Teaching, Translating and Publishing Buddhism for the 21st Century
ADVANCED SUTRA STUDY
New 8-week course on the Gaṅgottara Sūtra and the Aśokadatta Sūtra
Tuesday evenings, 7:00 - 8:30pm (Pacific)
March 3rd - April, 21st, 2026
Tuition: Sliding scale ($400 to $300- includes two sutras + domestic postage)
All Classes are held live on Zoom with recordings of every class available for participants afterwards
Description:
This advanced sutra study is an in-depth discussion and line-by-line analysis of two sutras from the Mahāratnakūṭa Sūtra collection based on new Lotus Underground translations: Gaṅgottara Upāsikā (the lay woman Gaṅgottara) and Aśokadatta Bodhisattva (the bodhisattva ‘Fearless Virtue’ in Chinese).
The Gaṅgottara is a very brief but profound sutra containing a rapid back and forth dialogue between the Buddha and a lay woman on the illusory nature of phenomena. It is a fascinating presentation of the Vajra Sutra’s teaching of Emptiness from a completely different perspective, and an excellent example of how deep Buddhist philosophy can get.
The Aśokadatta is a much longer narrative story about the twelve year-old daughter of a king who defiantly refuses to pay respect to a group of senior monks knocking at the door. Through a series of jaw-dropping exchanges, Aśokadatta eviscerates everyone from her own father to Śāriputra and Subhūti with the wisdom of Emptiness and the compassion of a bodhisattva. This sutra perfectly illustrates many principles of Mahayana Buddhism using a storyline that would be considered radical even today.
Gender Transformation in Buddhist sutras
Half Day Workshop (in-person and online)
Saturday, February 21st, 2026
1:00pm - 4:00pm
@ the San Francisco Dharma Collective
Description:
Mahayana Buddhist sutras often use supernatural tropes as narrative devices, such as bodhisattvas levitating in the air upon making spiritual attainments, always to ‘the height of seven tāla (palm) trees’, or the Buddha manifesting multiple bodies, appearing directly before each person. Another such trope is the miraculous gender transformation of bodhisattvas, typically females transforming into males. This is a controversial and easily misunderstood aspect of Mahayana Buddhism. Is it meant to be empowering, a demonstration of mystical prowess? Is it just patriarchy as usual? Or is there some entirely different meaning?
This half-day workshop will touch on the new translation of the Aśokadatta Bodhisattva Sūtra (‘Fearless Virtue’), one of the many radical texts found in the Mahāratnakūṭa Sūtra collection that tells the story of a female bodhisattva, her gender transformation, and the inevitable attainment of enlightenment. This workshop is also a great companion class to the upcoming advanced sutra study course beginning March 3rd.
More information available HERE
BUDDHISM IN TRANSLATION: ideas and practices for everyday life
New Online Class @SFDC Sunday nights 7:00pm - 8:30pm San Francisco Dharma Collective
Description: What is Buddhism, and why does it look so different in different places? How did the teachings of the Buddha travel across the world and evolve within various cultures? How are they evolving today, here and now? This class brings together wisdom from Buddhist texts, historical perspectives from across Buddhist traditions, and practical experiences of life to shed light on these and other relevant questions.
Every Sunday evening, we will examine key Buddhist ideas and practices and explore major Buddhist schools and their diverse expressions. Through dharma talks, open discussions and close readings, we will consider what it means to translate not only texts, but traditions, grappling with the challenge of making sense of the many different Buddhisms that exist today and what they mean in our modern lives.
This class is by donation and open to all!
More information available HERE
Video recordings of past LUSB courses are now available to take
In gratitude to the LUSB community, the following recordings of the below past courses are available to order on a sliding scale fee ($50 - $300). Further descriptions of classes available here.
Mother of Buddhas (8,000 line Prajñā Sutra)
Saṃdhinirmocana Sutra
Universal Gateway to the Inconceivable Sutra
Dharma Study Courses
Emptiness
Suchness
Mind-Only
Ten Bodhisattva Stages
Acts of Remembrance: Intro to Mindfulness
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