transformative tools & wisdom
from the Buddhist tradition for people impacted by incarceration
Interfaith Lens • Accessible Language • Restorative Justice • Emotional Literacy • Fostering Interconnection join us for a SaKa Dawa Düchen Celebration
Sunday May 31, 2026 | 5:00pm to 6:00pm PST
From a single spark of bodhicitta — the highest aspiration of love — an entire movement has emerged, cultivating a culture of awakening.
Since 2022, BPM has carried this seed of intention into the most oppressed, unseen places – with our content / materials now reaching over 65,000 incarcerated individuals.
After 4 years of fiscal sponsorship we have filed for our own non-profit status! Gather with us --to hear the stories. To meet the people. To witness what becomes possible when light of transformation is invited to shine freely.
You’ll hear from:
Founder & President, Susan Shannon
Board members sharing vision and mission
Content creators and collaborators and project overview
Inspiring stories of real impact and exciting upcoming projects
Auspiciously held on Saka Dawa Duchen, the sacred day honoring the birth, enlightenment, and parinirvana of Buddha Shakyamuni. It is said that the positive effects of our actions are multiplied on this day. Please spread the word!
Free Event! The sole purpose of this event is to share what we have created with you.
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Workbooks + Courses
Buddhist-based course work written specifically for the incarcerated using accessible language and an interfaith lens, free of charge.
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Certificate + Connection
Inmates who complete our soft-bound paper coursebooks receive a certificate of completion, and a personal, in-depth reply from a BPM volunteer--seasoned Buddhist practitioners from various traditions.
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Tablet learning
Using the Edovo Platform, BPM offers its Courses and Workbooks in a tablet format, as well as a wide range of carefully chosen resources representing a variety of schools/ traditions.
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Tara's Sisters
A unique inter-spiritual Sangha of Belonging for People who Identify as Female. Members show commitment, intentionality and discipline in one's path of transformation.
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Podcast
Discussions, interviews and so much more with Rev. Susan Shannon, BCC., Blaire Embrey and special guests.
The Aim of our Offerings:
Cultivation of Deeper Self-Awareness + Increased Impulse ControlProvide Tools of Non-Violence + ConnectionIntegration of One’s Past + Creating an Authentic Future LifeReduction of Recidivism + Increase of Pro-social activityBalancing Life both Inside and Outside the Walls
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4,800
Since 2021: Course books mailed free of charge to the incarcerated, prison chaplains and volunteers.
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57,300
Since Oct; 2023: Courses accessed by incarcerated men and women who have enrolled on the Edovo platform.
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1,750
Since 2022: Personalized Homework Responses to inmates from BPM volunteers.
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32+
Volunteers and counting...
“It was a great pleasure for me to read the Buddhist Prison Ministry's An Introduction to Buddhism and to know it is being shared with incarcerated people throughout the country. I'm impressed by the clarity and content of this excellent overview. I am thankful to know that this high quality teaching is reaching my brothers and sisters on the inside.”
Joanna Macy
“May bodhicitta, precious and sublime—arise where it has not yet to be; And where it has already arisen, may it never falter— but grow and flourish, even more.”
Traditional Buddhist Prayer
Bodhicitta : the mind (citta) that is aimed at awakening (bodhi), for the benefit of all beings.