6th ANNIVERSARY OF SOGYAL RINPOCHE’S PARINIRVANA - at Lerab Ling and Online, 25-29 August 2025

Written by Nicolas Schram on 25 August 2025.

6^th ANNIVERSARY OF SOGYAL RINPOCHE’S PARINIRVANA – AT LERAB LING AND ONLINE

Annual Rigpa Sangha Gathering

Dates: from 25 to 29 August

This annual all-mandala retreat brings together the whole sangha in a festive atmosphere to practise, celebrate, share stories, receive teachings, and simply for us to be together as a sangha.

This is one time in the year that we can each connect with the wider Rigpa family, of which we are all part, revitalise our connection with each other, to our spiritual home Lerab Ling, and our many great teachers, and foremost celebrating Sogyal Rinpoche’s life and legacy.

Each year this event has been held, something surprising or unexpected has been added to the programme at the last minute, making it an even more joyful and auspicious time.

The practice programme that is the heart of the retreat includes a range of practices to enable everyone to participate, wherever we are on the path. We will practise meditation, Guru Yoga, Riwo Sangchö, Rigdzin Düpa* and offer an abundant tsok feast every day.

Interspersing practice sessions, we will revisit some of Sogyal Rinpoche’s best teachings and hear stories from his life, as well as receive teachings and advice from Rigpa teachers and practice holders as well as Rigpa’s spiritual advisors, either in person or online.

During the 2023 retreat, the inner stupa of Sogyal Rinpoche was consecrated in a ceremony led by Tulku Rigdzin Pema Rinpoche and Khenchen Pema Sherab Rinpoche. In 2024 we will see the construction of the Great Enlightenment Stupa outside the Lerab Ling temple. This stupa will contain millions of mantras, thousands of tsa-tsas, specially prepared mandalas that liberate upon sight, and numerous other texts and precious substances.

In August, under the exacting guidance of Tulku Rigdzin Pema, our monastic community will start placing numerous precious vases and other sacred substances in the base of the Stupa, as prescribed in the texts. This will be immediately followed by assembling and filling the remaining levels of the Stupa, currently scheduled to take place during the Dzogchen retreat and Parinirvana celebrations.

Once the Stupa has been completed, Tulku Rigdzin Pema Rinpoche will conduct a rabné (blessing). A fuller inauguration will take place at a later date with guest lamas and gathered sangha.

As in previous years, we look forward to sharing the retreat with the wider family of students of other teachers who are connected to Rigpa, many of whom have joined us for this event over the last 5 years.

Many people have shared that this retreat has produced some of the most inspiring and magical moments for them in recent years in Lerab Ling. We hope this experience will continue in 2025.

HOW TO FOLLOW

We encourage everyone to gather physically in Lerab Ling, but the commemorations can also be followed live online.

In Lerab Ling

• 5-day programme (25-29 August)
• Sogyal Rinpoche’s Parinirvana Anniversary (28 August)
  The commemoration programme on the 28th of August will be based on donations, for all those who wish to join in Lerab Ling or online. Please note that this is also reflected in the lowered price of the 5-day event.
  
  

Live online

• Please register for the online event on Prajna (see below).
  
  

*Rigdzin Düpa, 'The Gathering of Vidyadharas,' is the inner lama practice from the Longchen Nyingtik, the terma revelation of Jikmé Lingpa. It is one of the main sadhanas practised in Rigpa. For those unfamiliar with this practice, there will be guidance on how to participate according to your level of practice.

Complete Transmissions of the Longchen Nyingtik with Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche, 12-24 September 2025

Written by Paula on 12 September 2025.

COMPLETE TRANSMISSIONS OF THE LONGCHEN NYINGTIK WITH SHECHEN RABJAM RINPOCHE

Onsite at Lerab Ling

Dates: from 12 to 24 September

We are honoured that Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche has accepted our invitation to confer the complete transmissions of the Longchen Nyingtik, the Nyingtik Tsapö, ‘the core texts of the Heart Essence’. All the empowerments will be given, along with oral transmissions and teachings, and what will be really special is that everything will be transmitted with Kyabje Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche’s own unique clarifications, and arrangement of the teachings.

This event is crucial for anyone at the Vajrayana stage of the path of the Longchen Nyingtik.

More details coming soon:

• Fuller details about the empowerments, teachings and oral transmissions, and the schedule will be shared soon.
• PLEASE NOTE: only the full event is open for registration now, but there will be shorter options proposed later.
  
  

This event is open to Rigpa Ngöndro and Dzogchen Mandala students & students from other sanghas who fulfil certain Vajrayana requirements.

WHAT ARE THE SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS TO ATTEND?

Before applying to attend these empowerments and teachings, take the time to reflectwhether you are ready to receive them and understand the commitments that you are taking.

Please check that you fulfil the following requirements.

• You are a member of the Ngöndro or Dzogchen Mandala (this does not apply if you are the member of another sangha). If you feel you should be part of the Ngöndro Mandala but are not yet, please contact your local instructor to have an interview.
• You have already formally entered the Mahayana Buddhist path by taking Refuge and Bodhisattva vows;
• You have a solid foundation and experience of the principles and practices of the Mahayana;
• You have received teachings on all the ngöndro practices, including guru yoga.
• You have started your ngöndro accumulations and are on track to continue.
• You understand the samaya vows related to empowerment in general and are willing to take those related to the upcoming empowerments, which might include practice commitments.
• You have spent some time examining your own motivation for receiving these transmissions.
• You have spent some time examining the master giving these empowerments.
  
  

If you have a deep wish and don’t meet the following criteria, you may still complete the application form and your request will be considered.

If you have a serious health issue or a history of mental illness please consult with your health care provider and take advice on whether it is advisable to come to this event.

Young adults above 16 years of age should fulfil the above criteria to attend the event and fill in the application forms below.

Children below 16 can accompany their parents during the sessions if they wish to receive a blessing. We will also try to provide a venue upstairs, in a separate shrine room with live transmission, will also be made available for parents to follow with younger children.

PREPARING YOURSELF FOR THIS EVENT

If you wish to learn more about the Longchen Nyingtik lineage, we recommend:

• reading the Rigpa Wiki article, which also provides many reading resources;
• watching teachings by Tulku Thondup Rinpoche on The Lives of the Longchen Nyingtik Lineage Masters on Prajna.

If you are relatively new to Vajrayana, we recommend:

• following the course: Is Vajrayana For Me?—From the Ngöndro to the Main Practices of Vajrayana. This course, which starts on 30 April, has been specifically designed for Ngöndro students who might be receiving empowerments for the first time or are relatively new to the main practices of Vajrayana;
• studying this Guide Page on Prajna: Vajrayana Buddhism in the Modern World: Is Vajrayana for Me?
  
• reading Poison is Medicine and Guru Drinks Bourbon? by one of Rigpa’s Spiritual Advisors Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse;
• speaking to a Teacher or Practice Holder at your local centre to clarify any questions.
  
  

HOW TO JOIN

Please fill one of the application forms, latest by the 1st of September 2025, if you wish to attend these teachings & transmissions. If you qualify, you will receive a link to register for this event. You may also be contacted by one of our teachers to clarify your path of study and practice.

Please allow us at least two weeks to examine your request.

1. Application form for students of other sanghas
2. Application form for Rigpa Ngöndro Mandala students
3. Application form for Rigpa Dzogchen Mandala students
   
   

Many students are expected to attend this event, and there won’t be enough room for everyone to sleep onsite. So, to allow as many students as possible to easily join this historic event, please consider sharing your accommodation, if you can, with a friend for example (you can inform the registration team by leaving a note while you register).

 Onsite accommodation will be prioritized for those attending the full event.

RIGPÉ YESHÉ PROGRAMME FOR CHILDREN & TEENS

When there is sufficient interest, the Rigpé Yeshé association offers a programme designed to welcome children & teens from 6 to 17 years old whose parents are participating in the retreat. If you are interested, please fill in this request form as soon as possible.

ABOUT SHECHEN RABJAM RINPOCHE

One of the most eminent masters in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche is the grandson and spiritual heir of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche. Rinpoche has dedicated his life to transmitting the profound and rich teachings of the ancient Nyingma lineage passed down by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche.

Rabjam Rinpoche is one of the main masters of the Nyingma and Longchen Nyingtik traditions that Rigpa relies on to continue granting transmissions, empowerments, pith instructions and teachings.

He is deeply revered by practitioners worldwide, not only for his extraordinary qualities but also for the way in which he continues Khyentse Rinpoche’s vision of safeguarding the teaching and culture of Tibetan Buddhism. Rinpoche is greatly loved and appreciated everywhere on account of his generosity, his modern approach and his warm and endearing presence.

The Rigpa community holds Rabjam Rinpoche especially close to their heart, deeply grateful for his constant kindness and guidance.

Read Rabjam Rinpoche’s full biography on his website.

TULKU RIGDZIN PEMA RINPOCHE

Tulku Rigdzin Pema Rinpoche is a close disciple of Kyabjé Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche and an accomplished practitioner.

His main teachers were Rago Choktrul, Pema Kunzang Rangdrol, Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, Trulshik Rinpoche and Penor Rinpoche. He holds the traditions of Adzom Drukpa and Longchen Nyingtik.

Since his escape from Tibet during the early eighties, he stayed mainly with Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche at Shechen Monastery in Nepal as a close disciple and attendant.

He is an expert in making stupas, for which he completed the most important mantra recitations, and has been responsible for the completion of a large number of stupas in Asia, Europe, and the United States. It was Tulku Rigdzin Pema Rinpoche who oversaw the reconstruction of the Great Stupa of Boudhanath, after the earthquake of 2015.

In recent years, Tulku Rigdzin Pema Rinpoche has been meticulously guiding the preparation, construction and consecration of Rigpa’s five stupas and has given numerous teachings and transmissions in Rigpa centres, mostly from the Longchen Nyingtik lineage.

VENERABLE SEAN PRICE

Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche will be assisted and translated by Ven. Sean Price.
Sean Price was ordained as a monk in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition in 1994 and has since studied at various monastic institutes in India and Nepal. A number of his translations have been published: The Supreme Siddhi of Mahamudra: Teachings, Poems, and Songs of the Drukpa Kagyu Lineage (Snow Lion Publications and The Emanated Scripture of Manjushri: Shabkar's Essential Meditation Instructions (Snow Lion Publications). He has been Tsadra Foundation’s Director of Tibetan Publications since 2009. He currently resides at the Shechen Monastery, Nepal.

PROVISIONAL SCHEDULE

08.30 - 12.00 Reading transmissions with Tulku Rigdzin Pema Rinpoche
14.00 - 15.00 Teachings with Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche
15.30 - 17.30 Empowerments with Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche
18.30 - 19.45 Group Sadhana Practice & Tsok

MAKING ABUNDANT OFFERINGS

During this event we would like to make abundant offerings of tsok, lights, incense, flowers and tormas to create the most favourable circumstances and merit for us to receive the teachings and transmissions.

You can make a donation towards the practice and offerings directly online as part of the registration process, and/or via this link. We suggest a donation of 11€ per day per participant, which will cover the costs of the Practice Team and the tsok offerings. Any other amount is of course equally welcome. You can also bring material offerings yourself. Thank you so much for your generosity.

PARTICIPATION IN ACTIVITY (ROTA)

Volunteers are the backbone of our Dharma events. Together, we create the environment for the teachings and practices to happen smoothly. Everyone is asked to help in one activity, for up to 1 hour per day (according to your physical capacity and health). Teams take care of cleaning the temple, transcribing, helping the kitchen staff, gardening, cleaning the sanitary blocks, helping to support group practices by preparing offerings and distributing tsok. You can indicate your capacity during the registration procedure.

MEDITATION BREAK AND PRACTICE RETREATS

Written by Paula on 19 November 2016.

MEDITATION BREAKS & PRACTICE RETREATS

Meditate, practice and recharge your batteries in the middle of nature

If you feel the need to take a break from your daily life and stresses, it may be time to reconnect with nature and recharge your batteries in a peaceful atmosphere.

In the unique spiritual environment of Lerab Ling, we offer you the opportunity to experience:

You can join us for:

• a meditation break (open to all) to learn to meditate or deepen your practice. 
• a sangha practice retreat (for Rigpa students only) to advance your practice and personal study.
  
  

In both cases, you will have the support of experienced instructors to guide you, and have access to a library and video teachings to further your study.

You can learn more about each of these options by clicking on one of the pictures below.

Practice Retreats for the Sangha

Written by Nicolas Schram on 27 November 2019.

PRACTICE RETREATS FOR THE SANGHA

Deepening your study and practice in a blessed environment

Wherever you are on the path, doing a retreat is an amazing opportunity to deepen your study and practice in the blessed environment of Lerab Ling.

From September to June, you can choose to come for one or several weeks or even longer. There could be a possibility to do a retreat outside this period depending on the number and types of events that are taking place at the time. Please check availability at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Before you come to Lerab Ling, a guide will help you to plan your retreat, help you settle in when you arrive and assist you with practical and spiritual support throughout your stay.

During your retreat you can choose to focus on studying a particular subject or text, accomplish the practice of meditation or compassion, accumulating your Ngöndro or sadhana practice, or focus on Dzogchen practice.

While on retreat, you are welcome to practise in one of the temple shrine rooms when they are available. You are free to join the daily group practices such as Riwo Sangchö and Tendrel Nyesel.

HOW TO REGISTER

Dates: September to June (to be confirmed depending on the events that are happening in Lerab Ling). In 2025, Practice Retreats end on 5 June and resume in September.
Arrival dates & times: Monday to Friday between 10am and 5pm.
Event contribution: From €21 to €7/day depending on the length of your retreat (does not include accommodation and meals). This contribution covers the support for your retreat as well as administrative and other costs.

Please note - The minimum stay for a practice retreat is of 1 week

Before you register please contact us at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and fill-in an application form below. Once the dates and details are confirmed, we will send you a link to register online. Please register at least 2 weeks before the start of your retreat.

REDUCTIONS ON ACCOMMODATION

Except during main events (please check with us).

Different types of accommodation are available depending on the season, ranging from a simple wooden cabin in the forest to a retreat room or studio with a view of the temple. Reduced rates are available for longer stay.

• 25% off for retreats from 8 days to 3 weeks
• 45% off for retreats from 3 to 6 weeks
• 65% off for retreats of more than 6 weeks
  
  

STUDY & PRACTICE GRANTS

If you have the heartfelt wish to do a practice retreat but lack financial means, you now have the opportunity to ask for support from the Study & Practice Grant. Read more

Taking Refuge in Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha: Teachings and Vows, 12-13 July 2025

Written by Paula on 12 July 2025.

TAKING REFUGE IN BUDDHA, DHARMA, AND SANGHA: TEACHINGS AND VOWS

With Khentrul Lodrö T’hayé Rinpoche

Dates: from 12 to 13 July

We are delighted to announce that Khentrul Lodrö Thaye Rinpoche—an eminent master of the Nyingma Kathok lineage—will be coming for the first time to Lerab Ling.

On this occasion, Khentrul Rinpoche will teach on refuge, the entranceway to the Buddhist path, conduct the traditional Refuge ceremony and grant Lay Vows to those who wish to take them for the first time or renew them. It is exceptional to receive these vows from such an eminent teacher of the monastic tradition.

Taking refuge is the foundation or the cornerstone of all Dharma practice. It gives us the stability, confidence and trust needed to embark upon, and to follow the path to enlightenment. The key to taking refuge is acknowledging the fact that we all have buddha nature, and therefore we all have the potential for enlightenment. Refuge is a practice of developing confidence in our true nature.

In the Refuge ceremony we declare our intention to follow the Buddhist path. As an aid in this life change, we receive a Buddhist name. The teacher might also cut a strand of our hair as a symbol for our renunciation of worldly attachments.

On the basis of taking the Refuge Vow, it is possible to take one or several of the lay vows. The five lay vows are the basic vows that underpin the Buddhist way of life for lay practitioners. They are the vows to refrain from killing, taking what is not given, lying, sexual misconduct and taking intoxicants. These vows serve as an important support to our lives and practice as Buddhist practitioners.

HOW TO FOLLOW

These teachings will take place in the opening days of the annual Ngöndro Retreat (12-20 July). The Ngöndro Retreat will be led by Rigpa Teachers and will also focus on the topic of Refuge making Khentrul Lodrö T’hayé Rinpoche’s teachings and ceremonies even more meaningful and timely. If you are interested in following the full retreat, find more information here.

KHENTRUL LODRÖ T’HAYÉ RINPOCHE

Khentrul Lodrö T’hayé Rinpoche was born in eastern Tibet, where he is the abbot of Mardo Tashi Choling Monastery. Khentrul Rinpoche was ordained as a monk at age seven. For more than 20 years, he studied and practiced under his main root guru, His Holiness Khenpo Jigmé Phuntsok Rinpoche. He also spent many years studying with H.H. Katog Moktza Rinpoche and H.H. Penor Rinpoche. Khentrul Rinpoche studied, contemplated, and meditated on all of the sutra and tantra scriptures, including those of Mahamudra and Dzogchen. He also received the associated empowerments, reading transmissions, and oral instructions, and earned the degree of khenpo, equivalent to a Ph.D. in Buddhist philosophy, three times.

Khentrul Rinpoche was invited to the United States by Chagdud Rinpoche in 2002. Since then he has established more than 20 dharma centers across North America. For most of the year, Khentrul Rinpoche travels to and teaches at his dharma centers, as well as at universities, medical facilities, and prisons around the world. He started a shedra, the traditional study of Buddhist scriptures, at Katog Choling Gön, his monastery in the West located in the Ozark Mountains of Northwest Arkansas.

For more information about Khentrul Lodrö T’hayé Rinpoche and his dharma activities visit: www.katogcholing.com

PROVISIONAL SCHEDULE

There will be two teaching sessions per day, approximately:
—10:00-12:00 &
—14:00-17:00, with a 20-30 min. break.
There will be a few optional practice sessions as well.

Teachings on Rigdzin Düpa, 24 May - 1 June 2025

Written by Paula on 24 May 2025.

TEACHINGS ON RIGDZIN DÜPA

With Khenchen Pema Sherab Rinpoche in Lerab Ling & live online

Dates: from 24 May to 1 June. Onsite and live online (except for the empowerment).

Rigdzin Düpa is a sadhana that focuses on the root of all blessings: Guru Rinpoche. It is one of the most important and profound practices of the Longchen Nyingtik tradition that we follow in Rigpa and has the power to awaken, in our experience, the view of the natural state of Dzogpachenpo—the nature of mind. It is also considered to be a profound long-life practice.

Khenchen Pema Sherab Rinpoche will commence the event by bestowing the empowerment of Rigdzin Düpa to those following his teachings in Lerab Ling. According to our spiritual advisors, an empowerment can only be received in person from a qualified master.

Then Khenchen Pema Sherab Rinpoche will grant detailed teachings onRigdzin Düpa focusing on the commentary by Khangsar Tenpé Wangchuk (aka Tulku Tenpo)‘The Light of the Sun and the Moon—Generation and Perfection Stages, Notes Explaining the Words of the Rigdzin Düpa, the Inner Sadhana of the Longchen Nyingtik’.

This text, which Sogyal Rinpoche found so inspiring and taught only partially during the three-year retreat in Lerab Ling, clearly shows the way to practise each section of the sadhana from the Dzogchen perspective.

The teachings will be complemented by sessions led by Rigpa Teachers and Practice Holders dedicated to practising the sadhana, taking the time to go through it step by step, learning all the aspects of this practice together, and answering questions.

Khenpo Sönam Tsewang, Khen Rinpoche’s translator and teaching assistant, has also agreed to offer several review sessions.

WHO THIS EVENT IS FOR

This retreat, with all its aspects, will be a complete training in how to practise Rigdzin Düpa for anyone wishing to discover this practice.

It is also a perfect preparation for anyone wishing to focus more intently on this practice—for example, to participate in a drupchö or nyenpa retreat in Lerab Ling or Dzogchen Beara, or at home. In Rigpa, where we follow mainly the Longchen Nyingtik tradition, Rigdzin Düpa is the first sadhana we “accumulate” after having completed a first set of ngöndro accumulations.

Since Rigdzin Düpa is the designated lama sadhana of the Rigpa sangha, all Vajrayana students are warmly encouraged to participate in this event, especially if they have not received detailed teachings on this practice before.

WHAT ARE THE SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS TO JOIN?

This event is open to Vajrayana students who have received the empowerment of Rigdzin Düpa.

Please check that you fulfil the following requirements.

• You are a member of the Ngöndro or Dzogchen Mandala (this does not apply if you are the member of another sangha). If you feel you should be part of the Ngöndro Mandala but are not yet, please contact your local instructor to have an interview.
• You have already formally entered the Mahayana Buddhist path by taking Refuge and Bodhisattva vows.
• You have a solid foundation and experience of the principles and practices of the Mahayana.
• You have received teachings on all the ngöndro practices, including Guru Yoga.
• You have started your ngöndro accumulations and are on track to continue.
• You have a basic understanding of Vajrayana and some experience in practising sadhanas.
• You have received the empowerment of Rigdzin Düpa already, or you will be present in Lerab Ling to receive the empowerment from Khenchen Pema Sherab at the beginning of his teachings. See the list of occasions this empowerment was given to the Rigpa sangha on the Rigpa wiki.

HOW TO FOLLOW

The best is to join in person to attend the teachings and practices, clarification sessions and ritual aspects. It is also possible to follow the teachings live online on Prajna.

Please note that the transmission of the empowerment of Rigdzin Düpa is only possible for those attending the event in person in Lerab Ling.

TEACHERS

Kyabjé Khenchen Pema Sherab Rinpoche is the senior-most Khenpo in the Nyingma lineage of Tibetan Buddhism, and among the most important lineage holders in the Palyul tradition. Khen Rinpoche is one of the last of a generation of authentic Lamas who hold the pure lineage of the Nyingma tradition, both Kama and Terma. 

Khen Rinpoche has been generously guiding the Rigpa sangha, in particular giving key teachings and transmissions from the Ngagyur Nyingma lineage over the last 15 years. We are incredibly fortunate that Khen Rinpoche supports the Rigpa sangha so closely. More information

Khenpo Sonam Tsewang (translator and teacher) is a Khenpo at Ngagyur Nyingma Institute, the advanced centre for Buddhist philosophical study at Namdroling Monastery, Bylakuppe, India. 

Khenpo is known to many Rigpa students as the translator for Khenchen Pema Sherab Rinpoche with whom he travels extensively. Khenpo Sonam is known to have a deep understanding of western practitioners and has a great skill in presenting teachings in a uniquely clear way that connects traditional teachings to a western audience. More information

PROVISIONAL SCHEDULE FOR THE TEACHINGS

08.00-08.30 Riwo Sangchö (optional)
09:00-11:00 Teachings by Khenchen Pema Sherab Rinpoche
11:00-14:30 Break
14:30-16:30 Study & practice session with Rigpa Practice Holders or clarifications with Khenpo Sönam Tsewang
17:00-19:00 Daily Tendrel Nyesel Tsok (optional)

MORE INFORMATION

For more information on Rigdzin Düpa, please read our Rigpa Study & Practice page.