Sangyum Agness Au

Agness Au is a designer and artist, with a 25-year fashion career in NYC.  In 1976, she became a student of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, and in 1985 he empowered her as a Sangyum, a holder of the feminine principle.  She is a senior Shambhala Buddhist teacher and Warrior Assembly director, chair and co-founder of the former Shambhala Commission on the Status of Women and Feminine Principle.  Agness created the curriculum for the Inseparable Union of the Feminine and Masculine Principles and has presented these workshops internationally for 20 years. She co-founded and facilitated Journey of Fearlessness, a support group for contemplative trauma survivors in NYC. She is a Somu (First Rank) instructor in the Sogetsu School of Ikebana and has taught and demonstrated for over 35 years.  Following her career in the fashion industry as a design director, cataloger and business owner, she is currently the creative director for web and print design at The Synergy Company.  Agness is happily married and the mother of two young men. They moved to Boulder in 2014, after many years in NYC.