Venerable Sangye Khadro

California-born, Venerable Sangye Khadro ordained as a Buddhist nun at Kopan Monastery in 1974, and is a longtime friend and colleague of Abbey founder Ven. Thubten Chodron. Ven. Sangye Khadro took the full (bhikshuni) ordination in 1988. While studying at Nalanda Monastery in France in the 1980s, she helped to start the Dorje Pamo Nunnery, along with Venerable Chodron. Venerable Sangye Khadro has studied Buddhism with many great masters including Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Lama Yeshe, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Geshe Ngawang Dhargyey, and Khensur Jampa Tegchok. She began teaching in 1979 and was a resident teacher at Amitabha Buddhist Centre in Singapore for 11 years. She has been resident teacher at the FPMT centre in Denmark since 2016, and from 2008-2015, she followed the Masters Program at the Lama Tsong Khapa Institute in Italy. Venerable Sangye Khadro has authored several books, including the best-selling How to Meditate, now in its 17th printing, which has been translated into eight languages. She has taught at Sravasti Abbey since 2017 and is now a full-time resident.

Featured Series

Venerable Sangye Khadro stands next to a wooden statue of Kuan Yin.

37 Practices of Bodhisattvas with Venerable Sangye Khadro (2019)

Short talks by Venerable Sangye Khadro on "The 37 Practices of Bodhisattvas" by Gyelsay Togmay Zangpo.

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70 Topics with Venerable Sangye Khadro (2022)

70 Topics is an important study of the entire sutra path to enlightenment as presented in Maitreya's "Ornament for Clear Realization," including all the fundamental features of the basis, path and goal in the Mahayana.

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Venerable Sangye Khadro smiles while teaching.

Art of Transforming Suffering Retreat with Venerable Sangye Khadro (2017)

Teachings by Venerable Sangye Khadro on the art of transforming suffering given at Sravasti Abbey in July 2017.

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Know Your Mind with Venerable Sangye Khadro livestream banner.

Know Your Mind with Venerable Sangye Khadro (2021)

An introduction to Buddhist psychology by Venerable Sangye Khadro. The course explores topics such as what the mind is, perception and conception, types of awareness, and the mental factors.

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Venerable Sangye Khadro smiling while teaching in front of a thangka.

Meditation 101 by Venerable Sangye Khadro (2021)

Teachings by Venerable Sangye Khadro suitable for people encountering both meditation and Buddhism for the first time.

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A path in the meadow that leads into the forest.

Mind and Mental Factors with Venerable Sangye Khadro (2019)

An overview of the Buddhist psychology of mind and mental factors given during a course on Buddhist reasoning and debate in 2019.

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Blue sky with wispy clouds above a meadow.

Seven Kinds of Awareness with Venerable Sangye Khadro (2019)

An overview of the seven kinds of awareness according to the Buddhist philosophy of mind taught as part of a course on Buddhist reasoning and debate in 2019.

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Venerable Sangye Khadro smiles while speaking into a microphone.

Tenets with Venerable Sangye Khadro (2022)

Weekly teachings on the text "Presentation of Tenets" by Jetsun Chokyi Gyaltsen by Venerable Sangye Khadro.

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Full Ordination for Nuns

Researching the bhikshuni lineage

Can the bhikshuni ordination be traced back to the time of the Buddha? Bhikshuni Sangye…

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Easy Path to Travel to Omniscience

How to listen to teachings

Basic lamrim topics such as motivation and the correct way of listening to the teachings.

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Cultivating the Four Immeasurables

Meditation on compassion in action

A guided meditation to get in touch with the feeling of compassion and put it…

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Shantideva Teachings at Sravasti Abbey

Review of Chapter 4

Venerable Khadro reviews Chapter 4, Verses 1 through 18, discussing the importance of keeping our…

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Shantideva Teachings at Sravasti Abbey

Secondary misdeeds 33-46

Venerable Sangye Khadro continues the discussion of the secondary misdeeds covering twelve faulty actions that…

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Shantideva Teachings at Sravasti Abbey

Secondary misdeeds 23-32

Venerable Sangye Khadro covers secondary misdeeds 23 through 32, including those posing obstacles to the…

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Vajrasattva New Year's Retreat 2020-21

Guided meditation on Vajrasattva

Guided meditation on the Vajrasattva purification practice. Also an explanation on the purpose of purification…

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Shantideva Teachings at Sravasti Abbey

Bodhisattva secondary misdeeds 10-22

Venerable Sangye Khadro continues her explanation of the bodhisattva vows, covering those relating to the…

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Prostrations to the 35 Buddhas

Prostrations to the 35 Buddhas Practice

Instruction on the 35 Buddhas practice, including an overview of karma, and how to do…

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Shantideva Teachings at Sravasti Abbey

Bodhisattva secondary misdeeds 1-9

Venerable Sangye Khadro discusses the four binding factors and the nine secondary misdeeds related to…

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Kuan Yin statue on a pedestal with a flower garland in her lap under a tree.
37 Practices of Bodhisattvas

The 37 Practices of Bodhisattvas: Verses 27-32

Commentary on thought transformation verses on developing the far-reaching attitudes of fortitude, joyous effort, concentration…

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