Year One, Term 1: Weekly, Sep 14 – Nov 28 (11 classes in total).
90 minute prerecorded sessions uploaded every Monday + 2 weekly guided meditations.
Introduction
The Lamrim — “Stages of the Path” in Tibetan — is a systematic presentation of the entire Buddhist path to Awakening, written by the great Tibetan master Je Tsongkhapa in the 14th and early 15th century, based on writings of the Indian master Atisha. It arranges every essential teaching of the Buddha into a single, coherent, graduated sequence tailored to your mind, exactly as it is right now. Its true power lies not in study alone, but in practice. Each teaching is carefully arranged to meet the mind where it is and guide it—step by step—toward genuine change. The uncommon preliminary practices (ngöndro) are powerful methods to purify the mind and prepare it for lasting transformation.
Over a period of two years, the FPMT Ngöndro Lamrim Training (NLRT) offers 16 months of training in the common and uncommon preliminary practices. The training is designed to generate the motivation that supports the development of calm abiding, special insight, and tantra. By cultivating the inner qualities needed to ease unskillful patterns of mind that are the cause of hindrances on the path, it facilitates deep transformation.
This training is an excellent preparation for (and accompaniment to) the FPMT In-Depth Meditation Training (IDMT).
Content
Over the first eleven months the common foundations, renunciation, bodhicitta, and the view of emptiness, are explored based on the Lamrim. For the remaining five months the focus is on the uncommon practices, Vajrasattva purification, mandala offerings, and guru yoga. Weekly sessions each introduce a new topic that examines different ways to meditate and why, in combination with a guided meditation.
Aims
The training helps establish a consistent daily meditative practice in supports of its overall aim: to engage in contemplative meditation in a way that genuinely transforms the mind’s outlook on the world and gives one’s life a new direction. Students gain a deep understanding of how to accumulate merit and purify unskillful karma while cultivating a healthy relationship with the Three Jewels and their teacher. The emphasis is on learning to meditate in a personally tailored way, in accordance with one’s psychological makeup and life conditions.
Who is it for?
The training is designed for students with a solid grounding in the Lamrim or an equivalent Dharma background — particularly for those seeking structured support in their practice, for those preparing for śamatha, vipaśyanā, and especially tantra, or for those encountering challenges in their meditative practice. While not a prerequisite, the training forms an excellent preparation for the FPMT In-Depth Meditation Training.
Highlights:
Year 1: Definite Emergence and Mind of Awakening
• Prepare the mind for śamatha, vipaśyanā, and tantra
• Explore renunciation and bodhicitta, the first two Principles of the Path
• Develop genuine urgency through Lamrim contemplation
• Cultivate the aspiration to Awakening for all beings
Year 2: Wisdom, Merit, Purification and Guru Yoga
• Cultivate the wisdom realizing emptiness
• Accumulate merit and purify karma through mandala offerings and Vajrasattva
• Unpack and reframe guru devotion for a Western context
• Make ritual practice personal and alive
Format & Schedule
The NLRT teaching sessions are prerecorded. Each week, a 90-minute teaching together with 2 guided meditations are uploaded. On other days, advanced students contribute additional guided meditations. The teacher, Venerable Gendun, offers regular online Q&A sessions. For those who have already studied the Lamrim or the FPMT Basic Program, the training also offers specialized opportunities to learn how to guide others in meditation.
The training will be offered annually. The first training runs from September 2026 to June 2028. Each year is divided in three Terms. NLRT Year 1, Term 1 runs from September 14 – November 28 (11 classes in total).
Registration
Suggested donation: $126 for Year 1, Term 1
The training will be offered annually. The first training runs from mid-September 2026 to end of June 2028. Each year is divided in three Terms. Registration is per Term. After registration, you will get access to the materials through The Buddha Project learning platform.
Financial Aid/ Scholarships
We want to make retreats and dharma courses available to everyone. With this in mind, we will gladly work out a payment plan with you if needed. Please email us at office@vajrapani.org to explore ways we can help you.
Our utmost goal is to help as many beings as possible to have the gift of the dharma.
