Temporary Temple Closure

Portland Buddhist Priory Posted on by

“The light of Buddha is increasing in brilliance and the wheel of the Dharma is always turning. This temple building and this ground are guarding the Dharma and the trainees and all meditations and contemplations are full of treasure and wisdom.”
(From the ceremony for closing the meditation hall at the end of a retreat, a monastic week, or a training term.)

The Crocuses Have Bloomed

Dear Friends,

To protect the health of our Sangha and to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus, Portland Buddhist Priory is closed through March 31. The Priory will be closed today, March 17 through Tuesday, March 31.  Over these next two weeks, we will evaluate whether to reopen at the beginning of April, or to extend this closure.

The temple residents are well and will continue to follow our regular schedule of meditation and practice and I invite you to take this time to develop and deepen your own individual practice by sitting with us in spirit, at your home sitting place. In addition Continue reading →

How Can I Train Now

Portland Buddhist Priory Posted on by

(Follow this link to see the February 2019 Priory Newsletter where this was originally published.)

The crocuses we planted in the fall haven’t bloomed yet

It is a pretty human thing to get distracted by what is down the road: won’t everything be better when I get that new … house, bike, partner, tool? What will happen when I die? Since I am a mess today, will I be able to to realize enlightenment? What will enlightenment be like? And on and on. It is not so much a problem that we are able to foresee events and needs in the future, and to take thoughtful action to deal with them, but it can be a problem when we spend time worrying and obsessing about things in the future to the exclusion of doing what is needful right now. Continue reading →

Refuge

Portland Buddhist Priory Posted on by

(Follow this link to see the January 2019 Priory Newsletter where this was originally published.)

Winter blooming pink viburnum

Refuge is a central principle in the practice of Buddhism and, from earliest times, to become a follower of the Buddha, to become a “Buddhist,” has been a matter of taking refuge in the Three Treasures. We take refuge in the Buddha, take refuge in what the Buddha taught, and take refuge in those who understand and practice what the Buddha taught. Although specifically articulated by the Buddha, these Three Treasures have a universal and fundamental aspect to them. One way of articulating the Three Treasures could be “I take refuge in the Fundamental Truth of Existence, I take refuge in the teaching of and practice of that Fundamental Truth, I take refuge in those who know that Fundamental Truth.”

The dictionary says the word refuge means Continue reading →