Tag: theravada

The Hermit is Self-Sufficient!

UK: Emergency Self-Ordination in the Chinese Vinaya Discipline! (14.10.2026)

Of course, the laity has a more superficial relationship with the Vinaya Discipline – and the Buddha taught soldiers, prostitutes, butchers, and even murderers, amongst many others. The Buddhist rules are NOT punishments inflicted by a disembodied sky-spirit (theistic god entity) – but exists to guide the psychological and physical energy that comprises an individual. The Buddha was scientific in that he emphasised cause and effect. We are responsible for the way we experience the inner (psychological) or outer (material) world. If you are happy suffering the consequences of the manner in which you live – and you never complain to anyone else about it – then why bother inflicting this form of Buddhist self-discipline upon yourself? There is no point. There are all kinds of reasons why people pursue the lives they do – and this is nothing to do with others – as we possess our own unique karma. Finally, status-hunting in the West – pretending to be a bhikkhu or being a genuine bhikkhu for the wrong reasons – is an offence and will bring its own hellish karma. The Vinaya Discipline is a very powerful and life-affirming vehicle that permits an individual to meet each manifestation of life with tranquillity and wisdom (in-depth).

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Buddhapadipa Temple Wimbledon

UK: Visiting Buddhapadipa Temple on Kai-Lin’s 10th Birthday! (27.9.2026)

We travelled by car from Sutton to Wimbledon to visit what we know as the “Buddhapadia Temple” – a Thai Temple financed by the King of Thailand. This caters for the UK’s relatively small Thai population (and the Theravada School of Early Buddhism they follow) – and for other Asian and non-Asian populations that follow all types of different people. The Thais are fairly tolerant. Due to the lack of Buddhist Temples in the UK – Chinese people tend to visit this Thai Temple – as do we. Richard Hunn stayed in this temple studying meditation during the 1970s, and I think he returned their in the 1980s to make a documentary about the famous murals (I am not sure about the exact dates).

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Prime Minister calls on education authorities, teachers, parents, students and society as a whole to strengthen efforts to improve education quality!

Laos Buddhist-Socialist Republic: PM Calls for Strong Improvement in All Education Standards During New Academic Year! (22.9.2026)

He commended education administrators, teachers, students, local authorities and development partners for their contributions during the 2025–2026 academic year, particularly in improving school infrastructure, expanding school meals in remote areas, promoting non-formal education, increasing student allowances and reducing school dropout rates.

For the new academic year, he called for stronger measures to address teacher shortages, reduce dropout rates, improve vocational and higher education enrolment, and enhance teaching quality through modern techniques and technology.

The Prime Minister urged teachers to uphold professional ethics and continuously improve teaching methods, while encouraging parents to ensure their children remain in school through at least compulsory lower-secondary education.

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Police escort Atichote Thammavaro, formerly Phra Vajirayan, out of Wat Phutthaisawan in Ayutthaya after he was defrocked on Thursday

Thailand: Head-Monk Expelled from Sangha for Breaking Vinaya-Discipline! (20.9.2026)

Buddhist Head-Monk in-charge of a wealthy temple under royal protection (he was filmed engaging in sexual activity with a 47-year old female lay practitioner – as well as embezzling billions of baht into a private bank account. Many Buddhist temples exist in impoverished locations – with the monastics being told that they must be sustained entirely upon “Dhamma”. Now, having said that, this is not to imply that the Dhamma is not upheld in temples sponsored by the King of Thailand. The temple in Wimbledon is a very good example of a well-run Buddhist institute. Monastics living in the remote jungle areas of Thailand often do not eat for days on end – with some sieving water for nourishing algae found in flowing rivers to stave-off starvation. Either the laity are non-existent – or are too poor to even provide scraps of food to monastics during their daily begging rounds. The Theravada tradition is very good and it is important for Buddhism that its practices are upheld properly.

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Buddha & St Benedict United!

UK: Buddha & St Benedict Entwined – a Retrospect! (10.9.2026)

Now, whilst in Hereford I befriended an Irishman (my family are part Irish) named “Brian Gray” – who was training to be a Catholic Priest. He was fascinated by Buddhism and liked to “spar” with me in gloved-boxing matches (I was a nasty bit of work in my late teens – as I discovered my natural physical strength). He introduced me to a “Father Thomas” the Abbot of the Catholic Hereford Cathedral. He wanted me to go to the Vatican to meet the Pope – and to join the Catholic faith – but of course, this was not my path. I am not attuned to entering these paths that discriminate against non-members for not being members. Also, at that point I was learning about how the Vatican supported fascism before, during, and after WWII. So you can see my predicament. Although I had friendly interactions on the personal level, there were certain political realities that had to be acknowledged and balanced. Anyway, the upshot of all this was that I was introduced to the study of the Rule of St Benedict followed by the monastics of the Catholic Church (and given the ring you can see here – although I am unaware of its significance).

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The Mind Must Be Calm and Serene!

BMA-UK: Buddhist Practice of “Accepting” & “Rejecting” Food Donations – The Politics of the Buddha’s Begging Bowl! (8.9.2026)

Rules in the Dhammic-sense serve only as basic guides toward moral-behaviour – hence the obvious latitude found in the night-life of places such as Thailand. Obviously, a lay-Buddhist is free to follow whatever path they perceive is correct for themselves and the circumstances they inhabit – after-all – it is their karma-producing habit. One issue is not to inflict suffering on others – including animals (this is why my family will never hurt animals in anyway). Hunger striking, in this sense, only physically “hurts” the individual participating in it – although a case can be made that those watching or caring “from afar” might suffer emotional pain. Of course, in the poor parts of Asia, Buddhist monastics exist whilst eating every other day – as the laity is so poor they have very little to share – but what an effort they make! Although starving themselves, the Buddhist laity will put aside a small amount for the Buddhist monastics. I was told that in the Northern forests of Thailand food is so scarce that Buddhist monastics often sieve a type of algae out of the local rivers – using their begging bowls – and share this to eat.

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