On the night of December 31, 2023 we will have a New Year's Eve in Sumedharama.

After the usual puja/meditation at 7:30 p.m. there will be a Dhamma Lecture and space for questions and answers. Everyone will then have the possibility to remain in meditation until midnight, when we will sing songs, thus peacefully celebrating the entrance to the New Year 2024.

There is no need to make an appointment, everyone is welcome to celebrate this passage in this way, with an introspective and recollective attitude.

The celebration ends shortly after midnight.

Everyone is welcome to participate in this occasion, celebrating the presence of the monastic community in Sumedharama. This year we will have as our special guest Ajahn Vinīta, a monk from Sri Lanka who lives in the Amaravati Monastery in England.

Programme:

9.30 a.m. – Arrival at the Monastery (bring a meal to share)

10 a.m. – Request for the five precepts, followed by songs

10.30 a.m. – Rice supply (Pindapat)

11 a.m. – Dinner for monks and lunch for the lay community

12:0030 –  Procession and Offer of the new Buddha Rupa (image of Buddha)

12.45 p.m. – The community offers the traditional monastic habit

1 p.m.15  – Ajahn Vajiro gives a lecture by Dhamma

From 2.15 p.m. – more informal time with everyone and the monastic community.

In the rainy season (Vassa), in Asia, (the period corresponding to summer in Europe) the monks undertake to stay in a certain place for three months.

The story goes that at the end of this period, the Buddha allowed the monks to look for fabric with which they could patch up their old habit or even make a new one. The fabrics that the monks collected consisted of rags that had been thrown away. Over time people, realising this need, began to hang fabric from the trees so that the monks could ‘find’ them. The custom then developed so that not only pieces of cloth were left on the trees, but also the habits already made. People saw here an opportunity to make offerings of other requirements to monks, as a gesture of support and appreciation of their practice. The ceremony was called Kathina, which is the name of the loom that monks use to sew their habits with the fabrics offered.

In this same ceremony the monks offer lectures on the Dhamma, and there is also a period where people have the opportunity to meet and talk to the monks more informally. In this event it becomes quite evident the interconnection of the lay community with the monastic community and how both benefit from this dynamic.

These Dhamma Study Sessions, guided by Ajahn Gavesako, are directed to those who want to deepen their knowledge of Buddhism by studying the Suttas together. We will use the following study guide: The Buddha Smiles.

These sessions will take place from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., no prior appointment is required. They will be conducted in English.

Ajahn Candasiri, one of the first four nuns to be ordained in our tradition, 

will drive one Dhamma Session in Sumedharama,

next Sunday 20 August, from 16:30 to 19:00.

There will be room for Questions and Answers and a Guided Meditation.

There is no need to make an appointment, just show up a little before 4:30 p.m.

Guided by the nun Ajahn Candasiri

This retreat will take place in Biovilla, in the Serra da Arrábida,

It was organised by Ana Cristina Farto.

For more information and appointments please click here.

This Dhamma lecture is organised by the Italian Association “Progetto PienEssere”.

Wednesday 8 March, 18:30 - 20:00 (WET)

You can participate through the Zoom platform with the link:

ttps://us06web.zoom.us/j/84193388344?pwd=T0VIVUxRa2RFaXRkUkFvb3pLZ1dEZz09

or

Meeting ID: 841 9338 8344
Passcode: 230503