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About UsThe
Seattle Buddhist Center is part of an international Buddhist movement
known as the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order (FWBO) which aims to
make available the teachings and practices of Buddhism in a form
accessible to those in the West. The Center offers a range of
activities and resources to further these aims.
Message
phone (206)
726-0051
Address Directions
from North bound I-5 Take
Lake City Way exit from I-5. At the second traffic light (15th
Ave NE) turn left. Continue North on 15th Ave NE to NE
123rd. The Center is in the building on the right, and the
entrance is on NE 123rd St.
Directions
from South bound I-5 Take
the NE 145th St. exit from I-5. Turn left and continue East on NE
145th St to a traffic light at 15th Ave NE. Turn right and
continue South to the NE 123rd. The Center is in the building on
the left side of the street and the entrance is on NE 123rd.
About
the FWBO The
Friends of the Western Buddhist Order was founded by Venerable
Sangharakshita who, although English by birth, spent twenty years in
Asia studying and practicing under teachers from the Theravada,
Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions. Returning to England he became
convinced of the need for a new Buddhist movement in the West, which
would communicate the ideals of Buddhism by drawing inspiration not
only from the three main Buddhist traditions but also from the cultural
and artistic heritage of the West.
The FWBO
has established centers in many countries with each center encouraging
the leading of a Buddhist life based on sound ethical principles and
the creation of a more spiritually helpful environment by participation
in meditation classes, study, retreats, residential communities and
right livelihood businesses. At the heart of the FWBO is the Western
Buddhist Order. The
Western Buddhist Order The
Western Buddhist Order is the spiritual community of men and women who
have committed themselves to the three great Ideals to be found at the
heart of the Buddhist tradition: the Ideal of Human Enlightenment; The
Ideal of the Path of Truth leading to Human Enlightenment; and the
Ideal of Spiritual Friendship for all.
Sangharakshita  Sangharakshita is the founder of the WBO and FWBO. He was born in South London in 1925 and given the name Dennis Lingwood. In his youth he was very interested in the cultures and philosophies of the East, and at the age of sixteen realized that he was a Buddhist after reading the Diamond Sutra. The Second World War took him to India. Following the war he stayed on and was eventually ordained a bhikhu (a Buddhist monk) at which time he was given the name Sangharakshita which means ‘protector of the spiritual community'. He spent over twenty years in India studying with teachers from the major Buddhist traditions. On returning to England in the sixties, Sangharakshita founded the FWBO and the WBO. His aim was to help Buddhism take firm root in the West in a form unburdened by the cultural accretions of any particular nationality or tradition. It is a translation of the universal principles of Buddhism for modern, secularized societies. Sangharakshita, now in his 80's, is no longer involved in the day-to-day activities of the FWBO. More on Sangharakshita can be found here. |
