Dhammakaya Meditation Centre, Albury

Buddhists at the border are going to join the UN Day of Vesak in Sydney and Melbounre

Posted on April 30, 2012 by Udomson BK

Ajahn Satit, the monk from Buddhist temple in Albury has taken a part in the organising committee of the Australian Observance of the United Nations Day of Vesak 2012. Vesak Day was recognized as a United Nations Day of international observance to be celebrated each year by the UN and its member countries. In Australia we had the first celebration at Sydney Town Hall in 2007.

The Australian Observance of the United Nations Day of Vesak 2007, Sydney Town Hall

During the month of May, there is one significant day for all Buddhists called Vesak or the Buddha’s Day. Thousands of people will join together to commemorate the Birth, the Enlightenment and the Passing away of the Buddha.

Buddhist temples normally have the cerebration of Vesak every year in their temples according to the traditions. The Australian Observance of the United Nations Day of Vesak is for all Buddhist traditions to join hand and celebrating Vesak together as an official celebration at the national level. It is the time that Buddhists come together, meet and get to know and understand each other better. Buddhists from different traditions may have their own way of celebrating the occasion and on this particular day they will have a chance to express their way to the audiences from other traditions as well. It is becoming an inspiring annual event that Buddhist monks from all traditions come together on stage for chanting. This picture shows the unity of the Sangha that will work together towards peace in Australia.

It is also a good time for general public, Buddhist or non-Buddhist to participate in this joyful cerebration and gain better understand of Buddhism from various traditions.

The Australian Observance of the United Nations Day of Vesak 2010
The Great Hall, Parliament House, 26 May, 2010

Since the second Australian Observance of the United Nations Day of Vesak was organised in Melbourne in 2008, the Victorian Buddhist community decided to have United Nations Day of Vesak – Victoria Observance each year. While the Observance at the national level continues to be held in Sydney except in 2010 which was held in Canberra.

United Nations Day of Vesak Victoria 2011, Melbourne Town Hall

To be part of the Buddhist unity in commemorate the auspicious day of all the Buddhists, Wat Buddhavongsayaram as the only Buddhist community on the NSW/VIC border would like to encourage Buddhists at the border to participate in United Nations Day of Vesak – Victoria Observance on May 12, 2012 at Melbourne Town Hall and The Australian Observance of the United Nations Day of Vesak on May 27, 2012 at Sydney Town Hall.

A new page of Wat Albury

Posted on April 23, 2012 by Udomson BK

After a few unfortunate incidents – the burglary – twice in 6-7 weeks, garden equipments and machineries, old and newly replaced ones, were part of the items taken. Ajahn Satit took an ironic step to fix the problem by donating any items of some value kept at the temple, to other charities. The idea is to deter the burglar from the temple as there is nothing valuable enough for them to come back and repeat the offence. The strategy seems to work so far.

On Sunday 22^nd April, we had a different kind of incident, a ‘pigs attack’. It was not a joke, it was really happening. During the meditation session, everyone could hear the noise ‘Oui, Oui’ outside the meditation hall but we kept meditate to the end of the session.

Six pigs from the next property came in to attack the lawn around the small Vihara at the temple. Usually at Sunday service we could hear loud music from our next door neighbour but there was no music on this Sunday. We had the pigs instead. They have made a terrible damage to the lawn around the Vihara.

It was not a pleasant incident that happened to us and the temple but everyone took it with their kind heart and saw the funny side of it.

The ‘pigs attack’ should make the Wat Albury story more colourful and lighten up the situation of many obstacles happened to us lately. But on the other hand, this incident should not happen as the pigs’ owner should take the responsibility to keep the animals within their boundary. If they cannot do that, they should not be allowed to keep any animal in their property at all.

This Sunday also marked another page of Wat Albury. Now that the temple owns no garden tools and equipments, the maintenance of the ground became the group activity for the members. It was the first meeting for the task on Sunday. Everyone brought their own tools to help, two lawnmowers, two bush cutters and many other hand tools. After the service, everyone got out in the garden and started to work. It was a nice day, clear blue sky and everyone seemed happy to lend a hand to keep the temple ground in good order. It was good to see the smile on everyone’s face as evidence in the photos.

More photo click https://skydrive.live.com/?cid=9b7cbca22262a164&sc=photos#cid=9B7CBCA22262A164&id=9B7CBCA22262A164%21771&sc=photos

Posted in Local News | Tagged Earth Day, pig attack, story, watalbury | Leave a comment

EXAMINE YOURSELF

Posted on April 18, 2012 by Udomson BK

Before bedtime each night, take a few minutes to meditate upon your day.

Reflect on everything you have done throughout the day, from the time you wake up, to the time you go to bed (i.e., waking, eating, working, meditating, keeping the precepts, giving alms).

Reflect on how much merit you have accumulated and how many bad deeds you have committed today. Resolve to relinquish all the negative actions that lead to bad Kamma. Don’t even let one particle of your demerit linger with you overnight.

Contemplate on giving up. Give up wrongdoings. Give up bad actions. Give up everything evil. Give up the slackness in your meditation.

Contemplate on improving, Improve on doing more good deeds. Make the effort to improve yourself and build up good kamma every day. Think of this life as your final existence and your last opportunity to capture all the merits.

September31, 1976

Khun Yai Chand Khonnokyoong

Founder of the Dhammakaya Temple

Posted in Dhamma Stories | Tagged Dhamma, Dhammakaya Foundation, Khun yai | Leave a comment

Conquering greedy people with generosity

Posted on April 9, 2012 by Udomson BK

Late afternoon of April 7^th, Ajahn Satit who has just arrived back from Sydney for the Sunday service in Albury has noticed that the CCTV at the front of the house was gone. He immediately contacted the police and waited for them to come before entering the property. The temple was broken into before around 27^th February-2nd March and Ajahn Satit said he suspected it was done by the same group of burglars.

The wire fence has been cut

Since the last incident, the main gate was locked at all time but the burglars have cut the wire fence at the other end of the property to gain access and to take things away. This showed their intention to come back to steal from the temple again. Said Ajahn Satit.

22” Lawnmower Endoro Max DM6000 Engine Briggs&Stration 675 Series 190cc Serial no. 10 0429 5823366

The newly replaced lawn mower, CCTV camera and a few other electronic equipments were taken. These equipments are used to run the Sunday service.

People come to the temple to learn the Dhamma, the most valuable thing they could get for their lives. This group of burglars came to the temple for the wrong purposes, Ajahn Satit said. Their action only created bad kamma that drive by their greed.

Ajahn Satit and the members of the Albury temple have decided to show the real value of the temple and to respond to the incident by donating other things that have not been taken by the burglars to local charities that can make use of them. Ajahn Satit said that he and the temple members would like to see their belongings to go to people that need them instead of the burglars and there would not be any other valuable things kept in the premises that worth the attempt for the breaking in for the 3^rd time.

These goods will be donated to the local charity

The wish of WatAlbury community was fullfilled by donating things that have not been taken by the burglars to Lifeline Albury-Wodonga Shop on Tue 10 April 2012.

The temple can operate on a very minimum facilities, because the most important and the most valuable thing is the Dhamma. The monks can live their life very simple. Most of the properties at the temple are for better service for the community, but we still can have the Sunday services without those facilities, Ajahn Satit said.

Ajahn Satit has been maintaining the temple garden and the lawn by himself since he reopened the temple in Dec 2010. He said that, it might be the time to give this task to the community. We have lost too many lawnmowers and equipments for the task. Let give this work back to the community. We will open the gate for anyone to come again, if they come on the weekday, they could make merit by bringing their own lawnmower to mow the lawn for welcoming people on Sunday.

Buddhism in the west

Posted on March 28, 2012 by Udomson BK

On Tuesday 20 March , Ajahn Satit went to Melbourne specifically to attent the Dhamma talk by Lama Ole Nydahl, one of the westerner Dhamma teachers of the Tibetan Karma Kagyu Buddhist tradition or Diamond Way Buddhism as it is well known among westerners.

On Sunday 25^th, Ajahn Satit shared with the participants at Wat Albury, what the talk was all about and how the talk impressed him. For anyone that did not come on Sunday here is the highlight of the talk as food for thought for you.

The topic of the talk was “Buddhism in the west”. Ajahn Satit said that this was what he still needed to explore how other Buddhist traditions shared Buddhist knowledge or wisdom to the west.

Lama Ole Nydahl at BMW Edge Federation Square 20 March 2012

Lama Ole Nydahl at BMW Edge Federation Square Mebourne 20 March 2012

The whole event was plain and simple. There was no special opening ceremony or any other public speaking technique to hype up the audiences. They only emphasised on the speaker and his topic. He was sitting on a chair on the stage and talked to the audiences like he was talking to a friend.

He started the topic with the kinds of religious of which he divided into two categories. One was the faith religious, the religious that united people by supernatural phenomena and commonly related to the politic. The second category was the religious of experience.

He said the Buddha is like the mirror that reflects who you really are, if you reach the Buddha inside you, you will also be the same as the Buddha. Everyone has a potential to be a Buddha. Therefore you should take your time to develop yourselves. That is what Buddhism is all about, self development.

He also mentioned the 84,000 items of Dhamma that all the Buddhas teach. He pointed out that ones should not just learn and understand the Dhamma but they should use that Dhamma to develop their mind as well.

During the talk, the Lama has acknowledged the presence of Ajahn Satit that he was the only Theravada monk who joined his audience that day.

The Lama also pointed out the link between science and Buddhism in the explanation of the formation and destruction of the world that they are not much different. Form is emptiness and emptiness is form.

He explained about the Diamond Way that it is the way to be awaken, when you are awaken you will see a bright light that is like a diamond, it is the light of wisdom.

He also talked about the general Buddhist practices, 5 precepts, good and bad kamma by thought, speech and action in the way that seemed to make sense to all westerners.

Ajahn Satit observed that perhaps what has been omitted from the teaching of Buddhism in the west is the Buddhist cosmology about haven and hell. Reincarnation or rebirth seem to be acceptable as the path on the middle way may not be achievable in only one life time and one has to be reborn in the process of self development.

After the talk it was question time which ran for about an hour.

Then he led the audiences to take refuge in Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha in English and practiced meditation.

Ajahn Satit was surprised that many of the audiences could do the chanting in Tibatian which mean that the chanting is something the westerners can accept.

At the end, the Lama gave the audiences the chance to touch the sacred item that his teacher gave him which he hung it around his neck. He also gave out sacred items to the new comers in the audience. This is, as Ajahn Satit observed, similar to what is done in the Thai temple.

Ajahn Satit was very impressed to see many westerners in the room that have the ability to take on the middle path, the path that the Buddha showed us 2600 years ago. He was also impressed with the talk of the Lama Ole Nydahl of how he explained the Dhamma to the westerners in their way of thinking. He also appreciated the opportunity to be in the audience of the Lama Ole Nydahl talk this time.

Posted in National Buddhist News | Tagged Buddhism in the West, Buddhist Temple Albury, Dhamma, Diamond Way, Lama Ole Nydahl | Leave a comment

The Services at WatAlbury is running every Sunday.

Posted on March 9, 2012 by Udomson BK

This week, it seem to be a rumor around about the Buddhist temple in Albury was closed. Today, Ajahn Satit the Buddhist monk who provide Sunday services at the temple in Albury since December 2010 confirm that the Sunday Service is running as normal every Sunday.

If you never come to experience our local Buddhist temple in South Albury, here is the program on Sunday.

Sunday Services 10.00am-11.30am

10.00 am Meditation Practice

10.30 am Dhamma Talk

11.00 am Requesting five precepts/food offering

11.30 am Having Lunch

Facilities

Meditation room

Play ground

Library for Buddhist Books

Thai buffet lunch

Posted in Local News | Tagged Buddhist Meditation, Buddhist Sunday Services, Buddhist Sunday Services in English, Buddhist Temple, Buddhist Temple Mystery | Leave a comment

The Buddhist temple mystery

Posted on February 27, 2012 by Udomson BK

While more and more people in Albury starting to be aware of the Buddhist temple in Albury that it provides Sunday services in English which include meditation, Dhamma talks and chances to offer food to a Buddhist monk, there is this news in the local newspaper heading “Buddhist temple mystery”. What this mystery is all about? The following answers from Ajahn Satit, the Buddhist monk at the temple in South Albury would help shed some light into the situation.

Q: What this mystery is all about?

A: First of all, I like to make it clear that what is so called “the mystery” was here long before I arrived in Albury and reopened the temple in December 2010.

Q: When you said ‘reopened’ that means the temple was not operated then? Can you clarify that?

A: What I was told was that this property had been bought to be a temple in 1986 by the Lao community. (Wat Phouthavongsayaram Lao Buddhist Association Inc.), and it was used as a temple for the Lao community for numbers of year.

Q: What went wrong with the association?

A: I would not comment about that because I don’t know what was the real story, but apparently the association was deregistered by Consumer Affairs of Victoria in 2001. So it simply made the temple property own by a deregistered association which cannot do any legal transaction.

Q: Why are you here since you know there is a problem?

A: When I was at the temple in Sydney I received a phone call from a Thai monk who was here at the time and also from the former president of that deregistered association. They were telling me about the difficult situation that they could not keep the temple running any longer due to social conflict and financial difficulty. They thought that our team could fix the problem. I did not say yes at first but our team and I came for a survey.

Q: What you find out from the survey?

A: We found that it would not be any easy task to rebuild the temple reputation as we found very little support from the community.

Q: What did make you finally decided to come here?

A: I would say “the challenge”. It is the word “the only one Buddhist temple in Albury and the surrounding area of 200 kilometre radius so if we don’t do anything, there would be no place where people can come to learn about Buddhism in this region.

Q: How did you go through these difficulties?

A: We were confident with the value of Dhamma (the teaching of the Buddha), it has much more value than any precious gems in the world, because Dhamma can change people life to be better. We have Dhamma as our capital. We also provide our services in English which means we open up the temple to a broader community than what it used to be.

Q: How did you run the temple that you did not own?

A: No, we do not own the property. The ownership and legal right of the property are the matter for the legal team of the current owner to deal with and make right of the situation.

We run the temple under a new entity “Wat Buddhavongsayaram Inc.” which is registered with Fair Treading of NSW. Wat Buddhavongsayaram Inc. operates and pays for the on going expenses of the temple such as council rate, electricity, general maintenance and the repayment to the bank. Wat Buddhavongsayaram Inc does not own the property. This is one reason why we did not do a lot of development at the temple, we just use the facility to run as a Buddhist temple.

Q: Are you satisfy with the work you have done here?

A: Yes. I’m satisfy with the growing number of people who come on Sunday.

Q: What would you say about the future of the Buddhist Temple in Albury?

A: If you mean the place it is still uncertain, however we should be happy, the authority now have progress to resolve this matter. We hope the result will make everyone happy. But if you mean the Buddhist community, it will definitely grow as long as they bring Dhamma to practice. In the worse case, if we have to leave 605 Abercorn St. we will find a new suitable place. In the mean time before the authority makes its final conclusion, we will continue to provide Sunday services every Sunday. Please come to experience our local Buddhist temple in South Albury.

Related news of Albury-Wodonga NewsWeekly

Albury-Wodonga NewsWeekly 2 March 2012

Albury-Wodonga NewsWeekly 16 March 2012

What the Buddha taught about wash away your sins?

Posted on February 26, 2012 by Udomson BK

One Morning Phra Ananda, the Buddha’s attendant went for an alms round in Savatee City and saw a Brahmin named Sangarava who believed that to be pure from all sins one had to wash oneself three times a day in the ganger river i.e. morning, noon and evening. People can do away with the evening sin with morning wash, and morning sin with noon wash and the sin committed from noon to evening was washed away with evening shower in the river. It is also believed that the ganger river flowed from the heaven and by the head of the god Shiva. The water didn’t only purify sinful people but could heal disease and if they are to die they would be united with their god.

As such it was normal to see yogis and other ascetics tortured themselves with strange and different means along both ganger riverbanks according to their belief and views in order to be connected with their gods.

Some sleep on thorny beds, some cover themselves with ashes, some stood on one leg and open their mouth for a long time, some held onto a branch and let their nails grow to the point that they could pierce their palms, some worship the fire or the sun.

However there were lots of yogis who through their practices attained trances until they could see the past and the future. Some became psychic and could read people’s mind and could answer questions that people have in their mind.

Phra Ananda reported to the Lord Buddha about Sangarava Brahmin who had a routine of having a bath in the ganger river.

He said:

Exalted one Sangaravah Brahmin is now an old man, he still listens to others. Due to his old belief he therefore doesn’t know the right practice. With your limitless compassion can your lord help him?

The Lord Buddha accepted his request by remaining silent

The next morning the Lord Buddha went to see the Brahmin and asked him:

“Brahmin do you still wash yourself three times a day in the Ganger river?”

Respectfully the Brahmin replied:

“Yes, Sir I still do it”

“ What benefit do you see to have a bath only in the Ganger river but not somewhere else. Please don’t feel that I am interfering with your private life”.

The Brahmin replied with confidence:

“Phra Gotama, I have heard since I was young that theGangerRiveris sacred and can help cleansing all sins because it flowed down the head of Shiva’s head. This is a heavenly river. This is the practice that had been observed by my ancestors and I believe that it could really cleanse all sins.

The Lord talked to the Brahmin with a gentle and friendly voice. Please think that we are exchanging knowledge may I ask you is the sin in the body or mind?”

“ Of course in the mind Phra Kotama”

“when you have a shower to cleanse the body does the water get through to the mind”

“But Phra Gotama the water from theGangerRiveris not ordinary water it is sacred and it is believe that it can cleanse the sin”

“ Do you think our belief can change the truth?”

“ No Sir. Belief can not change the truth, it is as it is no matter whether we believe or not”.

So you agree that no belief can change the truth. But is it true that theGangerRivercan cleanse the sin like you believe.

Listen Brahmin, if a man is lost in the forest and he is heading to the East because he believes it is but in reality it is West, his belief can not change the direction. It is similar to Brahmins who believed that theGangerRiveris sacred and but with their faith they can’t make the water cleanser of the sin,

Behold Brahmin, this is similar to a man with a copper pot that is filthy on the outside and inside. He is trying to clean the pot with lots of water but he only cleans on the outside. So you think that the pot is clean inside as well?.

“ It is impossible Phra Kotama, The man is wasting his energy, he could make the inside of the pot clean. It remains murky as it is.”

“ Behold Brahmin, I say that wrong actions, wrong speech and wrong thoughts caused the flaw to the mind. The mind can only be cleansed by the Dhamma It can not be cleansed with water”.

“Therefore the water from the person who has pure actions, pure speech and pure thought is sacred”

“Come Brahmin come and have a shower in our Dhamma disciplines that are profound and pure, that have the precepts as the shoreline and that are praised by pundit. All knowers loved to take a shower with it and could reach the other shore without being blemished.”

As the Lord explained, the Brahmin said joyfully: Most excellent, Lord! Most excellent! Just as one might set up what was thrown down, or were to reveal which was hidden away, or point out the right road to him who had gone astray, or might bring a lamp into the darkness so that they who have eyes could see external forms. So I, Lord, go to the Lordas refuge and to Dhamma and to the Bikkhu-sangha . Lord, may the exalted one accept me as a lay disciple gone for refuge from this day forth as long as life lasts.

Posted in Dhamma Stories | Tagged Buddha, Buddhism, Dhamma, Ganger river, Wash away sins | Leave a comment

Wrong livelihood for lay followers

Posted on February 26, 2012 by Udomson BK

Right Livelihood (samma ajivo) is the fifth of the eight path factors in the Noble Eightfold Path, and belongs to the virtue division of the path.

For lay people who have to do work in order to gain income for their living. They must not involve in these five businesses which are:

Business in weapons
Business in sale human being
Business in sale animal for being killed
Business in alcohol or intoxicants
Business in poison

These five businesses could gain income for someone to live but these businesses harmful to other lives. We should not earn our living on others suffering. When we do these businesses we do it in daily basis that mean we commit wrong doing regularly. Which this is not what our live are for. Ones should find right livelihood to accumulate more merit in daily basis.

We can choose what to make our living so the wises will avoid wrong livelihood.

Posted in Dhamma Talks | Tagged alcohol or intoxicants, Buddhism, Job, Right Livelihood, the Noble Eightfold Path | Leave a comment

Soumana suttra (Giving vs not giving)

Posted on January 26, 2012 by Udomson BK

Once upon a time Princess Soumana with 500 princesses paid respect to the Lord Buddha and asked him the following:

Oh! My Lord if your 2 disciples who had equal faith, morality and wisdom but one was more charitable than and the other. And who upon their passing were both reborn in the heaven world. Apart from being celestial beings would they be different.

The Lord said:

Listen Soumana both of them would have extraordinary difference in celestial life span, complexion, happiness, status and sovereign power. The non- charitable one is likely to be not as privileged as the charitable one.

My Lord once being reborn as human beings would they be amazingly different?

The Lord said:

As human beings both of them would have astonishingly difference in life span, complexion, happiness, status and sovereign power. the non giver would not be as advantaged as the giver.

Oh! My Lord when ordained as monks would they be unusually different.

Listen Soumana

Both of them would deserve differences in 5 aspects:

When the giver asks for robes he would receive lots of them and when he doesn’t ask for anything he still receives little. But the non giver wouldn’t get such treatment.

Similarly with alms. This applies to accommodation, requisites and medicine.

When living with other monks, the giver would be pleasantly treated most of the time. He would be addressed pleasingly most of the time and well thought of most of the time.

The giver would receive mostthings that are satisfying

As a monk the giver would be treated with priviledge in the 5 above mentioned circumstances.

My Lord when attaining Arahatship would they be different?

Listen Soumana

I don’t see any difference in their attainment.

My Lord this is wonderful. This means that we ought to give or make merit because merit would support beings whether they are celestials, humans or even monks.

That’s the way Soumana we ought to be charitable, make merit because it brings support to celestials, humans and even monks.

After saying this proverb, the Lord added the following:

The flawless moon would be brighter than any stars in this world. Similarly a person who is endowed with morality and faith would have a more flourishing life through generosity than the stingy one. Likewise a Buddha’s disciple who is a sage and who has a vision would be more priviledged than the stingy one in regards to the 5 circumstances i.e. life span, complexion, happiness, status and material comfort and he would enjoy himself in the heaven after his passing.

Book no.22 of the Tripitaka

Posted in Dhamma Stories | Tagged Buddhist, Donation, Giving | 1 Comment