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Visiting

 

What to Expect

"The five days of my visit have been the most profound and wonderful days of my life. I truly believe that I have never been treated with more kindness or have ever felt more welcome than I have here at the Abbey."

  Joanne Berube
  Santa Clara, California


What to Expect

Since there are only a few Buddhist monasteries in the U.S., the Abbey’s guidelines and operating principles may be new to you. We recommend that you explore this website to familiarize yourself with community values before you visit.

When you visit, you will immediately be incorporated into community life—following the daily schedule, observing monastic community guidelines, and offering service to the Three Jewels (Buddha, Dharma and Sangha) and sentient beings.

As you contemplate your visit, get in touch with your heart of love and compassion. With an altruistic intention, think that you will come to Sravasti Abbey in order to bring peace and compassion in your own heart and in the hearts of all sentient beings.

Generate the aspiration to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings. This is a precious and joyous motivation that will support you as you plan, travel to, abide in, and depart the Abbey.

An Economy of Generosity (Dana)

In the spirit of generosity, the Abbey does not charge fees to visit or to stay here. We depend completely on the generosity of guests and supporters to maintain the Abbey, to conduct our Dharma programs, and to construct more facilities. We request visitors to make generosity to the Abbey part of their Dharma practice of developing delight in giving. A dana (generosity) basket is available in the Abbey for your offerings

For retreats and courses we ask that you make an initial dana offering to reserve your space. See the registration page for details.

Cultivate Your “Monastic Mind”

A wonderful benefit of your stay at Sravasti Abbey is the opportunity to slow down, quiet down, and cultivate a “monastic mind.”

Monastics choose a life of simplicity, following the Buddha’s guidance for how to subdue our bodies, speech, and minds. While you are with us, we’ll ask you to do the same.

We dress simply without adornments, Through our Dharma practice, we are concerned with developing the inner beauty that comes from turning the mind to virtue. You can join in this by wearing modest, loose-fitting, solid-colored clothing, and by leaving off jewelry, make-up, perfume, scented toiletries, and styling products.

We do our best to nurture wholesome thoughts and to keep a happy mind, determining not to engage in frivolous distractions or idle chatter. We recite a prayer each morning that helps set our “monastic mind” intention for the day:

“Having a ‘monastic mind’ benefits our Dharma practice whether we are monastics or lay practitioners.

“A monastic mind is one that is humble, imbued with the Buddhist worldview, dedicated to cultivating mindfulness, clear knowing, love, compassion, wisdom, and other good qualities. Being mindful of the kindness I have received from all sentient beings, I will relate to them with patience, kindness, and compassion.

“I will be mindful of my precepts and values and will cultivate clear knowing of my thoughts and feeling, as well as how I speak and act. I will take care to act and speak at suitable times and in appropriate ways, abandoning idle talk and disruptive movements.

“With respect for others and confidence in my good qualities, I will be humble and easy for others to speak to. In all these activities, I will endeavor to remember impermanence and the emptiness of inherent existence and to act with bodhicitta.”

Staying At the Abbey

The Abbey does not have a staff that cares for guests. All community members take their turn to cook and care for the others. Depending on the length of your stay, you, too, may have a chance to prepare meals for the community.

Offering service is a significant portion of our day. Gardening, cleaning, cooking, maintenance, transcribing, audio editing Dharma recordings and translating Dharma teachings are among the perennial tasks necessary to build our growing monastery.

For general guidance on Abbey etiquette, click on the Guidelines page.

Set your motivation and aim high! Rejoice in knowing that by helping the Abbey, you and your fellow volunteers are creating causes and conditions that will help the Three Jewels to remain in the world for a very long time!

Accommodations

Accommodations are simple but comfortable.We provide beds but please bring your own sheets, pillow slips, and towels.

Men and women are housed separately. Rooms are generally shared. Community spaces are used for meeting with other residents or guests. Guests are not permitted in each other's sleeping quarters or in the monastics' rooms.

Food

We are vegetarian, preferring foods that are low in fat and do not contain a lot of sugar. We do not eat fertilized eggs, radishes, onions, garlic, or leeks.

We do not shop for food. Following the ancient custom of Buddhist monastics, we eat the food that is offered by visitors and supporters, sharing this with our guests. Please consider making a food offering when you come.

Families

The Abbey is not able to accommodate families with children under 10 years old for overnight visits, but you are welcome to stay at a motel in Newport and visit the Abbey during the day.

Advance notice is required if you wish to bring children 10 years and older during offering service weekends.

Parents are responsible for overseeing their children during the visit.

Visiting
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