Well, let's see what the visuals say.

First frame: You've got two guys who look like father and son sitting in meditation by a dirt road. They are wearing loose clothing and what look like Birkinstock sandals, all of which is usally code for "out-of-date hippie." The older man also has a beard which adds to that designation. They are alone with a barn and a country scene in the background.

They are praciticing the prajnaparamita mantra from the Heart Sutra, which may signify that their main practice is sitting meditation and, more generally, the mahayana. They have a bowl in front of them, which may mean that they are engaged in the sutrayana practice of begging for their sustenance as well. All of this is code for a practice based in renunciation. In the context of what follows, it may also be code for "out-of-date hippies" as well.

Second frame: mantra practice vanishes with a pop and attention turns to something to the two characters' left.

Third frame: The scene shifts to what is across the road from the father and son. It shows a house nearby, other houses, and a lake. The road extends into the distance and is full of a large parade of people, cars, horses, busses, and an elephant. The parade is passing the two men and approaching the nearby house, where people are waving in welcome. The two men look puzzled.

Fourth frame: The elephant passes close by carrying two royal figures who look very much like the Sakyong and the Sakyong Wangmo, with the latter scattering flowers. People who look like kasung are marching on either side, along with a bagpiper.

Fifth frame: The parade passes by the father and son, leaving them in a cloud of dust, covering their noses.

Sixth frame: Background returns to frames one and two. The father is seen crouched down, covering his head. The son gestures in the direction from which the parade came, looking toward his father with an empty dialog balloon containing just a question mark.

If this cartoon is really from someone at Shambhala International, then I would suggest that the father is an old Trungpa Rinpoche student who has devoted his life to meditation but really doesn't understand what he is doing. The son is a young practitioner who has been taught by the father and so also does not understand. I say this because of the way their mantra disappears with a pop in the second frame. The parade is the current activity of Shambhala, full of color and sound and activity, being welcomed into a home full of happy people. It passes by the father and son and leaves them in the dust. This causes the old Trungpa Rinpoche student to to collapse in a fetal position and leave the student/son with nothing.

Any questions? There should not be--this view of the situation is very, very old news. Who drew this cartoon?

Zer-me