the 3rd Neten Chokling Rinpoche. After leaving Tibet in 1959, his family eventually settled in Bir, Himachal Pradesh, India, where his father established a Tibetan settlement. Following his father's death in 1973, Rinpoche took responsibility for the monastery in Bir, caring for it until 2004 when he passed leadership to his father's reincarnation, Neten Chokling, whom he had helped educate. He received Buddhist teachings from Dzongsar Khyentse Chökyi Lodrö and Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, with whom he traveled to teach in the West. Between 2004 and 2006, he returned to Tibet twice to rebuild Neten Gön, his father's monastery. He served as a Member of the Tibetan Parliament in exile representing Kham from 1994-1996 and was reelected in 2001 and 2006. He has also appeared in Buddhist-themed films, including playing the Geko in The Cup (1999) and serving as artistic director for Life of Milarepa - Part I.