Khyentse Foundation

Preparing Future Generations

“After teaching Buddhist philosophy in both the East and West for many years now, I realize it is time to think seriously about future generations, and how we as a community can best prepare them for the challenges and opportunities this life presents.”

– Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

Quality of a Teacher

“The most important quality of a teacher is kindness. Teaching should not be treated as a job. It is a big responsibility, you are actually responsible for somebody’s life.”

– Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

A Decent Human Being

“When it comes to Buddhist education, I’m not necessarily talking about a school where we teach sutras and make children recite shlokas. I’m talking about a school or curriculum or system that puts emphasis on being a decent human being rather than on being rich.”

– Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

Khyentse Foundation is exploring ways to support Buddhist parents and teachers to create the conditions for children to turn their minds to the dharma.

KF encourages teachers and children’s programs to apply for Ashoka Grants. We have also established the KF Children’s Book Prize for authors. And we support the Hemera Foundation grants for educators to deepen their meditation practice.

Drawing of Ashoka by Sally Devorsine, commissioned by Khyentse Foundation.
Grant Recipients
  • Patrick Dowd’s Bhoti Ethical Education Textbook Project — Developing a set of textbooks for students in the traditionally Buddhist region of Leh, India.
  • The German Buddhist Union — Generating Buddhist materials and developing Buddhist teacher training programs in the German school system.
  • Bodhi Kids — Developing a program model for the education of children in Buddhist centers in New York.
  • The Foundation for Cultural Exchange with the Far East, Poland, publishes Buddhist children’s books.
  • Lhomon Education  — In collaboration with existing education institutions in Bhutan and in harmony with government goals, creates education alternatives that reinforce ancient Bhutanese wisdom traditions while introducing progressive and sustainable development practices.
  • Pal Ewam Namgon Nunnery — Providing free education to under privileged  children in Nepal.
  • Bodhi Seeds — A 10-day Buddhist camp for kids
Archive News

• The Khyentse Foundation Children’s Book Prize

• Meditation camp for Bhutanese teachers

• KF Communique: Excellence in Education

• Inspiration for the curriculum of The Siddhartha School

• Philosophy of The Siddhartha School, Australia

• KF partners with White Lotus to establish a new primary school in Sikkim

 

Steering Committee

Noa Jones – KF Education Coordinator and Program Director of MWE

Lucie Jurikova

Candice Tsuei

Genevieve Waltcher

Jennifer Yo

“Bodhi Kids completely shares the aspirations of Khyentse Foundation: to ‘make freely available the primary teachings of all Buddhist lineages’ and ‘to extend the Buddha’s wisdom and compassion as widely as possible.’ We joyfully offer this platform in service to the Buddhadharma and for the benefit of sentient beings.

Maya van der Meer

Founder & Director, Bodhi Kids

“I’m not talking about Buddhist education for the purpose of becoming Buddhist. That is a very limited view. I’m talking about Buddhist education for decency.” – Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

“The education systems that we have right now put so much value on things like degrees. They are programming to get a job. We are completely caught up in this net of phenomena called job. Is this really going to take us comfortably beyond 20 years? I don’t think so.” – Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

“From what I can see, a lot of the suffering in our world seems to be a byproduct of how people were educated.” – Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

“As Buddhists, we can contribute to children’s understanding by offering hundreds and hundreds of years’ experience of teaching how everything is interdependent.” – Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche