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News Updates, Page 4

New Visitor Orientations and bookings for April 2023.

As the monastic community comes out of winter retreat, we will get into planning Tisarana’s calendar from April to December 2023. However, here’s some important information that may be relevant:

New Visitor Orientations will commence as of May 2023 and dates will be posted on our calendar sometime around the third week of April. Please note that we are unable to process New Visitor bookings prior to April 30th this year.

Regular visitors (those who have stayed with us for at least three or more visits) are welcome to request overnight stays for the month of April by emailing the Guest Monk.

The booking form has been disabled till April 30th.

For those who have been applying over the winter months, please note that we are unable to hold and process applications in queue. You are welcome to apply again after April 30th, should you wish to stay at Tisarana.

As always, we are open for day visits and those bringing Dana are welcome to book by contacting the Kitchen Steward.

Warmest regards from our entire community.… Read the rest

Details for Tax Receipts: First-Time and New Donors

Dear friends and supporters,

At the beginning of every year, the Finance Team at Tisarana strives to send out Tax Receipts to all Canadian donors. Prior to that, we try to collect donor information that is missing.

If you have donated to Tisarana for the first time, or have recently started donating, we request you kindly send us your full official name and complete postal address via email to tbmtreasurer.tisarana@gmail.com.

Please note that we can only send out Tax Receipts to Canadian Citizens and Permanent Residents or donations originating in Canada and the donor having a Canadian postal address.

We have received many donations by Interac eTransfer recently, but we have no donor records for these generous donations.

Please keep in mind that even if you prefer not to claim credits based on these donations, as a charity, Tisarana is responsible for sending you tax receipts. Please help us fulfill this important obligation by providing us with the relevant information.

As always, we are very grateful and appreciative of your continued support and friendship.… Read the rest

Ten Royal Duties

Affairs of state are clearly not the focus of Buddhist teachings. Indeed, conversation about ‘kings and ministers’ figure in the many forms of ‘low or animal talk’ that the Buddha recommended we avoid (Anguttara 10.69). This injunction stems from the view that we often engage in such talk simply to exercise our opinions, without useful purpose.

Yet, however contested modern political discourse might be, the function and qualities of leadership are of ongoing relevance in our worldly lives. And when it’s observed that no dimension of life is excluded from the Dhamma it does not surprise that, in addition to diverse spiritual teachings the Buddha gave to various kings of his day, he is also known to have offered them guidance on royal governance. 

With the recent death of Queen Elizabeth II and ascension of King Charles III, reflection on the role of monarchs – indeed, any form of personal, professional, or state authority – acquires renewed pertinence. 

Is there a Buddhist approach to such ancient and contemporary concerns? A list of qualities found in the Jataka Tales, provides one response. The Jatakas present memorable incidents believed to issue from various previous lives of Gotama Buddha. The following ‘Ten Royal Duties’ (also, ’Norms’ or ‘Rules’: Dasa Rajadhamma) appear in the Jataka III,274:

Dana – generosity

Sila – virtue

Pariccaga – altruism, or selflessness

Ajjava – honesty, or integrity

Maddava – gentleness

Tapo – self-control

Akkodha – non-anger, or calmness

Avihimsa – harmlessness, or non-violence

Khanti – patient forbearance

Avirodha – uprightness, or conformity with principles of Dhamma

Even a brief glance will confirm that the list is in harmony with numerous refined qualities recommended by Buddhism to be worth developing… by anyone.… Read the rest

Dhamma Hall – August Update

As can be seen by the photos posted in the News section, the Dhamma Hall is now taking shape. As usual, the early work all took place below ground (e.g., foundation footings, electrical lines, septic and water lines, etc.) all monitored by repeated surveying. Although such work doesn’t interest everyone, for the residents even this proved to be rather captivating, as it was conducted by an impressive excavator, dump trucks, large concrete pumper, and teams of workers. Lots of commotion! 

This first rows of insulated blocks for the foundation, have now been filled with concrete and buried below several feet of packed gravel. The insulated walls have continued to be raised and strengthened with concrete and rebar, and now stand nearly complete, with just a few more rows needed at each gable end. 

Before these ends are completed, some of the timber framing along the walls will begin. However, before this is done attention will be focused on the floor. Like everything, this is a sequential process, entailing a heavy plastic vapour barrier set between 2 layers of insulation, onto which tubing for the radiant heating will be attached. The concrete can then be poured and levelled. Outside of the main building, the well and a septic tank have also been dug. … Read the rest

July Update

Luang Por Sumedho’s Visit — Ajahn Pavaro

It’s a normal summer morning: The big lawn is being mowed; rooms are being cleaned; hardwood planks are being worked on the jointer; a trip to the dump has cleared our recycling bins. The Dhamma Hall is also slowly being raised, block by  block. Yet over much of July things were charged with a unique spirit, as all the  normal routines and tasks of the monastery were weighed and variously considered  in preparation for the visit by Luang Por Sumedho.  

The first week of the stay was kept deliberately quiet, as Luang Por – accompanied  by his skillful, longtime upatak Ajahn Asoko – settled in after a full period at  Abhayagiri Buddhist Monastery and on the West Coast. It was Luang Por Viradhammo’s wish that the visit contain plenty of open time for our senior-most  Elder. This meant it was not feasible to arrange public talks or events beyond a day or so in advance. Nevertheless, the Tisarana community, some additional guests, and fortunate day-visitors did have several opportunities to hear Dhamma  reflections, pay respects, and receive Luang Por Sumedho’s blessings.  

Some talks are now posted on Tisarana’s YouTube channel, including one here, which he delivered on Asalha Puja, as Buddhist monastics the world over enter the Rains season.… Read the rest

TISARANA DHAMMA HALL – CONSTRUCTION BEGINS!

Luang Por Viradhammo and the community are delighted to report that after several
years of careful pondering and planning (and a two-year delay) Tisarana’s Dhamma
Hall is now formally under construction.


Following the excavation work which began in early May, in the past two weeks, the
final surveying has been done, the forms have been laid, concrete poured, and the
first rows of eco-friendly, insulated blocks have been set in place for the foundation.
On June 2 these blocks were filled with another round of concrete. When cured,
this will leave the site ready to be backfilled and have established the level of the
Hall’s floor. Far from the site, meanwhile, massive Douglas fir and pine posts and
beams are being meticulously crafted. Many architectural elements of the Dhamma
Hall make this building unusual, recently prompting one of the workmen to remark
that for him the project may be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Proving that it’s
not only the monks who are enjoying the show!


As admittedly absorbing (from our on-site perspective) as it is to watch these skilled
workers ply their trades, our pleasure in witnessing these ‘bricks and mortar’ details
is animated by an ongoing appreciation for the myriad forms of encouragement,
generosity, and hard work that have brought us to this stage.… Read the rest

New Guest Orientation Weekends 2022

We are delighted to announce the resumption of our New Guest Orientation Weekends. This is a great opportunity to welcome new guests for an overnight visit and to experience life at Tisarana.

Please refer to dates on our calendar.

Please note that those registering are required to attend for the full duration – arriving on a Friday afternoon and departing on the following Monday morning. … Read the rest

2022 Winter Retreat

The Canada geese have now been back in our marsh for a couple of weeks. No matter the actual calendar date, this is the sign we await to mark the beginning of Spring and, with it, the nearing of the Winter retreat’s end. Today we had a pair of new visitors at mealtime, marking another change, another ‘year,’ when the Tisarana community shifts into its more active mode.

Before doing so, some reflections on the past three months. Along with our long-term Stewards (Niraso, Karano, Michelle), this year we had a harmonious group of full- or nearly full-time retreatants (Viboon, Teri, Tid James, Curtis) to assist in the normal kitchen and cleaning duties as well as the seasonal snow clearing. Anagarikas Aidan and Daniel also served in the kitchen as well as in their functions as monastics-in-training. Tan Amarasiri led regular chanting sessions and Dhamma instruction (in addition to various office and accounting duties). Ajahn Pavaro offered several diversionary slide shows of Asian sites and pilgrimages. In addition to leading the community in the three hour period of meditation observed for three weeks each month, Luang Por Viradhammo set daily tone with a reading from Ajahn Jayasaro’s inspiring biography of Luang Por Chah.… Read the rest

April is Old Friends month & New Guest Orientations to Resume in May 2022

With the arrival of Spring and loosening of Covid restrictions, we are delighted to welcome back our old friends and supporters for overnight visits. Supporters and friends of long-standing are invited to visit us by filling in a Guest Booking form. The Office will get back to you shortly.

With the mandates around Covid relaxing, the monastery will be able to resume our orientations for people seeking their first overnight visit. These typically take place on one weekend per month through to December. 

If you wish to be a first-time overnight guest at Tisarana, more information is available in the “New Guest Orientation Training” section under Visiting/Guest Information. The first weekend Orientation for the year 2022 will be scheduled for May. Dates for this session will be posted around 25th of April 2022. We thank you for your patience and understanding. … Read the rest