Buddhism in Britain

Western Chan Fellowship

I spent an enjoyable evening at the end of February in Bristol discussing Dhamma with Sally and Mike Masheder, both practitioners within the Western Chan Fellowship. Later we were joined by Gareth Fysh-Foskett a student completing a dissertation on Buddhism at the University.

The Western Chan fellowship follows the teachings of Master Hui-kong Sheng-yen of the Chinese Chan tradition. He has identified a number of Western Dharma heirs of whom John Crook, based in Maenllwyd in mid-Wales, is one. Chinese Chan is the tradition which led to Zen schools in Japan and is famously described as:

A special transmission outside the scriptures

No reliance on words or letters

Direct pointing to the heart of humanity

Seeing into ones own nature.

This is a bold and attractive statement, but one which raises a number of questions. The obvious one being what is the relationship between the Dhamma (teachings as embodied in scriptures) and the enlightenment experience? I am not sure that any mainstream Buddhist tradition would ever have claimed that enlightenment was an intellectual accumulation of information, or was dependent upon absorbing the right facts or involved the ‘worship’ of sacred texts.

It would seem, though, that the Buddha’s teachings both point towards and shape our understanding of what is an ineffable experience. It is a healthy instinct to question our reliance on ancient texts and to encourage a practical engagement and application of such teachings without developing a blind and possibly dogmatic attachment to them.

It would be possible to justify the assertion that at certain times in the 2500 years of the Buddhist tradition, individuals and schools have developed an unskilful relationship with scriptures, seeing them as infallible and sacred objects rather than invaluable guides for reflection and action. Or, interpreting the Buddhist path as closed in this degenerate age, and believing that all that is possible is to maintain certain scriptures and the letter of Buddhism rather than being able to apply teachings in the way originally intended. This belief can be found both in some Theravada circles as well as in more recent Mahahayana schools.

Such a belief - that enlightenment is now impossible - does obviously have a profound impact on subsequent behaviour. We can, however, be aware of our beliefs and recognise the uncertainty of such mental formations. This is the key to working with scriptures. They are very helpful pointers, but uncertain. They are for reflection and insight rather than 'worship' or turning into metaphysical truths.

The idea of lineage was amongst a number of subjects of discussion. Lineage is a way of increasing the likelihood of an authentic transmission of the Buddha’s teaching and of granting authority to teachers. If teachers can be traced back all the way to the Buddha himself, then this makes it more likely that what is taught today is based on real insight into the Buddha’s teaching. However, lineage is only part of the picture; other ways of checking a teacher’s insight include his or her behaviour and whether it is in accordance with practice, teachings and precepts.

Later as I prepared to sleep I read a little from 'Illuminating Silence' by Master Sheng Yen. I found much that resonated with my own Theravada practice. This seems a common experience. At the level of practice there is much agreement between Buddhist schools. It is at the level of doctrine and the intellect that differences arise.

Information on Western Chan Fellowship can be found at: http://www.westernchanfellowship.org/ 

Telford Priory

On my way back from Criccieth I stopped at Telford Priory where the Rev. Saido is based. The priory is a spacious modern detached property with a good size garden and plenty of parking—a great benefit for such a centre. Rev Saido is the NBO treasurer and is an experienced monk from the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives (OBC).  He is also a good companion and we spent several hours discussing many things.

I was invited to join the Friday evening group meeting and enjoyed a pre-meditation discussion on the relative merits of the Jerusalem Artichoke with John, a regular member. A tasty root vegetable which grows easily, (in fact it is difficult to remove from a plot), the Jerusalem artichoke also contains special sugars which promote healthy intestinal flora and plenty of wind. John warned us of the potential auditory distractions which might accompany our forthcoming meditation session.

I floundered a little with the form of the meditation and walking practice; however in essence it is very similar to that practised at Amaravati and many other Buddhist centres. The Zen (OBC) form is to face the wall and to meditate with eyes open, whilst I generally sit with eyes closed.

Rev. Saido showed me some attractive materials he had created to teach aspects of Buddhism. (I was reminded of the Venerable Kusalo, another talented and creative spirit.) He showed me a rare copy of the Enlightenment Game, handmade at Shasta Abbey in America and illustrating a great variety of Buddhist teachings within a witty, clever and educational framework.

The Rev. Saido has also accumulated a marvelous collection of illuminated Buddhist artifacts. Some may find these a little kitsch, but there is an innocent charm about kitsch which I find attractive. Knowing of Rev. Saido’s interest in such artefacts, his supporters seek them out and generously donate them to him.

As a long member of the NBO Rev. Saido and I discussed some ideas for new initiatives. One problem with having a UK wide membership is the difficulty in physically meeting, especially now that we have to reduce our carbon footprint. Encouraging travel across the UK might attract the charge of climate change denial.

Obviously the internet offers a variety of ways to interact which make geography irrelevant. We thought it would be good for more effort to be focused on extending the NBO web presence. We already have a good website at www.nbo.org.uk. However, with the addition of an NBO wiki, this could develop into a powerful way of building up a Buddhist information database.

Wikis provide web based tools for collaboratively adding to and amending text, media and information. Older versions of information are preserved along with the history of who changed what and why. This looks just the sort of technology to help the dispersed members of the NBO to communicate and work together.

I had been thinking about an NBO wiki for a while and decided to set one up on my return home.

Information on Telford Priory and activities can be found at: www.tbpriory.org.uk

Oxford Buddha Vihara

On an extremely sunny and frosty morning (my thermometer said -6˚ C) I made my way to the Oxford Buddha Vihara (OBV). I was rather pleased to experience the freezing temperature. This winter has been very mild and wet and a frost gives some hope that global warming might be delayed for a bit? In addition, and as a gardener, I am aware of the Saxon prayer ‘Good lord protect us from a mild winter’.

Nevertheless, I was pleased to enter the warm semi-detached house on the outskirts of Oxford where the OBV is based. Phra Pasanno is a Thai Theravadan bhikkhu who occupies the vihara with other monks. He explained something of the history of the OBV.

The senior incumbent is the Venerable Dr. Dhammasami. Originally from Eastern Burma, Khammai Dhammasami obtained his doctorate from Oxford. As well as being the senior incumbent of the Oxford Buddha Vihara, he also heads the International Secretariat for the UN Day of Vesak, based in Bangkok.

The Venerable Dr. Dhammasami has a key role in the newly formed Oxford Centre for Buddhist Studies’ (OCBS) relations with the Sangha and Buddhist Universities in Theravada countries and more widely across Asia. Supporters of the Oxford Buddha Vihara have offered much voluntary help to the OCBS.

I made a note to make contact with the OCBS, it sounds a very interesting venture.

The OBV was purchased less than three years ago and is a little small for the numbers wishing to use it from local Asian families, students from Oxford colleges, and local people. Property in the UK is now so expensive, that generous donations from Asian countries which would purchase a sizeable monastery in the donor country, only allow small UK properties to be obtained.

This has been a regular refrain during my visits to centres around the UK. The OBV has close links with Amaravati and the Forest Sangha. Phra Pasanno mentioned meetings with Ajahn Sumedho, and also Ajahn Khemadhammo. Ajahn Khemadhammo leads the Angulimala Prison Chaplaincy organisation, and Phra Pasanno expressed his great respect for this enterprise. Ajahn Khemadhammo has also been instrumental in setting up the recently formed Theravada Buddhist Sangha (UK) organisation to which the OBV belong. The word ‘Sangha’ is here used in its early sense as meaning the monastic Sangha, rather than the common contemporary use of the word as including all who practice Buddhism.

We discussed the NBO and its role in maintaining a neutral forum or space within which all organisations regarding themselves as Buddhist can meet, exchange information and develop fellowship. There is no reason, of course, why an organisation such as the OBV could not be a member of TBS (UK) and the NBO as well as interfaith networks and other ‘umbrella groups’. The work of such groups is complementary and I would expect more to arise as Buddhism becomes established in the West.

The Oxford Buddha Vihara can be found at 33 Cherwell Drive, Marston, Oxford, OX3 0NB

The Oxford Centre for Buddhist Studies has a website at http://www.ocbs.org/

Bodhi Garden

The Bodhi Garden is situated in the Lanes area of Brighton. This was the old fishing settlement that existed prior to the great expansion and gentrification of Brighton which took place in the 19th century. Richard Gilpin, the manager of the Bodhi Garden, met me at 6 pm at the door of the centre. Fortunately, the stormy weather had eased considerably.

We walked down a passage into the main room, which apparently used to be a gambling den. The hall has space for about forty plus a small kitchen.

The Bodhi Garden is run as a non-sectarian space for Buddhist groups in the area. Groups using the centre include a Forest Sangha Theravada group, a Soto Zen group, the Tibetan Shambhala, Green Tara and Jamyang groups. The centre also hosts events led by teachers from Gaia House, Tenzin Josh, Christopher Titmuss and others. A Soka Gakkai group did briefly use the hall but have not continued, and NKT were not interested.

The approach taken at the centre arose from the Venerable Tenzin Josh a Tibetan monk who also ordained as a Theravadan monk and wished to establish a non-sectarian monastery in England. The English Buddhist Monastery Trust (EBMT) was established for this purpose and the Bodhi Garden was opened in 2001 to further this general aim. The dana principle is used to fund the centre and has proved to work, although this has taken a while to build up.

Richard and I realised that we had both recently studied on the same MA Buddhist Studies course run by Peter Harvey from Sunderland University. We exchanged our experiences of the course, one which I found very enjoyable and which we both felt had been very useful. We agreed that we knew less about Buddhism when we finished the course than when we started—so it was an excellent course!

Let me explain. Probably like many long-term Buddhists I had picked up quite a lot about Buddhism before I started the course, but realised gradually as a result of the excellent study material and teaching from Peter, that I knew very little that was reliable about the history, organisation and variations of outlook between different traditions. What I thought I knew tended to be distorted, outdated, or incorrect in various ways.

Although understanding all this is not necessary in order to practice Buddhism, it can help not only to inspire practice, but also to understand and communicate with Buddhists from other traditions and to appreciate the great diversity that is included under the label of ‘Buddhism’.

It is so easy to attach to 'our Buddhism' just because we are familiar with it. This tendency to become protective of, and attached to, that with which we are familiar is very natural. It probably has evolutionary survival value, since it protects an investment of time and effort that we have made in learning ideas and practices and forming relationships within a community.

I am convinced that if Buddhism is to flourish in the West then we must make an effort to find out more about different traditions and where our favourite tradition fits. Perhaps ‘our tradition’ is not so perfect after all? Or perhaps it is even better than we thought?

Bodhi Garden runs an annual festival to bring all groups together. The FWBO plays a significant role with this. Richard explained that it is easy for groups to meet at their respective slots at the Bodhi Garden without interacting much with each other. Festivals help to overcome this, as do regular meetings of the main organizers for each group.

Richard was interested in the NBO and thought it very likely that one of the Bodhi Garden or EBMT representatives would join in the near future.

I found the centre to have a very nice feel and to offer many opportunities for engaging with a Buddhist path. Later that evening I left clutching some Bodhi Leaf newsletters (which I subsequently found to be good reading) and headed into the Lanes for some exploration.

Bodhi Garden information can be found at: http://www.bodhigarden.org/

Venerable Sochu and Rinzai Zen

‘Monday Meltdown’ said the news boards as I left Euston Station on the 20th November. A quick read and a text message later, I confirmed that parts of the London Underground system were closed. Always trying to build some physical activity into my day, I decided to walk up to St Johns Wood where the Venerable Sochu lives. It did not look so far on my map and I could walk through Regents Park, so I set off.

Isn’t Regents Park big?

Using the minaret of Regents Park mosque as a guiding landmark, and asking a passer-by for directions, I managed to navigate my way to the North West of the park and cross a bridge onto the road. By this time my brisk walk had turned into a faltering jog and I realised that I was going to be late. However, even though Venerable Sochu’s residence was at the furthest end of the road from St John’s Wood, I was only some ten minutes late.

I was warmly greeted by a smiling monastic and ushered into the house, a substantial Victorian property and formerly owned by Christmas Humphries. Venerable Sochu is the teacher in residence and a member of the Rinzai Zen tradition. This differs from the Soto Zen tradition with which I was somewhat more familiar by , amongst other things, a greater emphasis on the use of koans; intellectual puzzles designed to frustrate the mind’s thinking processes and lead to an experience of awakening. I had heard that Rinzai Zen was a rather tough and macho tradition and so was rather relieved when the Venerable Sochu proved to be a very amiable and engaging character.

He explained that the tradition had become established in London in 1984 under the auspices of Venerable Myokyoni (formerly Irmgard Schloegl, who now lives at a centre in Luton).

Venerable Sochu (and fellow monastic) leads the ‘Introduction to Zen’ and the ‘Zazen’ classes at the Buddhist Society premises in Victoria.

I described the NBO and its aim to maintain a network of relationships between Buddhist organisations, and Venerable Sochu explained that he saw his role as concentrating on the ‘inner’ development of those he teaches, rather than in social engagement. He also mentioned his close links with the Buddhist Society and his perception that this organisation dealt with broader issues and was itself a member of the NBO. Venerable Sochu did not think it was possible (or perhaps wise) for Buddhism to become unduly involved with what might be loosely described as governmental bodies of various sorts. I understand that the Buddhist Society generally takes this kind of stance and is reluctant to offer a ‘Buddhist view’ on many questions.

This debate is an issue for the NBO as well. In a specific context, we can often only give our own individual understanding of an issue and our own understanding of Buddhist teachings, and how these relate. It seems to me to be a good thing to avoid attachment to our own ideas about Buddhism and the feeling that we must express these opinions; however, the idea that ‘Buddhism does not take sides or hold to fixed views’ can itself become a restrictive dogma when we attach to it.

We discussed the increasing profile of religion in the UK, and the recurrent flurries of requests for involvement of the ‘Buddhist community’ in interfaith groups, various types of consultative exercises, and greater community involvement. The NBO aims to act as far as possible as an ‘honest broker’ with such requests by circulating them amongst its members, and other Buddhist organisations, and attempting to coordinate any responses where necessary and possible.

After a helpful guided tour of the premises, I departed. Fortunately there were some trains from St Johns Wood Station.

Zen classes are listed at:
http://www.thebuddhistsociety.org/events/index.html

Manchester University Buddhist Society (MUBS)

Manchester is a large city, and Manchester University campus sprawls across and along the Oxford Road taking in a shopping mall and several large buildings. Apparently it is the largest campus in Europe. I got a little lost after parking in the Aquatic Centre, but eventually found the student union and after a few minutes met Joy Bose, a leading member of the Manchester University Buddhist Society (MUBS). After a few more minutes James Conole, the MUBS Chair joined us and we found our way to a Lebanese Falafel Café.

MUBS was originally started some years ago by Lance Cousins, who also played a leading role in the Samatha Trust and is a well known Buddhologist. MUBS organises two meetings a week. One on Monday is a practice session led by a Samatha Trust teacher; the other on a Thursday hosts a range of speakers and practitioners from different traditions. Manchester University only provides limited funds to each university society and will only fund one society per religious tradition. This may well be a common practice in higher education institutions and I guess from the perspective of a secular institution this keeps things simple. It does mean, however, that different denominations within a religious or faith tradition may need to work together and an exclusive attitude by one denomination is not appropriate. In practice, groups will only form if there is a demand from interested students, and such students will likely already follow a particular tradition.

The MUBS model is a good one; although the Samatha Trust provides meditation teaching, the society does host speakers from other backgrounds and manages a comprehensive web site which lists all other Buddhist groups in the Manchester area. I think this is a model for University Buddhist societies that the NBO would want to support as good practice.

We discussed the recent Manchester Buddhist Conference. Given that it was held in August, it had been well attended, especially by monastics and other representatives of local groups. Hopefully a conference will take place in 2007, with Venerable Piyatissa from Ketumati playing a leading role.

Both Joy and James did not expect to be able to put much energy into MUBS next year; James is undertaking practice in a hospital and Joy will have completed his doctorate. Continuity for University Societies is a well-known problem and possibly one that the NBO can help with in some way.

Many thanks to Joy, James, and MUBS for their hospitality.

The MUBS web site is: http://www.umsu.manchester.ac.uk/mubs/manchester.html

Manchester Buddhist Conference 5th August 2006

This, the first conference of its kind in Manchester, was organised by the Manchester University Buddhist Society (MUBS) and led by an organising committee comprising the Venerable Piyatissa (Ketumati Buddhist Temple) and the Venerable Miao Di (Fo Guan Shan Temple), together with Joy Bose, James Conole, Dennis Khong and Cathleen Liu of MUBS.

The venue for the day was the Fo Guan Shan Temple, a spacious Victorian building which had previously been a library. The organisation for the day had included a comprehensive web site, invitations to a wide range of Buddhists groups in the Manchester region and a detailed programme.

The event was attended by around forty participants, notably including some eleven monastics of various traditions. There were representatives from Ketumati, Manchester Buddhist Centre, Manchester Centre for Buddhist Meditation, Saraniya Dhamma Meditation Centre, Vairochana Buddhist Centre, Wat Chareon Bhavana, and Rochdale Zen Retreat.

There were some valuable talks, including ‘The heart of monastic practice’ from Reverend Master Bonati from the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives, talks on Buddhism in Higher Education; Counselling, Psychotherapy and Buddhism, and care for the dying.

The day finished with discussion groups examining Buddhists as a community. The great majority of the participants expressed their thanks for an opportunity to meet and talk with practitioners from different traditions. James Conole in his survey of ‘what students want from a Buddhist Society’, mentioned the importance of the social aspect. Students not only want to learn about and practice Buddhism, but also to meet with other like-minded people.

Some of the problems faced by university Buddhist societies were mentioned. In particular, the problems in maintaining continuity with a constantly changing student population and in gaining enough volunteers. The issue of ‘neutrality’ was also raised. University Buddhist societies are generally (and ought to be) a pathway to all mainstream Buddhist traditions.

The need for lay-people, in particular, to meet with other lay-Buddhists was a theme that was repeated throughout the day.

Additionally, the Rev Master Bonati also emphasised the need to practice diligently within a tradition in order to make progress as a Buddhist.

The Venerable Piyatissa closed the day with a wish to continue with an annual Manchester Buddhist conference. The beginning of August 2007 was suggested as a target for the next conference.

The NBO is very supportive of such regional events which create fellowship between Buddhist traditions, and would be enthusiastic about helping to organise and publicise similar events in Manchester or other areas of the UK. 

The Manchester University Buddhist Society website is: http://www.umsu.manchester.ac.uk/mubs/

From this comprehensive site, there are links to all groups in the Manchester area.

Dragon Bell

Albion Place is easy to overlook. It is a small cul-de-sac of old Victorian terraces mid-way between Exeter University and the town centre. I visited on the 11th July in the evening. Number 14, towards the end of the road, has been the home of the Reverend Myfanwy McCorry, a monk in the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives, for about four years. Reverend Myfanwy explained that all ordained monastics are called monks regardless of gender. Their founder had briefly considered using ‘nuns’ as the generic term, but some men had felt a little uncomfortable with this idea.  The Order of Buddhist Contemplatives has centres across the UK and follows Soto Zen (Serene Reflection Meditation Tradition).

The property has a shrine and meditation room, and sitting room, and hosts regular meditation meetings for local people. Rev. Myfanwy also undertakes priestly functions, for example at funerals, but this is a peripheral role to her main function as a monk following Vinaya precepts.

Rev. Myfanwy recognised the value of the NBO in encouraging networking and would welcome more support for thisso that she could know who to contact in response to a particular query or issue. She also welcomed any support the NBO could give towards organising or facilitating regional meetings so that local Exeter Buddhist groups could interact and find out more about each other.

We discussed the question of interfaith networks and involvement with them. Although interfaith activity is well-intentioned and positive relationships between faiths are good to have, it is difficult to know quite what to make of interfaith networks in general. Visiting other places of worship is pleasant, as is socialising with those from other faiths. However, such meetings never seem to get beyond social niceties and quite often seem to assume some sort of ‘fuzzy equality’ between faiths; the idea that all faiths are at root, somehow the same. I think this a pretty debatable proposition. Maybe Interfaith groups are primarily for the purpose of socialising and making friends and hence avoiding substantial debate between faiths.

One thing that is certain is that interfaith activity can easily absorb a great deal of time and energy with little concrete to show. This is a potential problem for small Buddhist groups – just maintaining the viability of such groups requires a great deal of effort. So, perhaps Interfaith involvement is best viewed as a pleasant social activity and as something of a luxury for those organisations with sufficient time to spare.

As with other UK Buddhist organisations, the idea or efficacy of the ‘dana economy’ is not well understood. Western convert Buddhists do not generally donate enough to avoid a deficit arising. 

Rev Myfanwy recognised the difficulties experienced by volunteers who worked hard to keep Buddhist organisations and retreat centres running. They had no formal status as a renunciant, priest, or monk, and often no particular practice path. They tended to have all of the disadvantages and none of the advantages of the ordained.

We discussed the rather deceptive way in which some organisations name their groups. I think it is reasonable for a meditation or Buddhist society in a locale or institution (University for example) to be very clear about what it offers. Either it acts as an umbrella group for all Buddhist traditions and calls itself, for example, ‘The Kent University Buddhist Society’, or if it represents a particular tradition or organisation, then it is clearly named as such. To do otherwise is to mislead newcomers to Buddhism and to lead to tension between Buddhist organisations.

The Dragon Bell Temple is a very peaceful destination-- especially considering its proximity to the town centre.

For more information the web site is: http://www.throssel.org.uk/

Throssel Hole

The trip over to Throssel Hole from Aruna Ratanagiri took longer then I thought, but was a quiet drive through pleasant and sometimes dramatic scenery along Hadrian’s Wall. I parked near a disused chapel at the entrance to Throssel Hole and walked up the winding drive. A strong aromatic scent drifted from the nearby trees and carpet of pine needles, and a couple of young rabbits sat calmly watching me pass.

Throssel Hole Buddhist Abbey is a Buddhist monastery and retreat centre in the Serene Reflection Meditation Tradition and is the UK centre for the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives (OBC). It was established in 1972 by Rev. Master Jiyu-Kennett. The Abbey is currently under the spiritual direction of the Abbot, Rev. Master Daishin Morgan, a senior disciple of the late Rev. Master Jiyu-Kennett.

I was met by a nun and later by a guest monk who kindly showed me around the site. The main shrine room proved to be brightly decorated with some small ‘chapels’ on either side of the main figure. There are regular meditation practices and retreats, and the community are often called upon to visit local organizations and schools. Religious studies students also visit the centre.

It seems that whatever the Buddhist tradition, education authorities and schools are eager to use Buddhist centres and monasteries as a resource. This looks like a pretty healthy development. Serious Buddhist practitioners are exposed to young members of the surrounding culture, and young people can get some idea of what Buddhism is about—in all its variety. This is surely essential if Buddhism is to find an abiding place in Western culture, although I know that the demands for teaching can be quite tiresome and overwhelming at times, particularly for those with an inclination to retire into an hermetic existence.

Details on the centre can be found at: http://www.throssel.org.uk/mainarea.htm