The Lamrim — "Stages of the Path" in Tibetan — is a systematic presentation of the entire Buddhist path to Awakening, written by the great Tibetan master Je Tsongkhapa in the 14th and early 15th century, based on writings of the Indian master Atisha. It arranges every essential teaching of the Buddha into a single, coherent, graduated sequence tailored to your mind, exactly as it is right now. Its true power lies not in study alone, but in practice. Each teaching is carefully arranged to meet the mind where it is and guide it—step by step—toward genuine change.

The uncommon preliminary practices (ngöndro) are powerful methods to purify the mind and prepare it for lasting transformation.

Over the first eleven months the common foundations, renunciation, bodhicitta, and the view of emptiness, are explored based on the Lamrim. For the remaining five months the focus is on the uncommon practices, Vajrasattva purification, mandala offerings, and guru yoga. Weekly sessions each introduce a new topic that examines different ways to meditate and why, in combination with a guided meditation.  

The training helps establish a consistent daily meditative practice in supports of its overall aim: to engage in contemplative meditation in a way that genuinely transforms the mind's outlook on the world and gives one's life a new direction. Students gain a deep understanding of how to accumulate merit and purify unskillful karma while cultivating a healthy relationship with the Three Jewels and their teacher. The emphasis is on learning to meditate in a personally tailored way, in accordance with one’s psychological makeup and life conditions.

The teacher : Venerable Losang Gendun

Venerable Losang Gendun has spent nearly four decades in Buddhist practice, living as a fully ordained Bhikshu in the Tibetan tradition for the past twenty years. His training spans ten years of monastic study across France, India, Nepal, and Myanmar, and more than four years in solitary retreat in both Tibetan and Burmese Theravāda traditions. For the past eighteen years he has taught Buddhist philosophy, psychology, and meditation worldwide within the FPMT, serving the vision of H.H. the Dalai Lama and Lama Zopa Rinpoche. In 2023 he founded The Buddha Project, offering long-term guidance for serious meditators and fostering dialogue between Buddhist traditions, contemplative science, and the arts. Its core program is the four-year FPMT In-Depth Meditation Training.

Who is it for?

The training is designed for students with a solid grounding in the Lamrim or an equivalent Dharma background — particularly for those seeking structured support in their practice, for those preparing for śamatha, vipaśyanā, and especially tantra, or for those encountering challenges in their meditative practice. While not a prerequisite, the training forms an excellent preparation for the FPMT In-Depth Meditation Training.

What to Expect:

The Ngondro Lamrim Training teaching sessions are prerecorded. Each week, a 90-minute teaching together with a guided meditation are uploaded. On four other days, advanced students contribute additional guided meditations. The teacher, Venerable Gendun, offers regular online Q&A sessions. For those who have already studied the Lamrim or the FPMT Basic Program, the training also offers specialized opportunities to learn how to guide others in meditation.

Year 1: Definite Emergence and Mind of Awakening  

• Prepare the mind for śamatha, vipaśyanā, and tantra

• Explore renunciation and bodhicitta, the first two Principles of the Path

• Develop genuine urgency through Lamrim contemplation

• Cultivate the aspiration to Awakening for all beings

Year 2: Wisdom, Merit, Purification and Guru Yoga

• Cultivate the wisdom realizing emptiness

• Accumulate merit and purify karma through mandala offerings and Vajrasattva

• Unpack and reframe guru devotion for a Western context

• Make ritual practice personal and alive

Year One:

Term 1: 17th September – 26th November 2026

Term 2 TBC

Term 3 TBC

How to Register

The first course runs from mid-September 2026 to end of June 2028.

The Ngöndro Lamrim Training will be offered annually. Each year is divided in three Terms. Registration is per Term.

After registration, you will get access to the materials through The Buddha Project learning platform.

Recommended Donations:

Generosity is one of the cornerstones of the Buddhist path. With your donation we support our teachers in their cost of living and we keep our centre going, for the benefit of all sentient beings.

As the course is a collaboration with other FPMT centres it is not possible to offer this as part of our Jamyang Leeds membership programme. The recommended donation per term, is 110 euros.

If this isn’t affordable please do register, we never turn anyone away from the Dharma for financial reasons and we can agree a donation that is affordable for you at the current time. Please email Marie-Odile our IDMT Coordinator idmt@jamyangleeds.co.uk if you would like to chat.

To complement Ngondro Lamrim Training there is also:

The FPMT In-Depth Meditation Training (IDMT) program which offers a structured, long-term approach to Mahayana insight meditation. Also led by Venerable Losang Gendun, a seasoned teacher with extensive training in both Theravada and Mahayana traditions. This course is suitable for individuals with an intermediate to advanced understanding of Buddhist meditation. Live teachings online are given on Saturday afternoons weekly during term time. Find out more here

Both Ngondro Lamrim Training and In Depth Meditation Training are part of The Buddha Project led by Venerable Losang Gendun, a branch of which is the Buddha Research Project, an on-going collaboration between Buddhist contemplatives and scientific researchers from the universities of Nîmes and Lausanne, and the Mind & Life organization (founded by neuroscientist Francesco Varela in collaboration with His Holiness the Dalai Lama). It is aimed at investigating transformative processes in long-term meditators, regarding such topics as mental-health, perception, and self-transcendence. For the initial research it has been granted a European Varela Award. You can find out more about The Buddha Project here