Buddhism in England

Part of a series on
Western Buddhism
Main articles Western Buddhism Buddhist modernism Buddhism in the United States Historical Greco-Buddhism Buddhism and the Roman world
Tibetan dissemination 14th Dalai Lama In the United States Chögyam Trungpa In England Geshe Kelsang Gyatso In Germany Lama Anagarika Govinda
Theravada dissemination Vipassana movement In England Anagarika Dharmapala Sangharakshita Ajahn Chah In Germany Nyanatiloka Nyanaponika Thera In the United States Thanissaro Bhikkhu Joseph Goldstein Jack Kornfield
Zen dissemination Zen in the United States Modern Chinese Chán Hsuan Hua Sheng-yen Hsing Yun Rinzai Zen D.T. Suzuki Soto Zen Shunryu Suzuki Sanbo Kyodan Haku'un Yasutani White Plum Asanga Taizan Maezumi Korean Seon Seung Sahn Vietnamese Thiền Thich Nhat Hanh Listing of Zen Buddhists
Amidist dissemination In England David Brazier In Canada Jodo Shinshu Buddhist Temples of Canada
Exchange Buddhism and Christianity Buddhism and Gnosticism Buddhism and psychology Buddhism and Western Philosophy
General Buddhism Buddhism Outline of Buddhism Traditions Hinayana Theravada Mahayana Vajrayana Navayana Asian countries Indian Buddhism Tibetan Buddhism Chinese Buddhism Japanese Buddhism Listing of Buddhist topics

Part of a series on
Buddhism
History Timeline Gautama Buddha Councils Later Buddhists
Dharma Concepts Four Noble Truths Five Aggregates Impermanence Suffering Non-self Dependent Origination Middle Way Emptiness Karma Rebirth Saṃsāra Cosmology
Practices Three Jewels Buddhist Paths to liberation Morality Perfections Meditation Mindfulness Wisdom Compassion Aids to Enlightenment Monasticism Laity
Nirvāṇa Four Stages Arhat Buddha Bodhisattva
Traditions Canons Theravāda Pāli Mahāyāna Hinayana Chinese Vajrayāna Tibetan Navayana
Outline Buddhism portal

Buddhism is quite a recent religion to arrive in England. Despite this, 238,626 people in England declared themselves to be Buddhist at the 2011 Census and 34% of them lived in London.^[1]

History

Theravada influences grew in England during the early twentieth century. A few of the significant events were the foundation of London’s Buddhist Society in 1924 and the Theravada London Buddhist Vihara in Chiswick in 1926. Anagarika Dharmapala (1864-1933), the founder of Mahā Bodhi Society (f. 1891), was instrumental in presenting Buddhism as a living monastic tradition to the UK.^[2] Return of Ananda Metteyya to England on 23 April 1908 after travels in Ceylon and monk ordination in Burma was another significant milestone in the legacy of British Buddhism. A slow trickle from England travelled to Asia to take monastic ordination, mainly as Theravadin monks. Kapilavaddho Bhikkhu introduced the Dhammakaya tradition to the UK in 1954 in this way and founded the English Sangha Trust in 1955. A few Asian monks came to live in England.

In 1967, Englishman Sangharakshita (1925-), who had spent time in the east as a Theravadin monk founded the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order (later renamed Triratna Buddhist Community), the first home-grown Buddhist movement. He was followed by other westerners who had studied in the East, and by Eastern teachers, particularly refugee Tibetan Lamas, and under the influence of these teachers a large and diverse British Buddhist world has emerged.

The Manjushri Kadampa Buddhist Centre^[3] in Conishead Priory located just outside of Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria is a large New Kadampa Tradition Tibetan Buddhist centre. The priory established by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso in 1975 claims to be 'the mother centre from which around 1100 Kadampa Buddhist centres have been set up worldwide'.^[4] Cumbria is probably the only English county where Buddhism, instead of Islam, is the second largest religion according to the 2001 census.^[5]

A Theravada monastery consisting mainly of Westerners following the Thai Forest Tradition of Ajahn Chah was established at Chithurst Buddhist Monastery in Sussex, and has established branches elsewhere in the country. A lay meditation tradition of Thai origin is represented by the Samatha Trust, with its headquarters cum retreat centre in Wales. Sōtō Zen has a priory at Throssel Hole Buddhist Abbey in Northumberland.

There are now many Buddhist groups in England, to name a few from the Tibetan Tradition there are Sanghas of: Rigpa,^[6] Karma Kagyu,^[7] Dechen,^[8] Diamond Way Buddhism^[9] and Aro gTér^[10]

See also

• Buddhism in Scotland
• Buddhism in Wales
• Buddhism in the United Kingdom

References