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Newsletter Fall, 2003

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Newsletter Fall, 2003 Fall 2003 • 2546/2547 Newsletter of the Abhayagiri Buddhist Monastery Volume 8, Number 2 FEARLESS MOUNTAIN Inside: Into the Buddha’s Flame by Ajahn Amaro just a visit to the foundry when they From Monastery ne of the most compelling and inspir- poured the molten metal into the mould, the ing sights that I have ever seen in but I was not at all prepared for the true PAGE: O 2 twenty-five years as a monk was at the scale of the occasion. pouring of the Buddha image—Phra The master founder, Khun Pyrote, had Buddhadhammacakramaravati—that was built a whole sacramental area into the fac- Happy Anniversary to occupy the central position at the new tory compound so that as you entered the to the temple at Amaravati Monastery in drive past huge half-finished Buddha rupas Abbots England. The cere- and Kuan Yin statues, mony took place in as you took a swing to the left, you enter- Ajahn Years Thailand late in 1995, a few years ed into a courtyard Pasanno 30 before the temple framed by white flag- was even built. I had poles and bordered somehow landed the on two sides by a me- Ajahn good fortune of trav- ditation and ceremo- eling with Ajahn nial hall and a mon- 25 Amaro astic residence. At the Years Sumedho for five PAGE: 4 months acting as a center of the court- partially-fluent sec- yard the inverted retary-cum-factotum mould for the new as he traveled to rupa was already in Calendar teach in Thailand place, and white blessing cords were PAGE: 8 and Indonesia and attend a conference with H. H. the Dalai strung from the mould, around the four Lama in India. corner posts, and across to the front of the Up until the day that the ceremony ceremonial hall, where a slowly expanding What is the happened I had merely recorded it as number of monks were gathering. another of the ever-changing list of events It was another world. K athina that I had to liase about and make sure we As the Elders from Wat Nong Pah Ceremony? had transport to and were somewhere near Pong, Ajahn Chah’s own monastery, and PAGE: 14 on time for. In the back of my mind I had other monastic dignitaries gathered, the air registered that it was due to be more than (continued on page 10) FROM THE MONASTERY COMMUNITY he time since the end of the winter retreat has been one of Tcomings and goings. Ajahn Amaro left in early April to visit his mother in England and also to spend some time with Monastery photo Ajahn Sumedho on a trip to Svalbard (near the North Pole). At the same time Tan Sudanto, Tan Karunadhammo and Samanera Ñaniko headed up to Seattle, Washington, to lead a retreat which Ajahn Amaro had been scheduled for. These excursions turned out to be enriching both for those involved, and for the community upon their return. Ajahn Amaro returned in late May, and then left for England once again, to be with his mother in her final days. She passed away peacefully on the evening of July 16, and the community gathered together to chant the Pali funeral chants Bhikkhu ordination ceremony of Ven. Ñaniko as Ajahn Amaro sat alone with her in the early hours of the morning, 5,000 miles away. We have also had visits from several monastics since the dotes from his life and detailed meditation instructions. Having end of the winter retreat. Ajahn Dhammiko from the good fortune to be with such a noble elder was indeed a Santacittarama Monastery in Italy arrived in mid-May. privilege and a delight. Other visits included Venerable Phong Having come to San Francisco for a six-week course with the from Deer Park Monastery in Escondido, Venerable Luminous Zen Hospice Project, he decided to spend another few weeks Owl from No Abode Hermitage in Mill Valley, the monks of at Abhayagiri. Sister Metta from Amaravati also came for two Shasta Abbey, the monastics of Buddha Gate Monastery in the weeks in May, accompanying Ajahn Sundara, who had been Ch’an tradition, and numerous visits from the lay and monas- away in Massachusetts for the opening of the Forest Refuge of tic community of the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas. The the Insight Meditation Society and leading a retreat. Ajahn cumulative effect of these visits has been both a sense of the Sundara has since left to stay at Bodhi Monastery in New richness of Buddhist practice in this area, and also the expand- Jersey. The monastery, in the lineage of Master Yin Shun, has ing sense of Sangha that arises from contact with such a diver- become a center for the study of both Theravada and sity of monastic traditions and lineages. Mahayana teachings, and is currently where Bhikkhu Bodhi, The community was glad to welcome Adam Kane into the well-known translator and teacher, is residing. position of anagarika in mid-June. Having spent the winter Bhante Guna- retreat here as one of the lay support team, he has decided to ratana, respected make a one-year commitment to the anagarika training. teacher, author Anagarika Harald left us at the end of April to be with family and founder of in Germany. We wish him every blessing and extend our grat- the Bhavana Soci- itude for the generosity—both in spirit and service—which ety in West Vir- he offered during his year here. Venerable Ñaniko took full Monastery photo ginia, came to visit ordination as a bhikkhu on Asalha Puja, July 13. The ceremo- us in mid-June. ny took place in the forest on a new platform especially built Though his stay for the occasion, which had been the focus of two communi- was just short of a ty work days the previous week and a stretch of many full days week, we were all in the week leading up to the ceremony. Many lay supporters touched by his came to help, including Cheryl Maglosky, Kathy Lewis and presence here. We Robert Hohn, who kindly offered their carpentry skills. Tan spent many Ñaniko’s parents and sister came to stay for a week and were evenings gather- able to participate in the ceremony. Also present was Reverend ing for question- Heng Lai, a senior bhikshu of 28 years from the City of Ten and-answer ses- Thousand Buddhas, and one monk and three nuns from Tan sions, which were Ajahn Toon’s monastery, situated just over the ridge at the top interspersed with of our property. A delightful addition to the already ethereal Anagarika Adam Kane humorous anec- atmosphere was the melodious chiming of the bells from the 2 Fearless Mountain monastery of the monks of Mount Tabor, our Christian neighbors. Curiously, the tones managed to sound on two poignant moments—towards the end of Ajahn Pasanno’s exhoration on the use of the four requisites, and once again at the conclusion of Tan Ñaniko’s final forgiveness chants. Monastery photo A week earlier, Venerables Jotipalo and Phasuko returned from their year away in Thailand and England, respectively. It was great to receive them back into the fold and hear tales of their time away. Around this time, Tan Karunadhammo left Abhayagiri to spend some time at Bodhinyanarama Monastery in New Zealand. Having been here since Ajahn Amaro first arrived on the land seven years ago, Tan Karunadhammo has been instrumental in maintaining many areas of the monastery’s life, both functional and also social. He will no doubt be missed, but the sense of mudita (appre- ciative joy) in supporting his practice is equally present. TEACHINGS AND EVENTS DEVELOPMENT n the first part of April, Ajahn Amaro was scheduled to lead Ia week-long monastic retreat on Samish Island, in northern elays finishing the final plans has hampered our ability to Washington State. Since he had to leave for the U.K, the retreat Dreceive any attractive bid submissions for the ground- organizers agreed to the idea of having Tan Sudanto and Tan work and foundations of the cloister building this year. The Karunadhammo co-lead the retreat. Both have had only little building committee therefore has decided to postpone its experience teaching and leading Dhamma events. Tan construction until spring of 2004. Ñaniko, then still a samanera, accompanied them on the trip. The cloister building is the final structure needed for the A standard monastic schedule was followed, with morning monastery to complete its first and most critical phase of the and evening chanting, almsround for the monastics, group construction plans. In addition, the building will provide interviews and question-and-answer sessions. The lunar much needed bathrooms for the male members of the com- observance night was also observed mid-retreat, and those munity, a required wheelchair-accessible bathroom and guest who were able practiced until midnight. In the end, the accommodation, and offices and extra storage space. If suffi- retreatants and the organizers were very happy with how cient funding is available, we hope to complete construction everything fell into place. Much gratitude was expressed. next year. Thai Meditation master Ajahn Jumnien came to Although the groundwork for the cloister building has California in late May and several members of the communi- been delayed until next spring, several smaller projects are ty were able to attend his week-long retreat at the Angela under way this summer to continue the long-term develop- Center in Santa Rosa. The mixture of traditional Theravada ment of the monastery.
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