News from the Sakyong

Message from the Sakyong Wangmo

News from Shambhala Europe

GOALS! Shambhala Europe Cup Update
SE Office of Practice and Education Updates
Warning: Do Not Use Images Found on Internet Without Permission

News from Dechen Choling

One More Great Warrior Assembly
Kanjuro Shibata Sensei Back to Teach Kyudo
Job Openings
Blog

News from Centres

Leadership and Harmony – A report on the Governance Training in Cologne
Mudra Mandala Intensive
Practice of Authentic Presence in Cologne

News from the Community

Demolition in Jyekundo, Shedra Construction Resumes at Surmang
Gesar Fund Continues Effort After Earthquake

European Programme Schedule

ST LEVELS AND OTHER PROGRAMMES IN EUROPE THIS MONTH

Message from the Sakyong Wangmo

Dear Members and Friends of Shambhala,

I hope all of you are doing well this summer and that your family, practice, and work is fulfilling. As for myself, I am doing very well.

I wanted to give you all an update since Rinpoche and I made our big announcement on Shambhala Day.

Since then, I was able to travel to India and Nepal to visit my family and see Rinpoche into his retreat.

I have now returned home to the Kalapa Court in Halifax. I am doing well and growing bigger. I am doing lots of practice and also walking a lot. I will soon be joined by my mother and sister.

I am happy to say that Rinpoche just returned from his first six months of retreat. He has come back to be with me at home and to lead a few key programs. He is very cheerful and radiant. So we are all doing well.

I have been hearing that many people in our community are practicing which is very wonderful and please continue to do so.

I just wanted to share with you all how I am doing since it feels like we are going through this together. I can feel all of your love and support very strongly.

Much love to all,
Sakyong Wangmo
Dechen Chöying Sangmo

By the Shambhala News Service

GOALS! Shambhala Europe Cup Update

Inspired by the World Cup and the constant fixation on "goals", it seemed an appropriate time to give a brief report on how Shambhala Europe is doing on meeting the goals we laid out for ourselves on Shambhala Day in February.  

Goal 1: More Personal Interactions (with the sangha and its leadership)
Three members of the SE office just staffed Warrior Assembly at DCL as Meditation Instructors, and two also served as translators. Regular conference calls are now being arranged between Centre Directors and Group Coordinators with the Kalapa Council to begin later this summer. Chris Montone is making plans to visit the remaining Centres he has not yet been able to visit. Sabine Rolf is constantly on the move. And we're looking for opportunities to get Tessa Ladendorff out and about more.

Goal 2:  Supporting Community-Building and Growth through Publicity
We have added a Community section to our website and to some of our regular communication mechanisms in order to share ideas and activities on creating warm communities of kindness. Centre Services (aka Tessa) has created new brochures on Shambhala in general and on Membership. These are currently being translated into various languages. We are making them available free of charge to any Centre or Group. We are also in the process of developing publicity materials for the Way of Shambhala curriculum, which will be available online soon.  If you have ideas for other materials we could offer to support your centres and groups, please let us know how we can help you by emailing centreservices@shambhala-europe.org.

Goal 3:  Building Skills for Creating Harmony
In March, SE held a workshop with Paul Cashman on communicating in conflict situations. In May, we held a Governance Training in Cologne that included one-day workshops on both the Six Ways of Ruling and Nonviolent Communication (see the report on "News from Centres"). Transcripts and audio files are being posted to our website Members section so that others may benefit from these trainings.

Goal 4: Deepening Understanding of Ritual Practices and Way of Shambhala Curriculum
In March, Andrea Doukas visited Cologne where she conducted a training for chöpöns and she also gave shrine room protocol workshops in London and Athens. Sabine Rolf and Saskia Broker continue to support the implementation of the Way of Shambhala curriculum, as more Centres and Groups begin to offer it locally. A series of conference calls with Carolyn Mandelker (Director of the Shambhala Office of Practice and Education) was held in June.

Goal 5: Be Economically and Ecologically Conscious
We continue to keep a close eye on our financial situation and are working tirelessly to improve our finance procedures, keep them in line with legal requirements, and make changes necessary to avoid any unpleasant surprises in the future. Ecologically-speaking, we are increasing our awareness of our daily office habits and making changes to help the environment both in Cologne and at Dechen Chöling, where the first organic Warrior Assembly was held in June (with organic bread and sans individual tea bags!)

We'd love to know what you are doing to support these goals in your area. If  you have something to share, please give us a call or send us an e-mail (centreservices@shambhala-europe.org) and let us know!

SE Office of Practice and Education Updates

1 . Latest Changes: Sutrayana Seminary at DCL - New Dates and Teachers
25 Sept - 17 Oct, 2010 with Acharya Jeremy Hayward and Jane Hope

Sutrayana Seminary deepens and expands the practice and study students undertook in the Shambhala School of Buddhist Studies, dathün, and the Shambhala Training Heart of Warriorship programmes. According to the latest curriculum changes, the material of the Shambhala terma text of "The Golden Key" will guide alternating periods of intensive meditation practice with classes in Buddhist and Shambhala view and practice.  Students may attend with or without having participated in "Golden Key".
For more information and the application, please visit http://www.shambhala.org/programs/detail.php?ProgramCode=SS10DC

We need your application by the 5th of July!   

* Please consider printing this announcement and posting it in your centre or meeting place.

2.   Upcoming Trainings

Shambhala Guide Training coming up in October 2010 in London, please contact Angie Newton for more information: a.newton392@btinternet.com

Meditation Instructor Training in Dechen Chöling 22-29 January 2011 for more information and application materials please contact Saskia Bröker: saskia_broker@shambhala-europe.org

Advanced Teacher Training - The Office of Practice and Education just received a confirmation from Kalapa Acharya Adam Lobel that he will be directing an advanced teachers training, authorizing for the Dignities in Cologne, 8-13 February 2011. If you would like to attend this training, please inform your centre director or group coordinator so they can contact Sabine Rolf and Saskia Bröker: ope@shambhala-europe.org

3.  Meditation Instructors Annual Gathering,  September 18, 2010

Shambhala Europe will send a postcard to all Meditation Instructors and Shambhala Guides to invite you to participate in the annual gathering of Meditation Instructors and Shambhala Guides at your local centre or group. This gathering is held on the Saturday of the Harvest of Peace weekend - this year on Saturday, September 18, 2010. 

Warning: Do Not Use Images Found on Internet Without Permission

We recently encountered a painful situation that we want to inform you about.  Shambhala Europe received notice in June that a Shambhala Group had taken an image they found on the internet and used it on their website for one of their Shambhala levels.  The owner of the photo, a large online image database service, discovered that the image was being used illegally and has now billed Shambhala Europe over 450 euros as a penalty.  We immediately removed the image from our database and website, but we still have to pay the penalty-which comes from the dues we all pay to Shambhala.  

We want to share this incident in hopes that it will serve as a reminder to be careful of what is post on your website. While images found online may seem perfect for your new postcard or website, they are not ours to use without permission. Shambhala Europe will pay the fine this time, but if this happens in the future, we will ask the Centre or Group responsible to pay. To avoid this, please do not use images without permission.  We would also like to remind you that we provide quite a selection of photos and graphics for publicity use at http://logos.shambhala.info/

We would appreciate it if you would share this message with anyone who works with your website or database information.  Thank you very much for taking the time to read this and for your continued effort in supporting Shambhala! 

One More Great Warrior Assembly

In early June seventy-nine Warriors gathered from across Europe and from across the Atlantic Ocean for ten wild, wet and wonderful days at Dechen Chöling. Every morning we were awoken by the sweet sounds of birdsong and clarinet played by the Assembly musician Claude Laurion; or by the call of the marching Kasung ("Are you AWAKE?").  The teachings by Acharyas Puts and Märtens were outrageous and profound and the practices carried everyone into inscrutable realms. Meanwhile the precision of the serving, food preparation and clean-up teams was faultless and each evening the Dining Tent radiated good humour and joy as everyone relaxed over a glass of wine or two.

Despite the rain, the general atmosphere was gentle and warm and everyone appreciated the brilliance of this glimpse of enlightened society.

By Jo Francis
Pictures by Sabine Rolf

Kanjuro Shibata Sensei Back to Teach Kyudo

As you must know, Kanjuro Shibata Sensei came to the West in 1979, following the invitation of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Together they established the kyudo practice hall in Boulder, Colorado. Shibata Sensei took up residence there and, since then, has continually taught the way of the bow to Western students. When Trungpa Rinpoche died, he asked Shibata Sensei to continue to teach and take care of his sangha. This is Sensei's main motivation for visiting the Shambhala land centres each year.

In 2008, Kanjuro Shibata Sensei wrote a book combining his calligraphy and commentaries. One calligraphy is an ASHE stroke and the commentary reads: KYUDO AND ASHE PRACTICE ARE THE SAME.

Let us all gather together this summer around Kanjuro Shibata Sensei.

Kanjuro Shibata Sensei will teach two programmes in DCL:
-    Advanced programme from July 26 (arrival day) to August 1(departure day). This programme is open to anyone familiar with Hitote.
-    The way of the bow from July 29 (arrival day) to August 6(departure day). This programme is a beginners programme and open to everyone.

It is a unique and rare opportunity to meet Kanjuro Shibata Sensei and to be guided in the practice of standing meditation by this Master Warrior.
Please spread this excellent news. You could also offer Kyudo demonstrations either in your Iba or at your local meditation centres to demonstrate the power of this practice.
Actions speak louder than words.

You can also go to Tessa Racine's website and look at a video she made about Kyudo practice: http://tessa.racine.free.fr/m_one_life_one_shot.php

If you are facing any of our current mundane issues such as time and/or money, please feel free to contact the programmes office at DCL where they will find a solution for overcoming these obstacles. Please write to programmes@dechencholing.org

Picture "Hand on Bow" © Sue Kranzdorf

Job Openings

Core Staff Positions

We are recruiting for the following long-term positions, which are paid and require a 1-2 year commitment:
-    Lead Cook - Open now
-    Head of Office - Open now
-    Head of Marketing & Publicity - Open now
-    Head of Practice and Study - Open now
-    Head of Household  - Open from August
-    Head of Garden/Landscaping  - Open from September

2010 Summer Volunteer Programme

Most positions in our short-term volunteer programme are now filled.  But if you are inspired to come, do check out the volunteer pages at: http://www.dechencholing.org/english/working_summer_volunteer_jobs.php
and fill in the application form on the page. We will need cooks and kitchen assistants in the later part of the summer, from August onwards. Other opportunities may arise.

If you're at all interested in working and living at DCL in the short-term as a Summer Volunteer, or long-term as Core Staff, please contact us by:
-    Visiting: www.dechencholing.org or
-    Emailing: personnel@dechencholing.org

Blog

We have started a Dechen Chöling blog, to attempt to get information about what's going on in the DCL bubble to the world outside. This should help both to reach out to new staff and volunteers, and to keep previous visitors informed. For some reason, we really seem to be in a little blissful bubble sometimes and find it hard to relate to the "outside" world, but we will do our best to post regular updates.
The blog is at http://dechencholing.blogspot.com

Leadership and Harmony – A report on the Governance Training in Cologne

By resting in big mind, we can conquer small mind. (Ruling Your World: Ancient Strategies for Modern Life)

During a cold and dreary weekend in early May at the Kalapa Centre in Cologne, a group of us from Sweden, Czech Republic, The Netherlands and Germany, were warmed by the hearth of two  fiery presentations during  the Good Governance training weekend on "Leadership and Harmony"  - Saturday was led by Chris Montone on the Six Ways of Ruling and on Sunday by Elke Dobkowitz on Nonviolent Communication (NVC).
Leadership and how best to govern is a crucial and topical issue these days  as we watch from afar how various leaders are managing the horrendous scene unfolding in the Gulf of Mexico. Moreover, they demonstrate how we can best communicate when the situation becomes tense and difficult. These are the challenges not only for so called ‘leaders' but for each and every one of us and especially those of us under the mandate of creating an enlightened society.
The old question always arises - are leaders born or is leadership an acquired skill? As practitioners of the dharma we are indeed told over and over again - it comes down to training the mind and we are given a multitude of skilful practices to do just that. Similarly, such a set of techniques and tools are available for learning the art of leading - in day-to-day mundane activities to managing a group or leading a nation. For those of us fortunate to be under the umbrella of the Shambhala dharma, we have been presented  with a masterful skill-set on the Six Ways of Ruling initially presented by the Druk Sakyong and more recently by Sakyong, Mipham Rinpoche in his book Ruling Your World: Ancient Strategies for Modern Life. The six ways are: Benevolent, True, Genuine, Fearless, Artful and Rejoicing.

The Saturday workshop on the Six Ways of Ruling included presentations, contemplations, role-plays and discussions related to these six principles of rulership.  As described in the introduction to the booklet we received called The Six Ways of Ruling: A Resource for Leaders (compiled by the Governance as Path Working Group)  ".... the six ways of ruling are expressions of leadership that  naturally manifest when we join the expansive, spacious, and relaxed qualities of heaven with the constantly arising practical qualities of earth."
An essential part of effective leadership is of course skilful communication. On Sunday, Elke led us in the process of Nonviolent Communication (www.CNVC.org) which focuses on creating and maintaining harmony in our communication. NVC is a very powerful method that has been implemented all over the world to get "enemies" to come together and see each others' point of view and to prevent misunderstandings.  In this highly interactive and at times intense workshop, we learned a method for communicating that reduces conflict and creates and maintains authentic connection by 1) making observations (rather than judgments), 2) expressing feelings, 3) identifying needs, and 4) making skilful requests. During our role-play sessions, we really got to practice these rather powerful steps that open up a new and wholesome way to communicate skilfully when the environment is filled with tension and unease.

In addition to the hearth being warmed by our two fearless leaders, two of the participants from the Netherlands organized delicious lunches for us and Tessa Ladendorff, our coordinator, gracefully cared for our every need.
These two workshops then complemented and supported one another very powerfully and every one left enriched and hopefully better equipped to lead more skilfully and to communicate more effectively so as to develop and support kindness and connection in our lives and in our communities. It is hoped that there will be more of these precious programs in the future.

By Dennis Morbin, long-time sangha member currently living in Prague.

Mudra Mandala Intensive

28 July - 11 August in Gadom, Poland, directed by Lee Worley.
 
Mudra Space Awareness is a physical training designed as a practice for working skillfully with space and with other people. How can we experience reality fully, and precisely? Only when we meet space on its own terms are we able to have the fearlessness to remain present in intense and difficult seeming situations and work creatively for the benefit of the beings involved.
More information on the website: www.szambala.pl 

Practice of Authentic Presence in Cologne

In Cologne, October 15-22, directed by Acharya Mathias Prongracz and Sabine Rolf.
This will be the only chance for people to do this programme in Europe this year!
The Shambhala Center in Cologne invites all Warrior Assembly graduates to deepen their stroke practise and their understanding of the principles of Ashe and lungta.
We will go further in exploring the Shambhala terma texts and the themes of Drala, the Dignities and Enriching Presence.
At the heart of the programme is the transmission of the sadhana The Windhorse of Authentic Presence: Arousing the Confidence of Warrior-King Gesar, written by Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche.
The programme is a prerequisite for Rigden Abhisheka and an opportunity to gather for those who have previously been to Kalapa Assembly.
For registration, please click here.

Demolition in Jyekundo, Shedra Construction Resumes at Surmang

Jyekundo, post-earthquake, is now the blue city, as Khenpo calls it, due to the thousands of government issued tents. As of June, all of the population still living in the city are residing in tents. In this picture, one can see that razing of this residential neighborhood in Jyekundo is underway, with many buildings already completely cleared away.

Ongoing Relief Efforts
The Surmang team is now back at Dutsi Til most of the time. However, in mid-June they brought another 15,000 pounds of barley flour from Xining into Jyekundo this week for distribution. Additionally, some families that did not previously receive financial aid, including one extended family that lost 13 people in the earthquake, have recently been given financial support.
Reports about the rebuilding plans for Jyekundo continue to shift week by week. Some residents will have to give up their present home sites and relocate to a different part of Jyekundo because of plans for road widening, and for a new park and market. News reports indicate that many residents were upset due to fear that their home sites would be taken for government buildings; it is unclear so far as to whether or not that will actually happen. The manner in which residential homes will be rebuilt is not yet clear either, with concern expressed about reported plans to build very small (800 square foot) houses for large Tibetan families. Even those families who have somewhere else to go are trying to keep some family members in the city to keep track of the rebuilding situation.

Surmang Shedra
Construction resumed on the Surmang shedra last month. Approximately 16 Chinese construction workers and 25 Tibetans have been at work on the flooring in the lhakang (shrine hall and classroom building) and on various masonry details. The solar heating piping has now been laid on both the first and second floors of the lhakang and the concrete sub-flooring poured.
Picture: Hauling freshly mixed concrete into the lhakang for the subflooring. In the background, masonry work taking place on the roof of the shedra front gate. June 2010.

It has not been a problem so far to purchase building materials in Xining. However the cost of both building materials and labor has been increasing rapidly. It's expected to go up again once rebuilding starts in Jyekundo. Khenpo reports that it is already nearly impossible to find electricians.
The Surmang team is trying to complete as much as possible of the remaining shedra construction, other than painting and furnishings, this summer. More funds will be needed soon to keep the construction going.
To contribute to the shedra summer construction season, visit www.konchok.org.

By Lyndon Comstock

Pictures by the Konchok Foundation

Gesar Fund Continues Effort After Earthquake

Earthquake relief
Over the first week in June till now the government is tearing down all their big office buildings and schools in the main streets of Jyekundo. Plans and rumours about where they will be rebuilt go around in the devastated city as well as in the smaller villages close by. Also, houses have to be levelled because building new roads is contemplated. For instance a road might be built through Chenduo to Jyekundo with a new bridge over the Yangtse river.

Last month the volunteers of the Gesar Fund distributed their last rice and flour supplies in the villages and prepared for another large food buying trip to Xining. This food will be distributed again in Jyekundo to those who have no jobs and no means to buy food themselves.

Health projects
Our local Gesar Fund representative, Mr. Tete Kunga, is still in Xining as he has been asked by the government to help out as a Tibetan-Chinese translator in the hospital, as many Tibetan victims of the earthquake do not speak any Chinese. But slowly on we are also moving our efforts back to the healthcare projects we were involved in or planning on before the earthquake happened. So, Mr. Tete Kunga is again working on our TB project and the hepatitis project. Together with Dr. Wang, head of the infection disease department of  the Xining Hospital, he is exploring two things: firstly the possibility of adding a doctor to our Gesar Fund team to help out with testing people on hepatitis. Secondly he is exploring the costs of having people from Chenduo County who are severely ill from open TB and immune to general treatment be treated in Dr. Wang's hospital.

Accounting
Our local Gesar Fund comptroller, Mrs. Sönam Peyo, who is also a professional nurse, is still recruited by the government working in the tent hospital in Jyekundo, distributing medicines. This month of July she will be in Xining and prepare a financial report about how the Gesar Fund money was spent since the earthquake happened on April 14. At that time, our board member Mr. Nyima Kunga will also travel from Holland to Xining again and work with our local Gesar Fund staff.   

Picture shows the Gesar Fund medical car that was used a lot at the time of rescuing earthquake victims and now is used again for the TB project that we are slowly (and not completely) turning back to. On its door, it says Holland Gesar Fund in Chinese and Tibetan.

ST LEVELS AND OTHER PROGRAMMES IN EUROPE THIS MONTH

Please check http://shambhala-training.eu/calendar.php
For further information, please contact +49 221 310 24 17
info@shambhala-training.de
For other programmes, please check the Shambhala Europe website calendar at http://shambhala-europe.org/calendar.php

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This Newsletter is also available in Spanish http://shambhala.es/newsletter_completa.php

Please send news from your centres and groups to Luz Rodriguez luzrdep@elmanso.net
by the 25th of the month. Please keep your written contributions limited to 200 words, as much as possible.