Forthcoming events
On Sunday 18th October, we shall be welcoming Rev. Master Koten, the Head of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives, to the Norwich Priory for a brief visit. He will be accompanied by Rev. Master Aiden, the Assistant Head of the Order, and Rev. Master Roland, from Throssel Hole Buddhist Abbey. This is a rare opportunity to meet Rev. Master Koten, who is usually resident at Lion’s Gate Buddhist Priory in Canada. It will also be the first time that Rev. Aiden, who is the resident monk at Turning Wheel Buddhist Temple in Leicester, and Rev. Roland have visited the Priory. We’ll be having a special Sangha Morning that day and Rev. Master Koten will either give a Dharma talk or do a Q&A session. The provisional schedule is: 10.00 – coffee and socialising; 10.30 – meditation (20 minutes); 11.00 – Dharma talk and discussion. There will be a bring-and-share vegetarian lunch afterwards. Please contact the Priory if you’d like to attend in person. The event will be shared online and the talk will be recorded.
We’ll be celebrating the 13th anniversary of the Priory on Sunday 8th November. The morning will follow the usual schedule: a meditation period at 9.45, with a ceremony at 10.30 to express our gratitude for the life and teaching of our founder, Rev. Master Jiyu, followed by a Dharma talk and discussion.
We shall be holding an online sesshin 25th-28th November. Eight meditation periods will be scheduled throughout each day and people are welcome to join via Zoom for any of those sessions, as well as for the Dharma discussion in the afternoon. The full schedule can be found on our calendar.
The Festival of the Buddha’s Enlightenment will be held on Sunday 6th December.
Recent events
Our Summer Party in mid-August was a delightful occasion. It took place in our traditional venue in North Norfolk, where we were able to sit out in the large garden, under an apple tree, and enjoy chatting informally with each other (and making a fuss of Barney the dog) over a bring-and-share vegetarian lunch. The weather was ideal, being dry and warm, with the searing heat of two days before being forgotten, as the sun stayed behind cloud for much of the afternoon. After the meal, people who were new to these parties were treated to a tour of the grounds, including the orchard and beehive and the (rather shrunken) pond. It was a lovely way to connect with Sangha in a relaxed setting. It was especially pleasant to have Rev. Alicia, from Sitting Buddha Hermitage in Derbyshire, join us for the event, as part of a visit that she made to the Priory over the weekend. A big thank you to our generous hosts and to everybody who offered lifts from the Priory.
Thanks
My gratitude goes to everybody who has been keeping the Priory, its gardens and its fences clean, tidy and well-maintained over the summer. Many of the plants struggled with the dry conditions, but most of them survived, thanks to the attention given to them by the garden group. The Japanese anemones and some of the roses even managed a late flourish, as can be seen in the photos below.
With best wishes and in gassho,
Reverend Leoma