The Knowledge Base

Lower Middle Way – An Analysis of Dependence: All Things Depend on Each Other: The Buddhist Teaching of the Wheel of Life

IDIMS: 500 Images for Meditation on the Steps to the Path of Enlightenment

Lam Rim Review IDIMs This is a video playlist. Just click for the next video to see additional videos in...

Poetry by Lobsang Chukyi Gyeltsen, His Holiness The First Panchen Lama from Recitations for the Tantric College (2004, Translated by Geshe Michael Roach)

This selection of poetry is from His Holiness the First Panchen Lama, Lobsang Chukyi Gyaltsen. The poems are meant to convey the First Panchen Lama’s own inner progress in developing the steps of the path, and also to illustrate for us how he conducted his life and practice in the external world, as a real example for us to follow. In each case, these selections are chosen to relate in some way to a particular lam-rim, or step of the path, that we ourselves are working on.

Upper Middle Way – The Great Books of Wisdom Series: Making the ancient classics of Tibetan Buddhist literature accessible to the modern world

Around 1000 AD, 1500 years after the time of the Buddha, the Tibetans undertook a monumental task: to translate thousands of pages of Buddhist literature from Sanskrit into Tibetan. It took them 700 years to complete translations of the kangyur (the word of the Buddha) and the tengyur (the Indian commentaries). Now, as Buddhism has been making a big push westward, Geshe Michael’s aim is to complete an even larger task: to translate hundreds of thousands of pages of Buddhist literature into modern languages. Since the blossoming of Buddhism in Tibet, no less than 200,000 pages of brilliant commentary have been composed by masters and scholars in the Tibetan language. In this ongoing series of courses, Geshe Michael’s goal is to create and guide a team of young translators to translate these great classics.

The Lion’s Dance: A Meditation for the Wheel of Life (2017, Mexico)

This very special meditation practice is called The Dance of the Lion. It was taught by the future Buddha, Maitreya to Arya Asanga 1,700 years ago. Bodhisattva’s use it after they see emptiness directly to understand more about emptiness and The Wheel of Life.

Bernd Kolb “Atman” Interview (Berlin, 2016)

German internet pioneer Bernd Kolb forged a legendary career in media and as Chief Innovation Officer for Deutsch Telekom. He was named as German Entrepreneur of the Year in 1998, being hailed as a visionary “rule breaker”. He was named by Wired Magazine as one of the Eleven Pioneering German Personalities in 2011. He works now with world leaders to explore global challenges through live interviews, exhibitions and other media, seeking new ways to make the world a better place. Mr. Kolb invited Geshe Michael Roach to join him in a live interview on June 15, 2016 in Berlin at his “Atman” exhibition, to talk about the idea of “Atman”, or “soul".

Locking The Door to the Lower Realms: Ultimate Protection on the Path of Preparation (Mexico, 2016)

There are five stages or paths in the spiritual evolution of a human being. The second of those five paths is called The Path of Preparation, preparation here specifically refers to gaining an increasingly deeper intellectual understanding of emptiness which gives us the necessary spiritual power to have the direct perception of emptiness on path number three. This increasingly deeper understanding of emptiness progresses through four distinct stages while traversing the second path.

From Earth to Sky: 22 levels of Bodhichitta from the Abhisamayalankara (Beijing, 2016)

The 22 levels from earth to sky refer to the development of the Wish for Budhahood (Bodhichitta), from the initial...

A Better History of Time: The Grand Unification Theory (2014, New York)

Can the Buddha answer science's deepest unsolved question? A refreshing talk that sheds new light on our quest for the "Grand Unification Theory." Join us for three free talks that could change the way you think about everything. Geshe Michael Roach discusses how the ancient writings of Buddhism can help us make science more inclusive of the human experience and open the possibility for a world of deeper happiness, prosperity and peace.

Geshe Michael @ TEDxGraz: HOW TO GET EVERYTHING YOU WANT, IN A WAY WHICH HELPS THE WHOLE WORLD (2015, Austria)

In his TEDx talk, Geshe Michael Roach shared a teaching from the oldest printed book in the world — The...

A Better History of Time: A Solution to the Uncertainty Principle from Ancient Buddhism

The Principle of Emptiness explains our unanswered questions about the Uncertainty Principle, and the underlying nature of the physical world. A professional physicist—or a student on their way to becoming such a physicist—who gained some serious training in the Principle of Emptiness might be able to affect the entire future course of western science.

Compassion and the Inner Body: Asana as a Road to Love (2011, New York)

There is a strong relationship between our ability to love and our inner body of channels, chakras, and prana. Great yogis of ancient times mapped out this inner body, sometimes called the Rainbow Body, and found methods of using it not only for greater health, but for greater knowledge—and for a greater capacity to love.

A & The: An In-Depth Teaching on Emptiness (2010, Hong Kong)

A deep exploration of the ultimate nature of reality, what Buddhists refer to as "emptiness" with Geshe Michael Roach. A truly rare and precious teaching which was given in Hong Kong in May 2010.

Living an Enlightened Life: Lessons from Je Tsongkapa, Teacher of the First Dalai Lama (2010, Ann Arbor)

Geshe Michael’s talk focuses on the writings of Je Tsongkapa, considered one of the foremost authorities on Tibetan Buddhism. Ordained at the age of three, Je Tsongkapa Lobsang Drakpa is considered one of the greatest philosophers, the most prolific writers, and most charismatic social organizers in the history of Tibet.

Living Lam Rim: How Khen Rinpoche’s Life Reflected the Teaching on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment (2005, Arizona)

After spending many years at His teacher’s side, Geshe Michael teaches us the Steps of the Path to Enlightenment using beautiful examples and stories of how His own teacher’s life reflected these Lam Rim teachings. One of the greatest ways to learn these teachings is simply to observe the behavior of a great teacher who has received and mastered these teachings themselves.

Master Shantideva’s Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life: A Compendium (1997-2004)

We thought it would be very helpful to create a collection of all the teachings and translations that Geshe Michael has done on Master Shantideva’s The Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life. So what you’ll fiind here are all the links to all the courses Geshe Michael has taught on this text. In addition, we’ve also made two PDF collections by combining all of the course materials and transcripts. The links to download those are at the bottom of the page. Geshe Michael Began teaching The Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life in 1997 with the following three ACI courses: