Samadhi Buddhist Meditation Center: Samadhi Sutra Study Series-Step 2

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Samadhi Sutra Study Series-Step 2

Samadhi Sutra Study Series-Step 2: September-November, 2009: 7.00PM-9.00PM

Taught by Bhante Upananda

Dear Friends in Dhamma,

As you are aware, we used to have sutra studies on Fridays and general Buddhist insights series on Tuesdays. And, since Bhante Upananda will be touring the US, Canada and Asia on most of the weekends in September, October and early November, and is totally unavailable for teaching between November 11, 2009 and February 15, 2010, we will have our Samadhi Sutra Study Series-Step 2 on Tuesdays. Here is the schedule:

September 01, 08, 15, 22, 29

October 06, 13, 20

November 10

Limited seating capacity. Seating is provided on first-come-first-occupied basis. No registration is required. It is highly recommended that you attend the whole series, as the factors discussed are interrelated.

It is absolutely free of charge but invaluable. Program-participants find Bhante Upananda's teachings unique, clear and far better than most paid Buddhism study programs in the United States.

Donations are welcome but not mandatory. Donations made are credited towards the Samadhi Development Fund. We intend to buy a bigger property in order to accommodate the fast-growing Samadhi spiritual community. Currently, Samadhi is located on a private property, and all the utility bills are paid by the property owner from her private funds, despite a big mortgage and other expenses being paid down.

Come and benefit from Bhante Upananda's selfless agreement to help out Dhamma-enthusiasts like you.

As usual, a handout will be provided in class.

Thank you.

Yours in Dhamma,

Reverend Bhikkhuni Sudarshana Peliyagoda

Samadhi Buddhist Meditation Center, Inc

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About the Reverend Abbess (By courtesy of St. Petersburg Times)

Buddhist nun's path to peace leads to Florida

St. Petersburg Times

By WAVENEY ANN MOORE
Published March 10, 2007

The petite woman with a shaved head, saffron robes and slippers carefully selects fruit and vegetables from the produce stand bins.

Here, she doesn't turn heads. She's a regular. But it's not unusual for Bhikkhuni Sudarshana Peliyagoda, 37, to stand out in a crowd.

In Sri Lanka at 16, and against her mother's wishes, she became a Buddhist nun.

She went on to defy her country's traditions by earning the coveted "high ordained" title, a distinction reserved at the time only for monks. She then trained others to follow her lead. Now Bhikkhuni Sudarshana is believed to be the only Sri Lankan Buddhist nun to run her own temple in America.

This week the intrepid nun was honored in Thailand at a conference for outstanding Buddhist women. She's also been invited to speak next year at an international event in Germany.

She works to straddle both her worlds.

Back home in Sri Lanka, they'd be shocked to see her driving, she said. And she has a mortgage, which she pays by working as a certified nursing assistant at PARC.

While working, she sheds her traditional robes and dons a Korean tunic and pants, because it's more practical, she says.

She grew up in a comfortable home with two sisters and a brother. Her parents owned a hotel and grocery store. As far back as she can remember, she yearned to follow in the footsteps of her father's sister, a Buddhist nun.

"I didn't know anything about this life, but I wanted to be a nun," she said.

Her father tried to discourage her. When he was killed in a robbery, her desire to become a nun became even stronger. Just 12, she begged her mother to let her join her aunt at the temple.

"My mother said you have to study," she said. Obeying, she finished high school. A year later, she took her first vows.

Her waist-length hair was cut and her head shaved for the occasion.

"I gave my hair to my mom," she said, adding that her mother had been too upset to attend the ceremony.

She went on to earn a bachelor's and two master's degrees, taught high school girls and studied for two years at a Buddhist temple in India. In 1996, she received her high ordination orders, earning the title of Bhikkhuni.

She arrived in America in 2003, the lucky recipient of a visa through the State Department's lottery program.

"I have never seen a western country," she said. "I wanted to go and try."

She started out as a caregiver for an elderly St. Petersburg woman. She learned to drive and became familiar with American culture. Until recently, she took English classes at St. Petersburg College.

There was plenty to learn. She didn't know how to cook, because, according to custom, meals for the temple were provided from the offerings of lay people.

"I didn't even know how to cut an onion," she said, laughing, and added that several times she had to resort to long distance tutoring from her mother.

Van Wallace and his wife, Nancy, met Bhikkhuni Sudarshana through a Sri Lankan monk in Clearwater. Wallace, a St. Petersburg retiree, said Bhikkhuni Sudarshana has become a good cook.

"She is just remarkable in every aspect, in her kindness and diligence and her motivation for life. She's also a very intelligent person," Wallace said.

Last May, she established her temple and the nonprofit Samadhi Buddhist Meditation Center. No palatial edifice, it's actually a three-bedroom Pinellas Park house, indistinguishable from others around except for the Buddhist flag hanging at the front door.

Some might recognize the small Bodhi tree - Buddha is said to have reached enlightenment under one - planted in a pot in the yard.

Inside, an altar with a 2-foot statue of Buddha and offerings of fruit, flowers and vessels of coffee and water dominate what normally would be considered the living room. Candles burn in lotus-shaped holders. Nearby is a spool of saffron-colored blessing thread that Bhikkhuni Sudarshana takes with her on hospital visits and uses to pray with devotees. She leaves them with several strands wrapped around their wrists.

The nun has developed a small but loyal following of mostly Americans.

Friday nights she offers meditation and chanting and often invites noted Buddhist leaders to give talks.

She dreams of having a larger place filled with Sri Lankan nuns. She also wants to earn a doctorate and perhaps return to Sri Lanka to teach.

For now, she works to balance her secular and religious responsibilities.

Her mornings begin at 6 with an hour of chanting and meditation. She rarely watches television, preferring to read newspapers and books. She has a computer.

In her car, the chants of Taiwanese monks are a soothing companion. She's also perched a tiny statue of Buddha on the dashboard and hung prayer beads on the rear view mirror.

Is she at peace with the life she chose so many years ago?

"I'm so happy," she said, smiling. "Now my mom is also happy."

Waveney Ann Moore can be reached at 727 892-2283 or moore@sptimes.com.

If you go Fridays at the meditation center:
Meditation, chanting and talks, 7 p.m. Fridays, Samadhi Buddhist Meditation Center, 5908 67th Ave. N, Pinellas Park. Call 214-1842.

[Last modified March 9, 2007, 23:36:17]

Samadhi Buddhist Meditation Center

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Samadhi Sutra Study Series-Step 2

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About the Reverend Abbess (By courtesy of St. Petersburg Times)

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