Kapala Training
The Buddhist Path of Feeding Your Demons®
Lama Tsultrim Allione brings an eleventh-century Tibetan woman’s practice to the West for the first time in her book, Feeding Your Demons: Ancient Wisdom for Resolving Inner Conflict (Little Brown Co. 2008), outlining an accessible and effective 5-Step approach for dealing with negative emotions, fears, illnesses, and self-defeating patterns, which she coined “Feeding Your
Demons.” The practice of Feeding Your Demons® (FYD) is a foundational component of the Kapala Training path of study.
Kapala Training is Tara Mandala’s path for studying the Buddhist principles and practices that inspired FYD. This path of study is a comprehensive six-level training program made up of six retreats of increasing levels of learning—each level builds upon the previous one, providing an in-depth exploration of the Chöd teachings of Machig Labdrön; related Mahayana teachings of Prajñaparamita; as well as the practice of FYD developed by Lama Tsultrim Allione. While the traditional Chöd practice served as the original inspiration for FYD, Kapala Training focuses on the Buddhist foundations and contemplative practices related to Machig Labdrön’s Chod lineage.
Kapala Training Levels I through VI are also a foundational part of the Magyu Path of Study in Tibetan Buddhism offered through Tara Mandala Retreat Center.
How Kapala Training Relates to the Feeding Your Demons® Program
The first two levels of Kapala Training are equivalent to the Feeding Your Demons® Program Levels I & II (Buddhist Track). These first two levels are identical in content whether taken online as part of the FYD Program or in-person as Kapala Training retreats. Both formats equally prepare students for:
- FYD Certification (for those wishing to use the method professionally)
- Continuing with Kapala Training Levels III-VI (for deeper Buddhist study)
- Progressing on the Magyu Path (Tara Mandala’s comprehensive Buddhist curriculum)
After Level II, the paths offer different opportunities:
FYD Certification Path: An optional professional training for those who wish to use FYD with clients. This certification is not required to continue with Kapala Training—it’s simply an additional pathway for those called to professional practice. Please note that FYD Certification Level and Kapala Level III are distinct programs with different focuses.
Kapala Training Path: Continues through Levels III-VI with progressively deeper Buddhist teachings and meditation practices, building upon the foundation established in the first two levels.
Who is Kapala Training For?
Kapala Training serves:
- Those drawn to explore the principles and practices that inspired FYD – Machig Labdrön’s chöd lineages and who would like to study Lama Tsultrim’s core teachings in the Magyu Program
- Practitioners seeking a comprehensive path of Buddhist study and contemplative practice
- Individuals wanting to work deeply with their own patterns through the traditional wisdom teachings that Lama Tsultrim received from Machig Labdrön’s lineage
- Students on the Magyu Path requiring the Buddhist foundations for their continued study
There is no formal application or prerequisite to begin the Kapala Training Path. The training welcomes both those new to Buddhism and experienced practitioners.
The Complete Kapala Training Journey
Kapala Training Level I
Prerequisites: None
What You’ll Learn:
- The complete Feeding Your Demons® 5-step process
- Solo and partner demon feeding practices
- Working with demons through artistic expression (drawing and clay)
- Understanding types of demons and mapping demon complexes
- Prajnaparamita (Perfection of Wisdom) meditation practice
Kapala Training Level II
Prerequisites:
- Completion of Kapala Training Level I or FYD Level I (Buddhist Track)
- 25 Feeding Your Demons® processes: 20 solo and 5 with a partner
- 80 sessions of Prajnaparamita practice
- Plant a tree or sponsor a tree to be planted
What You’ll Learn:
- Creating a full-sized body map
- Extended Ally Process – solo and partner work
- Male and female family lineage demon and ally mapping
- Advanced hydra map refinement
- “Transmitting the Meaning of the Mother” practice
- “Supplication to the Great Mother” practice
- “Cutting Four Demons Loose into Space” practice
- Teachings from Machig Labdrön’s essential texts
- Taking and Waking practice
FYD Certification Level (Optional)
While not required to continue with Kapala Training, many students choose to pursue FYD Certification after Level II to become authorized to use the method professionally with clients.
Kapala Training Level III
Deeper Exploration of the Mother Lineage
Level III introduces more transpersonal and altruistic approaches to demon work, expanding beyond personal transformation to collective healing.
Prerequisites:
- Completion of Kapala Training Levels I and II, or Kapala Online Level I and II
- A total of 40 Solo + 20 Partner sessions
- 10 Solo Extended Ally + 10 Partner Extended Ally processes
- 80 sessions of “Supplication to the Great Mother”
- 80 sessions of “Transmitting the Meaning of the Mother” with “Cutting Four Demons Loose into Space”
- 80 sessions of Taking and Waking
What You’ll Learn:
- The Empowerment of Machig Labdrön
- “Opening the Gate to Space” practice
- Working with dream figures through FYD
- Addressing collective societal, cultural, and historical demons
- Understanding organizational and group-dynamic demons
- Exploring the fourth demon: ego-clinging
- Journey with the Ally processes
Kapala Training Level IV
Advanced Practices and Solo Retreat
Prerequisites:
- Completion of Kapala Training Levels I, II & III
- 90 sessions of “Opening the Gate to Space”
- Completion of one week of Dentog Chigma Chöd solo retreat
- 10 Feeding Your Demons® with dream figures with tracking forms
- 10 Feeding Your Demons® with demon of ego-clinging with tracking forms
- 10 Feeding Your Demons® with collective societal/cultural/historical demon with tracking forms
- 10 Journey with the Ally processes
- 90 thirty-minute sessions of the Four Immeasurables practice
What You’ll Learn:
- “Machig’s Direct Transmission” from Lama Tsultrim
- “The Crystal and Its Rays” movement practice
Kapala Training Level V
Culmination and Contemporary Applications
Prerequisites:
- Completion of Kapala Training Levels I, II, III & IV
- 90 sessions of “Machig’s Direct Transmission”
- 90 sessions of “The Crystal and Its Rays” movement practice
What You’ll Learn:
- Scientific research supporting FYD methodology
- Working with demons of racism and ecological narcissism
- You will receive the practice of “Machig Labdrön and the Five Chakra Dakinis” a Dagnang (Pure Vision) Terma from Lama Tsultrim. She received this at Zangri Khamar in Tibet on December 13, 2010.
- You will receive Machig’s Longevity sadhana practice that Lama Tsultrim received in the cave of Machig Labdrön in Bhutan in 2017.
Program Format and Availability
Kapala Training is offered as online or in-person or retreats at Tara Mandala Retreat Center and occasionally at international venues. These immersive retreats provide the opportunity for deep practice within a supportive community setting.
For those unable to attend in-person retreats, Levels I and II are also available online through the FYD Program, offered every six months. The online and in-person formats are fully interchangeable for these two foundational levels.
Integration with the Magyu Path
Kapala Training Levels I through V form an essential component of the Magyu Path (Mother Lineage), Lama Tsultrim Allione’s comprehensive Tibetan Buddhist path of study at Tara Mandala. Students on the Magyu Path must complete these levels to progress through the full teaching cycle.
Getting Started
To begin your journey with Kapala Training:
- Check the Tara Mandala Retreat Calendar for upcoming Kapala Training retreats
- Or register for Kapala I (aka FYD Level I Buddhist track) online, offered every six months
- No application is required to begin – simply choose the format that works best for you
Whether you’re drawn to personal transformation, professional development, or deeper Buddhist study, Kapala Training offers a profound path for working with the challenges of human existence and discovering the wisdom within.