Chairs Homily – March 2025
There is an ancient warning phrase that goes “Don’t count your chickens before they are hatched!” I think that is good advice for us all in Ipswich today. As you may have heard our attempts to purchase 59 Crabbe Street have now failed. The vendors have decided, for their own reasons, to no longer sell the property.
We have collectively put a lot of effort and investment into this new Centre Project. I know that many of you in our Sangha have been involved in that effort, Friends, Mitras and Order Members have all worked hard on trying to secure this property. You may have offered funds through donations and loans. You may have put forward your ideas and assistance in planning the project. Importantly you have all shared your enthusiasm for a new Buddhist Centre in Ipswich. So I wish to thank you all for the great deal of help you have given over the last few months to enable this project to progress to this point.
The phrase I mentioned above is very sound advice as we can all too easily think we have something when in fact that is not the case. Some of you will have probably purchased a house in the past, and you will know that large purchases, such as properties can often not run as smoothly as you had hoped. Many things seem to be thrown in your way, and of course the purchase may even eventually fail.
I am sure that some of us will feel devastated and upset by this news, as the Crabbe Street property appeared to be within our grasp, and seemed to offer us all that we required for our new Buddhist Centre. It is all too easy to get emotionally attached to our purchases or potential purchases. Buddhism clearly warns us against grasping ‘things’ and to notice the gap between feeling and craving. We can not let our craving for something or a particular outcome to take over, so that we believe it to be real when it is still just a dream!
However, Buddhism doesn’t let us rest and this unsatisfactory situation (dukkha) can be of great benefit to us. For it is in these difficult and painful situations that we can learn the most about ourselves and how we cope with the vagaries that life puts in our way. It is good, if we can, to take some time to sit with the dukkha of this situation and fully take in the lessons that are offered to us.
We all know that things don’t always turn out the way that we wish for, and we now must accept that this particular purchase has ended. Although this particular property is no longer on the market we know that we still need a bigger Buddhist Centre and so our search for another suitable property will continue once again.
We have gained a lot of knowledge in many areas during this project. This knowledge includes getting a better understanding of what we need in a property and also how much we can afford to spend on the purchase. We have also importantly been made aware of how much you, the Ipswich Sangha, are supportive of us in collectively buying a new Centre.
All donations that we have received thus far, for the New Centre will be kept in a separate savings account and will be used to form the deposit for our new Centre when that time comes. However, as we are no longer able to buy 59 Crabbe Street, I would like to give the opportunity to those who have donated to the new Centre Project to receive their donation back if they so wish to take up this offer, for whatever reason, then please do contact me directly.
The new month of March is fast approaching and there is much that is happening in our current Buddhist Centre in Friars Bridge Road. It may be a small building but we do seem to cram a lot of activities within its walls, all to help us on our path of deepening our understanding of Buddhism. As well as our regular weekly events such as Saturday mornings and Friends and Newcomers Night we have a day event this month with one of our new Order Members Kamalasiha. There are also many study groups, and men’s and women’s events to enjoy. So I hope to see you down at the Buddhist Centre soon.
With thanks,
Bodhivamsa!
