The Mahayana Sutra & Tantra Center was established under the direction of Sera Mey Khensur Rinpoche Lobsang Tharchin in 1982 for the purpose of promoting the study and practice of Mahayana Buddhism. The center offers ongoing classes in Buddhist philosophy and doctrine, as well as instructions in spiritual practice, based mainly on the teaching system known as the Lam Rim or the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment.

Classes at MSTC are taught by Art Engle, one of Khensur Rinpoche's senior students, and by Geshe Thupten Wangdu, a Geshe Hlarampa and graduate from Mey College of Sera Monastery, Khensur Rinpoche Lobsang Tharchin's home monastery. Art Engle is a translator and scholar, who also is a graduate of the Buddhist Studies program at the University of Wisconsin. His classes strive to accurately convey the essence and subtlety of the teachings as preserved in the original Sanskrit and Tibetan religious texts. Geshe Wangdu skillfully conveys Buddhist philosophy–both the fundamentals and more complex teachings–with precision and humor.

MSTC also hosts special rituals and invites visiting Lamas to give teachings at various times throughout the year, and holds the Vajrayogini Tsechu ritual twice a month.

Khensur Lobsang Tharchin Rinpoche (also known as Khen Rinpoche) devoted his life to teaching students how to become self-sufficient practitioners of the Buddhist way of life. He was a living model of the religious tradition that he taught, and his blessings have enabled many students to transform their own lives significantly. He also encouraged his students to pursue the greater good of all beings. The classes at MSTC seek to continue his legacy of providing others with an opportunity to experience the pure Dharma teachings first set forth by the Shakyamuni Buddha over 2,500 years ago. MSTC is also dedicated to the support of Tenzin Jikme Namdrol Rinpoche, born January 12, 2008 and personally recognized by His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama as Khensur Lobsang Tharchin Rinpoche's reincarnation.

We rely on an authentic transmission of the teaching instructions and practices stretching in an unbroken lineage from the ancient Indian and Tibetan masters. The center continues the teaching tradition of the Gelukpa order, which was established by the great master of Tibetan Buddhism, Je Lama Tsongkapa Lobsang Drakpa. His Lam Rim Chenmo (The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment) and related texts form the core of the teachings given at MSTC.

The center's purpose is also realized through the Mahayana Sutra and Tantra Press, which was established to continue Khen Rinpoche's work by making his teachings available to a wider audience. The press publishes books based on his teachings and oral instruction, as well as translations of authoritative texts by other Tibetan masters.

As part of our efforts to maintain Khen Rinpoche's legacy, MSTC also supports the Sera Mey Monastic Scholars Food Fund, a project initiated by him in the 1970s and one to which he was deeply committed. The Food Fund currently provides daily meals to the entire community of approximately fifteen hundred monks at Sera Mey College, which is located at the Bylakuppe Tibetan Settlement in South India. This sponsorship has contributed greatly to the preservation of Lama Je Tsongkapa's system of study at the college where Khensur Lobsang Tharchin Rinpoche, in addition to receiving his religious training, also served as abbot. Sera Mey College is one of the six colleges associated with the three "Great Seats" (Densa Sum) of learning in the Gelukpa tradition of Tibetan Buddhism.

As a result of MSTC's close relationship with Sera Mey College, in recent years three former abbots of Sera Mey–Ven. Dakpa Tritrul Rinpoche, Gyalrong Khensur Jampa Thekchog, and Kyabje Gosok Rinpoche–have visited MSTC and given both teachings and initiations. We also have a special relationship with Gyume Khensur Lobsang Jampa Rinpoche, a former abbot of the Gyume Tantric College who is also a Geshe Hlarampa from Sera Mey. We have been honored with multiple visits by him over the past few years and we hope to continue hosting him, as well as other Tibetan Lamas, in the future.

See our schedule for information on our classes and what's planned for future events. Contact MSTC by phone, e-mail, or regular mail with any questions. You can also keep up to date with MSTC by liking our Facebook page.

Thank you for your interest.