West London Buddhist Centre
West London Buddhist Centre

Day of the Dead Celebration and Overnight Bardo Immersion

By maitripushpa on Tue, 15 Oct, 2024 - 12:38

Day of the Dead Celebration and Overnight Bardo Immersion

By maitripushpa on Tue, 15 Oct, 2024 - 12:38

A fundraiser for the West London Buddhist Centre

7-11pm 1 November
11pm - 7am 1/2 November

Perhaps the most challenging aspect of human consciousness is awareness and acceptance of death: our own, of those close to us and those further away. Thousands of deaths are occurring in the collective in different parts of the globe in this very moment that you are reading this. And yet it is precisely this sense of preservation that separates us from the fullness of life experience, the...

West London Buddhist Centre
West London Buddhist Centre

Amalavajra becomes chair of WLBC

By maitripushpa on Tue, 15 Oct, 2024 - 11:46

Amalavajra becomes chair of WLBC

By maitripushpa on Tue, 15 Oct, 2024 - 11:46

We are delighted to announce that Amalavajra has become the new chair of the West London Buddhist Centre. This followed consultation with our former chair Bodhilila, our President Subhadassi, the Leadership Team, sangha and the WLBC Trustees.

Amalavajra was introduced to Buddhism and meditation by Triratna Order members in 1995 in Kathmandu, Nepal, just before beginning work as a bond dealer. Three years later, he joined Karuna Trust, Triratna’s charity focusing on caste based poverty in South Asia, and trained as...

West London Buddhist Centre
West London Buddhist Centre

Message from Bodhilila

By maitripushpa on Thu, 22 Aug, 2024 - 15:53

Message from Bodhilila

By maitripushpa on Thu, 22 Aug, 2024 - 15:53

Dear Sangha Friends

It is over 3 months since I shared news of my cancer diagnosis, just before I went to hospital for major abdominal surgery. I had been told that the extent of the surgery could not be determined until they began operating and in fact it proved to be more extensive than planned, lasting five and a half hours and including a bowel resection, removal of my appendix, omentum and spleen and a lot more. I was fortunate to have...

West London Buddhist Centre
West London Buddhist Centre

Mitra Convenor(s) wanted!

By maitripushpa on Fri, 24 Nov, 2023 - 11:44

Mitra Convenor(s) wanted!

By maitripushpa on Fri, 24 Nov, 2023 - 11:44

The West London Buddhist Centre is looking for either a Mitra Convenor (full-time) or 2 Mitra Convenors (part-time) to nourish and grow its sangha and support its vibrant mitra community. Ratnadeva, our beloved Mitra Convenor of the past 5 years, will be leaving London in April 2024.

The job involves:

  • regular teaching activities at the centre and on retreats
  • engaging with newcomers, developing connections and friendships and supporting them in their involvement with centre activities
  • supporting everyone in the community to go deeper in their practice, including those
  • ...
West London Buddhist Centre
West London Buddhist Centre

WLBC Sutrathon 2021 – Following the Golden Thread

By Sophie_WLBCPublicity on Tue, 26 Oct, 2021 - 12:43

WLBC Sutrathon 2021 – Following the Golden Thread

By Sophie_WLBCPublicity on Tue, 26 Oct, 2021 - 12:43

Dear Friends

With the end of October approaching and the evenings drawing in, it has been almost a year since Dharmavadana embarked on his feat of reading The White Lotus Sutra over a whole night. He raised the incredible  sum of £2,039 for our wonderful centre.  Following in the footsteps of Dharmavadana’s golden path of inspiration…. the annual Sutrathon is born!

Here we are now, 15 courses, 13 events, 10 retreats and many hours of shared practice in our weekly and monthly classes later....

West London Buddhist Centre
West London Buddhist Centre

Early Buddhism Study Group with Mitrananda and Ratnadeva

By Sophie_WLBCPublicity on Wed, 29 Sep, 2021 - 17:38

Early Buddhism Study Group with Mitrananda and Ratnadeva

By Sophie_WLBCPublicity on Wed, 29 Sep, 2021 - 17:38

Join Mitrananda and Ratnadeva for study of these earliest Buddhist scriptures, exploring what message they might have for us in these unprecedented and uncertain times. We will start each session with a brief period of Pali chanting and meditation before we read and reflect on a sutta. 

Session 7 – October 24, 4-5.30pm (UK)

Many of you will have experienced how, instead of seeing things objectively, a profusion of ideas may arise in the mind which obscures our ability to see things...

West London Buddhist Centre
West London Buddhist Centre

With Bliss Bestowing Hands: Online Retreat

By Sophie_WLBCPublicity on Tue, 14 Sep, 2021 - 14:43

With Bliss Bestowing Hands: Online Retreat

By Sophie_WLBCPublicity on Tue, 14 Sep, 2021 - 14:43

This online retreat will begin at 7pm on Sunday 26 September 7pm and finish at 5.30pm on Saturday 2 October. Led by Paramananda and Bodhilila. 

‘Looking after oneself, one looks after others; looking after others, one looks after oneself’ – the Buddha

About this online retreat

The Buddha often said that he meditated out of compassion for all living beings (not just for enjoyment or for personal and spiritual development as many of us may do). In the zen tradition the aim of practice is to equip...

West London Buddhist Centre
West London Buddhist Centre

Padmasambhava Festival: Into the Realm of Fierce Compassion (online)

By Sophie_WLBCPublicity on Thu, 2 Sep, 2021 - 14:03

Padmasambhava Festival: Into the Realm of Fierce Compassion (online)

By Sophie_WLBCPublicity on Thu, 2 Sep, 2021 - 14:03

Sunday 12 September, 10.30am - 4.30pm

Join us for a rich day of celebration and inspiration, as we explore the fierce compassion of Padmasambhava. With a talk, “A Messenger to Invoke the Guru’s Heart Stream” from Padmavajra.

Padmasambhava is an important figure in Buddhism. He is regarded in Tibet as a second Buddha. His fierce compassion and his many teachings inspire our practice of the Dharma and advise us how to lead a meaningful life. Padmasambhava shows us the way to transform energy so it flows freely...

West London Buddhist Centre
West London Buddhist Centre

Dharmavadana's White Lotus Sutra-thon Fundraiser for WLBC

By Sophie_WLBCPublicity on Thu, 22 Oct, 2020 - 14:04

Dharmavadana's White Lotus Sutra-thon Fundraiser for WLBC

By Sophie_WLBCPublicity on Thu, 22 Oct, 2020 - 14:04

Saturday 31 October 7pm – Sunday 1 November 11am

    The Buddha has preached the rare Law

    Never heard by us before.

As the first event in the Centre’s new fundraising campaign, Dharmavadana will be reading the entire White Lotus Sutra aloud, live, overnight on Hallowe’en.

Please sponsor Dharmavanda generously!

Dharmavadana says: ‘The White Lotus Sutra, with its wonderful stories and powerful poetry, is one of my favourite sutras. Dating from between the first and second centuries CE, it is one of the most revered of all Mahayana...

West London Buddhist Centre
West London Buddhist Centre

A Simple Change of Heart

By Ratnadeva on Tue, 21 Jul, 2020 - 14:21

A Simple Change of Heart

By Ratnadeva on Tue, 21 Jul, 2020 - 14:21

A Simple Change of Heart

“So this bardo is an opportunity for us, for people, to come together in a different feeling of consciousness, a different feeling towards the world - which is a feeling of the heart. 

Which of course isn’t to say that the intellect (rationality, science) isn’t going to be a very important contribution if we are going to work our way out of this, all the difficulty that we face. But actually...

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