Samachitta, until recently Chair of Triratna’s Birmingham Buddhist Centre, spoke at an International Women’s Day interfaith event at the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery (BMAG) on 10th March 2016.
Here’s the text of her talk, ‘Women who have inspired me’ in which she talks about the Buddha’s aunt Mahaprajapati, Dipa Ma and Triratna’s own Maitrisara, Birmingham’s mitra convenor for women - whose picture currently appears next to a Triratna kesa in BMAG’s exhibition ‘Faith in Birmingham’.
Triratna’s new West London Buddhist Centre, UK is the latest feature in the survey, ‘Buddhist Buildings in England’ undertaken by English Heritage with the University of Leeds. As they point out, it’s Triratna’s only purpose-built urban centre in the UK.
‘The whole sense that Sangharakshita gave me of the Order was of something through which we were deeply involved with one another’s lives, were really standing shoulder to shoulder with one another, caring for one another not just spiritually but on all levels, and that’s really stayed with me. That spirit is still alive in the Order today, and I feel that The Abhayaratna Trust is one way we can really express it.’
Anjali is 6 years old from Vadaar Community (Wanderer Community & stamped ‘criminal’ by birth) where People to People is helping 51 children to enter in the educational stream. Anjali is ‘First Generation’ started to go to school. She had a lot difficulties to walk on her own foot at school on her clubfoot. She is suffering by poverty; so was unable to cope up the operation expenses by her parents who wander village to village and ’just collect’ women’s hair...
Simone Deiringer is a Mitra in Triratna’s Berlin sangha, Germany, training for ordination and exploring possibilities for a project enabling sangha to live and work together near Berlin.
She writes: “I am looking for somewhere close to Berlin where we can establish a collective project, living and working together. Right now I am investigating a small agriculture and gardening business for sale in the Uckermark (an hour and a half drive from the city): 10 hectares of land with buildings and a working horse!
Bhante’s 90th birthday fundraising last year raised well over £100,000 for the publication of his Complete Works,a job which is well under wayandto which Bhante himself added more money specifically for translations. (You can too!) Suvannavira writes from Moscow about the work of the newly formed Triratna Translations Board.
“In a world where so many seem to speak English, why bother translating books by Bhante and his disciples into other languages? Imagine coming to...
Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water
This famous Zen saying captures the magic of spiritual growth and development.
One’s life might look very similar as one understands one’s life and experience more and more fully and as one’s heart opens wider and wider. We may very well still be parents, partners, employees and whatever roles and functions we fulfil but our experience of these roles and the life that we live changes profoundly.
“Ensuring the sexual, physical and psychological safety of young people and vulnerable adults involved in the activities of Triratna Buddhist Centres and other enterprises is an expression of the First Precept: the principle of non-harming, or love.”
So opens Triratna’s ‘Child protection general advice’ document for centres and enterprises in Europe, the introduction to a set of model policies developed over the last three years to help Triratna’s European Chairs meet their ethical and legal responsibilities to safeguard children and ‘vulnerable adults’. ...
Join us on Saturday, May 14, 9AM - 1PM. In this workshop, Dh Satyada will provide an introduction to the Anapanasati Sutta, the Buddha’s core teaching on mindfulness of breathing practice. The verses in this sutta lead the practitioner through observation of the breath into the four fields of mindfulness – body, feelings, mental states (mood), and mind objects. In progressive stages, Anapansati strengthens our ability to focus the mind and gladden the heart as we embrace the reality...
