What prayers to do and where to donate to?
A few suggestions

A message from Carmen and the School for Tibetan Buddhist Art on Sep 1, 2026. Updated on Sep 4:

Since the catastrophic flash floods in Nepal, I’ve gotten questions from students about what Buddhist prayers to do and what organizations are best to donate to. So I made this info page with links to trusted Nepal Relief Funds, as well as prayers, practices and mantras that you can do (more links may be added).

Also, the School for Tibetan Buddhist Art will donate 50% of September’s Online Thangka Course proceeds to the relief effort.

On August 26, a sudden flash flood of the Bhote Koshi River struck the border area between Nepal and Tibet. You may have seen the horrific footage of the walls of water completely sweeping away people, buses, roads, houses, bridges, and even complete villages and infrastructure…

The scale of this disaster is still unfolding. Currently more than 1,000 people have died and thousands are reported missing. Entire communities have lost their homes and are displaced. Immediate help is needed for the roughly 93,000 people that have been directly affected.

Want to do something?
Here are a few suggestions.

RELIEF FUNDS

Government of Nepal Prime Minister’s Disaster Relief Fund

​The Nepalese government has centralized emergency aid under a unified framework, making it the most direct, secure, and legally protected way to provide aid to the victims of the catastrophic flash floods. By Nepalese law, 100% of the money deposited into the fund must be spent entirely on rescue operations, medical treatments, immediate relief, long-term rehabilitation, and infrastructure restoration. The law strictly prohibits these funds from being used to cover administrative costs or government overhead.

​Nepal Red Cross Society

​Also the Nepal Red Cross Society (NRCS) delivers clean water, emergency shelter, tarps, and blankets to families hit by severe weather and landslides. They operate over 100 blood donation centers and supplies more than 4 million units of safe blood and components annually. Local teams run active ambulance stations and train community members in life-saving first aid. A robust group of over 90,000 active volunteers and youth members provides rapid front-line support during emergencies.

Sidenote: Donating to the above options makes a lot of sense, as my Nepali friends say ‘this new government must be trusted to do what is in Nepal’s best interest.’

Organizations that operate from Buddhist Monasteries
You may also want to support charities that operate from Buddhist Monasteries in Nepal, such as FPMT Emergency Relief Fund and Karuna-Shechen.

Other trusted organizations
Of course you can also donate to trusted organizations that operate from other countries, such as DirectRelief (99,5% of your donation goes to relief effort) or GlobalGiving (85% of your donation goes to relief effort).

Sidenote: A caution worth repeating, since Nepali authorities have said it themselves: give through registered organizations such as these, not personal accounts or fundraisers circulating on social media. Scams follow disasters fast.

PRAYERS, PRACTICES & MANTRAS

A list of Buddhist Prayers and Practices that you can do

​Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Advice for Natural Disasters

​Dalai Lama Offering Prayers for Victims of the Devastating Flood

​Article from the Central Tibetan Administration about the prayers that HH. the Dalai Lama did on Aug 30th, including mantras that you could recite

Video of HH. the Dalai Lama offering Prayers for the victims

50% of the Online Courses go to Nepal Relief Funds

Also, on behalf of the School for Tibetan Buddhist Art, I like to announce that 50% of the proceeds of my upcoming Online Thangka Courses in Sep (as well as their accompanying Course Bundles) will be donated to Nepal Relief Funds. This also goes for the purchases that where made earlier, since registration opened:
Buddha Face (Sep 4-9)
The Buddha (Buddha Shakyamuni, Sep 18-Nov 15)
Medicine Buddha (Buddha of Healing, Sep 18-Nov 15)
So if you plan on joining one of these courses, know that your purchase will contribute to immediate help to all those affected. ​

I would like to end this message with Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, my favorite teacher of the Bön tradition, who shared this prayer with his students: