NEWS LETTERBIRMINGHAM BUDDHIST VIHARA A Registered Charity No. 513368 |
Spring 2000 CE ¤ 2544 BE |
Winter 1999 CE ¤ 2543 BE |
Autumn 1999 CE ¤ 2543 BE |
Spring 1999 CE ¤ 2543 BE |
Winter 1998 CE ¤ 2542 BE |
Autumn 1998 CE ¤ 2542 BE |
Summer 1998 CE ¤ 2541BE |
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SPRING 2000 CE ¤ 2544BE ¤ Published Quarterly |
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GENERAL NEWSDuring Bhante's long absence abroad the Monday and Thursday meditation classes at the Vihara were taken care of by Bill, Mark, Nat and Yann. The Zen group meets on the first Friday of every month (not weekly as previously). Yann welcomed groups from schools and colleges wanting more information about Buddhism in general and about our activities locally. We have also had university students visiting the Vihara and Pagoda as part of a study project. A new monk, Ven. U Gandhasara, is in residence at the Pagoda. He has looked after the Pagoda on a day to day basis during Ven. Ashin Rahtapala's visit to Myanmar with Bhante. Ven. Ashin Rahtapala has now returned to Birmingham via Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia. VEN. DR. REWATA DHAMMA As we mentioned in our previous newsletter Bhante traveled to India on 12th January. He stayed at the Igatpuri Vipassana Research Academy for a one month retreat. This centre is the headquarters of the U S N Goenka tradition. The centre is very well organised. Each meditator has their own room and cell for meditation practice. Bhante felt a very good energy there, strong yet peaceful. The centre can accommodate up to 700 people. Over 400 people attended the retreat for the whole month. Besides the main one month retreat, two ten days courses were also held; the attendees of these had separate accommodation and meal arrangements. After the retreat Bhante traveled to Bombay for a meeting with Goenka to discuss future programmes and courses. He returned to England on 14th February. Bhante stayed in England for only a few days before flying to Brazil on 18th February. He stayed for several days at the Casa de Dharma in Sao Paulo with Arthur and Christina who organized talks and Retreat during his stay in Sao Paulo. He gave evening talks, which were well attended by up to 75 people each day. Bhante found Brazil to be a very beautiful country. He had some interesting comments about Brazil. Because of the very forgiving climate there is no need for running hot water or fans or air conditioning! Bhante found the people of Brazil to be very outgoing which he found to be a contrast to our British reserve! Finally it turns out that Brazil is the only country in Latin America where Portuguese is the official language, but there are hardly any Portuguese who actually live there! The people are very eager to learn about Theravada tradition. There are some Japanese centres Zen and Pure Land, and also some Tibetan centres. There is much interest in the cultural aspects of Buddhism, not just meditation. From 24th to 29th February Bhante led a five day meditation retreat at a Catholic convent outside Sao Paulo. The centre was very well organised, with immaculately clean accommodation and very good vegetarian food. The centre is in very beautiful surroundings. The retreat was attended by about 25 people. Bhante was sad to notice that, due to the lack of any social security system in Brazil, only professional people can afford to be involved in the support of the centre. Bhante then made an hour long flight to Belo Horizonte, which is said to be the most beautiful area in the whole of Brazil. The city of 3 million people has very beautiful architecture and is set among rolling hills, about 100 km from the first Portuguese settlements. Again Bhante was struck by the warmth and friendliness of the people. There is a strong Theravada group in Belo Horizonte, founded by Ricardo Sasaki. Nearly 100 people attended Bhante's talks each day. It was Ricardo who had set up Bhante's visit to Brazil. Both Ricardo and his wife are psychologists. The group is relatively new but has many members throughout Brazil. Bhante was impressed that such a new group should have a good selection of Pali texts, much of it with Portuguese translations available; and also many members of the group are proficient at chanting in Pali. Ricardo, who is in his early forties, is a very determined person and a gifted leader. The group has bought nearly 20 acres of land in the forest and plans to build a meditation hall as well as individual kutis (huts). From 3rd to l2th March Bhante led a ten day vipassana retreat, again in a Catholic convent, about 60 km outside Belo Horizonte city. The retreat was attended by about 50 people from all over Brazil. It is a huge country and many of them had traveled long distances. They were very happy at their opportunity and very much appreciated the teachings that Bhante gave. The group has expressed a desire to invite Bhante next year to lead further retreats. After the retreat Bhante returned to Sao Paulo, flying back to England on 12th March and arriving in Birmingham on 13th. As a footnote to Bhante's trip to Brazil, it it is interesting to note that from his observation Christianity there is in decline, even though it is nominally a Christian country. On 15th March Bhante flew to Myanmar via Thailand, with Ven. Ashin Rahtapala and Mar Mar Lwin accompanying him as far as Bangkok. The purpose of Bhante's visit was to receive the title of Aggamahapandita. There is no direct English translation of this, but Agga means Excellent, Maha means Great and Pandita means Scholar. It is a very prestigious title given to eminent scholars. Bhante was greeted at Bangkok airport by members of the Myanmar Embassy who arranged for overnight hotel accommodation, where several other monks were staying en route to Yangon for the awards ceremony. On 17th March Bhante flew to Yangon by Myanmar airways International. At Yangon International Airport a large welcoming ceremony was held in the traditional style, attended by many government ministers and officials from the Ministry of Religious Affairs. A ceremonial procession then took place from the airport to the Kaba-aye where the monks stayed. On 19th March saw the main State Ceremony for the Awards Convocation, held in the Pasana Cave (originally constructed in 1954 for the Sixth Buddhist Council). The Convocation was a national occasion and was very well organised. Each of the senior monks receiving titles was given a white umbrella and was accompanied by an attendant carrying his name on a plaque. The number of monks receiving awards was 249, of which Bhante was 17th in seniority. Overall the cave seated 500 monks, with about half of these seated in tiers around the edge of the cave. Those monks receiving titles were seated on the stage and in front of it. Each of the senior monks receiving titles were presented with a certificate and seal from the Head of State. Several lay people also received awards. All the lay people attending wore traditional dress, the ladies in long sleeved dresses and scarves. After the awards ceremony the monks circumambulated the cave and received offerings and requisites from the lay people, this part of the day taking nearly two hours to complete. Bhante has a video of the proceedings, which he hope to be able to show on Buddha day in the Dhamma Talaka Pagoda. Receiving a title at a ceremony of this kind of ceremony is a great honour and we congratulate Bhante on his achievement. After the ceremony Bhante stayed in the State Guest House for the rest of his time in Myanmar. On 20th March Bhante was invited to the Mahasi Meditation Centre. Of the monks who had received awards 19 were from this centre, and Bhante received congratulations as one of them. On Myanmar New Year's Day Bhante received similar congratulations from the Mogok Meditation Centre, the second largest meditation centre in the country. This certainly knows that Bhante is very far from being sectarian! The Mahasi, Mogok and Goenka schools all recognise him as one of their teacher. He had been asked to lead a 10 day meditation retreat at the Dhammajoti Meditation Centre which is in the Goenka tradition, but he was unable to do this due to lack of time. He did visit the centre twice however, to give a dhamma talk and then to open the retreat. During his stay in Myanmar Bhante flew to Sri Lanka to attend the World Buddhist Conference. He was joined in Thailand by Mar Mar Lwin, who had by this time completed her pilgrimage in Thailand. In Sri Lanka Bhante visited Kandy and the ancient cities of Polunaruwa and Anuradhapura, and other Buddhist sites. He then returned to Myanmar and traveled to Mandalay and other areas of pilgrimage. He then flew to India on 13th April and returned to Myanmar again on 15th April, then to England on 24th April returning to Birmingham on 25th April. At the moment he has no further plans to travel abroad, except to Thailand during the first week in July. We hope he stay in England for some time. DHAMMA TALAKA PAGODA We are very fortunate that Sayadaw U Gandhasara is very skilled in carpentry. Eave boats for the Pagoda roof arrived from Myanmar several months ago, and the Sayadaw has fixed these in place very professionally. Another senior monk from Myanmar, Ven. U Kumuda who is also assisted. We are very grateful for the skilled work these two monks have done. The Pagoda is now very much in the pure Myanmar style, and we hope very much that you will be pleased when you see it. As we mentioned in the previous newsletter we are shortly going to gold leaf the entire Pagoda: (i.e. the roof space), as well as completing internal painting work Bhante has arranged for three experts to come over from Myanmar for this stage, the first part of which will be to cover the Pagoda with bronze. We hope it will all be finished by the summer. |
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Weekdays: Weekends: Other times: Chanting at the Pagoda Daily Chanting at the Vihara Weekly Meditation at Vihara Devotees Day at the Vihara Weekend Retreat Dhamma School for Childrens at
Vihara Birmingham Buddhist Vihara 47 Carlyle Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham B16 9BH Phone 0121-454 6591 (Vihara), 0121 455 0650 (Pagoda): Fax: 0121 454 0374 E-Mail: dhamma@globalnet.co.uk Website: http://www.nibbana.com/vihara.htm |
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[SUPPLEMENTS]INVITATION TO BUDDHA DAY2544 B.E. - 21st May 2000 The Trustees and Members of the Birmingham Buddhist Vihara will be celebrating Buddha Day (Vesakha), the Anniversary of Buddha's birth, enlightenment and passing away into Nibbana on Sunday 21st May this year. This will take place at Dhamma Talaka Pagoda between l0am - 3pm. The Government of the Union of Myanmar recently honoured Venerable Dr. Rewata Dhamma by conferring on him prestigious title of Aggamahapandita on the full moon day of March. We will be congratulating him on this award during ceremony. It is our pleasure to invite you, your family and friends to be with us on this auspicious occasion. Please bring food to offer Sangha and share in a communal meal. May all beings be happy! Direction to the Pagoda |
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DONATIONS WELCOMEDHAMMA - TALAKA PEACE PAGODA Built in traditional Myanmar style, the Dhamma Talaka Peace Pagoda is the sole one of its kind in the West. Its opening in June, 1998, was attended by several hundreds from all over the world and of many religious backgrounds. Recently we have received eaves of carved teak from Myanmar which we hope to install this summer. At the same time we are planning to redecorate the pagoda's exterior by painting the stone work and applying gold leaf to the spire. The latter is known traditionally as the Golden Robe Offering and we are pealing for donations towards this from all our supporters. Our aim is to finish the work by the end of millennial year so as the start the 21st century with a shinning example, a beacon of peace and hope. A square foot of gold leaf costs approximately UK £30 or US $5O, but sums less than this are also welcome. Offerings of gold leaf itself would be appreciated as well. Please make cheques payable to Dhammatalaka Pagoda and send them to The Treasurer, Birmingham Buddhist Vihara, 47 Carlyle Road. Birmingham B16 9BH, UK |
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Winter 1999CE ¤ 2543BE ¤ Published Quarterly |
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GENERAL NEWSDay to day activities at the Vihara are proceeding as usual. While we have a strong core of regular attendance at our meditation classes we see many people come and go. Newcomers to the Monday evening sessions are welcomed by Mark Scan. If Bhante is absent teachings and meditation instruction are given by the new resident monk Bhikkhu Pesala and by Dr. Kottegoda and Yann. The Thursday beginners classes are led by Bill. We are very grateful to Bill for the energy he has put into getting this relatlively new venture up and running. We have also received appreciation of his guidance and experience from people who have attended his classes. Frequent visits from schools and colleges continue. We have had several visits recently from Westhill Religious Education Centre, University of Birmingham. In addition to personal visits Bhante also has quite a lot of written correspondence with students of comparative religion from various establishments. Kathina Day was held on Sunday 7th November and was sponsored by members of the Myanmar Embassy in London, and their families. The day went very well, and the Pagoda was full. Bhante did remark however on the absence of many of the local Westerners, who faithfully attend meditation sessions but seem to be less interested in the more traditional practices and festivals. The main reason for this, Bhante says, is that the main initial attraction of Buddhism for many (even most) Westerners is meditation. They do not so easily go on to embrace what they see as the more general aspects — such as attending festival; chanting and making offerings in the Pagoda. In reality meditation is only part of the story — albeit a vital part. Meditation is the way to liberate oneself from the cycle of suffering (Samsara). But until that final liberation is achieved we have to somehow 'peacefully coexist' with Samsara as it manifests itself in our daily lives, and make use of it to further our spiritual efforts. According to the Buddha's teaching we have to practice good actions (or 'paramis' — the perfections) in order to be reborn in a better life, whether this means after our death or on a moment to moment basis and we enter new mental states. This 'happy rebirth' will put us in a better position from which we can progress in our meditation practice, which will then in its turn help us to live happily and positively in the midst of Samsara. This is why in traditional Buddhist cultures people put so much emphasis on chanting, making offerings and attending festivals — they help them to practice the perfections. If one can see the whole picture in this way then one will see the benefit of balancing meditation practice with more traditional activities. While slightly saddened by the lack of interest he sees from Westerners in this respect he is — as ever — philosophical about it. Provided the Dhamma becomes firmly rooted in the minds of the peoples of the west it is inevitable that, in time, their understanding will grow to allow them to embrace traditional ceremonies and services more positively and in a way that is appropriate for their needs and background. NEW PATRONS Many of our patrons accepted that role back in the early 1980s. Some of them can no longer continue actively due to their age, ill health or other reasons. Therefore at this year's Kathina celebration we announced patrons from our among our long term devotees: Dr. Kottegoda, Mr. Rattan Lal Sampala, and Bill Strongman. They have all served the Vihara well in their respective roles and our Trustees sincerely welcomed them as patrons. We believe that their guidance over the coming years will be invaluable. VEN. DR. REWATA DHAMMA |