This course promotes a scientific and logical analysis and discussion of the very nature of our lives and the source of our happiness and suffering. It examines how the mind is the creator of our world and all our experiences, and how it possesses limitless potential.

The course covers such topics as:

the nature of the mind – what the mind is and how it works,
the four noble truths – a look at happiness and suffering, how we create them, and how we can achieve lasting happiness,
genuine empathy and compassion, the basis of altruistic service,
the profound wisdom realizing the nature of reality,
meditation and mind training as methods for transformation.

Note: This is not a modular course.
Each weekend is a single course intended each time for new people.

For Who: Anyone curious about Buddhism in general and the Tibetan Buddhist tradition in particular.

By Whom: The course is taught by qualified Westerners, including the teaching staff and students of the residential academic programs at ILTK.

Lenght: One weekend.

When: This weekend course is repeated approximately every second month. The course begins Friday evening at 21.00 and concludes Sunday at 12.30.

Courses stucture: Sessions of frontal teachings alternated with short sessions of guided meditation and ample time for question & answers.

Outcome: Participants acquire a basic understanding of the key concepts of Buddhism as taught in the Tibetan Mahayana tradition and an introduction to meditation and mind training practice in daily life.

Language: Taught in Italian.

Online: Available in Italian from ILTK in 2013. Available in English from the FPMT.

Complementary course: Buddhism in a Nutshell can be done either before or after Meditation 101. Buddhism in a Nutshell can be followed by the Foundations of Buddhism and other introductory level courses on Tibetan Buddhism and meditation. Those who are ready for a longer and more detailed exposition of Tibetan Buddhism can follow it with the intermediate level program Discovering Buddhism.

Complementary reading: Buddhism in a Nutshell by Lama Thubten Yeshe, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, and Ven. Amy Miller, available from The Foundation Store of the FPMT. Books by Lama Thubten Yeshe and Lama Zopa Rinpoche available from the Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive and Wisdom Publications. Books by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and other teachers and authors of Tibetan Buddhism available from Buddhist publishers, such as Wisdom Publications and Snow Lion Publications, and from many other general book publishers.