Tuesday October 17, Gale, Herb and Naomi had their Mitra ceremonies! Becoming a Mitra is a significant step in one's Buddhist practice and you can learn more here. Congratulations and best wishes on the path ahead!
There will be a Celebration of Life for Francesca Latawiec at Aryaloka Buddhist Center at 1:00 on Sunday, October 29, 2023. Francesca lived in Exeter, NH and died unexpectedly at home on Oct. 1, 2022. She was a devoted member of the Aryaloka sangha and became a mitra in 2020.
Throughout her life Francesca was an avid environmentalist. She graduated from Salem State College with a Bachelor of Science in Geography. She earned a Master’s degree in Geology from the University of Illinois in Macomb and obtained a second Master’s degree in Soil Science at the University of New Hampshire. Her decades-long career in the environmental sciences involved both state and local government postings and her passing is deeply felt by her friends and the environmental community.
We're so pleased to announce that two men were privately ordained at Aryaloka on Wednesday 27th October and publicly ordained on Sunday 1st October. The ordinations took place within the context of a ten-day Going for Refuge retreat that was preceded by a six-day pre-ordination retreat with the ordinands and Private Preceptors. Our new installment that houses the Dakini rupa was used as the ordination khuti. The khuti is a secret place so we can't show any photos of how it was prepared, but we can tell you that it was a transformed and magical space. We had the blessings of the full moon and the local barred owls on the evening of the Private Ordination. Over sixty people attended the Public Ordination in-person, and 30 more attended on Zoom.
Mark Ludak becomes Sīlasiddhi
'He who is accomplished in virtuous conduct'
Private preceptor: Dharmachari Paramānanda
Public preceptor: Dharmachari Viradhamma
Calling all ARTISTS from the Aryaloka Community!
It is time for a new Aryaloka T-shirt, and the ‘T-shirt kula’ is looking for sangha artists to submit their best creations!
Here are the details:
Under The Trees: A Joint Exhibition by Victoria and Lawrence Elbroch
Ink Drawings, Etchings and Prints
Opening Reception Sunday October 15, 3 - 5pm
On view from October 15 to November 19 Tuesday evenings 5-6:30pm; all other hours by appointment
Our dear friend Dharmacharini Vihanasari (Sandra Bonin) died on August 18, 2023 at age 79 following a long struggle with Alzheimer’s. We remember her as a long time member of the Aryaloka sangha. First as a friend, then a mitra and in July, 2008, she was ordained into the Triratna Buddhist Order and given the Buddhist name Vihanasari by Dayalocana her Private Preceptor. Vihanasari had a strong connection with 1000 armed Avalokitesvara, the Bodhisattva of compassion. He represented her desire and willingness to solve whatever problem came her way and her compassionate nature.
Vihanasari was my good friend, as well as a friend to all. She was kind hearted, caring, gracious and was always willing to be helpful. She will continue to be remembered for her warmth, sincerity and friendliness. We all will miss her cheerful smile and positive energy. As someone said, her smile reflected her gentle soul.
A Celebration of Life will be held for Bob Montgomery at Aryaloka Buddhist Center, 14 Heartwood Circle, Newmarket NH, on August 19th, 2-5pm.
The family will be providing light refreshments.
Our driveway: Driving around Heartwood Circle you'll see a sign for Aryaloka; take a right at the sign and then bear right, following the long driveway that goes into the woods. Please do not bear left into our neighbor's driveway (their house is also a dome and sometimes people get them mixed up). Also please drive around the circle slowly, as there are often walkers in the neighborhood. The main entrance to the center is between the two attached domes.
Obituary
Robert (Bob) Lane Montgomery, 77, passed away January 11, 2023 peacefully and sur- rounded by love at Ports- mouth Regional Hospi- tal. He was born August 29, 1945 in Rochester NH, the son of Ralph Montgomery and The- resa Brown.
On July 14 to 16 Aryaloka hosted the Freedom Beyond Fear men's weekend retreat. On Saturday afternoon, the rupa (the form; a statue) was installed with many hands working together. Although the origin and age of the rupa is unknown, Neil Harvey rescued her and several other rupas many years ago from a liquidation warehouse; he then donated the rupas to Aryaloka where they are now back in a context of Dharma practice.
Sea
Shore
Sunyata
A three person exhibition featuring Roddy Cole, Marilyn Dowling & Dharmasuri. On view from July 11 to August 31, Tuesday Evenings 5-6:30pm or by appointment.
Image by Roddy Cole: The Shifting Nature of Reflection
Thanks to over 50 of our generous supporters, including three $1000 matching donors, this year's NH Gives campaign resulted in over $9000 in donations! Aryaloka is a community supported, grass-roots non-profit that depends on donations to continue our sliding-scale workshops and retreats. Aryaloka thrives because of you!
