Every Beat of Your Heart
You are here; you are living; let it be that way–that is mindfulness. Your heart pulsates and you breathe. All kinds of things are happening in you at once. Let mindfulness work with that, let that be mindfulness; let every beat of your heart, every breath, be mindfulness itself. You do not have to breathe specially; your breath is an expression of mindfulness. If you approach mindfulness in this way, it becomes very personal and very direct.
The Halifax Shambhala Centre is pleased to announce that Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche—the grandson and spiritual heir of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, one of Trungpa Rinpoche’s principal teachers—will be visiting Halifax during the first week of August 2026.
Lady Diana’s Life Story
I’ve been asked by the family of Lady Diana Mukpo to make some remarks today about her life story: who she was, what she did and what her connection is to all of us! It’s difficult to do this for someone of her stature and also for someone who was such a beloved friend of many...
Ringu Tulku on the Sadhana of Mahamudra & the Four Dharma’s of Gampopa
Thank you to Ringu Tulku and his organization, Bodhicharya, for permission to post this talk.
The Passing of Lady Diana Mukpo
Dear Shambhala Sangha,
Our community has experienced an incredible loss. We write with heavy hearts to share that Lady Diana Mukpo - wife and widow of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, mother, grandmother, accomplished equestrian, and steadfast protector of the Shambhala teachings and vision - passed away surrounded by family and close friends at her home in Florida on...
Journey to Taktsang 57 Years Ago
The Sadhana of Mahamudra was completed at Taktsang in Bhutan on September 6, 1968. Here, in his own words, is the story of traveling to Taktsang and receiving the sadhana.
Lack of Credentials
Excerpted from The Way of Basic Sanity, A Brief Overview of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche's Perspective on Sutric Buddhism
Jonathan Barbieri on Meeting our Kagyu and Nyingma relatives for the first time
Jonathan Barbieri has taught Buddhist and Shambhala trainings extensively throughout North America for over 40 years. He served as a Shastri, a senior teacher, in the Shambhala lineage for several years. Jon has been engaged in several livelihood pursuits including 10 years in educational non-profits, consulting with cities and counties on workforce development, creating contemplative co-housing...
Tim Olmsted on Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, Pema Chödrön and Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche
These Sons and Daughters of Noble Family lectures showcase the rich dharma heritage of our extended dharma family. They were originally presented live by Karme Choling and hosted by Julia Sagebien & Karme Choling Co-Directors JT Buck & Vegan Aharonian between April and October 2024. The Chronicles is now in the process of making all sixteen of these lectures available permanently here, adding a new episode to this page every few weeks.
It Was the Memory of His Kindness
I read something recently that recalled the evening I heard Chögyam Trungpa speak in Toronto in the autumn of 1971. My memories of that evening come back to me occasionally, and they surfaced again while I was reading Opening a Mountain: Koans of the Zen Masters. The book is a deeply contextualized collection of stories and...
Joni and Rinpoche
Here is Joni Mitchell in conversation with Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden after receiving the Gershwin Prize. When asked what themes she might want to explore currently in her songwriting, Joni talked about her connection with Trungpa Rinpoche
Calligraphy Lesson
I loved Trungpa Rinpoche beyond words and admired him more than anyone I had ever met (I was also a little afraid of him).
Father Thomas Keating and Trungpa Rinpoche Talk About Egolessness
This conversation took place during Naropa’s 1983 Christian Buddhist Conference
Stories of Sechen Kongtrül, told by Tulku Urgyen
Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche's Stories of Shechen Kongtrül, read by Larry Mermelstein.
Myth of Freedom and the Cosmic Joke with Ani Pema Chodron
In this talk, which is presented in three segments, Pema guides us through the beginning chapters of Trungpa Rinpoche's Myth of Freedom.
The Heart of Enlightened Action
Jetsun Khandro Rinpoche teaches on the mahayana at the Berkley Shambhala Center, August 2007. Here are talks One, Two, and Three of the five talk series.
Vajradhatu Seminary Lake Louise
A slideshow of Lake Louise from Charles Marrow
Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche’s Cremation Ceremony
Thirty Eight Years Ago in Karme Choling's upper meadow
Why Now?
Tashi Colman's Review of The Sadhana of Mahamudra, a new title from Shambhala Publications
Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche on Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche: His Lineage and Legacy
In fact all the great lamas consider Trungpa Rinpoche as a real vidyadhara. He is very special. He is a very authentic master and great scholar. What he wrote is mind-boggling.
A Conversation with Shari Vogler
Shari Vogler served as the head cook to the Vidyadhara, Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche and his family from 1977 until his death in 1987.
Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche
Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche was a Tibetan incarnate lama who understood the Western mind. Through the years, I have appreciated the many teachings that he imparted. The students of Rinpoche,...
Tribute to Jean Claude
Jean Claude van Itallie died on September 9, 2021 in Manhattan. He was a central figure in the experimental theater movement for decades and an early friend and student...
Meeting the Best Friend That You Will Ever Have
When I was around 13 years old I was very stubborn. One of my first real gestures of rebellion towards my parents was to refuse to go to church...
Like a Foreign Country
[Rinpoche] said there would be economic problems and earthquakes, that the weather would become more extreme because the dralas would not be protecting the situation, and that it would be harder and harder to practice genuine dharma because of the level of aggression in the country.
You Knocked Over the Musician!
The 16th Karmapa's second visit to the San Francisco Bay Area occurred during the Chinese and (that year) Tibetan new year's celebrations. On the big day the Karmapa hosted...
Birthmark
One day in the early 70s Rinpoche was sitting at his desk, and I pointed to his birthmark. He had a soft brown birthmark on his left forearm. I said something clueless like, “Is that a birthmark?”
The Big Thud
I'm unsure what year this was, probably the late summer or early fall of 1986, but it was the last time Rinpoche was to be in the States, and...
Tea and Rice ceremony welcoming Yangsi Rinpoche in Boulder
By Nina Rolle
We've been having some hot August days in Boulder, with a dry wind. Most of the sangha has returned to town from a summer of retreats up...
Lineage and Devotion
As our devotion increased in these early years, we came to regard Trungpa Rinpoche as the only and the everything. It seemed that he came out of nowhere, like a bolt of lightning. But there was a larger context...
The Four Noble Truths Of Wealth
Layth Matthews is a long-time student of Shambhala and Buddhist dharma, living in Victoria, BC where he served as the Shambhala Centre Director from 2010 - 2013, and works...
Elocution Lessons with Chögyam Trungpa, Part One: Recognizing the Power of Speech
Part One: Recognizing the Power of Speech
Children’s Day Album
Of all the cultural traditions initiated by Trungpa Rinpoche, perhaps none have been observed with more enthusiasm and consistency than Children's Day. "Dharma brats" and their parents have been...
A Brief History of Tassajara
From Native American Sweat Lodges to Pioneering Zen Monastery
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Mahamudra Elixir II: Identifying & Sustaining the Nature of the Dynamic Mindby Elizabeth Callahan
LISTEN TO THE EIGHT RECORDED SESSIONS OF ELIXIR PART I Mahamudra Elixir II Starts October 1 This five-part series will focus on […]
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Buddhist Rebirth III: Modern Takesby Roger Jackson
Rebirth, or reincarnation, was assumed by most premodern Buddhists – and is believed by many modern Buddhists – to be “the […]
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The Key Points of Trekchö with Gerardo Abboudby Gerardo Abboud
In person at the Halifax Shambhala Centre, and here on Ocean We are very pleased to welcome Gerardo Abboud to the Halifax […]
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Samsara, Nirvana, and the Pathby Jakob Leschly
Samsara represents the painful cycle of dysfunction and suffering, whereas nirvana epitomizes the liberation inherent in our true […]
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The Kagyu Lineageby Jonathan Barbieri
Lineage is the unbroken transmission of wisdom and skillful means that is passed down directly from teacher to student – from […]