Buddhist Yogis News

Pema Khandro and Buddhist Yogis News Archive

Buddhist Ethics

Upcoming Events

Bardo Teachings – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro, Father Francis Tiso, Lama Lhanang Rinpoche, Chagdud Khadro, Shugen Roshi, Julie Rogers, Jim Tucker, M.D., Koshin Paley Ellison and Dr. William McGrath

Open Dates
Teachings on Death and Dying Facing realities of dying, death, and grief are central to our human experience. This program offers practical instructions for helping others in the process of dying and an overview of essential knowledge on death, bardo, and rebirth. This includes self-paced lectures on dying, loss, grief, and illness from Lamas and scholars of Buddhist Studies.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhism & Sexuality – Self Paced Course

With Dr. Nicole Willock, Julie Regan, Ph.D., Pema Khandro, Lama Willa Miller, Amy Langenberg , Dr. Ann Gleig, Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, Lama Rod Owens, Dr. Jim Hopper, Dr. Elizabeth Call and Damchö Diana Finnegan

Open Dates
Join Pema Khandro and a group of esteemed Buddhist Studies scholars for an exploration of the history of Buddhist Sexualities from celibacy, to sacred sexuality in Buddhist Tantra and a simple approach to embodied integration with nature in Dzogchen.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhist Ethics – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This course on Buddhist Ethics goes through the Five Buddhist Precepts. The five precepts form the basis of a Buddhist way of life and the vows that Buddhists Seek to follow. The Five Precepts are a discipline of freedom, honor, and precision that cover the potent themes of life from the extraordinary perspective of non-duality.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Women in Tantric Buddhism – Self Paced Course

With Holly Gayley, Judith Simmer-Brown, Sarah Jacoby, Amy Langenberg , Damchö Diana Finnegan, Venerable Karma Lekshe Tsomo and Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This is the missing history of women in Tantric Buddhism. This course addresses the fascinating story of nuns, mothers, teachers, consorts, prophets, and disciples. Taught by scholar-practitioners whose groundbreaking research on women and Buddhism has changed the way we think of Buddhist history. This course will address the history of women in Buddhism, the history of yoginis and dakinis in India and Tibet, the stories of important Buddhist women, Buddhist philosophy on gender, sex, and sexuality, and the role of the consort in historical Tibet, and contemporary manifestations and so much more. Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for…
Register Now

Chakrasamvara Empowerment and Teachings

With Drupon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche and Pema Khandro

April 25 - 27, 2025
The Chakramsamvara meditation focuses on the non-dual union of the great hero and heroine, Chakrasamvara and Vajrayogini (as Vajravarahi). They are the two key deities of esoteric Buddhist meditation. This is the practice that raises the innate wisdom to persevere, even in the face of tremendous difficulties. As the great hero, Chakrasamvara calls forward innate stability and skill. As the wheel of great bliss, Chakrasamvara calls forward the joy of non-dual union of male and female energies within being.
Register now

by






*|MC:SUBJECT|*

Buddhist Studies Institute

Five Buddhist Precepts – from a Tantric perspective

Starts Tonight

The five precepts form the basis of a Buddhist way of life and the vows that Buddhists Seek to follow. The Five Precepts are a discipline of freedom, honor, and precision that cover the potent themes of life from the extraordinary perspective of non-duality.

Topics covered in this course include:

  • Buddhist theories about vegetarian lifestyle vs. meat-eating

  • Buddhist perspectives on alcohol and drug use

  • Conscious use of sexual energy, Buddhist philosophy about desire

  • Handling resources, money, and spirituality

  • Honesty, and the speech that takes us beyond confusion


Completion of Buddhist Ethics coursework is required for:

  • Vajrayana Training

  • Meditation Instructor Training Certification

  • Vajra Sangha Membership

  • Ngakpa Training


Overview of Coursework
Buddhist Ethics 1: Introduction to Vows and Codes: the 5 precepts, the 3 vows, codes of conduct, and principles of integrity

Buddhist Ethics 2: Introduction to the 5 Precepts & Precept 1- Doing No Harm

Buddhist Ethics 3: Introduction to the Precept of Non-harming
Is killing ever justified? Buddhist stories and history that give perspective on this issue

Buddhist Ethics 4: Introduction to the Precept of Not Taking What is Not Freely Given – Overview of the precept, systems of exploitation, Tibetan cultures, and practices.

Buddhist Ethics 5: Sexual Misconduct – making sense of different viewpoints.
How to have integrity in one’s sexuality from various Buddhist perspectives.

Buddhist Ethics 6: The Story of the Lying Mahasiddha

Buddhist Ethics 7: Vow of Speech – Speech with Integrity
How to use speech for non-harm and liberation, and how to abandon false speech.

Buddhist Ethics 8: False Speech Addendum
Speaking up in the face of abuse, divisive speech, speaking up and out. An Addendum to The Fourth Precept.

Buddhist Ethics 9: Precept Against Intoxicants – Avoiding the Demented State
How to remain stable in the unaltered state, and discussion on addictions.

Buddhist Ethics 10: A Review – Underlying Principles Behind Buddhist Ethics


Schedule of Training
Live Introduction with Pema Khandro
Wed Jan 25th – 5pm pacific | 8pm eastern

Focus Groups with Aruna Rig’dzin and Dr. Satya
Mondays – Jan 30 + Feb 6, 13, 20, 27
1-1:30pm PT / 4-4:30pm
Optional Focus Groups offer review and discussion of self-paced coursework and time for fostering community connections.


About Tuition
General Tuition: $108

Member with Instant Access (login and go to course content for zoom link):

  • Supporter Members

  • Snow Lion Members

  • Sustainer (All-Access-Pass) Members

Click Here to View Member Benefits
Register Now
Learn More about Member Benefits

Ngondro Training with Pema Khandro
Feb 27 – Oct 16, 2023

Ngondro means ‘before going.’ In traditional Vajrayana practice, it represents the cognitive, physical, emotional and philosophical components which are keys to the practice of liberation. It is the basis for all Vajrayana practice and thus it is used as a the pre-requisite for the great practices of the Vajrayana tradition. However, ngondro itself is a beloved meditation series for its own sake. It is often practiced many times throughout a life cycle by great yogis of the Nyingma tradition such as Patrul Rinpoche (eighteenth century).

Without proper instruction ngondro can be incredibly complex and difficult. This course offers a simple, thorough, direct and supported experience of ngondro – making the heart essence of Vajrayana accessible for serious practitioners.
Learn More about Ngondro Training

2023 Schedule of Events

Recent Changes – Due to a scheduling conflict, the Buddhism & Sexuality weekend will now take place the first weekend of March and the Vajra Sangha Retreat will take its place on February 4th. Buddhism and the Environment has thus been moved to the first weekend in December. Scroll down for the most up-to-date schedule of events.

Click Here to view the BSI Calendar View
Click Here for Events List and Registration
*All Times are noted in Pacific Time (PT) – Check your Timezone

Vajrayana Training
1st & 2nd Wednesday of each month

Ngakpa Training
3rd Wednesday of each month

Meditation Instructor Training
Jan 21 – Jun 16

Buddhist Women Then & Now
with Karma Lekshe Tsomo & Pema Khandro
Jan 23

Buddhist Ethics
Jan 25 – Feb 20

Vajra Sangha Retreat Online – Vajrakilaya Lung & Practice
Feb 4

Losar Tibetan New Year Celebration for Members
Feb 22

Ngondro Training
Mondays, Feb 27 – Oct 16

Ngondro Training 1 – The Field of Buddhas
Mondays, Feb 27 – Apr 17

Buddhism & Sexuality
Mar 3-5

Teaching Trauma Informed Meditation
Mondays, Mar 6 – 27

Healthy Boundaries for Teachers
Mar 25 – Apr 24

Chakrasamvara Empowerment & Teachings
with Drupon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche & Pema Khandro
Mar 31 – Apr 2

Ngondro Training 2 – Purifying the Mind
Mondays, Apr 24 – Jun 12

Excellent Path: Bodhisattva’s Way
Mondays, May 1-22

Teaching Meditation in a Multicultural World
May 24 – Jun 19

Chod Retreat at Dakini Mountain
Jun 1 – 4

Ngondro Training 3 – Mountain of Jewels
Mondays, Jun 19 – Aug 14

Meditation Instructor Training – Final Transmission & Graduation
July 15 – 16

Teachings on Karma
Jun 21 – Jul 10

Annual Dzogchen Retreat – San Diego County
Aug 3 – 6

Ngondro Training 4 – Intrinsic Wisdom
Mondays, Aug 21 – Oct 16

Buddhist Psychology Training
Sept 8 – 17

Vajra Sangha Retreat – Location TBA
Oct 6 – 8

Season of Practice Begins
Nov 1

Bardo Teachings
Nov 3 – 5

Buddhism & the Environment
Dec 1 – 3

Pema Khandro Birthday Celebration & Fundraiser
Dec 13

Mahayana Program: The Heart Sutra
Mondays, Jan 8 – Feb 5, 2024

Losar Tibetan New Year Celebration for Members
Feb 12, 2024

Ngondro Training Begins
Feb 19, 2024


Tonight: Pema Khandro & Ven. Karma Lekshe Tsomo

Upcoming Events

Bardo Teachings – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro, Father Francis Tiso, Lama Lhanang Rinpoche, Chagdud Khadro, Shugen Roshi, Julie Rogers, Jim Tucker, M.D., Koshin Paley Ellison and Dr. William McGrath

Open Dates
Teachings on Death and Dying Facing realities of dying, death, and grief are central to our human experience. This program offers practical instructions for helping others in the process of dying and an overview of essential knowledge on death, bardo, and rebirth. This includes self-paced lectures on dying, loss, grief, and illness from Lamas and scholars of Buddhist Studies.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhism & Sexuality – Self Paced Course

With Dr. Nicole Willock, Julie Regan, Ph.D., Pema Khandro, Lama Willa Miller, Amy Langenberg , Dr. Ann Gleig, Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, Lama Rod Owens, Dr. Jim Hopper, Dr. Elizabeth Call and Damchö Diana Finnegan

Open Dates
Join Pema Khandro and a group of esteemed Buddhist Studies scholars for an exploration of the history of Buddhist Sexualities from celibacy, to sacred sexuality in Buddhist Tantra and a simple approach to embodied integration with nature in Dzogchen.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhist Ethics – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This course on Buddhist Ethics goes through the Five Buddhist Precepts. The five precepts form the basis of a Buddhist way of life and the vows that Buddhists Seek to follow. The Five Precepts are a discipline of freedom, honor, and precision that cover the potent themes of life from the extraordinary perspective of non-duality.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Women in Tantric Buddhism – Self Paced Course

With Holly Gayley, Judith Simmer-Brown, Sarah Jacoby, Amy Langenberg , Damchö Diana Finnegan, Venerable Karma Lekshe Tsomo and Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This is the missing history of women in Tantric Buddhism. This course addresses the fascinating story of nuns, mothers, teachers, consorts, prophets, and disciples. Taught by scholar-practitioners whose groundbreaking research on women and Buddhism has changed the way we think of Buddhist history. This course will address the history of women in Buddhism, the history of yoginis and dakinis in India and Tibet, the stories of important Buddhist women, Buddhist philosophy on gender, sex, and sexuality, and the role of the consort in historical Tibet, and contemporary manifestations and so much more. Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for…
Register Now

Chakrasamvara Empowerment and Teachings

With Drupon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche and Pema Khandro

April 25 - 27, 2025
The Chakramsamvara meditation focuses on the non-dual union of the great hero and heroine, Chakrasamvara and Vajrayogini (as Vajravarahi). They are the two key deities of esoteric Buddhist meditation. This is the practice that raises the innate wisdom to persevere, even in the face of tremendous difficulties. As the great hero, Chakrasamvara calls forward innate stability and skill. As the wheel of great bliss, Chakrasamvara calls forward the joy of non-dual union of male and female energies within being.
Register now

by






*|MC:SUBJECT|*






Buddhist Studies Institute

Special Event
with Ven Karma Lekshe Tsomo & Pema Khandro

So much has changed for Buddhist women in the last three decades, this dharma conversation features two pioneering women who have devoted their lives to these changes. Join Ven. Karma Lekshe Tsomo and Dr. Pema Khandro for this special evening as they reflect on Buddhist Women before and after – discussing their journey into the scholar’s life and the status of Buddhist women today. This conversation comes at a joyful turning point as Ven. Lekshe-la celebrates her retirement after twenty-two years of serving as a University of San Diego professor. Likewise, Khandro-la celebrates the turning point of completing her Phd in Buddhist Studies at the University of Virginia.
Register Now

The Five Buddhist Precepts, from a Tantric perspective

The five precepts form the basis of a Buddhist way of life and the vows that Buddhists Seek to follow. The Five Precepts are a discipline of freedom, honor, and precision that cover the potent themes of life from the extraordinary perspective of non-duality.

Topics covered in this course include:

  • Buddhist theories about vegetarian lifestyle vs. meat-eating

  • Buddhist perspectives on alcohol and drug use

  • Conscious use of sexual energy, Buddhist philosophy about desire

  • Handling resources, money, and spirituality

  • Honesty, and the speech that takes us beyond confusion


Completion of Buddhist Ethics coursework is required for:

  • Vajrayana Training

  • Meditation Instructor Training Certification

  • Vajra Sangha Membership

  • Ngakpa Training


Overview of Coursework
Buddhist Ethics 1: Introduction to Vows and Codes: the 5 precepts, the 3 vows, codes of conduct, and principles of integrity

Buddhist Ethics 2: Introduction to the 5 Precepts & Precept 1- Doing No Harm

Buddhist Ethics 3: Introduction to the Precept of Non-harming
Is killing ever justified? Buddhist stories and history that give perspective on this issue

Buddhist Ethics 4: Introduction to the Precept of Not Taking What is Not Freely Given – Overview of the precept, systems of exploitation, Tibetan cultures, and practices.

Buddhist Ethics 5: Sexual Misconduct – making sense of different viewpoints.
How to have integrity in one’s sexuality from various Buddhist perspectives.

Buddhist Ethics 6: The Story of the Lying Mahasiddha

Buddhist Ethics 7: Vow of Speech – Speech with Integrity
How to use speech for non-harm and liberation, and how to abandon false speech.

Buddhist Ethics 8: False Speech Addendum
Speaking up in the face of abuse, divisive speech, speaking up and out. An Addendum to The Fourth Precept.

Buddhist Ethics 9: Precept Against Intoxicants – Avoiding the Demented State
How to remain stable in the unaltered state, and discussion on addictions.

Buddhist Ethics 10: A Review – Underlying Principles Behind Buddhist Ethics


Schedule of Training
Live Introduction with Pema Khandro
Wed Jan 25th – 5pm pacific | 8pm eastern

Focus Groups with Aruna Rig’dzin and Dr. Satya
Mondays – Jan 30 + Feb 6, 13, 20, 27
1-1:30pm PT / 4-4:30pm
Focus Groups offer review and discussion of self-paced coursework and time for fostering community connections.


About Tuition
General Tuition: $108

Membership Access

  • Supporter Members

  • Snow Lion Members

  • Sustainer (All-Access-Pass) Members

Click Here to View Member Benefits
Register Now
Learn More about Member Benefits


2023 Calendar at a Glance

Upcoming Events

Bardo Teachings – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro, Father Francis Tiso, Lama Lhanang Rinpoche, Chagdud Khadro, Shugen Roshi, Julie Rogers, Jim Tucker, M.D., Koshin Paley Ellison and Dr. William McGrath

Open Dates
Teachings on Death and Dying Facing realities of dying, death, and grief are central to our human experience. This program offers practical instructions for helping others in the process of dying and an overview of essential knowledge on death, bardo, and rebirth. This includes self-paced lectures on dying, loss, grief, and illness from Lamas and scholars of Buddhist Studies.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhism & Sexuality – Self Paced Course

With Dr. Nicole Willock, Julie Regan, Ph.D., Pema Khandro, Lama Willa Miller, Amy Langenberg , Dr. Ann Gleig, Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, Lama Rod Owens, Dr. Jim Hopper, Dr. Elizabeth Call and Damchö Diana Finnegan

Open Dates
Join Pema Khandro and a group of esteemed Buddhist Studies scholars for an exploration of the history of Buddhist Sexualities from celibacy, to sacred sexuality in Buddhist Tantra and a simple approach to embodied integration with nature in Dzogchen.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhist Ethics – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This course on Buddhist Ethics goes through the Five Buddhist Precepts. The five precepts form the basis of a Buddhist way of life and the vows that Buddhists Seek to follow. The Five Precepts are a discipline of freedom, honor, and precision that cover the potent themes of life from the extraordinary perspective of non-duality.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Women in Tantric Buddhism – Self Paced Course

With Holly Gayley, Judith Simmer-Brown, Sarah Jacoby, Amy Langenberg , Damchö Diana Finnegan, Venerable Karma Lekshe Tsomo and Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This is the missing history of women in Tantric Buddhism. This course addresses the fascinating story of nuns, mothers, teachers, consorts, prophets, and disciples. Taught by scholar-practitioners whose groundbreaking research on women and Buddhism has changed the way we think of Buddhist history. This course will address the history of women in Buddhism, the history of yoginis and dakinis in India and Tibet, the stories of important Buddhist women, Buddhist philosophy on gender, sex, and sexuality, and the role of the consort in historical Tibet, and contemporary manifestations and so much more. Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for…
Register Now

Chakrasamvara Empowerment and Teachings

With Drupon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche and Pema Khandro

April 25 - 27, 2025
The Chakramsamvara meditation focuses on the non-dual union of the great hero and heroine, Chakrasamvara and Vajrayogini (as Vajravarahi). They are the two key deities of esoteric Buddhist meditation. This is the practice that raises the innate wisdom to persevere, even in the face of tremendous difficulties. As the great hero, Chakrasamvara calls forward innate stability and skill. As the wheel of great bliss, Chakrasamvara calls forward the joy of non-dual union of male and female energies within being.
Register now

by






*|MC:SUBJECT|*






Buddhist Studies Institute

The Buddhist Studies Institute is honored to present a full calendar of programming for 2023. Scroll down to see a list of all our offerings, as well as descriptions and categories of study.
We welcome you to join us for study and practice, every month, every week, or every day!

Starts This Saturday
Go Deep – Learn to Teach

Updated & Robust, 180 hours of In-Depth Training
For Teachers Facing A Diverse Tumultuous World

Specialized Focus on Trauma Sensitivity, Healthy Boundaries for Teachers, and Multicultural Awareness.

Weekly focus groups for deepening study and understanding as well as community relationships.

  • Self-Paced Curriculum & Live Classes

  • Weekly Mentoring + Focus Training

  • Teaching Practicum in Community and Online

  • Traditional Meditation + Buddhist Philosophy + Buddhist Ethics
Learn More

Special Event with Karma Lekshe Tsomo and Pema Khandro

So much has changed for Buddhist women in the last three decades, this dharma conversation features two pioneering women who have devoted their lives to these changes. Join Ven. Karma Lekshe Tsomo and Dr. Pema Khandro for this special evening as they reflect on Buddhist Women before and after – discussing their journey into the scholar’s life and the status of Buddhist women today. This conversation comes at a joyful turning point as Ven. Lekshe-la celebrates her retirement after twenty-two years of serving as a University of San Diego professor. Likewise, Khandro-la celebrates the turning point of completing her Phd in Buddhist Studies at the University of Virginia.
Register Now

2023 Calendar at a Glance

Vajrayana Training
1st & 2nd Wednesday of each month

Ngakpa Training
3rd Wednesday of each month

Meditation Instructor Training
Jan 21 – Jun 16

Buddhist Women Then & Now
with Karma Lekshe Tsomo & Pema Khandro
Jan 23

Buddhist Ethics
Jan 25 – Feb 20

Buddhism & Sexuality
Feb 3 – 5

Losar Tibetan New Year Celebration for Members
Feb 22

Ngondro Training
Mondays, Feb 27 – Oct 16

Ngondro Training 1 – The Field of Buddhas
Mondays, Feb 27 – Apr 17

Buddhism & the Environment
Mar 3-5

Teaching Trauma Informed Meditation
Mondays, Mar 6 – 27

Healthy Boundaries for Teachers
Mar 25 – Apr 24

Chakrasamvara Empowerment & Teachings
with Drupon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche & Pema Khandro
Mar 31 – Apr 2

Ngondro Training 2 – Purifying the Mind
Mondays, Apr 24 – Jun 12

Excellent Path: Bodhisattva’s Way
Mondays, May 1-22

Teaching Meditation in a Multicultural World
May 24 – Jun 19

Chod Retreat at Dakini Mountain
Jun 1 – 4

Ngondro Training 3 – Mountain of Jewels
Mondays, Jun 19 – Aug 14

Meditation Instructor Training – Final Transmission & Graduation
July 15 – 16

Teachings on Karma
Jun 21 – Jul 10

Annual Dzogchen Retreat – San Diego County
Aug 3 – 6

Ngondro Training 4 – Intrinsic Wisdom
Mondays, Aug 21 – Oct 16

Buddhist Psychology Training
Sept 8 – 17

Vajra Sangha Retreat – Location TBA
Oct 6 – 8

Season of Practice Begins
Nov 1

Bardo Teachings
Nov 3 – 5

Pema Khandro Birthday Celebration & Fundraiser
Dec 13

Mahayana Program: The Heart Sutra
Mondays, Jan 8 – Feb 5, 2024

Losar Tibetan New Year Celebration for Members
Feb 12, 2024

Ngondro Training Begins
Feb 19, 2024

Click Here to view the BSI Calendar View
Click Here for Events List and Registration
*All Times are noted in Pacific Time (PT) – Check your Timezone

Dzogchen Programs 2023

Step into the wisdom of the Great Perfection, the heart of esoteric Buddhism. With deep roots in early Buddhism, which began twenty five hundred years ago in India, it was first taught in Tibet one thousand years ago. This highly revered Buddhist tradition was specialized for yogis, householders, those who practice Buddhism in balance with work, family, and community life. It is therefore known as “Dzogchen Nyingthig,” Heart essence of the Great Perfection because it is oriented towards a direct and pithy approach. A lineage that began with two women, this tradition includes some of the greatest contemplative masters of Tibet, Padmasambhava, Yeshe Tsogyal, Longchenpa, the Great Fifth Dalai Lama and Jigme Lingpa. The Dzogchen Nyingthig tradition is oriented towards people who live busy lives outside the monastery. It therefore celebrates the short, direct, simple form of esoteric Buddhist practices, emphasizing naturalness, ease and letting go. This program offers a sequential journey through the most important of these Dzogchen Nyingthig practices. The instructions and practices are presented in their most potent and concise forms, to support in-depth engagement with esoteric Buddhism for those with complex lives.

Vajrayana Training
To practice esoteric Buddhism is to develop a vaster view. Support your study through engaging with The Heart of the Dakinis and Longchenpa’s Trilogy of Rest in bi-monthly Vajrayana Training courses. These courses traverse the entire series of Vajrayana view and practice. This includes in-depth analysis of the nine yanas, and study of the inner yoga instructions for the profound practices of tantra and Dzogchen Deity yoga (yidam) Black Mother Breathing (tummo) and Inner yogas (tsa lung). This is the core ongoing program attended by the Vajrayana community who meet to study, converse and practice together twice a month.
1st & 2nd Wednesdays Online at 5pm PT / 8pm ET

Ngakpa Training
Study the great expositions on the nature of reality and how to discover it through contemplative practices. Beginning with Longchenpa’s exposition of the nature of reality, the Treasury of Words & Meanings. Pre-requisites: Ngondro Training, two years of Vajrayana Training and concurrent enrollment in Vajrayana Training.
3rd Wednesdays Feb-May & Sept-Nov. Online at 5pm PT / 8pm ET

Ngondro Training
The entire practice path is made accessible through a series of classes to train students in every aspect of Vajrayana meditation and conduct. Enter Vajrayana by following the well-tread path of The Heart of the Vast Expanse, the Longchen Nyingthig Ngondro, the cherished practice of esoteric Buddhist preliminaries practiced by the great Tibetan yogis for three hundred years. A continuous living Buddhist tradition among Tibetan Yogis in Tibet today, Longchen Nyingthig represents a direct approach to tantra and Dzogchen combined. This series of meditations provides the foundation of esoteric Buddhist view of the world, vows and ritual practices. The new cohort Ngondro Training begins February 27th, 2023. Ngondro is taught in Four Modules spanning thirty-five live meetings and more than twenty-five self-paced videos. This year’s cohort, “the water rabbits,” begin February 27, 2023 to October 16th. Attend live meetings or watch the recordings on your own schedule. The Heart of the Vast Expanse is a cherished ngondro cycle of the Nyingma lineage. It is also known as the Longchen Nyingthig, (klong chen snying thig). This is a cycle revealed by the brilliant eighteenth century Buddhist yogi, Jigme Lingpa, poet, leader, historian, and treasure revealer, whose texts synthesize Longchenpa’s teachings.
Mondays Online at 5pm PT / 8pm ET

Module 1: The Field of Buddhas ~ Feb 27 – Apr 17
Module 2: Purifying the Mind ~ Apr 24 – Jun 12
Module 3: Mountain of Jewels ~ Jun 19 – Aug 14
Module 4: Intrinsic Wisdom ~ Aug 21 – Oct 16
Live Online Weekly Practice Group ~ Mondays 5-6pm PT led by Tsalgyur

Dzogchen Chod
The profound method of psychological transformation in esoteric Buddhism is the Dzogchen Chod. Chod means cutting, referring to cutting through to authentic presence. Chod teachings are taught in yearly alternating cycles focused on the Three Dakini Chod of the Rinchen Trengwa, Troma Meditation, and Longchen Nyingthig Chod, known as the Laughter of the Dakinis – a path of profound psychological and embodied transformation. The Laughter of the Dakinis is also taught in its long and short form. Secret Chod is also taught, a a direct path to healing through fear.
Dzogchen Chod Retreat at Dakini Mountain
June 1st-4th

Natural Freedom Retreats
Engage in the tradition’s most cherished cycles of practices, including the sems ‘dzin, five elements practice and the profound advanced Dzogchen meditations of breakthrough and direct transcendence as taught in the Heart of the Dakinis, Khandro Nyingthig, which emphasizes unlocking innate wisdom of the body and mind while connecting with the wisdom of the natural world. The curent cycle is sem”dzin, the series on holding the nature of mind.
Aug 3rd-6th – San Diego County In-Person and Online

Bardo Teachings
Facing realities of dying, death and grief are central to our human experience. This online series offers reflections on Bardo Yogas as well as Tibetan teachings on dying, illness, loss and grief from the point of view of experts in diverse fields such as caregiving, hospice, Buddhist ministry and past-life research. This course focuses on the Buddhist teachings on preparing ourselves and our loved ones for death. The Bardo teachings explore dying, death, post-death and reincarnation from the Buddhist perspective. This is followed by an in-depth course on Zhitro, led by Pema Khandro. Zhitro is the Tibetan practice to guide loved ones through the post-death state. It concludes with an Open Buddhist Memorial Service to commemorate the lives of loved ones we have lost.
Nov 3rd-5th, Online at 9am-1pm PT / 12-3pm ET

Buddhist Tantra Programs 2023

The Buddhist tantra program focuses on the practice of deity yoga, the Buddhist path for deconstructing the fictive self to generate connection with one’s own authentic presence. This community is devoted to Nyingma and Kagyu lineage yidam practices related to the Vajrayogini, queen of the Dakinis and empowerment of innate wisdom. Vajrayogini is the female buddha embodying radical presence. In the Longchen Nyingthig Vajrayogini manifests as Dechen Gyalmo, the Great Bliss Queen. In the Drikung Generation stage practice Vajrayogini appears in her dancing forms and as in her non-dual form in union with Chakrasamvara. Chakrasamvara is the heroic male buddha in fierce compassionate form, practiced to awaken natural heroism. Deity yoga practice instruction is offered through empowerements, online retreat practices, weekly practice groups and study of instructions on deity yoga from the great masters. This includes the study of Jigme Lingpa’s Feast of Nectar, essential instructions for tantric practitioners to live a dharmic life outside the monastery.

Chakrasamvara Empowerment
Teachings Embodying Natural Heroism
Online with Drupon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche & Pema Khandro
Mar 31-Apr 2nd, 9am-12pm PT / 12-3pm ET

Chod Retreat at Dakini Mountain
June 3-4th, 2023 Dakini Mountain
Details TBA

Feast of Nectar – Vajra Sangha Retreat
Oct 6th-8th. In-person – Location TBA
Pre-requisite: Vajra Sangha membership

Mahayana Programs 2023

Mahayana is the great vehicle of love and compassion for all beings. This is the philosophy that all higher Buddhist vehicles are founded upon, emphasizing the nature of interdependence and the non-duality of self and other. Through compassionate care for oneself, others and one’s world, the path of liberation is experienced as a great love beyond duality.

In this school, Mahayana is approached from the perspective of Great Perfection (Dzogchen) view of reality and the two great philosophical views are put in constant conversation, cultivating the crucial skill to see multiple views of reality at once.

Excellent Path to Enlightenment
Begin with Longchenpa’s Guide to Meditation in Excellent Path to Enlightenment from his commentaries to the Finding Rest in the Nature of Mind (sems nyid ngal gso). This is a series of direct and pithy instructions that present the entire scope of the Buddhist view and the path of awakening to one’s own innate sublime knowing.

  • Excellent Path 1 – The Common Preliminaries
    Self-Paced Online for Members

  • Excellent Path 2 – Virtue and Non-Virtue
    Self-Paced Online for Members – coming in 2023

  • Excellent Path Module 3 – The Bodhisattva’s Way
    Mondays, May 1 – 22, 5pm PT / 8pm ET

The Heart Sutra (Prajnaparamita)
This course explores the hidden assumptions behind the way we perceive ourselves, others, and all of reality. The Heart Sutra addresses the biggest questions of life from the Buddhist perspective including the four Extremes, god, godlessness, self, and identity. It addresses the defining perspective of Buddhism – emptiness – and its misinterpretations. Both philosophy and practice, the heart sutra awakens the vast view of a world that flows beyond reification and clinging.
January 15th-Feb 5th 2024 Online

White Tara meditation
White Tara meditation is practiced to awaken compassion and call on world healing. With her seven compassionate eyes, White Tara sees the suffering of beings and sends healing energy that recovers the natural wisdom of the world. White Tara is practiced to end widespread illness, stop natural disasters and heal the planet.
December 13th, 2023 Online

The Twenty-One Taras
The twenty-one taras is a sublime chanting meditation and praise of the forms of the female Bodhisattva Tara, each one a contemplation of all the forms of compassion ranging from gentle to fierce. This course explores the outer, inner and secret meaning of the twenty-one taras.
December 11th, 2024 Online

Medicine Buddha practice
The Medicine Buddha is the expression of loving compassion and the capacity to heal. He is the form of the Buddha that relieves suffering, disease and ignorance. In this retreat we explore mental, emotional and physical health from the perspective of the Medicine Buddha teaching as well as how we relate to illness, aging and death through the path. This program is offered online by donation.
Jan 20 – Feb 24, 2025

Community Programs 2023
+ Special Events for Members

Enjoy practice, deep conversations, and joyful connections with fascinating people! Community programs include, community led meditation classes, community tea time during retreats and special member events:

Losar, the Tibetan New Year Celebration – Online
Feb 22nd, 5pm PT / 8pm ET Online

Saga Dawa Celebration – Online
Jun 3rd, 9am PT / 12pm ET

Vajra Sangha Retreat
Oct 6-8th, In-Person – Location TBA

Season of Practice Begins – Online
Nov 1st, 6pm PT / 9pm ET

Buddhist Studies Programs in 2023

Unpack Buddhism from the perspective of Buddhist histories, philosophies and cultures. These programs feature cutting edge Buddhist Studies scholars discussing their highly specialized research.

Buddhist Women Before and After
with Pema Khandro and Venerable Karma Lekshe Tsomo
Jan 23rd, 5pm PT / 8pm ET

Buddhist Ethics
Jan 25 – Feb 20
How to live a good life, from a Buddhist Perspective. This course on Buddhist Ethics goes through the Five Buddhist Precepts, from a Tantric perspective. The five precepts form the basis of a Buddhist way of life and the vows that Buddhists Seek to follow. The Five Precepts are a discipline of freedom, honor and precision that cover the potent themes of life from the extraordinary perspective of non-duality.
Jan 25, 5pm PT / 8pm ET with Pema Khandro
Focus Groups – Mondays 1pm PST Jan 30 – Feb 20

Buddhism & Sexuality
Feb 3 – 5, 9am – 12pm PT / 12-3pm ET
Join Pema Khandro and a group of esteemed Buddhist Studies scholars for an exploration of the history of Buddhist Sexualities from celibacy, to sacred sexuality in Buddhist Tantra and a simple approach to embodied integration with nature in Dzogchen.

Buddhism and the Environment
Mar 3 – 5, 9am – 12pm PT / 12-3pm ET
Re-imagine the world and a human being’s place in it through the perspective of twenty-five hundred years of Buddhism. Join Pema Khandro and Buddhist Studies scholars to reconsider earth, the elements, nature and environment within a sense of interdependence, impermanence and an ethic of profound care.

Teachings on Karma
Jun 21 – Jul 10
By understanding what Karma is and is not, gain insight into the hidden causes behind experiences and the open-ended nature of reality, in which change is always possible. This course introduces the rare view of Karma in Buddhist Tantra and Dzogchen, which offer up immediate ways to understand, transform and liberate patterns so that beginning-less freedom can be found. This course takes place in three classes.
Jun 21, 5pm PT / 8pm ET with Pema Khandro
Focus Groups – Mondays 1pm PT / 4pm ET, Jun 26 & July 10

Buddhist Psychology Training
Sept 8 -17, Details TBA

Dharma Conversations Podcast
Did you miss past dharma conversations? Stay tuned for podcast re-runs coming in 2023

Leadership Training

Meditation Instructor Training
Jan 21 – July 16

  • Updated & Robust, 180 hours of In-Depth Training

  • Self-Paced Curriculum & Live Classes

  • Weekly Mentoring

  • Teaching Practicum in community and online

  • Traditional Meditation + Buddhist Philosophy + Buddhist Ethics

  • For Teachers Facing A Diverse Tumultuous World


Focused Study for Teachers and Leaders

Who are these class for?

  • MIT Students & BSI Certified Meditation Instructors

  • Open to Snow Lion and All-Access-Pass members

  • Open to Public & Meditation Instructors from all lineages $150/course

Teaching Trauma Informed Meditation
Mar 6 – 22

  • Live with PKR – Wed Mar 22, 5pm PT / 8pm ET

  • Self-paced Videos (3 hours) and Book reading (8.5 hours)

  • Focus Groups – Mondays at 1pm PT/ 4pm ET March

Healthy Boundaries for Teachers
Mar 25 – Apr 24

  • Live with PKR – Sat Mar 25th, 10am-12pm PT / 12-2pm ET

  • Self-paced Videos (2.5 hours) and Book reading (8 hours)

  • Focus Groups – Mondays at 1pm PT / 4pm ET in April

Teaching in a Multicultural World
May 24 – Jun 26

  • Live with PKR – Wed May 24, 5pm PT / 8pm ET

  • Book reading (5.5 hours)

  • Focus Groups – Mondays at 1pm PT / 4pm ET in June

Everything!

Are you a serious student who wants to do all these things?

Mark off your calendar for programs on Mondays & Wednesdays and the first weekend of every month (except on months where the first weekends are eclipses or holidays!)

The All Access Pass gives you access to all the online courses and retreats. All Access Pass offers you tuition free courses, retreats and trainings a savings of over $2500!
Become a Member


Happy Saga Dawa!

Upcoming Events

Bardo Teachings – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro, Father Francis Tiso, Lama Lhanang Rinpoche, Chagdud Khadro, Shugen Roshi, Julie Rogers, Jim Tucker, M.D., Koshin Paley Ellison and Dr. William McGrath

Open Dates
Teachings on Death and Dying Facing realities of dying, death, and grief are central to our human experience. This program offers practical instructions for helping others in the process of dying and an overview of essential knowledge on death, bardo, and rebirth. This includes self-paced lectures on dying, loss, grief, and illness from Lamas and scholars of Buddhist Studies.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhism & Sexuality – Self Paced Course

With Dr. Nicole Willock, Julie Regan, Ph.D., Pema Khandro, Lama Willa Miller, Amy Langenberg , Dr. Ann Gleig, Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, Lama Rod Owens, Dr. Jim Hopper, Dr. Elizabeth Call and Damchö Diana Finnegan

Open Dates
Join Pema Khandro and a group of esteemed Buddhist Studies scholars for an exploration of the history of Buddhist Sexualities from celibacy, to sacred sexuality in Buddhist Tantra and a simple approach to embodied integration with nature in Dzogchen.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhist Ethics – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This course on Buddhist Ethics goes through the Five Buddhist Precepts. The five precepts form the basis of a Buddhist way of life and the vows that Buddhists Seek to follow. The Five Precepts are a discipline of freedom, honor, and precision that cover the potent themes of life from the extraordinary perspective of non-duality.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Women in Tantric Buddhism – Self Paced Course

With Holly Gayley, Judith Simmer-Brown, Sarah Jacoby, Amy Langenberg , Damchö Diana Finnegan, Venerable Karma Lekshe Tsomo and Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This is the missing history of women in Tantric Buddhism. This course addresses the fascinating story of nuns, mothers, teachers, consorts, prophets, and disciples. Taught by scholar-practitioners whose groundbreaking research on women and Buddhism has changed the way we think of Buddhist history. This course will address the history of women in Buddhism, the history of yoginis and dakinis in India and Tibet, the stories of important Buddhist women, Buddhist philosophy on gender, sex, and sexuality, and the role of the consort in historical Tibet, and contemporary manifestations and so much more. Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for…
Register Now

Chakrasamvara Empowerment and Teachings

With Drupon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche and Pema Khandro

April 25 - 27, 2025
The Chakramsamvara meditation focuses on the non-dual union of the great hero and heroine, Chakrasamvara and Vajrayogini (as Vajravarahi). They are the two key deities of esoteric Buddhist meditation. This is the practice that raises the innate wisdom to persevere, even in the face of tremendous difficulties. As the great hero, Chakrasamvara calls forward innate stability and skill. As the wheel of great bliss, Chakrasamvara calls forward the joy of non-dual union of male and female energies within being.
Register now

by

ONLINE    |    CALENDAR   |   GIVE 

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Buddha’s Anniversary Celebration this Tuesday!

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Saga Dawa is the most auspicious day of the Tibetan Buddhist Calendar and a day celebrated by Buddhists all around the world. It is the anniversary of the Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and the day he passed away into parinirvana. The effects of actions on this day are said to be multiplied by ten million times because of the spiritual power of this full moon on the fourth month. 

Join us for a celebration of prayers and aspirations on this auspicious occasion.

For Saga Dawa, Khenpo Gawang will teach the Sadhana of Sakyamuni Buddha and give the initiation for the practice and for the mantra. This will be a reading transmission, or rlung.

Join Khenpo Gawang, Pema Khandro, friends and members  for this joyous celebration of the Buddha’s Anniversary.

Learn More

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Upcoming Discussion

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A dialogue between two Buddhist teachers and scholars, making sense of Buddhism, lineage, transmission and devotion in light of abuse revelations in the #metoo movement. This conversation focuses on how these issues have shaped our approaches to dharma practice and teaching. This is not proscriptive advice, but instead a conversation and reflection on how our practice and teaching approaches have changed and will continue to change with great concern for all survivors and for the future of women in Buddhism.
 
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Our Mid-July Retreat

tromaretreat

With Pema Khandro

Friday, July 15th – Sunday, July 17th 2022
9am – 12pm PST | 12pm – 3pm EST

Compassion has many forms, it can be gentle and warm, but it can also be decisive and fierce. In Vajrayana, the fierce compassion is that which is self-less, beyond the duality of self/other, in the state of great clarity and care for every single being and the entire situation.
 
The retreat focuses on the fierce compassion meditation of Troma Nagmo, the black wrathful lady, supreme dakini who escorts beings to the state beyond fear and fierce form of Vajrayogini, The teachings and practices will focus on the Troma cycle in the Rinchen Trengwa Three Dakini Chod and Troma Nagmo deity yoga. This retreat is taught by Lama Pema Khandro in an online format to support retreat practice at home.
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Pema Khandro in Lion’s Roar

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By Pema Khandro Rinpoche | January 2, 2022
 
“There are times like these in our lives—such as facing death or even giving birth—when we are no longer able to manage our outer image, no longer able to suspend ourselves in pursuit of the ideal self. It’s just how it is—we’re only human beings, and in these times of crisis we just don’t have the energy to hold it all together. When things fall apart, we can only be as we are. Pretense and striving fall away, and life becomes starkly simple.”

Calendar At A GlanceIMG_8844

 

RECURRING PROGRAMS

Every Day – Daily Meditation with Our New Teachers


4th Weds – Excellent Path with Pema Khandro

JUNE

June 14 – Saga Dawa

June 21 -Women in Tantric Buddhism Discussion Group

July 23 – Teaching Meditation in a Multicultural World

July 30 – Meditation Instructor Training Graduation
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How to Hold Great Suffering

Upcoming Events

Bardo Teachings – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro, Father Francis Tiso, Lama Lhanang Rinpoche, Chagdud Khadro, Shugen Roshi, Julie Rogers, Jim Tucker, M.D., Koshin Paley Ellison and Dr. William McGrath

Open Dates
Teachings on Death and Dying Facing realities of dying, death, and grief are central to our human experience. This program offers practical instructions for helping others in the process of dying and an overview of essential knowledge on death, bardo, and rebirth. This includes self-paced lectures on dying, loss, grief, and illness from Lamas and scholars of Buddhist Studies.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhism & Sexuality – Self Paced Course

With Dr. Nicole Willock, Julie Regan, Ph.D., Pema Khandro, Lama Willa Miller, Amy Langenberg , Dr. Ann Gleig, Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, Lama Rod Owens, Dr. Jim Hopper, Dr. Elizabeth Call and Damchö Diana Finnegan

Open Dates
Join Pema Khandro and a group of esteemed Buddhist Studies scholars for an exploration of the history of Buddhist Sexualities from celibacy, to sacred sexuality in Buddhist Tantra and a simple approach to embodied integration with nature in Dzogchen.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhist Ethics – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This course on Buddhist Ethics goes through the Five Buddhist Precepts. The five precepts form the basis of a Buddhist way of life and the vows that Buddhists Seek to follow. The Five Precepts are a discipline of freedom, honor, and precision that cover the potent themes of life from the extraordinary perspective of non-duality.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Women in Tantric Buddhism – Self Paced Course

With Holly Gayley, Judith Simmer-Brown, Sarah Jacoby, Amy Langenberg , Damchö Diana Finnegan, Venerable Karma Lekshe Tsomo and Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This is the missing history of women in Tantric Buddhism. This course addresses the fascinating story of nuns, mothers, teachers, consorts, prophets, and disciples. Taught by scholar-practitioners whose groundbreaking research on women and Buddhism has changed the way we think of Buddhist history. This course will address the history of women in Buddhism, the history of yoginis and dakinis in India and Tibet, the stories of important Buddhist women, Buddhist philosophy on gender, sex, and sexuality, and the role of the consort in historical Tibet, and contemporary manifestations and so much more. Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for…
Register Now

Chakrasamvara Empowerment and Teachings

With Drupon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche and Pema Khandro

April 25 - 27, 2025
The Chakramsamvara meditation focuses on the non-dual union of the great hero and heroine, Chakrasamvara and Vajrayogini (as Vajravarahi). They are the two key deities of esoteric Buddhist meditation. This is the practice that raises the innate wisdom to persevere, even in the face of tremendous difficulties. As the great hero, Chakrasamvara calls forward innate stability and skill. As the wheel of great bliss, Chakrasamvara calls forward the joy of non-dual union of male and female energies within being.
Register now

by

ONLINE   |   CALENDAR   |   GIVE
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HOW TO HOLD GREAT SUFFERING

PemaKhandro9_ngakpa.org

With all the news and images of what is happening in Ukraine and around the world, there is a pressing need to find a way to reckon with suffering.

For Buddhists it is our goal to be completely present with the reality of suffering. Alternatively, we can ignore, avoid and deny suffering, or pretend it doesn’t exist but that is said to be the realm of the gods. Or sometimes it is a trauma response when we can’t handle dealing with things and shut down. Sadly, denial is ultimately only ever a temporary response. But if we don’t ignore it – there is this enormous demand – cognitively, emotionally, physically, socially, to make sense of what we see, to find some way to keep breathing with it, to keep showing up to a reality that includes this great suffering.

In Buddhism we can turn towards it and be with suffering – walking with suffering. As Thich Nhat Hahn said, “Buddhism teaches us not to run away from suffering, You have to confront suffering. You have to look deeply into the nature of suffering in order to recognize its cause, the making of the suffering.” This is also a somatic experience- it can be brutal at times to feel it, to turn towards it. We need support and really strong methods to be able to do this, ways to calm down, metabolize and integrate with it.

We can also let suffering change us, rather than live in a state of suspension waiting for things to go back to how it was. Experiencing suffering or witnessing someone else’s suffering can be overwhelming and it is natural to want to grab on to how things were. But we can also step into, take it in and as Joan Halifax says, “let it ourselves be worked by it.” The feelings of powerlessness, the rage, the not knowing, the sorrow, the longing, we can turn towards it and breathe into it, bringing compassion to bear on our own experience as we soften and let suffering change us.

We can allow suffering to reshape how we see ourselves and our world. What I have appreciated about crisis in my own life is that it brings with it a dismantling of lesser priorities and a deeper relationship with the contours of reality as it is. Suffering reveals what really matters. Suffering can be a very sobering experience. If we let ourselves be changed by it, we can live a more authentic life.

We can also meet suffering with compassion, without which it can be overwhelming. There is no enduring resilience without compassion – the wish for ourselves and others to be free from suffering. It is something to be thinking about when we see horrific images or think of terrible events to also wish for the relief from suffering, and envision that – to pray, to visualize in the manner of tonglen. This compassion is the basis for us take appropriate action wherever we can, but it is also a way to relate to the things we are otherwise powerless to change.

May all beings be free from suffering and the cause of suffering.

My very best to you always,

 

 

 

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RestingInPoetry

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A one day meditation retreat online devoted to gentle quiet, deep rest and introspection.

Join Pema Khandro and the Buddhist Studies Institute for a day of guided meditations, restorative yoga, chanting the White Tara meditation and contemplating dharma poetry. Drawing on the great poets of Buddhism, Pema Khandro will teach on Longchenpa’s instructions for Finding Comfort and Ease in the nature of mind.

Restorative Yoga practices led by BSI faculty will focus on establish deep states of rest and ease in the body.

White Tara Meditation led by the Group Leaders will raise the wisdom energy of White Tara who rescues beings from calamities, disasters and wars.

Community Tea time will offer an opportunity for dharma conversation with like minded dharma friends. Participants are encouraged to bring their favorite dharma poem to share in small groups.

This one day retreat will offer an opportunity for quiet, meditation, contemplation and conversation. It is open to participation by guests with all levels of experience, new and long time practitioners alike.

Learn More

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HELP US CHANGE HOW MEDITATION IS TAUGHT

MITRedBannerGroup 2

Meditation Instructor Training 2022

With Pema Khandro, Aruna Rig’dzen, & Dr. Satya

150 Hour Certification Training

Begins March 26, 2022

Learn how to support others in finding the freedom that comes from being able to control one’s own mind.

As people all over the world turn to Buddhist meditation as a source of wisdom, we recognize the need for meditation teachers that are trained to meet the challenges of the future while remaining deeply connected to the robust philosophy, ethics, and practices of Tibetan Buddhism.

Meditation Instructor Training focuses on five forms of meditation, known as calm abiding meditation – Zhine, in Tibetan. The goal is resting in calm space of presence, to train to rest in the wakeful present moment, which is the only constant thing in life. Circumstances and bodies change, everything changes, but the capacity for wakeful presence remains. This is where we can find home, rest, and know exactly what we are.

Learn More About The Training

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SELF-PACED COURSES ThreeChannels

Tibetan Dream Yoga

with Pema Khandro

Self-Paced Course Online

Open Teaching – No Prerequisites

This Course focuses on the Tibetan Buddhist methods for navigating Dream, Waking Life, and Sleep.

Considered the practice most similar to our experience at death, Dream Yoga is about navigating in the real and unreal aspects of our experience without falling asleep to awareness. It is a practice of recognizing the nature of our minds.

Waking, dreaming, and deep sleep present transformations of perception and they highlight the continuity and discontinuity of experience. Through recognizing the opportunities for meditative awareness in these states, we can understand our own minds and face all our experiences with greater presence. A teaching based on the Six Yogas of Naropa – which is a system of harnessing ordinary experience for awakening.

Register Now

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PEMA KHANDRO IN LION’S ROAR

AdobeStock_264773524

by Pema Khandro   | January 2, 2022
 
“It’s when we lose the illusion of control – when we’re most vulnerable and exposed – that we can discover the creative potential of our lives.” 

Read Now

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UPCOMING CALENDAR AT A GLANCE

bodhnath-stupa

Monthly Programs at 6pm PT / 9pm ET

 
March
 
Mar 12 – Meditation Instructor Training Graduation
 
Mar 19 – Resting in Dharma Poetry – 1 Day Retreat with Pema Khandro
 

Mar 28 – Dakini Day Chod w/Pema Khandro
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Happy Losar! Tibetan New Year

Upcoming Events

Bardo Teachings – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro, Father Francis Tiso, Lama Lhanang Rinpoche, Chagdud Khadro, Shugen Roshi, Julie Rogers, Jim Tucker, M.D., Koshin Paley Ellison and Dr. William McGrath

Open Dates
Teachings on Death and Dying Facing realities of dying, death, and grief are central to our human experience. This program offers practical instructions for helping others in the process of dying and an overview of essential knowledge on death, bardo, and rebirth. This includes self-paced lectures on dying, loss, grief, and illness from Lamas and scholars of Buddhist Studies.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhism & Sexuality – Self Paced Course

With Dr. Nicole Willock, Julie Regan, Ph.D., Pema Khandro, Lama Willa Miller, Amy Langenberg , Dr. Ann Gleig, Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, Lama Rod Owens, Dr. Jim Hopper, Dr. Elizabeth Call and Damchö Diana Finnegan

Open Dates
Join Pema Khandro and a group of esteemed Buddhist Studies scholars for an exploration of the history of Buddhist Sexualities from celibacy, to sacred sexuality in Buddhist Tantra and a simple approach to embodied integration with nature in Dzogchen.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhist Ethics – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This course on Buddhist Ethics goes through the Five Buddhist Precepts. The five precepts form the basis of a Buddhist way of life and the vows that Buddhists Seek to follow. The Five Precepts are a discipline of freedom, honor, and precision that cover the potent themes of life from the extraordinary perspective of non-duality.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Women in Tantric Buddhism – Self Paced Course

With Holly Gayley, Judith Simmer-Brown, Sarah Jacoby, Amy Langenberg , Damchö Diana Finnegan, Venerable Karma Lekshe Tsomo and Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This is the missing history of women in Tantric Buddhism. This course addresses the fascinating story of nuns, mothers, teachers, consorts, prophets, and disciples. Taught by scholar-practitioners whose groundbreaking research on women and Buddhism has changed the way we think of Buddhist history. This course will address the history of women in Buddhism, the history of yoginis and dakinis in India and Tibet, the stories of important Buddhist women, Buddhist philosophy on gender, sex, and sexuality, and the role of the consort in historical Tibet, and contemporary manifestations and so much more. Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for…
Register Now

Chakrasamvara Empowerment and Teachings

With Drupon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche and Pema Khandro

April 25 - 27, 2025
The Chakramsamvara meditation focuses on the non-dual union of the great hero and heroine, Chakrasamvara and Vajrayogini (as Vajravarahi). They are the two key deities of esoteric Buddhist meditation. This is the practice that raises the innate wisdom to persevere, even in the face of tremendous difficulties. As the great hero, Chakrasamvara calls forward innate stability and skill. As the wheel of great bliss, Chakrasamvara calls forward the joy of non-dual union of male and female energies within being.
Register now

by

ONLINE   |   CALENDAR   |   GIVE
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Celebrate the Tibetan New Year Together!

The Year of the Water Tiger

Losar Celebration

with Pema Khandro and Wonderful Sangha and Friends

Friday – March 4

San Francisco 5:30-7pm  

New York 8:30-10pm 

London – March 5 – 1:30am 

Australia – March 5 – 12:30pm

Nepal – March 5 – 7:15am

Timezone Converter:
https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html

All members are welcomed to join our annual Tibetan New Year Celebration – Online!

There is so much to look forward to:

  • The Member of the year celebration. 
  • Celebration of Iron Mice who finished Ngondro last year! 
  • Celebration of those who finished 108 Chod!
  • Conversations about what you learned from the pandemic.
  • Celebration of accomplishments of the sangha members.
  • Buddhist jokes!
  • And so much more!!

Iron Mice, please wear black!

Water Tigers, please wear blue! 

Members at large, please where maroon or red!

If you can dress festively, please do so!

If you forget and wear random clothing, no problem!

Registration for the annual Losar celebration is limited to members only, but it is open to all members, new and long time members. This is a time for the members from all the various programs to reunite and celebrate together. To find out more about member levels and benefits, or to become a member, visit Become a Member

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Upcoming Calendar at a Glance

Boudha_Stupa_IMG_7804_2018_42

Monthly Programs at 6pm PT / 9pm ET

Every Day – Daily Meditation with Our New Teachers!

Every Monday – Ngondro Practice with Tsalgyur

1st & 2nd Weds – Vajrayana Training with Pema Khandro

3rd Weds – Ngakpa Training

4th Weds – Excellent Path

March 

 
Mar 12 – Meditation Instructor Training Graduation
 
 

Mar 28 – Dakini Day Chod w/Pema Khandro
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Donate_5 logos

A Letter from Pema Khandro

Upcoming Events

Bardo Teachings – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro, Father Francis Tiso, Lama Lhanang Rinpoche, Chagdud Khadro, Shugen Roshi, Julie Rogers, Jim Tucker, M.D., Koshin Paley Ellison and Dr. William McGrath

Open Dates
Teachings on Death and Dying Facing realities of dying, death, and grief are central to our human experience. This program offers practical instructions for helping others in the process of dying and an overview of essential knowledge on death, bardo, and rebirth. This includes self-paced lectures on dying, loss, grief, and illness from Lamas and scholars of Buddhist Studies.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhism & Sexuality – Self Paced Course

With Dr. Nicole Willock, Julie Regan, Ph.D., Pema Khandro, Lama Willa Miller, Amy Langenberg , Dr. Ann Gleig, Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, Lama Rod Owens, Dr. Jim Hopper, Dr. Elizabeth Call and Damchö Diana Finnegan

Open Dates
Join Pema Khandro and a group of esteemed Buddhist Studies scholars for an exploration of the history of Buddhist Sexualities from celibacy, to sacred sexuality in Buddhist Tantra and a simple approach to embodied integration with nature in Dzogchen.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhist Ethics – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This course on Buddhist Ethics goes through the Five Buddhist Precepts. The five precepts form the basis of a Buddhist way of life and the vows that Buddhists Seek to follow. The Five Precepts are a discipline of freedom, honor, and precision that cover the potent themes of life from the extraordinary perspective of non-duality.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Women in Tantric Buddhism – Self Paced Course

With Holly Gayley, Judith Simmer-Brown, Sarah Jacoby, Amy Langenberg , Damchö Diana Finnegan, Venerable Karma Lekshe Tsomo and Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This is the missing history of women in Tantric Buddhism. This course addresses the fascinating story of nuns, mothers, teachers, consorts, prophets, and disciples. Taught by scholar-practitioners whose groundbreaking research on women and Buddhism has changed the way we think of Buddhist history. This course will address the history of women in Buddhism, the history of yoginis and dakinis in India and Tibet, the stories of important Buddhist women, Buddhist philosophy on gender, sex, and sexuality, and the role of the consort in historical Tibet, and contemporary manifestations and so much more. Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for…
Register Now

Chakrasamvara Empowerment and Teachings

With Drupon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche and Pema Khandro

April 25 - 27, 2025
The Chakramsamvara meditation focuses on the non-dual union of the great hero and heroine, Chakrasamvara and Vajrayogini (as Vajravarahi). They are the two key deities of esoteric Buddhist meditation. This is the practice that raises the innate wisdom to persevere, even in the face of tremendous difficulties. As the great hero, Chakrasamvara calls forward innate stability and skill. As the wheel of great bliss, Chakrasamvara calls forward the joy of non-dual union of male and female energies within being.
Register now

by

ONLINE   |   CALENDAR   |   GIVE

___________________________________________________

A LETTER FROM PEMA KHANDRO – AFTER MINDFULNESS

PemaKhandro 2

Dear Friends,

It has been a long time since the beginning of the mindfulness movement began. It was catalyzed by groundbreaking early pioneers. For example, John Kabat-Zinn’s Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction programs in the 70’s and his inspiring book, Full Catastrophe Living, which was published in 1990. So much has changed since then. This was before the internet. It was before the internet became integrated with the fabric of our lives. This was before we were talking about the impacts of orientalism and colonialism in the appropriation of Buddhist traditions. This was before we were collectively thinking through the lens of trauma and addressing the question of why it is that we don’t always feel better when we meditate. This was before we were talking about power structures in teacher-student ethics. This was before the #metoo movement in Buddhism and before the collective awakening to racial trauma. This was before we had collectively woken up to the need for racial healing and diversity skills in the meditation class. These are defining concerns that change what the meditation teacher of the future is. It is why I developed the Meditation Instructor Training, with a deep wish to empower meditation teachers to meet the urgent and pressing contexts of our time.

Some things do remain the same since the beginning of the mindfulness movement. The persistent suffering, the emotional dysregulation that dominates a life, and the sense of disembodiment and alienation that can overshadow a life. The power of meditation to stabilize and heal the body and mind is only more and more evident due to so much research. It is clear to me that, perhaps more than ever, there is a great need for meditation instructors who can serve as a soothing balm in these troubled times. But there are all these new questions that must be cared for in the training of new meditation instructors, or they will be ill equipped and underprepared for the great challenges that await.

I originally initiated the Meditation Instructor Training with the intention in mind that Buddhist philosophy and ethics should be kept intact with meditation. As a scholar of Buddhist philosophy, I have long been impressed at how often people who were exposed to mindfulness training also longed to experience the fuller context of Buddhist philosophy and ethics. The curiosity and appetite for that knowledge is unending and I reimagined the training of the meditation instructor to return to that source material. Going beyond the artificial and ethnocentric construct of a secular/religious binary, imperative questions about the context of meditation loom large for meditators. What is meditation for? What is mind? How do we work with emotions? How is our consciousness conditioned by our values and actions? What is the point of meditation? How do the obstacles to meditation relate to our identity, to our body and to our society?  These are just a few of the issues that Buddhist philosophy and ethics weigh in on and why I felt that they must be taught in tact with the meditation methods that were shaped by these very concerns.

When Satya and Aruna joined me as co-teachers of the Meditation Instructor Training, we developed the teaching into an online format to make it more accessible to people with full and demanding lives. I felt like we were standing together to face the challenge of nurturing and supporting the meditation instructors of the future. And that commitment has been expressed thoroughly in our new expanded training format.

Now as we are poised to begin our next cohort of training, I am also proud to celebrate that our training addresses those invisible yet overwhelming factors that sit alongside us on the meditation cushion. We are always doing meditation practice in the context of power, sexuality, race, trauma and technology. This is not just a training in techniques, but instead in the robust array of traditional Buddhist meditation practices in tact with philosophy and ethics along with a deep care for how meditation teaching and practice intersects with issues of power, sexuality, race, trauma and technology. We are training the meditation teachers of the future.

The new beginning of this program is good news in a time when it is so easy to be overwhelmed by all the stories of suffering and sorrow that appear in our news feeds every day. I draw encouragement and relief from this beautiful project of creating empowered meditation instructors. It gives me great relief to know that they will be leaders that bring compassion, care and wisdom to a world that so sorely needs it and to know that they will be prepared and ready to meet the turbulent times ahead.

With joy,

___________________________________________________

HELP US CHANGE HOW MEDITATION IS TAUGHT

MITRedBanner 2

Meditation Instructor Training 2022

With Pema Khandro, Aruna Rig’dzen, & Dr. Satya

150 Hour Certification Training

Begins March 26, 2022

Learn how to support others in finding the freedom that comes from being able to control one’s own mind.

As people all over the world turn to Buddhist meditation as a source of wisdom, we recognize the need for meditation teachers that are trained to meet the challenges of the future while remaining deeply connected to the robust philosophy, ethics, and practices of Tibetan Buddhism.

Meditation Instructor Training focuses on five forms of meditation, known as calm abiding meditation – Zhine, in Tibetan. The goal is resting in calm space of presence, to train to rest in the wakeful present moment, which is the only constant thing in life. Circumstances and bodies change, everything changes, but the capacity for wakeful presence remains. This is where we can find home, rest, and know exactly what we are.

Learn More About The Training

___________________________________________________

LOSAR CELEBRATION FOR MEMBERS THIS FRIDAY!

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Celebrate the Tibetan New Year Together!

Year of the Water Tiger

with Pema Khandro and Wonderful Sangha and Friends

 

Friday March 4

San Francisco 5:30-7pm  

New York 8:30-10pm 

London March 5 – 1:30am 

Australia March 5 – 12:30pm

Nepal March 5 – 7:15am

Timezone Converter:
https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html

All members are welcomed for our annual

Tibetan New Year Celebration – Online!

There is so much to look forward to:

  • The Member of the year celebration.
  • Celebration of Iron Mice who finished Ngondro last year!
  • Celebration of those who finished 108 Chod!
  • Conversations about what you learned from the pandemic.
  • Celebration of accomplishments of the sangha members.
  • Buddhist jokes!
  • And so much more!!

Iron Mice, please wear black!

Water Tigers, please wear blue!

Members at large, please wear maroon or red!

If you can dress festively, please do so!

If you forget and wear random clothing, no problem!

Registration for the annual Losar celebration is limited to members only, but it is open to all members, new and long-time members. This is a time for the members from all the various programs to reunite and celebrate together. To find out more about member levels and benefits, or to become a member, visit Become a Member.

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SELF-PACED COURSES 

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A Return to Sanity
Buddhist Ethics

with Pema Khandro

 

Self-Paced Course Online

Open Teaching – No Prerequisites

 
This course focuses on tantric interpretations of the Five Buddhist Precepts. The Five Precepts are a discipline of freedom, honor, openness and precision that cover the potent themes of life from the uncommon, extraordinary perspective of non-duality. 
 
Topics covered in this course include:
  • Buddhist theories about vegetarian lifestyle vs. meat-eating, 
  • Buddhist perspectives on alcohol and substance use 
  • Conscious use of sexual energy, Buddhist philosophy about desire
  • Handling resources, money and spirituality
  • Honesty, and the speech that takes us beyond confusion.
 
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PEMA KHANDRO IN LION’S ROAR

Lotus

by Pema Khandro   | August 11, 2020
 
“Throughout his profound spiritual awakening, the great Tibetan yogi Shabkar experienced immense loss resulting in grief marked by raw pain, a sense of disorientation, sadness, and tears. Witnessing how a Buddhist master mourns can shed some light on how we can navigate our own grief and demystify any fantasies we might have about a peace that negates sadness.

Read Now

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UPCOMING CALENDAR AT A GLANCE

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Monthly Programs at 6pm PT / 9pm ET

Every Day – Daily Meditation with Our New Teachers! 

 

March

Mar 12 – Meditation Instructor Training Graduation

Mar 19 – Resting in Dharma Poetry – 1 Day Retreat with Pema Khandro

Mar 26 – Next Meditation Instructor Training Begins

Mar 28 – Dakini Day Chod w/Pema Khandro

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Donate_5 logos

A Letter from Pema Khandro – How to Meditate in the Charnel Grounds

Upcoming Events

Bardo Teachings – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro, Father Francis Tiso, Lama Lhanang Rinpoche, Chagdud Khadro, Shugen Roshi, Julie Rogers, Jim Tucker, M.D., Koshin Paley Ellison and Dr. William McGrath

Open Dates
Teachings on Death and Dying Facing realities of dying, death, and grief are central to our human experience. This program offers practical instructions for helping others in the process of dying and an overview of essential knowledge on death, bardo, and rebirth. This includes self-paced lectures on dying, loss, grief, and illness from Lamas and scholars of Buddhist Studies.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhism & Sexuality – Self Paced Course

With Dr. Nicole Willock, Julie Regan, Ph.D., Pema Khandro, Lama Willa Miller, Amy Langenberg , Dr. Ann Gleig, Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, Lama Rod Owens, Dr. Jim Hopper, Dr. Elizabeth Call and Damchö Diana Finnegan

Open Dates
Join Pema Khandro and a group of esteemed Buddhist Studies scholars for an exploration of the history of Buddhist Sexualities from celibacy, to sacred sexuality in Buddhist Tantra and a simple approach to embodied integration with nature in Dzogchen.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhist Ethics – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This course on Buddhist Ethics goes through the Five Buddhist Precepts. The five precepts form the basis of a Buddhist way of life and the vows that Buddhists Seek to follow. The Five Precepts are a discipline of freedom, honor, and precision that cover the potent themes of life from the extraordinary perspective of non-duality.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Women in Tantric Buddhism – Self Paced Course

With Holly Gayley, Judith Simmer-Brown, Sarah Jacoby, Amy Langenberg , Damchö Diana Finnegan, Venerable Karma Lekshe Tsomo and Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This is the missing history of women in Tantric Buddhism. This course addresses the fascinating story of nuns, mothers, teachers, consorts, prophets, and disciples. Taught by scholar-practitioners whose groundbreaking research on women and Buddhism has changed the way we think of Buddhist history. This course will address the history of women in Buddhism, the history of yoginis and dakinis in India and Tibet, the stories of important Buddhist women, Buddhist philosophy on gender, sex, and sexuality, and the role of the consort in historical Tibet, and contemporary manifestations and so much more. Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for…
Register Now

Chakrasamvara Empowerment and Teachings

With Drupon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche and Pema Khandro

April 25 - 27, 2025
The Chakramsamvara meditation focuses on the non-dual union of the great hero and heroine, Chakrasamvara and Vajrayogini (as Vajravarahi). They are the two key deities of esoteric Buddhist meditation. This is the practice that raises the innate wisdom to persevere, even in the face of tremendous difficulties. As the great hero, Chakrasamvara calls forward innate stability and skill. As the wheel of great bliss, Chakrasamvara calls forward the joy of non-dual union of male and female energies within being.
Register now

by

   ONLINE   |   CALENDAR   |   GIVE
________________________________________________________________

A LETTER FROM PEMA KHANDRO – HOW TO MEDITATE IN THE CHARNEL GROUNDS

PemaKhandro11_ngakpa

Dear Friends,

One of the most striking images of Tibetan Buddhism is that of the charnel grounds. This is not the pure lands of Mahayana, ideal conditions for attaining enlightenment. But instead it is a notion of a place that is dangerous, uncertain and where the gritty truths of life cannot be denied. In Padmasambhava’s life story, he is kicked out of his home and goes to the place beyond the outskirts of town – he finds himself in a charnel ground and that is where he trains. Magically, he gets swallowed by a dakini, who turns him into a HUNG syllable. It’s a radical, strange and wonderful tale of being initiated and reborn in the charnel grounds, the very place that people fear to go.

Similarly, in Mandarava’s life story, she gets lost in the wilderness and Padmasambhava, speaking from his own experience, says to her, “a harsh place like this is an ideal place to train.” The meaning of the charnel grounds and the wilderness in these stories strikes to the heart of Vajrayana concerns – the ability to meet intense experiences and engage with them as the path – as the domain of liberation. The charnel grounds and the wilderness are symbols of the experiences we will meet in life that will exceed our reference points and demand an immediate response. The point of Vajrayana is to train in the methods necessary to be ready for such moments, not with armor, but with openheartedness and a poetry of being that works with situations.

When I am training meditation teachers over the last few years, I often think that I am training people not to be able to teach in the pure lands, but in the charnel grounds, sending them out to the wilderness, to be ready to go out into a time of tumult and uncertainty. They will come face to face with the serious mental health needs of the community. They will meet with internal and external forces of oppression. They will navigate minefields of power and the interrogations of power. I believe this is why it is so important to train in meditation instruction with the full array of Buddhist resources intact, no one should go into the charnel grounds unprepared.

As we turn towards our new MIT training that will begin March 26th, I feel optimistic and determined. We are preparing the meditation instructors who will be braving a complex world, showing up as forces for peace, as resources for sanity in the post-pandemic times. To be of service in such times is a beautiful calling, and I look forward to providing a wealth of Buddhist resources to help them.

My very best to you always,

________________________________________________________________________

DAKINI DAY CHOD RETURNS SAT THE 26TH!

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Letting Go of Illusions

Dakini Day Chod 

with Pema Khandro

Feb 26

1pm PT | 4pm ET

Join us on Saturday for meditation and
instructions on compassionate letting go
through Tibetan Chod meditation.

Chod is a meditation method through meeting fear and affliction with compassion. Rather than renounce these mind states, in Chod, they are allowed to transform and be reintegrated as keys to innate wisdom. Chod is an intermediate to advanced level Tibetan meditation practice. It involves, chanting, meditation, rehearsing dying and working directly with emotions and experiences. All are welcome. By Donation. This class is led by Pema Khandro, Tibetan Buddhist teacher and scholar.

Dakini Day Chod returns. This class will focus on the Laughter of the Dakinis, the Chod from Longchen Nyingthig.


Learn More about Dakini Day Chod

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THE WORLD NEEDS MEDITATION TEACHERS MORE THAN EVER

PemaKhandro_Ngakpa.org_mantras

Meditation Instructor Training 2022

With Pema Khandro, Aruna Rig’dzen, & Dr. Satya

150 Hour Certification Training

Begins March 26, 2022

Learn how to support others in finding the freedom that comes from being able to control one’s own mind.

As people all over the world turn to Buddhist meditation as a source of wisdom, we recognize the need for meditation teachers that are trained to meet the challenges of the future while remaining deeply connected to the robust philosophy, ethics, and practices of Tibetan Buddhism.

Meditation Instructor Training focuses on five forms of meditation, known as calm abiding meditation – Zhine, in Tibetan. The goal is resting in calm space of presence, to train to rest in the wakeful present moment, which is the only constant thing in life. Circumstances and bodies change, everything changes, but the capacity for wakeful presence remains. This is where we can find home, rest, and know exactly what we are.

Learn More

_____________________________________________________________

PEMA KHANDRO’S NEW ARTICLE IN LION’S ROAR

Buddha under Tree

By Pema Khandro Rinpoche | February 14, 2022
“When our love is tired or has hit its limits, Buddhism suggests we open our hearts further and tap into a more expansive love. This opening is the first step toward awakening our natural heroism known as the bodhisattva’s love. We can open up to greater love in moments of sorrow because our vulnerability and our compassion are intertwined.”

Read Now

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LOSAR CELEBRATION FOR MEMBERS

Celebrate Losar – Tibetan New Year!

Year of the Water Tiger

with Pema Khandro and Wonderful Sangha and Friends

Friday March 4

San Francisco 5:30-7pm  

New York 8:30-10pm 

London March 5 – 1:30am 

Australia March 5 – 12:30pm

Nepal March 5 – 7:15am

Timezone Converter:
https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html

 

All members are welcomed for our annual

Tibetan New Year Celebration – Online!

There is so much to look forward to:

  • The Member of the year celebration.
  • Celebration of Iron Mice who finished Ngondro last year!
  • Celebration of those who finished 108 Chod!
  • Conversations about what you learned from the pandemic.
  • Celebration of accomplishments of the sangha members.
  • Buddhist jokes!
  • And so much more!!

Iron Mice, please wear black!

Water Tigers, please wear blue!

Members at large, please wear maroon or red!

If you can dress festively, please do so!

If you forget and wear random clothing, no problem!

Registration for the annual Losar celebration is limited to members only, but it is open to all members, new and long-time members. This is a time for the members from all the various programs to reunite and celebrate together. To find out more about member levels and benefits, or to become a member, visit Become a Member.

_____________________________________________________________

UPCOMING EVENTS & OTHER NEWS

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Monthly Programs at 6pm PT / 9pm ET

Every Day – Daily Meditation with Our New Teachers!

Every Monday – Ngondro Practice with Tsalgyur  

1st & 2nd Weds –Vajrayana Training with Pema Khandro

3rd Weds – Ngakpa Training (has pre-requisites)

4th Weds – Excellent Path – Free 30 Min Monthly Teaching with Pema Khandro

February

Feb 21 – Ngondro: Refuge & Bodhichitta Live Class w/Pema Khandro

Feb 19 & 26 – Meditation Instructor Training Final Practicum with Aruna Rigdzin & Dr. Satya

Feb 26 – Dakini Day Chod w/Pema Khandro

March 

Mar 4 – Losar Celebration for Members

Mar 12 – Meditation Instructor Training Graduation

Mar 19 – Resting in Dharma Poetry – 1 Day Retreat with Pema Khandro

Mar 26 – Next Meditation Instructor Training Begins

Mar 28 – Dakini Day Chod w/Pema Khandro

As more details roll out for our Upcoming Events, please visit the Event List Here.

_____________________________________________________________

SELF-PACED COURSES

Beautiful painting on ceiling, inside wall of Chain Bridge, Paro

Sutra, Tantra, and Dzogchen

with Pema Khandro

Learn at Your Own Pace
Includes 5 video/audio recordings and class slides.

Does the study of Buddhism sometimes leave you overwhelmed with questions and contradictions? What is emptiness really? What is enlightenment? Is the goal of the path to transcend or show up? Why are there sometimes contradicting messages in different Buddhist books? What is Buddhist Tantra and what is its relationship to Dzogchen?

This course investigates the major principles of Buddhist Philosophy from the perspective of Tibetan Buddhism’s great perfection teachings (Tib. rdzogs chen). In order to promote perception of oneself and reality with greater depth and perspective, it begins with an exploration of the Buddhist philosophy of personhood as a doorway to grappling with questions of ultimate reality. The classes focus on:

  • emptiness
  • the five Skandhas
  • the five elements
  • Prajnaparamita
  • the two truths and the unity of the two truths
  • prasangika madhyamaka
  • yogacara madhyamaka
  • the history of development of tathagatagarbha theory
  • Dzogchen Buddha-nature teachings.

Register Now

_____________________________________________________________

Donate_5 logos

A LETTER FROM PEMA KHANDRO – SILENCE AS A BATTLEGROUND

Upcoming Events

Bardo Teachings – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro, Father Francis Tiso, Lama Lhanang Rinpoche, Chagdud Khadro, Shugen Roshi, Julie Rogers, Jim Tucker, M.D., Koshin Paley Ellison and Dr. William McGrath

Open Dates
Teachings on Death and Dying Facing realities of dying, death, and grief are central to our human experience. This program offers practical instructions for helping others in the process of dying and an overview of essential knowledge on death, bardo, and rebirth. This includes self-paced lectures on dying, loss, grief, and illness from Lamas and scholars of Buddhist Studies.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhism & Sexuality – Self Paced Course

With Dr. Nicole Willock, Julie Regan, Ph.D., Pema Khandro, Lama Willa Miller, Amy Langenberg , Dr. Ann Gleig, Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, Lama Rod Owens, Dr. Jim Hopper, Dr. Elizabeth Call and Damchö Diana Finnegan

Open Dates
Join Pema Khandro and a group of esteemed Buddhist Studies scholars for an exploration of the history of Buddhist Sexualities from celibacy, to sacred sexuality in Buddhist Tantra and a simple approach to embodied integration with nature in Dzogchen.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Buddhist Ethics – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This course on Buddhist Ethics goes through the Five Buddhist Precepts. The five precepts form the basis of a Buddhist way of life and the vows that Buddhists Seek to follow. The Five Precepts are a discipline of freedom, honor, and precision that cover the potent themes of life from the extraordinary perspective of non-duality.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!
Register Now

Women in Tantric Buddhism – Self Paced Course

With Holly Gayley, Judith Simmer-Brown, Sarah Jacoby, Amy Langenberg , Damchö Diana Finnegan, Venerable Karma Lekshe Tsomo and Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This is the missing history of women in Tantric Buddhism. This course addresses the fascinating story of nuns, mothers, teachers, consorts, prophets, and disciples. Taught by scholar-practitioners whose groundbreaking research on women and Buddhism has changed the way we think of Buddhist history. This course will address the history of women in Buddhism, the history of yoginis and dakinis in India and Tibet, the stories of important Buddhist women, Buddhist philosophy on gender, sex, and sexuality, and the role of the consort in historical Tibet, and contemporary manifestations and so much more. Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for…
Register Now

Chakrasamvara Empowerment and Teachings

With Drupon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche and Pema Khandro

April 25 - 27, 2025
The Chakramsamvara meditation focuses on the non-dual union of the great hero and heroine, Chakrasamvara and Vajrayogini (as Vajravarahi). They are the two key deities of esoteric Buddhist meditation. This is the practice that raises the innate wisdom to persevere, even in the face of tremendous difficulties. As the great hero, Chakrasamvara calls forward innate stability and skill. As the wheel of great bliss, Chakrasamvara calls forward the joy of non-dual union of male and female energies within being.
Register now

by

ONLINE   |   CALENDAR   |   GIVE _______________________________________________________________________

A LETTER FROM PEMA KHANDRO – SILENCE AS A BATTLEGROUND

Dear Friends,

In our current ngondro group, the Water Tigers, we are meditating on the purification of speech and part of the power of speech is also the power of silence, right silence. It reminds me of the debates I have had over the last few years about the proper role of silence in times of war, injustice and oppression. There are my friends who say, “if you aren’t mad then you are enabling,” (but what about grief!! Anger is not the only right response!) and that stunning saying “silence is violence.” That last one really strikes me because silence can be so many things.

For the brave voices of the #metoo movement, breaking the silence healed, transformed and protected. There are times when silence is understandable and necessary.  It can be a trauma response – and in that case, it is ok to be silent and care for your mental health. Silence can also reinforce trauma too, prolonging that sense of being haunted by unprocessed material. Something I learned as a person of color is that silence can also be a way of getting to safety.  There are times when silence is necessary in order to pick one’s battles and, once again, take care of one’s mental health or the safety of one’s friends.

Silence can be a posture of the deep listening that is needed for genuine transformation. Without that silence there may only be aggression and escalation. Silence can be the silent meditation that we so desperately need in order to be sane and clear through tough times.

And, indeed, silence can enable violence as well. It can be a matter of privilege and denial that allows oppression and violence to continue to take place. Thus, it seems that silence arises in so many ways.

One of the most powerful things I have seen about silence is when someone is healing from past trauma and learns, for the first time, that they can be safe in a group. There is some somatic knowing that awakens or is restored, the realization that it is safe to be calm together with others. Psychologically speaking,  it is a profound experience that involves attachment and attunement, where one can get in sync with one’s environment and people around them, self-regulating but at the same time, co-regulating together. This is one thing that is so powerful about group meditation practice. Healing happens so quietly, in simple silence, with no one naming it or orchestrating it. I often think about that before teaching meditation, this may be the only time someone here has ever been peaceful and safe in a group.

So for this reason, and so many others, I still believe in the power of silence. And, of course, I know that my friends do too. It is just hard to make a one-size fits all slogan that works as a response to dangerous times, hard to find a slogan that covers it all, is fair to the situation and accommodates the range of possible appropriate responses to difficult situations. They were talking about one kind of silence, a silence that enables violence and oppression to continue. I am also talking about other kinds, trauma, meditation, healing, transmission. It is hard to say in a short slogan that we need silence and talking, all at the right times. Maybe we could say something more rigorous, like “Learn how to use silence properly,”  or “Silence, can be dangerous or liberating, healing or harming.” And here we see that in these statements about silence, we all are agreeing to an implicit acknowledgement that silence, in its vast openness, and dare I say, emptiness, is also interwoven with ethics, morality, identity, individual and society.

Silence is a serious thing indeed, one that, from the Tibetan Buddhist point of view, takes serious training to learn how to skillfully engage with.

My very best to you always,

____________________________________________________________________________

Join Us In Changing How Meditation Is Taught

Meditation-300x188

 
150 Hour Certification Training
Begins March 26, 2022

As people all over the world turn to Buddhist meditation as a source of wisdom, we recognize the need for  meditation teachers that are trained to meet the challenges of the future while remaining deeply connected to the robust philosophy, ethics, and culture of Tibetan Buddhism.  The world needs meditation teachers that are trained in understanding how traditional practice intersects with issues of power, sexuality, race, trauma and technology.  Deepen into the equanimity, calm, peace, inner strength, and resilience found in meditation through the generous act of learning to be a meditation teacher.

Learn More About The Training

____________________________________________________________________________

Dakini Day Chod

Pema Khandro Group Chod At Dakini Mountain

Letting Go of Illusions

Dakini Day Chod with Pema Khandro

Saturday Feb 26 – 1pm PT | 4pm ET

Meditation and Instructions on compassionate letting go through Tibetan Chod meditation.

Chod is a meditation method through meeting fear and affliction with compassion. Rather than renounce these mind states, in Chod, they are allowed to transform and be reintegrated as keys to innate wisdom. Chod is an intermediate to advanced level Tibetan meditation practice. It involves, chanting, meditation, rehearsing dying and working directly with emotions and experiences. All are welcome. By Donation. This class is led by Pema Khandro, Tibetan Buddhist teacher and scholar.

Dakini Day Chod returns. This class will focus on the Laughter of the Dakinis, the Chod from Longchen Nyingthig.

Learn More about Dakini Day Chod

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EXCELLENT PATH

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Excellent Path

With Pema Khandro


Wednesday Feb 23

6pm PT | 9pm ET

Buddhist Philosophy Online ~ Open Teaching Webcast

30 minute teaching and short meditation with Pema Khandro

Free and open to the public.

This is a monthly class to support your study of Buddhist philosophy and meet the challenge of integrating Buddhism into a full, dynamic life. This class includes meditation instruction, Buddhist teachings, and remedies for navigating through challenges to practice.

Learn More

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Losar Celebration for Members!

Celebrate the Tibetan New Year!

The Year of the Water Tiger

Losar Celebration

with Pema Khandro and Wonderful Sangha and Friends

Friday March 4

San Francisco 5:30-7pm  

New York  8:30-10pm 

London March 5 – 1:30am 

Australia March 5 – 12:30pm

Nepal March 5 – 7:15am

Timezone Converter:
https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html

All members are welcomed to join our annual Tibetan New Year Celebration – Online!

There is so much to look forward to:

  • The Member of the year celebration. 
  • Celebration of Iron Mice who finished Ngondro last year! 
  • Celebration of those who finished 108 Chod!
  • Conversations about what you learned from the pandemic.
  • Celebration of accomplishments of the sangha members.
  • Buddhist jokes!
  • And so much more!!

Iron Mice, please wear black!

Water Tigers, please wear blue!

Members at large, please where maroon or red!

If you can dress festively, please do so!

If you forget and wear random clothing, no problem!

Registration for the annual Losar celebration is limited to members only, but it is open to all members, new and long time members. This is a time for the members from all the various programs to reunite and celebrate together. To find out more about member levels and benefits, or to become a member, visit Become a Member

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SELF-PACED COURSES

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Online Training with Pema Khandro –
 Learn at Your Own Pace
Includes 1 video recording

Considered the practice most similar to our experience at death, Dream Yoga is about navigating in the real and unreal aspects of our experience without falling asleep to awareness. It is a practice of recognizing the nature of our minds.

This Teaching focuses on the Tibetan Buddhist methods for navigating Dream, Waking Life, and Sleep.

Waking, dreaming, and deep sleep present transformations of perception and they highlight the continuity and discontinuity of experience. Through recognizing the opportunities for meditative awareness in these states, we can understand our own minds and face all our experiences with greater presence. A teaching based on the Six Yogas of Naropa – which is a system of harnessing ordinary experience for awakening.

Register Now

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PEMA KHANDRO IN LION’S ROAR!!!

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“The teacher–student relationship,” says Pema Khandro, “cannot work in the modern age unless teachers are trained to be able to dialogue about issues of gender and misogyny.”

Read Now 

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Upcoming Calendar at a Glance

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Monthly Programs at 6pm PT / 9pm ET

Every Monday – Ngondro Practice with Tsalgyur 


3rd Weds – Ngakpa Training

4th Weds – Excellent Path

Every Day at 12pm PT/3pm ET

 

February
Feb 21 – Ngondro: Refuge & Bodhichitta Live Class w/Pema Khandro

Feb 26 – Meditation Instructor Training Final Practicum

Feb 26 – Dakini Day Chod w/Pema Khandro

 
March 
Mar 4 – Losar Celebration for Members
 
Mar 12 – Meditation Instructor Training Graduation
 
Mar 19 – Resting in Dharma Poetry – 1 Day Retreat with Pema Khandro
 
Mar 26 – Next Meditation Instructor Training Begins

Mar 28 – Dakini Day Chod w/Pema Khandro
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Contact

Email: info@BuddhistYogis.org