The Buddhist Society of N.S.W. contributed ten dollars a week from their funds towards the heavy expenses undertaken freely and happily by Mr.Jong. The Ven.Somaloka instructed him to accept this offer for them to share in this meritorious deed until the end of the year.
After working with the Buddhist Society of N.S.W. for twelve months, Venerable Somaloka formed the opinion that the Society had become a group more interested in engaging in armchair discussion than in practising Buddhism as a way of life. The executive of the Buddhist Society and their monk had an uneasy relationship. Prior to the Bhikkhu's moving to Rose Bay, Ven.Somaloka felt that his time was not being used as profitably as it might have been. Venerable Somaloka stressed to the Buddhist Society of N.S.W. that, if Buddhism were to make any progress and a monk were to remain in Sydney, that it would be necessary for them to make moves towards establishing a Vihara. The Society had the funds as the money from the sale of the West Pennant Hills property had yielded a healthy profit which Charles Knight had successfully invested in the share market. Their leaders, however, were not prepared to use this money for a Vihara. Being resident in the Maclaughlin's private home, access to him was necessarily restricted. This situation changed, however, once he was established in the Rose Bay apartment. Elva Miksevicious continued:
The Ven.Somaloka then started his religious activities, which were conducted over many hours each day. He talked to people who came to see him from all over Australia, he taught, he instructed, he preached, he conducted services and gave himself to his work and those who were in need of him. Naturally, he met hundreds of people of all ages and walks of life.
Bill Jong selflessly devoted himself to the needs of Venerable Somaloka. He visited the apartment each day to prepare the monk's food and to drive him in his car to his various appointments. The Buddhists who benefited from Ven.Somaloka's instruction will be forever grateful to the great contribution offered by Bill Jong. A few of those people who had gathered around Venerable Somaloka at Rose Bay resolved to find a way to establish a Vihara. Two people, who were staunch supporters of the Buddhist Society of N.S.W. prior to the 1956 split, Jurgis and Elva Miksevicious, had become actively involved in the activities at Rose Bay. The Buddhist Society of N.S.W., at that time, had no interest whatever in the devotional side of Buddhism. Natasha Jackson, referring to earlier Pujas conducted by the Society, wrote:
Strangers who wandered into our meetings saw obeisance to an image, heard, what was to them, a meaningless chanting in some strange language, and left either amused or mystified, but certainly not edified. By 1972, the activities, formerly conducted at Rose Bay, were transfered to Annandale, an inner Sydney suburb. A devotional service followed by Dhamma teaching and meditation became a regular Sunday morning activity. Far from being 'amused or mystified', a group of fifteen to twenty people were regularly in attendance.
On Vesak Day, 1973, the Australian Buddhist Vihara was opened at Katoomba, in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney. The dream of Venerable Somaloka and his devotees was finally realised. R.L.Henderson, in an Editorial in 'Metta', concluded:
Many of us feel that the Ven.Somaloka is an ideal person to start off the first fully Buddhist Vihara in this country. He has demonstrated flexibility of mind and the ability to fit into Australian conditions and way of life in a commonsense manner.
Despite the bouquets and optimism which greeted the founding of Australia's first Buddhist Vihara, since then, all has not been a bed of roses. A sign on the gate of the Vihara, "Private Property", is a significant indicator of its policies. Despite the Sri Lankan origins of Venerable Somaloka, the local Sri Lankan Buddhist community was discouraged from visiting the Vihara. It was only after the arrival of Venerable Pemananda, who was invited to assist in the activities of the Vihara for a three year period, that the Sri Lankan community was granted limited access. The Bhikkhu who followed Ven.Pemananda's stay, Ven.Suganananda, was most unimpressed with the exclusiveness of the Vihara's policies and threatened to leave unless visitors were granted freer access. Some Blue Mountain's residents who wished to study the Dhamma and practice meditation claim that they were actively discouraged from attending the Vihara. Many of the original supporters have since withdrawn from its activities due in no small degree to Somaloka's alleged breach of a major Vinaya rule. At the end of 1972, the Buddhist Society of N.S.W. purchased a villa unit at Eastlakes, a Sydney suburb, to serve as a permanent meeting place.
On January 23rd, 1972, Eric Liao, a Chinese businessman, formed the Chinese Buddhist Society of Australia. Initially, he invited Venerable Somaloka to conduct services in a garage adjacent to his home. With the assistance of Bill Jong, he acquired more central and suitable premises in Dixon Street, in Sydney's Chinatown district. This newly established temple in Dixon Street was later named "Prajna Temple". A tragic fire destroyed the premises on November 14th, 1985. All that remained after the fire was the statues of Sakyamuni Buddha, Kwan Yin, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva and approximately one thousand books, including the Tripitaka. The abbot of the temple, Ven.Sik Chee Ming, and his supporters re-established the temple at Hornsby, a northern Sydney suburb. In 1989, premises in Dixon Street, vacated by the Chinese See Yup Society, were acquired and the central Chinese community, again, has a place of worship.
The form of Mahayana Buddhism followed by most Chinese and, indeed, the Vietnamese, is a fusion of Cha'an (Zen) and Pure Land (Messianic Buddhism). As Paul Croucher (1) observes:
The elemental Chinese religion is, of course, a kind of nature polytheism, onto which aspects of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism have been grafted. The Chinese brought with them a syncretic blend of beliefs and practices in which the demarcations were ill-defined and the influence of Buddhism only mild. As in China, those who identified themselves with Buddhism probably amounted to no more than one per cent of the population. Most were content to wear 'a Confucian crown, a Taoist robe, and Buddhist sandals', and when pressed had some difficulty in describing the religion they practised.
Although a small number of the Chinese Buddhist community in Sydney is very devout, the greater number is quite pragmatic regarding religion and regard it as solely of use in rites of passage.
1973 heralded the arrival of two more monks from Thailand, in the persons of Venerable Chao Khun Pariattikavi and the well known teacher and author, Venerable Khantipalo. Initially, they conducted their activities from a rented bungalow in the Sydney suburb of Roseberry, but in 1975, a magnificent Victorian house, now known as Wat Buddharangsee, was purchased in the inner city suburb of Stanmore. The opening ceremony, on Vesak Day, 25th of May, 1975, was performed by His Royal Highness, Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn, in the presence of His Highness Ven.Somdet Phra Nyanasamvara and ten visiting Bhikkhus from Thailand. Wat Buddharangsee became the focal point for Theravadin Buddhism in Sydney, a function formerly performed by the Buddhist Society of N.S.W.. Wat Buddharangsee has proved to be one of the most popular Buddhist meeting places in the Sydney area. Such has been its success, that it has rapidly become too small to adequately serve its congregation so, a large tract of land was purchased at Leumeah, south of Sydney, where a traditional Thai-style Wat Pa Buddharangsee was opened in May, 1988. The Stanmore premises is being retained to serve the needs of the inner city Buddhist community.
In 1973, at the Buddhist Society of N.S.W.'s Eastlakes villa, a new style of meeting emerged. Under the guidance of Malcolm Pierce and his Japanese born wife Nara, who were resident there, the Society moved from its originally Theravadin format to incorporate the teachings of other traditions including those of the Japanese Nichiren Sect, Rissho Kosekai. Two years later, Natasha Jackson, unhappy with the new style "Dharma Circle" meetings, resigned from the Society. Natasha Jackson, despite her, at times, abrasive manner, must be given due credit for keeping Buddhism alive in Sydney through its most difficult years. She had a fiercely independent and strong personality, uncompromisingly defended her views of how the Buddhist Society of N.S.W. should be run and was quick to condemn those with whom she disagreed. Had Sydney not had a Natasha Jackson, it is doubtful if the Buddhist Society of N.S.W. could, today, rightly claim to be the oldest and longest surviving Buddhist organisation in Australia.
1975 saw the birth of the Sydney Zen Centre. It is affiliated with the Diamond Sangha in Hawaii under the leadership of their teacher, Robert Aitken Roshi, who visits Australia regularly. They have purchased some land at St.Albans, north of Sydney, where a country Zendo is being established for meditation retreats. Although the chanting of sutras forms an essential part of the activities at the Zen Centre, the major emphasis is on meditation practise.
As the result of the purchase, in 1978, of 220 acres of land in the Dharug National Park, near Wiseman's Ferry, north of Sydney, Wat Buddha Dhamma came into being. It is a forest monastery with a supporting lay-village. Under the capable guidance of its resident abbot, Venerable Khantipalo, regular meditation retreats were conducted, not only for the benefit of the resident lay-community, but for the many city-dwellers who welcomed the opportunity to spend some time in a quiet natural bush setting. On the 20th of October, 1987, disaster struck the Wat. The Amenities Block was completely destroyed by fire. This block provided the mess and dormitory facilities for visitors and retreat participants. With the assistance of its many supporters, both resident and city dwelling, these facilities have been restored so that its regular retreat and teaching programmes continue. A large new Sala (Meditation Hall) was opened in September, 1988, to accomodate the many people who attend the regular retreats. Phra Khantipalo, the founding abbot, disrobed in 1992 after being a Buddhist monk for thirty years. He has been replaced by a German born monk, Venerable Santitthito, who has been in Thailand for many years.
In 1979, after selling its Eastlakes villa, the Buddhist Society of N.S.W. purchased premises in Walker Street, North Sydney, from where it now operates. The Society acquired a large parcel of land at Katoomba, in the Blue Mountains, in 1982. This acquisition, which was made possible by a large financial donation from the Rissho Kosekai organisation in Japan, is being used as the Society's country retreat centre.
In the late '70's, Venerable Geshe Loden, a Gelugpa monk from Tibet, established centres for the practise and teaching of the Tibetan style of Buddhism in the Eastern States. His Sydney centre, the Loden Mahayana Centre, was started in Chippendale, an inner city suburb. This centre moved to its present location at Dulwich Hill in the early '80's. The Loden Mahayana Centre undertook the mammoth task, in 1982, of organising the Sydney visit of His Holiness, the Fourteenth Dalai Lama. The centre is currently known as the Tibetan Buddhist Society.
Venerable Tsang Hui arrived in Australia from Taiwan in 1977. In 1979, from a rented house in Redfern, an inner city suburb, he established the Hwa Tsang Monastery. Being a qualified school teacher as well as a Buddhist monk, he employed the 'skillful means' of attracting young people to the Monastery by conducting classes in academic subjects. The monastery later moved to Greenacre and then to its present location at Homebush West. In addition to conducting religious observances, the monastery continues to attract many high school students to its daily classes in Buddhism, chemistry, Chinese language, English, general science, physics and mathematics. Due to these special classes, many of the students have gained places at Sydney's universities and later graduated to the professions. After overcoming much local opposition, the Hwa Tsang Monastery opened Sydney's first 'purpose built' Chinese Buddhist Temple at the Homebush site in 1993. After overcoming difficulties encountered with an unsympathetic local council and racist opposition from a few local residents, the Monastery building is now fully functioning. For a detailed account of the battle to establish this Monastery see my article 'Ethnic Buddhism in N.S.W.' (4). As an outcome of many Buddhist students matriculating to the universities, joined by overseas students studying in Australia, university Buddhist societies were formed in the early eighties. The first student society was the University of New South Wales Buddhist Society, also known as UNIBUDS, which was founded, in 1981, with Venerable Tsang Hui's support. A year later, the Sydney University Buddhist Society was formed at Australia's oldest university, the University of Sydney. UNIBUDS has grown steadily since its inception and produces one of Australia's best produced Buddhist publications, 'Unibuds Annual Magazine'. The Sydney University Buddhist Society has struggled to survive in a university with, until recently, few overseas students, but with a renewed burst of enthusiasm, seems destined to become firmly established. In 1992, a Buddhist Society was established at Macquarie University.
A retreat held at Blackheath, in the Blue Mountains, in November, 1980, with a mere four people attending, heralded the modest beginning in New South Wales, of the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order. This Order was founded by the English monk, Ven.Sangharakshita, in 1967, with the idea of presenting the Buddha's teachings in Western terms, essentially, to people of European origin. Since then, centres and Buddhist community households have been established throughout the world. The first such household was estabished, in Australia, at Wollstoncraft, a northern Sydney suburb, in 1981. In 1984, the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order opened an inner city meeting and teaching place, the Sydney Buddhist Centre, near Central Railway, but moved to premises in King Street, Sydney in 1993.
As an outcome of the tragic war and Communist takeover in South-East Asia, many refugees from these Buddhist countries arrived in Australia, to re-establish their home and to seek religious freedom. At the end of 1979, a group of Vietnamese refugees met at a restaurant in Glebe, an inner city suburb, and formed the Vietnamese Buddhist Society of N.S.W. The first religious ceremonies organised by the Society were held at the Thai temple, Wat Buddharangsee, at Stanmore. Premises at Lakemba, a western suburb, were later leased by the Society, to serve as a temporary temple, prior to the arrival of their monk, Venerable Thich Bao Lac. Problems with the local council and racism from the local residents forced the Society to seek Government assistance to find a more suitable place and to establish a more permanent place of worship. Land at Bonnyrigg, an outer western suburb, was leased to the Society by the Housing Commission of N.S.W.. Today, on this land stands the first, purpose built, Buddhist temple in metropolitan Sydney, the Phap Bao Temple. A large statue of the Bodhisattva Kwan Yin forms a dominating landmark at the entrance to the temple.
Actually, the first Vietnamese monk to arrive in Australia was the senior teacher, Most Venerable Thich Phuoc Hue, who set foot on our soil in 1980. In 1981, he formed the Vietnamese Buddhist Federation of Australia, which currently has branch temples in all Australian States with the exception of Tasmania, which has very few Vietnamese refugees. At its Biennial Conference in 1987, the name of the Federation was changed to the United Vietnamese Buddhist Congregations of Australia. He established the Phuoc Hue Temple in a large garage at the rear of a cottage in Fairfield, which served as a monk's residence. Again, racism and the local council's insensitivity to the needs of the refugee communities, forced the Vietnamese Buddhist Federation to seek Government assistance in finding a suitable place for a temple to serve the spiritual needs of Sydney's large Vietnamese Buddhist community. The then Premier of N.S.W., the Hon.Barrie Unsworth, responded by making available an unused school premises at Wetherill Park, an outer western suburb. The foundation stone for the new Phuoc Hue Temple was laid by him in October, 1987. The splendid temple premises, which is a major showpiece of Sydney, is currently situated on this former school land. The Vietnamese community is divided politically, hence the two temples. The Phap Bao Temple was established by Vietnamese who were in Australia, as students or diplomats prior to the 1975 fall of Saigon. The Phuoc Hue Temple serves the 'boat people', who view those, who didn't personally experience Communist oppression, with suspicion. They claim that many of the people from the Phap Bao Temple are not vigorous enough in their opposition to the current regime in Vietnam. Both temples support a youth movement called "The Young Buddhist Family" which is similar to and affiliated with the Boy Scout Movement.
Lao society is inseparable from Buddhism - they have been Buddhist for nearly a thousand years. 95% of the country are rice farmers and rural life revolved around the village Wat (temple) where the monk acted as teacher, doctor and spiritual adviser. Throughout the feudal and colonial periods, the Sangha the order of monks - remained the main institution in the country. The monks were held in tremendous esteem as moral and spiritual arbiters as well as the most learned of the community.(5)
In 1975, the Pathet Lao defeated the army of the royalist Buddhist monarchy and many Lao people fled from the communist tyranny across the Thai border. Many have since settled in Australia. The community divided into two factions - one supporting the former monarchy and the other, feeling dominated by the educated middle class, wishing to follow an independent path. In the mid eighties, the Lao refugees welcomed the arrival of their first monks to serve the spiritual needs of their community. The Lao Community Advancement Co-operative, the pro-monarchist group, purchased a two storied premises at Cabramatta West, known as Wat Prayort Keo Dhammananaram, to serve as a temporary residence for their monks and a meeting place for religious observances. They were later granted, by the N.S.W. Government, the lease on some land at Bonnyrigg for the purpose of, eventually, establishing a templeand community centre. The Foundation Stone Laying Ceremony was held on Sunday, 20th of August, 1989 and construction of the first stage, the monks'residence, was completed in 1990. The main temple building, in the traditional Lao style, is scheduled for completion in 1993. For many years the independent Lao Association of N.S.W., rented premises on the Hume Highway at Cabramatta as a temple and residence for the Abbot, Ven.Thongsoun Phantha-Oudom and their monks. The temple, known as Wat Buddhalavarn later became independent from the Lao Association and the Abbot was appointed as President. Early in 1988, a cottage was purchased to serve as a temporary Vihara (residence and temple) until land for a temple could be acquired. Moves were made in 1988 to unite the two Lao temples but, although the monks from both temples strongly supported it, suspicions about the motives for the merger still lingered amongst the laity, especially those from Wat Buddhalavarn, and such a conjunction, unfortunately, now seems more remote than ever. The occasional combined ceremonies, that occured before the attempted merger, have now completely ceased.
Resulting from the barbarism wrought on the Cambodian people by Pol Pot and his Khmer Rouge genocidal maniacs and the consequent invasion and occupation of Cambodia by the armed forces of the Peoples Republic of Vietnam, many refugees fled to the freedom of Thailand. These people, who, under the fanatical policies of the Khmer Rouge, were forced to labour for sixteen hours a day with little food, had lost all of their possessions. Many of their relatives and friends, especially the educated, the professionals and the monks, had been slaughtered. They looked to the compassionate countries of the 'West' for resettlement so that they could resume what was left of their shattered lives. Australia accepted many of these industrious people and the various Governments provided some assistance in their resettlement. Buddhism is central to the lifestyle of the Khmer people and their fondest wish, after their arrival in Australia was to have a Buddhist monk to minister to their spiritual and social needs. Due to the genocide, very few monks survived to satisfy this need. In the mid 1980's, the Venerable Long Sakkhone, a Cambodian Buddhist monk arrived to take up residence in Sydney. The community rented a rather run-down cottage in Fairfield, a Western suburb of Sydney, to serve as a temporary monk's residence and temple. The then Minister for Housing in the N.S.W. Government, the Hon.Frank Walker, later arranged for the lease of a tract of land adjacent to a large shopping Plaza at Bonnyrigg to the Khmer Community of N.S.W. for the purpose of constructing a community centre and temple. Construction of the first stage of this Cambodian centre, comprising a community hall, office and amenities block as well as a monk's residence has already been completed and was officially opened by the Premier of N.S.W., the Hon.Nick Greiner on Saturday the 10th of February, 1990. The temple building, itself, being large, complex and expensive will have to wait for another day. The Khmer community is divided politically, with some people supporting Prince Norodom Sihanouk (FUNCINPEC), and others, the former Prime Minister, Son San (KPNLF), whilst a small number support the Vietnamese puppet' government of Hun Sen, however, they are united in their devotion to Theravadin Buddhism and, irrespective of how poor their circumstances in their new country, they generously support the temple and the religion generally. One would imagine that, in the light of the horrific experiences suffered by the Khmer community prior to their arrival in Australia, psychosis would be prevalent. Such is not the case, however. The Khmer people attribute this to their devotion to the teachings of the Buddha and are thus accepting of change, sorrow and their karmic circumstances.
Another religious group in the Bonnyrigg area is the Taoist, Confucian cum Buddhist plus traditional god worshiping lay organisation, the Australian-Chinese Buddhist Society. The membership of this organisation comprises mainly ethnic Chinese refugees from Indo-China. This temple is one of the few serving the Indo-Chinese community which is completely privately funded.
During the past 600 years, Buddhism has undergone turmoil in Korea. Cha'an (Zen) Buddhism was introduced from China in 372 A.D. and fused with the indigeonous Shamanism. (6) The Choson kings, who ruled from 1392 until Japan annexed Korea in 1910, favoured Neo-Confucianism and ruthlessly suppressed Buddhism, forcing it out of the cities and towns and confining the temples to the remote mountains. During the Japanese occupation, Buddhism again gained favour but the celibate monks were forced to marry. Following liberation in 1945, the main sect, Chogye, re-instituted celibacy for its clergy whilst several of the minor sects persisted with married priests.
Following the Korean war, Korea came under American influence and an influx of Christian missionaries, especially of the aggressive fundamentalist variety, invaded Korea. What was formerly a Buddhist stronghold, now sees half of its population following Christianity. The results of this turmultuous period in Korean history has, to a significant degree, manifested itself amongst the Korean Buddhist migrants in Australia. Early in the 1980's, the Korean Dharmakaya Society was formed at Summer Hill, a western suburb of Sydney. In 1984, a monk, Venerable Jin Sang Sunim, arrived from Korea and premises were leased at Earlwood to serve as a residence and temporary temple, known originally as Hong Boep Sa and later renamed Dharma Sa. Venerable Jin Sang left Australia early in 1985 and was replaced by Venerable Jang San Sunim, who arrived on the first of April, 1985. An uneasy relationship developed between the monk and the Committee of the temple. By October, the dissent had become so untenable that the Venerable Jang San was forced to leave the temple, together with those members of the congregation who remained loyal to him. By December, 1985, a new Korean temple, Bul Kwang Sa, was established at Summer Hill with Venerable Jang San as its Abbot. His visa expired early in 1986 and he returned to Korea. After returning to Australia in January, 1988, as a permanent resident, he resumed his duties of ministry to the spiritual needs of the Korean community at the Bul Kwang Temple. The Committee of the Korean Dharmakaya Society later sponsored a Bhikshuni (female monk), Venerable Jung O Sunim, in October, 1986, to take over as resident spiritual teacher. Again, conflict arose between Jung O Sunim and the temple committee and she was dismissed in September, 1988. Many of her supporters severed their connection with the Korean Dharmakaya Society and established yet another temple, Kwan Eum Sa, at Belmore, and later at Punchbowl, with Ven.Jung O Sunim as its presiding abbot. Yet another Bhikshuni, Venerable Ja Young Sunim, arrived in 1989 to serve the needs of the Korean Dharmakaya Society. The Society later vacated its Earlwood premises and established itself at Campsie, Sydney's main centre of Korean migrants. Meanwhile, trouble arose at the Bul Kwang Temple at Summer Hill. The President felt that, as he and the committee were meeting the expenses of the temple, the monks should confine their activities to performing ceremonies and all major decisions should be vested in the lay committee. The situation became so tense that Venerable Jang San formed the opinion that the temple was serving more as a Korean social club, providing a venue for Koreans to meet and discuss issues back home rather than as a centre for Buddhist practice. He felt that they had no real interest in practising Buddhism so he returned to Korea, leaving the Bul Kwang Temple without any monks to serve the congregation. In 1991, due to the efforts of Venerable Jah Young Sunim of Dharma Sa and Ki Hu Sunim, the newly installed abbot of Bulkwang Sa, a reconciliation and amalgamation occured between the two temples. The amalgamated temple was named Jong Bop Sa. Many people in the Korean Buddhist community feel a deep sense of shame over the turbulent history of Korean Buddhism in Australia. With a spirit of goodwill the Korean community is striving for harmony and tolerance and, hopefully, they will leave in the past what belongs in the past and will firmly establish the Korean Buddhist tradition in their new home. Won Buddhism, an evangelical 'new religious movement' from Korea, is also well established in Sydney. A Reverend from this order arrived in 1990. Won Buddhism is a fusion of Son (Zen) and Confucianism and has, as its object of worship, a circle, symbolising the Void which 'contains everything and is perfect' (7), rather than the traditional Buddha image. Won Buddhism is celebrated the centenary of the birth of its founder, the Venerable Master Sotaesan, in 1991.
 
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