Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo’s legacy in modern Tibetan Buddhism is most clearly felt in the non‑sectarian, or Rimé, ethos that now permeates much of the tradition. Together with close contemporaries, he championed an approach that honored the distinct integrity of each school—Nyingma, Kagyu, Sakya, Gelug, and others—while encouraging practitioners to study and respect them all. Rather than attempting to blend these lineages into a single system, he modeled a way of holding diversity without rivalry, allowing cross‑fertilization of teachings and practices. This spirit of openness has become a template for many later masters who present multiple traditions as equally valid paths to awakening.

Another enduring aspect of his impact lies in the preservation and transmission of lineages that were in danger of fading. By receiving, authenticating, practicing, and passing on a vast range of transmissions—sūtra, tantra, and pith instructions—he helped ensure that rare teachings did not disappear. Collections of termas and tantric cycles associated with his activity continue to shape the practice curricula of many communities, particularly within the Nyingma and related traditions. In this way, modern practitioners often rely, sometimes unknowingly, on the continuity he safeguarded.

As a tertön, or treasure revealer, Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo also revitalized Tibetan Buddhism from within, bringing forth termas that became central to the living practice of meditation, ritual, and contemplation. These revealed teachings did not merely add to the canon; they refreshed and re‑energized existing streams of practice, especially in the Nyingma context. The emphasis on genuine experiential realization, rather than mere intellectual understanding, runs like a thread through these transmissions and continues to inform how serious practice is understood today.

His educational and institutional influence can be seen in the way many teachers and monasteries now approach study and practice across traditions. By exemplifying rigorous training in multiple schools and transmitting their teachings without bias, he created a model for later masters who guide students through a broad yet coherent path. Subsequent Khyentse incarnations and other prominent figures have drawn directly on his example, carrying his non‑sectarian vision into new cultural contexts while maintaining fidelity to the lineages he preserved. Through this combination of ecumenical vision, careful preservation, and living transmission, Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo continues to shape how Tibetan Buddhism understands itself and presents its rich diversity to the world.