VIHARA
Our Focus
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Our mission is to advance a humanistic culture in Australia through education, which we do through our centre (Ashram) and programs that balance developing the mind and opening the heart.
At Nissokarama we offer a holistic curriculum that supports spiritual, intellectual, physical, social and creative development, while cultivating integrity and social responsibility. Our Buddhist Character education program nurture positive character traits and self-esteem, as they awaken the conscience, instil environmental awareness, and provide opportunities to develop interpersonal skills.
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Therefore, our objective is to offer the Australian Buddhist Community (especially young Buddhist expat community hailing from Buddhist countries like Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, India & Tibet)​ an excellent systematic and spiritual curriculum that when combined with a program and interactive opportunities that would help build character and develop virtues, enabling effectively to cultivate well-rounded global citizens with a humanistic world-view. Fostering positive traits such as kindness, tolerance, self-discipline, trustworthiness, and integrity, while emphasizing the values of gratitude, respect, and love, is central to our mission.
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Our approach is, but not limited to:
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promote mindfulness and resilience training focused on children and young adults.
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train a foster body of teachers to teach Buddhist Mindfulness and Resilience techniques to the public.
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individualized coaching, mentoring and chaplaincy.
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individualized support sessions and spiritual ritual sessions for the Buddhist community.
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community activities to build, faith, virtue and wisdom and conflict resolution skills and self-confidence.
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offer mindfulness and meditation retreats on a weekly, monthly, annual basis.
Academic and industry groups are now responding to the public health issue of stress and anxiety. Our overall key focus is on developing practical solutions that enhance the mental health and psychological resilience of various groups within a society. A growing body of research suggests meditation/ mindfulness retreats may play a pivotal role in the realm of public health and prevention, particularly with regards to protecting the long-term well-being of the community.
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Who We
Benefit
Australian Bureau of Statistics states that most Sri Lankans in Australia are Theravada Buddhists. According to the 2016 census, 2.4 percent of the total population of Australia is identified as Buddhists. It was also the fastest-growing religion by percentage, having increased its number of adherents by 79 percent between the 1996 and 2001 censuses.
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Sri Lankan Australians are the 10th largest ethnic group in Australia, numbering 86,412. The city of Melbourne contains just under half of the Sri Lankan-Australians. Fewer than 20% are estimated to live outside New South Wales and Victoria.
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The number of Sri Lankan Australians counted in 1996, including the second-generation, was 64,068. The 2011 census recorded 86,412 Sri Lankans born in Australia. In 2021, the main religions in Other Religion in Australia were Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism.
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In the 1981 Census, data on Buddhism was released for the first time in response to the arrival of large numbers of Buddhists as Vietnamese refugees in the 1970s. A steady increase since then has largely been maintained by migration from Southeast Asia, China and Sri Lanka and they have established many Theravada Buddhist temples across Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia.
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Similarly, there have also been strong links formed between Sinhalese Buddhists now living in Australia and their co-religionists from Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia and Laos.
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The different styles and teachings of the various schools of Buddhism clearly appeal to different segments of Australia’s Buddhist population. For the majority of non-Asian Australian Buddhists, one of the most valued things offered by Buddhist groups is the opportunity for meditation practice. Such people, approaching Buddhism from outside the established traditions, may find the rituals a little alien and the doctrines sometimes difficult to accept in full; but they can usually relate readily to the essential Buddhist message about the nature of the human mind. This message is that a precious inner liberation can be attained through calming the normally turbulent mind (tranquillity meditation) or gaining insight into how the mind functions (insight meditation).
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The members of Australia’s many ethnic and cultural minorities who associate with Buddhist groups are probably, in many cases, seeking something more tangible and specific to their particular social situation. For them, membership in a Buddhist group may open up a variety of incidental benefits, ranging from social interaction with people who share the same cultural heritage, to language instruction for their children who might otherwise forget their mother tongue. For them, the Buddhist group fulfils not only a religious function but many social functions as well.
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A recent count put the total number of Buddhist groups in Australia at 361. Roughly speaking, the number of groups doubles every ten years. The total number of individual Buddhists in the country cannot be known with certainty because of difficulties in interpreting the census data. At present, it is likely to be approaching 200,000. Buddhism has been identified as the fastest growing religion in Australia, and this trend seems set to continue. With ever increasing immigration of Buddhists from ethnically and culturally Buddhist countries into Australia; serving to their spiritual needs on top of the intended services to the existing community has become a timely endeavour.
Therefore, Nissokarama strategy as a charity is well placed to cater the ever-demanding spiritual needs of Buddhists who are in Australia and future immigrants of Buddhist background who will eventually call Australia their home.
Our
Commitment
Nissokarama is committed to providing services that are:
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well planned, accountable, evaluated, efficient and effective professional and of high quality.
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based on the needs of the community filling the spiritual vacuum and disparity and responsive to changes in those needs.
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Deliver efficient services to support programs and ensure they meet quality accreditation standards.
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Establish and implement comprehensive continuous improvement and service feedback mechanisms for all Nissokarama Vihara services.
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Sustain a culture of transparency and integrity keeping up with Buddhist Values.
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Establish an organization wide performance management system that is integrated with spiritual/ meditation/Mindfulness training and development.
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Ensure learning and knowledge are shared across all areas of the organisation members and the community.
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Maintain the highest standards in occupational health and safety within Nissokarama Vihara facilities and events like workshops and retreats.
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Improve the quality of services for children withing the Buddhist community and elevate spiritual disparity:
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Investigate new and better ways to provide co-ordinated, well-resourced and comprehensive services to satisfy the diverse and changing needs of children referred to our care and attention.
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Provide opportunities to develop innovative models and services.
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Deliver Nissokarama Vihara services through an integrated organisational model ensuring collaboration and maximizing the quality of services provided to the community.
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Ensure Nissokarama Vihara has sustainable funding and financial resources to support and further develop activities in the short and long term.
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Utilise assets and investments effectively to ensure long term viability.
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Maximise information technology to improve the management of business processes and services.
Our
Strategy
To execute Nissokarama services and functions we will further expand our operations:
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To establish and maintain a Buddhist Center called it the "NISSOKARAMA VIHARA”.
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To promote the study, observance, and education in practicing Buddhism according to accepted Buddhist traditions and schools among Members of the Association, their families, Buddhist community in Australia at large and well-wishers of the Vihara (Temple).
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To introduce the virtues underlying Buddhist philosophy based on the teachings of Lord Buddha and subsequent master’s and encourage the study, practice, and realization of ancient wisdom to promote and foster inter- communal peace, harmony, and amity.
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The training and guidance of lay persons in the Buddhist way of life.
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The upliftment of moral, ethical, and cultural values among the Buddhist community and other groups.
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To nurture the community (with a special focus on youth and children) in the Buddhist way of life with a view of helping them to lead a righteous life.
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To establish and maintain a library of Buddhist Texts and Scriptures, Philosophy, and culture of Buddhism for the use of the community.
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To collect and disseminate information on Theravada Buddhism and its culture.
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To promote unity and mutual co-operation, peace, and harmony among the members of the clergy, Buddhist laity and laity of other denominations, by sponsoring actions to the effect.
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To establish and maintain a centre/s for meditation and mindfulness, provide necessary facilities for the practice of meditation and mindfulness and encourage the practical observance of Buddhist teachings.
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To sponsor actions that promotes mutual understanding between various religious denominations.
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To establish and maintain educational facilities to teach Dharma, Buddhist traditional vernacular and to take steps to create awareness of the many Buddhist cultural traditions.
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Commitment to Social, Public, and Animal welfare.
OTHER ACTIVITIES
The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.
One of the marvelous things about community is that it enables us to welcome and help people in a way we couldn’t as individuals. When we pool our strength and share the work and responsibility, we can welcome many people, even those in deep distress, and perhaps help them find self-confidence and inner healing.