Minnesota Buddhist Vihara celebrates 10th anniversary
Posted on March 26th, 2014
By Shelton Gunaratne
The Minnesota Buddhist Vihara (MNBV) will celebrate its 10th anniversary on Sunday (March 30, 2014).
A guest monk, the Venerable Pallebage Chandrasiri Nayaka Thera, chief monk of Oregon Buddhist Vihara, will conduct the Atawisi Buddha Puja and anusasana.
The Venerable Witiyala Seewalie Nayaka Thera, the founder-president of the vihara, said that he came to the United States in 2003 and founded the MNBV the very next year with the assistance of the Vietnamese temple in Blaine, a suburb of the Twin Cities.
Currently, the vihara is located in North Minneapolis.
The Malwatte Chapter of the Siam Sect appointed Venerable Seewalie as the deputy Sangha Nayaka for North America in June 2011.
Bhikku Bisho Kirthi Maharjan, a monk of Nepali origin, serves as the assistant abbot of MNBV. He is also the principal of the vihara’s Dhamma School.
Bhikkuni Satima, a former Montessori teacher from Sri Lanka, serves the vihara’s Children’s Dhamma Program, Buddhist & Pali College of USA and the Meditation Program.
Venerable Seewalie said a two-hour ceremony (from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Central time) has been organized to celebrate the 10th anniversary at the temple premises. It begins with Atawisi Buddha Puja followed by pirith chanting and meditation practice. The program includes the expression of appreciations and will end with refreshments.