Teachers

Mandala Principle

The Shambhala community is organized as a mandala, a circular framework that connects the teachers and teachings with the community of practitioners. The legendary kingdom of Shambhala is traditionally painted as a mandala with the ruler at the centre, and the households radiating from and around that centre. The authority of such a mandala, combining sacred and secular roles of teacher and leader, is known in Tibetan as the tridzin, or "throne holder". In the Shambhala tradition, this has been a family heritage, passed from one generation to the next.

Druk Sakyong
Trungpa Rinpoche

Sakyong Mipham
Rinpoche

The Throne Holder

The first throne holder of the contemporary Shambhala Mandala was Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, who served as the first Sakyong (meaning "earth protector"). The current throne holder is his son and spiritual heir, Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche.

The Vajra Regent

Vajra Regent
Ösel Tendzin

In 1976 Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche empowered Thomas F. Rich, one of his American students, as his Vajra Regent, Ösel Tendzin. He served as head of the organizations founded by Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche from 1987 until his death in 1990. His teachings are preserved both in the Shambhala Archives, as well as by Satdharma, the organization established to propagate the teachings that the Vajra Regent received from the Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche. For a biography of the Vajra Regent available from Satdharma, please visit their website: www.satdharma.org or view the Vajra Regent pages on shambhala.org.

Shambhala Acharyas

Acharya is a Sanskrit word that means "teacher." It refers to individuals that Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche has empowered to represent him and the Kagyu, Nyingma, and Shambhala lineages he holds. Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche chose these individuals because of their knowledge, wisdom, and commitment to the confluence of teachings found in Shambhala. Acharyas travel to Shambhala Meditation Centers to lead dharma programs and perform Refuge and Bodhisattva Vow ceremonies for those who would like to commit themselves to the Buddhist path. Some have selected certain teachings to be their main focus (such a Maitri, Death & Dying, etc.).

Ashe Acharya, John Rockwell	Dale Asrael	Samuel Bercholz	Emily Bower
Christie Cashman	Pema Chödrön	Gaylon Ferguson	Michael Greenleaf
Moh Hardin	Arawana Hayashi	Jeremy Hayward	Fenja Heupers
David Hope	Richard John	Mitchell Levy	Judy Lief
Adam Lobel	Dorje Loppön Lodrö Dorje	Simon Luna	Allyn Lyon
Norbu McKeever	Barbara Märtens	Larry Mermelstein	Mathias Pongracz
No Picture Available Robert Puts	Eve Rosenthal	David Schneider	Judith Simmer-Brown
Eric Spiegel	Jenny Warwick	Han de Wit

Current Combined Acharya Schedules

Monthy schedules

Individual schedules

Acharya Protocol

Acrobat Reader required

Write to Lin Waters to get additional information on the acharyas and their schedules.

Teachers and Teacher Training

Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, the founder of the Shambhala Mandala, had the profound conviction that the teachings he held could be transmitted to students in other cultures and that they, in turn, could be empowered to teach and lead others. Thus, within the Shambhala Mandala, there is a strong emphasis on cultivating different levels of teachers and leaders. There are programs to train Shambhala Guides. Meditation Instructors, Buddhist Teachers and Directors and Assistant Directors of Shambhala Training. In addition to the Acharyas listed above, there are hundreds of meditation instructors and teachers worldwide, working with students at local centres and leading weekly classes and major programs. The teachers leading programs are normally featured in conjunction with the specific programs they are teaching, which can be found on Find a Program.