This course, based on videotaped talks and demonstrations by Acharya Dale Asrael and Acharya Adam Lobel, supports enhancing our work with students through developing and refining the practices of listening, reflecting and inquiry. The Acharyas also address how these practices relate to aspects of Shambhala Meditation. Each of the 4 classes includes 2 or 3 short videos as well as exercises. Allow 2 to 3 hours to complete each class.
About the teachers
Acharya Dale Asrael grew up in a suburb of Washington, DC, studying music and dance. After completing university studies in film and Eastern religions, she moved to Vancouver, Canada in 1970, where she took Refuge Vows and heard reports of a “revolutionary young lama” who was teaching about chaos and wisdom. She journeyed to Boulder and met the Vidyadhara in 1973, attending the first session of Naropa Institute and the first public dathün at Rocky Mountain Dharma Center in the summer of 1974. Following that, she completed university studies in Education and became a music teacher in the British Columbia public schools.
Acharya Asrael attended the 1978 Vajradhatu Seminary and in 1979 moved to Boulder, where she taught music at the Buddhist-inspired Vidya School for five years. She later moved to Rocky Mountain Dharma Center, serving as Head of Practice and Study from 1985-1990. Each summer she taught at the Seminaries at Shambhala Mountain Center. In this way, she began to work closely with Sakyong Mipham, Rinpoche and to learn deeply from his stream of teachings.
She has taught as Core Faculty at Naropa University since 1992, in the M.A. Buddhist Studies, Contemplative Education, and Counseling programs, and is an Upadhyaya (Buddhist minister). She leads meditation retreats, dathuns, Sutrayana Seminaries, Ngondro Instructor trainings, and other programs internationally. In March of 2011, Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche appointed Dale the Dean of Meditation Instructors, asking her to be responsible for the compassionate activity of meditation instruction in the Shambhala mandala. This includes the training, supervision, development, and support for the actual meditation instruction path itself.
Kalapa Acharya Adam Lobel was drawn to the path of meditation when he was 16 years old, in response to the social and ecological injustices he saw. He soon encountered the writings and vision of Tibetan meditation master, Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Inspired by the path of warriorship and the vision of enlightened society, he pursued meditation retreats and training in the Shambhala Buddhist path.
Adam connected with Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, head of the Shambhala lineage, while on retreat in Parphing, Nepal in 1997. He was co-editor of the Sakyong’s book Turning the Mind into an Ally. Adam was named an Acharya in 2004 and completed a Masters of Divinity at Harvard Divinity School. In 2008, the Sakyong named Acharya Lobel the Kalapa Acharya. The Kalapa Acharya presides over the Pillar of Practice and Education within Shambhala. Acharya Lobel is particularly responsible for curriculum and path development as well as training Shambhala teachers. Adam is involved with various social and ecological transformation initiatives both within and beyond Shambhala. Adam is a doctoral candidate at Harvard University and lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with his wife and two sons.
When Does the Class Meet?
The course is asynchronous. You may view the recorded talks and complete the course at your convenience and at your own pace.
Please Note: Individual registration is required, even if you will be participating with others from your Center or Group.
Prerequisite: Authorization as a Meditation Instructor or Assistant Director.
Registration Fee: $35. Request a discount of 25% or 50% using the link just above the Register Now button (below). For deeper discounts or scholarship, please write to [email protected].
PLEASE NOTE: Payments are processed via PayPal. You will have the option to also pay by credit card. Another payment option is via bank transfer. For more information, write to [email protected].