From the Director »

I’d like to encourage all of you working at the Shambhala Centres around the world, and everyone in Shambhala, to take special care with the many audio-visual teachings you have in your centers, as well as the original artwork created by Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, the Druk Sakyong, Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, and other great lineage masters of the Shambhala and Buddhist wisdom lineages.

The Druk Sakyong himself asked his ministers and board of directors to preserve his teachings on audio and video tape, and the Shambhala Archives has been working to do that since his death thirty years ago. The Archives also has thousands of tapes of Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche and other masters. We also have many photographs and original artwork and writings in our collections.

We know that many Shambhala centres have collections of audio and video tapes, some of which are quite old now. While realistically they may be a pain to keep in storage and may look a little weary after all these years, I assure you that they are precious—especially if they are original recordings!

Shambhala has had a policy for many years of conserving these important items, so this is a reminder of that. But also, you may want to know what you can do with these old recordings. The Shambhala Archives stands ready to work with you to catalogue what you have, determine if you have originals, and provide information on how to store your tapes, CDs, and digital recordings. Please contact us if you have recordings, and most important of all, please don’t throw them away!

I would also like to address all those recordings, writings, objects, relics, and artwork that may have been lent or given to various members in the community for use and for safe keeping. As many of us are getting older and dying, we ask that these historic items be returned to the Shambhala Lineage, into the care of the Shambhala Archives. If you have questions about historic lineage items or need guidance, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We work to ensure proper care, indexing, and storage of lineage property. Please avoid selling these precious items.

I would also like to discuss any original artwork that may be on permanent display or in storage at your centre. These items are your treasures and an important part of Shambhala heritage.  Many original calligraphies and paintings by the Sakyong or the Druk Sakyong may be held in your centres, but are actually the property of the entire Shambhala organization. They were given to Shambhala by our Sakyongs, to be on longterm loan and to help raise the lungta of our centres. This just means that they belong to the entire sangha rather than just to one center or one person, and that they need to be preserved for the long term. We would like to find out what original art you have in your centre. So please be in touch with us  about these as well. Again, please don’t sell anything or throw anything away!

Over the course of the next year, we at Shambhala Archives will be focusing on fostering better communicating and creating more ways to work together to ensure the preservation of the historical assets of the Sakyong Lineage for the delight and benefit of all beings.

This is just the first heads-up, to let you know how precious all these things are and to encourage you to treat them as sacred parts of the culture of Shambhala! You can contact us any time at [email protected]

Yours in the Shambhala Lineage,

Mark Whaley
Deputy Chief of Staff to the Sakyong
Kalapa Media

What’s happening this year »

We will continue to keep you in the loop about how things are going, and we hope you will stay tuned, or just drop by to say hello when you can. If you’re as excited as we are about these projects, please don’t hesitate to make a donation directly to the Shambhala Archives, make a charitable bequest directly to the Shambhala Archives, or volunteer your time with us.

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