Families & Youth

Families are welcome at the Centre as a vital part of our community. Our aspiration is to have a local Shambhala community in which families gather for practice and feel included and supported. We are committed to creating the circumstances to manifest this aspiration, which includes offering a path for our children to deepen their experience of Basic Goodness.

For more information about programs for families and children at the Centre, please Contact us.  Currently scheduled family and children related events are listed here.

For further reading about families and children in Shambhala, please visit the list of Shambhala Times articles (below) on this topic.

The following are programs, activities, and resources provided by or associated with the centre.

Parenting:


Youth and young adults:


Resources and activities:

 

Parenting as Path

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This program explores how the Six Ways of Ruling (benevolence, being true and genuine, fearlessness, being artful and rejoicing) might be applied to the path of parenting – looking after children, adolescents, young adults or aging parents. As rulers joining heaven and earth, parents share and discuss ways to support and nurture a household imbued with the view of basic goodness.


Bodhi School for Children

Bodhi School is a program that introduces young children to the Shambhala Buddhist tradition. This program lets children touch into their basic goodness in a nurturing and fun environment that instills confidence and kindness. Each class explores a Buddhist or Shambhala theme through stories, games, crafts, mindful movement such as yoga, child-oriented contemplations, and a juice and cookie ceremony. Bodhi School also provides a time for parents to meditate together with the community.

Note, this program has been unavailable more recently. Please contact us to be put on our list!


Rites of Passage

rites_of_passage

This program is designed to help 8-year-olds make the transition from early child-hood dependency onto the path of warriorship. Classes introduce various meditative arts together with brief sessions of sitting practice, and inspire confidence in the child by fostering fearless independence and loving-kindness. The rites offer tools to help children relate to their own minds and engage in their world with an open, awakened heart. The rites culminate in a ceremony that celebrates this important transition.


Rites of Warriorship

The Rites of Warriorship for 16 year olds occurs after Sun Camp and, although related, is a separate program. According to Shambhala tradition, 16 is the age marking the end of childhood and the beginning of adulthood. The Rites of Warriorship is an opportunity for 16 year oldsl to step directly through this transition. Like the coming-of-age rituals of many societies, the proceedings of the Rites of Warriorship are mostly secret.


Shambhala Sun Camp

Sun Camp is an annual gathering for children ages 10-16. Campers create and live in their own outdoor environment and discover their world and each other in a fresh and genuine way. Sun Camp is a place to have fun, make friends and learn to take responsibility for oneself and one’s world in a gentle and playful environment.



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Trungpa Rinpoche blessing children, Shambhala Mountain Center.

Early 1980s.  Copyright 2010, Diana J. Mukpo

 

Family and Youth Gatherings

  • Family Camp at Dorje Denma Ling – near Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia and also at other Shambhala practice centres – “a warm and spiritual space to play and learn with other families”
  • Shambhala Sun Camp – is an annual gathering for children ages 10 – 16. Campers create and live in their own outdoor environment. Simplicity is the ground for experiencing daily life as open space. Campers discover themselves, their world and each other in a fresh and genuine way. Sun Camp is a place to have fun, make friends and learn to take responsibility for oneself and one’s world in a gentle and playful environment.
  • Shambhala School – is an independent school in Halifax, Nova Scotia that believes all students possess natural intelligence and curiosity, as well as a desire to belong to a harmonious community. It is a non-denominational day-school employing a creative, integrated curriculum of academics and the arts, from primary through grade 12.



Community Projects

  • Konchok Foundation – Eastern Tibet – supporting education in Surmang
  • SMD School – Nepal – Thrangu Rinpoche’s school for Himalayan children



Articles, Books, Recordings

Shambhala Times

Books

Audio and Video


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