Discover Shambhala

Shambhala takes its name from a legendary kingdom famous for being an enlightened society. Today, the global Shambhala network brings together people of all ages and from all walks of life who are interested in exploring our own minds, transforming our experience, and awakening our potential for enlightened society.

Shambhala is based on trust in human dignity. We offer a path of meditation practice and contemplative arts oriented towards modern life. Our communities around the world cultivate kindness, bravery, and genuine dialogue.  Our vision is to inspire compassionate, sustainable, and just human societies.

The Shambhala path begins and continues with meditation. Students are introduced to Buddhist and Shambhala teachings in the context of an ongoing meditation practice. Shambhala meditation centers around the world offer a broad range of classes, meditation programs and community activities. At our residential practice and retreat centers, students can deepen their meditation through longer programs, and engage in periods of intensive study.

The path consists of a series of classes and retreats designed to stabilize and strengthen our meditation practice, and to clarify our understanding of the teachings. These courses offer entry into the wisdom tradition of Shambhala as well as the classical teachings of Tibetan Buddhism. A careful sequence of group practice programs at residential centers ensure the unfolding of deeper training, including week-long meditation retreats as well as specific Assemblies that introduce more advanced practices.

Mindfulness practice is playing an increasingly prominent role in contemporary society as interest in this approach to life continues to grow. A unique quality of the Shambhala meditation teachings is that they can be expressed through existing cultural norms, making use of them rather than replacing them. This allows many modern people to practice meditation today without renouncing our cultural heritage or radically changing our lifestyles. The path places strong emphasis on joining the view and practice of meditation with everyday life, rather than the more traditional monastic approach (though we also have a Shambhala monastic order). The Shambhala path has been carefully designed so that we can immerse ourselves in all courses and retreats—even the deeper trainings—while still sustaining a family, career, and service in the world.