Shambhala Centres are located in different regions of the world, and reflect different nationalities, cultures, languages, ethnicities and races. Shambhala members and visitors have different ages, genders, and gender identities as well as different sexual orientations. They have varied physical, perceptual and mental abilities and different socioeconomic statuses. In addition, people who come to our centers may have different religious faiths, follow different spiritual traditions or teachers, or have different paths of practice and opinions.
What we share as a community is a desire to lead sane, dignified, and confident lives. Through the practice of meditation and the Shambhala teachings, we cultivate the capacity to be fully open to our experience, and the ability to respond to everyday life situations with greater clarity and respect—respect not only for our life situations and ourselves, but for all individuals, social groups and cultures as well.
This does not mean that Shambhala is a perfect society. If you visit one of our centres, you may find that it does not mirror in every way the characteristics of the people who live in the cities or towns where our centers are located. But please note that it is the intention—and the stated policy—of our centers to welcome everyone who enters. This intention is at the very core of the Shambhala Buddhist teachings.The Sakyong has said we are at a crossroads, og ikke at være bange for, hvem vi er. Mangfoldighedsarbejdsgruppen (DWG) forsøger at leve de spørgsmål, der opstår: Kan vi byde alle mennesker velkommen, som anført i Shambhala Aspirations on Diversity, Tilgængelighed og medfølende adfærd? Hvis så, hvorfor ligner vi ikke mere de samfund, hvor vi er placeret? Skaber vi ubevidst barrierer mellem os selv og andre? Hvad vil det sige at være en ansvarlig Shambhalian? I takt med at verden bliver mere og mere forskelligartet, can Shambhala contribute to diverse enlightened society? Stemmerne i denne 35-minutters video beskriver, hvad DWG gør og hvorfor.
For more information about the Diversity Working Group, please sign up for the Diversity mailing list below.