AWAM Classes & Videos
In-Person and Online
Please note: Students are responsible for obtaining any required empowerments.
See links to online empowerment options from His Eminence Garchen Rinpoche
on our Resources & Links page. Please ask if you need help.
Our Classes & Videos
“Awam” symbolically represents the union of the female principle (A – “é”) of wisdom, and the male principle (wam) of compassion. Wisdom and compassion are like the two wings of a bird; both are essential to soar!
We teach and practice Tibetan Buddhism as well as some other classical topics, to help improve your practice and life, benefiting others as well. To learn more, go to About Us. Students take our courses for a variety of reasons. We offer two approaches:
(1) NEW: Our core videos are now on this link: https://www.drimed-dawa-teachings.com/
(2) Those not yet in this link are listed below.
Our online and in-person classes include texts, the videos, practices, and an opportunity to ask questions at EmailAwamTBI@gmail.com. All classes and videos are free.
Our students have been in the United States, Mexico, Canada, South America, Europe, Africa, Australia, and Asia. We use texts and teachings primarily from the Nyingma lineage of Tibetan Buddhism, as well as scholarly and scientific sources. We are based in Tucson, Arizona, but our courses of study and practice are also available globally via Zoom or YouTube. Online classes may be started and taken at any time at your own pace. All are free. Please email us at EmailAwamTBI@gmail.com with questions you may have.
Links to remaining classes not yet in the new link above
Mindfulness: The Four Foundations of Mindfulness & Mindfulness with Breathing – This class focuses on mindfulness as a practice. The root of the teachings will be based on the Sattipatthana and Anapanasamyutta Sutras, as taught by several different sources, as well as the related jhana (Pali) or dhyana (Sanskrit) practices. Comparisons will also be drawn with shamata and similar Dzogchen practices. There are no texts for this course, but detailed notes are available for download as a PDF. As a general course, there is no homework of specific practice requirements. Nevertheless, students are encouraged to engage in each of these practices for 7-30 days each in order to actually benefit from them. Study is fine, but practice is everything!
The Tibetan Book of the Dead – A detailed look at instructions of Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava) according to the terma of Karma Lingpa; includes other sources on death and dying from Tibetan Buddhism; videos with Yogi Khenpo Drimed Dawa. This course looks in detail at the Tibetan Book of the Dead: The Great Liberation through Hearing in the Bardo (bardo todol) by Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava) according to Karma Lingpa, translated with commentary by Francesca Fremantle and Chogyam Trungpa.
The course also looks at a variety of other related practices and texts dealing with death and dying. Although this is an "advanced" course, there are no prerequisites and anyone with interest is welcome to participate. Nevertheless, some background in Tibetan Buddhism and its practices is highly recommended. For example, please see our Essentials of Tibetan Buddhism series of 8 courses. Text: The Tibetan Book of the Dead trans. by Trungpa and Fremantle.
White Lotus & the Four Roots - The Dzogchen View (in Padling Tersar collection) – White Lotus is a commentary on the Seven-Line Prayer to Padmasambhava, revered by all lineages of Tibetan Buddhism. The Four Roots are Guru, Yidam, Dakini, and Protector: (1) Secret Rigpa Guru Yoga, (2) A Manjushri, (3) Tara, and (4) King Geysar each considered from the Dzogchen view.
Vajrayogini – A Highest Yoga Tantra yidam practice of Vajrayana or Tibetan Buddhism. She is a female Buddha who is the essence of all the Buddhas. In these practices, we visualize or imagine ourselves as the yidam/deity as a means of training our mind to become a fully realized Buddha. Such a practice is said to be faster than other forms of meditative practices. And, according to scholar Miranda Shaw, Vajrayogini is "inarguably the supreme deity of the Tantric pantheon. No male Buddha…approaches her in metaphysical or practical import."
Vajrayogini is also a significant figure in some of the completion-stage practices of Vajrayana, such as the Six Yogas (or Dharmas) of Naropa. Participants should either have received a Vajrayogini empowerment (in one of her variety of forms), or at least some other form of Highest Yoga empowerment (online versions). Text: Vajrayogini: Her Visualizations, Rituals, and Forms by Elizabeth English as the main text for this course.
Additional Topics Not Yet in the New List
Videos alone are FREE, though we do appreciate donations to help support our expenses to maintain these videos. Go to Make a Donation. Thank you for your support.
Thank you for your interest in Awam Tibetan Buddhist Institute’s programs of study in Tibetan Buddhism. For any questions or or other information, please contact Khenpo.Drimed.Dawa@gmail.com. We sincerely wish you great success in your path to innate happiness for the benefit of all sentient beings!