Thursday

REMINDER OF 2017 INTERNATIONAL ASSEMBLIES

Cheerful Year of the Fire Bird! The Shambhala Office of Practice and Education wishes to share this reminder announcement of all the Assemblies being offered internationally in 2017.

There is a lot of helpful information below, including key info on all Assemblies (including Scorpion Seal Assemblies), Staffing, Application Processes, and more. Please read through carefully.

– Apologies that this letter is only in English at this time. If you need help with translation please ask a friend to help you.
– Toutes nos excuses pour cette lettre uniquement en anglais pour l’instant-s’il vous plaît demandez à un ami de vous le traduire si necessaire.
– Pedimos disculpas porque este carta se encuentre sólo en inglés en este momento. Por favor, pidan a alguien que les ayude a traducirlo si fuera necesario.
– Entschuldige bitte, dass dieses Brief diesmal nur auf Englisch erscheint – bitte Freunde um Hilfe, falls du eine Übersetzung benötigst.
– Перепрошуємо, що цей лист наразі тільки англійською мовою — попросіть знайомого допомогти вам з перекладом.
– Приносим извинения за то, что данное письмо сейчас доступно только на английском языке — попросите друга помочь вам с переводом.

APPLICATION PROCESS

The following Assemblies in 2017 require that you apply and be accepted through the Office of Practice and Education:

– Enlightened Society Assembly
– Warrior Assembly
– Sacred World Assembly
– Rigden Abhisheka

THE 2017 ADVANCED SHAMBHALA ASSEMBLIES CALENDAR

All dates include arrival and departure days! The following is also listed on the Office of Practice and Education Advanced Program Page. This page has all international programs listed, along with their dates, locations, preparation required, teachers, contacts, etc.

LAND CENTER ENLIGHTENED SOCIETY ASSEMBLIES

– Dechen Choling, France: June 28 – July 9 with Acharya David Schneider (co teacher TBA)
– Karme Choling, Vermont: August 11 – 22 with Acharyas Marty Janowitz & Susan Chapman
– Shambhala Mountain Center, Colorado: October 19 – 29 with Acharyas Emily Bower & Mitchell Levy

For more information on Enlightened Society Assembly and to apply.

CITY AND REGIONAL ENLIGHTENED SOCIETY ASSEMBLIES

In the coming months, there are three city and regional Enlightened Society Assemblies being offered in order to serve more distant parts of the international community. While the following Assemblies are geared towards the regions in which they are held, they are also open to some international applicants. The following ESAs have been scheduled so that they overlap two weekends, allowing participants to miss a minimum amount of work days.

NOTE: the application process for the Ukrainian and German ESAs will be held by a local Shastri. Contacts for more information are listed below!

– Berkeley, California – Non Residential City ESA – July 7 -16 with Acharyas Adam Lobel & Melissa Moore
For more information and to apply: Kate Raddock, [email protected]
– Ukraine – Residential ESA – June 2 – 11 with Acharya Barbara Maertens
For more information and to apply: Oleg Stepanov, [email protected]
– Germany (Köln) – Non Residential City ESA – August 3 – 13 with Acharya Sabine Rolf. For more information and to apply: Karin Becker, [email protected]

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WARRIOR ASSEMBLY

– Shambhala Mountain Center, Colorado: August 11 – 22 with Acharyas Arawana Hayashi & Gaylon Ferguson. For more information and to apply.
– Chile: September 15 – 23
For more information and to apply: Juan Marcelo Luengo, [email protected]
– Brazil: September 1 -10, For more information: Breno Rodigues, [email protected].

The Chilean and Brazilian Warrior Assembly application process will be held locally.

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SACRED WORLD ASSEMBLY

– Dechen Choling, France: July 31 – August 22 with Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, assisted by Acharyas Adam Lobel and Barbara Maartens

For more information on Sacred World Assembly and to apply.

RIGDEN ABHISHEKA

– Dorje Denma Ling, Nova Scotia: June 29 – July 5 with Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, assisted by Acharyas Noel McLellan and Christie Cashman

For more information on Rigden Abhisheka and to apply.
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IMPORTANT INFORMATION ON APPLYING, REGISTERING, AND RECOMMENDATIONS

APPLYING AND REGISTERING: TWO STEPS

Attending an Assembly is a two-step process, which includes first applying through the Advanced Program Application page, where you can also find out about the preparation required for each Assembly. Once you receive your letter of acceptance from the Office of Practice and Education, you may then register directly with the respective hosting center. Please note that each Assembly has an application deadline, which you can find on the advanced program page.

It is worth noting that should an Assembly not reach a viable number of participants, it may be canceled. For this reason we always recommend, should you be purchasing travel in advance, to choose a refundable ticket.

RECOMMENDATIONS

All application programs require one or – in some cases – two recommendations. One way to ensure your application is processed in a timely manner is to have your recommender submit his/her recommendation soon after you have submitted your application. They can do that in the same way that you applied, by going to the Advanced Program Page, scrolling to the bottom and clicking the “submit recommendation” button at the respective program and location, then following the prompts. The Rigden Abhisheka has a special recommendation process, you can read more on that here.

SCORPION SEAL ASSEMBLIES

This summer Shambhala is hosting a total of 10 Scorpion Seal Assemblies worldwide. We are excited to offer so many opportunities to participate in this precious path. Many thanks to those of you who have already registered for one of these gatherings.

If you have yet to register we kindly request you to do so as soon as possible. Early registration helps the land centres effectively plan for their programs, anticipating for example what kind of scholarships can be offered, how many faculty Acharyas are needed, housing considerations, materials to be ordered and so on. Please help us by registering as soon as possible.

We have included the necessary registration links below for your convenience.

REGARDING SSA STAFFING: Staff Applications links for the following self-staffed Scorpion Seal Assemblies can be found on the registration page for each Assembly — please apply as soon as possible if you are interested in staffing.

REGARDING OTHER STAFFING OPPORTUNITIES: If you are taking a year to deepen your current practice and are not planning to attend a Scorpion Seal retreat, please consider staffing one of the international programs earlier in the path. We are always seeking excellent and practiced staff for the 2017 Enlightened Society Assemblies, Warrior Assemblies, Sacred World Assembly and the Rigden Abhisheka. Application links can be found further below.
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2017 SCORPION SEAL ASSEMBLIES

Scorpion Seal Assembly Year 2
– Shambhala Mountain Center: July 14 – 25 with Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, assisted by Acharya Susan Chapman. More information and to register.
– Dechen Choling: September 7 – 18. More information and to register.

Scorpion Seal Assembly Year 3
– Shambhala Mountain Center: July 14 – 25 with Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, assisted by Acharya Suzann Duquette. More information and to register.

Scorpion Seal Assembly Year 4
– Shambhala Mountain Center: July 14 – 25 with Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, assisted by Acharya Judith Simmer Brown. More information and to register.

Scorpion Seal Assembly Year 5
– Dechen Choling: June 14 – 25 with Acharya Mathias Pongracz. More information and to register.
– Shambhala Mountain Center: July 14 – 25 with Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, assisted by Acharya Eve Rosenthal. More information and to register.

Scorpion Seal Assembly Year 6
– Dorje Denma Ling: July 15 – 26 with Acharya Christie Cashman. More information and to register.

Scorpion Seal Assembly Year 7
– Karme Choling: October 14 – 25 with Acharya John Rockwell. More information and to register.

Scorpion Seal Assembly Year 8
– Dechen Choling: August 25 – September 5 with Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, assisted by Acharya John Rockwell. More information and to register.

Scorpion Seal Assembly Year 9
– Karme Choling: May 27 – June 7 with Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, assisted by Acharya John Rockwell. More information and to register.

STAFFING OPPORTUNITIES – SUPPORTING THE PATHS OF OTHERS

We deeply appreciate your interest in staffing!

The success of these many wonderful programs depends greatly on the noble volunteer efforts of the program staff who create, maintain and dissolve the containers within which participants are so beautifully held. This provides a prime opportunity to practice with others, engage the teachings in a social setting, meet community members from all over, and serve one another.

Please take a moment to reflect on the people who most supported you at past programs, and consider applying to staff if you have the time and inspiration. We are looking for key staff for several summer Assemblies still. Please apply at the links below, if you have already completed these programs as a participant:

– Enlightened Society Assemblies at Dechen Chöling, Karme Choling, Shambhala Mountain Center
– Warrior Assembly at Shambhala Mountain Center
– Rigden Abhisheka at Dorje Denma Ling
– Sacred World Assembly at Dechen Chöling

Last, we wish to offer a heartfelt ~ thank you ~ to all the excellent volunteers who serve at international Assemblies. Your dedication and exertion is golden!

We look forward to engaging further with you on the path of warriorship.

Yours in Shambhala,

Maggie Colby, International Program Manager, Shambhala
Joanna Francis, European Programme Manager, Shambhala Europe
Shodie Lyon, International Program Assistant