[Buddha-l] Retreats, and fundraising for retreat centres etc

[Sally McAra]

curt wrote:

> Small is beautiful. Power corrupts. Money is the root of all evil.
> But seriously - I know from my own experience that having a
> retreat center on a big chunk of land way out in the middle of
> nowhere can be a great thing. It isn't inevitable that it will get
> messed up -  but it does seem to be quite likely - unfortunately.
> - Curt

The development of Buddhist retreat centres is something I'm fascinated 
by, especially as I'm working on a book manuscript about one in NZ, and 
my PhD thesis also relates to that indirectly...
I have certainly noticed that here in NZ, as well as in Australia, 
Buddhist centres are really struggling, and the fees they charge for 
accommodation etc don't do anything more than cover costs. the ones I'm 
aware of do not make a profit. However, there are some centres that have 
very ambitious projects for which they engage in elaborate fundraising 
schemes. I've heard the complaint made of various tibetan buddhist 
dharma centres around the world, that one gets bombarded with leaflets 
etc requesting money for this or that statue, stupa,  temple etc. It is 
amazing to see on the internet, elaborate places like Odiyan in 
California. Incredibly elaborate and expensive buildings! But also 
beautiful, at least according to some tastes.

This reminds me, a follower of Tibetan Buddhism told me that if one 
understands Emptiness one will understand why the lamas want so many 
holy objects built. He related a story about the diversion of a large 
donation (originally intended to support monks' education and health) 
that ended up being used to build stupas at the monastery. The moral of 
the story was, according to the guy who told me, that we mere 
unenlightened ones don't understand, but the lamas understand Emptiness 
and that this really was, wiht this realisation, the most beneficial 
thing to do with the money, for all sentient beings (elsewhere I am 
familiar with the argument that holy objects make a "beneficial imprint" 
on one's mindstream).

Big buildings and monuments rather than supporting the studies of monks 
and nuns. Hmmm. With my limited view, I find it hard to understand why 
the support of students (potential teachers) of buddhism was less 
important than these stupas. But that is the thing that really interests 
me, too. I'm sure my own cultural conditionings affect how I see this! 
I'm trying to be open to things that I might not understand, rather than 
just writing it off. This is something I wrote about in an earlier post 
about being "ambivalent" about big temples etc... trying, at least for a 
moment or two, to be shed my own biases, and see it in terms of the 
people who are carrying out these projects. This may be futile, seeing 
as there's not a lot of hope of my realising Emptiness in the course of 
my research.
Can anyone familiar with this school of thought explain this concept of 
why "emptiness" justifies the construction of stupas, mega prayer wheels 
etc (whether or not they agree)?

Cheers
Sally McAra
PhD candidate
Department of Anthropology
The University of Auckland
Private Bag 92019
Auckland 1001
New Zealand
http://www.arts.auckland.ac.nz/ant/Student%20Details/StudentPages/SallyMcara.htm