The 2023 Pah Bah to Be Held on September 16 & 17
Since the time of the Buddha, annual Pah Bah celebrations have offered a chance for monastics and lay people to celebrate our interdependence. This year’s events will be held at the Underwood Community Center in Underwood, WA on September 16 & 17.
Please join the community in welcoming Luang Por Pasanno, Ajahn Sudanto, Ajahn Anando, Ajahn Nyaniko, Ajahn Caganando, Ajahn Nisabho, the Pacific Hermitage monks, and visiting monks from Abhayagiri and beyond. Donations will support the development of the “Monks’ Retreat House” project.
Pah Bah Weekend Schedule
- Saturday: Meditation Retreat, 1:00 – 5:00
- Sunday:
- Meal offering, 10:30 – 1:00
- Pah Bah Ceremony & Dhamma Talk, 1:00 – 3:00
Asalha Puja at the Hermitage on August 1st
Three times a year, the community commemorates the primary Buddhist holy days at the Pacific Hermitage. Asalha Puja, which celebrates the Buddha’s first sermon, will be marked on August 1st in the traditional way: gathering at the monastery, offering a meal, taking the five precepts together, chanting, and talking on Dhamma with the monastics in residence.
All are welcome and encouraged to attend. Please contact Jessica Swanson for more information, to RSVP, or to organize carpooling from the Portland area.
Construction News: The Abbot’s Kuti and the Monks’ Retreat House
Construction on the Abbot’s Kuti is nearly halfway done, with the roof and windows almost complete. It is on track to be finished by November 1st.
On a separate building note, the design for the Monks’ Retreat House is nearly complete. It will be a multi-use space, but primarily it will provide suitable accommodations for visiting elder monks and Abhayagiri monks seeking to do solitary periods of retreat, in addition to providing additional gathering space. We will have more to share about the project at the Pah Bah.
August Garden Party
The next Garden Party is scheduled for August 5, and you can join for any part of all of the day’s schedule. It’s a wonderful opportunity to connect with the Sangha and chat with other members of the community.
Mark your calendars for the final two Garden Parties of the season on September 2 and October 7.
Any sensitive, selfless act of caring and giving is something worth remembering and delighting in. It brings a sense of ease and lightness and joy to the mind, which is the kind of food we need for this work, the kind of fuel we need for spiritual happiness and the motivation to keep growing in Dhamma.
– Ajahn Sudanto