The teaching heart of The Yoginīs Series:
The Secret Path is a three-week teaching intensive on the yoginīs of Tibetan Buddhism. Across seven live evening sessions on Monday and Wednesday nights, students move into sustained engagement with women in the origins of Dzogchen, Machig Labdrön and female masters of the chöd lineage, the female treasure-revealers and Sera Khandro, the consort tradition and its contemporary ethical reckoning, the path of becoming a contemporary yoginī, and Vajrayogini as the sacred feminine at the heart of the lineage. Students also receive a private interview with Pema Khandro, optional small-group practice meetings, primary source readings translated for the course, and access to over two dozen self-paced video teachings on Vajrayogini’s iconography and practice.
The Secret Path is the second event in The Yoginīs Series with Pema Khandro: a one-month intensive of study and practice, offered September 12 through October 11, 2026. Complete in itself and open to all. The Yoginīs Weekend Retreat (September 12–13, 2026) is a co-requisite — students may attend the Weekend live or asynchronously through recordings. Those wishing to continue may also register for the Vajrayogini Empowerment Retreat (October 10–11, 2026) as the culminating transmission of the series.
What The Intensive Will Cover
Class One | Foundations of the Yoginī Tradition
Wednesday, September 16 | 6:30–8:00pm PT
What is a yoginī? Discover the historical, philosophical, and lineage definitions. Explore the figure of the yoginī in pre-Buddhist Indian context, in early tantric Buddhism, and in the Tibetan reception of these teachings, and contemporary expressions. The Ḍākinī as human teacher, visionary presence, and inner most wisdom mind. In this class, we establish the framework for everything that follows and introduce the women who made the Tibetan empire.
Class Two | She Was a Radiant Lotus: the Origins of Dzogchen
Monday, September 21 | 6:30–8:00pm PT
Most Tibetan Buddhist lineages begin with a male master. The Heart Essence of the Ḍākinī, one of the most important Dzogchen cycles, begins with an eighth-century girl, Padmasambhava’s disciple, and daughter of King Trisong Detsen. Her death became the seed of the lineage: Padmasambhava revealed teachings to her that would emerge, across her successive rebirths over the following six centuries, as one of the cycles that ultimately shaped Longchenpa’s Great Perfection (Dzogchen) teachings. We read selections from her life-story, translated from Tibetan for this course, and trace the thread of a single yoginī’s lineage across a thousand years exploring themes of women’s lives, consorts, and treasure revelation in esoteric Buddhism.
Class Three | Yoginīs of the Black Ḍākinī
Wednesday, September 23 | 6:30–8:00pm PT
Of all the major Tibetan Buddhist lineages, exactly one was founded by a woman. Her name was Machig Labdrön, she was an eleventh-century yoginī, and the practice she created, chöd, “cutting through,” became so powerful that all four schools of Tibetan Buddhism adopted it. It is still practiced widely today, both by monastics inside monasteries and in the yogic tradition, outside in wild places. Within Machig’s lineage lies a history of female masters. Behind Machig’s lineage stands the wrathful wisdom of Troma Ngamo, the Black Ḍākinī, a yoginī tradition that has been awakening contemplative power for over a thousand years. This week we study Machig’s life-story, study selections from the Black Ḍākinī secret tantra, and hear Pema Khandro’s own account of meeting a living Ḍākinī in this lineage.
Class Four | The Treasure Revealer Yoginīs
Monday, September 28 | 6:30–8:00pm PT
Discover the lives and teachings of female treasure-revealers, including Sera Khandro, Khandro Tare Lhamo, and others who carried forward the visionary tradition of Tibetan Buddhism into the modern era. Explore the phenomenon of the tertön, or treasure-revealer, one of the most distinctive contributions of Tibetan religious life. Contemplate selections from Sera Khandro’s autobiographical writings alongside material from Khandro Tare Lhamo’s correspondence with her partner Namtrul Rinpoche during the Cultural Revolution.Within this tradition, women have held a particular and powerful role.
Class Five | Consorts in Esoteric Buddhism
Wednesday, September 30 | 6:30–8:00pm PT
Throughout Tibetan Buddhist history, much of women’s documented religious life, particularly in tantric contexts, has been organized around the role of the consort. This week examines that history carefully and honestly, it is profound complexity. We will engage deeply with the historical material: what consort practice actually was and is in Tibetan tantra, the distinction between karmamudrā and jñānamudrā, the ethical structures the tradition itself articulated around the practice, and the great consort partnerships that shaped lineages, from Yeshe Tsogyal and Padmasambhava through the consorts of the mahāsiddhas to the partnerships of modern treasure revealers. We then turn to the contemporary reckoning: the well-documented cases of teacher-student boundary violations in the Western reception of Tibetan Buddhism, the responses of various sanghas and lineages, and the ongoing conversation about ethics in contemporary tantric communities. We close with discussion of how contemporary practitioners can engage this tradition ethically.
Class Six | Becoming a Yogini
Monday, October 5 | 6:30–8:00pm PT
The sixth class brings the historical and textual arc to its integration. We gather what has emerged across the previous five weeks: the historical figures, the textual material, the practices encountered, the ethical inheritance, and the personal questions students have been carrying. We turn explicitly to what it means to enter this lineage as a contemporary practitioner: how to hold the material we have studied, how to take it forward in daily life, how to live as someone who carries the inheritance of these women teachers with integrity, courage, and depth.
Class Seven | Vajrayogini: The Awakened Feminine at the Heart of the Lineage
Wednesday, October 7 | 6:30–8:00pm PT
This week we turn directly to Vajrayogini herselfm the wisdom Ḍākinī who has stood at the center of the women’s lineage from Yeshe Tsogyal’s eighth-century visions to the present day. Vajrayogini emerged from Indian tantra as one of the most important yidam practices of Vajrayana Buddhism and was received into Tibetan tradition through multiple lineages that have carried her practice for over a thousand years. Her iconography, her red body, her curved knife, her skull cup, her posture of dance, is a complete philosophical vocabulary of the awakened feminine.
We study her origins, the major lineages that transmit her practice in Tibetan Buddhism, and the meaning of each element of her form. We will attend closely to the philosophical framework of the wisdom Ḍākinī: what it means, in tantric terms, that the awakened principle appears in feminine form, and how this understanding transforms both practice and view.
For students continuing to the Vajrayogini Empowerment Retreat on October 10–11, this class provides the historical, textual, and philosophical framework that allows students to enter the transmission with full understanding. It is also the anchor for the twenty-four self-paced video teachings on Vajrayogini that accompany the Secret Path.
What’s Included
Seven live weekly sessions with Pema Khandro on Monday and Wednesday evenings from September 16 through October 7. Each session combines historical context, primary source study, and practice instruction.
Over two dozen self-paced video teachings on Vajrayogini drawn from Pema Khandro’s classes over the past two years. These recordings move through the iconography and symbol system of the practice in detail.
One private practice interview with Pema Khandro for personal guidance on your practice, your questions, and your path.
Optional weekly small-group practice meetings with BSI faculty, between live sessions.
A private cohort discussion forum with active participation from teaching assistants throughout the course.
Recordings of all live sessions, available to watch for up to one year.
Who this Program is For
This program is for serious students. It assumes:
Participation in the Yoginīs Weekend Retreat (September 12–13, 2026, attended live or asynchronously through recordings) as co-requisite.
Willingness to attend at least three of the seven weekly sessions live, to do the readings, and to maintain a weekly practice during the course is required.
Genuine interest in the Yoginīs of Tibetan Buddhism.
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.
About the Teacher
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.
Practical Details
Format: Live online via Zoom. Recordings provided.
Session Schedule:
- Class One — Wednesday, September 16 | 6:30–8:00pm PT
- Class Two — Monday, September 21 | 6:30–8:00pm PT
- Class Three — Wednesday, September 23 | 6:30–8:00pm PT
- Class Four — Monday, September 28 | 6:30–8:00pm PT
- Class Five — Wednesday, September 30 | 6:30–8:00pm PT
- Class Six — Monday, October 5 | 6:30–8:00pm PT
- Class Seven — Wednesday, October 7 | 6:30–8:00pm PT
Tuition: Standard $695 / $525 reduced / $995 sponsor tier
Weekend Attendees Save: Students who register for or have attended the Yoginīs Weekend Retreat receive a $100 discount on the Secret Path
Dates: Wednesday, September 16 through Wednesday, October 7, 2026
Mondays and Wednesdays, 6:30–8:00pm PT | Online via Zoom
Tuition & Registration
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.
FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to have attended the Yoginīs Weekend first?
This is the co-requisite for The Secret Path. You may attend the Yoginīs Weekend Retreat live (September 12–13) or asynchronously through recordings. Both options fulfill the co-requisite.
Do I need to attend the Vajrayogini Empowerment Retreat after the Secret Path?
No. The Secret Path is a complete program in itself and does not require enrollment in the Vajrayogini Empowerment Retreat. Students of the Secret Path receive the fullest preparation for that empowerment, but the Retreat is a separate event, open to any student who wishes to receive the transmission.
What is the expected practice commitment between sessions?
There is no set required practice commitment. Most participants practice 20–40 minutes daily.
Is financial assistance available?
Yes. BSI offers reduced tuition rates and a limited number of full scholarships.
What if I miss a session?
Recordings are usually available within 48 hours. We recommend participants attend at least four of the seven live sessions.
Will recordings be available?
Yes. All registered participants receive recording access for 1 year, generally 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.
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.
For those moved to go deeper, attend Vajrayogini Empowerment and Teachings with Drupon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche and Tulku Pema Khandro, PhD.
A two-day empowerment of Vajrayogini, offered jointly by Drupon Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche, a senior lineage holder in the Tibetan tradition, and Pema Khandro. Direct transmission of one of the most important yidam practices in all of Tibetan Buddhism. Open to all. Part of BSI’s one-month YOGINIS intensive series for study and practice.
The Buddhist Studies Institute is a project of Ngakpa International, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to sustaining the householder yogi traditions of Tibet.
