Prerequisite: Shambhala Training Level V: Open Sky

About The Sacred Path

The Sacred Path is a series of weekend programs for those who have completed Shambhala Training Levels I-V. It introduces further practices to develop warriorship and extend the student’s training in meditation. These practices are based on a societal vision and aspiration to help the world. This training cultivates one’s dignity and natural gifts in order to widen one’s sphere of compassion. Sacred Path covers the material presented in the second half of Chögyam Trungpa’s Shambhala: Sacred Path of the Warrior. 

Shambhala Chicago will offer this five-weekend series via Shambhala Online. We will participate in a live online program led by a senior teacher and also practice together in person with the guidance of a local, experienced meditation instructor. Each weekend is a prerequisite for the next. If necessary, you can watch the programs from home and they will be recorded if you are unable to be present for the live showing.

Please register for each weekend separately using the links shown below.  Please indicate Chicago as your affiliated center and use the registration code shown for each weekend so that Shambhala Chicago can receive a share of the tuition. Weekends are $199 each and discounts are available as needed through Shambhala Online.

Schedule

Weekend 1: Great Eastern Sun, September 21-22, 2024  USE REGISTRATION CODE 2024GES50

Great Eastern Sun builds on the teachings of basic goodness, “cocoon”, fearlessness,  inquisitiveness, and openness in the Heart of Warriorship series (Shambhala Training Levels I-V) and introduces how to see the primordial energy and brilliance that is always radiating and available to us — the Great Eastern Sun.

Weekend 2: Windhorse, October 26-27, 2024 USE REGISTRATION CODE 2024WINDHORSE50

Participants will explore a text written by Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche that gives the instruction for a practice called “raising windhorse.”  Windhorse or “lungta” in Tibetan, could be likened to “chi / qi”, or “life force energy.”  Participants will learn the practice of “raising windhorse” as an immediate way to open the heart, refresh confidence, and connect with the present moment. This practice is a powerful way to bring about skillful and heartfelt social engagement, enabling the warrior to go forward in the midst of the tremendous challenges we are facing in our world.

Weekend 3: Drala, January 11-12, 2025 USE REGISTRATION CODE 2024DRALA50

Drala is a Tibetan  word that doesn’t have a simple translation. It refers to the sacred energy and power that exists when we step beyond aggression and also refers to the wisdom of “direct perception” that can be accessed through the senses. Many cultures and traditions point to this experience—of opening to wisdom that is beyond just one’s self.

Weekend 4: The Four Dignities, TBA

At this point in the Sacred Path, The Four Dignities (Meek, Perky, Outrageous, Inscrutable) engage a warrior’s maturing and widening sphere of benevolent engagement in the world. The training in the dignities allows one to maintain awareness and delight at each stage.

Weekend 5: Golden Key, TBA

Through exploring the depth of perception, one engages the elemental and magical strength inherent in the world around us.  

This extended weekend presents the teachings from the Shambhala root text The Letter of the Golden Key. These teachings explore our relationship to the “material world” through our sense perceptions. We will learn the practice of enriching presence—the ability to instantly sense the inner wealth within ourselves, phenomena, and the natural world.

To Register

Click the correspondending link of each course to register with Shambhala Online. If you need a program discount, request that first.  After receiving your discount, please identify Chicago as your center and be sure to use the unique course code next to each link. If you have any questions at all, please contact us via email.