Buddha Grove Celebration

Written by Dominic Taylor

This was the 15th anniversary of the opening of the first Buddha Grove in a British prison and there were monks from a number of monasteries around the country. Ven Ajahn Khemadhammo (known also also by his title Chao Khun Bhavanavitayt ) led the talks including an explanation of the name of the Buddhist prison chaplaincy – Angulimala. Angulimala is said to have been a mass murderer at the time of the Buddha who went on to become an Arahant. Luangpor Khemmadhammo also explained how the Buddha Grove was built by prisoners, among whom were two in particular then serving ten and fifteen year sentences.

To quote further from Lord Avebury, who was also present as the Patron of Angulimala –
"The example of Angulimala, a murderer who became a monk, and that of the two prisoners who led the construction of the Buddha Grove, showed that people could and did change.

At the ceremony, the Ven Khemadhammo, Head of the Buddhist Prison Chaplaincy, launched Let Go, a new organisation whose purpose is to help Buddhist ex-prisoners when they return to outside life. Bobby Cummines, the Chief Executive of Unlock, supported this initiative, and spoke eloquently of the debt he owed to the Ven Khemadhammo for helping him personally to change during his 13-year sentence.
For more information about Angulimala, see www.angulimala.org.uk/
For Unlock, see unlock.org.uk/main.aspx."