News Updates, Page 29

>> White to Brown:
Anagarika Laurence has been invited by the sangha to take the going-forth as a samanera sometime in early December. This is very happy news for all concerned and an encouraging, healthy indicator for the monastery. Sadhu.! We will let you know the date as soon as it has been decided.

>> Big Buddha Blessing:
There will be a dedication/celebration of the standing Buddha in the barn, on Sunday September 21st. Start around 10.30am with precepts and dhamma; the meal at 11.30 with the ceremony at about 12.45. Nuch Tanphaichitr is co-ordinating dana along with many other friends and invites everyone to join in, and bring a dish. Everyone welcome.

>> Hey Day:
It was a little wet which put a bit of a damper on things but a few people turned up and we got quite a lot done. [photo] Wood got shifted, the barn basement got a good tidy, we had a great lunch and generally good fun. Thank you.

>> Ajahn V. transport:
Ajahn Viradhammo needs a ride from and to Ottawa on Saturday for the Day of Mindfulness. Please Contact him if you can help. Because of Vinaya rules, there must be another male in the car.… Read the rest

>> Hey Day:
Omigosh.! It’s *this* weekend. Sunday, September 7th. Just as well we are totally organised 🙂 with lots of fun projects. The main focus will be winter wood [photo] – cutting, splitting, shifting, stacking, supervising. You can have a go at one, all, or none of these. If wood isn’t your thing then there is bound to be something that is. Bring work clothes. See you on the day.

>> Family Camp Success:
Four families spent labour weekend at the monastery camping out in the field. There was a range of dhamma activities (chanting, meditation, making buddhas, a mural, etc.) balanced with free-time to enjoy nature. The weather was brilliant, the kids were great, the parents well behaved and the toasted marshmallows sublime. [photo]

>> Ajahn V needs a ride:
Ajahn Viradhammo needs a ride from and to Ottawa for the Saturday Day of Mindfulness. Please contact him directly if you are able to help. Because of Vinaya rules, there must be another male in the car. See the Event Calendar for more information.

>> Big Buddha Blessing:
If you have been to the monastery recently you would have seen the beautiful, standing Buddha image in the lobby of the barn.… Read the rest

Weekend of Mindfulness:
The last weekend of September – 26th-28th – At Tisarana. Space is limited. This is a first and there are several unknowns; level of interest, kitchen & service facility capacity, etc., but we would like to see how it might work at the monastery. It will be from Friday evening to after dana on Sunday. Come for the day or, if you would like to stay overnight, please fill out the guest form: www.tisarana/docs/guest_form.php specifying ‘RETREAT’ in the comments box at the end of the form.

Day of Mindfulness:
This regular part of our Saturday remains the same. It *merges* with the above weekend. If you want to just come for the 2pm meditation and dhamma talk on Saturday then you are most welcome. There might be such a buddha-buzz happening that you may want to stay on into the evening.

Drawn out House:
A good friend has produced a beautiful drawing of the monastery house. It was done for the new Anumodana card and a small version of the drawing can be seen on the web site home page. You may well see it popping up in other places. Anumodana to the artist.! Anumodana to you all.… Read the rest

>> Ajahn V needs a ride
Ajahn Viradhammo needs a ride to Tisarana from Ottawa for the Saturday Day of Mindfulness. Please contact him directly if you are able to help. Because of Vinaya rules, there must be another male in the car. See the Event Calendar for more information.

>> Ajahn Kusalo Returns:
The mother’s birthday party came and went. There was cake and tea and scones and much merriment. Lots of friends and lots of fun. Several of you gave me gifts for mum and she was surprised and thoroughly delighted to receive those. Thank you. Winter there is pretty nice – 12c mornings 24c afternoons. Despite the rain it is so nice to be back. The place is looking so nice and lush. The tractor is sooooo clean and the barn has no hay, and… great to be back.

>> Chanting CD’s
For a limited time there are copies of the Amaravati Dhamma Threads chanting CD available at the monastery. The CD contains the morning and evening chanting as well as most of the reflections and suttas in our chanting book, as well as the monastic meal chant, etc. etc. They are only available for pick up from the monastery.… Read the rest

>> Schedule Change at Tisarana
The day of mindfulness AT TISARANA has been moved from Saturday to Sunday. The DOM sponsored by the OBS in Ottawa remains unchanged, on Saturday. So the current schedule is: Saturday DOM in Ottawa, Sunday DOM at Tisarana.

>> Drivers wanted
Ajahn Viradhammo needs a driver from Ottawa to Tisarana this Sunday morning for the rescheduled day of mindfulness. He would like to stay over night and would need a driver to take him from Tisarana to Ottawa Monday after lunch. Because of monastic rules, there needs to be at least one other male in the vehicle. If you are able to offer a ride, please contact him directly. You can always check the events page on the website to see when he needs a ride.

>> Ajahn Kusalo mai nei
“Mai nei” is a Thai phrase that means “uncertain.” Ajahn Chah used it a lot as a simple way of giving the Buddha’s teaching. Mai nei, mai nei. Life is uncertain, uncertain. Well what could be more uncertain than Ajahn Kusalo? He missed his flight and won’t be back at the monastery till probably Sunday. Everything is fine; no worries. Just a little mai nei.… Read the rest

Conrad
Our resident cat, Conrad, or very fondly known by his previous owners as Lord Conrad, died on July 29th 2008. He had stomach cancer. Conrad had a full and wonderful life at 1358 Powers Road. He was one of a kind and very much loved and will be missed because he brought so much joy.

How inconstant are compounded things!
Their nature: to arise and pass away.
They disband as they are arising.
Their total stilling is bliss.

Digha Nikaya 16

Much gratitude to Dianne for giving him such attentive and compassionate care in his final days, and gratitude to Marion and Cathy for watching over him when they lived at the monastery. (check out the photo album)

The Hay is Away
The only thing that matches our immense gratitude for the hay volunteers is the immense pile of hay that now lives rotting happily in a back field. No one got hurt in the process. That’s always great, too. Not to be left out are all the folks who, unable to be around old rotting hay (go figure), helped in numerous ways during the hay day events. Check out the Hay Diaries Photo album to see the project start to finish.… Read the rest

Hip Hip Hoo-HAY!
Last weekend’s hay day was a huge success. First thanks goes to our neighbour Doug Goodfellow who lent us his tractor when ours broke down Friday morning. We couldn’t have moved so much without it. Second to Keith for his “Flying Carpet” hay wagon that let us zoom large amounts of hay out of the barn at rapid speed. And of course great thanks to everyone who got in there and pitched and pitched. One more day should do it. (check out the “Hay Diaries” photo album)

The Last Straw
It’s time for the final Hay Day, Sunday 27 July. If all goes as planned, we will surely get the last hay out. Bring work clothes. There are lots of other projects to do if you can’t be around the hay.

News from Ajahn Kusalo:
Greetings from down under where I am currently staying with my mother. It has been several weeks since leaving Tisarana and the itinerary has been quite full. First a week at Abhayagiri Monastery in California to take part in a bhikkhu ordination ceremony. This was my first visit and I was delighted to see how well established the sangha is and how healthy ongoing developments appear.… Read the rest

Hay Day
This Sunday, July 13th will be our second official Hay Day to remove the the hay from the barn. We will work rain or shine–it’s mostly indoors. There is plenty of other work if you can’t shift hay.
*WHEN: Work starts at 8:00am. We will break for lunch at 11:30am. Work continues after lunch until 5pm. Come as early as you can.
*WHO CAN HELP: Anyone! The work is not strenuous. It is very dusty, though. If you have asthma we will find other things you can do to help around (especially the kitchen) so come one come all.
*WHAT TO BRING: Work cloths. Towel for showering afterwards. Rain jacket if you have one. Dust mask if you have one (we will provide for those who do not).
*Staying overnight: There is still some space available Friday night and Saturday night for those who would like to stay over. Please book on line through the website.

Sink Sukha
Started with some drippy dukkha. Ended up with some super sink sukha. The kitchen now has a bigger sink to make cooking and clean up much easier. Come and give it a test run. You won’t realize how bad it was until you try the new one.… Read the rest

>> No ride for Ajahn
As of Thursday no one has volunteered to drive Ajahn Viradhammo to the Day of Mindfulness at Tisarana for this Saturday. If you can offer a ride, please contact him directly. To see when Ajahn needs a ride, visit the Tisarana event calender.

Ajahn’s regular drivers, Tarik K & Dave H. are no longer available. Thanks Tarik and Dave for providing so many rides for Ajahn over the last year.

>> Hay Day Hooray!
Much appreciation to all those who turned out for our first big hay day. Lots of hay got moved, by truck, tarp or trailer. People with asthma, allergies, etc also helped out in big ways with other projects. The end is in sight if your vision is good. If you are sad that you missed out on all the fun have no fear because…

>> Two more Hay Days on the way
Because of the great success of the last work day, we estimate that two more days just like it might finish off the job. Take a look at the Hay Diaries photo album to see the progress. Mark your calenders and get ready for a Hay Days on Sunday, July 13 and 27.… Read the rest

Hay Day
This Sunday, June 29th will be our first official Hay Day to remove the remainder of the hay from the barn. We will work rain or shine–mostly indoors.
*WHEN: Work starts at 8:00am. We will break for lunch at 11:00am. Work continues after lunch until 5pm. Come as early as you can.
*WHO CAN HELP: Anyone! The work is not strenuous. It is very dusty, though. If you have asthma we will find other things you can do to help around (especially the kitchen) so come one come all.
*WHAT TO BRING: Work cloths. Towel for showering afterwards. Rain jacket if you have one. Dust mask if you have one (we will provide for those who do not).
*Staying overnight: There is still some space available Friday night and Saturday night for those who would like to stay over. Please book on line through the website.

Drivers Gone Digital
Check the Tisarana Event Calender (WWW.tisarana.ca/events/events.php) to see exactly which days Ajahn Viradhammo needs rides to the monastery. This will be an ongoing need. Click on the specific listing to see details.

Ottawa Teachings
Ajahn Viradhammo’s teachings in Ottawa are also conveniently listed on the Tisarana Event Calender. He is continuing to do the alternating Wednesday and Friday programs.… Read the rest