As every year on the last long weekend in September the European Buddhist Union held its annual 3-day meeting, this year outside Brussels, followed by the annual 3-day meeting of Buddhist Teachers in Europe.
(These meetings meet in different places around Europe year by year but this time we met in Brussels to mark the EBU's transition to being registered as an organisation in Belgium, to enable easier access to the European political institutions in which the EBU is active.)
As Triratna's Liaison Officer I have been attending the EBU for 11 years now; this year I was elected as a council member and vice president for a four-year term, and was joined at the meeting by Vassika, from Triratna's Paris sangha.
According to its mission statement the EBU aims "to facilitate international exchange and promote spiritual friendship amongst European Buddhists, to support social action and ideas motivated by Buddhist values, and to amplify the voice of Buddhism in Europe and worldwide."
Forty to fifty people from a range of UK and European Buddhist organisations attended the EBU meeting, In a generally positive atmosphere we discussed the EBU's various projects which include environmental education, mindfulness for schools, chaplaincy, women, LGBTQ+ rights, animal welfare and contemplative sciences, as well as the work of its European Affairs Team.
The subsequent Buddhist Teachers in Europe meeting attracted over 20 women and men to a much more informal 3-day gathering for discussion of themes arising from our personal practice and teaching. For this, Vassika and I were happy that Vajratara was again able to join us.