Exploring Buddhism: Exploring the Path Weekend

To proceed on the stages of the path to enlightenment, it is important to have a good roadmap. Exploring the Path allows us to get an overview of all topics of contemplation for the entire spiritual journey.

Exploring the Path delves more deeply into the Lamrim, the step-by-step path to enlightenment.  Students will learn how to integrate this profound yet practical wisdom into daily life—cultivating greater peace, happiness, and compassion. The retreat includes insightful teachings, engaging discussions, and a variety of meditation practices, such as concentration meditation for mental clarity, visualizations for inner transformation, and analytical meditation on key Lamrim topics.

Exploring the Path topics:

• Based on HHDL’s commentary in Illuminating the Path to Enlightenment
• Three Capable Beings and Relying on a Guru
• Precious Human Rebirth and Impermanence-Death
• Lower Realms, Refuge, and Karma
• Renunciation
• Bodhichitta
• Concentration and Wisdom

We are incredibly fortunate to have Geshe Tenzin Legtsok leading this retreat at Vajrapani! After 20 years of dedicated study at Sera Je Monastery in India and the completion of his prestigious Tantric Degree at Gyumed Tantric College, Geshela has become one of a handful of Americans to achieve this remarkable milestone! With great enthusiasm, he is eager to share his deep wisdom and insights with students throughout the Bay Area.

Through December 2025, Geshela will be in residence at Vajrapani, while also serving as the resident teacher at Ocean of Compassion in Campbell. In addition, he will be teaching at Land of Medicine Buddha in Soquel and Tse Chen Ling in San Francisco. His presence is a true gift to our community, offering transformative programs such as Meditation 101, Discovering Buddhism, Exploring Buddhism, and more.

A chance to learn from a teacher of his caliber, who is also a skilled translator, is a rare and precious opportunity. We warmly invite you to join us in this enriching program and experience the depth of Geshela’s guidance firsthand.

Who Is It For?

The Exploring Buddhism: Exploring the Path retreat is ideal for:

-Students who are enrolled in the Exploring Buddhism program and have met those prerequisites.

-A person who:

• Has a good understanding of foundational Buddhist principles, such as the Stages of the Path (Lamrim) teachings, as presented in the Discovering Buddhism program or

• Have attended a Kopan West, Intro to Buddhism retreat either here at Vajrapani or at Kopan Monastery in Nepal or Tushita in India, or have attended some Discovering Buddhism modules and have a strong interest in exploring Tibetan Mahayana Buddhist philosophy and practices on a deeper level.

Registration Info

Exploring the Path is Module 2.2 in the Exploring Buddhism Program. We will open up registration first to Exploring Buddhism Students so please only register if you are an Exploring Buddhism Student. On August 1st, we will open the retreat to all students.

Registration Closes

October 31st, 2025

Tentative Course Schedule

This course will be offered in a hybrid format, starting with a concentrated intermediate weekend on the Lamrim Chenmo from Thurs. Nov 6 – Sun. Nov. 9th which will qualify students for certification of Module 2.2 of Exploring Buddhism. Nov 9-14 will be the continuation of the full retreat, including an in-depth exploration and deep meditations on these concepts.

If you are an Exploring Buddhism student, you are highly encouraged to attend the entire retreat if its possible. If cost is an issue, please apply for financial assistance at the end of this registration page, no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

• Nov 6: Check-in, welcome talks, and course introduction
• Nov 7-8: Teaching sessions, meditation, and discussion
• Nov 9: Morning Session lunch and checkout for those attending the weekend; Evening session continues the full retreat

Silence

Partial Silence – There will be specific times where strict silence is kept, and other times allocated to facilitate discussion and conversation for students to bond and learn together. Silence is a wonderful and rare opportunity to help move these new concepts from head to heart. 

Suggested Reading

Additional Information

• Please plan on arriving between 3:00 and 5:00 PM on the first day of the retreat
• Please plan on departing at approximately 2:00 PM on the last day of the retreat
• Accommodation information is provided during the registration process
• For more detailed information, please see our FAQ

About Vajrapani Institute

Vajrapani Institute for Wisdom Culture was one of the first Tibetan Buddhist Retreat Centers in America.  Vajrapani aims to provide a friendly and peaceful environment for people of all backgrounds to learn, put into practice the teachings of the Buddha, and connect with other Dharma practitioners.  Located on 70 acres of secluded land within the redwood forests of the Santa Cruz mountains, Vajrapani Institute has been an immersive space for people of all backgrounds to find and deepen their spiritual practices, with the main goal of bridging the gap between the head and heart of the practice.

Teacher’s Fees

Traditionally, spiritual teachings are considered priceless; the remuneration of our teachers is not included in the fee information detailed on this page. Instead, we invite you to consider bringing a cash donation with you to express your gratitude for the teachings. 

The Buddha encouraged the practice of generosity as it develops non-attachment, loving-kindness, and compassion and deepens the awareness of our interconnectedness. Offering Dana to our teachers, a Pali word for “generosity,” is said to benefit both the giver and the receiver, helping the giver to practice generosity and the receiver to practice acceptance. Your offering of Dana can be whatever feels generous to you in your heart and your particular financial situation. If you can’t afford to give a cash offering as Dana, a thank you note is perfectly generous.

Participants will get a chance to present a cash offering to the teachers on the last day of the retreat and this is supplemented by a donation from Vajrapani Institute. Please note that we don’t offer a credit card option for Dana. 

Financial Aid/ Scholarships

We want to make retreats accessible to everyone. With this in mind, we will gladly work out a payment plan with you if needed. If more assistance is necessary, we offer several scholarships. Please note that the scholarship deadline is one month before the retreat begins. To encourage students to enroll in the Exploring Buddhism program, we are offering reduced fees and scholarships to EB students in financial need. 

• For detailed information on setting up a payment plan, please see Financial Aid: Payment Plans
• To see if you’re eligible for a scholarship, and how to apply for scholarships, please see Financial Aid: Scholarships

Our utmost goal is to help as many beings as possible to have the gift of retreat. If you have additional questions after reviewing the guidelines for payment plans and/or scholarships, please email the Office at office@vajrapani.org.