Shambhala Children

The Shambhala Children’s Program is based on the principles that all children embody innate goodness, curiosity, and kindness. We explore Buddhist and Shambhala themes through play, music, art, and stories while incorporating simple, age appropriate mindfulness activities. Parents are invited to take part in public sitting during this time. Children 3 and older are welcome.

Age Groups:

Tiger Club (3-5 year olds)

Lion Club (6-8 year olds)

Garuda Club
 (9-10 year olds)

Dragon Club (11-12 year olds)

Explorer’s Club (13+ year olds)

Join the Shambhala NYC Families & Children list here.

Bodhi School

Bodhi School, a new addition to Shambhala NYC’s Children’s Program, is a six-month cycle of classes that provides children ages 3 through Teen an opportunity to experience the basic view, forms, stories, and teachings of the Shambhala path. We acknowledge children as spiritual beings and give them the tools and space to discover and express their basic goodness, sanity, and compassion.

Whole Family Programming

Inspired by the growing movement to create more “whole family” oriented programming within Shambhala, Shambhala NYC aims to accommodate everyone on the path. Parents are warmly invited to engage in conversation while their children are in class

We encourage families to commit to the entire semester. This helps the children build their own community (sangha). It also assists the teacher in planning purposes and allows the children to grow and build on their understanding and experience from one class to the next.

Contemplative Education at Shambhala

For more than 40 years, the Shambhala Meditation Center has offered New Yorkers the opportunity to work with their minds and hearts through meditation. With nearly 200 international urban communities and eight rural retreat centers, Shambhala offers a path of meditation practice and contemplative arts oriented toward modern life.

Contemplative education for children has a long tradition within Shambhala, beginning in the 1970s when Naropa University in Boulder pioneered a curriculum that included meditation practice and arts as a supplement to traditional learning approaches. Through its degree programs, Naropa has continued to train teachers in this cutting edge approach ever since. Today, children’s programs are offered by Shambhala through summer camps, classes in many centers (including New York), special events, and at a number of private schools such as the Shambhala School in Halifax, Nova Scotia.