BUDDHISM IN AFRICA AND TANZANIA BUDDHIST TEMPLE

BUDDHISM IN AFRICA AND TANZANIA BUDDHIST TEMPLE


Buddhism is spreading all the time with understanding. No converting or pushing people to follow it. Just it is going through understanding. If some body followed, he can get the freedom all the way. Lord Buddha also followed this way and got enlightenment 2545 years ago.
At that time we had only one Buddhist person. He was the Lord Buddha. But afterwards he preached his understanding to the five laymen. Then it spread too many places in India. Under the principle of Dhammawijaya followed by emperor Dhammasoka, many messengers were sent to 09 different countries in the world. One of them named Arahath Maha Mahinda Thero came to Sri Lanka in 247AD.
After Dhamma was established in Sri Lanka in 19th century, Buddhism started to go out of the land to countries like Europe, America, Australia etc.Some monks who came from other countries, also contributed their part to start Dhamma in these continents.
But in Africa Sri Lankan started establishing Buddhism only in19th century after they came to work in Tanzania around 1915. About 400-450 people worked there.
They decided to work together as a “Sinhalese Buddhist Association” and then they asked for a peace of land from the Tanzania government. They received a land and brought a sapling of Bodhi from Sri Lanka and planted in 1919.It has grown up now covering about ¼ acres.
The Buddhist Association hall was built in 1927, but now it is being used as a house for a nursery school. There was no Buddhist monk in Tanzania or in Zanzibar until early 1960s.It not only the Buddhists who supported the building and maintenance of the Association hall, but also the Sri Lankan Muslims, Christians, and Hindus.
In the past Buddhist association was called the “Sinhalese Buddhist Association”, but since it did not include the Thai, Burmese, Chinese, African and other Buddhists, they have changed the name to “Buddhist Association “so that all Buddhists and others could come and worship there.
The pagoda and Buddha mandir (shrine room) was built in 1956. It is open for every body all the time.
The resident part was built in 1984 and multipurpose hall was completed in year 2000.It is open to all the people for meditation on Sunday mornings and is also open everyday for prayers.
In 1962, venerable Palane Narada was the first Buddhist monk who came to Zanzibar. Infact, he was the first Buddhist monk to come to Africa. After the Revolution in 1964, all the Buddhists of Zanzibar moved to main land (Tanzania)..
The oldest Buddhist temple in Africa is in Tanzania – Dar es Salaam. There was no any resident monk in Tanzania until 1983. The first resident monk, who came to Tanzania, was Rev Puhulwelle Vipassi thero. To send this monk from Sri Lanka, arrangements were made by ven Galaboda Ghanissara thero and Mr. Albert Edirisinghe.
Second monk who came to Tanzania was ven Witharandeniye kassapa. He built the wall around the temple land and now he is in Birmingham - London.
Third one was Ven Pidiwille Piyatissa thero and now he is also in London. During that time Late President Nyerere’s elder son Andrew Nyerere started learning Buddhism and went to Sri Lanka for further study.
Afterwards, difference monks came from time to time to Tanzania.
Ven Badigama chandaloka, ven Devalegama Dhammasena, ven Kanumuldeniye Dhammasoka, ven Thailand Channawanno, ven Kahadawa Amarabuddhi, Ven Ratwita wimalajothi, ven kahalle chandrajothi and ven wilachchiye wijithananda were resident there and have gone back to Sri Lanka or different countries.
I am Rev (Ilukpitiye Pannasekara) the twelfth resident monk to Tanzania. The monk who lives in Tanzania- Dar es salaam has numerous responsibilities to do. He has to travel other neighboring countries like Kenya, Malawi, Botswana, Zambia, South Africa, Ruwanda,Zanzibar etc... To perform various religious ceremonies because there are no resident Buddhist monks up to now. Tanzania Buddhist center is used as the Buddhist center for the whole of African continent, though now there are Chinese and Burmese temples in South Africa.
In Tanzania center we have a Nursery school for poor local African children.
We give library services to others on demand.
From time to time we go to Secondary school and university to talk about Buddhism.
From 1996 up to now, we have been sending Tanzanian students who have completed A/L education, to a Chinese Buddhist college to learn Buddhism in South Africa for three years. A total of nearly 150 young African boys have been sent to South Africa to study Chinese Buddhism over the past six years. Those who passed the examination well can go to Taiwan to study Buddhism for another four years.

FUTHER PLAN FOR TANZANIA BUDDHIST TEMPLE

Africans still do not know much about Buddhism. We have to do more practical things for them to understand about these new teachings to them. We have to be practical. We have to do much service to them irrespective their color or tribes. Because of that we have to improve our social services.
There we have to improve the library with more books and facilities.
Every Sunday there is a meditation class. Nearly 10-15 students attend that. We can improve it to get more students.
We have a nursery school for poor local students. We can give more facilities to them and if we can give free education to them it is a great help to them. Because no free education system in the country.
Every day many people die from HIV and Aids. We can arrange some counseling program to decrease the misery.
No free medicine and free health services there. We can arrange any service to help needy people.
In the rural area no drinking water, houses, food, clothes, schools and other important necessary things. If we can arrange them they will be around us all the time.
Around the temple we had about 400 Buddhist devotees in 1927. But afterwards day by day they decreased and now we have nearly 30-40 people. It is very difficult to run the temple without help from outside. We have to help the resident monk to maintain the temple
In Africa we have 54 countries. But temples are only in Tanzania, Botswana and Kenya. But a monk is living only in Tanzania temple. In South Africa there is a Chinese temple. We have to try to start a temple in each country and make local monks every where. Without make local monks Buddhism is not going through Africa. Arahath Maha mahinda thero’s action should be taken as an example. He came to Sri Lanka and made local monks.

Rev. Ilukpitiye Pannasekara Thero
The chief monk for the African Continent
Buddhist Temple and Meditation Centre
P.O.Box 6665,
Plot No 606, Mindu Street, West upanga,
Dar es Salaam
Tanzania. (East Africa)
……………………………..
Email: pannasekara @ hotmail.com
revpannasekara@yahoo.com
Tel/Fax: + 255 22 2150422
Mobile: + 255 713 451745
www.pannasekara.com