Shugsep, a Nyingma nunnery, traces its ritual and practice to some of the most illustrious female practitioners in Tibetan history. In this century, Shugsep was home to one of the most famous practitioners and teachers of this century, Shugsep Jetsunma. There the nuns followed a routine primarily of memorizing scriptures and meditating, living as ascetic hermits in caves in the hillside. Following the cultural revolution in 1959, the nuns were forced to leave Shugsep and it was completely destroyed. Although the nunnery was partially rebuilt in the 1980's by the nuns themselves, those who continue to reside there faced harassment by Chinese authorities. Nearly all of the nuns studying in Shugsep Nunnery in Dharamsala come from the original Shugsep.

Most of the 60 nuns at Shugsep come from the original nunnery in Tibet. Here they have the opportunity to participate in a nine-year academic program of Buddhist philosophy, debate, Tibetan language and English. Their teachers come from Penor Rinpoche's monastery in southern India.

Every Sunday night, the Shugsep nuns practice the Chod ritual, following the lineage of chod practice that comes down from the great female practitioner of the 11th century, Machik Lapdron. This ritual focuses on severing worldly attachments by offering one's own body parts to visualized deities.