German Dharmaduta Society
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German Dharmaduta Society
The German Dharmaduta Society is an organization established to promote Buddhism in Germany and other Western Countries, and was founded by Asoka Weeraratna, in Colombo, Sri Lanka on 21 September 1952. History The idea of forming a Society to propagate Buddhism in Germany and other western countries dawned on Asoka Weeraratna, then a young businessman dealing in jewellery and Swiss wristwatches, while he was on his first business visit to Germany in 1951. Asoka Weeraratna became aware of the spiritual hunger in Germany, which was slowly recovering from total devastation due to the Second World War, and the search for an alternative moral and spiritual philosophy, that placed a very high emphasis on peace and non-violence. On his return from West Germany and convinced of the potential for growth of Buddhism in that country, Weeraratna established the ''Lanka Dhammaduta Society'' on 21 September 1952, which was later renamed the ''German Dharmaduta Society'' (GDS). Ven. Ñânatilok ...
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Das Buddhistische Haus
Das Buddhistische Haus (English language, English: Berlin Buddhist Vihara, literally ''the Buddhist house'') is a Theravada Buddhism, Buddhist temple complex (Vihara) in Frohnau, Berlin, Germany. It is considered to be the oldest and largest Theravada Buddhist center in Europe and has been declared a National heritage site, National Heritage site. History The main building was designed by the architect Max Meyer for Paul Dahlke (Buddhist), Paul Dahlke, a German physician who had undertaken a number of trips to Ceylon prior to World War I and became a Buddhist. It incorporates elements of Sri Lankan ( Sinhalese) Buddhist architecture and culture and was completed in 1924. Under Dahlke's direction it became a center of Buddhism in Germany. After his death in 1928, the house was inherited by his relatives and Buddhists met in a house nearby. By 1941 Buddhist meetings and publications were prohibited by the Nazi government. After the war refugees lived in the quarters. The place deter ...
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German Dharmaduta Society
The German Dharmaduta Society is an organization established to promote Buddhism in Germany and other Western Countries, and was founded by Asoka Weeraratna, in Colombo, Sri Lanka on 21 September 1952. History The idea of forming a Society to propagate Buddhism in Germany and other western countries dawned on Asoka Weeraratna, then a young businessman dealing in jewellery and Swiss wristwatches, while he was on his first business visit to Germany in 1951. Asoka Weeraratna became aware of the spiritual hunger in Germany, which was slowly recovering from total devastation due to the Second World War, and the search for an alternative moral and spiritual philosophy, that placed a very high emphasis on peace and non-violence. On his return from West Germany and convinced of the potential for growth of Buddhism in that country, Weeraratna established the ''Lanka Dhammaduta Society'' on 21 September 1952, which was later renamed the ''German Dharmaduta Society'' (GDS). Ven. Ñânatilok ...
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Balangoda Ananda Maitreya
Balangoda Ananda Maitreya Thero ( si, අග්ග මහා පණ්ඩිත බලංගොඩ ආනන්ද මෛත්‍රෙය මහා නා හිමි;23 August 1896 – 18 July 1998; was a Sri Lankan Buddhist monk who was one of the most distinguished scholars and expositors of Theravada Buddhism in the twentieth century. He was highly respected by Sri Lankan Buddhists, who believed that he had achieved a higher level of spiritual development. Sri Lankan Buddhists also considered Balangoda Ananda Maitreya Thero as a Bodhisattva, who will attain Buddhahood in a future life. Balangoda Ananda Maitreya Thero lived a modest life and did a great service for the propagation of Buddhist philosophy. In recognition of his valuable service at the Sixth Buddhist council held in Burma, the Burmese government conferred on him the title of Agga Maha Pandita (Chief Great Scholar) in 1956. Later in March 1997, the Burmese government conferred on Balangoda Ananda Maitreya The ...
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Buddhist Organizations In Europe
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gradually spread throughout much of Asia via the Silk Road. It is the world's fourth-largest religion, with over 520 million followers (Buddhists) who comprise seven percent of the global population. The Buddha taught the Middle Way, a path of spiritual development that avoids both extreme asceticism and hedonism. It aims at liberation from clinging and craving to things which are impermanent (), incapable of satisfying ('), and without a lasting essence (), ending the cycle of death and rebirth (). A summary of this path is expressed in the Noble Eightfold Path, a training of the mind with observance of Buddhist ethics and meditation. Other widely observed practices include: monasticism; " taking refuge" in the Buddha, the , and the ; ...
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Buddhism In Germany
Buddhism in Germany looks back to a history of over 150 years. Arthur Schopenhauer was one of the earliest Germans who were influenced by Buddhism. Schopenhauer got his knowledge of Buddhism from authors like Isaac Jacob Schmidt (1779-1847). German Buddhists or Orientalists like Karl Eugen Neumann, Paul Dahlke, Georg Grimm, Friedrich Zimmermann (Subhadra Bhikschu) and the first German Buddhist monk Nyanatiloka Mahathera were also influenced by Schopenhauer and his understanding of Buddhism. But also German Indologists like Hermann Oldenberg and his work ”Buddha, sein Leben, seine Lehre, seine Gemeinde“ had an important influence on German Buddhism. History In 1888 Subhadra Bickshu (Friedrich Zimmermann) published the first edition of the "Buddhistischer Katechismus", a work based on the "Buddhist Catechism" of Henry Steel Olcott. In 1903 the first German Buddhist organisation was founded by the Indologist Karl Seidenstücker in Leipzig. In 1904 Florus Anton Gueth became ...
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Non-profit Organisations Based In Sri Lanka
A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in contrast with an entity that operates as a business aiming to generate a profit for its owners. A nonprofit is subject to the non-distribution constraint: any revenues that exceed expenses must be committed to the organization's purpose, not taken by private parties. An array of organizations are nonprofit, including some political organizations, schools, business associations, churches, social clubs, and consumer cooperatives. Nonprofit entities may seek approval from governments to be tax-exempt, and some may also qualify to receive tax-deductible contributions, but an entity may incorporate as a nonprofit entity without securing tax-exempt status. Key aspects of nonprofits are accountability, trustworthiness, honesty, and openness to ever ...
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Bhikkhu Bodhi
Bhikkhu Bodhi (born December 10, 1944), born Jeffrey Block, is an American Theravada Buddhist monk, ordained in Sri Lanka and currently teaching in the New York and New Jersey area. He was appointed the second president of the Buddhist Publication Society and has edited and authored several publications grounded in the Theravada Buddhist tradition. Life In 1944, Block was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Jewish parents. He grew up in Borough Park, where he attended elementary school P.S. 160. In 1966, he obtained a B.A. in philosophy from Brooklyn College. In 1972, he obtained a PhD in philosophy from Claremont Graduate University. In 1967, while still a graduate student, Bodhi was ordained as a sāmaṇera (novitiate) in the Vietnamese Mahayana order. In 1972, after graduation, Bodhi traveled to Sri Lanka where, under Balangoda Ananda Maitreya Thero, he received sāmaṇera ordination in the Theravada Order and, in 1973, he received full ordination (Upasampadā) as a Therav ...
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Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constituent states, Berlin is surrounded by the State of Brandenburg and contiguous with Potsdam, Brandenburg's capital. Berlin's urban area, which has a population of around 4.5 million, is the second most populous urban area in Germany after the Ruhr. The Berlin-Brandenburg capital region has around 6.2 million inhabitants and is Germany's third-largest metropolitan region after the Rhine-Ruhr and Rhine-Main regions. Berlin straddles the banks of the Spree, which flows into the Havel (a tributary of the Elbe) in the western borough of Spandau. Among the city's main topographical features are the many lakes in the western and southeastern boroughs formed by the Spree, Havel and Dahme, the largest of which is Lake Müggelsee. Due to its l ...
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Paul Dahlke (Buddhist)
Paul Dahlke (25 January 1865 – 29 February 1928) was a German physician and one of the founders of Buddhism in Germany. He wrote extensively about Buddhist teaching and living and translated Buddhist literature into German. In 1924 he established “Das Buddhistische Haus” considered to be the first Buddhist temple in Europe. Biography Dahlke was born in East Prussia as the son of a civil servant. He completed the Gymnasium in 1883 and proceeded to study medicine in Berlin. He received his MD degree in August 1887 and soon took over a homeopathic medical office. In 1898, he started a journey around the world and was fascinated by the South Pacific. He also stopped over in Ceylon where he encountered Buddhism. He had read about Buddhism when he had studied Schopenhauer. Two years later he went on his second journey, this time specifically to Ceylon to learn more about Buddhism. He learned Pali and met local Sinhala Buddhist monks among them Hikkaduwe Sumangala, Suriyago ...
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Bambalapitiya
Bambalapitiya is a southern coastal neighbourhood of Colombo, Sri Lanka. The area also known as Colombo 4, spans about along Galle Road. The western boundary of the suburb is the Indian Ocean and it is bordered to the east by Havelock Town, the north by Kollupitiya, and to the south by Wellawatte. It falls within the Kollupitiya (Colpetty) Ward of the Colombo Municipal Council. Educational institutions Bambalapitiya is regarded as an educational hub. Many private sector schools and colleges such as ICBS, ICBT Campus, IDM Computer Studies, ESOFT Computer Studies, and PIBT are in this area. It is home to educational establishments including Lindsay Girls School, Muslim Ladies College, St. Peter's College, Holy Family Convent, Visakha Vidyalaya and Colombo Hindu College. Diplomatic missions * Honorary Consulate General of Greece * Consulate of Singapore * Honorary Consulate of Ireland Transport The A2 Highway (Galle Road) and Marine Drive, runs through the suburb, par ...
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Soma Thera
Kotahene Soma Maha Thera (December 23, 1898 - February 23, 1960), born as Victor Emmanuel Perera Pulle in Kotahena, Colombo,The Path Of Freedom (Vimuttimagga) of Arahant Upatissa' Translated from the Chinese by Rev. N. R. M. Ehara, Soma Thera, Kheminda Thera. Buddhist Publication Society. Kandy, Ceylon, page IX was a Theravada Buddhist monk, translator and missionary. Childhood Soma Thera was raised as a Sinhalese Catholic and received his education at the Catholic St. Benedict's College in Kotahena, but became a Buddhist in his teenage years after reading the Dhammapada. Ordination and Travels In 1934, he went to Japan with his friend G.S. Prelis (later ordained as Kheminda Thera) and translated the Chinese version of the Vimuttimagga into English, which was published as ''The Path of Freedom''. In 1936, both Victor Perera and Prelis went to Burma and received the higher ordination as Theravada Buddhist monks on November 6, 1936Buddha Sasana Nuggaha Organization (Burma). Sa ...
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Nyanaponika
Nyanaponika Thera or Nyanaponika Mahathera (July 21, 1901 – 19 October 1994) was a German-born Theravada Buddhist monk and scholar who, after ordaining in Sri Lanka, later became the co-founder of the Buddhist Publication Society and author of numerous seminal books and articles on Theravada Buddhism. He mentored and taught a whole generation of Western Buddhist leaders such as Bhikkhu Bodhi. Biography Ven. Nyanaponika Thera was born in Hanau, Germany on July 21, 1901, as Siegmund Feniger, the only child of a Jewish family. In 1921, he moved with his parents to Berlin, where he met with German Buddhists and had access to Buddhist literature in the German language. He came across the writings of Ven. Nyanatiloka Mahathera (1878–1957), the former German violin virtuoso Anton Gueth. Young Siegmund had learned that Ven. Nyanatiloka Thera had established a monastery for Western monks in Sri Lanka, on an island lagoon (opposite the Railway station) Polgasduwa, Dodanduwa n ...
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