His Eminence Serkong Tsenshap Rinpoche embarked on a three-month European tour beginning in May 2026, we are delighted to share an overview of his visits to FPMT centers compiled by Rommy Johnson.

H.E. Serkong Rinpoche at Institut Vajra Yogini, France, July 2026. Photo by Rommy Johnson.

There is a particular kind of joy that moves through the FPMT mandala when a beloved teacher travels from center to center, and this summer, that joy followed His Eminence Serkong Tsenshap Rinpoche across Europe. From late May through early August, H.E. Serkong Rinpoche journeyed from center to center, teaching, listening, and sitting with students old and new — and everywhere he went, the warmth of family feeling was unmistakable.

H.E. Serkong Rinpoche at the FPMT Center Muni Gyana in Sicily. June 6–7, 2026. Photo by Rommy Johnson.

The tour opened in Italy at Manjushri Lotsawa (May 29 – June 2), where students gathered in person and online for a hybrid presentation of Kamalashila’s Stages of Meditation — a fitting beginning, grounding the tour in the very foundations of the path. From there, H.E. Serkong Rinpoche traveled to the FPMT Center Muni Gyana in Sicily (June 6–7) for teachings on the Key to the Middle Way, and stayed on for a few more precious days, offering an intimate question-and-answer session on June 8, an evening conference on June 9 and the oral transmission of the Uttaratantra on June 10. Students who had waited months, some years, to sit with H.E. Serkong Rinpoche again found themselves welcomed back as though no time had passed at all.

H.E. Serkong Rinpoche at Nalanda Monastery, France, June 29, 2026. Photo by Rommy Johnson.

On June 29, H.E. Serkong Rinpoche paid a special visit in France to Nalanda Monastery, offering two teachings in a single day. The first explored the inseparability of conventional and ultimate truths in sutra and tantra, while the second turned to the heart practice of generating bodhicitta and exchanging oneself with others, drawn from Lama Chöpa Lamrim Verse (LC 90–95). It was a day that moved seamlessly from philosophical depth to the tender, practical work of opening the heart — exactly the kind of teaching that stays with students long after they’ve left the room.

Dr. Alexander Berzin at Insitut Vajra Yogini. July 2026. Photo by Rommy Johnson

By early July, the tour had carried H.E. Serkong Rinpoche to Institut Vajra Yogini, France, where he taught on Mind Training for Ultimate Happiness (July 2–4). Here, and at several stops to come, H.E. Serkong Rinpoche was joined by Dr. Alexander Berzin ——a long-time student and translator for the previous Serkong Tsenshap Rinpoche. Dr. Berzin is also the founder of Study Buddhism and the Berzin Archive. For the summer tour Dr Berzin supplemented the teachings leading review and Q&A sessions, offering his decades of scholarship and his own deep connection to the Serkong lineage in support of Rinpoche’s teachings. Then came one of the summer’s most joyful moments: on July 5, the community gathered in person to celebrate His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s birthday — a day of prayers, laughter, and gratitude, reminding everyone present why this community exists.

From July 6–8, H.E. Serkong Rinpoche traveled to Paris to take part in the first Grand Europe Monlam, a deeply moving prayer festival held alongside His Eminence Ganden Tripa and Their Eminences Sharpa Choeje and Jangtse Choeje. Together, these senior lamas led three days of prayer dedicated to preserving the Buddhist teachings, and dedicated to all those who lost their lives across Europe during the First and Second World Wars, through epidemics, through conflict, and under countless other circumstances. Prayers were also offered for all those currently unwell, and for peace and benefit to spread to all beings everywhere.

H.E. Serkong Rinpoche, and Dr. Berzin at Centre Kalachakra, France, July 2026. Photo credits by Centre Kalachakra’s Facebook Page.

The tour continued at Kalachakra Center (July 8–12), where H.E. Serkong Rinpoche offered a deep exploration of Compassion and Emptiness according to Chandrakirti’s Entering the Middle Way, with Dr. Berzin again lending his support as teaching assistant, before making the final stop at Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa in Italy for two consecutive programs: Chapter 22 of Clear Words (July 26–29) and Jewel of the Awakened Heart (July 30 – August 2) — once more supported by Dr. Berzin’s presence and guidance.

H.E.Serkong Rinpoche at Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa, Italy, July 2026. Photo by Rommy Johnson.

On August 9, H.E. Serkong Rinpoche kindly offered online teachings to the entire FPMT community as part of the Global Mani Retreat. The teachings focused on bodhicitta and the seven-point method for developing bodhicitta. H.E. Serkong Rinpoche based his teachings on Maitreya’s Sublime Continuum (Ratnagotravibhaga) — a rich and generous close to a summer of teachings.

On August 9, H.E. Serkong Rinpoche kindly offered online teachings to the entire FPMT community as part of the Global Mani Retreat.

What made this tour so special wasn’t only the depth of the Dharma offered, though that alone would have been enough. It was the reunions in doorways and courtyards before teachings began. It was long-time students who had organized these very same programs years earlier, welcoming Serkong Rinpoche home again. It was newer students, some meeting Serkong Rinpoche for the very first time, discovering the ease and warmth he brings into a room. Across six centers and ten weeks, old friendships were renewed and new ones quietly took root — a reminder that no matter the language spoken or the border crossed, we are all part of the same family.

The Autumn Tour

H.E. Serkong Rinpoche’s Autumn Tour

The journey doesn’t end here. H.E. Serkong Rinpoche’s teaching tour has continued this autumn with an ambitious itinerary spanning Germany, Switzerland, the UK, Wales, Austria, Belgium, and Spain — nearly three months of Dharma activity stretching across the continent. We invite you to read more about his schedule on H.E. Serkong Rinpooche’s website

We warmly invite students and friends throughout the FPMT mandala to join H.E. Serkong Rinpoche wherever this autumn tour brings him — whether gathered in person in a familiar teaching hall or joining from home across a screen. Wherever you are, there is a place for you in this circle. 

With grateful thanks to Rommy Johnson for this report. 

We offer congratulations and thanks to all of the FPMT centers involved in making this tour a success and benefit to so many who received teachings along the way! 

Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition (FPMT) is a Tibetan Buddhist organization dedicated to the transmission of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition and values worldwide through teaching, meditation, and community service.