The Thai Forest Tradition Commonly practised in Thailand, Burma and Sri Lanka is a branch of the Theravada Buddhist tradition called the Thai Forest tradition. One of the distinguishing characteristics of the Thai Forest tradition is its strict adherence to the original teachings and rule of monastic discipline laid down by the Buddha. The Forest tradition actually predates the Buddha as it was a common practice amongst spiritual seekers in ancient India to practise the act of renunciation by wandering into the wilderness. Though born a prince, the Buddha chose this path to seek the way beyond birth, aging, sickness and death at the age of twenty-nine. The forest was where the Buddha preached his teachi... Brother Brit's altar call to Tiger Woods Theravada Buddhism, the kind the philandering Woods presumably picked up from his Thai mother, instructs against cravings (including, specifically, sexual ones) as roadblocks to the spiritual development that one day, after several corporeal lifetimes, boosts the disciplined soul to Nirvana, or bliss. Yet for the Buddhist laity, adultery is not a terrible sin if no one is injured by it. Thus, many Thai men have several "minor wives" besides an acquiescent "main Mrs." Of course, Woods' behavior did injure his wife and kids. But Buddhism offers him solace, perhaps involving a long spell of self-examination in a monastery, none of which, alas, is on the PGA Tour. However, Brot... How to Find a Free "Buddhist Bible" Online You can also find a huge collection of texts in English in the Theravada Buddhist tradition at the Access to Insight website , and a collection of Mahayana ... New monastery on the path to change OTTAWA — Ayya Medhanandi, a Buddhist nun, hopes to soon ordain women in the Theravada tradition at her hermitage just west of Perth, Jennifer Green writes.The silence of the snowy fields, the stillness in the Sati Saraniya Hermitage: could such a peaceful place send a tremble through the world of Theravada Buddhism?Ayya Medhanandi is a Theravada Buddhist nun who has opened Canada's first monastic residence exclusively for women, just west of Perth.As a bhikkhuni, or nun ordained on an equal footing with Buddhist monks, she hopes to offer women the same full ordination she attained after decades of training. If she succeeds, it will be the first time a woman has been or... The Royal Gazette The Theravada Buddhist temple can be found not far from the border with Myanmar. In 1994, it was started as a forest temple and sanctuary for numerous wild ... Islam And Democracy A pluralist elected legislature is hence redundant, be it among Christian fundamentalists, ultra-orthodox Jews, theocratic Theravada Buddhists or Wahhabi Muslims. In that Islamic states are not democratic, this reflects not their Islamic credentials but their political and economic under-development. In short, it is simpler for an incompetent political elite, often without equitable and consistent rule of law, to run a country without being held democratically accountable. This applies to Muslims and non-Muslims alike. In some cases, a retreat to Islam may provide a judicial code where the state code is otherwise weak or non-existent. Like the Bible, th... Ajahn Chah Remembrance Day Respected and loved in his own country as a man of great wisdom, he was also instrumental in establishing Theravada Buddhism in the West. Beginning in 1979 with the founding of Cittaviveka (commonly known as Chithurst Buddhist Monastery) in the United Kingdom, the Thai Forest Tradition of Ajahn Chah has spread throughout Europe, the United States and the British Commonwealth. The dhamma talks of Ajahn Chah were recorded, transcribed and translated into several languages. Over one million people attended Ajahn Chah’s funeral in 1992, including the Thai royal family. He left behind a legacy of dhamma talks, students, and monasteries. Ajahn Chah was born on June 17, 1918... Media Roundup Sri Lankan Buddhist monks play a major role in developing Theravada Buddhism in Myanmar and the Southeast Asian region. Friendship between Myanmar and Sri Lanka has existed since “time immemorial” as they are both Therav-ada Buddhist nations, the report said. Fishery exports set to miss FY target FISHERIES exports are unlikely to meet the US$700 million target set for the 2009-2010 fiscal year, the Myanmar Fisheries Federation (MFF) said at a press conference, Weekly Eleven reported on December 23. After the first eight months of the fiscal year exports stand at less than half of the targeted figure, with just $317 million exported s...