The Way of the Great Perfection, year 2

12th October 2024 - 30th June 2025
A cycle of the All-Encompassing Path to Enlightenment (YEAR 2)

The All-Encompassing Path to Enlightenment (AEPE) is Rigpa’s main study programme for students of all levels: new, more advanced and in-between. And within the present study cycle of the AEPE called The Way of the Great Perfection a new phase began in October 2024. Last year we explored the outer preliminaries, The Four Thoughts that turn the mind towards the Dharma. This year we will explore the main principles of Refuge as well as getting a taste of the whole ngöndro in a fresh and meaningful way. These preliminary practices are a complete path in themselves and also the foundation for Vajrayana and Dzogchen practice.

The next Live Sangha Day

Generosity is the greatest treasure - Mandala Offering with Seth Dye
Saturday 10 May - 10:30-12:30 CET

Guru Yoga — the Most Powerful Practice for Awakening the Realisation of our True Nature with senior teacher Valerie Baker
Saturday 14 June - 10:30-12:30 CET

Elements of the program

OPEN TO ALL: Rigpa‘s most experienced teachers will be holding Live Sangha Days at their local centre, 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 check here.

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 (eg. last term of The Way of the Great Perfection), or by attending the ngöndro summer retreat 2024 ‘Developing the determination to be free’ in Lerab Ling, or during past years of study. For this 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 in July 2025. 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).

The programme of The Way of the Great Perfection

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.

Dates and topics for the Live Sangha Days 2024/2025

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

• Dominique Side: What is the entranceway to awakening? // Saturday 12 October - 10:30 CEST (Guru Rinpoche Day)
• Jan van der Breggen: The three types of faith // Saturday 16 November - 10:30 CET
• Ruth Seehausen: Causal and resultant refuge // Saturday 14 December - 10:30 CET
• Patrick Gaffney: The preliminary Practices of the Brief Dudjom Tersar Ngöndro // POSTPONED
• Kirsten Czeczor: Powerful reminders: Knowing what to do and what not to do // Saturday 8 February - 10:30 CET
• Weekend with Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche: Teachings on Refuge and Bodhichitta // Saturday 8th and Sunday 9th of March - each day from 9:00-11:00 CET —> please register!
• Sébastien Regianny: The Power of Healing (Vajrasattva) // Saturday 12 April - 10:30 CET
• Generosity is the greatest treasure // Saturday 10 May - 10:30 CET
• Valerie Baker: The swiftest path to realisation // Saturday 14 June - 10:30 CET

Practical details about how to join the All Encompassing Path to Enlightenment

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.

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.

Donation

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.

Year 2: The Way of the Great Perfection: Refuge and an overview of the Ngöndro