Press Releases - The Oregonian

September 27, 2003

Nancy Haught
The Oregonian

Two Visiting Speakers Reflect
Regional Interest in Buddhism

Like a plant in fertile soil, Buddhism has taken root in the
Northwest and shows signs of establishing itself here permanently. Not
bad for a tradition that sees most things as being impermanent.

The number of Buddhist groups is surging in the region, and two
fund-raising projects will feature lectures by Buddhist teachers in the
next two weeks. The Northwest Dharma Association was born in the late
1980s and has been keeping track of Buddhist groups in the region since
about 1996. Back then the organization knew of about 100 groups that
practiced Buddhism, including Zen, Tibetan and Pure Land schools, says
its president, George Draffan.

But by 2002, the association had gathered information on more than
400 groups, everything from large temples that serve as the center of
ethnic communities to small living-room groups.

Another indication of the growth of Buddhism in the region is the
expansion of several centers, Draffan said. The Great Vow Zen Monastery
is transforming a former elementary school in Clatskanie into a study
center and monastery, and Kagyu Changchub Chuling, a Northeast Portland
center for Tibetan Buddhism, is developing a 240-acre rural retreat in
Goldendale, Wash.

Both groups are trying to accommodate the Buddhist practice of
regular retreat, or time spent practicing meditation more intensely.
The working goals are about $1.3 million for Great Vow and $2.5 million
for Kagyu.

Offering a range of retreat opportunities is important to a Buddhist
center, says Michael Conklin, the lama of Kagyu Changchub Chuling. "We
want to honor all aspects, from someone with a casual interest, who
wants to know more about the history of the Buddha, to someone who
wants to meditate once a week or occasionally at home, to a person who
wants a retreat for a month out of every year, to complete a long
retreat once in their lifetime, or to retreat for the rest of their
life."

Both communities are bringing Buddhist teachers to help support
their projects. Great Vow is hosting Sylvia Boorstein, an author and a
founder of Spirit Rock Meditation Center near San Francisco. Kagyu
Changchub Chuling is hosting Alan Wallace, an authority on Buddhism,
science and the mind, for three lectures. Wallace was ordained as a
Tibetan Buddhist monk by the Dalai Lama, has participated in several
Mind and Life conferences and has written several books.