This month’s letter is written by Nagapriya. Nagapriya first met Triratna in Leeds, England in 1988 whilst he was studying for a degree in philosophy. He describes that he quickly realised that he had found his spiritual home and, after moving to Manchester, he was ordained in 1992. In 2013 he moved to Mexico where he co-founded the Centro Budista de Cuernavaca, and has worked for the men's ordination training process in Latin America for the last decade. He published his third book with Windhorse last year, on Shinran and the Pure Land tradition.
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Dear Order Members and friends,
I know that some of you wonder what Public Preceptors actually do when they are not hanging kesas. In recent months, some of us have shared our experiences from around the world, giving you a sense of the diverse activities we engage in.
I recently returned from my first visit to New England, USA, where I made a mini-tour that included Aryaloka, Portsmouth, Portland (ME), and Boston. Ostensibly, I went to lead a short retreat on my book The Promise of a Sacred World at Aryaloka, but I also visited several Triaratna groups. Not knowing exactly what to expect, I was delighted to see how welcoming, beautiful, and well-cared-for Aryaloka is. It has had its ups and downs over the years but, more than anything, I became aware of all the efforts that have contributed towards its becoming the sanctuary that it now is. I felt blessed to be there. Its geodesic domes now smartly dressed with shingle, its interior adorned with images of buddhas and bodhisattvas, it is truly a beautiful, sacred world. This says a lot about the current team there and I must rejoice in the merits of Suddhayu and Singhashuri—as well as the many others—who give so much energy and love to that situation.
I was pleased that quite a few Order members and mitras made it to the retreat. Everyone engaged with the topics that we explored with great openness, even when the material was quite unfamiliar. One of the themes that I underlined was the value of recalling our very first connection to the Dharma and how this can serve as a source of confidence and inspiration that we can always return to. This initial opening towards the Dharma is not trivial but almost a kind of miracle: somehow we have managed to connect with the Buddha’s vision, the impulse towards awakening has revealed itself through us. This is something astonishing and humbling. My experience of opening to the Other Power approach is often one of feeling on the verge of capturing a deep truth but one that yet always remains mysterious and impossible to assimilate fully. It is a compelling yet unsettling sensation, a journey very much towards the unknown.
In Portsmouth, I was generously hosted by Candradasa and his wife Laura. Portsmouth is a picturesque town that fronts the Piscataqua River, with chocolate-box houses most notably preserved at the Strawbery Banke Museum. Among other things, we dropped into a 1930s shop and a GI Joe museum where the curator knew far more than he should about boys’ toys. I was reminded of my Action Man amphibious helicopter and armoured car from the 1970s. Suddenly I was a child at Christmas anticipating what presents might come my way: ‘The past falls open anywhere’, writes the poet Michael Donaghy. As we walked along the grey sand at Kittery Point, gazing out over the Atlantic swell, I found myself wondering what it would have been like to arrive here in the early Seventeenth Century, penniless, with dreams of a better life and a New England. It feels like a long way away from the skinny lattes and crullers of Lil’s Café in Kittery.
Suddhayu and Singhashuri accompanied me to Portland where I arrived home—that is, I visited Nagaloka (the ‘realm of the Nagas’). As we crammed into the shrine room and I gave a talk on ‘The Buddha’s Victory’, I was lifted up by the excitement of my first visits to the Leeds Buddhist Centre in 1988. My connection with the Dharma mission was revived and I was left excited at the possibilities that could emerge at our Portland Centre.
In Boston, I stayed with one of my chapter buddies, Cittavan, and we were able to sample some of the cultural riches the city has accumulated. First, we went to the Harvard Art Museum where the highlight was Van Gogh’s luminous self-portrait of 1888. According to Jean-Luc Marion, such a painting confronts us, it ‘imposes its internal rhythm’ and requires us to adapt to it, even to yield to it. Thus the painting is not an object at all but in fact an agent that overwhelms us and which can never be reduced to our mastery.
In the company of Viriyalila, we visited the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, which is spectacular. We were drawn to the Japanese section which boasts a magnificent sculpture triad that depicts Amida (or Amitabha), the Buddha of Infinite Light, flanked by Avalokiteshvara and Mahastamaprapta, the two principal bodhisattvas who, according to scripture, accompany Amida to escort us to the Pure Land at the moment of death. Before leaving Boston I was able to look in on Sravaniya, who was recovering from a knee replacement operation, and he regaled us with his knowledge of opera and German art. I also caught a glimpse of Padmabhadra—until his car got towed and we were sent scrambling to release it from the impoundment lot.
I was heartened by the loyal core of Order members who underpin the Triratna sangha in New England. I was also moved by their kindness and generosity. It also became clear that if Triratna is to thrive there into the future a lot more help is needed. Many of the Order members are well past retirement age and those who aren’t are often fully absorbed with jobs and family responsibilities. While there is a lot of interest, we need to engage more with younger people, especially those who may be inspired to give time and energy to sharing the Dharma.
I returned to Mexico just in time to attend the ordinations of four Dharmacharinis at Chintamani Retreat Centre. It is always a privilege and a kind of miracle to witness ordinations. It never gets old. I pay tribute to my colleagues Parami, Paramachitta, Dayachandra, and Jnanadakini for the immense efforts that they have put in over so many years to make such special moments possible.
With metta
Nagapriya