New Buddhist Group on Island!

A new Buddhist group, the Heart of the Island Sangha has started in Newport.

The group is affiliated to the Community of Interbeing UK (COI) which is part of the international Sangha founded by the Vietnamese monk Thich Nhat Hanh and follows his teachings and practices in the Plum Village Tradition and meets every Tuesday between 19:45 – 21:30 at the Riverside Centre, on The Quay in Newport.

It follows on from the new mindfulness course Be Calm Be Happy which was developed and is promoted by the COI as a truly Buddhist based original foundation teaching for mindfulness which includes the full teachings on Mindfulness. Thich Nhat Hanh was nominated for a peace prize by Martin Luther King for his work to alleviate suffering during the Vietnam war and to start peace talks to end that same war.

He has since dedicated his life to peace work with conflicts all over the world such as Palestine/ Israel and many others.

The Heart of the Island Sangha is led by Sylvia who is a trustee for the national educational charity to spread this work and also an experienced mindfulness teacher with over twenty years experience teaching and a strong personal practice.

Petition in Support of Ajahn Brahm's Banned Speech on Gender Equality

Further to our post "Ajahn Brahm Speech Banned", I have now heard that there is a petition stating that,

"We, the undersigned, are astounded and deeply disappointed by the banning of Ajahn Brahm's paper on gender equality at the 2014 United Nations Day of Vesak (UNDV) conference in Vietnam.

The paper was clearly aligned with the UN’s Millennium Development Goal 3 (Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women), which the UNDV is committed to uphold through its connection with the UN. Moreover, Ajahn Brahm's paper had already been approved for presentation when it was suddenly banned the day before its scheduled presentation.

We value free and open dialogue. We therefore ask that the UNDV, in accordance with Millennium Development Goal 3, promotes dialogue about the participation of women in contemporary Theravada Buddhism by inviting Ajahn Brahm to publicly present his gender equality paper at the next UNDV conference in 2015."

Please consider signing this important petition.

Ajahn Brahm Speech Banned

Ajahn Brahm, was invited to deliver a speech on Gender Equality at the UN Day of Vesak Convention in Vietnam in May 2014. His speech was banned by the conference organising committee the day before it was due to be given at the Convention. Although Gender Equality is one of the declared UN millennium goals and although Ajahn Brahm’s paper on Gender Equality had been officially accepted for the convention, he was told at the last moment while he was in Vietnam that he would not be allowed to present his paper.

This is Ajahn's response from the following Friday's talk at Dhammaloka (it's audio).............



And here's his banned speech in full.............. !!

Theravada Buddhism and MDG 3: 

Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women in Theravada Buddhism 

By Ajahn Brahm

Introduction 

On December1 1955, in Montgomery Alabama, an African-American woman refused to obey a bus driver’s order to give up her seat on the bus to a white passenger. That simple act of defiance for the cause of social justice became one of the most important symbols of the modern Civil Rights Movements in the USA. That woman was Rosa Parks. The United States Congress called her “the first lady of civil rights” and “the mother of the freedom movement”. December 1 is commemorated in the US states of California and Ohio as “Rosa Parks Day”. Rosa Parks became a Buddhist before she passed away in 2005 aged 92. One can speculate that this female icon against discrimination chose Buddhism because it is well suited to advancing social justice issues.

In this paper, I will discuss how Buddhism may advance the particular social justice issue of Millennium Development Goal No. 3: Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. I will focus on the need for Theravada Buddhism’s current male leadership to clearly demonstrate its own commitment to MDG 3 through acceptance of the bhikkhuni ordination. Only then can it use its considerable influence to make our world more fair, one where people are judged on their character and not on their gender.

The Fiftieth Anniversary of Thich Quang Duc's Self-Immolation

Today marks the 50th Anniversary of Thich Quang Duc burning himself to death on a Saigon street to protest the persecution of Buddhists by the South Vietnamese government.

Photographs of his self-immolation were circulated widely across the world and brought attention to the policies of the Diệm government. As President Kennedy said in reference to a photograph of Duc on fire, “No news picture in history has generated so much emotion around the world as that one." Malcolm Browne won a Pulitzer Prize for his renowned photograph of the monk's death. After his death, his body was re-cremated, but his heart remained intact.

Quang Duc's act increased international pressure on Diệm and led him to announce reforms with the intention of mollifying the Buddhists. However, the promised reforms were not implemented, leading to a deterioration in the dispute. With protests continuing, the ARVN Special Forces loyal to Diệm's brother, Ngo Dinh Nhu, launched nationwide raids on Buddhist pagodas, seizing Quang Duc's heart and causing deaths and widespread damage. Several Buddhist monks and nuns followed Quang Duc's example, also immolating themselves. Eventually, an Army coup toppled Diệm, who was assassinated on 2 November 1963.

Campaign to nominate Thich Nhat Hanh for Nobel Peace Prize

Forty-five years after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., the team behind Peace is the Way Films and Peace Comics is trying to fulfill one of King’s dreams: for his friend Thich Nhat Hanh to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. They’re encouraging people to spread the word about the campaign so Thay can be nominated.

”I do not personally know of anyone more worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize than this gentle Buddhist monk from Vietnam.” 

Martin Luther King Jr, in his 1967 Nobel Nomination Letter to the Nobel Committee nominating Thich Nhat Hanh for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Oil, Islands and the Buddhist Connection

With today's announcement of significant oil finds off the Irish coast also comes this story concerning the re-establishment of Buddhist temples on the potentially oil rich Spratly islands off Vietnam.

Vietnam will send six Buddhist monks to the disputed Spratly islands, a senior monk said Tuesday, ahead of the anniversary of a bloody battle with China over the hotly contested archipelago.

The monks will re-establish three temples abandoned by Vietnam in 1975 but have been recently renovated as part of the communist country's drive to assert its territorial claims over the potentially oil-rich islands.

"Our plan to go to Truong Sa (Spratly) Islands was approved earlier this month by Khanh Hoa province officials and we will depart as soon as the navy can take us there," Venerable Thich Giac Nghia told AFP.

The six monks, who all volunteered for the posting, intend to stay for up to a year on one of the larger islands following a request from its Vietnamese community -- mostly military staff and small-scale farmers and fishermen, he said.

"Most of the (Vietnamese) people there are Buddhist. We will try to improve their spiritual lives and encourage them to overcome daily hardships," he said.

The announcement came the day before the 24th anniversary of a March 14, 1988 Chinese attack on Gac Ma Island -- another of the larger Spratly Islands under Vietnamese military control -- which killed 64 Vietnamese soldiers.

Beijing says it has sovereignty over essentially all of the South China Sea, a key global trading route.

Its claim to the Spratlys competes directly with that of Vietnam, and the two countries also have a long-standing dispute over the Paracel island group.

Taiwan, Brunei, Malaysia, and the Philippines also claim all or part of the potentially oil-rich Spratlys.

All claimants except Brunei have troops based on the archipelago of more than 100 islets, reefs and atolls, which have a total land mass of less than five square kilometers (two square miles).

The Philippines and Vietnam have recently complained of increasing harassment of their fisherman by Chinese vessels in the region.

One-third of global seaborne trade passes through the South China Sea, which is also believed to encompass huge oil and gas reserves.

Northern Petroleum Plc has announced that they have been awarded the rights to carry out oil drilling opeations in two areas off the shores of the Isle of Wight.

Initially exploration will be carried out there, “to evaluate the oil and gas potential of the mapped well-defined prospect that extends from the Isle of Wight into the English Channel,” say the company.

Peace Walk with Thich Nhat Hanh

Angie, from the Community of Interbeing Buddhist Group in Lake, sent me these details of a Peace Walk with Thich Nhat Hanh in London on Saturday, 31 March 2012, 14:00 until 16:00.

One of the best known and most respected Zen masters in the world, author, poet and peace activist, Thich Nhat Hanh invites everyone to walk mindfully together in silence, generating the energy of peace, solidity, and freedom.

“There is no walk for peace; peace is the walk. By walking, we generate peace within our body, our consciousness. We embrace and heal the pain, the sorrow, the fear in us, and that is the ground for helping peace to be a reality in the world.” - Thich Nhat Hanh

Before the Peace Walk, you are invited to participate in a sitting meditation lead by Thich Nhat Hanh in Trafalgar Square. Afterwards, we shall walk mindfully out of Trafalgar Square, along The Mall and end in Green Park.

Exact times will be announced.

Participation is free. This is a walk open to everyone, all ages, from every path, experienced or not. We kindly ask for there to be no display of any banners or signs, nor giving out of flyers during the Peace Walk.

"During walking meditation we walk slowly, in a relaxed way, keeping a light smile on our lips. When we practice this way, we feel deeply at ease, and our steps are those of the most secure person on Earth. Walking meditation is really to enjoy the walking—walking not in order to arrive, just for walking, to be in the present moment, and to enjoy each step. Therefore you have to shake off all worries and anxieties, not thinking of the future, not thinking of the past, just enjoying the present moment. Anyone can do it. It takes only a little time, a little mindfulness, and the wish to be happy." - Thich Nhat Hanh

We are inviting everyone around the world to walk in peace with us. Check back later for the cities joining us on 31st March 2012. Email us if you would like to organise a Peace Walk in your city!

Email us at walkmindfully@gmail.com for questions and to sign up for our latest updates about the Peace Walk.

Check out the rest of Thich Nhat Hanh's 2012 tour in the UK here:
http://www.mindfulnessretreats.org.uk/



Check out Thich Nhat Hanh's Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/thichnhathanh

Jade Buddha Coming to Britain

Strange what you come across while surfing the net. Here's one for your diaries, 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.

It is the largest Buddha carved from gemstone quality jade in the world. The Jade Buddha is 2.7 metres high and sits on an alabaster throne 1.4 metres high. The Jade Buddha itself weighs around 4 tonne and has been valued at £3.5 million.

The purpose of exhibiting the Jade Buddha around the world is for everyone, irrespective of their religion, to take a moment to reflect upon peace; peace for the world; peace in their relationships; peace for their families and friends; peace at work; peace in their mind.

Download Fact Sheet

The Buddha will be displayed at;
Tu Dam Temple, Midland Buddhist Association
34 Holyhead Rd. Handsworth, Birmingham, United Kingdom
For further details contact:- Senior Ven. Thich Phuoc Hue +44 12 1551 8614

Nuns "Fighting" Back?

After all the items we have posted regarding the discriminatory moves against Theravadan nuns, or Bhikkhunis, this story from Nepal is refreshingly uplifting.

At the Amitabha Drukpa Nunnery on a hillside just outside Kathmandu young Buddhist nuns from the 800-year-old Buddhist sect are being taught kung fu by their Vietnamese master.

The martial art was introduced to the nunnery two years ago and the nuns practise up to two hours a day. Rupa Lama, a 16-year-old nun from India, says kung fu helps her concentrate, "it's good for our health. Meditation is very difficult and if we do kung fu, then afterwards meditation becomes much easier," she says.

READ MORE.........

Thây & Walk the Wight

I was contacted by Angie of the Lake Buddhist group the other day with some information on upcoming events. Angie’s group is part of the “Community of Interbeing UK” which is the network of people in the United Kingdom who practise Buddhism according to the teachings of the Vietnamese Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh.

Thây, as Thich Nhat Hanh is affectionately known, is making a rare visit to the UK in August. He will be offering two public events; an Evening talk in London on the 11th of August: “Global Ethics for our Future” and a Family retreat in Nottingham from the 13th - 18th of August: “Living Mindfully, Living Peacefully”.

These events are likely to be very popular so early booking is advisable, there is also an “early bird” reduction for the retreat if you book it before March 15th.

Angie also gave a heads up on Buddhist involvement in the forthcoming “Walk the Wight” on Sunday the 16th of May! A group of local Buddhists will be making an eight mile walking meditation as part of the Walk. You can sponsor them at the "Sangha Sisters (& Buddha Brother)" page on JustGiving.

The event is in aid of the Isle of Wight's one and only Hospice which is very much loved and respected for the wonderful service it provides to the community.

(I will keep you all posted as to news and developments about the walk.)

Suicide & Assisted Suicide, a Buddhist Perspective

Recently, here in the U.K. we have had a whole crop of stories relating to suicide and assisted suicide. As a result we took this as a subject for Dharma study and discussion at our meeting on Tuesday night. From a Buddhist perspective the subject is a whole lot more involved than one might immediately think and throws up many varied and challenging takes on the issue.

Here is a link to the discussion notes that we used, "Modern Buddhist Views of Suicide"

and these are the news items which engendered the topic;

"Is Frances Inglis a cold-blooded killer or a loving mum?"

"Trial of assisted suicide mother right, says DPP"

"Terry Pratchett criticises assisted suicide guidelines"

"Broadcaster Ray Gosling admits mercy killing"

Perth, Again

Another Buddhist connection to Perth, this time the Australian one and this time a tragic one rather than a controversial one. Buu Lieu, a 48 year old Vietnamese Buddhist monk was battered to death in Bibra Lake Regional Park on Sunday January the 10th. Bibra Lake is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia.

Buu Lieu, also known as Paul, was found with serious injuries, lying near his blue Kia station wagon, he died in Charles Gardiner Hospital on the 25th.

Mr Lieu was living with his mother and sister after moving to Perth from Vietnam as a child.  He was last seen by his family at midnight on Saturday, January 9 and was found critically injured at 5am beside his vehicle.

Daughters of the Buddha meet in Vietnam

Right now, the 11th Sakyadhita International Conference on Buddhist Women is taking place in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam from December 28th, 2009, to January 3rd, 2010.

"Sakyadhita, meaning "Daughters of the Buddha" is now in it's 21st year, and has done so much to advance the dialogue, education and opportunity of Buddhist women of all traditions. I was particularly inspired tonight to hear that there are now 800 Bikshuni in Sri Lanka. At the time of the inception of Sakyadhita, 20 years ago, there were none, and the government forbade any mention of the word "Bikshuni" at a conference for nuns in Sri Lanka!

Also, in Thailand, the Bikshuni sangha has grown in the last 9 years to eighteen, despite no support from the patriarchy of the Bhiskhu sangha."

From Ane Damcho, reporting from the conference Read More..........

(Bikshuni is the Sanskrit version of the Pali Bhikkhuni)

Vietnamese Buddhists seek asylum in France

Hundreds of Vietnamese followers of Thich Nhat Hanh have called on the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, to grant them temporary asylum, a week after they were attacked by vigilantes allegedly hired by the Vietnamese authorities.

Mob pressure last week forced the head of Phuoc Hue pagoda in central Vietnam to promise that devotees of the French-based Zen monk would leave by December 31, the abbot said.

About 380 young monks and nuns were forced to flee Bat Nha monastery in central Lam Dong province at the end of September after the authorities reacted angrily to a call by their exiled spiritual leader, Thich Nhat Hanh (who was nominated for the Noble Peace Prize by Martin Luther King), to end religious intolerance and disband the country's notorious A41 religious police.

Supporters say that several monks were beaten and four were sexually assaulted, while two others were held under house arrest without charge.

France "is following this matter with the greatest attention" in close liaison with European Union partners, French foreign affairs ministry spokesman Bernard Valero said on Thursday.

Tibetan monk Sets Fire to Himself in Protest Against Chinese Suppression

In a protest emulating that of Thích Quảng Ðức, the Vietnamese Buddhist monk, who in 1963 burned himself to death in protest against the persecution of Buddhists by South Vietnam's Ngô Đình Diệm's Catholic administration, a Tibetan monk set fire to himself in the Tibetan-populated town of Aba in southwest China's Sichuan province. The monk, named Tapey, is said to have shouted slogans and waved a Tibetan flag, then doused himself in petrol and ignited it. Campaign groups said witnesses then saw Chinese police shoot the man. Read more HERE.

Over 300 Buddhist monks are praying for world peace over the next four days in India, Nepal, and Tibet. This prayer event follows recent protests in Tibet and a vigil held for the anniversary of a Chinese military crackdown in Tibet in March last year.

The prayer event coincides with the traditional Monlam or "Great Prayer" Festival, currently banned by the Chinese government in Tibet. Travel to Tibet has been limited since March of last year and was recently sealed off completely due to the upcoming 50th anniversary of China's occupation of Tibet. Read more HERE.