Network of Buddhist Organisations

Last updated

The Network of Buddhist Organisations is a British ecumenical body founded in 1993. [1]

Contents

Development

The Network of Buddhist Organisations was formed at a time when Buddhism had become consolidated in Britain, with a membership scattered over a large number of different bodies. They varied from traditional interpretations of the teaching dependent on Eastern monastics to popular and influential groups classified as New Religious Movements. The NBO's stated intent was to promote greater openness to dialogue and increased co-operation between the many different Buddhist organisations.

As its policy met with success, the Network also turned its attention to dialogue and co-operation with other faiths and to taking part in consultation with government and other public bodies, including the Charity Commission and the Equality and Human Rights Commission. Nationally, it plays an active role in the work of the Religious Education Council, [2] the Inter Faith Network UK [3] and internationally in the European Buddhist Union. [4]

Another aspect of NBO's work has been the series of conferences and events it has helped organise on topics centred upon the application of Buddhist teaching to the modern world. Noteworthy among these have been the UK-wide Buddhist arts festival, "A Lotus in Flower", in 2005; [5] the 2006 conference, "The Dharma Revolution: 50 Years On", on Ambedkarite (Indian) Buddhism; [6] the 2007 Eco-Dharma conference held in Birmingham; [7] the 2008 "British Buddhist Landscape" conference held at Taplow Court, covering many aspects of Buddhist social practice and experience in Britain; [8] and the 2009 arts conference, "Buddha Mind, Creative Mind", [9] also held at Taplow Court. The last of these resulted in the formation of the Dharma Arts group, an association of Buddhist artists. [10] Again in Birmingham, a day seminar for Buddhists working with schools was organised by Clear Vision Trust in association with NBO as part of Celebrating RE month in March 2011. [11]

During the run-up to the 2011 census, the NBO, in common with many other organisations, ran a public campaign for adherents to identify themselves in the box indicating religious affiliation in order to gain enhanced official recognition. [12] In 2012 the Network co-ordinated the Buddhist contribution to the Government's multi-faith initiative, A Year of Service. [13] This involved a day of action on July 3 with care for the environment as its focus, and was publicised under the name Earthkind. [14] The response was so positive that subsequently it was decided to hold an annual Buddhist Action Month each June (BAM) with participating organisations choosing their own theme. [15]

Criticism

The Network's openness to dialogue with groups that some orthodox Buddhists regard as controversial has brought it a certain amount of criticism. Although veteran author Ken Jones has praised NBO for its work, he sees certain dangers for it as well: "The Network of Buddhist Organisations is performing an invaluable role in opening up dialogue and bringing potential antagonists together in common concerns. Much useful communication takes place off the record, though the Network remains vulnerable to sectarianism." [16]

The risk of sectarianism of which he speaks came to the fore in 1998, when the New Kadampa Tradition applied for membership not long after its members had been involved in demonstrations against the Dalai Lama concerning the Dorje Shugden controversy. [17] Several NBO members considered the conduct of the NKT incongruous with the Network's aims. When the NKT's application was accepted, some groups therefore left the NBO including approximately 30% of its Tibetan Buddhist members. [18]

The NBO posted a document on their website in response to the relevant Parliamentary Questions that referred to it. [19]

Code of conduct

In early 2009, the NBO launched a code of conduct for its members. The code had previously been publicised and discussed by the membership in 2008. [20] The NBO code is based upon the five Buddhist Precepts which members are asked to affirm their support for and to undertake that their members would not "defame other Buddhist organisations or teachers in public or via the media," and that every effort should be made to resolve any disagreements within organisations, or with other organisations or groups, "through internal processes or through private discussion and mediation." [21]

Members

Voting members

Associate members

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sangharakshita</span> Founder of the Triratna Buddhist Community

Sangharakshita was a British spiritual teacher and writer, and the founder of the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order, which in 2010 was renamed the Triratna Buddhist Community.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Triratna Buddhist Community</span> Buddhist organization

The Triratna Buddhist Community (formerly the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order (FWBO)) is an international fellowship of Buddhists and others who aspire to its path of mindfulness. It was founded by Sangharakshita (born Dennis Philip Edward Lingwood) in the UK in 1967, and describes itself as "an international network dedicated to communicating Buddhist truths in ways appropriate to the modern world". In keeping with Buddhist traditions, it also pays attention to contemporary ideas, particularly drawn from Western philosophy, psychotherapy, and art.

Buddhism in the West broadly encompasses the knowledge and practice of Buddhism outside of Asia in the Western world. Occasional intersections between Western civilization and the Buddhist world have been occurring for thousands of years. The first Westerners to become Buddhists were Greeks who settled in Bactria and India during the Hellenistic period. They became influential figures during the reigns of the Indo-Greek kings, whose patronage of Buddhism led to the emergence of Greco-Buddhism and Greco-Buddhist art. There was little contact between the Western and Buddhist cultures during most of the Middle Ages but the early modern rise of global trade and mercantilism, improved navigation technology and the European colonization of Asian Buddhist countries led to increased knowledge of Buddhism among Westerners. This increased contact led to various responses from Buddhists and Westerners throughout the modern era. These include religious proselytism, religious polemics and debates, Buddhist modernism, Western convert Buddhists and the rise of Buddhist studies in Western academia. During the 20th century, there was a growth in Western Buddhism due to various factors such as immigration, globalization, the decline of Christianity and increased interest among Westerners. The various schools of Buddhism are now established in all major Western countries making up a small minority in the United States, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.

The World Fellowship of Buddhists (WFB) is an international Buddhist organization. Initiated by Gunapala Piyasena Malalasekera, it was founded in 1950 in Colombo, Ceylon, by representatives from 27 nations. Although Theravada Buddhists are most influential in the organization,, members of all Buddhist schools are active in the WFB. It now has regional centers in 35 countries, including India, the United States, Australia, and several nations of Africa and Europe, in addition to traditional Buddhist countries.

Engaged Buddhism, also known as socially engaged Buddhism, refers to a Buddhist social movement that emerged in Asia in the 20th century, composed of Buddhists who are seeking ways to apply the Buddhist ethics, insights acquired from meditation practice, and the teachings of the Buddhist dharma to contemporary situations of social, political, environmental and economic suffering, and injustice. Finding its roots in Vietnam through the Thiền Buddhist teacher Thích Nhất Hạnh, Engaged Buddhism was popularised by the Indian jurist, politician, and social reformer B. R. Ambedkar who inspired the Dalit Buddhist movement in the 1950s, and has since grown by spreading to the Indian subcontinent and the West.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kelsang Gyatso</span> Tibetan writer and former religious leader (1931–2022)

Geshe Kelsang Gyatso was a Buddhist monk, meditation teacher, scholar, and author. He was the founder and spiritual director of the New Kadampa Tradition-International Kadampa Buddhist Union (NKT-IKBU), a registered non-profit, modern Buddhist organization that came out of the Gelugpa school/lineage. 1,300 centres around the world, including temples, city temples and retreat centres offer an accessible approach to ancient wisdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Refuge in Buddhism</span> Ceremony in Buddhism

In Buddhism, refuge or taking refuge refers to a religious practice, which often includes a prayer or recitation performed at the beginning of the day or of a practice session. Since the period of Early Buddhism all Theravada and mainstream Mahayana schools only take refuge in the Three Jewels which are the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buddhism in the United States</span> Overview of the role of Buddhism in the United States

The term American Buddhism can be used to describe all Buddhist groups within the United States, including Asian-American Buddhists born into the faith, who comprise the largest percentage of Buddhists in the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buddhism in Brazil</span> Overview of the role of Buddhism in Brazil

With nearly 250,000 Buddhists, Brazil is home to the third-largest Buddhist population in the Americas, after the United States and Canada. Buddhism in Brazil consists of practitioners from various Buddhist traditions and schools. A number of Buddhist organisations and groups are also active in Brazil, with nearly 150 temples spread across the states.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Kadampa Tradition</span> Buddhist new religious movement founded in 1991

The New Kadampa Tradition – International Kadampa Buddhist Union (NKT—IKBU) is a global Buddhist new religious movement founded by Kelsang Gyatso in England in 1991. In 2003 the words "International Kadampa Buddhist Union" (IKBU) were added to the original name "New Kadampa Tradition". The NKT-IKBU is an international organisation registered in England as a charitable, or non-profit, company. It currently lists more than 200 centres and around 900 branch classes/study groups in 40 countries. The BBC describe the New Kadampa Tradition as "one of the major Buddhist schools in the UK, founded by the Tibetan-born Geshe Kelsang Gyatso."

The European Buddhist Union (EBU) is the umbrella organization of Buddhist communities and national Buddhist unions in Europe. The EBU is open to all schools and traditions of Buddhism in Europe wishing to unite on the basis of Buddhist teachings and work together in spiritual friendship and respect for diversity. According to the 'EBU Statement of Mission and Vision' the aims are to facilitate international exchange and promote spiritual friendship amongst European Buddhists, to support social action and ideas motivated by Buddhist values, and to amplify the voice of Buddhism in Europe and worldwide.

The Lay Buddhist Ordination (Chinese: 受戒; pinyin: shòujiè, Japanese: Jukai, Korean: sugye refers to the public ordination ceremony wherein a lay follower of Zen Buddhism receives certain Buddhist precepts. The particulars of the ceremony differ widely by country and by school of Buddhism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Three Jewels and Three Roots</span> Outer, inner, secret, and ultimate Buddhist refuge formulations

In Buddhism, the Three Jewels, Triple Gem, or Three Refuges are the supports in which a Buddhist takes refuge by means of a prayer or recitation at the beginning of the day or of a practice session.

Buddhism in the United Kingdom has a small but growing number of adherents which, according to a Buddhist organisation, is mainly a result of conversion. In the UK census for 2011, there were about 247,743 people who registered their religion as Buddhism, and about 174,000 who cited religions other than Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism, Islam, Jainism and Sikhism. This latter figure is likely to include some people who follow the traditional Chinese folk religion which also includes some elements of Buddhism.

Buddhism is a small minority religion in the Netherlands, but it has shown rapid growth in recent years. As of the 2006 estimate, 170,000 Dutch people identified their religion as Buddhist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Faith in Buddhism</span> Important element of the teachings of the Buddha

In Buddhism, faith refers to a serene commitment to the practice of the Buddha's teaching and trust in enlightened or highly developed beings, such as Buddhas or bodhisattvas. Buddhists usually recognize multiple objects of faith, but many are especially devoted to one in particular, such as one particular Buddha. Faith may not only be devotion to a person, but exists in relation to Buddhist concepts like the efficacy of karma and the possibility of enlightenment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buddhism in Scotland</span>

Buddhism in Scotland is a relatively recent phenomenon. In Scotland Buddhists represent 0.24% of the population or around 13,000 people.

Buddhism in Wales is followed by 0.3% of the Welsh population, according to the 2021 Census. Buddhism has a relatively short history, having only really established a presence in the country in the 20th Century. 10,075 people in Wales declared themselves Buddhist in the 2021 Census, representing a number of Buddhist traditions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of Buddhism</span> Overview of and topical guide to Buddhism

Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha, "the awakened one".

References

  1. ↑ "theredirectory.org.uk". www.theredirectory.org.uk.
  2. ↑ "REC website".
  3. ↑ Member Bodies of the Inter Faith Network Archived 2005-12-24 at the Wayback Machine , retrieved 2010-05-03.
  4. ↑ European Buddhist Union member organizations - Network of Buddhist Organisations - UK, updated 2010-04-30, retrieved 2010-05-03.
  5. ↑ A poster advertising one of the events is archived here Archived 2005-08-24 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ↑ "Buddhist meet to mark Dhamma Revolution". September 25, 2006.
  7. ↑ NBO Connections 2, Winter 2007, pp.10-12
  8. ↑ SGI Quarterly, October 2008; videos of the presentations of all the speakers are available on Google
  9. ↑ "Triratna Buddhist Community News: Report from 'Buddha Mind - Creative Mind?' conference".
  10. ↑ "Dharma Arts website". Archived from the original on October 10, 2010.
  11. ↑ Triratna Community News April 21, 2011
  12. ↑ "Census Snippets |". www.brin.ac.uk.
  13. ↑ "A Year of Service report | Faith-based Regeneration Network". www.fbrn.org.uk.
  14. ↑ "FbRN report" (PDF).
  15. ↑ "Together in Service".
  16. ↑ Jones, Ken (19 June 2010). "Many Bodies - One Mind: movements in British Buddhism" . Retrieved 23 February 2012.
  17. ↑ "Battle of the Buddhists" . Independent.co.uk . Archived from the original on 2022-06-18.
  18. ↑ Kay, David (2004). Tibetan and Zen Buddhism in Britain: Transplantation, Development and Adaptation. RoutledgeCurzon critical studies in Buddhism. London: RoutledgeCurzon. p. 213.
  19. ↑ The NBO Files (2006-09-01) by the Network of Buddhist Organisations, retrieved 2010-05-03.
  20. ↑ Chris Ward, "How should Buddhists behave?", Triple Gem 31 August 2008
  21. ↑ News from the Network of Buddhist Organisations by the Triratna Buddhist Community News blog, 2009-03-30, retrieved 2010-05-03.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.