IpsaluTantra International is a non-profit corporation (501c3) registered in California and conforming to legal requirements. It has elected officers and an annual meeting, and it answers to the Secretary of State. It is defined as an educational organization.
We began with a corporate board (Council of Stewards) considering issues and handing down directives to the Teachers. That hierarchy has proven unworkable and is evolving into governance by the Teachers with deference to the Senior Teachers who have earned respect through their long commitment to the work. They, together with elected officers, former Stewards and Level 1 Teachers have emerged, through their dedication, as the Elders, much as it was in a Native American village, and following a model recommended in Buddhist communities. This inner circle lies within the Circle of Teachers – the Licensed Teachers who are the core of the organization.
This “Organization” is evolving into an “Organism” where each cell, in its unique way, supports the whole, and the whole supports each cell. In this synergy the whole is much more capable than the sum of its parts, more able to make a difference in the world.
In an ongoing email conversation, Teachers share a Thought for the Day – their discoveries, challenges, transcendent moments. As a Teacher is inspired with an idea of how the Organism can better serve, they enlist other Teachers, form a plan, consult the Elders to be sure the plan resonates with the Ipsalu Paradigm, and then a Proposal goes to the Circle of Teachers for their approval.
We look for consensus. Each voice is important and given full expression. If a proposal is blocked by a dissenting vote, the conversation continues to refine the proposal until all are satisfied and agreement is reached. That failing an arbitration process resolves the issue.
Spiritual organizations that have survived are based on several binding factors:
- A highly charismatic leader,
- An assurance that membership makes you special in God’s eyes, (the chosen),
- A threat that leaving the organization cuts you off from any hope of eternal rewards.
We are experimenting with a system that honors everyone. They continue to be involved because they share a Paradigm –a way of looking at life- and they appreciate the value of this Practice. They have found new depth in their lives, a safe place to discover their magnificence.