The West Wight Sangha Website is 4Yrs Old Today!

It's a hard to believe but the West Wight Sangha web site has been running for four years as of today. Back in 2009 I missed doing an anniversary issue but I'm determined to maintain the practice of an annual review. In this post I want to link back to some of the "major" stories that we have covered over the last twelve months (please follow the links for the full stories).

Back in June last year our first story was that of the "Jade Buddha Coming to Britain". That one is still to look forward to as between the 30th of July and the 7th of August 2011 the Jade Buddha for Universal Peace is going to be on display in Birmingham.

Next we had a whole crop of stories around the discrimination against women wanting to ordain as full Bhikkhunis or Nuns. First there was the report on a number of articles on The Inequality of Women in Buddhism followed by the story that an Amaravati Monk was leaving in protest over the "Five Points".

Just a few days later came the sad news that Sister Thitamedha from Chithurst Monastery was also to disrobe because of the "Five Points".

On August 1st we reported that Sister Kovida was also to leave Chithurst this following close on the heels of the piece on "Our Visit to Cittaviveka" on the 18th 0f July.

Happier news was to come in September of four Bhikkhunis being ordained in California.

In October we held our first ever retreat day here at the West Wight Sangha.

A week later we were reporting on the sad death of Britain's largest wild animal, the Exmoor Emperor, a giant red stag, gunned down for "sport". At the end of the same week came the news that our new government didn't approve of meditation.

As a counter balance to that, in November we reported on the founding of Britain’s first Buddhist College, which was to be opened at Glasgow University.

Another interesting story that month, from a Buddhist perspective, was that of the WikiLeaks revelations.

In December we had the announcement of the 2010 Blogisattva Awards!

In January we had an email from Daizan telling us about a retreat being run by his teacher, Shinzan Roshi. Talking about previous Buddhist visitors to the Island, we also ran a piece on the Tashi Lhunpo Monks at New York's Natural History Museum.

For February we had a photo-reportage of a Chinese lion dance to mark the Chinese new year here in Freshwater.

Following the devastating Japanese earthquake on the 11th of March we ran an article on the efforts of Tzu Chi, the Buddhist disaster relief organisation.

Later on that month brought the sad news of yet another Tibetan monk burning himself to death in protest at the Chinese authorities treatment of his people. 

At the end of March it was the date of the National Census and Earth Hour. Our story "Flick and Tick" highlighted the call to flick off the switches of our electrical goodies and to Tick the Box for Buddhism on the Census form.

Then in April, just when you'd think that in a sane world the story of Pastor Terry Jones was long dead, buried and forgotten about he goes and does it anyway.



Later that month I had an email from Anna from the Mahasandhi Buddhist group in Cowes about a teaching session in Southampton by Ringu Tulku Rinpoche on April the 30th.

April the 29th and it was the Royal wedding and the news that for the first time a Buddhist monk was to be an official guest.

The month ended with the story that went around the World of Simon Ledger, an Island musician who was arrested for signing the song "Kung Fu Fighting".... you couldn't make it up!

May started with the news that friends from the Lake Buddhist group were going to run a six week meditation course in Sandown, starting in a couple of days time on Wednesday the 8th of June.

News also came that the "Women and the Forest Sangha" group had revamped their Facebook page and changed the name of the group to "4-Fold Sangha".

On the 17th it was the full moon of Wesak, this year marking the 2,600th anniversary of the Buddha's enlightenment!

And then it was the end of the World........... but it wasn't...........