News Update and Progress Summary 29 June 2006

Dear all,

Sorry my home PC is currently having its summer vacation and that forces me to write very brief non-work related emails at work.

1. Friends House, Euston Road

Please tell us the name of the account?

2) All, could we start the funding process rolling internally first? The funding currently stands at £0.00

3) Upasaka Seung Fei Kong is currently looking into setting up a charity website to make donation very easy. To be explored and discussed.[/i]

4. Visit of Ven Wu Shin (Bhikkhu)

Current Status: Ven Wu Shin (Bhikkhu) and his entourage will visit London from 6th – 9th July (next week). Ven Wu Shin is one of the most prominent students, if not the most, of Venerable Master Chin Kung and is the Executive Vice President of the Pure Land Learning College Association in Australia. He travels extensively in Malaysia/Singapore/USA and south America by invitation to teach so apart from seeing our progress in the organising he would like to give a dharma course to people wishing to know more about Buddhism, Pureland practice etc. It will be an excellent chance to warm ourselves up and get to know the organisation, the practice better.

Action:

1) KCT suggest a dinner at somewhere (Mr Kong at Chinatown?) for the organising members to welcome him and discuss the organising of the events.

Everyone, please tell me if you are able to turn up and if so which evening (6th or 7th) is a better choice for you.

2) Ven Wu Shin suggest a place which can hold 100~300 people for the Dharma talk on Sunday (9th), since it is precious to have such a prominent Dharma teacher coming to guide us during this time and we are extremely grateful for his offer.

3) Everyone, have you got any suggestions, since I don’t have any idea with regards to a suitable venue.

4) How do we advertise the news of the teachings?

5. Inter-tradition Dialogue

Current Status: General consensus = very meaningful. However we have a problem with venue as ABS UK currently do not have a centre.

Action:

1) We could wait for the right conditions for a centre.

2) Everyone, is there any other alternative or suggestions?

6. Involvement of Politician/Royal Family

Current Status: Not sure if we have any reasons for inviting unless we have the inter-tradition/inter-faith dialogue, inauguration of a centre, or a book launch event?

7. Establishments of working groups

Current Status: Once the invitation has been confirmed we need to establish the Publicity and Ticketing working groups to start work.

Action:

1) Any taker to work on the Publicity? Need to work on the posters for the two public talks on the 12th and 13th first. Any designer or artist that is willing to put in some time to design the poster? We also need to design the tickets (non seating arrangement but with numbers – 1172 for Friends House for example)

2) Upasaka Vincent, Upasaka Seung Fei and Upasaka Winston, can you try pull ideas together to design the front page of the website to advertise the two public events? Could you also advertise recruitment for volunteers?

8. Addresses

Current Status: Thank you Poon Sheng for bringing up the issue and the valuable input. There are two levels to the discussions, a practical (phenomenal) one and an absolute one.

Action:

1) For recognisation and connection purposes we should use Bhikkhu/Bhikkhuni and Upasaka/Upasika for all formal correspondence with other Buddhist organisations.

2) For governmental/official correspondence I suggest we adapt as appropriately to get the message across in a most effective way. I would personally use Mr Tang for myself rather than Upasaka Tang if I am writing a letter to the press.

3) For private correspondence we should use any title, or without any (the initiator and responder) deemed comfortable and suitable.

Personal comment: I am not in any position to teach anyone what to do, which implies that I know what is right or what is wrong for you. Title has elements of religious/cultural/social so the genuine brotherhood/sisterhood/familyhood that we develop and share for every sentient beings is the true reflection of our cultivation of compassion and wisdom. On the absolute level we are not only brothers and sisters we all are fathers and mothers to one another! Personally I am called many different names or title so I am comfortable with any as long as I know you are communicating with me.

Sorry for the long email but I hope you agree with me that the real work ONLY now begins! So may us all apply the Dharma teaching. Let us all acknowledge and appreciate the good effort and help of others, accept and rejoice in the differences of personality and opinion everyone of us have. It is not the uniformity but the harmonious co-existence that make the natural world (Dharma) beautiful.

Please reply and make suggestion to any of the points above.

Amitabha and with metta,
KC Tang