Khyentse Foundation

Khyentse Foundation Buddha's Wisdom is for Everyone. Learn more about Khyentse Foundation and Dzongsar Khyentse’s activities at khyentsefoundation.org.

Khyentse Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded in 2001 by Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche to support all traditions of Buddhist study and practice. In the past 15 years, the foundation has supported the study and practice of Buddhism in more than 30 countries and directly affected the lives of people around the world. Khyentse Foundation activities include major text preservation and translati

on projects, support for traditional monastic colleges in Asia, a worldwide scholarship and awards program, academic development of Buddhist studies in major universities, training and development for Buddhist leaders and teachers, Buddhist education for children, support for individual study and retreats, and more.

Since the beginning, Khyentse Foundation has been staffed mainly by volunteers. In our series “Faces of the Foundation,”...
08/24/2026

Since the beginning, Khyentse Foundation has been staffed mainly by volunteers. In our series “Faces of the Foundation,” we ask our team members—both past and present—about their experience working for the foundation.

In our latest feature we talk with Margret Sablatnig, KF’s former database manager, about this crucial role, which she held for some 20 years.

Read the full article at this link:
https://khyentsefoundation.org/story/building-the-khyentse-foundation-database/

08/21/2026

For 25 years, Khyentse Foundation has worked to help the Buddha’s wisdom travel across languages, cultures, and generations.

Translation is not simply about finding equivalent words. It is about preserving meaning, training skilled translators, and creating the conditions for authentic teachings to remain accessible to future generations.

Every text translated opens another door to the Dharma.

As we celebrate , we honor the translators, scholars, teachers, and supporters who help carry the Buddha’s wisdom forward.

Beyond words, may the Dharma continue to reach those who seek it.

08/06/2026

“Returning the Dharma to Its Roots”

In 2006 Wangmo Dixey, executive director of Light of Buddhadharma Foundation International (LBDFI), watched as some 250 monastics gathered beneath the sacred Bodhi Tree in Bodhgaya to celebrate the 2,550th Buddha Jayanti. Beginning with the idea to offer food and financial support to these monastics, LBDFI gradually grew into a broader effort to revitalize the Buddhadharma in its motherland.

Today, with Khyentse Foundation’s support, what began beneath the Bodhi Tree has evolved into the Dharma Training Wheel Program—a movement of pilgrimage, recitation, education, and community engagement. Over the last 10 years, the program has visited lesser-known areas in India as well as the eight great places of Buddhist pilgrimage, reaching hundreds of Buddhist communities and touching the lives of thousands of people.

07/24/2026

"A mission to help connect the East and the West."

For 2 decades Tsering Gellek, founding director of Sarnath International Nyingma Institute (SINI), has been working to fulfill the mission entrusted to her by her father, Tarthang Rinpoche—pioneering new approaches to monastic education, creating the 10-volume Kangyur Karchak, and preparing a new generation of Buddhist teachers and scholars.

SINI is one of a number of initiatives that KF supports in India. Some 2,500 years after Buddha Shakyamuni walked this earth, SINI demonstrates that the Buddhadharma is still alive, in its motherland and beyond.

India, where Shakyamuni Buddha attained enlightenment, taught, and passed into parinirvana, holds special importance for...
07/23/2026

India, where Shakyamuni Buddha attained enlightenment, taught, and passed into parinirvana, holds special importance for Buddhists and for Khyentse Foundation.

In 2011, KF India was established to develop our work to revitalize Buddhist traditions in this unique place. Today, KF supports major initiatives in India striving to revive and preserve tradition and legacy and at the same time, to find new pathways for the Buddhadharma to thrive in the motherland.

For this article, we reached out to Wangmo Dixey of Light of Buddhadharma Foundation International and Tsering Gellek of Sarnath International Nyingma Institute, both daughters of the renowned Nyingma master Tarthang Rinpoche, and asked them to tell us about their inspiring projects.

Read the full article at this link:

https://khyentsefoundation.org/story/a-2500-year-old-legacy-lives-on/

07/22/2026

From UC Berkeley to Yale to NYU, Meghan Howard Masang’s academic journey was made possible with Khyentse Foundation support. In this video she shares how KF’s investment in academia has shaped her path and is paving the way for future generations.

Congratulations to Yilan Chen of the School of Foreign Languages, Peking University, and Drukgyel Tsering of the Univers...
07/03/2026

Congratulations to Yilan Chen of the School of Foreign Languages, Peking University, and Drukgyel Tsering of the University of Hong Kong, the 2026 awardees for Khyentse Foundation’s Outstanding PhD Dissertation in Buddhist Studies!🎉

Yilan’s dissertation, “A Carriage of Language Arts in Tibet: Zhwa lu lo tsā ba Chos skyong bzang po and the Kāmadhenu/’Dod ’jo ba mo,” reconstructs the philological work of the eminent Tibetan translator and scholar Zhwa lu lo tsā ba Chos skyong bzang po (Zhalu Lotsawa Chokyong Zangpo; 1441–1528) through a detailed study of his Tibetan translation of the Kāmadhenu, a major Sanskrit commentary on the celebrated lexicon Amarakośa. Drawing on Sanskrit and Tibetan sources, the dissertation explores the transmission of Sanskrit lexical science and language arts, including grammar, lexicography, poetics, and metrics, into Tibetan scholastic culture.

Tsering’s dissertation, “Madhyamaka through the Eyes of Red mda’ ba: A Study and Annotated English Translation of The Moonlight for the Essential Point: Distinguishing the Two Truths,” offers the first comprehensive study and annotated English translation of a newly discovered work by the influential Tibetan philosopher Red mda’ ba Gzhon nu blo gros (Rendawa Zhönu Lodrö; 1349–1412). Centering on Red mda’ ba’s interpretation of Candrakīrti’s Madhyamaka philosophy, the dissertation examines topics such as the two truths, emptiness, appearance, the object of negation, and the distinction between Prāsaṅgika and Svātantrika.

We wish Yilan and Tsering every success in their future research and academic careers!

🔹Read the full article on our website:
https://khyentsefoundation.org/story/yilan-chen-and-drukgyel-tsering-receive-2026-kf-award-for-outstanding-phd-dissertation-in-buddhist-studies/

The Profound Essence of Tara: An Introduction by Khenpo Choying DorjeeGreen Tara is the embodiment of the swift compassi...
06/30/2026

The Profound Essence of Tara: An Introduction by Khenpo Choying Dorjee

Green Tara is the embodiment of the swift compassion and enlightened activity of all the Buddhas. Known as the Mother of all Buddhas, she is the source from which protection from the eight great fears arises and fulfills the needs of those seeking enlightenment.

In this introductory session, Khenpo will explore the history and significance of the Zabtik Drolma (The Profound Essence of Tara). This particular practice is a Terma, or Hidden Treasure, revealed in the 19th century by the great Terton Chokgyur Dechen Lingpa, with the support of Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo and Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche. Its blessings are considered especially direct and potent for our modern age. This gathering is a special opportunity to dedicate our practice to the 25th Anniversary of the Khyentse Foundation and the long life of our teachers.

Sunday, July 5, 2026 | 2–6pm | Dharma College Temple

• 2–3:30pm — Teaching on Tara by Khenpo Choying

• 3:30–4pm — Break and Preparation

• 4–6pm — Zabtik Drolma Green Tara Puja (21 Taras Puja)

Address: 2222 Harold Way Berkeley CA

The event link 🔗 is here:
https://site.corsizio.com/event/69fccf79924f08212f69fa1b

06/26/2026

For 25 years, Khyentse Foundation’s vision and generosity have helped transform Buddhist studies at UC Berkeley and far beyond, supporting endowed chairs, lectureships, fellowships, research, publications, and collaborations across countries and continents.

As Professor Jacob Dalton reflected, from Michigan to Munich, from Sydney to Thailand, KF’s unwavering commitment to wisdom and learning has helped broaden and deepen the study of Buddhism worldwide.

“It is my wish to endow chairs in Buddhist studies at major universities because I wish to promote the academic study of...
06/25/2026

“It is my wish to endow chairs in Buddhist studies at major universities because I wish to promote the academic study of Buddhism, to produce great Western Buddhist scholars, and to develop the right view in Buddhist studies in order to properly establish Buddhism in the West in the long term.”

— Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, 2001

Endowing chairs in Buddhist studies is an integral part of establishing a system of patronage to share the Buddha’s wisdom. As such, it is one of Khyentse Foundation’s priority projects.

Currently, KF has established seven Khyentse Foundation endowed chairs/professorships at institutions around the world:

* University of California, Berkeley, USA – 2006
* University of Michigan, USA – 2018
* The University of Sydney, Australia – 2018
* Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich, Germany – 2020
* The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel – 2021
* International Buddhist College, Thailand – 2022
* National University of Singapore – 2025

With endowed chairs as the anchor, KF has worked with over 40 universities in other capacities and to varying degrees in order to create a strong, worldwide academic network. Read the full article to learn more about the impact of these projects at this link:

https://khyentsefoundation.org/story/the-legacy-of-khyentse-foundation-endowed-chairs/

First picture: Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche visiting the University of Sydney at the inauguration of the KF-UBEF Lectureship, August 11, 2017.

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