Jim Valby

Jim Valby (September 3, 1946 - June 22, 2026) was a scholar and translator of Tibetan Buddhist texts. He was a student of the scholar-translator Herbert Guenther and the Dzogchen master Namkhai Norbu.
He grew up in Rochester, New York, USA, where he attended Roman Catholic elementary and high schools. He graduated from Middlebury College with a Physics degree and worked as an engineer. He earned Masters and Doctorate degrees in Tibetan Buddhism under Professor Herbert Guenther at the University of Saskatchewan, focusing on Shrisingha, Vimalamitra, and computers.
In 1982 he participated in his first retreat with Chögyal Namkhai Norbu. Since 1989 he has lived in Western Massachusetts, working on translations from Tibetan, transcripts of Chögyal Namkhai Norbu retreats, and other Dzogchen Community projects. He is an authorized instructor within the Dzogchen Community of Namkhai Norbu. Since 2003 he has also worked for the Ka-ter Translation Project.
Publications
Some of his publications are listed here:
Jim_Valby, Rangjung Yeshe Wiki
External links
Jim_Valby, Rangjung Yeshe Wiki- Shang Shung authors, Shang Shung Publications
- Passages – Died Jim Valby, melong.org