January 4: The President of the World Fellowship of Buddhists and acting Rector of the World Buddhist University H.E. Phan Wannamethee, the executive board of the WFB and representatives from regional centers presented their homage to the Supreme Patriarch of Thailand at  Chulalongkorn University Hospital on the auspicious occasion of the New Year.

Congratulations to the President of the WFB, His Excellency Phan Wannamethee on his being conferred the Knight Grand Cross (First Class) of the Most Admirable Order of the Direkgunabhorn; on the occasion of his 80th birthday on January 30th 2547 [2004].  More recently, on Coronation Day, May 5th, 2547 [2004], he also received the Knight Grand Cross (First Class) of the Most Illustrious Order of Chula Chom Klao.

Master Hsing Yun's 2007 Letter to Devotees and Friends

Dear Dharma Protectors and Friends,

May this spring bring prosperity, and may everything go perfectly for you in the New Year!

As autumn fades and winter arrives, and as winter ends and spring comes, Fo Guang Shan has ripened to a mature age amidst the changing seasons.  Weathering forty summers and winters, the thorny bamboos and the various plants and trees on the hilly slopes have all grown considerably and the majestic shrines and halls have become a place of practice for Humanistic Buddhism.

Henry Steel Olcott in Sri Lanka:
Death Centennial Tribute By Anaada W. P. Guruge

With meticulous planning over several years of correspondence and interaction with the prominent activists of the Sri Lankan national and revival movement, Colonel Henry Steel Olcott and Madame Helena Petrovna Blvatsyky, the Founders of the Theosophical Society arrived in Galle, Sri Lanka on may 17, 1880. They received a heroes’ welcome. Both of them officially embraced Buddhism as their personal religion on the very next day in a public function and won a nation’s instant approbation. My fictionalized account of Olcot’s career in Sri Lanka, in FREE AT LAST IN PARADISE (authorhouse.com and buybooksontheweb.com),

Graeme Lyall's New Website

Graeme Lyall AM

Dear Friends,

I wish to inform you that my new website, http://www.buddhismaustralia.org/

is now operational. I hope that you can spare the time to have a look.

Please let me know of any of your suggestions for improvement.

Vesak message from Graeme Lyall:
I WISH YOU A VERY HAPPY VESAK
Graeme
Graeme Lyall AM
President - Amitabha Buddhist Association of New South Wales
President - University Buddhist Education Foundation
Member - Executive Council of the World Fellowship of Buddhists
E-mail:  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
WEBSITE:  http://www.buddhismaustralia.org
Please visit my website!!!

Keynote Address of Desamanya Kalakirti Dr.Ananda W. P. Guruge

on the occasion of the Golden Jubliee of the Sasana Sevaka Samiti and Maharagama Bhikshu Training Centre, BMICH, Colombo, Sri Lanka on June 25, 2007

The Golden Jubilee of the Sasana Sevaka Samiti and its Maharagama Bhikshu Training Center is an event of national and international significance. Nationally, it has been the flagship institution in the forefront of not only introducing the most advanced and comprehensive curriculum for the training of bhikkhus but also of leading public opinion on matters of great concern to the nation. Internationally, it has become the most dependable nursery for the supply of well-trained and accomplished dharmadutas of the highest calibre.

Australian Buddhist Statistics

Dear Dharma Friends,

Please find [at the bottom the page], the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics figures for religions in Australia released today from the 2006 Commonwealth Census. There are now 418,800 Buddhists in Australia making them 2.1% of the population. Buddhism is still the fastest growing religion in Australia and is the second largest after Christianity. May it continue to grow.

Lecture at Vedanta Hall this Coming Sunday by Graeme Lyall AM

Dear Dharma Friends,

I have been invited by the Rama Krishna Sarada Vedanta Society to give a lecture in their interfaith series, "How to Maintain Inner Calm in Today's World", this coming Sunday, 12th of August, at Vedanta Hall, 15 Liverpool Road, Croydon, at 10.50 a.m. If you are in the Sydney area, you are most welcome to attend.