Sasang Mati, Kunga Chokdrub and Tingkye Gyalse lived before the formal system of recognised incarnations was established in Tibet. The recognised line of Kathog Rigzin incarnations begins with Kathog Rigzin Pema Norbu.

In his own work The Wish-Fulfilling Garland, Tsewang Norbu recounted a prayer concerning a previous life: “At Kham, what was special was the incarnation from Reke – the Unsurpassable Holder of Awareness Heruka; for the combined practice of the siddhis of view, and for the complete strength of the dharma, I requested from the noble Pema Norbu.”

This clearly indicates that the noble one (the incarnation) was born in Reke Village, in the Kham region. Tsewang Norbu had received Dharma teachings and Bodhisattva Vows from Rigzin Dudrul Dorje; and studied the Path of the Bodhisattva, and did meditation with Rigzin Pema Lodro. Later, he did a retreat at the Nenang Hermitage for seven years, to meditate to arise bodhicitta, through which he realised his innate nature of deep compassion. 

Pema Norbu practised Tonglen (self-others exchange; a meditation practice for cultivating love and compassion), to treat diseases that could not be cured by others. One day, he had many sores on his body, so people said, “You cannot even cure yourself of your own disease, its hypocritical to claim that you can save others.” To this, he replied, “I no longer have thoughts of attachment to my body, thus, there’s no thought about the cure. Else, what are the difficulties? For those who do not believe me, do come and see my body for the root cause of the sufferings.”

To the close to 100 people who had gathered around him, amongst them those who believed and those who didn’t believe him, he said, 

Meditating on the mind of enlightenment (bodhicitta);
I continuously take the sufferings upon myself; 
This leaking flesh and blood, suffering from sickness;
I will soon leave (them) behind.

Amongst you, some are blinded by impurities; 
Tainted eyes; mouth promoting the views as great events;
To delight those with faith; convince the ignorant; appease critiques of the dharma;
I will now show signs of my realisation; 
By the blessings of the mind of enlightenment; the power of the ultimate truth; 
May my illusory body and aggregates of suffering;
Return to illusion. 

As he spoke, he put his palms together. Instantaneously, music came from the sky, and the earth shook. Soon, a breeze of fragrance filled the air, as his body emitted multi-coloured light. The sores on his body disappeared immediately, leaving no traces of his sufferings, and he was cured. 

Later on, he received sutric and tantric teachings, and Nyingma teachings from Rigzin Longsal Nyingpo, and Kunzang Kyabdal Lhundup. After studying and practising them, he attained great accomplishment. He also remarkably merged the practices of the two tertons Dudjom Dorje and Longsal Nyingpo, through which he practised the internal energies, channels, winds and thigles, thereby transforming his physical body into a celestial city, achieving the pure wisdom derived from the four joys. This wisdom, guided by internal energies, channels, winds and thigles, liberated 10,000 beings in the formless world(space), and 100 disciples.

One of his followers, a fully ordained monk, was concerned that his reputation would be mired, when Pema Norbu used the skilful mean of liberation to benefit beings. So he asked his guru to refrain from helping beings. To him, Pema Norbu said this: 

“Ho  Listen, O faithful one; 
The words of a loyal one, please listen well.
I myself have acquired full confidence in the view.
Praise and scorn, I put them far behind me;
I only strive for others; 
I am unable to remember my own interests. 

My body is but an illusory wheel of bliss;
Sacrificing to benefit others;
My acquaintances, 108 of form;100,000 formless females;
Have been liberated; all have accomplished.
Even if not liberated in this life;
They will realise the profound meaning in the next life;
The blessing of the secret mantra is authentic;
My sincerity is real; do not confuse the Buddhadharma;
Thus is the view of the Tantra of the Magical Net;
It is the Kalachakra.

Those who have faith listen to the words of the righteous;
Those who are doubtful listen attentively and carefully.
Some non-Buddhists turn to the right path; some placed on the path to liberation.
The Buddha’s compassion and wisdom are vast and inconceivable;
This skilful teaching is beyond imagination.
Those who delight in the wondrous path, please enjoy this supreme bliss.

The necessary path to all accomplishments;
To subdue the masses with bliss, is the conduct of a bodhisattva.
This giving – the selfless great bliss, is one of the Six Paramitas.
Through his excellent oral instruction;
I lead great sinners into the Buddhadharma;
Also, diverting some in the wrong path;
Into either the right path, or the path of liberation.
The Buddha’s compassion, wisdom and magnificence are inconceivable;
This spectacular teaching is unimaginable;
To those who love wonderful paths, please enjoy this bliss.

After he sung these verses, his disciple said, “”Such a master may act as they please; the disciple, understanding this, holds no objections and only gives rise to a pure mind.”

At Derge, there was a woman who was old and ugly with a head of silver hair, and suffering from leprosy, whom the village oracle had prophesied that, “Go and see Pema Norbu, he will cure you.” So, she visited him and told him her story. He said, “I will have to use skilful means to cure you.” On this, the old lady tearfully said, “This will hurt your body and reputation, but what can I do?” The guru then said, 

Ho, listen, lady with faith, my mind is a pureland;
There is no difference between poverty, age nor sickness;
Visualise self as Dorje Palmo; 

In the centre of self, the central channel and the lateral channels;
At the secret place, a 8-petaled lotus;
The man is Heruka, guiding the thigles; 
Coming from his dorje into your central channel;
Bring them up and send them back with a letter HUNG;
Guide them down with a whistled SHOOK;
Disperse them into your body with 6 HA; 
To stabilise them, you need the instruction of AH;
All fortunate disciples who meet with the path have;
At the top of your head, the Wheel of Bliss and in it;
The Supreme Guide, the Root Lama; and the lama of the lineage. 

At the throat, in the Wheel of Enjoyment (Sambhogachakra);
The mandala of Peaceful and Wrathful Deities; 
At the heart, is the Wheel of Dharma;
A ballet of dakinis from the feminine tantras;
At the navel, the Wheel of Emanation;
The Fortress Guardians bound by oath.
At the secret place, in the Wheel of Bliss Upkeep;
The treasure of wealth deities, and wealth protectors. 

Meditative absorption without characteristics;
Transforms the flow of the seminal fluid and blood;
Into pure wisdom nectar; 
Offer (this) to the Deities of the Body Mandala.

In just an instance;
Aches and sicknesses are appeased in the space;
A vast accumulation of merits is accomplished;
And, also the accumulation of Great Wisdom;
That guides numerous beings to the Path of Liberation.

By offering the nectar upwards;
You delight the deities of Three Roots;
You purify faults and damaged vows; 
You expand experience and realisation.

By bringing down the nectar; 
You eliminate the sufferings of the six classes;
In the mandala of primordial awakening;
Which is your self-nature, recovered.

Sickness is but a spell of thought.

Examine:
Nothing comes from nowhere; 
The healing instruction;
Is the mark sickness with the Seal of Empty Bliss;
In the space where skilful means and wisdom unite; 
The Great Devil – the Ignorant Dualistic Grasping; 
Is liberated (killed) by the vajra weapon of no-self;
No more fabrications! How Marvellous! 

After a night’s treatment, she was liberated from the three worlds, and in the state of emptiness. Just in a day, this old lady’s sickness disappeared. Her hair also turned black, and her body became more delicate. These signs are due to the blessings of the guru, the unwavering faith of the old lady, and the true power of the unchanging view of dharmata. It was recorded that she attained the rainbow body, through her dislike of this world, to her faith in the dharma, to her arisen mind of compassion of sentient beings, to her genuine practice of the dharma with sustained, single-pointed, and devout faith.

Pema Norbu served as the resident abbot of Kunsang Kyabdal for a while. He then handed it over to Tulku Dramar so that he could retreat at a hermitage to meditate. 

There was once when Pema Norbu was riding towards Lungkhashi when he and his entourage were surrounded by bandits. As they were about to kill him, he rose about a foot above his horse and executed a threatening mudra. This caused some of them to faint, while others asked for forgiveness. Following this, they turned over a new leaf, and received precepts from Pema Norbu, became Buddhists, and studied the dharma. On another occasion, there was heavy snowfall, and he and his horse lost their footing and rolled down a steep ravine. Extraordinarily, he climbed back up the mountain whilst lifting his horse with his bare hands. And then over the course of his journey, he left footprints behind in the rocks of the mountain, the surface of which had previously been as smooth as a mirror. 

It is said that five days before his passing, he had flown from Nenang to Dramar, to give teachings before returning to his practice cave to die. One day, some shepherds saw a deep red colour rainbow in the sky above Pema Norbu’s practice cave. When his disciples heard about this, they hurriedly arrived at his cave. What they saw was a body already reduced to the size of an eight-year old child. This was a sign of realisation of the primordial wisdom. Through Longchen’s teachings of the path of liberation, he had achieved fruition – realisation. He was cremated and the relics found were distributed to those with connection.