The Foundation Program

The purpose of the Foundation Program (FP) is to provide a systematic presentation of particular subjects of Mahayana Buddhism to enable practitioners to deepen their knowledge and experience of Buddhism.

Row of six book covers by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso with colorful backgrounds and titles on spiritual topics, including 'Joyful Path of Good Fortune' in yellow, 'Universal Compassion' in white, 'The New Eight Steps to Happiness' in green, 'The New Heart of Wisdom' in blue, 'Meaningful to Behold' in red, and 'How to Understand the Mind' in orange with a photo of the author.
Book cover titled 'How to Understand the Mind' by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, featuring a photograph of Venerable Geshe Kelsang, wearing a maroon and yellow robe, set against an orange background with a faint pattern.

Current book:

How to Understand the Mind

Attend two taster sessions before committing to the program!

To find out more fill the form down below
or directly to
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This book offers us deep insight into our mind, and shows how an understanding of its nature and functions can be used practically in every day experience to improve our lives.

More about the book here

Five Subjects

The program comprises the following five subjects, based on Buddha’s Sutra teachings and the corresponding commentaries by Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche:

Benefits of the program

The benefits of studying and practicing these texts are as follows:

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  • We gain the ability to put all Buddha’s teachings of both Sutra and Tantra into practice. We can easily make progress on and complete the stages of the path to the supreme happiness of enlightenment. From a practical point of view, the Stages of the Path, or Lamrim, is the main body of Buddha’s teachings, and the other teachings are like its limbs.

  • We gain the ability to integrate Buddha’s teachings into our daily life and solve all our human problems.

  • We gain the ability to integrate Buddha’s teachings into our daily life and solve all our human problems.

  • We gain a realization of the ultimate nature of reality. By gaining this realization we can eliminate the ignorance of self-grasping that is the root of all our suffering.

  • We transform our daily activities into the Bodhisattva’s way of life, thereby making every moment of our human life meaningful.

  • We understand the relationship between our mind and its external objects. If we understand that objects depend upon the subjective mind we can change the way objects appear to us by changing our own mind. Gradually we shall gain the ability to control our mind and in this way solve all our problems.

Venerable Geshe Kelsang.

For an extensive explanation of the benefits of the Foundation Program and the Teacher Training Programs, you can read the transcript of a talk by Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche.

Read the transcript
Read the transcript
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Program Structure

The secret of the Foundation Program’s success lies in the manageable commitment made by the student and in the clear structure of study. Students agree to attend every class, learn the material, and to take a test at the conclusion of each book.

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Class Structure

Prior to class, students study an assigned portion of the text, usually a few pages, and memorize the essential points. The class begins with chanted prayers and guided meditation. The teacher then reads the assigned selection from the book while giving commentary to the text. The students then divide into pairs to discuss the material. The teacher and students conclude by deciding what to meditate on in the next class and how to practice during the coming week, followed by dedication prayers.

Gen Kelsang Chodor.

The Teacher

Gen Kelsang Chodor

Gen Kelsang Chodor is our Resident Teacher at Kadampa Meditation Centre Canada. He has been ordained and has studied under the guidance of Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche for more than twenty-three years.

He has taught extensively in both the UK and the US, and is now teaching in Canada. He is admired by students because of his practical knowledge, warm presentations and authentic teachings, as well as his natural joy and sense of humour. He is skilled at putting everyone at ease and helping them solve their problems and anxieties with practical Dharma advice.

At Kadampa Meditation Centre Canada, he usually teaches the Sunday morning class, the Tuesday evening class, the Wednesday morning class, as well as special events, courses and workshops and two in-depth study programmes; the Foundation Programme and the Teacher Training Programme.

Whether to sign up for the taster classes or for any other specific question let us know here!

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If we just dabble superficially in a spiritual path we will never gain a deep and stable experience, and our wisdom will never develop to its full potential. This is why these spiritual programs are so important.

— Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche

Back to Study Programs

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For current FP students only:

To notify FP Class Monitor about absence and to request audio mp3 recordings HERE.

To view Foundation Program (FP) schedule HERE.

To help with buying/setting up for various prayers with food offering (tsog) HERE.

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Coming to Foundation Program at Kadampa Meditation Centre Canada has improved my knowledge on how to make myself happy, and also others!

— Maria

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Joining a study program at Kadampa Meditation Centre Canada has been one of the best decision in my life so far.

— Alex

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Joining the Foundation Program has helped me to understand that I can have control over my mind and how I interact with the world.

— Cathy

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