News from the Sakyong

The Shambhala Stork is scheduled to arrive in August
Sakyong requests photos of all Shambhala community members

News from Shambhala Europe

OPE new website
Initial Chöppön Corps Gathering for Europe 2010

News from Dechen Choling

MIs needed for Spring Dathün
Job Openings
Clara Louis

News from Centres

A Big Positive Culture Shock: Third Mipham Academy in Marburg
Regional Conference in Spain
Mahamudra City Retreat in Cologne
Werma Intensive in Poland

Booknotes

Lady Diana Mukpo Dressage with Shambhala Anthem
Dathün photos offered
Shambhala Art
Coming up at Shambhala Online

European Programme Schedule

ST levels and other programmes in Europe this month

The Shambhala Stork is scheduled to arrive in August

Within hours of the Sakyong's address The Elephant Journal picked up the news: "...at the ripe young age of 47 Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche just announced, on Shambhala Day, the celebration of the Eastern New Year of the Tiger, that he and his Lady are expecting a child. The first trimester having been completed, it's safe to spread the joyous word that reinforcements to the enlightened society generally and the Sakyong's Shambhala Buddhist lineage specifically are on the way."

The Shambhala Times also wrote: "Of course this Shambhala Day falls on Valentine's Day, because the Sakyong had news for us - the ultimate gift of love. At the close of his annual address, our beloved Sakyong announced that he and the Sakyong Wangmo are expecting a child. Having just completed her first trimester, Khandro Tseyang is doing well, and the royal couple is looking forward to an August arrival."
The Shambhala Times is gathering voices of celebration and congratulations and offering them to the royal parents-to-be, the Sakyong and Sakyong Wangmo. If you want your message to reach them, please write to KalapaBaby@gmail.com

Sakyong requests photos of all Shambhala community members

Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche has asked that all Shambhala community members, especially vajrayana students, put their photographs on the Shambhala Database. This allows the Sakyong, even while on retreat, to be connected with students from anywhere in the world. A current portrait-type photo showing your face, with good head and shoulders, would be most helpful.

You can easily post a photo through the Shambhala Database Member's View by following these steps:

Login to the member's view: https://secure.shambhala.info/database/index.php
 
If you don't already have a password or have forgotten your password, use the link on that page to receive a new one.

To add a photo to your profile:

From the left-hand navigation links, click "Upload my photo". You will see a green link that says "Add a photo."
Click the green link. A box will open titled "Upload a picture."
Click the browse button. This will open a directory of files on your computer.
Find the picture you want to use, select it, and click "open". Your picture's address will be in the browse window.
Click the "Upload the picture" button. Your picture will appear on the Upload a photo page.

This completes the process. You can see your photo on your profile page. In the future, if you want to change or delete your photo, click "Upload my photo" and follow the directions on the page.

Just a reminder, you can change your privacy settings so that only the information you want to share with other members is visible in member's view. To do this, click "Edit my profile" and follow the instructions there.

You can find more information on the member's view in this recent article in the Shambhala Times article:
http://shambhalatimes.org/2009/10/05/the-shambhala-database-project-our-new-personal-rolodex/

If you do not have access to a digital camera, your centre's Shambhala Database Administrator may be available to take your photo.

By the Shambhala News Service

OPE new website

The Office of Practice and Education is pleased to announce the launch of their new website, located in the member's section of shambhala-europe.org. The website contains a wide range of resources for practitioners (both beginning and advanced), Shambhala Guides, Meditation Instructors and Teachers.  Resources include information on chants, shrine room protocol, vows, ceremony, the Way of Shambhala curriculum, trainings, independent study, and much more.   
Check out the site here  https://secure.shambhala.info/members.php?id=6000

Initial Chöppön Corps Gathering for Europe 2010

Thus have we heard:
Andrea Doukas, Head of the recently built International Chöppön Corps is currently in Europe - for private holidays. In spite of the fact that it is a rather short-handed notice, we would like to take advantage of this precious occasion of having her here!

Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche has asked her and Kristine McCutcheon (many  know her from last year's seminary and Scorpion Seal programmes at DCL) to be in charge of building the core team, responsible for future training in rituals and shrine room protocol in Shambhala. Andrea is a wonderfully warm-hearted, extremely experienced chöppön and also personal Kusung to His Majesty, and has worked with him on numerous occasions. She is the loppön for Fire Pujas regularly in our mandala and has been training chöppöns for a while. She is also a Shambhala teacher and has served as a Centre Director in Halifax.

This is your invitation to come to Cologne and join the evening and a day of gathering exchange and mutual learning on April 5th (19:00) and April 6th  (one-day workshop). Everyone interested or having a question should get in touch with sabine@shambhala-europe.org

Andrea has agreed to come through Cologne on her trip from Greece to London where Shambhala Europe will host an initial gathering of practitioners passionate about chöppöning.
She will also visit the following centres and has agreed to be available to work with our sanghas on feast rituals and shrine room protocol:
Athens, March 29 - April 3
Cologne, April 4- 10
London, April 11-18

Please let us know also if you are interested to join the group but can't make it for this occasion to Cologne!

MIs needed for Spring Dathün

Here at Dechen Chöling, the days are gradually getting longer and the first bright yellow crocuses have appeared. Some days the sun is almost warm. We have been quietly preparing for the Spring Drala Dathün with Ellen Mains and Wolf van Lieshout. We had almost enough MIs, but three of them had to pull out at the end of February due to unforeseen circumstances. So we are writing to you in the hope that a few of you bodhisattvas may be able to leap in and fill the gap. We would welcome you for the first two weeks (when we have most participants) or even just for the first week to help settle the mandala. Of course, if you are free for the whole month (staff arrival day is March 5th, until April 5th) we always accept miracles.  

If you able to help us please let us know, and if you have any obstacles we can help you with, please let us know: programmes@dechencholing.org

Job Openings

Spring has definitely arrived at DCL and new life abounds - birds, flowers, the new Shambhala year and most excitingly was the birth of Clara (see next news item).

Preparations are well underway for upcoming programmes i.e. Teacher Training (Feb/Mar), Spring Dathün (Mar/Apr), the post Scorpion Seal programme with Ashe Acharya John Rockwell, and the ‘summer season'.

As such, the set up of the 2010 Summer Volunteer programme is in full swing. To date there has been a steady stream of applications, and these are now being reviewed and positions assigned.  There are still positions available, so we would love to hear from anyone interested in experiencing the joys and challenges of working and living at DCL for a while. In particular, we are looking for:
-  Summer Volunteer Coordinator (open now to Sep/Oct)
- Computer and Audio-Visual Wizard (open now to Sep/Oct)
- Facilities Assistant for programme support/set ups (open now to Sep/Oct)
- Finance Assistant (open now to Sep/Oct).

Anyone interested in living and working at DCL for a longer term is also encouraged to contact us about Core Staff Positions. The website will soon be updated with the positions available, however, we are now accepting applications for the:
-    Head of Personnel - open Jan 2010
-    Head of Office - open April 2010
-    Head of Practice and Study - open April 2010

So, if you are interested in either a Summer Volunteer position or a Core Staff position please visit www.dechencholing.org, or e-mail personnel@dechencholing.org.

Clara Louis

Clara, the daughter of Konstanze Brockstedt and Jean-Francois Louis, was born on February 11th.

Her mother wrote to this SE Newsletter: "Her weight after birth was 3,705 kg., her length 52,5 cm. She has blue eyes and blond hair, and she loves my milk :-) We feel fine, but tired, I have to say, we are quite out of rhythm. I am trying to tune into what she is asking for."

A Big Positive Culture Shock: Third Mipham Academy in Marburg

"The whole seminar was like one big positive culture shock", a new participant from the Netherlands put into words his experience of the third seminar form January 2nd till 6th on the Khenjug by Khenpo Gawang Rinpoche which left him with questions like: "Why do we need Tibetans to tell us these beautiful teachings, and why is Khenpo Gawang Rinpoche so good?" and "Why is Marburg such a nice city and I have never heard about it before?"

Indeed the 2010 Mipham Academy Europe on the Khenjug by Mipham Rinpoche, orally commented by Khenpo Gawang Rinpoche, was again an event of great intensity, inquisitiveness, exertion and learning, nevertheless wrapped in mutual appreciation, friendliness and cheerful comradeship among the almost thirty participants of different experience in dharma, life and age. When he heard that the average age of new sangha members is 47, someone of about 30 said: "It feels like we all have the same age."

The topic was mainly the four truths and the two truths. One might wonder why the four noble truths are the topic of the third seminar, as they were the first teaching of the Buddha. Acharya Fenja Heupers: "Mipham Rinpoche follows in his treatise the sequence of the Abhidharma tradition. Traditionally the explanations of skandhas, ayatanas and dhatus are considered an in-depth explanation of suffering."

The Khenjug starts with the skandhas and elements, the consciousnesses, valid cognition, the samskaras and so on, discussing them in the light of the Hinayana and Mahayana Schools. Also bardo was covered to a certain extent last year.

Often this kind of teachings is considered as heavy dry stuff, useful only for scholarlike practitioners. Still the overall atmosphere of the seminar was cheerful and lighthanded due to the excellent teaching skills of Khenpo Gawang Rinpoche and the very helpful collaboration of the translator Christoph Klonk. Of course, sometimes it was quite demanding to keep track, especially when it went into many categories, which sometimes seem far away from personal experience. However, I, the author, find the intense study and restudy of the material really enriching for my practice, because now I know better what is actually referred to in the different sadhanas. Also in everyday life, I find myself better equipped to deal with my experiences in the light of Dharma.
Gregory Bronswinkel from the Netherlands put his feelings into these words: "Even though at times I was not excited to go to Mipham Academy this year, I had great trust it would be beyond any expectations I might have. And indeed, Khenpo Gawang Rinpoche's love, kindness, vast knowledge and generosity in working with us are invaluable. It's my deepest wish that Khenpo Gawang Rinpoche will continue to teach the Mipham Academy for many years to come and that others may have the good fortune to practice and study with Khenpo Gawang Rinpoche."
We can well say that the Mipham Academy Europe was a success so far and the study of the Khenjug, which will be finished next year, lays a solid ground for deeper understanding of our mind and mixing it with dharma.

Candia Ludy - the secretary of Khenpo Gawang Rinpoche - wrote in an e-mail when he was back in Memphis: "He often says that Marburg Mipham Academy is the way to do a program." This is very encouraging for us and we will certainly energetically continue the Mipham Academy in Europe and hopefully we will be able to cover many more texts by Mipham Rinpoche to help the Sakyong to keep alive and transmit this part of his vast dharma heritage.

By Franz Lüke

Regional Conference in Spain

Last January, the annual Regional Conference for Spain took place at the new shining rented Shambhala Center in Madrid, located in the northern area of the capital, as Eva Wong recommended a few years ago.
Shambhala Europe Director, Chris Montone, presided and took this picture of the participants. The fact that Chris speaks Spanish was very welcome by all!

Mahamudra City Retreat in Cologne

The Cologne Shambhala Center has scheduled a Mahamudra City Retreat with Acharya Robert Puts during the Easter week, March 27- April 5.

If you want to look, look at your mind, please register now! We have limited space.

Registration: www.koeln.shambhala-europe.org

Werma Intensive in Poland

Acharya David Schneider will lead a Werma Intensive programme, scheduled in Poland (Gadom), 1st - 15th May 2010. All Werma practitioners are welcome, whether they have attended the Scorpion Seal Assembly or not.
Informations & Registration

Contact in Shambhala Poland: Martyna Graczyk sp@shambhala.info,  tel. +48 660 162 060

Lady Diana Mukpo Dressage with Shambhala Anthem

On the eve of Shambhala Day, Lady Diana Mukpo, the Druk Sakyong Wangmo, rode her horse Pascal in the freestyle competition of the Florida Dressage Grand Prix. The performance transmits warriorship at the level of mastery, bringing together rider, horse and the Shambhala Anthem. It is a magnificent accomplishment celebrating Shambhala Day of the Year of the Tiger.

To view the full performance, filmed on 13 February, please visit this site:
http://www.youtube.com/user/rbsavoie#p/a/u/0/KJMscMPYo44

By the Shambhala News Service

Dathün photos offered

Zsolt Suto from Romania took pictures during the last Autumn Mahayana Dathün in DCL and he invites everybody to take a look at his album, where you can find some lhasang photos or portraits of the sangha: http://picasaweb.google.com/dracula.shambhala
Also he is offering the pictures for use in Shambhala brochures or Shambhala websites. Please let him know if you need a higher resolution file through his website: http://zsolt.ro/

In exchange for pictures, Zsolt suggests any dharma-books, programme credits, a link back or just simple thank you.
The photos are:

- Oryoki (à la Rembrandt): http://sutozsolt.egologo.transindex.ro/?p=663

- Gomdens, zabutons, people sitting: http://sutozsolt.egologo.transindex.ro/?p=665

- Colours, sense perceptions, trees, light, elements, prayer flags: http://sutozsolt.egologo.transindex.ro/?p=664

- Dechen Chöling: http://sutozsolt.egologo.transindex.ro/?p=661

Shambhala Art

The next International Shambhala Arts Day Festival will take place at the upcoming equinox 2010 (March 20th).

You can view the participant centers and areas on the Blog at:
http://contemplativeartsfestival.blogspot.com

Please contact Violaine Morinville if you are interested to participate, if you have updates, posters, or just wish to make a contribution to this international network for the arts, by writing to contemplativeartsfestival@gmail.com

Also, there are several new videos of the January Shambhala Art Intensive in Los Angeles at http://www.shambhalaart.org/cat/resources/media. Because youtube.com limits videos to 10 minutes, several of the video are divided into three parts. In the videos, you will see two of the new Shambhala Art Teachers lead an exercise as well as Marcia Shibata and Steve Saitzyk. There are also two demonstrations in 3-parts each of Marcia Shibata doing Kado examples of the principles they were studying.
You can also post your comments at the website: www.shambhalaart.org or at the youtube.com channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/ShambhalaArtIntl

Coming up at Shambhala Online

Please check out upcoming program offerings at Shambhala Online. This month of March:

      - Guided Stroke & Lungta with Acharya Eve Rosenthal on Saturday, March 6
-    Vajrayogini with Acharya Judith Simmer-Brown on Tuesday, March 9
-    Ngöndro with Dan Hessey on Saturday, March 13
-    Werma with Acharya Eve Rosenthal, on Saturday, March 13
-    Learn to Meditate with Ashe Acharya John Rockwell on Saturday and Sunday, March 20/21
-    Scorpion Seal with Acharya Christie Cashman on Saturday, March 27

For more information and to register, please go to http://shambhalaonline.org and click on our calendar page.

ST levels and other programmes in Europe this month

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

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This Newsletter is also available in Spanish http://madrid.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.