Belonging in Shambhala, February 26, 2021

We shared the common feeling that Shambhala was and remains our home, whether we continue being part of it or not.

“We are Mukpo.” It is our heritage. There really is no choice for me. I am Mukpo.

It felt like there is a very wide recognition of things that had not been working in Shambhala for a very long time. I am always surprised when anyone is willing to to jump back into relationship with the Sakyong when he himself does not seem to have recognised the ways in which things were not working. I am tired of the conflict and will possibly leave.

There is a “gulf” between Europe and the Americas. We are always creating divisions of different types.

I feel the missing of people of color and other diverse populations from our sangha and this discussion. I can only imagine how difficult it is to belong to Shambhala for non-white, non-gender conforming (etc.) individuals.

I have become aware that a white privileged view is very prevalent in Shambhala, and how Shambhala has manifested. And so for me, it’s essential that we do that this work.

I feel we do need to grow as a community towards inclusion, safety, and balance. There are areas we can expand upon and other areas that simply need to change/improve.

What we are learning in my local sangha is that it seems most important to be inclusive of everyone’s ideas and be open to other teachings, traditional teachings as well as the Shambhala path. Also to include people who may just want to take through level 5 or the Sacred path as well as Vajrayana paths.

I am not interested in being part of a generic mindfulness community. I want the teachings of both CTR and SMR to carry forward.

I began our session optimistic about the future and I remain that way. I don’t know what the future will hold be I do feel like I will be a part of it. There are so many possibilities—but, it is my sincere wish that Shambhala moves forward with the Sakyong.

More education, discussion, and Shambhala Board support of issues/programs related to increasing our understanding of why Shambhala is so White. How about a grant for this purpose?

This kind of communication is so important. Shambhala is our home even if we leave it.

It felt good to talk about what we love about being part of a lineage and having our teacher, the Sakyong, and it felt great to not have to exclude the things that have not been done well in our sangha and how we need to do better. The joy and the difficulty can stay together.

We were very touched to be sharing this intimate moment. Some of us felt that intimacy and conversations such as this with other Shambhalians had been missing all along.