SPRING 2012 January 30: Spring 2012 semester begins
February 1: Early Admissions Deadline for Fall 2012 semester
February 13: Last day to add/drop classes for Spring 2012 semester
March 19-April 1: Spring break
May 2: Deadline for application for Fall 2012 semester
May 21: Registration opens for Fall 2012 semester
June 2: Spring semester ends
FALL 2012 August 27: Fall 2011 semester begins
September 10: Last day to add/drop classes for Fall 2011 semester
November 19-25: Thanksgiving week
December 3: Registration opens for Spring 2013 semester
December 16: Fall 2012 semester ends
DISTANCE LEARNING
AT MAITRIPA COLLEGE
The distance learning program at Maitripa College is designed to offer students the opportunity to take advantage of the unique course offerings and educational methods of the College from anywhere in the world.
Yangsi Rinpoche
and the Maitripa distance learning team are committed to developing the medium of cyberspace into an educational tool to facilitate the understanding of Buddhist thought around the world.
A Maitripa College education is designed to offer three pillars for a complete education: training in scholarship, meditation, and service. Online, we currently offer a selection of core courses in Buddhist philosophical and meditation training with the encouragement that all students pursue service in their communities.
Maitripa College currently does not offer online degrees, nor does distance learning at Maitripa accrue credit toward a future degree. Rather, Maitripa College Online aims to provide opportunities for continuing education to students around the world seeking an authentic and practical presentation of Buddhist Studies toward personal and societal transformation. Please refer to our Academic Program pages for descriptions and learning outcomes.
Distance learning courses at MC include video lectures, interactive discussion groups, reading, writing, and opportunities for Q&A. See the Course Requirements page for information on academic requirements expected of online students.
Foundations of Buddhist Thought: The Medium and Great Scope
Yangsi Rinpoche
MDT302d
Techniques of Buddhist Meditation: The Medium & Great Scope
Yangsi Rinpoche
PHL304d
Madhyamaka Philosophy: A Dose of Emptiness
Yangsi Rinpoche
MDT304d
Madhyamaka Meditation: Preparation for Vajrayana
Yangsi Rinpoche
PHL321
The Good Heart: Buddhist Literature & Meditation - Cultivating Compassion through Lojong
Yangsi Rinpoche
& Dr. Steven Vannoy
MAITRIPA
COLLEGE
SPRING 2012 COURSE OFFERINGS
MDT302d. Techniques of Buddhist Meditation: The Medium & Great Scope (2 credits) This course will continue with instruction in meditation based on the foundations established in MDT 301. The course will be taught in an interactive format, allowing students the opportunity to learn specific meditations as directed by the instructor, practice them, and discuss their experiences in class. The subject matter will parallel the topics of Buddhist philosophy as taught in as taught in PHL302 | PHL302d. Part of this class will include regular meditation sessions out of class, the keeping of a sitting journal, and the opportunity for objective discussion on the effect of these practices on the individual’s mind. If desired, the committed student will have the opportunity to work with the instructor to design a personal meditation practice.
MDT304d. Madhyamaka Meditation: Preparation for Vajrayana (2 credits) The subject matter of this course will parallel the topics of Buddhist philosophy as taught in as taught in PHL304 | PHL304d. The course will be taught in an interactive format, allowing students the opportunity to learn specific meditations as directed by the instructor, practice them, and discuss their experiences in class. Part of this class will include regular meditation sessions out of class, the keeping of a sitting journal, and the opportunity for objective discussion on the effect of these practices on the individual’s mind. If desired, the committed student will have the opportunity to work with the instructor to design a personal meditation practice.
PHL302d. Foundations of Buddhist Thought: The Medium and Great Scope (2 credits) This class surveys the foundational philosophical ideas of the Buddhist tradition as presented by the great pandits of
India
and commented upon by the Tibetan inheritors of the Indian Buddhist tradition. The course will make use of philosophical treatises (primary sources in translation), literature, and historical analysis to present the foundations of Buddhist philosophy.
Readings
will include selections from Vasubandhu’s Abhidharmakosha, Dharmakirti’s Pramanavarttika, the Abhisamayalamkara (attributed to Maitreya), Guide to the Bodhisattva's Way of Life, and 70 Topics, as well as modern scholarly analysis of the same. There will be a particular focus on the readings as they relate to the medium and great scope of the Lamrim as presented by the Tibetan scholar Je Tsongkhapa and others. Students will gain a strong foundation in Buddhist philosophy including key topics that relate to the medium and great scopes such as: cause and effect, the potential for enlightenment, the structure of existence according to the Buddhist world view. Students will gain a strong foundation in Buddhist philosophy including key topics that relate to the great scope such as: loving kindness, great compassion, and abandoning the mind of self-cherishing, as well as topics that relate to the great scope such as the mind of enlightenment, the six perfections, and an in-depth examination of the path of a bodhisattva.
PHL304d. Madhyamaka Philosophy: A Dose of Emptiness (2 credits) A continuation of Madhyamaka I class, in which the exploration and debate of the philosophy and practice of Madhyamaka, or the “
Middle Way
” is deepened and refined. The primary reading text for this class will be Khedrup Je’s Dose of Emptiness (stong thun chen mo), a detailed critical exposition of the theory and practice of emptiness as expounded in the three major schools of Mahayana philosophy, as well as its commentaries. Students are strongly encouraged to enroll in MDT306 Madhyamaka Meditation: Preparation for Vajrayana in conjunction with this class.
PHL301d: THE GOOD HEART: Buddhist Literature & Meditation Cultivating Compassion through Lojong (2 credits) In the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, a corpus of teachings called lojong (mind training) offers techniques and inspiration toward a deep altruism for others, which in turn trains the practitioner’s mind toward the embrace of tranquility and joy under any conditions. Based on the essential Mahayana teachings of impermanence, compassion, and the exchange of self and other, the lojong teachings are a source of guidance shared by masters of all Tibetan traditions. This class will examine this approach through both philosophical study and meditation training, including textual analysis of Serlingpa’s Leveling Out All Conceptions, Atisa’s Bodhisattva’s Jewel Garland, Langri Tangpa’s Eight Verses on Mind Training, and Chekawa’s Seven-Point Mind Training, among other works. Class time will be spent both in the classroom and the meditation hall