Calm Abiding and Special Insight
About this course
In this course, we will explore the profound and practical teachings on Calm Abiding (śamatha) and Special Insight (vipaśyanā) as presented in the Lam Rim tradition, drawing primarily on the instructions of Je Tsongkhapa, one of Tibet’s greatest scholar-yogis.
Calm Abiding and Special Insight form the very heart of Buddhist meditation practice. Calm Abiding develops a stable, clear, and joyful mind capable of remaining effortlessly on its object, while Special Insight employs that focused mind to penetrate the nature of reality through wisdom. According to the Mahayana tradition, liberation and enlightenment can only arise through the union of these two.
Our principal source text will be Lam Rim Chen Mo (The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment), Tsongkhapa’s magnum opus and an indispensable guide for practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism. In this monumental work, Tsongkhapa brings together the full breadth of the Buddha’s teachings, sutra and tantra, method and wisdom, into a single, coherent path.
The sections on Calm Abiding and Special Insight are especially renowned for their clarity and precision. Tsongkhapa carefully outlines the stages of mental development, the obstacles that arise in meditation, and the antidotes needed to overcome them. The text gives essential instruction on how a mind trained in serenity can be harnessed to cultivate insight into emptiness, in accordance with the Madhyamaka view.
As Lama Tsongkhapa himself writes:
“When looking for the profound meaning, you will clearly see reality if you have both the wisdom that unerringly discerns the meaning of reality and an unmoving attention that stays as you wish on the object of meditation… This is why you need both serenity and insight.”
— Lam Rim Chen Mo, Vol. III
Throughout the course, Geshe Namdak will explain how these classical instructions can be applied by contemporary practitioners, clarifying how meditation on Calm Abiding and Special Insight integrates with ethical discipline, bodhicitta, and the broader Lam Rim path. This course, therefore, provides both a philosophical foundation and a practical roadmap for deepening one’s meditation practice.
About the Author
Je Tsongkhapa (1357 – 1419 CE) was one of the greatest figures in the history of Tibetan Buddhism. A peerless scholar, meditator, and tantric yogi, his vast body of work revitalised and systematised the Buddhist teachings in Tibet, leading to the formation of the Gelug school, which Jamyang London Buddhist Centre follows today.
Tsongkhapa is especially revered for his emphasis on combining rigorous reasoning with lived meditative experience, and for presenting the Buddha’s teachings with extraordinary clarity and precision. Because of the depth and transformative power of his contributions, Tsongkhapa is widely regarded as a “Second Conqueror”, after Shakyamuni.
About the Teacher
Geshe Tenzin Namdak completed his university studies in Hydrology before working as an environmental researcher in the Netherlands. He later began formal Buddhist studies at Maitreya Institute, was ordained by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and went on to complete the rigorous twenty-year Geshe degree at Sera Jey Monastic University in India. He also completed the traditional one-year Vajrayana study programme at Gyumé Tantric College.
Geshe Namdak is currently the Resident Teacher at Jamyang London Buddhist Centre.
Schedule
- May 2026 – November 2027
- Wednesdays | 18:30 – 20:00
- Starting Wednesday 6th May 2026
Is this course for me?
This is an intermediate to advanced level course, suitable for students who have a strong foundational understanding of Tibetan Buddhism and an interest in deepening their study and practice. Familiarity with Lam Rim teachings will be essential.
How to Join
Enrolment for this course is now open! Click the link below to view sign-up options
Donation
Jamyang is a non-profit charitable organisation that relies on the kindness of our donors, including students and community members. The donations, or Dana, given when registering for events and teachings support the Centre’s operations, allowing us to deliver our activities. If you’re able to give a little more, that’s wonderful; if a little less, that’s fine too. These donations help with essentials like feeding residential volunteers, housing our monastics, and keeping our doors open. However, we wish to emphasise that the Dharma is always offered freely and no-one is ever excluded because of their financial status, please do not hesitate to request a reduced rate.
