This is a list of

sangha Sangha is a Sanskrit word used in many Indian languages, including Pali meaning "association", "assembly", "company" or "community"; Sangha is often used as a surname across these languages. It was historically used in a political context t ...

s in San Diego County, California. All major branches of Buddhism,

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' ...

Mahayana ''Mahāyāna'' (; "Great Vehicle") is a term for a broad group of Buddhist traditions, texts, philosophies, and practices. Mahāyāna Buddhism developed in India (c. 1st century BCE onwards) and is considered one of the three main existing br ...

, 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 ...

, are represented there, as is the Mahayana form

Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...

, as are ''

Vipassanā ''Samatha'' ( Pāli; sa, शमथ ''śamatha''; ), "calm," "serenity," "tranquillity of awareness," and ''vipassanā'' ( Pāli; Sanskrit ''vipaśyanā''), literally "special, super (''vi-''), seeing (''-passanā'')", are two qualities of t ...

'' and Jōdo Shinshū ( Pure Land). There is also a

secular Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin ''saeculum'', "worldly" or "of a generation"), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. Anything that does not have an explicit reference to religion, either negativ ...

Zen sangha. The area is home to

monasteries A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

as well as to less formally engaged groups who gather for meditation and community.

Siddhārtha Gautama Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in L ...

died over 2500 years ago, but the oldest Buddhist organization in San Diego County is less than 100 years old.

History

During 1916, Japanese immigrant Buddhist farmers were killed when what was then named Otay Dam gave way and resulted in the Hatfield Flood. The local

Japanese diaspora The Japanese diaspora and its individual members, known as Nikkei (日系) or as Nikkeijin (日系人), comprise the Japanese emigrants from Japan (and their descendants) residing in a country outside Japan. Emigration from Japan was recorded ...

needed a place to hold religious services and went on to found what they call the oldest Buddhist organization in San Diego County. They met informally until they were able to afford a temple space. First they rented a second-floor room on 6th and Market in May 1926. Boys and girls in costume paraded through downtown to celebrate. Later, in 1931, they dedicated today's Buddhist Temple of San Diego at 2929 Market.

List

Notes

{{Buddhism topics * Religious buildings and structures in San Diego County, California

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...

Organizations based in San Diego County, California

Sanghas Sankhvast ( fa, سنخواست, also Romanized as Sankhvāst; also known as Sanghas, Sangkhuast, Sankhāş, and Sankhāst) is a city and capital of Jolgeh Sankhvast District, in Jajrom County, North Khorasan Province, Iran Iran, off ...