“To realise the truth of who and what we are as human beings is to realize our buddha-nature”
Mindrolling Jetsün Khandro Rinpoche
We invite Buddhist students to join the 2025 Rigpa Shedra, which is under the guidance of Khenchen Namdrol Rinpoche, for a period of in-depth study with Khenpo Tashi Tseten.
In 2025 we will again offer the Rigpa Shedra intensive in a hybrid format – you can join either online from the comfort of your own home OR join the Shedra in person in Pharping, Nepal for the full immersive experience.
The Rigpa Shedra is open to all students, whether interested in following the complete curriculum, or wishing to join for only one year to boost their study and practice.
In 2025, students will have the chance to immerse themselves in the study of the Uttaratantra Shastra [Gyü Lama] by Lord Maitreya.
[For an explanation by Khenpo Tashi Tseten on the Rigpa Shedra plans for the coming three years, including both intensive and essentialised options, click here.]
The Text
Because the perfect buddhas’s kaya is all-pervading,
Maitreya, Sublime Continuum, 1, 27
Because reality is undifferentiated,
And because they possess the potential,
Beings always have the buddha nature.”
The Mahayana Uttaratranta Shastra [Gyü Lama, Treatise on the Sublime Continuum] is considered one of the most important teachings on buddha-nature and enlightenment. It is revered by buddhist masters as a very special text, one of the five great teachings given by Lord Maitreya to Asanga, and part of the third turning of the wheel of the Dharma.
Within the traditional buddhist shedras for monastic education, it is often taught as the final text in the curriculum, and many masters say it can be considered a bridge between the sutras and tantra. It provides an important philosophical foundation for understanding the workings of the buddhist path, particularly for Vajrayana practitioners.
Simply put:
“Buddha-nature is the main subject of this text. Basically, if you want to know about Buddha-nature, then this is the text that you have to study.”
Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche
Like all buddhist philosophy, this text is not intended simply to provoke an academic discussion that we leave behind as we return to our everyday lives. It is taught as a path for us to attain liberation. For practitioners, the Uttaratantra clearly explains what it means to accumulate merit and purify defilements, and it offers a safety net to protect our path from falling into all-too-common eternalist or nihilist extremes. (source: Siddharta’s Intent)
It shows how all sentient beings, without exception, have buddha-nature: primordially pure and perfect. Although it may be clouded by obscurations and defilements, these are temporary and cannot taint our buddha-nature.
The Teacher
Our teacher is Khenpo Tashi Tseten, a brilliant young khenpo from Namdrolling Monastery in South India. He is considered to be one of the most promising khenpos of his generation and has been teaching at the Rigpa Shedra for many years. Together with the wealth of his knowledge and the clarity of his explanations, he has a rare capacity to tune into students’ understanding and needs, which makes his teachings truly inspiring and illuminating.
Our translator will be Damien Van Effenterre, a Rigpa Senior Teacher, who has been the director of the Rigpa Shedra for eight years, while also studying the traditional treatises and translating for shedra classes in Pharping, Nepal.
Time Investment and Daily Program
The time investment [sessions, study, practice] will be 4.5 hours a day from Monday to Friday. Classes and review sessions are mandatory. The daily schedule can be found here [TBC].
Whether you are onsite or you join the online shedra class, it is important not to have any major obligations next to following this program. This will allow you to really make the most of this precious opportunity.
The daily program will include:
- Class with Khenpo Tashi Tseten [2 hours]
- Review session [1.5 hours]
- Study groups or personal revision to prepare for review class
- Group practice and Tibetan Class [for onsite participants in Pharping, Nepal]
There may also be quizzes, as a skilful tool for your studies, to help you check your knowledge and understanding, as well as contemplations and study assignments.
Languages
All classes and activities are held in English.
Tibetan Language Classes
The Rigpa Shedra also offers students the opportunity to learn the Tibetan language. Tibetan classes for absolute beginners to translators in the making, are also a part of the shedra’s daily schedule in Nepal. Tibetan classes will be offered in person in Nepal by Stefan Gueffroy.
Experience of studying at the Rigpa Shedra
- Sally Burgess, one of the students who has followed the rigpa shedra teachings for the last few years says:
I love the Shedra. For me it has really been like finding a home in Rigpa. I enjoy the friendship, the opportunity to study outside a single national group or mandala. The teaching and learning strategies in the Shedra are great (the review sessions and, yes, the quizzes too) and I’ve found myself ‘stealing’ ideas for my university teaching and for the Spanish Rigpa sessions I am involved with.
Perhaps most importantly I know that I am following a ‘curriculum’ approved and established by Khenchen Namdrol. I know I am in very safe hands.
The opportunity to study in a structured way in which we are actively involved (not just recipients) is also really important.
- Rand Littlestone, a student who has followed the Rigpa Shedra teachings for the last six years, says:
I first attended the Shedra in 2018 and was completely hooked. I found the experience enriching, challenging, and totally unique. Steeped in a foundational Buddhist text, along with a community of like-minded companions in the incredible spiritual environment of The Kathmandu valley, needless to say I have been coming back every year since.
For more impressions of studying at the Rigpa Shedra in Nepal, click here.
And for an inspiring report of daily life in the shedra, please watch 2024 participant Hugo Baucher here.
Practical Information
Dates and Prices
Please note that the prices may be subject to change depending on the fluctuation of currencies. Final prices will be known once all applications have been processed and at the time of payment.
January 20 – March 21, 2025
[If studying onsite in Nepal, please aim to arrive in Pharping by January 19]
IN PERSON in Pharping, Nepal: €1700
[Includes: Tuition €900, Meals €400, Accommodation €400]
ONLINE: €900
[Includes: Tuition ONLY]
If you can’t afford the full fee, please still apply, as there may be different possibilities for supporting you in your studies, such as applying for a study grant from the Tertön Sogyal foundation (click on study and practice grant).
If you decide join the Shedra in Nepal, you can roughly plan for the following additional expenses:
- Flight: between €800 and €1500 [depending on time of booking, distance & airline]
- Visa for Three Months: €125 for a 90 day visa to be imperatively done at the airport when you first arrive
- Mandatory Travel Insurance: up to €350 [see Medical Disclaimer below]
- Extras: between €200 and €1000, depending on your lifestyle.
This can include printed texts [if necessary], offerings to the teacher[s] and for the Tsok-practices, and outings to Kathmandu or other interesting places in the neighbourhood.
Application Process
If you are interested in joining this course, please let us know by filling in the application form. We will get in touch with you and will be happy to answer any questions you might have. We are aware that it is not always easy to free yourself for such a long period of time and to make such a big commitment. If needed, we can explore together to determine if this program is appropriate for your needs.
Note: the application is not yet a commitment on your side but will allow us to get to know and contact you. The commitment to join our program only comes at the time of registration, at which time payment will also be due.
Special One month Retreat in Pharping
As part of the Shedra in 2025, if there is enough interest, we are offering the possibility to all shedra students to do a one month retreat in Pharping following Shedra itself (Monday 24 March to Wednesday 23 April). As Khenchen Namdrol Rinpoche has told us on many occasions, the valley of Pharping is one of the most sacred places for Vajrayana practitioners, as it is the place where Guru Rinpoche manifested complete enlightenment. It is a place of pilgrimage filled with blessings and where study and practice take on a completely different significance. Accomplishing a retreat in Pharping is a unique opportunity to inspire our practice and nourish us on the path for many years.
The group will be guided by Annette Moeker, an experienced practice holder. Annette has led long term retreats in Dzogchen Beara for many years. She will give individual and group support so that each person can make the most of their retreat, according to their level and practice on the path.
It is particularly relevant to embark upon a one month retreat after studying such a text as the Gyü Lama, as it aims at deepening our understanding of Buddha Nature. This retreat, with its contemplative approach, will be the perfect way to complement one’s study of the text and help establish an unshakable conviction in our inherent Buddha Nature.
(Practical details including cost will follow)
Information for the Shedra in Nepal
Comfort
Most foreigners find life very pleasant and easy in Nepal and Nepali people are on average very welcoming and kind. Yet anyone coming to the Rigpa Shedra must be aware that Nepal is a developing country; among the poorest in the world. This has consequences in terms of comfort, hygiene, power and water availability, quality of internet, roads and so on. Nevertheless, to the best of our capacities within this environment, the Rigpa Shedra offers comfort conditions that are suitable to Westerners and conducive to study [accommodation in single rooms with mostly shared bathrooms, vegetarian meals under hygienic conditions, batteries for power outage, etc.], keeping in mind that it is a retreat and monastic environment, and not in any way a holiday resort. Since its inception in 2006, the Rigpa Shedra has welcomed more than 200 different students from all over the globe for several months [many of which have been returning every year] and most – if not all – have had a pleasant experience despite [or because of] the differences from the typical Western environment.
Medical Disclaimer
The Rigpa Shedra cannot be held responsible for any loss, theft or damage to personal property or bodily injury or death during the period of the Rigpa Shedra East. We cannot provide medical or psychological care, medication, hospitalization or transportation. Please ensure that you are adequately covered and have the proper vaccinations [including Covid vaccination]. Proof of medical insurance is required to attend Rigpa Shedra. There are neither medical staff nor medical facilities on-site. Please also note that the shedra is a place for studying Tibetan Buddhist teachings that are not intended as a substitute for psychotherapy. If you have a psychological or psychiatric problem, we recommend that you inform your therapist before applying, and you need to notify us prior to your registration to see whether joining the shedra is a good thing for you to do at this point in time. If you are taking medication prescribed by your doctor, do not discontinue it during your stay. If you disregard this advice we regret that the Rigpa Shedra cannot be held responsible.
Natural Disaster Disclaimer
Nepal is part of the Himalayan region and is subject to unpredictable natural disasters such as earthquakes. Coming to Nepal involves taking a risk. Safety measures and facilities [e.g. medical] in this country do not always comply with Western standards. The Rigpa Shedra cannot be held responsible for damage to personal property, bodily injury or death during the period of the Rigpa Shedra program. For your information, the earthquakes which happened in 2015 haven’t damaged the shedra buildings and everybody was safe.
Behaviour
Traditionally, a shedra takes place in a monastic environment where a strict set of rules is implemented, permeating all levels of everyday life. Khen Rinpoche Namdrol and other masters have advised that a similar set of rules be applied to the Rigpa Shedra since they have proven to be a great support for one’s study. It is not easy to transfer a system of rules designed for a Tibetan monastic environment to a group of western students, nevertheless a frame of rules will be proposed to the shedra students so that they will be able to make the best of their precious time.
In addition, we will operate under the Rigpa Code of Conduct, which we strongly suggest you familiarize yourself with.