We are a long-standing sangha open to all who wish to have a fuller life following the Buddha’s Teachings. We follow non-sectarian teachings called Vimalacharya for living life as a Buddhist grounded on practice as explained by the Buddha.
Vimalacharya (Vimalacarya) literally means “Pure Coursing”. The general idea is to be in the world living as a Bodhisattva. The focus of the teachings is the One Practice Samadhi as taught in several sutras. This practice is textualized by the teachings in the Srimaladevi Sutra, the Vimalakirtinirdesha Sutra and the Prajnaparamita sutras as well as others with emphasis on living the practical life of a Buddhist day-to-day with the aid of a supportive sangha.
We incorporate teachings from different traditions (Theravada to Mahayana) and so are non-sectarian, relying on the words of the Buddha as recorded in the canon to address today’s concerns. In the Prajnaparamita taught by Manjushri Sutra, Manjushri asks the Buddha Shakyamuni about the qualities of the perfect wisdom that has no qualities. Having explained this to Manjushri, he asks how should a Bodhisattva course to quickly achieve liberation?
The Buddha replies to course in the “One Course Samadhi. This one course has two aspects. One is the direct encounter with the Dharmakaya (absolute) and the other is to be mindful of the Buddha. This is pure coursing.
The direct encounter with the Dharmakaya is understood as the emptiness of emptiness as depicted in the Vimalakirtinirdesha Sutra and other Prajnaparamita Sutras. Further, the teaching on emptiness found in those sutras is expanded upon in the Srimaladevi Sutra.
Also, the life activities of a Bodhisattva are depicted in both of these sutras as examples. The Srimaladevi Sutra’s protagonist is the Queen Srimaladevi who enters into a conversation with the Buddha. The protagonist in the Vimalakirtinirdesha Sutra is the layman Vimalakirti.