International Office News
December 2025

Lama Zopa Rinpoche at the Jewel Changi Airport, Singapore, September 2019. Photo by Ven. Lobsang Sherab.

Warmest wishes, happiest of holidays, and a happy new year to you from
all of us at FPMT International Office.

May 2026 usher in a new year full of peace and compassion
for yourself and others.

We send our heartfelt thanks to each of you supporting the FPMT mission as students, staff, benefactors, and friends.

We rejoice in the great beneficial efforts of the entire FPMT community,
this year and in all years to come.

May all the holy wishes of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Lama Thubten Yeshe, and Lama Zopa Rinpoche be fulfilled perfectly immediately.

We dedicate all merits created, including merits of the three-time buddhas and sentient beings, to the swift return of our precious guru,
Kyabje Zopa Rinpoche.

May all sentient beings have happiness and the causes of happiness.
May all sentient beings be free from suffering and the causes of suffering.
May all sentient beings never be separated from the happiness
that knows no suffering.
May all sentient beings abide in equanimity, free of attachment and hatred for those held close and distant.

Teachings and News Regarding Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Celebrating Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Birthday, December 3

Guru bumtsog event with the large Padmasambhava thangka on display, December 16, 2023. Photo courtesy of Kopan Monastery.

Students of Lama Zopa Rinpoche observe December 3 as the auspicious date of Rinpoche’s birth. For the tenth year in a row, a very large thangka of Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche) was displayed and an auspicious 100,000 tsog offering event (Guru Bumtsog) was offered at Khachoe Ghakyil Ling (Kopan Nunnery). Since Rinpoche showing the aspect of passing away, this event now takes place on Rinpoche’s birthday to commemorate Rinpoche’s life and dedicate to fulfill Rinpoche’s wishes. Please read a report from Ven. Sarah Thresher on this year’s event, and some of the meaningful history.

Valuable Resources for Students

We would like to draw your attention to some valuable resources for students of Lama Zopa Rinpoche.

Compendium of Precious Instructions: A Catalog of Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Works is a collection of Rinpoche’s literary and graphic works which are available electronically and/or in print, with particular emphasis on key teachings that Rinpoche especially wanted his students to take note of and put into practice, as well as a guide on where to find the audio and video.

Life Practice Advice is a resource based on Rinpoche’s essential daily practice and lifetime practice advice. This is his essential advice and by following this advice, students can feel confident they are following and practicing according to Rinpoche’s heart advice.

FPMT.org offers a collection of practical advice from Lama Zopa Rinpoche. Students can also find Rinpoche’s advice on a wide range of topics in the form of short talks and letters at the Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive.

Videos of Lama Yeshe and Lama Zopa Rinpoche from 1982

In 1982, FPMT hosted its first Enlightened Experience Celebration, (EEC1) which was held in India from January to June 1982. The purpose of the first EEC was to gather students of Lama Yeshe and Lama Zopa Rinpoche, especially the Western monks and nuns, to strengthen the presence of Buddhism in the West and facilitate the ongoing transmission of the Dharma into Western culture. 

We recently shared two precious videos from EEC1. These videos capture so deeply the warmth and care offered by these two extraordinary lamas. Long-time FPMT student Robyn Brentano conducted the interviews and also was tasked with filming the events of EEC. 

Please learn more about the Enlightened Experience Celebration, watch the videos of Lama Yeshe and Lama Zopa Rinpoche, and read Robyn’s account of how she became involved with filming, interviewing, and more! 

Lama Yeshe’s Wisdom

Silent Mind, Holy Mind

Lama Yeshe at Kopan Monastery, 1971. Photo courtesy of Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive.

Around Christmas time between 1971 and 1975, Lama Yeshe gave several talks related to Christmas to the Western students at Kopan Monastery, Nepal, in case some of them were missing their families and being at home at that festive time of year. These talks, and another given on Christmas Day, 1982, at Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa during Lama’s teachings on the Six Yogas of Naropa, have been collected into the Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive book Silent Mind Holy Mind. So many years later, we share these precious teachings this time of year with students new and old who can benefit from Lama’s timeless advice.

As the holiday approaches, we are happy to share Chapter 4 of Silent Mind, Holy Mind, which is from a talk given by Lama Yeshe in 1982 at Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa in Pomaia, Italy. We are also so pleased to share a video of this teaching.

The Enlightenment Attitude

Lama Yeshe offered a teaching about the importance of bodhicitta and the mind of enlightenment while bestowing bodhisattva vows at Chenrezig Institute, Australia, on September 14, 1979. This discourse is now published in the LYWA book Knowledge-Wisdom: The Peaceful Path the Liberation, edited by Nicholas Ribush. Please enjoy an excerpt from this powerful teaching:

“The thing is, from the Buddhist point of view, it is very important for one to have the enlightenment attitude. It is an important thing. The reason is, I think I can say, that without some kind of attitude or thought with which to transform the actions of our daily life, life seems to be a disaster. If you are living in a couple relationship, or even if you are just a single person, you still have to relate with human beings. Even if you go into the Himalaya Mountains, you still have to relate with sentient beings, human beings. There is no place that you can go where you don’t have to relate with human beings, so it is very important to have this attitude, because all actions, both good and bad, depend on it. You know—I’m not going to tell you that; you know already. So in order to transform our lives, to live in the best way, we desperately need to constantly have the divine quality enlightenment attitude, bodhicitta.”

Please continue to read the full teaching.

What We’re Rejoicing About

The 56th November Course Has Concluded at Kopan Monastery

Kopan’s 8th Meditation Course, 1975 group photo with Lama Yeshe and Lama Zopa Rinpoche. Photo by Jon Landaw.

Please rejoice that 200 participants from 44 countries came together for this 56th course, successfully facilitated entirely by Kopan residents. Ven. Joan Nicell served as the main teacher, with meditations led by Ani Janne and Francisca Riaño, evening sessions guided by Ani Karin, and with the participation of Khen Rinpoche, who offered teachings and kind advice to the students. How incredible that these courses have been offered since the very start of the FPMT organization over 50 years ago!

A longer story with details of the course will follow soon.

Support offered to Ordained Sangha in 2025

Supporting monks and nuns is one of the highest priorities for the FPMT organization, because the preservation of the Buddhadharma is dependent on the existence of Sangha. The Supporting Ordained Sangha Fund (SOSF) was created to uphold this commitment by offering practical and compassionate assistance to ordained individuals and communities around the world.

The scope of the SOSF is broad and inclusive – it provides support for food, accommodation, health care, education, and practice to monasteries, nunneries, and individual Sangha members across many traditions and regions.

In 2025, we were honored to have offered many grants, helping ensure that monks and nuns can live, study, and practice with dignity and stability.

Two of these grants fulfilled long-standing commitments made by Lama Zopa Rinpoche, allowing us to bring two of Rinpoche’s heartfelt wishes to completion in 2025.

Please join us in rejoicing in these offerings to the Sangha and we invite you to take a closer look at the various ways we have been able to offer this collective support. Please read the full report on grants offered. 

Lotsawa Rinchen Zangpo Translation Program Welcomes New Students

Lotsawa Rinchen Zangpo Translator Program (LRZTP) is an FPMT project in Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh, India. LRZTP has produced many gifted Dharma interpreters-translators for FPMT Dharma centers since its conception over twenty-three years ago. In addition to the two-year intensive training program, LRZTP also runs short Tibetan language courses and offers private online Tibetan language lessons.

We are happy to share a recent report on LRZTP’s successes and  losses from the past year, including the passing of LRZTP teacher Geshe Tenzin Wandak in September, and starting the new interpreters training course, LRZTP 10, which has welcomed 18 new students from around the world, in October. 

Rinchen Jangsem Ling Breaks Record for Most Tea Lights Offered in Malaysia

An incredible 102,647 tea lights were offered at Rinchen Jangsem Ling, Malaysia on December 6.

The grounds of Rinchen Jangsem Ling retreat center (RJL) in Triang, Malaysia, were illuminated by 102,647 tea lights during its recent 100,000 Light Offerings to Thousand-Armed Chenrezig on the evening of December 6, 2025, breaking a record for the most tea lights offered in any event in Malaysian history! We will be sharing an extensive story on this incredible event hosted by Rinchen Jangsem Ling soon. 

Aid Offered to Flood Victims in Sri Lanka

In a collaborative effort between Amitabha Buddhist Centre (ABC), Singapore; Tara Lanka Study Group, Sri Lanka; and dedicated selfless volunteers, disaster relief was offered to those devastated by recent floods in Sri Lanka. Ven. Tenzin Lekdron shares, “In the wake of devastating floods and landslides in Sri Lanka, a spontaneous yet deeply meaningful relief effort unfolded—driven by urgency, cooperation, and heartfelt compassion. When news of the disasters reached us, the wish arose to offer immediate support to those displaced, dedicating on the auspicious occasion of Lama Tsongkhapa Day. With only a few days available, swift coordination was essential. In a remarkable response, the ABC in Singapore reached out almost instantly and a spontaneous act of generosity made it possible to act without delay.” We will share a full report on this aid offered next week. 

Planetary Crisis Summit 2025

On September 27-28 six European FPMT centers joined forces to offer a Planetary Crisis Summit. This event built upon the summit hosted by the London Jamyang Buddhist Centre, created for those who feel touched—sometimes overwhelmed—by the state of the world. The format was new within FPMT. It was a combination of a shared online program and local events at the participating centers. People joined the livestream online program in the morning either as a group sitting in their own gompa at one of the participating centers or online. And in the afternoon the centers facilitated their own local events and dedicated online together at the end of the day. We are pleased to share a detailed report of this extraordinary event!

Resources and Opportunities for Study and Practice

Chanting the Names of Manjushri Recited by Ven. Tenzin Gendun

We are happy to share a beautiful recording of Ven. Tenzin Gendun reciting Chanting the Names of Manjushri in English. Students of Lama Zopa Rinpoche have been reciting these verses on the advice of His Holiness the Dalai Lama for Rinpoche’s swift return. Please enjoy this recitation and video which contains many beautiful photos of Lama Zopa Rinpoche.

Newly Available and Updated Materials

A Detailed Commentary on the Practice of the Six Yogas of Naropa: Gyurme Khenzur Rinpoche has taught on the six yogas of Naropa several times over the years. These teachings were compiled and edited from Lorne Ladner’s notes and recollections, following Gyurme Khenzur Rinpoche’s advice. With Khenzur Rinpoche’s permission, Lorne supplemented the six yogas book with materials from other teachings, particularly, Rinpoche’s teachings on the five stages of the completion stage of Guhyasamaja, and the completion stage of Yamantaka, mahamudra, and tantric stages and paths.

The Staircase Proceeding to Liberation: An Uncommon Guru Yoga Based on Chittamani Tara: Composed by Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche, this uncommon guru yoga based on Chittamani Tara is a method that includes the seven limbs prayer, mantra recitation, receiving the four initiations, and visualization of the guru entering the heart.

We are also pleased to share an update of the Tara Chittamani Uncommon Guru Yoga that was translated and expanded by Lama Yeshe, with notes and instructions for meditation.

Opportunity to Join the FPMT Masters Program Teachings in 2026

The FPMT Masters Program in Buddhist Studies of Sutra and Tantra (MP) is FPMT’s most advanced education program, the realization of the vision of Lama Thubten Yeshe. Its mission is to provide a full-time, in-depth education for students of the Tibetan Mahayana tradition of Lama Tsongkhapa that emphasizes the integration of academic, practice, behavior, service, and training components. In addition to offering students a profound deepening of their Dharma understanding and practice, the program aims to provide the FPMT with highly qualified Western teachers of Buddhist theory and practice.

Nalanda Monastery, with its beautiful setting in the rolling hills of Southern France, extends an invitation to all interested students to join the teachings on the Madhyamakavatara, the next subject of their MP, starting February 2026 in English and in French, with residential and online options.

This is a last chance to immerse oneself in this subject at MP level for many years to come. Please be encouraged, or encourage your study-inclined students and friends, to consider coming to France and make use of this unique opportunity!

Please find more information about this precious opportunity and learn how and to register.

Retreat Opportunities

Please check our retreat schedule page for group retreat opportunities upcoming in your area.

Call for Stories, Interviews, and Submissions!

Early Students: Your Stories Are Needed!

This year in December, the FPMT organization celebrates fifty years since its formation in 1975. We are working on putting together some of the rich history of this time, as a way to rejoice in how far we have come! Were you an early student of the FPMT organization, particularly, were you part of the activities and developments in 1975? We’d love to hear your story and ask you a few questions, please be in touch!

FPMT Community News Stories

We welcome the submission of news stories from those within the FPMT community. This can be a story about something you have personally completed or accomplished, about someone else who has done so, or about the FPMT center, project, or service of which you are a part. Ideal submissions will give readers reasons to rejoice, share ideas, and create connections between those in the international community. Have something to share? We would love to hear from you!

Stories and Photos of “Mummy” Max Mathews

Max Mathews and Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Aptos, California, March, 1984. Photo by Åge Delbanco.

Author of Big Love: the Live and Teachings of Lama Yeshe, Adele Hulse is now writing a biography of “Mummy” Max Mathews, who passed away in 2024. Mummy Max contributed greatly and financially assisted Lama Yeshe and Lama Zopa Rinpoche in establishing Kopan Monastery and the FPMT organization. Adele is requesting stories, anecdotes, photos, and any other information FPMT students may have on Max. If you have something to share, please reach out to Adele directly.

Appeals, Opportunities, and Changes within the Organization

Fulfilling Our Lamas’ Wishes Fund Drive

We are inviting support for our annual year-end fundraising drive, with donations being received for our Fulfilling Our Lamas’ Wishes Fund, a fund honoring the visionary work and mission of Lama Thubten Yeshe and Lama Yeshe, and their wishes for the Foundation to preserve the Mahayana tradition and benefit beings through International Office’s activities. Donations help our work in making the teachings accessible around the world, help us manage our grant-making activities through charitable projects, and offer services to local FPMT communities. To learn more and offer support, please continue reading. 

Changes in the FPMT Organization

International Mahayana Institute
We welcome Ven. Thubten Chokyi as new director
With grateful thanks to outgoing director Ven. Losang Tendar

Liberation Prison Project, USA
We welcome Smitha Lahiri as new director
With grateful thanks to outgoing director Nicole Mayo

Root Institute, India
We welcome Julia Ryan as new spiritual program coordinator

Osel Ling Retreat Centre, Spain
We welcome Geshe Yeshe Rinchen as resident teacher

Nagarjuna Alicante, Spain
Grateful thanks to outgoing spiritual program coordinator Jose Zaplana Sierra

Opportunities to Offer Service

Read about the amazing benefits and importance of offering service in the FPMT organization, and have a look at these meritorious opportunities to offer service as paid staff or as a volunteer in FPMT centers, projects, and services around the world, including opportunities in Australia, France, India, Italy, Mongolia, North American Region, Nepal, New Zealand, Spain, Sweden, UK and the USA. Newly added: Kopan Monastery (Nepal) is looking for a spiritual program coordinator, Land of Medicine Buddha (California, USA) is looking for a new director, and FPMT Mongolia is looking for a new director.

Foundation Service Seminar in Italy and the United States

Participants in the Foundation Service Seminar hosted at Istituto Lama Tsong Khapa, Italy, April 2023.

The Foundation Service Seminar (FSS) is the “FPMT immersion retreat,” providing essential information and nourishment for all serving, or wishing to serve, in the FPMT organization. This is a wonderful opportunity for centers, projects, and services to invest in the future by training the next generation of directors, SPCs, volunteers, board members, etc.

Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa, Italy, is organizing an FSS on June 10-14, 2026. Reservations are not open yet, but please save the dates.

Land of Medicine Buddha, California, is organizing an FSS on October 26-30, 2026. Reservations are not open yet, but please save the dates.

Become a Friend of FPMT

Contact information for the centers mentioned, and all FPMT centers, projects, and services can be found in the FPMT Directory.

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FPMT International Office is Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s office.