Our Mission & Vision
Founded in 2011, Urban Dharma NC exists to share the Buddha’s teachings in ways that inspire understanding, connection, and real-world relevance. Located in the heart of West Asheville, our temple welcomes both committed Buddhist practitioners and anyone seeking a quiet, sacred, and welcoming space.
We offer a place for meditation, reflection, friendship, and community wellness. Though rooted in the Drikung Kagyu tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, we are a non-sectarian, public temple open to all. Our motto — “Changing Minds, Transforming Cities” — reflects our aspiration to bring the Dharma into everyday life, cultivating compassion, clarity, and a sense of belonging right here in the Appalachian mountains.
Our Spiritual Advisors
Khenchen Konchog Gyaltshen Rinpoché
Khenchen Rinpoché was born in 1946 near Mount Tsari in southwestern Tibet. In 1959, his family fled to India following the Communist invasion. He attended school there and in 1968 took monk’s vows from Kyabjé Kalu Rinpoché. He was among the first graduates of the Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies in Varanasi and studied under masters such as the 16th Karmapa, Khunu Lama Rinpoché, and Pachung Rinpoché. He completed a three year retreat at Lamayuru Monastery in Ladakh under Vajradhara Kyungka Rinpoché and later received teachings from Vajradhara Gelong Tenzin Nyima Rinpoché of Drigungtil Monastery.
In the 1980s, Rinpoché arrived in the United States and founded the Tibetan Meditation Center in Frederick, Maryland, plus several other centers over the next two decades. He translated core Drikung Kagyu practices, prayers, and histories into English and published thirteen esteemed books—among them Great Kagyu Masters, Jewel Ornament of Liberation, and Wheel of Wisdom. In 2001, His Holiness Drikung Kyabgön Chetsang Rinpoché enthroned him as “khenchen” (“great khenpo”) of the Drikung Kagyu tradition.
Known for his unwavering adherence to pure vows and deep compassion, Rinpoché emphasizes letting the Dharma transform the heart rather than chasing “higher” practices or empty ritual. After retiring from the Tibetan Meditation Center, he has embraced a life of “homelessness,” traveling wherever the Dharma is needed. He continues to teach at monasteries in India, Nepal, and Tibet, and at centers across Asia, Europe, and the Americas.
Venerable Wei Wu
Born in 1949 in Penang, Malaysia, Wei Wu was raised in a prominent Chinese-Malaysian family. After high school, he studied at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, where he met Buddhist pioneers like Ven. Sangharakshita, Lama Thubten Yeshé, and Sasaki Roshi. Upon returning to Malaysia, he worked twelve years for Hewlett‑Packard before founding a Total Quality Management consultancy in 1987, serving clients such as Procter & Gamble and Philips.
In 1992, at age 43, Wei Wu ordained in the Chinese Mahāyāna tradition. Over the next decade he established Than Hsiang Temple, Metta Free Clinic (offering both Chinese and Western medical care), Mitra Welfare Centre (24‑hour counseling), Wan Ching Yuen geriatric care, and the International Buddhist College in Thailand. He also revitalized Phor Tay School, one of Malaysia’s few Buddhist‑affiliated public schools.
Blending his TQM expertise with bodhisattva compassion, Shifu exemplifies socially engaged Buddhism. He draws on traditions including Linji Chan, Caodong Chan, and Drikung Kagyu, while his primary practice remains the Pure Land tradition.
Our Founder & Spiritual Director
Dorlöp Rinpoché, Dr. Hun Lye
Dorlöp Rinpoché, Dr. Hun Lye (Könchok Yedor) was born in Penang, Malaysia, into a devout Buddhist family and spent his childhood accompanying his grandmother to a local nunnery. Fascinated by ritual and mythology, he explored Theravāda, Mahāyāna, and Vajrayāna traditions, concluding—“Buddhism is Buddhism is Buddhism”—and practiced them without sectarian bias. At Penang Free School, he led the Buddhist Students’ Society (grounded in Sri Lankan, Burmese, and Thai Theravāda) and took lay precepts from Venerable Master Hsuan Hua, completing the required 50,000 prostrations as a teenager.
In 1989, Dr. Lye came to the U.S. for college and first encountered Tibetan Buddhism under Drupön Sonam Jorphel Rinpoché. While earning his Ph.D. in Religious Studies (specializing in Buddhism) at the University of Virginia in 2003, he served and studied closely with Khenchen Konchog Gyaltshen Rinpoché at the Tibetan Meditation Center in Frederick, Maryland.
After graduation, he taught Buddhism at two North Carolina universities and simultaneously nurtured an Asheville sangha. He led study tours and pilgrimages to Tibet, Ladakh, and Nepal. That community formally became Urban Dharma NC in 2011, and by mid-2012 Dr. Lye transitioned from academia to full-time Dharma teacher.
In 2013, His Holiness Drikung Kyabgön Chetsang Rinpoché appointed Dr. Lye as Dorjé Lopön (Vajra Master) of the Drikung Kagyü tradition, entrusting him with transmitting its core teachings. Soon after, he was sent to teach at Drikung centers in South America. Today, he splits his time between assisting His Holiness on global projects, leading retreats and teachings for Urban Dharma, and offering regular online instruction to communities in Malaysia, Peru, Guatemala, and the United States.
Meet Our Community
Urban Dharma NC is a registered Buddhist church in North Carolina, tax‑exempt under IRC 501(c)(3), and overseen by a Board of Directors charged with strategic vision and financial stewardship.
Yet it is our volunteers—those who tend the shrine, host our events, maintain the space, and welcome newcomers—who bring this community to life, day in and day out.
Board of Directors
Hun Lye (Spiritual Director)
Daniel Fishburn
Judy Fore
Meg Houck
Nathan Koerschner
Bill Laity
Joseph Nabholz