Friday

Seeking the Words of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche for the New Year, 2023

A Shambhala Archives Odyssey

By Jeanne Riordan

I was contacted a couple of weeks before the Shambala Day Live Broadcast and asked to source a reading or poem by Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche about the new year. The theme for the live broadcast was described as “Community” so I was asked to see if I could find something related to that theme or topic. I began by asking Rosie Pittas, our Technical Director, to search the database for all of the previous Shambala day addresses.

The Vidydhara always gave an early morning address on Shambhala Day. The sangha, or community, would rise before dawn to make their way to Karma Dzong, now the Shambhala Center in Boulder, and gather together with babies and children, and chatting noises in the background. Rinpoche would then give a talk that was relevant for the year, a tradition that has been carried on by Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche. He would also throw the coins for the year’s reading of the I Ching hexagram and begin the fundraising for the year by tossing a large gold coin into a silver bowl with a loud k-chink!

I listened to several years’ talks and enjoyed the process tremendously. The tradition started at the 1978 Address where Rinpoche brought the past, loosely assembled sangha into a true community. As the years progressed it became more and more formal, as the forms of our society were being created.

I found the first address, in 1978, to be the most striking. Rinpoche greeted all of us very warmly and reminded us of both the past and the future, of the work that still needed to be done. It seems very relevant to our situation now. Rosie and I worked on a three minute clip to send to the 2023 broadcast team. It was so well received that we decided to provide the entire talk for everyone’s delight this new year. Here is the link, enjoy!

Listen to Chöygam Trungpa Rinpoche’s 1978 Shambhala Day address

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