Family camp-out at Timothy Lake

One of the things I appreciate about the Shambhala spiritual path is the Drala principle, the teaching that there is no separation between human beings and the natural environment in which we are all situated. We relate to rocks, trees, mountains, lakes, rivers, the sky, the stars, indeed all of nature, as partners with us on the path. Spending time in the natural world is “going home”.

“Home” this year involved a return to Timothy Lake August 22-24. Portland Shambhala friends spent a long weekend kayaking, swimming, hiking, sharing music and food, and experiencing one another’s good company in the welcome embrace of the forest and waters up near Mt. Hood. One participant remarked that “it sometimes takes getting out here and away from our electronic devices, commitments, and obligations to truly experience natural hierarchy.” Going home to nature causes our naturally playful, curious, compassionate qualities to manifest in ways that may be obscured or confused in the hustle and hurry of city life.

May we all find our way home, to the company of our more-than-human community, to the welcome of our friends and family, to the emergence of our naturally awake selves.