Ngakpa International is a non-profit organization that fosters transnational education on meditation traditions from Tibet.

We believe world peace is nurtured through local communities that foster contemplative resources for mental health, emotional regulation and resilience.

We also promote empathetic cross-cultural fluency to develop meditators and meditation instructors who nurture compassionate approaches to a complex world.

We offer programs and projects focused on training adults to cultivate well being in body-mind and community. This includes ongoing online education through our project, the Buddhist Studies Institute; wellness programs through the Yogic Medicine Institute and contemplative retreats through Dakini Mountain.

Ongoing Online Programs:

For the list of our other other programs visit Upcoming Events

Ngakpa International
Contemplative Wisdom in Family, Work & Society

Our online school, The Buddhist Studies Institute, can be found at www.BuddhistStudiesInstitute.org – Study in-depth Buddhist philosophy and practice in self-paced courses or live-stream courses with Pema Khandro and guest teachers.

Our retreat center is Dakini Mountain which can be found at www.DakiniMountain.org Located in Northern California in the USA, in the Tahoe National Forest.

Our Natural Health Clinic is The Yogic Medicine Institute. It can be found at www.YogicMedicineInstitute.org Where faculty teach the natural health practices from India, China and Tibet.

Ngakpa International

Ngakpa (ngags pa) is a Tibetan word for Buddhist Yogi, a person who balances spiritual training with work and family life.

Our three primary projects are:  Buddhist Studies Institute – Yogic Medicine Institute – Dakini Mountain

About the Buddhist Studies Institute

Our vibrant community trains in the philosophy and practices of Tibetan Buddhist Yogis,
the non-celibate, life-embracing path of Tibetan Buddhism.

The emphasis of our practices are simple, direct experience of wakefulness and ease.
Our centers, clinics and school focuses on the philosophy and meditation system known as the great perfection (Dzogchen) – Buddhism’s most treasured path to awakening intrinsic wisdom and the practice of Chod, a contemplative method for compassionate transformation that engages Buddhist psychology.
We explore the practical application of Buddhist wisdom in the modern context, with a specialty in integrating Buddhism with a dynamic, complex life.

Through The Buddhist Studies Institute we are dedicated to providing accessible, in-depth Buddhist education for students, teachers, and leaders. Due to our commitment to integrating Buddhist Wisdom with technology – our online courses allow an unprecedented access to ongoing and advanced study.

About Dakini Mountain
Through Dakini Mountain we offer a contemplative refuge for deep retreat in a pristine setting in the Tahoe National Forest.

About Yogic Medicine Institute
Through the Yogic Medicine Institute, we emphasize nourishing body-mind vitality through natural medicine – embracing Buddhist wisdom as applied and embodied.

The tone of our community is serious study with a non-sectarian spirit, in an atmosphere of joyous, down-to-earth warmth and kindness. We favor a generative, non-dogmatic approach to exploring Buddhist resources with an emphasis in the value of questions, doubts, diversity and contradictions.

Our Activities: include community-led meditation classes, group retreats, ongoing phone and online web-cast courses, and a seminary for advanced study.

Our Projects: include a clinic, three residential centers, research to preserve the history and culture of Buddhist Yogis, support of Ngakpa schools worldwide and sponsoring orphans in the Himalayan border regions.

Our Values: Above all, Buddhism’s goal is to become a wakeful, ethical, contemplative, and compassionate human being. We believe the contemplative life goes hand in hand with life-long learning, which is inevitably tied to unraveling the roots of racism, sexism, homophobia and bigotry of all kinds. We are committed to ecological sustainability.

Our Methods: We offer a range of learning environments from study oriented, to practice-oriented, and community oriented, in-person and online – in order to foster diverse relationships with Buddhist resources, and to promote affordable access to in-depth training.

Plug in and connect with us…

Upcoming Programs

Bardo Teachings – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro, Father Francis Tiso, Lama Lhanang Rinpoche, Chagdud Khadro, Shugen Roshi, Julie Rogers, Jim Tucker, M.D., Koshin Paley Ellison and Dr. William McGrath

Open Dates
Teachings on Death and Dying Facing realities of dying, death, and grief are central to our human experience. This program offers practical instructions for helping others in the process of dying and an overview of essential knowledge on death, bardo, and rebirth. This includes self-paced lectures on dying, loss, grief, and illness from Lamas and scholars of Buddhist Studies.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!

Buddhism & Sexuality – Self Paced Course

With Dr. Nicole Willock, Julie Regan, Ph.D., Pema Khandro, Lama Willa Miller, Amy Langenberg , Dr. Ann Gleig, Dr. Nida Chenagtsang, Lama Rod Owens, Dr. Jim Hopper, Dr. Elizabeth Call and Damchö Diana Finnegan

Open Dates
Join Pema Khandro and a group of esteemed Buddhist Studies scholars for an exploration of the history of Buddhist Sexualities from celibacy, to sacred sexuality in Buddhist Tantra and a simple approach to embodied integration with nature in Dzogchen.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!

Buddhist Ethics – Self Paced Course

With Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This course on Buddhist Ethics goes through the Five Buddhist Precepts. The five precepts form the basis of a Buddhist way of life and the vows that Buddhists Seek to follow. The Five Precepts are a discipline of freedom, honor, and precision that cover the potent themes of life from the extraordinary perspective of non-duality.   Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for these precious teachings. Your contribution, big and small, helps makes in-depth Buddhist training and education more accessible for all. May the teachings spread and flourish!

Women in Tantric Buddhism – Self Paced Course

With Holly Gayley, Judith Simmer-Brown, Sarah Jacoby, Amy Langenberg , Damchö Diana Finnegan, Venerable Karma Lekshe Tsomo and Pema Khandro

Open Dates
This is the missing history of women in Tantric Buddhism. This course addresses the fascinating story of nuns, mothers, teachers, consorts, prophets, and disciples. Taught by scholar-practitioners whose groundbreaking research on women and Buddhism has changed the way we think of Buddhist history. This course will address the history of women in Buddhism, the history of yoginis and dakinis in India and Tibet, the stories of important Buddhist women, Buddhist philosophy on gender, sex, and sexuality, and the role of the consort in historical Tibet, and contemporary manifestations and so much more. Support the Buddhist Studies Institute by donating for…