Shambhala Meditation Center

Before moving to Boulder I went to a small temple every week in Baton Rouge run by a dedicated, humble, Vietnamese monk. There was never any sort of emphasis on money or tithing. Unfortunately, the Shambhala Center reeks of pyramid scheme and the emphasis on money and membership is so disappointing and icky.
I have attended the free classes here, which are a joke. All of the instructors seem to operate from the same script each class, completely lacking in racial diversity, and fail to leave western, capitalist ideals/​povs behind, as demonstrated by the emphasis on paying them.
As a teacher, I feel hesitant to judge these instructors, but I cannot hide my disappointment and would recommend those of you looking for a deep spiritual connection to go elsewhere. I’m sure this version of Buddhism works for some, but it wasn’t for me. Still searching for «the one» though.

A day visit, yes. A retreat, maybe not.
I attended a 3-​day retreat last week. A visit to Shambhala is best done for a day, between Spring-​Fall.
The landscape is beautiful, as is the Stupa and its story. One can enjoy a lovely peaceful day on the Shambhala grounds. Bring a picnic.
The accommodations were fine. I rented a private Monk room with a shared bath/​shower down the hall. My friend had a private bath, which was fine. But, for $ 200 a night, her shower was what you would find in a cheap hotel.
The food, bad. What I would expect at the summer camp my kid goes to. Tired salad bar, lots of red meat, stale bread (some homemade, some store bought), just average. Breakfast was a chafing dish of «hotel free breakfast» scrambled or fried eggs, and sausage. Cold cereal, predictable tea selection. Not a great place for a vegetarian because all the meals are very meat-​heavy.
Review here have noted the questionable cleanliness of the kitchen/​dining area, and I agree. Kitchen staff did not follow health standards that you would see at a restaurant. Equipment and serving pieces were not particularly clean, as was the floor along the edges.
Dining hall furniture was plastic cloth-​covered folding chairs and folding tables. And the cloths were not clean, nor were the tabletop condiment bottles kept clean.
Our retreat room had fluorescent lighting. For a meditation retreat? And lots of bugs inside the ceiling lamps.
Maybe I visited the center during the «off season»; I was not impressed.
Go for a beautiful Spring-​Fall day, bring your own food, enjoy the landscape and peace. Then leave.
Visited January 2016

This is a wonderful place to learn to meditate and deepen your meditation practice. Another review mentions that classes are sometimes expensive. You should know that the Shambhala Center does have a generosity policy that allows people to attend classes for free or at a reduced rate. Contact them for information about how it works.

Visiting from NYC – my wife and I stopped by for the Sunday morning open house. A friendly guy led an Intro to Meditation class and told us some basic ideas about mindfulness. After a brief talk and some sitting meditation practice, he gave us a tour of the beautiful building. The third floor meditation room is breathtaking! All of this was for free. This is a great spot to visit for anyone interested in checking out meditation and mindfulness.

I don’t write this review lightly. And I’m sorry to rate this place poorly. But it encapsulates so much that is wrong with Americanized Buddhism.
Buddhism is cool these days. It’s the thing to do. And so many entities, people, publications, etc seem intent on making every last penny possible from its popularity. Shambhala does offer a few free, basic classes. But the vast majority of classes and seminars not only cost money, but are expensive. I certainly understand that a place needs money to pay practical necessities. But every time I read of a class or seminar that I would like to attend at the Center, it costs $ 175, or $ 225, or $ 195, or $ 350. You get the picture. No ordinary person can afford to pursue Buddhism at Shambhala. And in making its classes expensive, Shambhala is ensuring that its attendees are elite and privileged. And, from what I’ve seen, white, elite, and privileged. This cultivated elitism is the exact opposite of what Buddhism teaches. Does Shambhala really believe that the Buddha ever said, charge lots of money so only wealthy people can participate?
Again, I understand that some income is necessary. Absolutely. But I’ve attended so many other places of worship of different religions (I like exploring them all), and none of them charged money for sharing their wisdom. They collected donations, yes, and I was happy to donate, but not one of them ever said, no, you can’t attend because you can’t pony up $ 295. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what Shambhala does. It amazes me that no one in charge perceives how wrong-​thinking this is.
(As an example, last year I was interested in a class that cost about $ 225. It was an 8 hour class. I didn’t attend because of the cost. Someone who did attend told me that approximately 28 people attended. That adds up to a total of about $ 6300. Or, about $ 787.50 per HOUR.)

I’ve only been once, but it wasn’t a visit that encouraged me to come back. I took a class in ayurveda, and the instructor seemed to have some personal issues that pervaded through the class. She seemed overly focused on the American perception of beauty, and acted as if she was almost above others because of her differing viewpoint. (She was American as well). When we got into figuring out everyone’s dosha, she kept coming back to how a particular dosha had a tendency to relate to traditional beauty, and seemed to have the opinion that any «beautiful» person didn’t have any other redeeming qualities. It made me a bit uncomfortable, and not at all inclined to take another class there.

If you want to meditate, or to learn how to meditate, this place is for you. Visit for open house on Sun am — 10:30−12, open class Mon 7 – 8:30pm or just pop in and check out the shrine room on the third floor!