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ANNUAL REPORT 2018 Cover Photo: White Lotus Charitable Trust, Garden of Peace Nutritional Support Program in India
BUDDHIST GLOBAL RELIEF ANNUAL REPORT 2018 Cover photo: White Lotus Charitable Trust, Garden of Peace Nutritional Support program in India Detroit Côte d’Ivoire Vietnam Bangladesh India MYANMAR Cambodia Nicaragua Sri Lanka 2 1 CONTENTS Message from the Chair 2 Message from the Executive Director 3 Vision and Mission Statements 4 Our Projects 5 CAMEROON: A New Vocational Training Center for Marginalized Women in Cameroon 6 HAITI: The Father Jeri School in Haiti 8 INDIA: Handicraft Training for Indebted Widows in India 10 MYANMAR: Educating the Children of Backpack Medics in Myanmar 12 MYANMAR SRI LANKA: Technical Skills Training for Young Women in Sri Lanka 14 Other Projects in Brief 16 Walks to Feed the Hungry 20 Concert to Feed the Hungry 22 Combined Federal Campaign 23 Cambodia Partnerships for Humanitarian Action 24 Financial Statements 26 Annual Support 28 How You Can Help 30 Leadership 32 2 1 MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR This past year, 2018, marked the completion of BGR’s tenth year of service, a major milestone for our small organization. The guiding spirit behind BGR, through this decade, has been what I call “conscientious compassion.” Com- passion in itself is the quality that “makes the hearts of good people tremble with the suffering of others” (as the Visuddhimagga defines it). But for com- passion to become an effective antidote to suffering, it must leap out from the inner recesses of the heart into the field of action in a determined effort to liberate others from suffering. This effort is underscored by the word “con- scientious,” a reminder that the call of conscience bids us put compassion into action. -
Mahasi Sayadaw's Revolution
Deep Dive into Vipassana Copyright © 2020 Lion’s Roar Foundation, except where noted. All rights reserved. Lion’s Roar is an independent non-profit whose mission is to communicate Buddhist wisdom and practices in order to benefit people’s lives, and to support the development of Buddhism in the modern world. Projects of Lion’s Roar include Lion’s Roar magazine, Buddhadharma: The Practitioner’s Quarterly, lionsroar.com, and Lion’s Roar Special Editions and Online Learning. Theravada, which means “Way of the Elders,” is the earliest form of institutionalized Buddhism. It’s a style based primarily on talks the Buddha gave during his forty-six years of teaching. These talks were memorized and recited (before the internet, people could still do that) until they were finally written down a few hundred years later in Sri Lanka, where Theravada still dominates – and where there is also superb surf. In the US, Theravada mostly man- ifests through the teaching of Vipassana, particularly its popular meditation technique, mindfulness, the awareness of what is hap- pening now—thoughts, feelings, sensations—without judgment or attachment. Just as surfing is larger than, say, Kelly Slater, Theravada is larger than mindfulness. It’s a vast system of ethics and philoso- phies. That said, the essence of Theravada is using mindfulness to explore the Buddha’s first teaching, the Four Noble Truths, which go something like this: 1. Life is stressful. 2. Our constant desires make it stressful. 3. Freedom is possible. 4. Living compassionately and mindfully is the way to attain this freedom. 3 DEEP DIVE INTO VIPASSANA LIONSROAR.COM INTRODUCTION About those “constant desires”: Theravada practitioners don’t try to stop desire cold turkey. -
The Buddhist Concept of Meditation Dr
The Buddhist Concept of Meditation Dr. W. Piyaratana Lecturer, Graduate School, MCU Thailand There are two main meditation practices in Buddhism as follows; Samatha (Tranquility Meditation) and Vipassanā (Insight Meditation). Regarding these two practices, samatha existed even before the appearance of the Buddha. There were ascetics such as Kāladevala, Rāmaputta Uddaka, and Ālārakālāma who practiced this and attained some types of absorptions and supernormal knowledge. Also some were able to enter their minds into the fine-material sphere and into the immaterial sphere. These attainments are known as aṭṭhasamāpatti or ‘eight- attainments’. A developed mind with these attainments leads one to realize the five-supernormal knowledges. (iddhividha or magical power, dibbasota or divine ear, dibbacakkhu or divine eye, paracittavijāna or knowing others’ minds, and pubbesaniāsānussati or recollection of previous births). The above attainments can be considered as the limit of samatha. In Aṅguttaranikāya, the Buddha mentioned the difference between samatha and vipassanā. According to it, by practicing samatha one can develop his mind and by practicing vipassanā one can develop his wisdom.1 By practicing samatha one can overcome the five hindrances or pañcanīvaraṇa. After overcoming these hindrances his mind runs towards attaining absorptions. However these attainments of absorptions are impermanent. As a result of the appearing of one of those hindrances, the absorption would disappear. Even if someone passes away along with a mind in absorption, it is possible for him to return back to a lower status at any occasion. This is because his mind is not free from all of the ten fetters (dasasṃyojana). Vipassanā is the practice which was new to Buddhism and it can be found only in Buddhism. -
The Buddhist Way of Life Yasodhara Dhamma School
The Buddhist Way of Life Buddhist Ethics for Children Published by Yasodhara Dhamma School Sri Lanka Buddhist Monastery, SLBM Inc. Brisbane QLD 4078, Australia Authored by Ven. Nadimale Sudhamma Author - Ven. Nadimale Sudhamma Educationalist – Australia (B.Teach, Graduate Cert. of Applied Linguistics, MEd - Australia) Deputy Principal, Yasodhara Dhamma School Former Primary School Teacher with the Education QLD Blog Site: http://dhamma_stream.blogspot.com.au Printed by – Nethwin Printers “Dalada Sewane Api” Padanama, Gatambe Junction, Kandy Sri Lanka Ph; 081 - 2386908 Publisher – Yasodhara Dhamma School, Sri Lanka Buddhist Monastery Inc. 114, Considine Street, Ellen Grove, Brisbane, QLD 4078. Web: http://www.srilankaramaqld.org 2019 All Rights Reserved Preface The Buddhist way of life was authored by Venerable Nadimale Sudhamma as an introductory textbook for beginners who study Buddhism in Yasodhara Dhamma School. This book aims to inculcate basic Buddhist teaching in young minds and develop their interest in practicing Buddhism in daily life. The lack of Buddhist textbooks written in English language aiming beginners is a hindrance for propagating Buddhism in Australian society and, this book caters to fill the gap. Venerable Sudhamma was a devoted supporter to Sri Lanka Buddhist Monastery even before her ordination as a Buddhist nun. She was the founder of Yasodhara Sinhala School and a key figure behind developing Yasodhara Dhamma School. Now they are leading institutes in propagating Sinhalese Buddhist values among Sri Lankan community in Queensland- Australia. Sadaham Gangula is another Buddhist publication organized with the authorship of Venerable Sudhamma, a collection of Dhamma Talks delivered at the SLBM. While dedicated to achieving her own spiritual goals, Venerable Sudhamma has dedicatedly supported to the progress of Sri Lanka Buddhist monastery in Brisbane and Subodharamaya in Peradeniya-Sri Lanka. -
Souvenir-V9.Pdf
Events The P ittsburgh Buddhist Center All events to be held at Pittsburgh Buddhist Center Pittsburgh Buddhist Center is a not for profit At Natrona Heights unless otherwise noted. All events organization serving the needs of Buddhists are open and free to public. and friends of Buddhism in and around greater Pittsburgh. This is the first Theravada Temple established in western Pennsylvania. Weekly Meditation Sessions Pittsburgh Buddhist Center was established Every Wednesday from 7:00-8:00 PM on September 06, 2006. Monthly Dhamma Discussions President Conducted once a month by a resident monk or a Venerable Nehinne Ariyagnana visiting monk. See website for more details. Vice President Dr. K. Siripala Monthly Scholarly Talk Secretary Conducted once a month by a Buddhist scholar Damitha Karunaratne doing research on the Buddhist Religion and Philosophy. Treasurer Thilaka jayakody Pittsburgh Buddhist Center Dhamma School for Children 111, Route 908, Offered once a month for children ages 4-16, Dhamma School Provides an opportunity for children Natrona Heights, PA 15065 to learn Buddhism in an interactive setting. The class (724) 295-2525 teaches children how to live a happy and successful life according to the Buddha’s teachings. [email protected] http://www.pittsburghbuddhistcenter.org Retreats Offered by resident monks, visiting monks or visiting scholars, retreats provide participants the opportunity to practice Buddhism for an extended period of time. Visit http://www.pittsburghbuddhistcenter.org and click on Events -
Pāli Texts for Chanting
Pāli Texts for Chanting (Source: The Mirror of the Dhamma, Buddhist Publication Society, Wheel no. 54; file:///C:/Users/Owner/Documents/Documents/BPS/Mirror%20of%20Dhamma.pdf) Namo tassa Bhagavato Arahato Sammāsambuddhassa Homage to Him, the Blessed One, the Worthy One, the Fully Enlightened One Homage to the Buddha Iti pi so bhagavā: arahaṃ, sammāsambuddho, vijjācaraṇa sampanno, sugato, lokavidū, anuttaro purisadammasārathi, satthā devamanussānaṃ, buddho, bhagavā’ti. Thus, indeed, is that Blessed One the worthy one, fully enlightened, endowed with clear vision and virtuous conduct, sublime, the knower of worlds, the unsurpassed trainer of persons to be tamed, the teacher of gods and humans, the Enlightened One, the Blessed One. Namo tassa Sammāsambuddhassa Homage to that Perfectly Enlightened One! Ye ca buddhā atītā ca—ye ca buddhā anāgatā Paccuppannā ca ye buddhā—ahaṃ vandāmi sabbadā Those Buddhas of the past, Those Buddhas of the future, Those Buddhas of the present, Forever do I reverence. Natthi me saraṇaṃ aññaṃ—buddho me saraṇaṃ varaṃ Etena saccavajjena—hotu me jayamaṅgalaṃ. 1 No other refuge do I seek, the Buddha is my supreme refuge: By the speaking of this Truth May peaceful victory be mine! Uttamaṅgena vande’ham—pāda-paṃsu varuttamaṃ Buddhe yo khalito doso—buddho khamatu taṃ mamaṃ I revere with my head The dust on his holy feet; If I have wronged the Buddha, May the Buddha bear with me. Buddhaṃ yāvanibbānapariyantaṃ saraṇaṃ gacchāmi Until I attain nibbāna I go for Refuge to the Buddha. Homage to the Dhamma Svākkhāto bhagavatā dhammo, sandiṭṭhiko, akāliko, ehipassiko, opanayiko, paccattaṃ veditabbo viññūhī’ti. The Dhamma of the Blessed One is well expounded, visible here and now, not delayed in time, inviting one to come and see, applicable, to be personally realized by the wise. -
Water, Environment, and Buddhism-Dr Sarah Bennett
WATER, ENVIRONMENT, AND BUDDHISM Dr. Sarah Bennett PhD 3/4/17 1 Background Science and Religion • Information of science (hard data) • Teachings of the religion (influence heart, spirit and soul) Time To Work Together As One 3/4/17 2 Scientists and religious leaders’ actions Examples: • Neuroscience, Mental health, Philosophy, Psychology… • Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi: (the founder/director of Buddhist Global Relief) addressed climate change at “gathering of Buddhists at the White House” May 2015 • The 14th Dalai Lama: quantum physics and Madhyamaka (中观) philosophy in India Nov. 2015 • The 17th Karmapa: environmental issues in Europe 2016 Today, my presentation will bring water, environmental issues and Buddhism together. “Cast a Brick to Attract Jade” [拋磚引玉] 3/4/17 3 Outline Part 1: Nature of Water Part 2: Water and Related Environmental Issues Part 3: Solutions From Buddhism 3/4/17 4 Part 1 Nature of Water • Water Is Life o Physical aspect o Spiritual aspect • Water on Earth o Water cycle movement o Freshwater usage facts 3/4/17 *5 Water Is Life o Physical aspect § 70% human body (and 1 trillion other life forms) § food § cloth § healthy Environment o Spiritual aspect § symbolizing wisdom (八功德水) § purifying (浴佛) § blessings (觀音柳枝灑水) § offering to cultivate virtue (密宗七個水燈 Tibetan Buddhist shrines-seven bowls) 3/4/17 6 Water on Earth Groundwater 0.74% (30.1%) FresHwater Saltwater 2.50% 97.50% Ice & Snow Lakes & Rivers 1.75% (68.7%) 0.01% (1.2%) Saltwater Ice & Snow Groundwater Lakes & River • Total 71% water on earth o 1.75% permanent ice and -
Humanistic Elements in Early Buddhism and the "Theravada Tradition"
Humanistic Elements in Early Buddhism and the "Theravada Tradition" By Ananda W. P. Guruge ABSTRACT The paper begins with an examination of the different defuritions of humanism. Humanism primarily consistsof a concern with interests andideals of human beings, a way of peefection of human personality, a philosophical attitude which places the human and human val.Mes above all others, and a pragmatic system (e.g. that of F. C. S. Schiller and William James) whichdiscounts abstract theorizing and concentrates on the knowable and the doable. EarlyBuddhism, by whichis meant the teachingsof the Buddha as found in the PallCanon and the AgamaSutras, isdistinguished from other tradifions. The paperclarifies the error of equating Early Buddhism with the so-called Theravada Tradition of South and SoutheastAsia. Historically, the independent Theravada Tradifion with whatever specificity it had in doctrines came to an end when the three Buddhist schools (Mahavihara, Abhayagiri andJetavana) of SriLanka were unifiedin the twelfth century. What developed since then and spread to South andSoutheast Asia is an amalgam of allBuddhist traditions with the Pall Canon andits commentaries as the scriptures. With the reform measures in the eighteenth and the nineteenth centuries, the kind of modern Buddhism prevalent as "Theravada" is flexible, tolerant and reinforced by modernizing influence of Western Christian values. The paper analyses references to the Buddha's own autobiographical statements and other data in the Pali Canon and Commentaries and shows that the Buddha stood as a man before human beings to demonstrate how they could develop themselves by their own effort and reach the end of suffering. This final goal of peefedion is within the reach of every human being. -
Buddhist Ethical Education.Pdf
BUDDHIST ETHICAL EDUCATION ADVISORY BOARD His Holiness Thich Tri Quang Deputy Sangharaja of Vietnam Most Ven. Dr. Thich Thien Nhon President of National Vietnam Buddhist Sangha Most Ven.Prof. Brahmapundit President of International Council for Day of Vesak CONFERENCE COMMITTEE Prof. Dr. Le Manh That, Vietnam Most Ven. Dr. Dharmaratana, France Most Ven. Prof. Dr. Phra Rajapariyatkavi, Thailand Bhante. Chao Chu, U.S.A. Prof. Dr. Amajiva Lochan, India Most Ven. Dr. Thich Nhat Tu (Conference Coordinator), Vietnam EDITORIAL BOARD Dr. Do Kim Them, Germany Dr. Tran Tien Khanh, USA Nguyen Manh Dat, U.S.A. Bruce Robert Newton, Australia Dr. Le Thanh Binh, Vietnam Giac Thanh Ha, Vietnam Nguyen Thi Linh Da, Vietnam Giac Hai Hanh, Australia Tan Bao Ngoc, Vietnam VIETNAM BUDDHIST UNIVERITY SERIES BUDDHIST ETHICAL EDUCATION Editor Most Ven. Thich Nhat Tu, D.Phil., HONG DUC PUBLISHING HOUSE CONTENTS Foreword .................................................................................................vii Preface ......................................................................................................ix Editor’s Foreword .................................................................................xiii 1. ‘Nalanda Culture’ as an Archetypal of Global Education in Ethics: An Approach Anand Singh ...............................................................................................1 2. Buddhist Education: Path Leading to the Awakening Hira Paul Gangnegi .................................................................................15 -
Mining for Gold
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Rearticulations of Enmity and Belonging in Postwar Sri Lanka
BUDDHIST NATIONALISM AND CHRISTIAN EVANGELISM: REARTICULATIONS OF ENMITY AND BELONGING IN POSTWAR SRI LANKA by Neena Mahadev A dissertation submitted to Johns Hopkins University in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Baltimore, Maryland October, 2013 © 2013 Neena Mahadev All Rights Reserved Abstract: Based on two years of fieldwork in Sri Lanka, this dissertation systematically examines the mutual skepticism that Buddhist nationalists and Christian evangelists express towards one another in the context of disputes over religious conversion. Focusing on the period from the mid-1990s until present, this ethnography elucidates the shifting politics of nationalist perception in Sri Lanka, and illustrates how Sinhala Buddhist populists have increasingly come to view conversion to Christianity as generating anti-national and anti-Buddhist subjects within the Sri Lankan citizenry. The author shows how the shift in the politics of identitarian perception has been contingent upon several critical events over the last decade: First, the death of a Buddhist monk, which Sinhala Buddhist populists have widely attributed to a broader Christian conspiracy to destroy Buddhism. Second, following the 2004 tsunami, massive influxes of humanitarian aid—most of which was secular, but some of which was connected to opportunistic efforts to evangelize—unsettled the lines between the interested religious charity and the disinterested secular giving. Third, the closure of 25 years of a brutal war between the Sri Lankan government forces and the ethnic minority insurgent group, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), has opened up a slew of humanitarian criticism from the international community, which Sinhala Buddhist populist activists surmise to be a product of Western, Christian, neo-colonial influences. -
Servant of Reality
Disciples of the Buddha are fully awake, dwelling both day and night in contemplation of reality. Dhammapada verse 297 Servant of Reality AJAHN MUNINDO Servant of Reality by Ajahn Munindo This publication is made available for free distribution by Aruno Publications Aruno Publications is administered by: Harnham Buddhist Monastery Trust Company No. 6688355, Charity Reg. No. 1126476 Contact Aruno Publications at www.ratanagiri.org.uk This book is available for free download at www.forestsangha.org ISBN 978-1-908444-63-9 Copyright © Aruno Publications 2018 Cover photo offered by Chinch Gryniewicz taken at Wat Hin Mark Peng, NE Thailand www.chinch-gryniewicz.com This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Produced with the LATEX typesetting system, set in EB Garamond, Shaker, Merriweather and Hattori Hanzo. First edition, printed in Great Britain, 2018 CONTENTS Introduction i x 1 . Serving Reality 1 Discerning the true Buddha, not becoming a master, serving Dhamma, serving Sangha, spiritual abilities. 2 . A Generative Unfolding 2 7 Retreats, stages of training, skilful preparation, gardening, self-confidence, samādhi, fearlessness, meeting ourselves, novels and movies. 3 . Regarding the View 4 3 Right view, spoiling the Buddha’s teachings, Four Noble Truths, force of delusion, personal authority, renunciation, love. 4 . Reading the Signposts 6 3 Disillusionment, essential skills, hindrances, creative approaches, limitations, soft powers, stages of letting go, uncertainty, self respect, psychotherapy. 5 . Sanity in the Midst of Uncertainty 7 7 Rate of change, technology, wabi-sabi, not-knowing, strategic optimism. 6 . An Apparently Unending Ordeal 9 9 Right preparation, determination, renunciation, patience, precepts, exercise, food, supports.