Allegations against Shambhala's Sakyong, its senior teacher and lineage holder, surfaced publicly in 2018 after a survivor-led initiative published testimony describing a pattern of sexual misconduct reaching back decades. Shambhala's governing Kalapa Council commissioned the Halifax law firm Wickwire Holm to investigate that July, then resigned before the investigation concluded. The Interim Board that replaced it released Wickwire Holm's findings on 3 February 2019.
Investigators were contacted by 100 people; 75 gave follow-up accounts, and 42 described concerns related to sexual misconduct. The firm found it more likely than not that the Sakyong had sought sexual contact with students in a pattern documented from 1995 until at least 2005, a relationship the report describes as carrying a significant power imbalance given his position as both spiritual leader and lineage holder. The investigation also examined, and explicitly did not substantiate, separate and more serious allegations that the Sakyong and other senior leaders had raped or gang raped students; this atlas records that finding because the same investigation that found some claims credible declined to find others so, and both outcomes belong in the documentary record together. In 2018, before Wickwire Holm's findings were released, the Sakyong made more than one public statement addressing the allegations, including an apology; outlets reported differing accounts of their wording and dates, and his attorney later said the apology should not be misinterpreted as validating the accusations.
Shambhala's Sakyong stepped back from teaching and administrative duties after the report, and stepped aside from the organization entirely in February 2022, after its Board and his own office could not agree on a path forward. No criminal charges were filed. Shambhala has since published an ongoing community code of conduct process.