Radical Self Healing: A Conversation with Charley Cropley, N.D.

Posted on August 30, 2014 by Travis Newbill

Shambhala Mountain Center hosts Radical Self-Healing with Charley Cropley, N.D., October 3–5, 2014.

According to Charley Cropley, N.D., bodily sickness, like all suffering, has real, discoverable causes. The cause is not cancer, colitis, weak adrenals, or a lowered immune system. The cause of our health problems is the innocent misuse of our own body and mind. In this interview, Charley discusses his path for connecting with our ability to eat, think, move, and relate. Through our exploration of these four essential activities, he says, we will learn how to skillfully imbue our daily lives with care and free ourselves from habits that repeatedly cause harm.

In this interview, Charlie explains his approach and offers inspiration for those of us who wish to take responsibility for feeling good in this life. Watch our interview with Charlie below, or scroll down to stream/download the audio.

If you’d like to download the audio file, CLICK HERE and find the “Download” button. Otherwise, you can stream the audio below.

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Be sure to check out:

Blog post by Charley Cropley: Heal Yourself!

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Charley Cropley, ND, is a Naturopathic physician who after 35 years of practice, uses no medicines. He teaches his clients that they are endowed with Self-Healing capacities exactly equal to their condition. They learn that illness itself is what heals them. It awakens their love of themselves and guides them in the heroic work of Healing their own self-harming ways.

Family Camp: A Special Retreat at Shambhala Mountain

Posted on August 27, 2014 by admin

Article by Rachel Seely, photos by Samira Caamano

Family Camp at Shambhala Mountain Center is a special time to appreciate and value ourselves, our children, our families and friendships, and our culture. Taking the time to focus on this aspect of life in a contemplative and supportive atmosphere is a gift that I will always cherish. And one I believe my daughter will as well. This year’s Family Camp was SMC’s largest in many years. We had over 108 participants, which included 65 children, 27 who went through the Rites of Passage program.

Join us for Family camp 2015 — click here to learn more

Having that many children on the land brought blessings of wakefulness and freedom. Immediately the children developed their own relationships to each other and the land. Parents often marveled at the feeling of being held by the land, which is no small feat when in the process of letting go physically and emotionally to our children. The land became a cradle for the kids to explore the phenomenal world in a safe and accommodating manner. Kids ran freely within the space, with only the occasional reminder to be quiet near the main shrine tent and lodge rooms. They were always on the move, having fun, exploring new things, taking risks and developing new relationships with each other, their parents, and the land itself. I was personally excited to experience the land in a new way too. It felt as if the land perked up and responded wakefully to the fresh energy of the children’s exploration and wonder. I noticed many things on the land that I had not noticed before.

Our days started with family meditation, often led by previous Rites of Passage graduates. A sense of ownership and leadership was instilled into the children’s programming from the start. We were lucky to have brilliant and skillful coordinators for our 2014 Family Camp. Steve Sachs and Rachel Steele lead our program, accompanied by the Rites of Passage teachers, Kelly Lindsey and Kerry MacLean. We also had the special honor of having Acharya Dan Hessey open our Family Camp with a beautiful, simple explanation of Lhasang and Lhasang ceremony, followed by an introduction to Shambhala Meditation for children and parents. I felt this clearly established the ground for the time we would spend together. The space of basic goodness and the acceptance of vulnerability was felt and appreciated throughout the program as parents worked with their hearts and minds, as well as the hearts and minds of their children and partners. I often swelled with tears as I experienced immense gratitude for what we were choosing to do together and for our children.

The children’s program was split up into age groups for morning activities while parents were given time to themselves for practice or personal time. Each day we had a parenting circle led by Steve Sachs in which we explored parenting and child rearing from the point of view of basic goodness. We were all touched by the vulnerability and insight which arose from each other as we explored aspects of ourselves and our children that were troublesome or confusing. I left the parenting groups feeling supported, enriched, and empowered to transform aspects of my parenting style and the ways in which I view my daughter and her behaviors. Afternoons consisted of “unfettered time” and family activities. Parents and children were introduced to the theme of working with the elements, and the traditional Buddhist Maitri Rooms developed by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche to help us connect with nature, the elements, and the energies within ourselves. We also had many wonderful circles of singing, a talent show where fearlessness manifested abundantly, nature walks, a final banquet and an amazing dance party. We had a lot of fun!

A significant aspect of Family Camp was the Rites of Passage ceremony. The children in this group worked together all week learning contemplative arts such as calligraphy, kyudo, ikebana, poetry, bowing and lighting a shrine. They are encouraged, through their participation in the Rites of Passage program, to be in the world with gentleness and fearlessness and to begin to take more responsibility within the family and society. Parents are encouraged to trust and support their children as they let go of old ways of being together and habits holding on. These children shined as they went through the powerful “letting go” ceremony with their parents. Many parents and witnesses were touched by the significance and simplicity of the ceremony.

I really can’t say enough good things about Family Camp and the wonderful people who coordinated this program. I am fortunate that my daughter has been able to participate in Family Camp for two years at SMC. If you ask her she will tell you, “I love Family Camp.” It is something we look forward to every year individually and as a family. And now that Family Camp at Shambhala Mountain Center is growing, we will look forward to seeing other families year after year as our children grow up together and learn to be “who they are” in the world and with each other. I truly feel that having the support of this kind of family community rooted in basic goodness will not only help our children find peace within, but will help them be empowered as they face the difficulties and future of our struggling society.

Here’s what several children had to say about it this year:

“I have a much better handle on meditation. I also learned that I am a WARRIOR!! In the future, I know that I will be thankful that SMC taught me this. I will always strive to be kind, gentle, and fearless.” –Ava Keel

“I learned to appreciate the elements, love this area even more, and to appreciate all the teachers so much!” –Sheldon P. Williams

“(I learned) so so so much patience.” –Matthew

“(My favorite part was) all the love, support, and kindness from almost everyone.” –Sierra Karsh

“I learned about fire, earth, air, water, and space. I also learned how to meditate more and calm myself down and that the warriors shout ‘Eeee!’ when they are shooting in kyuodo.” –Maxine Rhodes

Shambhala Mountain Center Hosts Family Camp August 2-8, 2015 — Click here to learn more!

4 Noble Glimpses of Fleet Maull

Posted on August 26, 2014 by Travis Newbill

By Travis Newbill

Fleet Maull will be hosting the “Waking Up through Service” day of our upcoming Free Online Conference: Awake in the World — October 19-24, 2014.

In our daily, weekly, and monthly lives, the opportunities for stepping out of our comfort zone in order to directly help others are many. And sadly, the excuses for not doing so can be even more plentiful. Basically, we’d rather not! So, we often abide in routines geared towards pleasure, self-protection, and predictability.

From what I’ve learned about Fleet Maull, he’s made a life out of turning that tendency on its head. If he is feeling hesitant to make a personal sacrifice in order to help someone who is in need…he helps them anyway. Apparently, this brings joy rather than regret, because it seems that the longer he lives, the more he serves, and the happier he appears to be.

Quite appropriately, Fleet will be hosting the Waking Up through Service day of our upcoming Awake in the World conference. There is much to say about this amazing person which is beyond the scope of this blog. To get you started though, here are Four Noble Glimpses.

1. Prison Work
While serving a 14 year prison sentence, Maull says, he hit a wall of remorse upon realizing that by making selfish decisions, he’d caused a lot of pain for himself and others. He became tremendously motivated to turn things around, and so began practicing meditation, he says, like his hair was on fire. This brought him into closer touch with the needs of those around him and led him to form the Prison Mindfulness Institute (formerly Prison Dharma Network) and the National Prison Hospice. Since his release, his efforts haven’t lessened a bit. He has continued to work with inmantes, and provides heartfelt service to help those of us who are imprisoned in less literal ways as well.

2. From City Streets to Auschwitz/Birkenau
Fleet is empowered in Bernie Glassman’s Zen Peacemakers tradition to lead Street Retreats — in which a group of practitioners lives on the street for a few days — and to be a Spirit Holder at the group’s annual Bearing Witness Retreat at Auschwitz/Birkenau.

3. Consultant and Coach
As a master consultant and executive coach, Fleet helps to bring out the wisdom in individuals as well as organizations through workshops such as Radical Possibility, which takes place this coming October.

4. Service as Path

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Awake in the World Free Online Conference, featuring Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, Roshi Joan Halifax, Tara Brach, Charles Eisenstein, Susan Piver, Lodro Rinzler and many more. October 19-24, 2014. To learn more, please click here.

Floral Notes and Bardo: Rise to Song

Posted on August 21, 2014 by Travis Newbill

By Travis Newbill

Floral Notes and Bardo: The Creative Chronicles of a Shambhala Mountain Resident is a daily feature on the SMC blog in which a member of our staff/community shares his experience of existing as part of Shambhala Mountain Center.

Days may begin in silence which may give rise to song. It’s one way to live.

I’m at my desk now, once again, after having spent two weeks in beautiful retreat with 107 other people (108 total retreatants, not including staff and teachers). We spent two weeks in a tent together, practicing kindness. We sang, walked the land, ate meals and celebrated together.

I saw the forms of Shambhala come to life in a big way, which was reassuring and beautiful. We received practices which I feel very good about. I sense the potential for transformation towards more openness, love, creativity, and joyful existence — on and on.

We took vows. We all vowed to engage socially in such a way that the whole of the earth may awaken into cheerfulness. Some of us vowed to dedicate this and all future lives to benefiting other beings until all are liberated into bliss.

We were given a Qigong practice, and I’m so grateful. It fits right in. All of these practices seem to be means through which we may work with subtle energies in order to realize deeper harmony — within the body and in relationship. It’s all relationships — the skull eventually affects the belly, the flowers affect my mood, and my touch affects my partner.

Tuning in… So that we may glide in cosmic wind with less resistance and greater stability. Tuning in so that paradox doesn’t cause stress, but rather, wonder.

This morning I awoke, walked on the hill at dawn (down to the outhouse and back), the sage and the flowers of late summer… I lit candles and made my vows, walked down to the shrine hall and sang with my fellows…

— August 14, 2014

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Travis Newbill is a curious dude on the path of artistry, meditation, and social engagement who is very glad to be residing at Shambhala Mountain Center. His roles within the organization include Marketing Associate and Head Dekyong–a position of leadership within the community. Follow Travis on twitter: @travisnewbill

From the SMC Kitchen: When Life Gives You Summer, Make Lemonade

Posted on July 21, 2014 by admin

by Avajra John Russell

Well, summer is here. Thunderstorms are rolling through the mountains and when they’re not, the immense sky is a crystal clear blue with the ever-changing play of puffy clouds. And, (finally!) it’s hot this week here at Shambhala Mountain.

But let me take this opportunity to recommend making the most of your summer, wherever you are spending the season. Although planning those big outings can make your summer memorable, I think it’s just as important to enjoy the small things—not grasping but taking full advantage of this spontaneous creative moment, ripe with possibilities. Try some summer fun swinging in the hammock with a tall one, make fresh lemonade, or spend some quality time hitting the ball around with the kids. Meet an old friend, or a new one, for a walk in the park. Making the most of this summer is an art form unto itself and although it may take a bit of doing, the potential joys are rich and manyfold.

Here’s an easy and refreshing recipe for mint lemonade:

1 3/4 cups sugar, honey, or agave

1 1/2 cups of fresh squeezed lemon juice

8 cups of pure water

Several sprigs of fresh mint

In a small saucepan, combine sugar and 1 cup water. Bring to boil and stir to dissolve sugar. Allow to cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate until chilled.

Remove seeds from lemon juice, but leave pulp. In pitcher over ice, stir and shake together chilled syrup, lemon juice, and the remaining 7 cups of water.

Garnish with a sprig of fresh mint.

Floral Notes and Bardo: Always Interrupted, Ocean

Posted on July 21, 2014 by Travis Newbill

By Travis Newbill

Thin waves of sweets, crisp in my fingers, crumble… Breeze… The lightest sense of connection, an interrupted thread. Always interrupted in spite of our wishes. And beyond that, the ocean of all of us.

Our faces arising, moment by moment. It’s absurd to promise or expect any of us to be any kind of way… Yet, we can vow: to be kind, to refrain from certain activities, to do things. Good things.

Saturday Heather and I ran errands in town and saw cows on the way home. We’re both in good health. Good. It’s nice that we have a shared community car so that we can go on errand adventures and learn things like that, and discover good Afghan food, and buy good booze, apple cider vinegar, and such.

Last night after playing music on her porch — strumming and singing, wearing a paper sun-hat she made for me — we decided to skip dinner in favor of quiet activities while the thunder roared.

I was on the carpet, on my knees, getting deep into the Bodhicharyavatara, and she was beside me, at her desk, making crafts.

We paused for dinner and gazed at each other across the sewing-machine-box picnic table.. in very different moods. Myself so introspective, affected by the dharma. It was reminiscent of past experiences — being in an altered state around someone who is not. A bit awkward and difficult to connect, communicate.

Afterwards, in pillow talk, I clumsily tried to discuss the experience. That conversation was far more awkward than the conversation I wanted to discuss. Absurd.

Maybe it would have been better to have been like a log.

We’re on our own paths, and we’ll never completely share the experience of the other. One question is how well we can accommodate each other as we’re going through our processes, and are necessarily introspective, even distant, maybe bewildered.

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53.
Impatience, indolence, faint heartedness,
And likewise haughty speech and insolence,
Attachment to your side–when these arise,
It’s then that like a log you should remain.

— July 14, 2014

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Battle Weary but Still Ticking

Posted on June 18, 2014 by admin

By Fay Octavia

Shambhala Mountain Center will host the 8th Annual Courageous Women Fearless Living Cancer Retreat, August 19–24

There used to be a Timex watch commercial that said “takes a lickin and keeps on tickin.” That is what I think about when I think about my friends who have survived the ravages of cancer.

Photo by Barb Colombo

In meditation this morning as I felt my painful shoulder from carrying the weight of my oxygen tank yesterday, I thought of my friends who have had cancer. I know that is not where you are supposed to think, but somehow meditation is such fertile ground for planting and cultivating a blog post. Sometimes it just takes over and it seems impossible to return to the breath.

My friend Betsy just had a brain tumor removed a couple of days ago. On a visit to her doctor over a year ago, he said to her, “What are you doing here? You should have been dead two years ago.” I won’t comment on his insensitivity, but on her resilience. When I am with my Courageous Women friends (that I met at the Courageous Women Fearless Living Retreats over the past three years) I think of soldiers returning from war. In the movies they are happy the war is over, but battle scarred, bloody, sometimes missing a limb or more and some barely able to move. Those of us who have survived cancer are often missing a breast or two, can be missing limbs (from bone cancer), struggle to recover from the demonic trio of cut, poison and burn (surgery, chemo and radiation), and may spend the rest of our lives diminished in ways we never imagined we would have to live with.

The scars are not just external. I suspect many of us have something like post traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD). The financial stress of unbelievable medical bills, the sadness that you may leave your small children or can’t even lift or care for your children, the anguish of being in constant pain or coughing all the time, the hurt of the spouse who leaves because s/he can’t deal with your condition, the children you will never have because the treatments have left you infertile. The list goes on and on each woman facing her own version of the nightmare.

When Betsy wrote that she was going to the Courageous Women Fearless Living retreat again this year, I was reminded how powerful a solution that has been for many of us. I’ve met so many women there who have inspired me and become friends like Betsy. The support keeps on giving in the form of these friendships and the love that develops among the women. While it is painful that some of our friends have fallen in the battle, many more are alive and still tickin. As the Memorial Day holiday has recently past, I salute our fallen warriors but especially I salute the ones that have continued on courageously, if not always fearlessly, living day by day.

Peace, Blessings and Lovingkindness,
Fay Octavia

Shambhala Mountain Center will host the 8th Annual Courageous Women Fearless Living Cancer Retreat, August 19–24. To learn more and to register, please click here.

Courageous Women, Fearless Living Celebrates Its Eighth Year

Posted on June 5, 2014 by admin

Photos by Barb Colombo

Shambhala Mountain Center will be hosting the 8th Annual Courageous Women, Fearless Living retreat from August 19-24, 2014. This innovative and contemplative program was founded in 2005 and has helped over 300 women with a current or past diagnosis of cancer. Through nutrition, Tibetan healing, integrative medicine, meditation, yoga, art and community building, women are given powerful tools to meet the totality of their experience directly and courageously.

“Our goal is for our participants to return home with a new circle of support and friendship; with the mental, emotional, and contemplative tools to support them in their journey through cancer; and with greater self-awareness, confidence, and appreciation for life,” says Judith Lief, one of the lead instructors of the retreat. Lief is a contemplative hospice pioneer, senior meditation instructor, former dean of Naropa University and author of Making Friends with Death. She is joined for this retreat by a team of experts with similarly impressive credentials including Victoria Maizes, MD, Executive Director of the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona and internationally recognized leader in integrative medicine, and Linda Sparrowe, a writer, yoga instructor, mentor and practitioner with deep roots in the Vedas, Sanskrit, and women’s health. Read more from these inspiring instructors below:

“In the same way that it takes a village to raise a child, maybe it takes a village to heal from a serious illness like cancer. Confronting illness can be such an alien and lonely journey. At the Courageous Women retreat, I have been inspired over and over again by the village we form, if only for a few days. Within this village friendships are made, stories are shared, and deep healing occurs – for staff as well as participants. This kind of healing continues without regard to the ups and downs of life, the remission or progression of cancer.” — Judith Lief

“When things go really bad, and whatever is happening seems completely solid and hopeless, the only ally I have found is a sense of humor. By humor I don’t mean ha-ha trivialization, but a sense of lightness that punctures the heavy-handedness of my own dramas. What a relief to know that S.O.H. is always lurking around, ready to pop up just when I need it most.” —Judy Lief

“Living with cancer can indeed be a long journey, sometimes confusing, often frightening, and hardly ever predictable. People often say, take one day at a time, but I love that Tulku says sometimes even that’s too much. Do what you can, but don’t forget to “rest along the way.” Cultivating a yoga and meditation practice can help you stay in the present moment, be gentle with yourself, and give you a respite from the emotional chaos and physical challenges you may be facing.” —Linda Sparrowe

“When you are dealing with the medical system, you are caught in the hassle of finding doctors, going to appointments, enduring procedures, and basically running from one medical consultation to another, not to mention dealing with insurance companies, worrying about finances, and all the “collateral damage” that comes with a cancer diagnosis. In the midst of this claustrophobia and fixation on disease, simple sense perceptions can collapse all this pain for an instant and give you a fresh perspective A glimpse of the new moon, a spring flower in the meadow, a hawk perched high and proud in a pine tree. The evening star. A child’s laughter. How precious!” —Judy Lief

To read more about this retreat and its instructors–Acharya Emeritus Judith Lief, Victoria Maizes, and Linda Sparrowe–click here. This retreat is also open to caregivers and loved ones of women on the cancer journey.

The 8th Annual Courageous Women Retreat is being generously supported by the Eileen Fisher Foundation and the Beanstalk Foundation, both of whom have awarded grants to fund program scholarships. To apply for scholarships, please visit cwfl.org.

Floral Notes and Bardo: Funny Little Crush on a Nun

Posted on April 10, 2014 by Travis Newbill

By Travis Newbill

Pema Chödrön is on the land.

A couple of weeks ago, I had a dream that her and I were walking around the land together. At some point, we were gazing into each other’s eyes and she said something like:

“We have karma like we’ve kissed before.”

Like, in a past life, we were honey-buddies.

A couple of days ago, when I first saw her, as we were crossing paths in our dining hall, we exchanged bows.

I wish that I may say to her, somehow: “Thank you.”

Who on this planet has been more helpful to me than her? I don’t know. And I’ve never exchanged words with her.

I saw her on a street corner in Boulder once. And now I’m seeing her, in little glimpses, here. On my way to my office this morning, I was watching her walk up the steps to the shrine room, from a distance. She stopped and turned around, looked back at me. I bowed and walked away. I felt embarrassed. A few minutes ago, walking, I saw her on a trail up ahead. She turned to walk in my direction. I became fluttery. I smiled and waved like a goofball while we passed each other. She smiled and waved back. Ahh… Hopeless..

Yesterday was April Fools Day. Throughout the afternoon, people brought me love notes from Pema to me (created by Heather, who I told about the dream as soon as I awoke, and who has seen me swooning for the past couple of days).

It’s a funny little crush that I have on that amazing little nun.

— April 2, 2014

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