By Dipen Barua
Shwedagon Pagoda, Myanmar. From cgtn.com
The Centre of Buddhist Studies (CBS) at the University of Hong Kong hosted an online four-part lecture series on 15, 22, and 29 January, titled “Buddhism in Myanmar.” The main speakers were Ven. Dr. Khammai Dhammasamai, Dr. Aliex Ruiz-Falques, Ven. Nyanasami, and Dr. Pyi Phyo Kyaw. The lectures provided a fresh perspective on Buddhism in Myanmar, its history, and Pali scholarship over the centuries.
As a CBS staff member, I joined every lecture to learn more about the Burmese expression of Theravada Buddhism. Ven. Dhammasamai gave a lecture titled “An Overview of Buddhism in the Republic of the Union of Myanmar.” Dr. Ruiz-Falques and Ven. Nyanasamilankara delivered a talk on “Pali Studies in Myanmar,” and Dr. Pyi Phyo Kyaw discussed the topic of “Meditation in Myanmar.” She was also supposed to have given the fourth and final lecture, “Living Tradition of Abhidhamma Studies in Myanmar,” on
By Craig Lewis Buddhistdoor Global | 2021-02-24 |
Ven. Vy Sovechea, president of the SBUBB, at a gathering to distribute relief supplies. Image courtesy of SBUBB
The Buddhist humanitarian relief organization Join Together Society Korea (JTS Korea), founded by the renowned Korean Seon (Zen) monk Venerable Pomnyun Sunim, working in cooperation with the Preah Sihanouk Raja Buddhist University, Battambang Branch (SBUBB), has reported the successful distribution of emergency relief supplies in Cambodia’s Battambang Province in the wake of last year’s devastating floods.
In late 2020, the worst flooding in a decade inundated large areas of Cambodia, already reeling from the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Between October and November, Cambodia was hit by 13 consecutive tropical storms, leading to widespread flash floods that deluged communities, causing landslides, unearthing mines and other unexploded war ordnance, and damaging or destroying farmland and infrastructu
By Craig Lewis Buddhistdoor Global | 2021-01-18 |
Ven. Pomnyun Sunim thanks farmers Gong Hee-jeong and Jo Jun-ho for donating two tonnes of sweet potatoes. Image courtesy of Jungto Society
Jungto Society, a South Korea-based Buddhist humanitarian organization founded by the renowned Seon (Zen) master and social activist Venerable Pomnyun Sunim, has carved a new avenue for spreading Buddhist compassion among vulnerable communities in Korea this winter, thanks to the good will of a generous couple who, inspired by Ven. Pomnyun Sunim’s teachings on organic agriculture and sustainable living, have found a second career as farmers.
Gong Hee-jeong and Jo Jun-ho, from the city of Jecheon in North Chungcheong Province, made the transition to a more self-sufficient lifestyle in 2020, just as the COVID-19 pandemic began spreading around the world. Their trial harvest last year netted them some two tonnes of sweet potatoes, which they donated to Jungto Society in recognition of the in
major renovation in over 100 years. From japantimes.co.jp
Yakushi-ji, a Buddhist Temple in the former Japanese capital Nara, plans to offer the public access to its ancient East Pagoda for the first time in over 10 years, following the conclusion of the first major restoration program for the historic monument in more than a century.
The 1,300-year-old, three-tiered East Pagoda will be partially opened to the public from March through to 16 January next year, during which visitors to the historic monument, designated a national treasure by the Japanese government, will be allowed onto a platform around the pagoda’s entrance, from which they will be able to view the tower’s central pillar and ornate ceiling. The interior of the monument will remain off-limits for the time being, according to media reports.
By Craig Lewis Ven. Pomnyun Sunim, center, with JTS volunteers. Image courtesy of JTS Korea
The Buddhist humanitarian relief organization Join Together Society Korea (JTS Korea), founded by the renowned Korean Seon (Zen) monk Venerable Pomnyun Sunim, is spreading the warmth of compassion through a US$10,000 project to distribute coal briquettes to vulnerable households across South Korea as the country settles into another cold winter season, when temperatures can sometimes drop as low as –20ºC.
As recently as 30 years ago, lignite coal briquettes were the main fuel for heating and cooking in Korean households, and are still relied upon by some impoverished communities. Due to the outbreak of COVID-19, donations of briquettes for underprivileged families nationwide have dropped to a third of levels recorded a year earlier.