Amida-shu

Consult Friends of Amida

With the advent of the web site Friends of Amida networking site, all further news items that would have been posted in this section will now appear on the networking site. You may also follow Amida News. Both these sites have newsfeed that you can subscribe to and the newsfeed also appears on the Amida Trust Home Page

Dharmavidya

Biographical details

Anne Jones Confirmed in Amida Shu

At a ceremony conducted by Dharmavidya at Amida France on 13 July 2008 witnessed by several members of the Amida sangha including Prasada and Kaspalita, Anne Jones was confirmed as a member of Amida-shu. There are now 25 confirmed members of Amida-shu of whom 15 are Order members.

Joan Court Confirms shu membership

At a ceremony at The Buddhist House conducted by Dharmavidya, Joan Court confirmed her Amida-shu membership 27th April 2008.

Amida-shu now therefore consists of 36 members
of whom 15 are Order Members:

Seven are confirmed members:
Saille Abbott, Paul Norman, Colin McDougall, Sally Woods, Catherine Swift, Sue & Ray King, Tony Stellmacher  and Joan Court

and a further 13 have yet to have their confirmation ceremonies.

Confirmations occur between one and two years after admission.

At a ceremony at The Buddhist House conducted by Dharmavidya, Joan Court confirmed her Amida-shu membership 27th April 2008.

Amida-shu now therefore consists of 36 members
of whom 15 are Order Members:

Seven are confirmed members:
Saille Abbott, Paul Norman, Colin McDougall, Sally Woods, Catherine Swift, Sue & Ray King, Tony Stellmacher  and Joan Court

and a further 13 have yet to have their confirmation ceremonies.

Confirmations occur between one and two years after admission.

Ordination

In a ceremony at The Buddhist House conducted by Dharmavidya, the Head of the Order, Gareth Thompson was ordained as a novice amitarya. He received the Dharma name Amita Kaspalita and will be known as Kaspa for day to day purposes. We wish him a hearty welcome.

Refuge Ceremony

At a refuge ceremony conducted by Rev. Prasada at The Buddhist House this morning

• Tony Stellmacher confirmed his membership of Amida-shu and
• Alena Budkovska took refuge in the Three Jewels, Amida Buddha and the Pure Land thus becoming a lay Buddhist of the Pureland tradition.

There are now 23 confirmed Amida-shu members of whom five are lay Order members and nine are ordained.

Anne Jones Admitted to Amida-shu

At a ceremony at The Buddhist House conducted by Dharmavidya, Anne Jones was admitted to Amida-shu on 16th October.

The Smaller Pure Land Sutra

Full text of the Amida-kyo, the Smaller Pure Land Sutra.

22 Aug 2007: Buddhist Theology Programme

Over the summer period here have been some important developments in the training programme for ministry within Amida-shu. The programme has been undergoing steady improvement and expansion and is

Ordination of Rev. Sahishnu

On the morning of 18th July 2007, in a ceremony at Amida France, conducted by Dharmavidya, the head of the Order, in the presence of Rev. Prasada, Ven. Susthama, other members of the Order and members of Amida-shu, Joy Marston became a chaplain in the Order of Amida Buddha, receiving the name Amita Sahishnu. A joyous occasion for the sangha. Congratulations to the new bodhisattva! Reverend Sahishnu will return to England in the next few days and plans to resume her duties in India in the autumn.

To view photos of the ordination please go to Sahishnu's photo album

Entry of Tony Stellmacher to Amida-shu

In a ceremony  conducted by Rev. Bhaktika,  10th June, Tony Stellmacher was admitted in to the Amida-shu.

Tony (in yellow) surrounded by Order, Shu and Trust members.

Order Meeting

The annual spring meeting of the Amida Order this year took place at Bolsover in Derbyshire at the home of Joy Marston. Twelve of the 14 members were present. It was a happy gathering with discussion ranging over the current and prospective situation of the Amida-shu and its work. No major decisions were taken but there was a general sense of strengthening of relationships and valuable sharing of experience. This meeting is now part of an annual cycle of meetings that review the life of the religious community and its work in many spheres. New order members Mudita and Tony were attending for the first time. Modgala (in France) and Sudana (travelling back from Zambia) were not present this time, but a phone link kept Modgala in the loop for most things.

London Congregation Approved

Today, 20 May 2007, Dharmavidya, in a meeting of the Order, admitted the London group of Amida-shu to the status of a Congregation of the Amida School, the citeria set out in Provisions for Structure, Continuity and Governance having been met. There are now three approved congregations: Leicester, Sheffield and London.

Accidents

Rev. Sujatin is gradually recovering from her broken foot. Joy, leader of the Amida India project, currently at her home in England, is being treated for a stroke which occurred a week ago. Sr Susthama has gone to Derbyshire to assist her.

Colin McDougall Confirmation

On 27th March 2007, Colin confirmed his membership of Amida-shu in a ceremony performed by Rev. Sujatin at the Amida Sanctuary in Newcastle upon Tyne. Welcome Colin.

For Love

Every community has at its core its discernment of the sacred.

Go Veggie

Amida-shu encourages members to be vegetarian. Here are some reasons to be vegetarian.

Deployment of Amida-shu February 2007

News of whereabouts and roles of Amida-shu members

Special Features of Amida Buddhism

What's special about Amida Pureland?

Want to do Chaplaincy?

We are looking for the right people to train in Buddhist chaplaincy and help us to develop unique socially engaged Buddhist projects in Leicester.

Second Convocation

On 31 January 2007, Dharmavidya, in his capacity as Head of the Amida Order, after appropriate consultations according to our constitutions, today enacted a revision of Provisions for Continuity, Structure and Governance.

The new version of Provisions is now, therefore, definitive and may be read by following this link

First Admission Ceremony in Vancouver

At a ceremony conducted by Rev. Dharmavidya and Rev. Prasada on Sunday 28th January 2007 held at Pacific Mountain Centre, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, Terran Campbell was admitted to Amida-shu and Saille Abbott was confirmed as a member of Amida-shu. Mike Talbot, Conrad Bowden and several members of the local sangha were also present.

First Admission Ceremony in Pacific Region

At a ceremony conducted by Rev. Dharmavidya and Rev. Prasada on Sunday 7th January 2007 held at Halawa House, North Kohala, on the Big Island of Hawaii, Franco Acquaro and John Balaam were admitted to Amida-shu. Amida-shu members Paul Normann and Judy Walker and a number of members of the local Amida Hawaii sangha were also present.

Admission and Confirmation Ceremony 9th December 2006

At a ceremony at The Buddhist House conducted by Venerable Modgala, amitarya of the Order, Peter Norrie of Leicester was admitted to the Amida-shu and Sally Woods was confirmed in membership. Sally also reaffirmed the Five Precepts. Earlier in the week Sally had been admitted as an aspirant at TBH.

Order & School Members

Following the admissions and ordinations at the Bodhi Retreat, the membership of the Amida Order is now as follows:

Ordinations, 8th December 2006

At a ceremony conducted by Rev. Master Dharmavidya at The Buddhist House, Lisa Urbanic was ordained as a chaplain in the Order of Amida Buddha and received the Dharma name Amita Mudita and Venerable Susthama Kim, a novice in the Amida Order, having completed her novitiate of three years, was ordained as an amitarya. In attendance were other members of the sangha including Revs. Prasada, Modgala, Sujatin, Bhaktika, and Sunari, Bhikkhu Anomadharshi, other members of the Amida Order, of Amida-shu and the public.

Admission to the Order, 7th December 2006

At a ceremony at The Buddhist House, jointly conducted by Rev. Master Dharmavidya and Rev. Minister Sujatin, Lisa Urbanic and Sudana Edwards, both residents at TBH, and Tony Danford from London, all Amida-shu members, were admitted to the Order of Amida Buddha as lay members. This admission creates a second convocation of the Order.

Admission to Postulancy & Aspirancy, 7th.December 2006

At a ceremony at The Buddhist House, jointly conducted by Rev. Master Dharmavidya and Rev. Sujatin, Sally Woods, a member of Amida-shu, was admitted as an aspirant. and Gareth Thompson was admitted as a postulant. This means that they will both live and train at TBH, Sally toward ordination as a chaplain/minister and Gareth toward ordination as an amitarya.

Admission Ceremony 6.12.2006

Angela Dietrich from London, Judy Walker from Hawaii, and Ngi Yi from Leicester became members of Amida-shu in a ceremony at The Buddhist House conducted by Rev. Sujatin

Confirmation Ceremony 7.10.2006

Sue and Ray King were confirmed as members of Amida-shu on 7 October 2006 in a ceremony conducted by Rev. Sujatin in Sheffield, England.

Dharma Teachings

This site provide access to a range of articles, some key writings and also classical texts on Pureland Buddhism. You can also consult Questions in the Sand.

21 November: Deployment

News of the whereabouts and current roles of all members of the Amida Order

School & Order

Amida-shu is a religious denomination - a School or Church of Buddhism following the Pureland tradition especially as it has come down to us through the Chinese-Japanese line and been established by Honen Shonin and his many disciples including Bencho and Shinran. The Amida Order is a religious order within the Amida-shu of those having a special vocation. Amida Order members hold various responsibilities within the denomination and may be ordained or lay.

21 Novembe 2006: Blessing of Joshua Genini

A ceremony was conducted by Rev. Prasada and the community at The Buddhist House for the blessing and naming of Joshua, age 5 months. His family live in Leicester. A very nice occasion.

Entry Requirements

Enactment of a revision to Provisions for Continuity, Structure and Governance on 14th November 2006.

Dharmavidya & Prasada to Plymouth, Devon

On 10 November Dharmavidya is lecturing to a Person Centred Psychology group in Devon. For details contact Lisa

Instructions in Nei Quan and Chih Quan

by Dharmavidya, in response to requests for further instruction on dhyana practice in the Amida Pureland School

Summary of Faith and Practice

by Dharmavidya, inspired by Honen’s Ichimai Kishomon

Training Courses in Ministry & Chaplaincy

Amida-shu offers a range of attendance courses and specialised retreats for those wishing to pursue Buddhist ministry and chaplaincy training. Please se also the Vow 22 Programme

Ichimai Kishomon

Honen's "One Page Document" - his final testament, written for his disciple Genchi.

Larger Pureland Sutra

Full text of the Sukhavati Vyuha Sutra: manifesting the land of bliss in the recension used by the Amida-shu

Susthama to go to Hawaii Immediately

Further deterioration in the post earthquake situation promts Dharmavidya to send Susthama to Hawaii. See reports

26th Oct: Hawaii Earthquake Damage Worse than Thought

Please read the report on the Amida Network site.

The Amida Order

This item has been superceded. Please see The Amida Order

Ministry & Chaplaincy Overview

Amida-shu is involved in Ministry and Chaplaincy in a number of ways:

Weddings, Funerals, Memorials, Child Blessings
Pastoral counselling & spiritual direction
Chaplaincy in hospitals
Chaplaincy in universities
Chaplaincy in custidial facilities
Support to the mentally ill
Support to those suffering from HIV/AIDS
Support to refugees and asylum seekers
Support for multi-faith initiatives
Extensive networking with voluntary agencies
Detached chaplaincy work in the city of Leicester
Meditation groups in various settings
Mediation work in Sheffield
Counselling & psychotherapy
Groupwork
Digital story workshop
Proposed drop in facility in Leicester city centre

We can offer training to individuals and groups.
We can also offer placements for trainee chaplains and counsellors.
See also: Vow 22 Training

Questions in the Sand

At Questions in the Sand you can find answers that Dharmavidya has given to a variety of questions raised by enquirers. If you would like to pose a question, e-mail dharmavidya@amidatrust.com

Buddhist Psychology

For materials on Buddhist Psychology, please consult:
Buddhist Psychology.info
Other Power and Therapy
Buddhist Psychology Questions and
Questions in the Sand

Buddhist Basics and the Amida-shu Approach

An essay about Amida Pureland Buddhism: a practical approach to self-power and other-power.

River of Fire, River of Water

A parable told by the sage, Shan Tao (613-681), spiritual ancestor of the Pureland tradition.

Two Short Audio Dharma Talks

“Love is Unborn” - Short Talk: audio
“Anjin: Settled Faith” - Short Talk: audio