Food as Medicine:
Tibetan Cooking for Your Constitution
A Hands-On Cooking Workshop with Lobsang Tsering Phartsang
Saturday May 23rd, 2026, 2 - 7pm
IN PERSON ONLY
In Sowa Rigpa, the traditional medicine of Tibet, health is understood through the lens of three constitutional principles—Loong, Tripa, and Beken— rooted in the five elements of earth, water, fire, wind, and space. These principles govern every aspect of our physical and mental life, including how we digest, what we crave, and which foods truly nourish us.
This workshop weaves together dietary wisdom, hands-on practice, and the spiritual dimension of Tibetan healing. Participants will begin by coloring their own personalized typology tree—a traditional Sowa Rigpa teaching tool—to identify their constitutional nature and understand how it shapes their relationship to food, digestion, and daily nourishment.
From there, Lobsang Tsering will guide the group in preparing a seasonal meal using herbs, vegetables, and cooking methods selected to support each constitution. The recipes are simple and accessible, rooted in Tibetan dietary principles and adapted to ingredients available today. Cooking and eating together is itself part of the teaching—Sowa Rigpa understands health as inseparable from community, intention, and the way we relate to what sustains us.
The workshop closes with a shared meal preceded by traditional Buddhist practice of blessing and offering the food—transforming the meal into healing nectar, and giving thanks for what sustains us.
This is an intimate class with limited enrollment — early registration is encouraged.
Part of the Medicine Buddha Healing Weekend at Pure Land Farms—a series of events with special guest Lobsang Tsering bringing together Tibetan healing, meditation, and contemplative art in the spirit of Sangye Menla.
Optional overnight stay at Pure Land Farms for participants in the full weekend offerings.
REGISTRATION DETAILS
-
Saturday May 23rd, 2 - 7pm
Non-residential, includes shared nourishing meal to conclude the day. -
Full weekend registration includes Food as Medicine workshop and Mandala of Healing workshop as well as community meditations Saturday and Sunday mornings, all guided by Lobsang Tsering
Saturday
Morning — Community Practice with Public talk and guided meditation
Afternoon, 2–7pm — Food as Medicine: Tibetan Cooking for Your Constitution
Sunday
Morning, 9am — Medicine Buddha Meditation Practice
11am–5pm — Mandala of Healing: The Art of Medicine Buddha's Botanic Garden (VIEW DETAILS)
-
For participants in the full Art as Healing Medicine Buddha weekend, onsite accommodations are available at Pure Land Farms for an additional costs. Please select your choice from the link below
LOBSANG TSERING PHARTSANG
Lobsang Tsering is a former Tibetan Buddhist monk who studied arts, rituals, and Buddhist philosophy at Gyudmed Tantric Monastery, where he received a Geshe degree. He has collaborated with fellow monks to create and exhibit over 50 sand mandalas across many countries, and has led sand painting workshops and lectures on Buddhism, meditation, and the arts of compassion worldwide.
Lobsang holds a Doctorate in Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine and is a practitioner of Sowa Rigpa, the traditional medicine of Tibet. He serves as a Buddhist Chaplain at Santa Clara County Jail and currently teaches Art as Healing at San Francisco State University.