In this post, we offer a selection of free online courses that can help you learn about meditation and mindfulness and cultivate a practice. This is only a small handful of the many great courses and other resources available on the internet today. To find more, join our online Discord community and check the #resources channel.
Table of Contents
- Meditation Mind Four-Week Mindfulness Course
- Mindfulness Daily with Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield
- The Unified Mindfulness CORE Training
- De-Mystifying Mindfulness (Leiden University)
- Palouse Mindfulness Online MBSR Course
- Meditation in the Theravada Abhidhamma with Bhikkhu Bodhi
- Intro to Meditation with Mingyur Rinpoche
- Buddhism Through Its Scriptures (Harvard University)
- The Open Buddhist University (16 Courses)
Meditation Mind Four-Week Mindfulness Course
This self-paced course draws from MBCT, MBSR, and other scientifically validated methods to help participants develop a firm grasp of meditation and mindfulness basics, along with principles from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and establish a regular practice based on that understanding. The course is meant to be completed over a period of four weeks and includes text, handouts, guided meditations, video, and audio.
Link: https://meditation-mind.thinkific.com/courses/mindfulness
Mindfulness Daily with Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield
Mindfulness Daily brings you a 40-day online training in mindfulness meditation with Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield. Each daily 10–15 minute lesson includes a short talk and guided meditation designed to assist in establishing a meditation practice.
Link: https://courses.tarabrach.com/courses/mindfulness-daily
The Unified Mindfulness CORE Training
The interactive CORE training consists of 10 video-based lessons, each with its own self-paced quiz designed to test and reinforce what you’ve learned in each video. It was built for people brand-new to meditation AND for highly experienced meditators who would like to explore the Unified Mindfulness system.
Developed over fifty years of practice and research by the renowned meditation teacher Shinzen Young, Unified Mindfulness is a simple, yet highly effective meditation system built for the modern world. It brings together key elements of Eastern contemplative traditions and the technological, scientifically-based methodology of the West. And Unified Mindfulness is a secular form of meditation, which means it is not religious in any way – so anyone, of any faith, can do it.
De-Mystifying Mindfulness
Evolving from the popular Honours Academy course at Leiden University, this innovative course combines conventional scholarly inquiry from multiple disciplines (ranging from psychology, through philosophy, to politics) with experiential learning (including specially designed ‘meditation labs,’ in which you’ll get chance to practice and analyze mindfulness on yourself). In the end, the course aims to provide a responsible, comprehensive, and inclusive education about (and in) mindfulness as a contemporary phenomenon.
Palouse Mindfulness Online MBSR Course
This online MBSR training course is 100% free, created by a fully certified MBSR instructor, and is based on the program founded by Jon Kabat-Zinn at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) is a blend of meditation, body awareness, and mindful movement: learning through practice and study how your body handles (and can resolve) stress neurologically.
Meditation in the Theravada Abhidhamma
In this course, you’ll be guided by one of the foremost scholars and translators in the Theravada tradition, Bhikkhu Bodhi, through the study of meditation as it is taught in the Abhidhamma. Start lesson 1 today to begin your journey to discovering the forty meditation subjects in Buddhist literature, the role of attaining jhāna in the Buddhist path, the path and fruit of stream entry, and the meaning of meditative attainment. You’ll come away with a clear understanding of the entire terrain of Buddhist meditation, from beginning to end.
Link: https://wisdomexperience.org/courses/meditation-abhidhamma/
Intro to Meditation with Mingyur Rinpoche
In this simple, self-guided course, you will be introduced to practical ways of exploring the landscape of the heart and mind with awareness. You will also begin to discover that true and lasting happiness does not depend on the outer circumstances of your life. Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche will be your guide for the course and will offer you a taste of meditation, allowing you to begin your own meditation journey.
Buddhism Through Its Scriptures
Whether you are new to the study of Buddhism or have been studying it or practicing it for years, this course will provide you with the opportunity to become acquainted with a variety of Buddhist teachings while guiding you to think about them, and yourself, in new ways.
Through a combination of carefully selected readings, both scriptural and informational, as well as exposure to various forms of Buddhist practice such as art, devotional acts, and literary works, you will learn how to interpret, reflect upon, and apply the teachings of the Buddha to your own life and deepen your understanding of Buddhism.
Link: https://www.edx.org/course/buddhism-through-its-scriptures
The Open Buddhist University
The Open Buddhist University is an unaccredited, digital resource run by Khemarato Bhikkhu since 2020. Its mission is to provide a free, English-language curriculum in Buddhist Studies from the perspective of Early Buddhism.
The Open Buddhist University currently offers 16 courses, including: Buddhism 101, The Practice of Buddhism, An Introduction to Buddhist Philosophy, Buddhist Ethics, The Pāli Language: Level 1 and Level 2, Chinese Buddhist Writing, and more.
Positive Affirmations
