Letesa Isler for Friends of Sravasti Abbey

Dear friend,

When I first met Buddhism in 2018, a lovely new Dharma friend invited me to her home once a week to view Venerable Chodron’s teachings online. That’s all it took. I was “in” 100% and wanted to learn more.

The Abbey, with its generous offering of online teachings and retreats, was there to fulfill my thirst to learn.

Since then, I have joined 14 online retreats and visited in person last year for the Nyung Ne retreat. Although most of my Abbey experience has been virtual, I feel like an integrated community member.

I know hundreds and maybe thousands of people like you feel the same way. That’s why I’m inviting you to help meet the $500,000 Ground Breaking Challenge to build the Buddha Hall

Why should we support Sravasti Abbey and construction of the Buddha Hall?

The Abbey is home to a treasure trove of beautiful gems, committed bodhisattvas-in-training, who freely share with all of us.

Ethical, trustworthy Dharma teachers are so very hard to find. When you find a place like the Abbey, its value is readily apparent.

That’s why it’s so crucial that we support the Abbey and its efforts to teach the Dharma to all with a thirst to learn.

The new Buddha Hall will allow the Abbey to continue its online teachings with updated technology. It will be big enough for more of us to receive the teachings, and it will give much-needed space for the growing resident monastic community and the many lay guests that visit.

We need the Dharma and the Buddha Hall more than ever

These times give us a perfect opportunity to practice loving kindness and the four immeasurable thoughts—love, compassion, joy, and equanimity.

The U.S. is so divided right now. Anger and hatred seem to be as contagious as COVID-19. It moves from person to person and town to town, eventually taking over whole regions. The destructive energy of hatred is so all-consuming, and it seems to be spreading around the world.

Where can we turn to change our perspective, purify our afflictive emotions like anger and hatred, and cultivate the virtues that will bring us joy in this life and beyond?

The Buddha Hall at the Abbey!

For Sravasti Abbey to keep sharing these teachings widely, they need this Buddha Hall. And they need our help to build it.

The Buddha Hall will be a place where we can calm our minds, purify our afflictions, bolster our practice, and immerse ourselves in the Dharma. It will be a safe place to learn and plant the seeds of loving kindness.

The Abbey will provide the lessons; America and the world are perfectly staged to give us the exams!

Will you join me?

Your gift offered by December 18 helps to match a $500,000 Ground Breaking Challenge

Let’s build the Buddha Hall together!

Letesa Isler
Friends of Sravasti Abbey
Cleveland, GA USA

PS – Watch the awesome new video: Buddha Hall: By the People, For the People.

PPS – If you want to give more, but have just a little, please consider giving monthly.

Modest monthly gifts quickly accumulate to become a significant donation that can grow love, compassion, and wisdom in our country and the world. See the many ways to give.