Celebrate the 65th ‘Ambedkar Day’ with us

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Celebrate the 65th ‘Ambedkar Day’ with us

On Tue, 5 October, 2021 - 14:06

Liz_Bassett

Dear Sangha, Jaibhim!

I want to invite you to two exciting hybrid events to celebrate the 65th ‘Ambedkar Day’, that you can join in-person or online:

Bristol: 12th Oct 7.30-9.30pm Join online here

Cambridge: 17th Oct 2-4.30pm Join online here

Please put them in your diaries!

With so much emphasis on socially engaged Buddhism, few other people in history have demonstrated what this means more effectively than Dr Ambedkar;

Ours is a battle not for wealth; nor for power, ours is a battle for freedom; for reclamation of human personality.

On October 14, 1956 approximately 380,000 people journeyed, many on foot, from all over India, to Nagpur, to take part in the mass conversion to Buddhism led by Dr Ambedkar. This was a turning point in liberating millions from the indignity of caste discrimination, and moving toward the joy of individual and collective Dharma practice.

The gains have been hard won and right now our Sangha in India is in crisis because of COVID - even whilst the rest of the world begins to emerge - they face a potential third wave of the pandemic. They are losing friends and family and often don’t have any work or means to earn a living. They are facing fear and the insecurity of not knowing what will happen next.

Our Order Sangha in India have never worked so hard to spread solidarity, courage, and confidence throughout their communities.

Thanks to the internet we have a special opportunity to join our brothers and sisters in India, by celebrating the 65th anniversary of this mass conversion, this critical point in Buddhist history in India, as they face the huge challenge of life in India today.

Vajratara -Chair India Dharma Trust

12th October - 7.30-9.30pm Bristol Buddhist Centre in-person and Online

See promo here

Bristol Buddhist Centre will be hosting a live event with inspiring and tireless members of the Indian Ordination Team.

Abhayanavita and Tararhidaya from the ordination team, and Vidyavardhini from the Young people’s team are going to be giving talks about the life and example of Dr Ambedkar and his influence on their work in connecting Sangha members throughout India, empowering them with the Dharma and connecting them through solidarity and friendship.

They’ll be breakout groups and a chance to discuss how Dr Ambedkars rallying cry of “liberty, equality, fraternity’ is relevant to us in our lives and society.

Join online here

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17th October - 2-4.30pm Cambridge Buddhist Centre in-person and Online

See promo here

Cambridge Buddhist centre will be joined by Vajratara to host a live event with the ground breaking team of Bordharan retreat centre in India.

Vajratara will talk about Dr Ambedkar’s teaching on the transformation of consciousness. We usually think of Dr Ambedkar as showing how the transformation of society depends on the transformation of the consciousness of the individual. However, Dr Ambedkar’s teaching went further than this. The purpose of transforming society is to aid the transformation of the individual, not the other way round.

Kumarjeev and his team at Bordharan Retreat Centre believe that the Dhamma revolution in India is about helping people to transform their consciousness and that Buddhist retreats are a vital part of that work.

Most of us have witnessed first hand on retreat just how important it is to have the right conditions for practice and just how valuable retreats are. But in India, many people struggle to meet their own basic needs such as food, shelter and medical care. They simply cannot afford to go on retreat and benefit from the Dharma.

Kumarjeeva and his team already help hundreds of people rise to face the challenges of their lives, but they’re comprehensive bursary system will make retreat accessible for many more. People from diverse backgrounds; from the rural villages, young people, those training for ordination and most recently a retreat for the trans-gender community.

Join Kumarjeev and his team in Interview about their challenges and inspiration, and as they lead puja on the Ambedkar day celebrations.

Join online here

You can support vital Dharma projects including the Indian Ordination Teams by giving to Future Dharma

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