Shambhala Training Level 2 - Birth of the Warrior

In "The Art of Being Human" we are introduced to the the foundation and fruition of the Shambhala path. For those who wish to engage with more detail in this path, Shambhala Training programs help us develop and nurture meditation practice.  We learn mindfulness/awareness in sitting meditation, then bring those into our daily lives.  This path of mindfulness, awareness, gentleness and courage is referred to as the path of warriorship. A warrior is any person who chooses the path of openness and bravery in their lives.

 

Having touched our good heart, we confront a dilemma: if our nature is fundamentally good and open and kind, why aren't we always this way? Continuing with the practice of mindfulness/awareness meditation we face the fact that we are conditioned by deep-rooted habitual patterns. Encountering this "cocoon" of habit requires both gentleness and courage. And so it is called "The Birth of the Warrior."

 

By opening to our own genuineness and tenderness, we learn how to work with fear to cultivate the willingness to see our deep-seated habits and defenses. This program introduces a precise meditation technique which enables us to begin seeing through obscurations of habitual patterns that we have created over time.

 

Friday evening opening talk, all day Saturday and Sunday.  The program will include thorough meditation instruction, periods of meditation practice, light yoga and walking meditation, one-on-one conversations to clarify questions, talks by senior teachers and group discussions.

 

Prerequisite: Shambhala Training, The Art of Being Human (Level I)