His Holiness the Dalai Lama arrives in Brazil and addresses business and industrial leaders

The ASA annual conference brings together Buddhist monastics of all traditions living in, or visiting Australia, for fellowship, dialogue and to address the issues facing Buddhism in Australia. The ASA has in previous years, and is still working with the Department of Immigration & Border Security to assist those monastic’s seeking Permanent Residency Visas through representations to the Federal Government. Where appropriate, the ASA has and continues to consult with state Buddhist Councils and Federation of Australian Buddhist Councils (FABC) for a solution to these ongoing issues. The ASA has arranged monastic education forums such as the 2010 Vinaya Conference, and represents the Australian Sangha community at various International Conferences, as well as consultations with various State & Federal Government agencies.

Wake Up – Young Adults for a Healthy and Compassionate Society, is a world-wide network of young people practicing the living art of mindfulness. We share a determination to live in an awakened way, taking a 21st Century version of the 5 Mindfulness Trainings as our path and guiding light. The Wake Up network has grown out of Plum Village meditation center in SW France, under the guidance of Venerable Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. Plum Village has been offering retreats to young people for over two decades, and the Wake Up movement was formally launched in Summer 2008.

The first two steps in the process of becoming a lay disciple of the Buddha are the going for refuge (sarana gamana) and the undertaking of the five precepts (pañca-sila samadana). By the former step a person makes the commitment to accept the Triple Gem — the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha — as the guiding ideals of his life, by the latter he expresses his determination to bring his actions into harmony with these ideals through right conduct. The following two tracts were written for the purpose of giving a clear and concise explanation of these two steps. Though they are intended principally for those who have newly embraced the Buddha's teaching they will probably be found useful as well by long-term traditional Buddhists wanting to understand the meaning of practices with which they are already familiar and also by those who want to know what becoming a Buddhist involves.

As a Vietnamese Buddhist monk, working as a Buddhist chaplain at several of Melbourne's hospitals and as well as Melbourne assessment prison, I have witnessed many personal tragedies faced by the living and of course the very process of dying and that of death and many of these poor people faced their death with fear, with misery and pain before departing this world. With the images of all these in my mind, on this occasion, I wish to share my view from the perspective of a Buddhist and we hope that people would feel far more relaxed in facing this inevitable end since it is really not the end of life, according to our belief.

Shang Rinpoche is a highly esteemed Buddhist master from Taiwan. In teaching, he not only draws on his Buddhist wisdom, but also his extensive knowledge of Taoism, eastern history and philosophy. Rinpoche’s mix of humour, kindness, and compassion has given strength and inspiration to thousands of people from all walks of life. Rinpoche is the current incarnation of Shang Rinpoche, who founded the Tsalpa Kagyu school in Tibet in the 13th Century. His root master is the current incarnation of the Great Terton Dorje Lingpa. In addition, Rinpoche has received pith instructions as well as lineages from some of the greatest masters of all four Vajrayana schools including Dilgo Kysentse, Chatral Rinpoche, Dudjom Rinpoche and the 16th Karmapa. Rinpoche has also received the lineage of great Chan (Chinese Zen) Master Empty Cloud (虛雲老和尚) as well as teachings & lineages from Master Huisan (慧三老和尚) and Master Jiede (戒德老和尚).

Dan Stevenson is neither a Buddhist nor a follower of any organized religion. The 11th Avenue resident in Oakland's Eastlake neighborhood was simply feeling hopeful in 2009 when he went to an Ace hardware store, purchased a 2-foot-high stone Buddha and installed it on a median strip in a residential area at 11th Avenue and 19th Street. He hoped that just maybe his small gesture would bring tranquillity to a neighborhood marred by crime: dumping, graffiti, drug dealing, prostitution, robberies, aggravated assault and burglaries.

Buddhism spans cultural groups such as Chinese, Taiwanese, Malaysian, Indonesian, Cambodian, Vietnamese, Loation, Thai, Mongolian, Tibetan, Burmese, Korean, Japanese, Indian, Sri Lankan, to name but a few. Buddhism has a strong history in Victoria since the goldrush days in 1848 and continues today with unique representation of many cultural groups and traditions and forms practiced in Melbourne and around the state. The 2014 Vesak Observance will be presented with a balance of Commemoration and Celebration. We are honored again to have the support of the City of Melbourne and the Victorian Multicultural Commission, as well as the Victorian Buddhist Community.

The book gives a short account of Buddhism in the last 2500 years. The foreword for the book was written by Dr. Radhakrishnan, world renowned philosopher. The book contains 16 chapters and about one hundred articles written by eminent Buddhist scholars from India, China, Japan, Sri Lanka, Nepal. Buddhism is a way of life of purity in thinking speaking and acting. This book gives an account of Buddhism not only in India but also in other countries of the East. Detailed and insightful glimpse into the different schools and sects of Buddhism find a place in this book. Buddhist ideas on education and the prevailing state of Buddhism as revealed by their Chinese pilgrims who visited India during that times are other components of the book. Chapters on Buddhist art in India and abroad and places of Buddhist interest are also included to give it a holistic perspective. The spirit of Buddha comes alive in the book and enlightens the readers with his teaching so essential now for peac