Amida Order

Pre-Conference Visits to Other Faith Communities

Yesterday we went visiting Other Faith Communities in Leicester. Susthama had organised a great programme for us: Leicester Central Mosque, the Hare Krishna Centre, Leicester Hebrew Congregation Synagogue, the Jain Centre and the Guru Nanak Gurdwara. We were warmly welcomed wherever we went and pleased to be making friends with members of other faiths. A fascinating and enjoyable day. photos

Ordination Photographs

Here are photographs of the Ordination of Sundari and Bhaktika

Completion of Bodhi Retreat & Ordinations

Today the Bodhi Retreat came to its finale with the ordination of Michael Fitter and Georgina Clayton as chaplains in the Amida Order. They received the Dharma names Amita Bhaktika and Amita Sundari respectively. We wish them every success in their new role. The ceremony was a very joyous occasion crowning a particularly vibrant retreat which has, in effect, also functioned as the first full gathering of the Amida School since its inception. The new chaplains then hastened back to Sheffield where the local monthly meeting was about to take place. The Retreat ended with a community gathering and the traditional celebratory meal. A fitting conclusion to a fine week.

Growth in Amida School

Today, on day four of the annual Bodhi Retreat, we held an Admission Ceremony at The Buddhist House. Joan Court from Cambridge, Tony Danford from London, Patricia Obrgon from Hertfordshire, and Lisa Urbanic from Toronto became members of the Amida School.

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This brings the number of Amida-shu members to 25 in total including 12 Order members. Of these, 19 will have been present at the Bodhi Retreat this year. This gives this event a wonderful feeling.

Who's Where Now?

Right now: Dharmavidya, Prasada and Susthama are at TBH. Dharmavidya is much occupied with the ministry training programme, Prasada with the psychology programme, and Susthama with chaplaincy duties in Leicester. Sujatin is in Newcastle also much taken up with ministry work. Modgala and Joy are back in India where there are now once again a team of Amida folk including five young volunteers. They have taken on an additional house and already have even more students enrolled than last year. The volunteer training programme at The Buddhist House took much energy this autumn and there is much satisfaction that they are now in the field. Amrita is also out on the front line, back in Zambia after a longer break in UK this time. Now back in Africa, she has acquired a new and much needed vehicle for the Tithandizane Project and work is starting on a mortuary. Mike and Gina are in Sheffield. Earlier this month they started a Pureland Study group. Gina has been doing a lot of work in connection with visa applications as we have so many people going to and fro these days and migration restrictions become ever more complex. Madrakara and Joan continue to co-ordinate Amida activities in London. Leo has had an extended stay at Amida France and returns to TBH today. The Amida France web pages have, incidentally, been recently revamped.

Returning to a Vibrant Community

Prasada and I (Dharmavidya) returned to The Buddhist House yesterday. En route we collected two close friends from the USA at Gatwick. They are visiting for the weekend to discuss future developments in Amida Trust's work, not least in Hawaii where plans are gradually evolving. When we got back to TBH we found

the community bubbling with energy. The trainee volunteers preparing to go to India later in the year are already well into their studies and a good team spirit is apparent. This has also brought alot of "young energy" into the house which is stimulating. Other members of the household were also in good form and nothing too wild seems to have happened while we were away!

Right now the Amida Order is disposed as follows:
Dharmavidya, Prasada, Modgala, Susthama are all at TBH.
Amrita is back in Zambia and likely to remain there for about ten months.
Sujatin is in Newcastle where there are now two other Amida School members.
Mike and Gina are in Sheffield but are at TBH fairly frequently and will be hosting the trainee volunteers soon in Sheffield for a unit of their training. Also there is a ceremony (to be conducted by Sujatin) for admissions to the Amida School scheduled for the near future in Sheffield.
Marakara and Joan continue to co-ordinate Amida activities in London.
Joy is frequently at TBH as she is also much involved in the Volunteer training and she herself will be returning to India beforre the end of the year.
Leo is having a period at Amida France - solitary reteat among the autumn mists.
In addition to Order Members we currently have six trainee volunteers, three Buddhist trainees and one other resident, plus four cats, living at The Buddhist House, plus guests and students.

The Autumn term is just getting under way. There is a healthy intake of students for the Buddhist psychology programe. On Monday we start studying the Lotus Sutra in our Sutra Study Class. On Wednesday I will commence an on-going lecture series on "Characteristics of the Amida School" and on Thursday another on "Ethics and the Religious Life".

The Buddhist House is getting a facelift as all the outside painting is being redone. There is scaffolding up around some parts. Michael, our professional painter, is working hard and the trainees are also learning new skills working alongside him.

The household having expanded, at least temporarily, we have all experienced changes in role - either as newcomers arriving and learning the ropes or as old hands relinquishing things we used to do, accommodating new inputs from others and getting acclimatised to a more complex system. This is all good for Buddhist training as we learn to co-operate in new ways.

Prasada and I have come back to a small mountain of correspondence so if you have e-mailed me recently and not yet had a reply, I hope you will be patient a little longer. I have already had time to see that we have had quite a bit of positive feedback about the new format for Running Tide magazine which was distributed while we were away. Readers seem to like the new style, finding it clear and informative. We certainly appreciate hearing from readers and hearing your views. Namo Amida Bu. Dharmavidya

Comings and Goings

Amrita is back from Sri Lanka safe and sound. Cathy and Joy come back on Wednesday. The Activist Week in France at the end of May is shaping up well. I heard today that Paul Normann is coming from Talahassee. You can read his item Life Issues on Interlog. Also worth mentioning that the Amida web presence keeps expanding and both Interlog (Buddhist-Christian Themes) and Eschatolog are attracting interest with items on solitude, activism, Martin Luther King, Thomas Merton, Terri Shiavo, the Christian Right, the poet Saigyo, self-power and other-power and much else. You can get a more homely impression of Amida life at Dharmavidya Web. This week we have several visitors at The Buddhist House, relatives, retreatants, returning activists, interestees, would-be volunteers. Between times, I'll be working on the annual accounts!

The Order Today

This weblog replaces Namo Amida Bu as the official news site of the Amida Order. The Amida Order (or Order of Amida Buddha) currently consists of 12 members, six ordained and six lay. Right now they are located as follows:
Amrita, chaplain, is in Sri Lanka doing tsunami relief work
Dharmavidya, head of the order, is at The Buddhist House (TBH), Narborough having just completed leading the Easter Retreat.
Gina, lay member in Sheffield, works part time at TBH
Joan, lay member in London
Joy, lay member, is in Delhi at the Amida centre there, teaching English
Leo, lay member, is at TBH
Madrakara, lay member in London
Mike, lay member in Sheffield
Modgala, amitarya, is in Tamil Nadu assisting the Sakyan Buddhists to cope with the tsunami aftermath
Prasada, amitarya, is in Tallahassee, Florida, leading retreats and giving teachings
Sujatin, minister, organises Amida activities in Newcastle upon Tyne, this week is in Devon.
Susthama, novice amitarya, is at TBH