December 2017 Newsletter
Celebrating the Festival of
The Buddha's Enlightenment
The understanding that the Buddha came to during his enlightenment is the basis for the whole of Buddhist practice, and on Saturday the 2nd of December we will be celebrating the Festival of the Buddha's Enlightenment to mark this important event in the life of the Buddha.
In the story of the enlightenment, the Buddha had spent many years following ascetic practices in his search for the truth. Close to death as a result of these hardships, he realised that this was not the way, and after eating a meal decided to sit in meditation as he had done naturally as a child. As he sat in meditation, many thoughts, feelings and memories arose which could have distracted him from his purpose, but the Buddha continued to sit. As the morning star arose he gained a deep insight into the nature of existence. This insight is central to the teaching and practice of Buddhism.
We hope you will be able to join us as we celebrate this joyful highlight of the Buddhist calendar.
The day will start at 10am with a meditation period, followed by the ceremony. After the ceremony there will be a Dharma talk, and at about 1pm there will be a bring-and-share vegetarian lunch. In the afternoon there will be two periods of meditation from 2pm, followed by a Dharma discussion and tea. You are welcome to come for any part of the day.
For other events in December, please see the events calendar.
Property Purchase Update
The process of buying the property in Chadderton Close continues, and we now have a signed loan agreement with our mortgage provider. We have also received a lot of the legal information from the solicitor, including property information and details of the fixtures and fittings that are included in the sale. This generally looks pretty good, but there are a couple of issues that need looking into a bit further, and a December completion now looks unlikely. Hopefully we will be able to get things sorted for early in the new year.
Thanks to all of the donations and loans that we have been offered, we now have sufficient funds to purchase the property. However, any additional support would be most welcome, as that would allow us to reduce the amount of the mortgage that we would need, which would in turn reduce our monthly repayments. It would also help with the costs of moving and of equipping the new property.
If you feel able to offer any financial assistance to help with this, that would be greatly appreciated. There are a number of ways in which you could help, such as through a donation or by offering a long-term loan to the temple. Full details are on the Building Fund page of the temple website. We are very grateful for all your support.
Closed Period in December
The temple will be closed to visitors for a few days over the holiday period, from Saturday the 23rd to Wednesday the 27th of December, inclusive. There won't be any events at the temple during this period.
The temple will, however, be open over the New Year period, and we will be holding the traditional New Year’s Eve Ceremony on the evening of the 31st, and the Festival of Maitreya Bodhisattva on New Year's Day 2018.
Ceremony of the Winter Solstice
Our last event before the start of the Festive Season will be the Basic Buddhism Evening on Thursday December the 21st. This day is also the Winter Solstice, and it seems like it would be nice to hold the Ceremony of the Winter Solstice that evening, as a way to mark this event in the turning of the wheel of the year.
The ceremony includes a "mindful recitation" specific to the season, and also the recitation of the Scripture of Great Wisdom and the Invocation for the Removal of Disasters. It is an opportunity to recommit ourselves to practice as we enter the new season.
Alms Bowl Requests
Thank you to all those who have donated items to the temple. We are very grateful for donations of any household or other items that the temple might be able to use. Please contact Rev. Aiden if you have an item to offer but are not sure whether it would be useful.
Donations of Food
Offering food is a traditional way to support a monk, and all donations of vegetarian food are most welcome. In particular:
- fresh fruit and vegetables (except garlic or peppers)
- fresh or dried herbs
- porridge oats
- yoghurt and eggs
- peanuts or other nuts
- brown rice and pasta
Any other suitable items would also be appreciated.
Donations
The temple is dependent on donations for its continued existence, and any financial support you are able to offer is greatly appreciated. Details of how to offer support can be found on the Donations page of the website.