And in the context of the millenia-old traditions on which these teachings are based - the ancient warrior traditions of Tibet, China, Japan, and India, and the Kingdom of Shambhala itself - four decades is a mere flash. It almost seems astonishing that this talk was given forty-five years ago, but that stretch of time has actually injected no gap between the freshness and aliveness of these teachings then and today.

As Chogyam Trungpa himself said, the view of Shambhala is that “it elevates everyday experience to the level of the sacred.” The special quality of the Shambhala teachings is their integration of spirituality into one’s daily life - relationships, work, children - which becomes the ground and path toward realization. The Shambhala path has at its center the same practice of sitting meditation as Buddhism, but the Shambhala teachings are presented in wholly secular terms, without any religious overtones, which makes them accessible to anyone regardless of religious affiliation - or non-affiliation. As Trungpa Rinpoche describes, the foundation of these teachings are the principles of basic goodness The Great Eastern Sun - connected with the perpetual arising of fresh experience and the development of confidence, gentleness, and fearlessness in one’s everyday life. But it definitely roused the energy of everyone in the room.”Īfter a clear and enthusiastic introduction to the new program by his close student David Rome, Chogyam Trungpa brilliantly conveys the heart of the Shambhala teachings and Shambhala Training - the secular program of meditation and warriorship that eventually was, and continues to be, offered in cities across North and South America, and in Europe.

It also had an ordinary quality, as so many things did with him. Chogyam Trungpa’s editor Carolyn Gimian was there, and said of the atmosphere, “It felt electric and so alive. The event took place at the University of Colorado’s huge University Memorial Ballroom, and was attended by over 1,000 people - who converged on the hall from Naropa Institute, Boulder’s Buddhist community, and from the Boulder and Denver areas at large. In celebration of Shambhala Day/Tibetan New Year/Losar 2023, the Chogyam Trungpa Digital Library is releasing the original audio recording - with transcript! - of the historic talk Chogyam Trungpa gave in March 1978, that introduced the Shambhala teachings to the public for the very first time. The Shambhala Path: the first public talk

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