Buddhist monk Ajahn Sumedho was recently in town to speak about his religion, Buddhism. He was a guest speaker at a talk held in Perth & District Collegiate Institute’s Auditorium on June 6, and from the number of occupied seats, it’s apparent that the people from the Town of Perth were quite interested in what he had to share.
Sumedho has been a Buddhist for over 4 decades, serving today as Abbot to the Amaravati Buddhist Monastery, which is based in England. He’s currently a special guest of the Tisarana Monastery, located a few miles away from Perth.
Buddhism traces its origins in India, where the religion was born more than two and a half millennia ago. The religion has undoubtedly grown by leaps and bounds, and is practiced by more than 300 million people from all over the world. Unlike other monotheist religions however, Buddha is not viewed as a god. Buddha himself never claimed to be a deity, though he is revered by Buddhists nonetheless.
Although Buddhism is one of the world’s big religions, its rise in the West only began recently.
Sumedho shares that Buddhism, translated to English, literally means “awakened consciousness,” a state of being that transcends the realities of this world.
