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

[jkirk]

This was an error of slip of the finger on wrong key
sorry
JK
==============
----- Original Message -----
From: "jkirk" <jkirk at spro.net>
To: "Buddhist discussion forum" <buddha-l at mailman.swcp.com>
Sent: Wednesday, June 01, 2005 5:52 PM
Subject: Re: [Buddha-l] Retreats, and fundraising for retreat centres etc


>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Sally McAra" <s.mcara at auckland.ac.nz>
> To: "Buddhist discussion forum" <buddha-l at mailman.swcp.com>
> Sent: Wednesday, June 01, 2005 4:07 PM
> Subject: [Buddha-l] Retreats, and fundraising for retreat centres etc
>
>
> > 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
> >
> >
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>
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