Buddhapadipa Temple — Attraction in London

Happy new year to you all. Especially to our great Ajan, Doctor Laow .

Bellow is the experience I encounteted as an Asian who found unBuddhist, sometimes openly racist hostilities towards me. Having lived in the temple since the middle of June 2023 and did Thumbung or merit in English for free, in return for food and shelter.

I was unappreciated because, in my view, I was not a Thai national nor a Caucasian British ,

This UnBuddhistness was experienced not caused by the respectable main chief monk Doctor Laow or his deputy Banthe Bob otherwise known as Launpur.

I also must mention a young monk to whom I have tremendous respect, his name is Banthe Benjamin, a great unselfish Buddhist monk.

All the three monks mentioned above have my respect.

Below is what I wrote:

To doctor Laow;

You are a great monk, who helps a lot of people, but you are greatly under -appreciated, under - valued and your great authority as the Chief Head Monk for all the UK Thai temples, is undermined  by a few monks, regularly , and also derespected by what appear to be followers of Sidhartha Gautama's Theravada Buddhism , who appear in monk's Robes, but their actions doesn't appear to be respectful or indeed supportive of our great leader Dr Laow and also borderline of open racism towards Asians.

These self-interest seeking, robe-wearing a few monks, whose behaviour, and do not in my opinion deserve to be called monks, who carries hatred in their minds, and have influenced the lay Thai community directly or indirectly to promote hatred and racism towards me as a non caucasian British Asian, in other words these are unwholesome actions. True Buddhism doesn't convey hatred but encourages, pure unadulterated Buddhist love and kindness to all instead, certainly not based on the colour, race or gender, and certainly do not advocate racism so openly.

Fortunately , we are blessed to have a great leader in you, Doctor Laow, whose non racism, with great wisdom is helpful.

I appreciate you. I deeply respect you. I honour you. Your humbleness, Unboastfulness (doesn't mention to anyone that he holds a PHD), a remarkable human entity ,I am blessed to have met you.

Happy New Year to you my dear monk, for 2024.

You have inspired me.

May you be healthy and happy Ajan.

Siddhartha Gautama's Buddhist love to...

The Temple is open to all people regardless of race, creed, religion, nationality, age and sex.

The present premises, formerly know as Barrogill, was purchased in 1975 and so the Temple moved to Wimbledon from East Sheen in November 1976.

The foundation stone of the Uposatha Hall (main temple) was laid by the Prime Minister of Thailand, General Kringsakdi Jamananda on the 2th of February 1979 and is designed in the Bangkok style of Four Directions (Chaturamuk).

The inauguration ceremony was performed by Her Royal Highness Princess Kallayanivaddana, the elder sister of the King of Thailand, on the 30th of October 1982.

The Temple and grounds are generously opened to all visitors at various times through the week (see below). The Temple is quite a surprise on a small street in Wimbledon, and really is impressive - remove your shoes and quietly enter a space full of stunning images and icons from a far away world. It's truly awesome.

Also lovely are the gardens, including small bridges over the pond and wonderful paths, which provide ample space for tranquil meditation.

There are many ceremonies and festivals throughout the year as well as quarterly retreats. On a weekly basis there is meditation, Dhamma talks and even Sunday school for children. Check out the website for details of all activities.

It would be great if more information was provided to visitors with little/no knowledge of Buddhism. Simple signage around the grounds or at the kiosk would be very helpful. It's an enlightening experience nonetheless.

OPENING TIMES

The Grounds Spring & Summer: 9am - 6pm Autumn & Winter: 9am - 5pm

The Temple Saturday & Sunday: 9am - 6pm Mon - Fri: By appointment only

Meditation Classes Tue & Thur: 7-9pm Sat...

Our group walked to this Temple on 15/06/2022 following a visit to the Tangier Regiment Monument on Putney Heath.

Ideally, it's best to 'phone and book a visit so as to avoid service times or other events which may preclude entrance to the Temple itself. Dress modestly to respect the place eg no short trousers. We were greeted by a friendly Thai and told that we could enter the Temple.

It is a magnificent, modern structure built to a traditional design. On entering, please obey the reasonable strictures common to many places of worship: no smoking, no photography (high quality postcards are available for purchase) and silence. You will also need to take off your shoes and deposit them on the racks to the left of the steps to the entrance.

The interior decoration will come as a surprise. While the area furthest from the entrance has three statues of the Buddha etc, the other walls are painted in fine detail with not only images from the East but also some from the West. For example, on the left wall that has the entrance, look up and you'll see Colonel Gaddafi on a horse! Then look down and you'll see part of Michelangelo's David: if you're familiar with Paris, you might know the multiple gigantic copies of the statue on a police station. There's also an astronaut on one of the walls of the Temple.

Now take a stroll around the serene gardens, replete with small statues of the Buddha before bidding farewell to this most unusual "find" in South...