Home     Contact Us         Log in

Community Articles - Category Archive

May 27
Tuesday

An Austrian Offspring of the Great Stupa of Dharmakaya

Filed under Regions, Austria, Switz., Italy, Community Articles, Editorial Staff

By Peter Nowak

It is said that a stupa would have unseen impact on our world and inspire future generations of practitioners. This story, coming from as far as Austria, is a little example of the radiation of “The Great Stupa of Dharmakaya Which Liberates Upon Seeing” in Drala Mountain Centre.

Last May, the Board of Shambhala Global held a retreat at Drala Mountain Centre. During this retreat, we had a magical visit to the Stupa with Dale Asrael giving teachings and the Board together with the Stupa team breaking ground for the construction of the new Stupa Visitors Centre. At this occasion, I was reminded of this little story when my second daughter requested me to build a stupa in the Austrian/Italian mountains.

We, my three small kids and my first wife, had been at Rocky Mountain Dharma Centre for a month-long Vajrayana program in 1999. We all were very impressed by the Stupa still under construction. At that time, the “life pole” of the Stupa was finalized. So, two years later I went there again, together with my six-year-old son, to take part in the consecration ceremony for the Stupa.

When we came back to Austria touched by the magic of the Stupa, my eight-year-old daughter urged us to also build a Stupa near our beloved mountain hut at the Austrian-Italian border high in the mountains. Of course, we followed the command of my daughter and constructed this little Stupa with the stones from the surrounding mountain slope. We tried to follow the basic form, put an Ashe in the foundation, a “life pole” wrapped with the Vajrasattva-Mantra, and a white quartz stone as the top. With a little imagination, it looked like Mount Kailash. We consecrated it with a Lhasang and offered incense in a circumambulation at the beginning of September 2001. See a little documentation below.

It was expected that our little stupa would not remain for a thousand years or longer like The Great Stupa of Dharmakaya Which Liberates Upon Seeing. But last fall, 23 years later, I was there again. It was still standing! It needed a little bit of renovation, the quartz stones were gone, but it was still there. Of course, I had to document this as well.

May the Great Stupa in Colorado and the little stupa in the Alps bring liberation and happiness to future generations!


Peter Nowak first met Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche in 1985 and attended the last three-month seminar Trungpa taught in 1986. He has three adult children, worked for 35 years in health system reform and was teaching at several universities in Austria. By developing strategic initiatives in close collaboration with the Austrian Ministry of Health, he had a rich training ground for creating an enlightened society – with and without success. He had many roles in his home Shambhala Center in Vienna, has been a meditation teacher since 1986, was on the Board of Shambhala Global from 2020 to 2024 and during this time also part of the Shambhala Europe Advisory Board. Only in recent years has he started to teach more in Shambhala.

Entries filed under Community Articles


Pema Chödron Offers Reflections on Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche

Pema Chödron Offers Reflections on Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche – HIGHLIGHT

An Excerpt from the January 2024 Gampo Abbey Newsletter During the 49 days following the parinirvana of Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche our friends at Karma Changchub Ling in Halifax hosted daily practices. On July 17, 2023 in the Mahasangha room of KCCL, they invited Ani Pema to speak ... continue
Posted January 19, 2024 by Jillian_Johnson
The Benefits of Attending a College or University Retreat at Karmê Chöling

The Benefits of Attending a College or University Retreat at Karmê Chöling – HIGHLIGHT

by Chaplain Alley Smith We can slow down and appreciate ourselves. We can cultivate wisdom, loving-kindness, bravery and compassion. We can discern where to go next…what to do…and relax into “not knowing.” Meditation…can help us discover a way of being that is authentic, relaxed and gentle. —Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche   Brown University ... continue
Posted January 12, 2024 by Jillian_Johnson
Warrior Assembly

Warrior Assembly – HIGHLIGHT

Karmê Chöling October 2023 by Eric Zechman The third Warrior Assembly of the year brought more than 50 people to Karmê Chöling, situated deep in the Green mountains of Northern Vermont, on the traditional territory of the Abenaki people. It was late October and the weather was unseasonably warm ... continue
Posted January 5, 2024 by Jillian_Johnson
Children's Day

Children’s Day – HIGHLIGHT

An Excerpt from the Shambhala Touching the Earth Collective December 2023 Newsletter In thinking about this year’s December Newsletter only one thing came to mind…Children’s Day! Over the past three years, The Touching the Earth Collective has been the Children’s Day presenter on Shambhala Online Sunday Gatherings. It was a ... continue
Posted December 5, 2023 by Jillian_Johnson
Insects, Interconnectedness and Interdependence—Elemental Expression with Colin Tracy

Insects, Interconnectedness and Interdependence—Elemental Expression with Colin Tracy – HIGHLIGHT

An excerpt from the Touching the Earth Collective September Newsletter Every month, we offer a space for one of the Collective’s members or friends to share their work, art, or passion… Many people see insects as pests – farmers and gardeners especially. As a gardener l recognise the battle ... continue
Posted October 20, 2023 by Jillian_Johnson
Shambhala Touching the Earth Collective Celebrates 5 Years!

Shambhala Touching the Earth Collective Celebrates 5 Years! – HIGHLIGHT

An Excerpt from the TTE October 2023 Newsletter 5th Birthday Haiku Yes, cheerful birthday! Touching the Earth Collective! The mission has roots! The message is that we are five, and we have roots.We are at a tender age, and we are established in the soil and society of Shambhala.And so we ... continue
Posted October 6, 2023 by Jillian_Johnson
Elemental Expression with Colin Tracy

Elemental Expression with Colin Tracy – HIGHLIGHT

An excerpt from the Touching the Earth Collective September Newsletter Every month, we offer a space for one of the Collective’s members or friends to share their work, art, or passion… Working with a camera or paintbrush are ways I see beyond ‘me’… My parents were both keen photographers, gardeners ... continue
Posted October 3, 2023 by Jillian_Johnson
Gampo Abbey

Gampo Abbey – HIGHLIGHT

Autumn Newsletter Greetings, Cape Breton is a terrific place to experience the autumn season. If you’ve been thinking about visiting this area, the spectacle of the season won’t disappoint. We have put in lots of time in our renewal projects around the Abbey, fixing cabins, upgrading some landscaping details, ... continue
Posted September 26, 2023 by Jillian_Johnson
Right-Sizing Perfection, Recognizing Enough

Right-Sizing Perfection, Recognizing Enough – HIGHLIGHT

by David Takahashi, the Ecodharma Doula A Touching the Earth Collective September 2023 Newsletter Excerpt It is now September, a time we associate with harvesting the richness of Nature. It is also a time to contemplate our dying paradigm of unlimited bounty on our finite planet. Why does this ... continue
Posted September 8, 2023 by Jillian_Johnson
Advice from an End-of-Life Care Chaplain

Advice from an End-of-Life Care Chaplain – HIGHLIGHT

By Chaplain Alley Smith You can always bring a sense of warmth and gentleness into sitting with someone who is dying or by acknowledging the fact that you’re going to die. It’s important to forget yourself and just be present. Most of us have no idea when we ... continue
Posted August 8, 2023 by Jillian_Johnson
The Next Buddha

The Next Buddha – HIGHLIGHT

A 10-month community initiative to support Shambhala in becoming a more inclusive, equitable, and socially aware culture. Shambhala Online recently reached out to Denise Blanc, Frederick Meyer and Janet Ryvlin, facilitators of The Next Buddha, and asked them a few questions about the inspiration for the project, ... continue
Posted August 4, 2023 by Jillian_Johnson
Gampo Abbey

Gampo Abbey – HIGHLIGHT

Summer Newsletter The last few months have brought vivid reminders of impermanence. Our beloved Abbot, Kyajbe Thrangu Rinpoche, has left this life. It was announced by his monastery in Nepal, that he passed into Parinirvana on June 4, 2023. Around the world there were passionate ceremonies to ... continue
Posted July 7, 2023 by Jillian_Johnson
Baldwin and Buddhism: Death Denial, White Supremacy, and the Promise of Racial Justice

Baldwin and Buddhism: Death Denial, White Supremacy, and the Promise of Racial Justice – HIGHLIGHT

written by James K. Rowe This is an excerpt of an essay originally published on December 16, 2020 in The Arrow: A Journal of Wakeful Society, Culture & Politics. The full essay is linked below. “Terror cannot be remembered… Yet, what the memory repudiates controls the human being. What one does ... continue
Posted June 29, 2023 by Jillian_Johnson
"The more you give, the more will be yours to give": The Karmic Philanthropy of Kushil Gunasekera

“The more you give, the more will be yours to give”: The Karmic Philanthropy of Kushil Gunasekera – HIGHLIGHT

written by Nalika Gajaweera This is an excerpt of an essay originally published on May 13, 2021 in The Arrow: A Journal of Wakeful Society, Culture & Politics. The full essay is linked below. “I want to be one of the nicest human beings that this earth has seen,” ... continue
Posted June 16, 2023 by Jillian_Johnson
Heart of Recovery at the Montreal Shambhala Center

Heart of Recovery at the Montreal Shambhala Center – HIGHLIGHT

By Laurence Corman When I attended my first AA meeting, I was left a little bewildered when I was told that I did not have an alcohol problem because, despite my daily drinking, I was not experiencing blackouts and was able to enjoy healthy family relationships and ... continue
Posted June 6, 2023 by Jillian_Johnson

RSS feed for the Community Articles category

View all posts from authors in Community Articles: jillian_johnson



Website Development by Blue Mandala using Wordpress MU.
All content and source Copyright © 1994-2025. Shambhala International (Vajradhatu), Shambhala, Shambhala Meditation Center, Shambhala Training, Shambhala Center and Way of Shambhala are registered service marks of Shambhala USA
Privacy Policy
Translate »