A journey of an ordinary man to a majestic height, conquering one of the highest peak some seven times. Ang Babu Sherpa (Jinpa) was born in 1974 in the village of Khumjung, Solukhumbu region of Nepal, the youngest of five children. In an interview he wants to start by remembering the kindness and love that he has received from his root Guru Kyabje Thubten Zopa Rinpoche who has always been inspiration to him from his earliest days. He says that he was fortunate to have been admitted in the monastery with its provision of various facilities in making his life fruitful and meaningful.
However, his loving parents provided him with the opportunity to receive education in Kopan Monastery for which he was extremely grateful. Their love and care towards him like any other parents was natural and purely compassionate. With the admission in Kopan Monastery, he was filled with admiration and delight.
He studied to be a monk at Kopan Monastery in Kathmandu since 1990. He then learned to speak Tibetan and English language and various important subjects till 1996 at Kopan. The late Khensur Rinpoche Lama Lhundup Rigsel and Kyabje Thubten Zopa Rinpoche guided him with love, care and kindness throughout his stay in Kopan Monastery. As they say, Time and Tide wait for no man. Likewise, he in the prime of his childhood, lack of interest in studying the text and more in playing games with my peers, made the situation difficult for him to remain being what he was back then.
However, he always believed that having a good heart was extremely important. While studying, the Late Khensur Rinpoche advised him to join Sera Je Monastery for further studies at the end of the month in the year 1996. He could not reject the proposal and he was off to a new place, completely overwhelmed by alienated environment. But he was pretty sure that he would do well there. Sera Je provided him with good education. Later, he visited his parents in village where he founded them in financial handicapped and also, they were old. His parents pleaded that he would have to stay back home in order to help them. He at that time really had no option. Moreover he knew in the back of his head that I was heading towards a life of struggle and hard work.
At that moment he looked for a job and every time he had to faced rejection, however he was adamant and was willing to confront any huddles that approaches his way. So, ultimately he started climbing mountains with some of his friends. He was also on a climbing adventure in 2000 on Mt. Makalu which 
was a test for him and his spirit. He made to the summit of first 8000 meter mountain in May 2001. That was the 8516 meter Lhotse. He reached the summit of an 8000 meter mountain five times since then, including two ascends of Mt. Everest, the highest peak in the world at 8848 meters. “In May 2004, he climbed the world highest peak Mt. Everest, where it was a very emotional moment for him since he felt very pleased and a sense of achievement gripped him with a rush of adrenalin on that momentous day. He was attire in a traditional Sherpa coat with his father’s hat that he actually wore when he got married to his beloved, who is my mother. Along with that, He also wrote ‘Long life of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama on a piece of cloth when he reached the summit. As H.H the Dalai Lama is his special inspiration. Later, when he showed the photograph of that day to his father, he was really touched and happy. He didn’t make it to the summit, but his son did with his hat.” It was indeed a challenging and tough climb,” he had to learned very fast.
“His father use to say ‘When you’re climbing, you must respect the mountain. When you finish, you must say you’re thankful to the mountain. Since then he told his clients, the same line that his father told him. “if you respect the mountain, if you open the door, you can succeed.”
He feels that the recent accomplishments such as climbing the Mt. Everest for the seventh time, other feats have come to fruition though not only his hard work and dedication but also through his Guru’s loving kindness and prayers. Therefore, he feels very glad to have received such support and love. These expeditions have given him lots of lessons and taught him many things, which are applicable in our daily life. On some occasions, he loses some of his foreign expedition members on the journey, which was sad. But he believes that he will continue his struggle to become the finest climber and also, help his fellow countrymen.
According to him, he says comfort and struggle are both necessary in life. But without struggle we cannot achieve comfort, with struggle we can achieve anything in life. Success breeds success.
Translated by Bodrigpunda Team
