Would you like to hear more about our Movement in India?

Over the next few weeks Indian Order members will be visiting UK Centres and talking about their lives and work. This is a great opportunity to get a different perspective on our Movement and the Dharma.

One of the benefits of experiencing the internationality of our Movement is seeing what of Buddhism is cultural. Throughout it's history the Dharma has adapted as it encounters different situations; so what is central and what varies? It is the recognition that we can take direction of our own lives and through changing how we relate to a situation change the way it unfolds that is the essence of the Dharma. In hearing about our work in India we see that principle played out in a more direct and socio-politically active fashion than we are familiar with in the West; but it is the same Dharma.

To hear more about this work; and especially the work of some of those responsible for training men and women for ordination in the Triratna Buddhist Order the come along to one of the following;

Sunday 28th August - Sheffield Buddhist Centre
Monday 29th August - Bristol Buddhist Centre or the London Buddhist Centre
Tuesday 30th August – Birmingham Buddhist Centre or the West London Buddhist Centre or Norwich Buddhist Centre
Thursday 1st September – Nottingham Buddhist Centre or Colchester Buddhist Centre
Saturday 3rd September – Croydon Buddhist Centre
Monday 5th September – North London Buddhist Centre or Manchester Buddhist Centre

(They haven't achieved the psychic power of being in more than place at once, unfortunately, there's more than one group!)

This tour is being organised by the India Dhamma Trust (indiadhammatrust.org), in association with Golden Rainbow. If you feel inspired to give to either of these causes please contact manjusiha@indiadhmmatrust.org. You can also donate on our website.

Update from Madhyamaloka's Dharma training course

Richard Millington writes from Madhyamaloka, Triratna’s large community in Birmingham UK, with news of their 6-month Dharma training course for young Buddhist men, which is well underway now. He says - “We thought it would be good to send out an update to everyone! There are nine of us on the course, with international representation from Tomas Lindblom (Sweden) and Chris Menz (Australia). Also in attendance are Vimokshadaka, Ben Mann, David Basak, Richard Turner, Leigh Smith, Mat New, and me.

“Over the length of the course we’ve gone more deeply into the fundamentals of the Dharma and the principles behind the Triratna approach to Buddhism. We’ve been made very welcome by the Madhyamaloka community, who have given up substantial amounts of time and energy for the course (honourable mention to Sanghadeva, who has been preparing restaurant standard food almost every day since we arrived).

“Vidyaruci has done a great job of planning the material and organising teachers, and we’ve had some really interesting and fruitful material. Since the course began we’ve done two retreats with Subhuti (one on Bhante’s system of meditation and one dealing with the Satipatthana Sutta); study skills and critical thinking classes with Jnanaketu; Sangharakshita’s approach to the Dharma and the history of Buddhism with Vidyaruci; ethics with Devamitra; Dr Ambedkar and the Indian Movement with Dharmashalin; reflection and insight workshops with Dhammaloka and Jnanaketu; skilful communication with Dhammarati; meditation days with Paramartha; logic with Vidyaruci; the Pali Canon with Sagaramati and Saraha; devotional practice with Mahamati; the Perfection of Wisdom literature with Abhaya; and Buddhist approaches to Mind and Science with Ratnaprabha. [phew! - ed]

“We’re also keeping up a strong arts and culture element to the course, with screenings of world cinema and theatre, classical music evenings (a trip to see one of Dvorak’s string quartets), and a group reading and analysis of Hamlet. (I’m reliably told there is also a secret group that meets occasionally to play Dungeons and Dragons). We’ve just put on a ‘sub-35 retreat’, where a group of us gave talks on the Threefold way of Ethics, Meditation and Wisdom.

“Perhaps the most striking thing about the way the course is developing is the sense of warmth and trust that is emerging within the group. There is an atmosphere of mutual supportiveness that at times is quite wonderful. Speaking personally, the opportunity to take a break from day-to-day responsibilities to practice the Dharma intensively, and engage with higher culture more generally, has been invaluable.

“The guys all seem relaxed and happy and we’re all benefiting in our various ways from the course. We’ll send through another update before we finish, but until then, we’d like to say a massive thanks to everyone who has contributed their time, energy, resources or money to make it possible.

“With gratitude and metta, Richard Millington


Student interviews from the Triratna Dharma training course at Madhyamaloka

Click the embedded video for an interview with Vidyaruci and others on the course, lying on Madhyamaloka’s lawn in the blissful Spring sunshine. Or here for the direct link.

New Society weekend upcoming in Birmingham

Jnanarakshita writes from Birmingham with news of an upcoming event aimed especially at younger members of the Triratna sangha. It’s ‘The New Society in Principle and Practice’, and he says - “It’ll be a weekend of inspiration for young Triratna Buddhists, looking at the “WHY?” of the New Society, and also the “HOW?” – either getting involved in existing projects or starting your own. It’s for people who are interested in any of the following:

• helping to create a New Society
• spreading the Dharma and building Sangha
• living communally
• working with other Buddhists

The weekend will include
- a fresh talk by Vajragupta
- practising together in the shrine room
- time to meet with others
- practical workshops on getting more involved and on getting new initiatives going

We’ll explore some of the principles and practices of creating Sangha together. What are the advantages and the challenges of Dharma work and of communal living? The emphasis will be on achievable action, and practical next steps.

DETAILS:
7.30pm Friday 17 June to 4.00pm Sunday 19 June at Birmingham Buddhist Centre.
Cost: dana (by donation).  Accommodation: available
To book: contact Vidyaruci on
matt.notmatt@yahoo.co.uk

For updates please see the Facebook Event ‘The New Society in Principle and Practice’

Buddhists and Schools Conference in Birmingham

Munisha reports from the first ever conference for UK Buddhists working with schools, organised Clear Vision.  She says “Saturday 26th March saw nearly 30 Buddhists of various UK traditions gathering at Triratna’s Birmingham Buddhist Centre - whose magnificent shrine is shown opposite. They were all active, or interested  in, working with schools as part of mandatory Religious Education, visiting schools or welcoming group visits to their temples and centres.

“We started with three 10-minute talks on “What I want to communicate as a Buddhist”, by speakers from the Theravada, Triratna and Soka Gakkai traditions. These were followed by a keynote talk on “What Religious Education asks of us”. The speaker, Dr Joyce Miller, is a Theravadin laywoman, as well as deputy chair of the Religious Education Council of Great Britain. Workshops and presentations covered meditation with primary-age children, a prayer-flag-making workshop on the Six Perfections, 18 years of Clear Vision video for schools and Engaging with Teenagers.

“I thought the event was a great success and evidently others did to as their evaluations forms gave scores of 4/5 out of 5 on every count. Suggestions for future events were an emphasis on more practical workshops, and some small groups. I think this was a great start, and now we have the makings of a network, someone can more easily find a range of speakers and workshops for next time".

The event was organised by myself from Clear Vision, in association with Birmingham Buddhist Centre and the Network of Buddhist Organisations UK.

Notes from the Teaching Meditation to Children Workshop  is available on the Triratna News resources page, as is Munisha’s presentation to the conference.

Punjabi Mitra Ceremony in Birmingham

Ashvajit writes with news of a slightly unusual and very positive mitra ceremony at Triratna’s Birmingham Buddhist Centre.  He says - “Namo Buddhaya and Jai Bhim!  Just over a month ago we held a Mitra Ceremony during which three men joined the world-wide Triratna Mitra Sangha - two Westerners and one of Indian origin, Devinder Chander.  The Centre shrine was beautifully decorated, mainly in white to symbolise the path of purification, and the ceremony was led with skill and confidence by Dharmachari Saraha, the Mitra Convenor for the Birmingham area (shown left).

“Thinking over the event now a month later, and not least because Devinder is a friend well known to me, I would like to say something more about him, and not let the event go unmarked by the wider Sangha. We know, of course, that although a person becomes a Mitra through a particular ‘doorway’ – a particular Buddhist Centre - they are not Mitras of that Centre exclusively, but Mitras of the whole world-wideTriratna Buddhist Community, and will be happily accepted as such wherever they go. In so thinking, however, we can easily lose sight of the uniqueness of the particular individual or individuals involved.

“In Devinder’s case, it is not difficult to see some aspects at least of his uniqueness. First of all, it is unusual, though not I think unprecedented, for an Indian or a man of Indian origin – because Devinder has been living in the UK for many many years – to enter the Mitra Sangha actually in the UK rather than in India itself, where there are already a very large number of Mitras, or Dhamma Mitras as they are called there. 

"Secondly, Devinder is a Punjabi, his ancestral home being the village of Nakodar, which lies some 25 km south of Jalandhar, a large city about 150 km northwest of Chandigarh, state capital of the Punjab. Thirdly, not only is Devinder a Punjabi, he is also a staunch Ambedkarite. And fourthly, he is not only an active member of the Birmingham Ambedkarite community, but one of the leading lights at the Vaishali Buddhist Centre in Handsworth, North Birmingham. 

"It therefore seems to me highly significant that such an active and influential man, a man of Punjabi descent, currently domiciled in the UK, should dedicate himself to deepening his Going for Refuge to Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha, and to working for the spread of the Dhamma in the context of the Triratna Buddhist Community. I heartily congratulate him on his decision to do so, and, of course, felicitate the Birmingham Buddhist Centre for accepting him.

“I am sure that Devinder will be an asset to the Birmingham Buddhist Centre – he has already shown himself to be an exceptionally generous man with his donations of food to Centre events, and also by contributions to the work of the Triratna Buddhist Order in the Punjab and to Nagaloka, our big training centre in Maharashtra. He is already a great asset to the Vaishali Buddhist Centre in Handsworth, and I suspect that he will increasingly be an asset to the spread of the Buddha-Dhamma in the Punjab.

“I wish him, his wife Devi, his family members in the UK and in India all the very best, and look forward to him making, under the auspices of the Triratna Buddhist Order, stronger and stronger connections with the Ambedkarite Buddhists of the Punjab, with those Dalits not already Ambedkarites or Buddhists, and thereby spreading the Dhamma more and more effectively there. I am sure he will join the ever-increasing number of people working throughout the world to unite the tremendous diversity and increasing numbers of spiritual aspirants under a single banner – the banner of Buddhism, the Enlightening banner of Sakyamuni the Buddha.

“Sadhu, Sadhu, Sadhu!"

 

Upcoming free conference on Buddhists and Schools in Birmingham

Munisha writes from Triratna’s ClearVision audio-visual media project with news of an upcoming free conference they’re organising.  The theme is Buddhists and Schools and it'll be at the Birmingham Buddhist Centre on Saturday 26th March, from 10am-4pm.  It's intended for Buddhists of all traditions who work with schools, either independently or on behalf of Buddhist charities or places of worship. 

She says - “This is a Buddhist community event: Buddhist speakers from a range of traditions will volunteer talks and workshops sharing their experience for the benefit of all.  British Buddhists of many traditions contribute a great deal to pupils' understanding of Buddhism as part of Religious Education in schools.  

“Whether you are experienced in working with schools, or thinking about it, we'd love to see you there!  It’s a great opportunity for training, networking and sharing skills and experience.

For more details or to book, email munisha@clear-vision.org or phone 0161 839 9579

The event is part of Celebrating RE month, and is organised by the Clear Vision Trust and hosted by

Birmingham Buddhist Centre, in association with the Network of Buddhist Organisations UK.  More details at -

www.clear-vision.org

www.birminghambuddhistcentre.org.uk

www.nbo.org.uk

www.celebratingre.org

calling young Triratna Buddhists - June weekend announced

Mat New and Vidyaruci write from Birmingham UK with news of a special weekend for Young Triratna Buddhists to be held in June. Entitled ‘The New Society in Principle and Practice’, they plan to -

* Investigate the social implications of the Buddha's teaching, as expressed through the ideal of the New Society
* Learn how this ideal has manifested in practice through the institutions of the Triratna Community
* Explore how we can benefit from these institutions, and how best to support them.
* Receive encouragement and guidance in the development of new initiatives
* Practise and inspire one another in the spirit of Sangha.

Dates are 17-19 June, place is the Birmingham Buddhist Centre, and the weekend will be led by Vajragupta and others from the Triratna Development Team. Payment will be by voluntary donation; participants will include students of the Triratna Dharma Training Course.

If you are interested please contact Vidyaruci: matt.notmatt@yahoo.co.uk or check the Facebook event at http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=167405576643651

Sahaja launches new website

Sahaja is a member of the Triratna Buddhist Order who has for many years made sculptures from scrap metal. Anyone who’s visited the Manchester or Sheffield Buddhist Centres, or Padmaloka Retreat Centre, will be familiar with his giant metal angels and other figures.

Now Aryamati, a friend of his, writes from the North of England to say -

“Sahaja has a new website - www.sahajaart.com.

"At present he can no longer afford to continue with his impressive metal sculptures, but this last year has seen a renaissance of his creativity. With paint, cut-outs, photos and brilliant colours he is devising striking paintings. These have been put on a lively website which many of us will be intrigued to visit.

“Sahaja is willing to sell some of his sculptures and new paintings. You can also commission Sahaja to make new work, for instance to draw you a portrait in this new medium, if you wish to make a present to a friend.

“He is happy to discuss his ideas with you - and the possibility of paying him monthly rather than with one lump sum.

"Sahaja earns very little, as a Care Worker, on minimum wage. He cannot afford broadband, but sometimes goes to library to read his emails budmaher@live.com, or you can contact him via his website at www.sahajaart.com/contact.php

“Thanks, Aryamati”

The photos show images of Sahaja’s work currently on display in the garden of Triratna’s Birmingham Buddhist Centre, plus one of his new paintings.

Musituality - Music in the Spirit of Harmony - coming up in Birmingham

Rich Batsford, a Mitra at Triratna’s Birmingham Buddhist Centre writes to say -

“On July 16th there’s a great concert at the Birmingham Buddhist Centre in case you'd be interested in featuring it in your blog. The three organisers - of which I’m one - see ourselves as three musketeers, of Christian, Muslim and Buddhist persuasions. We’ve created ‘Musituality - Music in the Spirit of Harmony’ - it aims to build on the success of last year's sell-out concert in Birmingham Cathedral. This year we’re part of this year’s Moseley Festival.

* Aa'shiq al-Rasul fuse classical Indian beats with contemporary Afro-Caribbean and Middle Eastern sounds, becoming the UK's most versatile band in the Muslim music scene. They have performed on stages as diverse as the Glastonbury Festival and Symphony Hall and have toured many countries throughout the world. Their album's have been widely praised and well received - the latest, Majesty, is in shops now.
"a spiritually uplifting experience" Radio Dawah

* St Marys Schola present an ethereal blend of vocal harmony ranging from the transcendent, pristine polyphony of master Renaissance Composer Thomas Tallis, right through centuries of rich choral tradition to the tonal warmth of the modern day John Rutter.
“an instant rapport with their audience” B13 Magazine

* Solo pianist Rich Batsford performs his own meditative and beguiling compositions that feature gorgeous melody, harmony and insistent rhythm drawing comparisons with Eric Satie and Keith Jarrett.
"Utterly spell-binding” Birmingham Post

"Through creating contemporary, positive and reflective music Aa'shiq al-Rasul intend to increase people's understanding of one another to help build social bridges globally whilst working with all faiths and cultures towards sharing a message of peace, love and hope."
Amran Ellahi - Aa'shiq al-Rasul Founder and Musituality co-organiser

Also, myself and Olivia Moore - a very talented Indian-influenced violinist and member of the Manchester Triratna Sangha - are planning a series of concerts together at other Buddhist centres around the country in the future. We’d love to hear from anyone in any Sangha who is interested in hosting or helping organise a concert. Please contact me on batsfordpromotions@gmail.com .

Please also note you can listen to my album of meditative piano music on my website at www.richbatsford.com

best wishes and much metta

Rich

Transforming Self and World — the New Society, 40 Years On

Dhammaloka writes from the FWBO’s Dharmapala College, based in Birmingham UK, with news of an important seminar they’re planning for early April. They’ll be exploring the theme of ‘Transforming Self and World — the New Society, 40 Years On’.

The FWBO was founded in the 1960s with the creation of a ‘New Society’ as one of its founding ideals. 40 years on, it’s an international, vibrant, and diverse community of practitioners - but it hasn’t been an easy ride! Hence the subtitle to the event - “The Vision — The Lessons — The Challenge”.

Dhammaloka says -

“The Triratna Buddhist Community today wouldn’t exist in its richness, diversity and unity without the people who — from its very early days until now — have given themselves to the realization of Sangharakshita’s vision of a New Society. This vision of a society radically focused on spiritual growth and compassionate activity lies at the heart of our activities in the world. It is an incredibly challenging and inspiring project, working out in practice one of Bhante’s central teachings. In relation to it, people have found themselves full of hope and close to despair. We have much reason to celebrate our achievements and we must humbly acknowledge that all these are no more than a beginning.

“What is the vision — what were the lessons learnt — what are the challenges today? We invite you to find out with us. Through talks, discussion and questions & answer sessions, we will explore the vision and the challenges of transforming self and world in the 21st century.

“We hope to have Bhante with us for a morning or afternoon session”.

Here’s some more details -

April 1 (6pm) to 7 (2pm), Dharmapala College, Birmingham— open to all.

Speakers and themes:
o Subhuti: The Vision of the New Society and its Challenge Today
o Dhammarati: The Order — Individuals in Community
o Parami: The Nucleus — a Global Net of Friends
o Vajragupta: Messengers of the Dharma – the Gift of the Triratna Community
o Ratnaghosha: The Tantric Guru — Bhante’s Vision of Right Livelihood
o Keturaja: Work in Progress — the Windhorse Experience
o Subhadramati: Living in a Mandala — LBC and More
o Maitrisara: Meeting the Suffering of the World — Compassion in Action

Each speaker will be available for a separate question-and-answer session with participants of the seminar that is being offered in conjunction with the talks. There will be study and discussion groups to further explore the themes. The talks will be open to the public. The seminar, including the question and answer sessions will be for participants of the full event only.

All Dharmapala’s seminars are offered in the spirit of dana. They suggest a donation of £210 for this seminar — but add that if that is too much, please don’t hesitate to book. For accommodation however, they must separately charge £15/10 per night.

To book, send your details with a non-refundable deposit of £50 (cheques made out for Dharmapala College). To contact them, please send an email to connect@dharmapalacollege.org or phone +44 (0)121 4493700. Their website is www.dharmapalacollege.org

New video of Sangharakshita available online

Upekshapriya, from the FWBO's ClearVision video team, writes with news of Sangharakshita's recent talk in Birmingham, UK, given as part of their FWBO Day celebrations. He sys " You might want a heads-up that the talks from FWBO day in Birmingham are now on VideoSangha".

There's three talks, all around the launch of 'The Essential Sangharakshita', Wisdom Publications' new collection of Sangharakshita's writings.

Vidyadevi, the book's compiler, begins her talk by describing the difficulty of adequately representing in a book the "ongoing process that is Sangharakshita", an author who Wisdom describes as being “equally at home with science, philosophy, myth, art, and poetry,” and using “every inner avenue to communicate the timeless Dharma.”

Her talk is at www.videosangha.net/video/FWBO-Day-2009-Talk-1-by-Vidyad-3

Subhuti, in his first public talk in the West for three years, rejoices in the "glittering but muddled heap" that has been bequeathed to us in the FWBO - meaning the sum total of Sangharakshita's output over the past 60 years of Dharma teaching and practice. He goes on to evoke the spirit of the times when the FWBO and Order were founded, when in the air there was a thirst for something new, for radical change - and Sangharakshita was there to meet it. His talk is at www.videosangha.net/video/FWBO-Day-2009-Talk-2-by-Subhut-3

Sangharakshita, in his talk, available at www.videosangha.net/video/FWBO-Day-2009-Talk-3-by-Sangha-3, expresses very eloquently his gratitude to Vidyadevi and others. He goes on to launch 'Living with Ethics', and offers a series of reflections on ethics and altruism.

VideoSangha www.videosangha.net hosts over 260 videos, long and short, related to the FWBO and Western Buddhist Order.

An invitation: spend FWBO Day 2009 with Sangharakshita

April 6th sees the 42nd anniversary of the founding of the FWBO, and to mark the occasion the Sangha in the UK’s West Midlands invites you to join them and Sangharakshita for a celebration.  This’ll be held at the Birmingham Buddhist Centre on Saturday 11th April.

During the event there will be a launch of The Essential Sangharakshita, Wisdom Publications’ new book that describes its author as “equally at home with science, philosophy, myth, art, and poetry,” and using “every inner avenue to communicate the timeless Dharma.”

They say -

“Bhante will be joining us for the launch and giving a talk.  He will be accompanied by Vidyadevi (aka Karen Stout), who edited the text and who has worked with Bhante for many years, who will introduce us to the book itself. 

“We invite you to join us as we celebrate Bhante, his writings, the FWBO, and all these as expressions of the Three Jewels”.

The program is as follows -

Arrival from 2pm onwards.  It is fine to arrive earlier than this, but we might encourage you to help with the preparations!

2.30pm: Optional Meditation

4pm: Book launch of ‘The Essential Sangharakshita’ with talks by Sangharakshita and Vidyadevi

5.30pm: Sandwich snacks available

6.30pm: Puja and close

Young Buddhists meet in Birmingham; more gatherings planned

Kev from the FWBO’s Birmingham Buddhist Centre sends us this report:

“We recently hosted a ‘Day for Young Buddhists’ in Birmingham. And what a fantastic day it was - people travelled from as far as Norwich and Leeds for what turned out to be a vibrant and inspiring gathering.

“The day began with a dedication ceremony and meditation, followed by four short talks by young people in the Sangha on the subject of ‘What inspires me’. From this simple brief came four very rousing and inspiring talks.

“The afternoon was left as open space for people to explore what was of particular interest to them at the time; this included discussion groups, 5 rhythms dancing, and drumming in the garden. This was all rounded off with a Bodhicaryavatara Puja to finish. A great day, and we’ve another event for young Buddhists on the cards for the summer”.

To help people contact one another, there’s a Facebook group “Young People in the FWBO”; this now includes a Calendar of events especially recommended for young Buddhists. It currently has 109 members from all over the world.

Next up is a similar day event for young people in Brighton, scheduled for 26 April.

The FWBO’s Worcester Centre - formally known as the ‘Worcester Buddhism and Meditation Group’ - has celebrated the new year in style by establishing themselves in their first full-time centre premises. They've been able to rent a house on the outskirts of town that will serve as the focal point for their substantial sangha, and double up as a small community for some of those most involved.

First established by Vajragupta, Vipulakirti, and others in 2003, it’s one of a number of ‘satellite’ groups started over the past few years by the large Birmingham Buddhist Centre- and the first to find its own full-time premises.

So, for them at least, no more Buddhas travelling to the weekly class strapped to the back seat of the car!

FWBO News wishes them well in their new home – you’ll find more photos of this on Facebook.

The Birmingham Buddhist Centre also runs classes in Sutton Coldfield and Shrewsbury, and has just begun a class in Warwick.

Happy Birthday Bhante!

Tuesday 26 August was the 83rd birthday of Sangharakshita, founder of the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order.

This year’s celebration also marked the successful conclusion of a fundraising campaign among the Order that aimed to transfer the financial support of Bhante (Sangharakshita) from the FWBO to the Order.

Siddhisambhava, Fundraiser in the FWBO Development Team who spearheaded the appeal, describes the genteel action -

“A small party was held in the conservatory at Madhyamaloka in Birmingham, where Bhante lives in a two-bedroom flat. Platters of cucumber sandwiches and pots of tea embraced an iced Victorian sponge birthday cake – the traditional fare of an English afternoon tea party and especially appropriate, perhaps, for an 83rd birthday. But the clusters of red, yellow and blue balloons reminded us that this has been no ordinary life.

“I launched this appeal five months ago at a European Order week-end marking the fortieth anniversary of the founding of the Order. The target was to secure Bhante a stable annual income of £30,000 from the Order by inviting standing orders of £5 UK a month from 500 people coming together in an act of samaya-dana, a collective bond (samaya) of generosity (dana). Bhante’s birthday present from the Order this year turned out to be nearly £39,000 pa, plus nearly £6,000 in one-off donations from over 420 Order members.

“I presented Bhante with a framed copy of the Order Mosaic, a photograph of all Order members surrounding a thousand-armed Avalokiteshvara, the symbol of the Order. Sadly, his eyesight these days is not up to seeing it in the literal sense but that wasn’t the point of the gift.

"Visuddhimati, Chair of the North London Buddhist Centre and a member of the European Chairs Assembly Executive, presented Mahamati, a Trustee of FWBO Uddiyana (the charity that maintains Bhante and his activities) with a golden tantric cheque – see photo. The cheque was from the Jambhala Dana Bank, based, apparently, at Mount Nakula, Shrimat Loka. (Jambhala is the god of wealth who holds a mongoose (nakula) that spits out jewels; Shrimat Loka means the Glorious Realm.) And I noticed it was signed Om Mani Padme Hum££ from the Western Buddhist Order.

“FWBO Uddiyana is Bhante’s ‘nerve centre’ and its’ funds also support Dharmamati (his secretary) and Saraha (his carer). - all shown in the photo. The bulk of FWBO Uddiyana’s financial support has, for many years, come from just two FWBO institutions, the European centres’ Central Dana Fund, and the Windhorse Trust. Though robust and blooming in many ways, both are struggling financially at the moment. The appeal was therefore launched to help the Order take on supporting Bhante in his remaining years and to free up FWBO money to fund FWBO projects, such as a new website. Many thanks to everyone who has contributed to the success of this appeal.

"It’s been a win-win-win outcome: Bhante benefits from a stable income; the FWBO benefits by more of its money being freed up to spend on the Movement; and the Order benefits by strengthening its connection with Bhante and each other through samaya-dana. Happy Birthday and long life Bhante!

“If you’d like to see such genteel action live, including balloon-blowing-up, birthday-candle-blowing-out, close ups of cucumber sandwiches and tantric cheques, check out the movie, coming soon on www.videosangha.net”.

Transforming Self, Transforming World in Birmingham

The FWBO's Birmingham Buddhist Centre recently teamed up with local environmental-awareness groups to put on an event entitled ‘Transforming Self, Transforming World’.

The day included meditation, a workshop by Friends of the Earth on bio-fuels, composting for kids, lunch courtesy of the Birmingham chapter of ‘Food not Bombs’, recycled arts and crafts, Rob’s smoothie-bike, a showing of ‘The Power of Community’, a film & discussion based upon Cuba's creative response to having its oil imports cut. Padmakumara also led a workshop exploring Joanna Macy's ‘Work that Re-connects’.

As well as being a great opportunity for people who perhaps wouldn’t normally attend a Buddhist Centre to come along and get a feel for the place, it also helped to emphasise how Buddhist practice can give rise to a natural and spontaneous aspiration to contribute to the welfare of the world, an aspiration not characterised by fear and apathy but rooted in loving-kindness.

“It’s always so inspiring to meet people who work for our shared planet! A positive way to learn from one another and cooperate for a more peaceful and sustainable world!” Rianne Veen.

Relief - art exhibition in Birmingham

Following yesterday’s post featuring Valerie Witonska’s poetry, FWBO News has had news of a very different artistic exhibition by another member of the Sangha.

Mat, also known as Matnoo, from the Birmingham Buddhist Centre, is perhaps best described as a sculptor – his unusual artwork is made from precision engineered plastic using CNC equipment (computer numerically controlled equipment, to the uninitiated!)

His exhibition ‘Relief’, held in the Buddhist Centre, featured 10-15 pieces on a range of subjects including cartoon-like animals, portraits, Buddhist philosophy and also some interactive pieces, including a tardis-like box you could step inside and see endless reflections of yourself:a modern-day Vairocana’s tower...!

You can contact him at matnoo@hotmail.com or by phone - work his number out from his poster!

Ongoing actions in support of Burma…

Events across the FWBO continue to be held to draw attention to the situation in Burma and build support for peaceful change there.

In Birmingham, around 70 people from the Birmingham Buddhist Centre – and others from Birmingham’s Inter-Faith Network - walked in a silent ‘yatra’ from the Town Hall along the main shopping street on a crowded Sunday. They gave out several hundred leaflets, explaining the situation in Burma and suggesting actions people could take in support of the Burmese people.

In Edinburgh, a group led by Kalyanavaca, the Centre’s Chairwoman, meditated in the City Centre, and gave out leaflets passing on Aung San Suu Kyi’s famous request to “use your liberty to promote ours”.

In Delhi, Maitriveer Nagarjun, an Indian Order Member, who is one of the core team for TBMSG’s Dhammakranti Project, helped organised a large public meeting at the prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru University where he is a post-graduate student. This was attended by Burmese survivors of the last military crackdown in Burma, and a signature campaign was organised calling on the Indian Government (one of Burma’s chief supporters) to cease investment until democracy and human rights have been restored to Burma.

In Poona, India, the Jambudvipa Trust, an FWBO/TBMSG ‘outreach’ project is contributing to discussions with the aim of organising a visit to Burma by senior Buddhist peacemakers.

Finally, Dayaratna, in Cambridge UK, would like to hear from anyone wanting to continue to support Burma, specifically by putting pressure on China, via the 2008 Olympics, to change its ‘hands-off’ policy towards the regime in Burma. Contact him if you would like to be part of this.

As Cait, organiser of the Birmingham Yatra, said, “We cannot know the outcome of our actions, but we hope that we have helped to keep the issue alive in the minds of those who saw us.”

Sangharakshita - FWBO Day

It is a rare treat these days to be able to attend a talk by Sangharakshita and it was delightful to see him at his best celebrating the 40th annivesary of the founding of the FWBO at the Birmingham FWBO Centre on Saturday. While obviously quite frail of body these days there was no doubt as to the sharpness of his mind. In an hour long talk - with many digressions - he only consulted his notes towards the end in order to get a list "in the right order". For some people it was their first opportunity to see Sangharaskhita in person.

His talk began with the early days of the FWBO and the spirit of the times when he was starting out forty years ago. The first meeting were held in a small basement room in Monmouth St in central London, but soon things began to expand and after a few years the developments that we now associate with the FWBO - communities and right-livelihood businesses - began to come into existence. Had he tried to start a new Buddhist movement 10 years earlier he might not have found many receptive to his ecumenical teachings, and had he arrived 10 years later he would have missed the boat - the late 1960's seem to have been the best possible time to attempt what he did. Sangharakshita remarked that the present zeitgeist seemed to be more marked by materialism and individualism. One of the regretable changes he noted was the decline of interest in rightlivelihood, noting that Windhorse Trading had been not only a source of considerable funds, but an important training ground for order members. The talk would not have been complete without some "teaching" and so Sangharakshita, true to form, drew our attention to Francis Bacon (the 17th century philosopher) whose Theory of Idols he suggested might help us to see the errors which prevent us from understanding reality. He concluded by reminding us of the six distinctive emphases of the FWBO.

The people attending the event had come from as far afield as Southampton and the Outer Hebrides, and the Birmingham did an excellent job of accomodating and catering for the the crowds.

image by Roy Peters

FWBO Projects Receive Community Funding

The UK government recently announced the results of round 2 of the ‘Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund’, which attracted bids from over 1,200 UK faith-based organisations. The funding was given to “groups with practical solutions to build capacity among faith communities to support inter faith work”. The successful applicants were the Brighton, Bristol, Birmingham, Cardiff, and Croydon FWBO Centres, the Clear Vision Trust, Dharmachakra (now known as Free Buddhist Audio), and the LBC’s Globe Community Project.

A full list of the 343 successful organisations is available online (pdf file). The fund is administered to the Community Development Foundation (CDF). FWBO News will be chasing up the recipients to find out how they will be using the money.

Story by Lokabandhu