Fırst Mıtra Ceremony in Turkey

Vajracaksu

Vajracaksu, a Turkish Order Member living and working in Istanbul, where he runs a small Triratna Buddhist group, writes with news of their Sangha’s first Mitra Ceremony. He says -

“I’m very pleased and happy to announce that Onur Pinar has recently become the first person to become a Mitra in Turkey. We celebrated the event with the traditional Mitra Ceremony at my small home studio in Istanbul,. Onur first meditated and made contact with Buddhism, through me, almost two years ago on the 17th June 2009. He first did a six week mindfulness meditation course with me 4 or 5 months later which had a deeply positive effect on his life. For example, by the end of the course he felt a lot calmer and more peaceful; was in good spirits a lot more of the time; expressed his love more; and felt more loved as well. Since then he’s done at least 6 or 7 courses.

“Gradually Onur became interested in the Dharma too and in particular loved (and loves) listening to and reading transcripts of Bhante’s talks, in particular his talk on “Fidelity” (available of couse on FreeBuddhistAudio) which he’s returned to again and again. He has strong feelings of respect and fondness for Bhante. Then he turned to the writings of Ratnaghosha, especially his talks/essays on Kshanti, and again he’s returned to these regularly. He is very grateful for the gift of the Dharma and regularly expresses his feelings of gratitude to and for Bhante, Ratnaghosha and myself.

“Last summer he visited with me our Movement in England: staying in Sukhavati community, visiting Triratna’s London Buddhist Centre, visiting Cambridge and meeting Ratnaghosha and asking him 7 questions (!), and doing a weeks’ retreat at Triratna's Padmaloka retreat centre. He had a great time, in particular loved his experience of sangha. And from that time on he’s been thinking about becoming a Mitra and on the 24th April 2011 making the traditional offerings of a flower, a candle and a stick of incense he joined the 10,000 strong international Mitra community.

“Sadhu my friend! Long may the Dharma inspire and guide you”.

Details of Vajracaksu’s classes in Istanbul are available on his website at www.farkindalikmeditasyon.com

making the traditional offerings of flower, candle, and incense during the mitra ceremony in Istanbul

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!"

 

First Mitras at new home of Brixton group

Ratnachuda writes from the small Triratna sangha in South London to say -

"On Thursday August 5th the Brixton Buddhist Sangha celebrated its first Mitra ceremonies in our new home at Vaccasin's yoga studio, YogaPoint. Greg, Rachel and Vicki took the very significant step of becoming Mitras that evening.

Amarapuspa and Satyanathin led the ceremony assisted by myself.

The photos show the shrine created by Amarapuspa and the three happy mitras after the ceremony.

Yogapoint can be found at122 Dalberg Road, London SW2 or online at www.yogapoint.co.uk

First Mitra ceremonies for East Kent Buddhist Group

Danapriya writes from the FWBO’s ‘East Kent Buddhist Group’ with news of their first Mitra Ceremonies - perhaps, he says, even the first in the Triratna Buddhist Order! He says -

“The East Kent Buddhist Group has just had Mitra Ceremonies for Hannah Youngs and Sally Birch. Hannah is 18yrs old and is daughter of Karunajala - and has been going on retreat since she was 4 yrs old! Sally has been on the LBC's winter retreat the last 2 yrs and hardly misses a class.

“27 people attended - we just about packed them into our shrineroom which is only 11 x 13 feet! It was a wonderful evening and Sally and Hannah may even be the first Mitras of the Triratna Buddhist Order! We had three visiting Order Members Subhadramati, Karunajala and Vajrashraddha among the guests.

“Love from Danapriya

Founded in Deal, Kent, in 2007, the group found it attracted people from all over East Kent, and changed its name to suit. For more information check their website.

Launch of new FWBO Dharma Training Course for Mitras

In the FWBO and TBMSG, the first formal commitment people make to practice as a Buddhist is likely to be expressed in the Mitra Ceremony. Mitra is a Sanskrit word meaning 'friend', and in the ceremony the person declares their connection with the Three Jewels of Buddhism - their wish to become like the Buddha, to practice the Dharma, and to build friendships with the Sangha. In response, members of the Order do what they can to offer facilities to mitras across the FWBO, who now number several thousand.

For the past two years Saccanama, an Order Member living in Bristol, UK, has been working on a new Dharma Training Course for Mitras, and we are delighted to report that this has now been launched, to critical acclaim - indeed, its been described as "totally fantastic" by one delighted study leader.

The Course, which runs over four years including a Foundation Year, is a major re-presentation of the FWBO and Sangharakshita's approach to the Dharma, and for the first time has been professionally produced with source material, further reading, and teachers' notes.

The course is designed for weekly study in groups, but all the material is freely available for those not able to attend FWBO groups or centres.

It has its own permanent web address online, www.fwbomitracourse.com, though the files themselves are currently held on the FWBO's FreeBuddhistAudio site – click on the link above and it will take you straight there.

Saccanama introduced the course with a talk entitled " Giving the Gift of the Dharma", given at Padmaloka retreat centre, and available for anyone to listen to. He has also written ‘A Guide to the FWBO Dharma Training Course for Mitras’ which is now available to download from the website.

The guide includes a preface by Sangharakshita, who writes -

"Since the earliest days of the FWBO I have been concerned that men and women who attend our centres should be able to gain a proper understanding of the Dharma. I am therefore delighted that the new Dharma Training Course for Mitras is now available.

"The aim of the Course is to provide Mitras – those wishing to practise the Dharma within the context of the FWBO – with what amounts to a basic education in Buddhism. The four-year course (the first year of which is a foundation year) includes modules on the principle Buddhist teachings, both practical and theoretical, as well as on some of the more important scriptures and philosophical schools. There are modules on the Bodhisattva Ideal; on the nature of the Sangha or spiritual community; on faith, symbols, and the imagination; on ethics and the environment; on Buddhist psychology; and on the history of the FWBO. Though the new Dharma Training Course draws on the old Mitra Study Course, there is also much that is new, some of it specially written for the course. Moreover, there is a greater emphasis on the importance of putting what one learns into practice.

"A great deal of thought has gone into the preparation of the new Dharma Training Course, and a great deal of work, and I congratulate all those who were involved in its production. The course should be available at every FWBO centre, and I hope that all Mitras who wish to extend and deepen their knowledge of the Dharma will take full advantage of it.

"Sangharakshita

New FWBO Dharma Training Course for Mitras launched

The new FWBO Dharma Training Course for Mitras was launched on a recent Order Weekend at Padmaloka. This is an important new development for Dharma teaching within the FWBO.

The full course is four years long and comprises a Foundation Year followed by a three-year study program. The Foundation Year is based around the three declarations people make on becoming a Mitra: being a Buddhist; practising the Dharma; and participating in the FWBO. Each section contains material extracted from the Buddhist texts, Sangharakshita’s writings, and writings by other contemporary Buddhist teachers, backed up with reference material and teacher’s notes.

The course has its own dedicated website at www.fwbomitracourse.com, where the Foundation Year and part of Year 2 are now available. Subsequent modules will be rolled out over the next few months, and the whole course should be on-line by the summer.

Saccanama, the course’s creator, has been working on it for the past 18 months; it's a major new 'synthesis of the FWBO's approach to the dharma.  He launched it at Padmaloka with a talk entitled ‘Giving the Gift of the Dharma’, which you can listen on FreeBuddhistAudio here: 

www.freebuddhistaudio.com/talks/details?num=LOC87.

FWBO Dharma Training Course for Mitras

This is just a wee note to let you know about the launch of the first all new sections of the Dharma Training Course. Modules on 'The Sangha', 'The Buddha's Eightfold Path', and 'The Bodhisattva Ideal' are now live...

In case you're not familiar with it, the new course is designed primarily for Mitras ('friends') involved with the FWBO Buddhist community. It aims to give people in the FWBO a thorough grounding in Dharma study and practice. It also makes an excellent general course for anyone interested in putting Buddhist teaching into practice in their life.

The first parts of Year Two are now available online, with full references embedded in the study files themselves. We've formatted these files to print out for use in a study group, and also to make them easy to read, navigate and search on-screen.

The rest of the course is currently being developed by a number of members of the Western Buddhist Order. New modules will be made available as they become ready through 2008 and the beginning of 2009. Check out each year's page for an advance preview of what's in store, and to sign up for regular updates on new sections as they become available.

At present, the course is being hosted on Free Buddhist Audio, and you can access it easily from there too via the 'Study' section.

Happy faring...

with best wishes,

The Free Buddhist Audio Team

ps. The new site has been developed to enable a free service to be kept in place for all users. To help us keep the service free, please think about making a donation. Many thanks!