Buddhism is a legally recognized religion in
Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
and it is followed by more than 1,000 Slovenes, though no official numbers are established as the previous census did not include Buddhism specifically. Although still small in absolute numbers (though Slovenia has only 2 million inhabitants), Buddhism in Slovenia enjoys widespread acceptance if not popularity.
As in most European countries, different branches and schools of Buddhism are represented by groups of varying sizes. The largest traditions represented are
Theravada
''Theravāda'' () ( si, ථේරවාදය, my, ထေရဝါဒ, th, เถรวาท, km, ថេរវាទ, lo, ເຖຣະວາດ, pi, , ) is the most commonly accepted name of Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school' ...
and
Vajrayana
Vajrayāna ( sa, वज्रयान, "thunderbolt vehicle", "diamond vehicle", or "indestructible vehicle"), along with Mantrayāna, Guhyamantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism, are names referring t ...
. There is a Buddhist temple in
Ljubljana
Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center.
During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the are ...
, the capital of Slovenia, and Theravada hermitage in the forested countryside in Goljek, near Trebnje, which belongs to
Ajahn Chah
Chah Subhaddo ( th, ชา สุภัทโท, known in English as Ajahn Chah, occasionally with honorific titles '' Luang Por'' and ''Phra'') also known by his honorific name "Phra Bodhiñāṇathera" ( th, พระโพธิญาณเ ...
lineage.
In Slovenia, the competent administration dealing with religions is the Governmental Office for Religious Community of Republic of Slovenia, and a newly approved regulation has been enacted in 2007.
Buddhist organisations
Buddhist religious communities registered to the Office for Religious Communities of the Government of Slovenia include:
*
Buddhist Congregation Dharmaling, registered in 2003. This organization is active also in
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...
,
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
,
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. This community has a resident
Lama, recognised
Tulku
A ''tulku'' (, also ''tülku'', ''trulku'') is a reincarnate custodian of a specific lineage of teachings in Tibetan Buddhism who is given empowerments and trained from a young age by students of his or her predecessor.
High-profile examples ...
,
Shenphen Rinpoche.
On 4 July 2008, an agreement was signed between
Dharmaling and the State of Slovenia. This is first agreement signed with a Buddhist Community in Slovenia.
* Buddha-Dharma, registered in 1995.
The following smaller associations also exist in Slovenia:
*
Shambhala Buddhism
Shambhala Training is a secular approach to meditation developed by Tibetan Buddhist teacher Chogyam Trungpa and his students. It is based on what Trungpa calls Shambhala Vision, which sees enlightened society as not purely mythical, but as r ...
group Ljubljana
* Yeshe Khorlo group (Nyingma branch of Tibetan Buddhism)
* Phowa group (focused on the practice of phowa, under the guidance of Ayang Rinpoche, a renowned Phowa Master)
* Association of Theravada Buddhism Bhavana ("Društvo theravadskih budistov, Bhavana")
* Samanadipa Forest Hermitage, founded in 2016. It is associated with the Forest Tradition of Ajahn Chah. This community has a resident monk, Ajahn Hiriko.
* Slovene Buddhist Association Madyamika ("Slovensko budistično društvo Madyamika, Srednja pot")
* Zen group
Notes
External links
Slovenia: At a Distance from a Perfect Religious MarketSignature of the agreement between Buddhist Congregation Dharmaling and the State of Slovenia (article in Slovene)
{{Europe topic, Buddhism in, countries_only=yes
Buddhism in Slovenia,
Buddhism by country, Slovenia
Buddhism in Europe, Slovenia