Year 3: The Way of the Great Perfection - The practice of bodhichitta within the Longchen Nyingtik Ngöndro

Saturday, 11th October 2025, about 10:30am CET

Topic and teacher are still to be conformed.
→ The talk will be given in English, with translations into French, German, and Spanish.

• OPEN TO ALL: Rigpa‘s most experienced teachers will be holding Live Sangha Days with students gathering in person at centres and online and so connecting all of us together internationally.  These sessions have live translations and if you can’t attend live, you will also be able to view on PrajnaOnline for delayed viewing. The live streaming you find each month under ‘Live Practices’ on Prajna. For delayed viewing click here for
  -> review of sangha days from year 1
  -> review of sangha days from year 2

• For those who wish for continued support throughout the month, you will have the guidance of the weekly study sessions held by local and national teachers and instructors in-person or online, which include the pithiest teachings by Sogyal Rinpoche and other masters, together with crucial contemplations and meditations. 
  OPEN TO all students who have studied and contemplated the four thoughts and basic knowledge of refuge (eg. last two terms of The Way of the Great Perfection), or by having attended the ngöndro summer retreat 2024 ‘Developing the determination to be free’ and 2025 'Taking Refuge: From Now until Enlightenment' in Lerab Ling.
  For these weekly study you need to register with your National Rigpa.

• Additional material will be provided for those of us who want more detailed study.

• The International Ngöndro Retreat each summer in Lerab Ling will be an occasion to come together internationally and further our understanding and experience, catch up on what we may have missed and receive personal guidance from Rigpa’s most experienced teachers. The date for this retreat is likely to be 11th - 18th July 2026. More information will follow.

• For those registered, the entire program can also be followed online at your own pace and will be delivered on RigpaOnlineCourses (ROC). If you prefer to study online by yourself, we encourage you to have a study buddy, with whom you can exchange information and insights about your study and practice and you could also find encouragement and support.

The whole path to enlightenment taught in Tibetan Buddhism has been clearly mapped out in the teachings over centuries. Many masters consider the preliminary practices, called Ngöndro in Tibetan, to be the main practice of this tradition. This also encompasses all the elements needed to prepare us to fully receive the Great Perfection teachings of Dzogchen, the highest and most direct stream of wisdom within the Buddhist tradition of Tibet.

So no matter where we are on our path, this new cycle called “The Way of the Great Perfection” will support us in taking it to completion. Our senior and most experienced Rigpa teachers will guide us through the key principles of the Ngöndro, helping us to discover or revisit these principles in a fresh, up-to-date, real life way. We will dig into the framework of these practices with an out-of-the box perspective while preserving their authenticity entirely.

So, the goal of this multi-year programme of The Way of the Great Perfection is for us to arrive at a thorough and complete understanding of what the teachings tell us about the different methods and to reach a complete certainty on how we apply them in our practice and in daily life and ultimately realise the innermost nature of our own minds.

You can follow all of the Live Sangha Days in your centre, live online or delayed on Prajna.

Please find the dates for the live sangha days below, the time will be Saturdays at 10:30am Paris time (unless the location of the teacher does not permit this time)

• 11 October 2025: Introduction to Longchen Nyingtik Ngöndro

• 8 November 2025: Loving Kindness (preliminary to bodhichitta)

• 6 December 2025: Self compassion (preliminary to bodhichitta) -> NOTE 1st Saturday

• 10 January 2026: Introduction to the Four Immeasurables, with emphasis on Equanimity

• 14 February 2026: Equanimity

• 14 March 2026: Love

• 11 April 2026: TBC Streaming from Bodhichitta retreat

• 9 May 2026: Compassion

• 13 June 2026: Joy

• Gathering with sangha friends: As much as possible we hope we can gather (in person or online) with sangha friends for the Live Sangha Days and weekly study. We also understand that this isn’t always possible, for this reason it’s also possible to follow in your own time on Prajna.

• There are two ways you can participate in the programme:

  • 1: Live Sangha Days only: Everyone in the Rigpa sangha and also the public can join the monthly live sessions without being registered for the AEPE. These sessions are available on Prajna for any Rigpa student who is registered to the Prajna Website (no need for a paid subscription).

  • 2: Join the full programme which includes the live sangha days plus weekly study with your local sangha and other materials. Please register for the full programme with your national Rigpa. Attending this programme qualifies for this stage on the path to further study Vajrayana.

• Where do I find the programme?

  • The Live Sangha Days will be accessible through the LIVE PRACTICES section on Prajna and via the blue Zoom button above.

  • The weekly study materials as well as the additional materials can be accessed via the website "Rigpa Online Courses (ROC)".

• Registration is through the countries. Please contact your national Rigpa.

The aim of the Light of Dharma grant is to secure the teachings by sponsoring projects and programmes developed in Rigpa that use new channels to share the Dharma, in ways most adapted to these times of great unpredictability and fast-developing technologies.
All teachers are offered a small honorarium for their contribution to The Way of the Great Perfection. If you want to support the teachers and Rigpas projects, please donate to the Light of Dharma grant.