Mudra Space Awareness Summit: A Radical Mind-Body Immersion

with Dr. Craig Warren Smith, Suzann Duquette and Greg Heffron

October 22 - 29, 2019

UPDATE: Please note that due to unexpected changes with his work in Asia, Craig Warren Smith will be joining the Mudra Summit electronically from Indonesia.

A half century after being introduced by Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, these intensive physical and sensory exercises have coalesced as a coherent practice. Leading Mudra teachers, gathered for the first time, will present the scope of these experiential teachings and convey their use for spiritual realization, lifestyle balance and professional development.

This program will provide the full scope of Mudra. An extraordinary gathering of Mudra teachers will present intensive physical training, sensory exercises, meditations, talks and discussions. It is a qualifying program for Mudra advanced training to be held at Karme Choling in May of 2020. In anticipation of this immersion into Mudra, we asked the teachers some questions about their relationship to this profound mind-body discipline. See thier answers on our BLOG.

The program is designed in three dimensions:

Vision: Mudra provides an experiential glimpse of non-dual perception, in which self and other co-arise in a moment of perception. Practitioners can gain a pragmatic and accessible understanding of Dzogchen and Mahamudra, Tibetan Buddhism’s highest non-dual teachings, in which self and other co-arise in each moment.
Method: Exercises and postures train the practitioner to make inner “gestures” – subtle actions – that rework the mind/body relationship and alter sense perceptions while restoring balance. These result in a refreshing level of flexibility and awareness that is applicable to every situation.
Applications: First presented as theater training and a vital complement to meditation and contemplative practices, Mudra has evolved to be applicable to everyday life - professional development, e.g. health, family, education, art and entrepreneurship. Applications can be activated in both digital and physical settings.

Also see the Mudra Institute website at www.mudrainstitute.org

As noted by Acharya John Rockwell,

"The Vidyadhara's teachings on Mudra Space Awareness are one of Shambhala's hidden treasures. The cycle of exercises embody his creative genius in making the vajrayana teachings accessible and penetrating. He begins at the beginning-how to be in space-then takes us step by step through how to stand, walk, relate with things, and interact with people. So simple, yet so revealing! "

Arrival & Departure

Please plan on arriving between 3-6pm on Tuesday, October 22nd, 2019 to register and check-in. Dinner is offered at 6:30pm. The program begins that evening at 7:30pm. October 29th, is a departure day. You are free to leave at any time.

Pricing

Karmê Chöling values its commitment to making programs affordable and available to all who wish to study with us. To support this commitment we provide two program price options.

TUITION: $875
This is the actual price of the program.

GENEROSITY PRICE: $1090
We offer this generosity price to those who can afford to pay a little more. Your generosity makes it possible for Karmê Chöling to offer it's programs at a reasonable price.

Please Note:
Price does not include accommodations, which will be added during the registration process.

Payment Policies:
Karmê Chöling has updated its payment policies. The new policies apply to all programs that start after January 1, 2019. Please read the payment policies before proceeding with registration.

Financial Aid:
Karmê Chöling offers full-time student discounts, scholarships and other financial aid.

Program Credit:
If using existing program credit to pay for a program, you must pre-register for this program at least two weeks prior to the program start date by calling the front desk (802-633-2384 x3000). Program credit may not be used to pay for housing or practice materials and may not be used on or after arrival day.

Online registration is not currently open.

Teachers

About Dr. Craig Warren Smith

Professor Craig Warren Smith, became the first teacher of Mudra Space Awareness after receiving transmissions of the practice directly from CTR in the early 1970s. After introducing the practice to Naropa in 1974, he then began teaching the program in dozens of Shambhala Centers, culminating in the Dathun with Mudra at Karme Choling, co-taught with Suzann Duquette. At that time, under his leadership, the three-part (Vision-Method, Application) structure of Mudra began to emerged. After graduating with honors at Stanford University, he became Harvard Professor of Technology Policy at the Kennedy School of Government. He later became an advisor to world leaders regarding the regulation of the internet. Currently, he advises the Republic of Indonesia on implementation of an ethics based model, called Meaningful Broadband. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craig_Warren_Smith). In recent years his approach to digital dynamics merged with Mudra, e.g. by using Muda visual exercises for content creation in virtual reality. A leader of the gay rights movement in the 1970s, he introduced the topic of “queer dharma” to Shambhala Centers in the 1990s.

About Suzann Duquette

Suzann Duquette began her lifelong exploration of Mudra in 1974 as part of the Berkeley Mudra Space Awareness Group led by Dr. Craig Warren Smith. Suzann views the power of embodied awareness as essential to awakening, and Mudra, as taught by Chögyam Trungpa, as a profound method for tasting direct experience and bringing embodiment into effective action in all aspects of our lives. Among many Mudra gatherings and retreats, Suzann co-taught a landmark, month-long Mudra and meditation retreat with Dr. Smith in 2004 and the 2019 Mudra Summit that brought together leading Mudra teachers at Karmê Chöling. Appointed as co-director of Karmê Chöling (1995 - 2001) by Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, Suzann was also a senior teacher of the center, 2007 - 2012, and its resident senior teacher, 2012 - 2023. Suzann also teaches Daoist-Qigong and strategic leadership in the lineages of Dr. Eva Wong. She lives with her husband, Jan, in Barnet, where they own and run Blue Skies, a B & B.

About Greg Heffron

Greg Heffron was the first certified teacher of Mindful Communication authorized by author and Buddhist teacher Acharya Susan Gillis Chapman, and is the Executive Director of Green Zone Institute, dedicated to her work. He has been teaching Mindful Communication workshops since 2009, and has been a teacher in the Shambhala Buddhist tradition since 2005. In 2005, he apprenticed with senior Mudra Space Awareness teacher Craig Warren Smith, and became authorized to teach this unique mind-body meditation technique (www.mudrainstitute.org). In 2007, Greg co-taught with Professor Smith to graduating students in the Dance Division at the Julliard School in New York. Greg returned recently from a tour teaching Mindful Communication and Mudra Space Awareness in Holland, Poland and Ukraine. He coaches individuals, teaches workshops, and consults with businesses and organizations like Shambhala Mountain Center, Dechen Choling Retreat Center

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