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Hello, I’m Vassika and this is Aryanita, who has recently taken over from me the Chairmanship of the Triratna Buddhist Centre here in Paris. We are at a very exciting stage in the evolution of our activities as we are preparing to move into new premises.
The Triratna Buddhist Community has been present in Paris since 1997, offering courses in meditation and Buddhism and offering people a radical spiritual vision for transforming themselves and the world around them. We have inhabited our current Centre for the last 18 years and it has served us well, but it no longer suits the needs of our evolving community. Most particularly, it does not allow us to respond to the ever-increasing interest in meditation and Buddhism.
We have therefore been fundraising and searching for new premises, and last autumn we found a property that we think will make an excellent Buddhist Centre. It is more than twice the size of our current Centre, has a little courtyard garden and plenty of natural light. It is in a quiet area with a lovely park just around the corner. We will be able to have a large, well-lit shrine room, a spacious office, a library and study room and an open-plan reception, bookshop and lounge area looking onto the garden, as well as toilets and a kitchenette.
It will be beautiful, peaceful space, to which our Sangha members will want to come for meditation and study and just to hang out together, and into which we will be able to welcome many more newcomers than is currently possible.
Property in Paris does not come cheap (indeed Paris was recently declared one of the three most expensive cities in the world), and the property will cost us a total of 914,000€ including all the fees. It is in good condition but will need a total re-fit to make it fit for our purposes and that will cost us around 100,000€.
We have already managed to raise enough money, in gifts and loans, to buy the property and for a large part of the building work. But in order to cover all the costs, including fittings and furniture, we need to find another 50,000€.
Would you like to help us?
The Centre runs entirely on the basis of generosity. All the people who teach there and who contribute to its organisation and upkeep do so on a voluntary basis, and our only revenue comes from the money given to us by those coming to courses, and by friends and well-wishers who choose to support our activities. We therefore hope that we can count on your support and generosity to help us create a beautiful new space in which to continue to expand our activities.
Any amount that you can give, large or small, will make a difference and will contribute to the establishment and the flourishing of the Dharma and the Triratna community here in Paris now and into the future. If you would like to know more about our activities, please contact us directly by email or take a look at our Centre website (in French).
THANK YOU!