MINGYUR RINPOCHE’S 2025 visit to South Africa was a moment of profound significance for the local meditation community. It was, in the words of Anna Cowen and John Ziniades, founders of the first Tergar practice group in Cape Town in 2017, “deeply meaningful… a sense of both a familiar homecoming and the seed of something completely fresh and new.”

South Africa has a history of Buddhist (Kagyu) practice stretching back more than half a century. The late Rob Nairn, who connected with Akong Rinpoche of Samye Ling in Scotland in the late 1960s, brought the Kagyu lineage to South Africa and laid the foundations for the Dharma to take root here. As Anna and John shared, many practitioners who are now devoted students of Mingyur Rinpoche first encountered the teachings through the centers Rob established across the country.

“In fact, Rob invited Mingyur Rinpoche to teach in South Africa in 2009. It was only in 2025 that the causes and conditions had ripened for this to become a reality,” they said.

For the community, Mingyur Rinpoche’s presence was transformative. His teachings—joyful, accessible, and profoundly direct—brought delight, wonder, and inspiration. As Anna and John expressed, “there is a shared sense of a deepening commitment to take refuge in all senses of the word.”

For many, this was their first opportunity to meet Rinpoche in person, and gratitude was expressed not only for his presence in South Africa but also for the online offerings of Tergar International, which have long sustained practitioners living far from the places where Rinpoche typically teaches.

For some, the visit was nothing short of a dream fulfilled. “I met Rinpoche in November 2015 at Sherab Ling Monastery [near Dharamsala, India], just after he returned from his wandering retreat,” said Huni Dunbar, one of the organizers of Rinpoche’s visit. “Ten years later, Rinpoche has visited South Africa, and everything about his visit was incredible. It was a JOYOUS two weeks with Rinpoche.”

Huni described how the planning team—most of whom barely knew each other—came together in deep harmony, bonded by a shared vision to make Rinpoche’s trip special. Their collective effort reflected the recognition of interdependence, encapsulated in the South African spirit of Ubuntu: “I am because we are.”

The visit was also a bridge between Buddhist practice and wider South African society. As Luke Younge, a director of Tergar South Africa, noted, Rinpoche’s presence “catalysed extraordinary enthusiasm amongst existing practitioners whilst touching many newcomers to the path.”

Rinpoche taught introductory workshops such as Anytime, Anywhere Meditation at the University of Cape Town and Thrive Daily: Meditation for Work at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg—programs designed to share meditation with those curious or new to practice. He also appeared on a panel of faith leaders at the interfaith gathering at St George’s Cathedral, while more advanced teachings, such as the Path of Liberation program, provided profound inspiration for committed practitioners.

“His teachings on mindfulness, awareness, and compassion offer vital tools for wellbeing, amplifying South Africa’s inherent qualities of resilience and connectedness whilst addressing our society’s deep needs,” said Luke.

At the close of the visit, Luke offered thanks to Rinpoche on behalf of the Tergar South Africa sangha. “How do you thank the sky? How do you thank the mountains? The warm sun, the full moon… The natural response is not thanks, but awe and love and joy,” Luke said in his speech, then continuing:

“Rinpoche, you cut through to the direct essence, and with unimpeded generosity and plain language—nothing held back, nothing hidden—you pour the sacred nectar of the lineage into our hearts and minds and hands.”

October 2025