In this nine-minute talk, the Loppon explains the significance of this visit for Trungpa Rinpoche’s vajrayana students, those who encountered him during this lifetime, and those who have come along since then.
The Passing of Bernie Flynn
Bernie first came to our Sangha after college and roaming around the country in the usual hippy pursuits of the early 70's. The "VT back to the land" movement was in full swing and he was going to write the "Great American Novel". He found a house in Barnet and as it turned out, it was not...
The Passing of John Baker
The family of John Joseph Baker, 81, of Boulder, Colorado share the news of his passing on Wednesday, June 10, 2026 at his beautiful mountain home in Boulder, Colorado with his family by his side. He experienced a gentle “fading of my life” over a period of many months. John was born on September 13, 1944,...
Interview with Khenpo Karma Tenkyong
Drala Mountain Center is looking forward to hosting Khenpo Karma Tenkyong, the resident teacher at Karma Triyana Dharmachakra, for Open, Spacious, and Free: A Mahamudra Meditation Retreat, August 26th-29th.
Harsh Splendour First Screening
In 1959 Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche led 300 refugees on a nine-month journey across Tibet to India – a journey now seen to rank among the greatest of history’s great escapes. Among those following him was the Washutsong family and their daughter Palya, aged 15. With music composed and performed by India Gailey and Jeff Reilly, narration by Grant MacLean, Harsh Splendour tells Palya’s story. Through HD satellite images and a flight simulator, we follow the route the refugees took, see the towering mountain terrain they crossed, the fearsome weather they faced. It is a journey to inspire us all.
You Are The Masterpiece
Exploring unconditional sacredness: the display of innate goodness, the worthwhileness of everyday life
21 Years of Tributes from the Mahasangha
Contribute your poems, stories and tributes to this ongoing collection
Four Artists Reflect on CTR’s Visual Dharma Teachings
Photo by George Holmes, used by permission
A reminiscence from Jack Niland
Here's the story. In 1974 at the start of Naropa, Trungpa told me I had to teach a class..."Just tell them everything I've told you" were his only instructions. The first year I assisted others to learn the ropes. Then, starting in 1975, he had me...
Datun Study Program
Buddhism: View and Path: A 7-month study program from Siddhartha's Intent: January - July 2026. The course is being taught by senior instructors and students of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche and Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, along with several excellent guest teachers.
The Passing of Lama Yonten
Lama Yonten passed away in Nepal on February 7. Yonten was Trungpa Rinpoche's attendant during their escape from Tibet, 1959-1960. He also attended Trungpa Rinpoche's root guru, Shechen Kongtrul Rinpoche. Years later in India, he attended Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche.
Here is a recent passage from Rabjam Rinpoche's Facebook page
In Loving Memory of Lama Yonten, Personal Assistant to...
50 Years of Dharma at the Philadelphia Shambhala Center
In December of 2020, during the pandemic, the Philadelphia Shambhala Center hosted a virtual gathering with fourteen of the founding members of Shambhala in Philadelphia. Coming together from coast to coast, some of them had not seen each other for decades.
They talked about the early days of practice, the sangha house in West Philly, the visits...
The Halifax Shambhala Centre: Who’s in Charge? The Mandala Governance System
In 1975, when Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche was asked how he saw his lineage continuing in America he replied that “the general plan, seemingly, or general intuitive plan, is that some kind of reign of sanghaship would take place for a while," and "this needs group spirit."
The Halifax Shambhala Centre is implementing a new governance model. The...
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
Why Now?
Tashi Colman's Review of The Sadhana of Mahamudra, a new title from Shambhala Publications
The Halifax Shambhala Centre Announces the Visit of Shechen Rabjam Rinpoche
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 President of Naropa on the 20th Parinirvana
It gives me great pleasure that, on the evening of April 4, the communities of the Boulder Shambhala Center and Naropa University will be gathering together at Naropa's Events...
Changling Rinpoche
Changling Rinpoche, a devoted student of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, is the current abbot of the Shechen Monastery Shedra (monastic university) in Nepal.
The Do-Gooders
I lived at Tail of the Tiger from November 1971 until the spring of 1972 when Rinpoche asked me, along with Ken and Helen Green and their small son Mithra,...
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.
In Accord With Our True Nature
Update: (17 January 2005) David Chadwick did an interview with Jack in 1995, which he has just posted on cuke.com. Here's a link: Crooked Cucumber Interview with Jack Elias....
Three Spiritual Icons of the Early 20th Century
I was a student in the Gurdjieff* work in San Francisco and London in the early 1960's. During that time I also attended a number of Krishnamurti** talks in...
In the Kitchen at BPB
In 1981 or 82, when I was living at Karmȇ-Chöling in the position of head cook, I still couldn't figure out whether I was connected enough to Rinpoche to...
Hare Krishna
Rinpoche was teaching a college course at C.U. (University of Colorado Boulder) that had been arranged by Brian Grimes. This was probably fall semester 1971. After class one evening...
The Visit of His Holiness the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa
Observations From Peter Volz
Preparing for the visit of the Seventeenth Karmapa has been very enjoyable because there are so many different sanghas working together. From one point of view...
Winter Light: On Late Life’s Radiance
A new book by Douglas Penick
Effortless Beauty by Julie DuBose
Preparing to write this review, I sit down, then pause, put aside my pen, and gaze out the window, taking in the soft moist greens and tawny golds of...
When The Iron Bird Flies
I felt honoured and excited but also apprehensive when Walter and Victress asked me if I would review "When the Iron Bird Flies" for the Chronicles. I felt my...
Trungpa Rinpoche’s Escape From Tibet: 50 Years Ago
Watch Touch and Go, a documentary on Trungpa Rinpoche's escape from Tibet and follow the escape route maps.
As this project is very much a work in progress, please contact Grant...
JOIN US FOR MILAREPA DAY
The journey to awakening begins when we begin to hear the dharma. When heard in the present moment, the songs of past lineage holders can suddenly become relevant and specific to our own personal path.
-
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 […]
-
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 […]
-
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 […]
-
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 […]
-
The Interconnectedness of The Mandalas of Taktsang and of the Sadhana of Mahamudraby Lodro Sangpo
In the first class we will present a slideshow and videos of the walk up to the temple complex, as well as the other important […]