The Dance of the Ḍākinīs
with Melanie Shank & Tara Mahady
Will you walk the maṇḍala with us?
An 18-month immersive journey begins October 2025.
Ḍākinī Maṇḍala Immersion:
Transformational Elemental Alchemy
Energetic Practices. Kaula Hatha Yoga. Tāntrik Science of Mind.
A 500+ hour immersion for yoga and meditation practitioners and teachers, therapists, and healing professionals — with optional authorization to guide the Ḍākinī Maṇḍala.
Please note: this program is primarily a personal immersion.
Authorization (if sought) applies only to the Ḍākinī Maṇḍala—not for A Forest Path teacher certification.
The Invitation
Dear friends and beloved community:
We are honored to invite you into a sacred 18-month journey of deep transformation and alchemical integration — the Ḍākinī Maṇḍala Immersion.
This is not just a training or a certification course. It is a living, breathing body of wisdom that we have both been profoundly shaped by — a multidimensional constellation of practices that help us remember who we are, and reclaim our birthright of inner clarity, freedom, and embodied presence.
With love,
Melanie & Tara
What is the Ḍākinī Maṇḍala?
The Kaula Ḍākinī Maṇḍala is a living map. Rooted in the Tāntrik lineage of Śrī Vidyā and shared with us through the direct transmission of our teacher, Mā Umā-Pārvatī, it illuminates the intricate and powerful connections amongst the five elements, our bodies, our emotions, and Absolute Consciousness.
Traversing this mandala, we learn to:
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Transmute emotional obscurations, illusions, and attachments;
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Return to embodied wisdom and energetic coherence;
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Cultivate deep relational integrity and presence;
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Guide ourselves and others through cycles of transformation.
While the form may echo elements of Buddhist sadhana or elemental work, this is a complete and distinct system revealed through the lens of Śrī Vidyā. It is a map, a mirror, and a process for coming home to one’s true nature.
Applications
Available Mid-
Late June!
Melanie Shank
Melanie has been a yoga practitioner since 2000. Since 2009, Melanie has been studying Kaula Hatha Yoga, Sri Vidya and other tantric practices directly with Uma Parvathi Nanda Nath. As a dedicated and devoted practitioner and an authorized teacher in Kaula Hatha Yoga and Sri Vidya, Melanie gives classes, workshops, trainings and retreats in an accessible and authentic way, for all levels and for everyone. Her intention in sharing Yoga and Meditation is to offer a sacred and contained space for self-exploration of the subtle layers of the body, mind and Heart, to create a space for the true recognition and experience of unity here in the body, and to transmit the beautiful and powerful practices and techniques that have profoundly transformed Melanie’s life.
Tara Mahady
Tara has been a dedicated meditation practitioner for over 25 years. Since 2012, she has studied Sri Vidya and Tantra under Ma Uma-Parvathi and is an authorized A Forest Path teacher. Rooted in these traditions along with Vajrayana Buddhism, she shares her knowledge through courses, workshops, small group studies, and mentorship.
Living in the forests of New Hampshire with her beloved dog, Callie, Tara finds inspiration in the rhythms of nature, weaving the wisdom of the land into her teachings. She creates spaces where practice is not separate from daily life but integrated into the way we move, breathe, and connect. Tara offers teachings that are both practical and profound, bringing the depth of tradition into a modern, embodied path of transformation.
The Dance Begins October 2025
Opening Online Retreat: October 2–6, 2025
Monthly 3-day weekend sessions (Fri - Sun), group mentoring, question and answer sessions, and a closing retreat in March 2027. Download the dates here.
All sessions and retreats will be held online, with rich opportunities for live connection, personalized guidance, and collective support.
While this program offers optional authorization to guide the Ḍākinī Maṇḍala and related practices (500+ hours), it is first and foremost a deep personal immersion — open to all who feel the call.
Authorization (if sought) applies only to the Ḍākinī Maṇḍala—not for A Forest Path teacher certification.
Participation will be limited to ensure individualized attention and support.
All sessions will be recorded and translated into Spanish.
Why This Training Now?
Inspired by the timeless wisdom of the Ḍākinī Maṇḍala imparted to us by Mā Uma-Pārvatī and the direct experience of the effects of these teachings, we are motivated to extend these accessible and effective methodologies to others. Impulsed by our teacher to share this yogic system with our students and communities to benefit a world in great need of balance and harmony, we collaborate together to offer this in-depth and highly transformative training.
This offering emerges from our hearts and personal experience. We’ve lived these teachings over decades of committed study, practice and self-reflection. We feel called to share them with those who are ready to engage this work on a soul-deep level.
The world is asking us to be grounded, skillful, open-hearted, and aligned. This immersion supports exactly that — not by avoiding what’s hard, but by meeting it with courage, integrity, and devotion.
Learn More!
We would love to dance this path with you!
Sign up to receive updates and:
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June 21st Free Solstice Elemental Mandala Class
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June 28th Immersion info session zoom and agenda details in the coming weeks!
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Applications!
Signing up now does not commit you to participating in the program, it only signs you up to receive more information about it!
