Buddhist Foundations
Freedom from suffering and the big questions in life from the Buddhist point of view. Start here and return again and again to firm up your foundations.
Buddhist Meditation
Study the practice, meditation and its context in the Buddhist way of understanding mind, body, emotions and relationships.
Vajrayana Training
A course to support the in-depth study and practice of Tibetan Buddhism. Live and self-paced classes.
Ngakpa Seminary
A Buddhist philosophical college to support advanced study of Buddhist Classics in Tibetan Tantra and Dzogchen.
* Enjoy in-depth study in live online courses, on-demand education and in person retreats and trainings.
* Discover Buddhism from a scholarly perspective
* Find support for a whole-hearted, vigorous engagement with Buddhism and its diverse interpretations.
* Listen to conversations with Pema Khandro, Geshe Sonam, Jan Willis, Ven. Thubten Chodron and so many others.
* Take live classes every week, learn meditation with Janak, study ancient texts with Pema Khandro, practice White Tara meditation with Satya, discuss Vajrayana with Buddhist Studies scholars and more!
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Ongoing Online Classes
4th Wednesdays 6pm San Francisco / 9pm New York/ 2am London
Every Monday – Meditation Mondays with Janak, Satya & Guest Teachers (Members only)
6pm San Francisco / 9pm New York/ 2am London
Every Wednesday- Vajrayana Training & Ngakpa Training with Pema Khandro (Members only)
6pm San Francisco / 9pm New York/ 2am London
Every Thursday – Valid Cognition Studies with Geshe Ngawang Sonam (Open to the Public)
8am San Francisco / 11am New York / 4pm London
Everyday – Daily Meditation Classes, our New Year’s Meditation Marathon with BSI Teachers (Open to the Public)
12pm San Francisco / 3pm New York / London 8pm
Weekly Online Classes
Practice Meditation
Study Original Buddhist Texts
Dialogue, Discussion, Q & A
Study Buddhist Classics with Pema Khandro
Pema Khandro is a Tibetan Buddhist teacher and scholar. Ordained in the Nyingma lineage, enthroned as a tulku, and trained as an academic, her teachings celebrate the dynamic coalescence of tradition and the post-modern context.
Pema Khandro is an authorized Lama and lineage holder of the Nyingma and Kagyu traditions of Tibetan Buddhism and she was enthroned to carry on the lineage of a Tibetan Yogini who lived and taught in the late nineteenth and the early twentieth century. As a scholar-practitioner, her approach to teaching is to frame Buddhist study and practice within its historical, philosophical and intercultural context. For more information visit www.PemaKhandro.org
Study Valid Cognition with Geshe Sonam
Valid Cognition & Ways of Knowing
Study Buddhist logic and epistemology to understand how mind knows, (in Sanskrit, Pramana or in Tibetan, tshad ma) and identify how wrong knowledge causes cyclic suffering. This is the study of a classic text on Valid Cognition the Pramanavaritika, translated into English by Geshe Sonam.
These classes are part of the shedra classes in our Ngakpa Training, but are also open to students with previous Buddhist studies experience. To inquire about joining – email info@buddhiststudiesinstitute.org
Geshe Sonam
Following his more than twenty years of intensive monastic studies on the five major treatises of Buddhism, and upon clearing all the six successive years of examination, in Jan 2019, Geshe Ngawang Sonam was formally conferred the highest degree of Geshe Lharampa [Traditional degree equivalent to PhD in Buddhism] by Gelugpa Monastic Seat of Learning [Gelugpa Monastic University]. In Nov. 2016, His Holiness the Dalai Lama called him to work in His Office, and presently he works there as a translator and a Buddhist scholar. Geshe Ngawang Sonam’s first book ‘In the Footsteps of Siddhartha’ was published in 2010. His translation of Shantideva’s work Bodhisattvacharyaavatara is going to print very soon. Alongside his office work, he also finds time to teach and attend conferences with modern scholars and scientists as a speaker.
Learn to Meditate with Janak
Meditation Mondays Online
Experience the power of Tibetan Buddhist Meditation.
Meditation Mondays are online classes, so you have accessible instruction wherever you are.
These meditation classes focus on instruction in the methods of Calm Abiding, known as Zhine (Tib. གཞི་གནས། gzhi gnas). This is a classical Buddhist meditation which uses concentration techniques and a posture of stillness to allow the mind to become serene.
New members are welcome!
All members have access to meditation classes online!
Meditation Mondays are led by Janak Kimmel, who is also the Vajrayana Training Coordinator. Janak will teach you meditation, answer your questions and support you in establishing a daily practice.
Practice White Tara with Satya
A prayer and meditation practice for promoting peace and pacifying obstacles.
White Tara is the female bodhisattva who represents the resilience, serenity and compassion. The White Tara practice is traditionally used to promote longevity, end natural disasters and appease individual and society-wide obstacles.
Join Dr. Satya as she leads the prayer, mudras, mantra and meditation of White Tara.
Satya is a doctor of Chinese Medicine, Ayurvedic Practitioner, certified meditation instructor and director of Ngakpa Intl.
All members have access to meditation classes online!
New members are welcome!
The world has turned to Buddhism for its wealth of insight into meditation, sciences of mind, regulation of emotions, and models of peaceful living. For those who seek access to in-depth Buddhist study however, there have been many challenges that have limited such studies to a few people – including the need to learn another language, live in Asia, or leave behind family or work commitments.The Buddhist Studies institute meets the need for an in-depth study which is highly accessible and available in English. In fulfillment of this goal, we have facilitated study with Buddhist scholars from around the world. As a tradition dedicated to cultivating wisdom, compassion, self-awareness and interpersonal peace, Buddhism offers rich resources for investigating mind, body, self, others and reality. However, the study of Buddhism is historically rooted and has changed from culture to culture, from one era to another, from the point of view of one lineage to another, yielding a dynamic, diverse tradition. Foregrounding this diversity creates a fertile ground for exploring Buddhism within the challenges of the post-modern world. The Buddhist Studies Institute’s mission is to provide opportunities for accessible in-depth study of Buddhist philosophy and practice, while highlighting its historical contexts and numerous interpretations.
Embody Buddhist Wisdom in Work, Family, and Society
The Yogic Medicine Institute
Learn About Our Sister Project
Let the ancient knowledge of Himalayan medicine restore vibrant well-being in your body and mind. Enjoy the detoxification and longevity practices of Ayurveda, Tibetan Medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine. In Radiance Retreats you will enjoy three to thirty-five days of therapies, massage, nutrition, cleansing, and rejuvenation in a small group setting or private retreat. Protect your body while allowing it to remove toxins safely, efficiently, and thoroughly. Ayurvedic Panchakarma helps your body let go of layers of undigested material. Each body is different, so your cleansing program is tailored just for you. Enjoy luxurious integrative therapies, bliss yoga, shirodhara and so much more. Radiance Retreats are led by Aruna Rigdzin and Satya Shiva. Benefit from their two decades of training, warm hospitality and extraordinary guidance. Learn more here
Our Affiliations
BSI is a project of Ngakpa International a non-profit organization dedicated to sustaining the traditions of householder Yogis of Tibet. Although our project is sponsored by a Nyingma Lama and focuses on Nyingma materials for weekly shedra classes, we also provide many Buddhist classes with a non-sectarian focus led by Lamas, Khenpos, Geshes and Scholars of various traditions in order to celebrate the beautiful diversity of Buddhist thought. Our goal is to present Buddhism in its full splendor, as a resource for rigorous inquiry and development of self-awareness, while providing abundant resources focusing on the core texts of the Nyingma shedra, the Buddhist Philosophical college and the gomdra, the Buddhist meditation retreat training.
