A two day online retreat recovering the lost history of women in Tibetan Buddhism — the yoginīs, ḍākinīs, and lineage holders whose realization shaped the tradition, and whose teachings have been preserved against the odds. Taught by Pema Khandro, a Nyingma lineage holder, female tulku, and scholar of women in Tibetan Buddhism. Open to all. No prior background required.
For more than a thousand years, the history of Tibetan Buddhism has been told mostly through the lives of men. The founders of the famous lineages, the great commentaries, the official histories, the celebrated teachers… overwhelmingly male.
And yet, woven through the same tradition, there is another story.
Beside every great master stood a female consort, teacher, or yoginī whose realization shaped the lineage. There were women who founded their own lineages, who transmitted teachings still practiced today, who composed texts read for centuries, who attained the rainbow body, who instructed the kings and yogis whose names history did remember.
Most of these women were unnamed or forgotten. Some were preserved in fragments, a few lines, a colophon. A few were celebrated for a time, and then their teachings drifted to the margins.
Over the past several decades, this lost history has begun to be recovered by Tibetan teachers protecting the lineages they inherited, by scholars working with manuscripts in archives, and by women practitioners searching for predecessors who looked like themselves.
This weekend brings that recovery together — the history, the texts, and the living transmission — in three days of teaching, study, and practice.
We begin with the eighth-century yoginī Yeshe Tsogyal, Padmasambhava’s principal disciple. Her visions of Vajrayogini, the obstacles she faced and, the night of enlightenment. We will also study the forgotten women of at the root of the lineage history. The obstacles they overcame, the teachings they preserved. How they were nearly forgotten, and how they have begun to be recovered.
The second session on Saturday begins with transmission of the Yeshe Tsogyal mantra, the practice of Tibetan Buddhism’s first great female master, the eighth-century yogini whose realization shaped the tradition for the next thousand years. Detailed instruction for taking up the practice in daily life is given in a way appropriate for both new and experienced practitioners, with no prior commitments required.
We’ll work directly with primary sources: early women of Dzogchen, the hidden histories of Vajrayana, passages from The Heart Essence of the Ḍākinī, excerpts from the hagiographies of Yeshe Tsogyal, advice to her disciples and Tsogyal’s final testament. We will move from history into practice — the tantric understanding of the female body, ḍākinī iconography, and the contemplative practice specifically associated with ḍākinī wisdom, as described in the Prayer to Lady Yeshe Tsogyal.
Closing session discussion will focus on what it means to take up this lineage as a contemporary practitioner. The day closes with transmission and detailed practice instruction for the Prayer to Yeshe Tsogyal, given in a way that is appropriate for both new and experienced practitioners. We finish with discussion of how to continue this study within ongoing programs at the Buddhist Studies Institute.
Pema Khandro is a Nyingma lineage holder of the Buddhist tradition of Tibet, a female tulku, and a scholar-practitioner whose work centers on the recovery of women’s contemplative lineages. She holds a PhD in Religious Studies from the University of Virginia, where her dissertation examined the role of female yoginis in fourteenth-century Tibetan Buddhism. Her research examines how Great Perfection (Dzogchen Nyingthig) transformed frameworks for women’s spiritual roles and contemplative practice.
Before becoming a professor of Buddhist Studies, Pema Khandro spent her life practicing and teaching as a yoginī in the Nyingma tradition. She is the founder of the Buddhist Studies Institute and was enthroned to carry forward the lineage of Pema Khandro, a Tibetan yogini who taught in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Her teaching brings together rigorous scholarship and lived practice, framing Buddhist study within its full historical and intercultural context.
Format: Live online via Zoom. Recordings provided.
Dates: Saturday–Sunday, Sept 12th and 13th, 2026
Schedule:
Total contact hours: 8 hours of live practice and teaching
Tuition: $250 Standard · $175 reduced · $108 financial aid · $350 Sponsor
Includes: All live sessions, recordings for one year, transmission and practice instruction.
This weekend is open to everyone. No prior background in Buddhism is required, and the material will be presented in a way that is genuinely accessible to newcomers while offering depth for experienced practitioners.
It will be of particular interest to practitioners seeking female predecessors and teachers who looked like themselves; to students of Tibetan Buddhism wanting to understand the tradition more fully; to scholars and researchers in religion, women’s studies, or Tibetan literature; to Buddhist practitioners from other traditions drawn to tantric Buddhism’s distinct treatment of gender and embodiment; and to chaplains, therapists, and contemplatives interested in the ḍākinī tradition’s teachings on transformation.
Tuition
Sliding scale pricing is offered to support broad access. Please choose the rate that aligns with your financial reality, including factors like income, exchange rates, or other life circumstances.
Member Benefits
Members receive 10-100% discounts on standard tuition. Apply your member code at checkout. Learn More about Membership.
Financial Aid
As a non-profit organization, program costs are supported through tuition and donations. For those experiencing extreme financial hardship, limited scholarships may be available for some programs. Assistance must be requested in advance. Financial Scholarship Application
Monastics
Programs are always free for monastics. Monastic Scholarship Application
The Buddhist Studies Institute is a project of Ngakpa International, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to sustaining the householder yogi traditions of Tibet.
Do I need a background in Tibetan Buddhism to attend?
No. The weekend is designed to be accessible to those new to the tradition, while offering depth for longtime practitioners. Primary sources will be presented with full historical context.
Will recordings be available?
Yes. All registered participants receive recordings to keep, available within 48 hours of each session.
Is this taught live, or pre-recorded?
Each of the days are taught live by Pema Khandro, with time for questions. Recordings are provided for those who cannot attend every session in real time.
Will there be a transmission or empowerment?
Yes. The Saturday and Sunday sessions include a transmission and detailed practice instruction. This is appropriate for both new and experienced practitioners and does not require prior commitments.
Can I attend in person?
This program is online only, to allow the broadest possible access. BSI hosts in-person retreats usually three times a year — see our calendar for upcoming gatherings.
Is financial assistance available?
Yes. BSI offers reduced tuition rates and a limited number of full scholarships for those who need them. This appears in the landing page in the tuition section.
What if I have to miss part of the weekend?
Recordings are available within 48 hours, so you can catch up on missed sessions. We do ask participants to attend at least the Sunday transmission live, when possible.
For those moved to go deeper, Yoginis: The Secret Path — a month-long Intensive beginning in September, 2026, explores the yoginī lineage in sustained depth, with weekly teaching sessions, practice meetings, and private practice interviews with Pema Khandro. The program culminates in a Vajrayogini empowerment with Drupon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche.
The Buddhist Studies Institute is a project of Ngakpa International, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to sustaining the householder yogi traditions of Tibet.
