Foundation Programme - In-Depth Study

Saturdays 1.30 – 5.30pm (around 35 weeks per year)

This is a unique opportunity!

Come and enjoy extensive Dharma teachings on this structured and in-depth study programme guided by Gen Pagpa, our resident teacher. Foundation Programme (FP) classes consist of a guided meditation, prayers and detailed teachings with plenty of discussion in order to gain deep experience of the text being studied. Students of this programme discover a swift development in their understanding of Dharma and confidence to apply the teachings in their daily lives.

We have recently started with the wonderful text Universal Compassion (it is still possible to enrol!) by Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. This inspiring book reveals deeply transforming yet practical methods to enable a powerful opening of the heart, the source of all true happiness. Studying this text and receiving guidance from a qualified teacher gives us a great opportunity to deepen our knowledge and understanding of the spiritual path to enlightenment.

You are welcome to attend a class day in order to sample the Foundation Programme before deciding to enrol.

For more details please ask Gen Pagpa or contact Rob Lengfeld at the Centre.

Class costs: R50 per week or free if you are a Centre member.

In his introduction to the Foundation Programme, Geshe-la says:

"We may have received some teachings or read some books on Buddhism and find them relatively easy to understand and accept, but we find it difficult to integrate this advice into our daily lives. We cannot use it to solve our daily problems. At the moment, when we study the Buddha's teachings, our mind remains passive, like someone watching television; it does not engage in the subject or mix with it. Therefore, our daily life and our Dharma remain completely separate and unrelated. Why is this? It is because we are not studying systematically according to a specially designed programme. If we pick at Dharma randomly we shall never gain deep and stable experience."