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.).
Current Combined Acharya Schedules
Monthy schedules
Individual schedules
Acharya Protocol
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Write to Lin Waters to get additional information on the acharyas and their schedules.
Shastri
In 2010, the Sakyong empowered a group of about 60 teachers in the Shambhala mandala to the new role of shastri. In Sanskrit, shastri literally means "teacher learned in the texts and commentaries". The shastris have been selected from our dedicated senior teachers, as well as from newer, youger teachers and will serve a term of three years. Additional shastris will be appointed in future years, as the needs of our local and regional centres become more clarified.
The shastris role is to bring the current understanding of the Shambhala Buddhist vision and teachings to their centres, to be a reference point for questions about the path, and in particular to help establish The Way of Shambhala curriculum as the core path. A major role of the shastri is to personally mentor and strengthen the local teaching mandala.
Shastris will also support the leadership in Shambhala centres in building comunity and strengthening the vision of enlightened society.
View a list of the first group of shastris.
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.
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