Our local teachers

Gesha Soepa

Distinguished Visiting Teacher
Geshe Thubten Soepa was born in Tibet from a widely respected Dharma practitioners family. At the age of 19, he fled Tibet to Sera Jey Monastery in India where he spent the next 21 years studying Buddha Dharma. He passed the highest examinations for the Lharampa Geshe degree, taught 3 years in Sera and Dzongar Choden monasteries. Geshe Soepa served as resident teacher for Aryatara Institute in Germany for 10 years. He has been visiting and teaching at Land of Compassion & Wisdom since 2006.

Bonnie Baptist

Local Lay Teacher
Bonnie Baptist, is a student of Lama Zopa Rinpoche. She has been studying and practicing dharma since 1996. Bonnie has completed several retreats and taken teachings from many masters in the Gelug Tradition, including His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, Ribur Rinpoche, Choden Rinpoche, Denma Locho Rinpoche, Kirti Tsenchab Rinpoche and other great Lamas. She has also completed FPMT Spiritual Program Coordinator and Foundation Training. Bonnie served for two years as Spiritual Program Coordinator at Land of Medicine Buddha in California and was the Regional Coordinator for FPMT North America from 2001-2009. She moved to Austin in 2003 and started the Austin FPMT center under the advice of Lama Zopa Rinpoche. Bonnie is a registered teacher of FPMT’s Discovering Buddhism and Basic Program courses.