Amaravati Buddhist Monastery facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Amaravati Buddhist Monastery
A stupa amid the frost of late dawn
Religion
Affiliation	Thai Forest Tradition
Leadership	Ajahn Amaro (abbot)
Location
Location	St Margarets Lane, Great Gaddesden, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England HP1 3BZ
Country	United Kingdom
Architecture
Founder	disciples of Luang Por Chah
Completed	1984
Website
http://www.amaravati.org

Amaravati is a special place in South East England where people practice Buddhism. It's a monastery, which is like a home for monks and nuns. It was started in 1984 by a teacher named Ajahn Sumedho. The monastery follows the ideas of a famous teacher from Thailand, Ajahn Chah.

The main goals of Amaravati are to train and support the monks and nuns who live there. It also helps everyone, whether they live at the monastery or not, learn and practice the teachings of the Buddha. This monastery is not the same as the ancient Amaravati Stupa in India.

Who Lives at Amaravati?

The people who live at Amaravati are monks (called bhikkhus) and nuns (called siladhara). There are also people who are training to become monks or nuns. Everyone who lives there follows strict traditional rules, including living a simple life.

• The male community usually has between 15 and 25 monks and young monks (called samaneras). They live a peaceful life, following the ancient rules of Buddhism.
• There are also "anagārikas," who are people wearing white robes. They are training to become monks. After a year or two, they might become young monks.
• The order of nuns, called siladhara, started in 1983. There are about 10 nuns and several female trainees at Amaravati. Some also live at Chithurst Buddhist Monastery in West Sussex.

Inside Amravati Buddhist Monastery

How Amaravati Started

Amaravati officially opened in 1985. The land was bought in 1984 by a group called the English Sangha Trust. Before it was a monastery, the site had many large wooden buildings. These buildings were used by the military during World War II and later became a school.

A special temple was built at the monastery. It was officially opened on July 4, 1999. A princess from Thailand, Princess Galyani Vadhana, helped open it. She was the sister of the King of Thailand.

The first leader, or abbot, of Amaravati was Ajahn Sumedho. He was the main student of Ajahn Chah in the West. In 2010, he passed on his role to Ajahn Amaro. Ajahn Amaro is an English monk who had been leading another monastery in California.

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  Beyond all coming and going: the Tathagata

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  Temple of Amaravati Monastery UK seen from within cloister

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  Main temple building seen from rear car park

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  Amaravati Monastery Cloister outside wall and temple in background

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  Main Stupa and trees in bloom at Amaravati Monastery UK

Connecting with Others

Amaravati has other monasteries in England, like in Devon and Northumberland. There are also sister monasteries in other countries, such as New Zealand, Italy, Switzerland, and North America. These were also started by Ajahn Sumedho.

These monasteries are part of the larger community started by Ajahn Chah. A new monastery in Portugal, called Sumedharama, has also been founded.

Amaravati has a special retreat centre. Here, people can come to learn and practice meditation. These courses are offered from April to December. Every Saturday, there is a meditation workshop for visitors from 2-4pm. The monastery also hosts other events for families and people interested in learning.

The monastery and its retreat centre are run entirely on donations. This follows an old Buddhist idea called dāna, which means giving freely. Amaravati is close to the village of Great Gaddesden in Hertfordshire. The word Amaravati comes from an ancient Buddhist language called Pali. It means "deathless realm."

Retreat Centre

The monastery has a retreat centre. It offers meditation courses for monks, nuns, and visitors for most of the year.

Future Plans

In 2013, plans were announced to make the monastery buildings more eco-friendly. Some of the old wooden buildings are being replaced. So far, these projects have been finished:

• Aroga Kuti: This is a nursing cottage for older monks. It was finished in November 2017.
• Heartwood House: This building provides more space for the nuns' community.
• Re-building of the nuns' residence: The nuns' living area at Amaravati has been rebuilt.

See Also

• Thai Forest Tradition
• Forest Tradition of Ajahn Chah
• Aruna Ratanagiri, UK
• Chithurst Buddhist Monastery, UK
• Wat Pah Pong, Thailand
• Wat Pah Nanachat, Thailand
• Santacittarama, Italy
• Abhayagiri Buddhist Monastery, USA
• Birken Forest Buddhist Monastery, Canada
• Bodhinyana Monastery, Australia
• Buddhism in the West
• Buddhism in the United Kingdom
• Buddhism in Europe