Saffron Days in L.A.

by Bhante Walpola Piyananda

  “A storyteller gifted with great compassion, wisdom and humor . . . . An unusual and charming glimpse into the life of one of those smiling men in saffron robes and his pastoral mission in the heart of a modern Western city.”

  —L.A. Times

  “In this pleasant collection of 20 stories about his experiences in the U.S., Bhante weaves narrative, sacred texts and cultural observations into a serviceable whole cloth. . . . They all have a wonderful, if sometimes bittersweet, flavor in this East-meets-West compilation.”

  —Publishers Weekly

  “Serene and friendly, Bhante Piyananda invites confidences, and he recounts many of these conversations with great delicacy, warmth, and purpose.”

  —Booklist

  “These charming stories embody the wise heart of a Buddhist elder. In a practical and warm way, Bhante inspires us to walk our talk as Buddhists in this world.”

  —Jack Kornfield

  ABOUT THE BOOK

  In this delightful memoir, Bhante Walpola Piyananda, a Buddhist monk from Sri Lanka, shares his often amusing, often poignant experiences of life in America. Whether he’s reasoning with a group of confrontational punks on Venice Beach, bridging the gap between a rebellious teenager and her traditional parents, explaining to an errant Buddhist that the concept of “non-attachment” does not justify irresponsibility, or dealing with a nude sunbather at a meditation retreat, no situation—no matter how sticky—manages to affect Bhante’s unflappable calm or his phenomenal ability to find the right parable for the moment.

  Bhante Walpola Piyananda, who is abbot of a Buddhist meditation center in L.A., has met and counseled a wide range of people—the disenfranchised of society, couples dealing with relationship issues, American Buddhists trying to reconcile their practice with their very Western lifestyles, recent immigrants struggling to assimilate but also maintain their traditional values. His stories reveal the complicated, joyous, painful, baffling, and inspiring aspects of the human condition and the power of true compassion.

  BHANTE WALPOLA PIYANANDA was born in Sri Lanka and has been living in the United States for over thirty years. He is the founder-president and abbot of Dharma Vijaya Buddhist Vihara in Los Angeles, California.

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  Saffron Days in L.A.

  TALES OF A BUDDHIST MONK IN AMERICA

  Bhante Walpola Piyananda

  FOREWORD BY THE DALAI LAMA

  SHAMBHALA

  Boston & London

  2013

  Shambhala Publications, Inc.

  Horticultural Hall

  300 Massachusetts Avenue

  Boston, Massachusetts 02115

  www.shambhala.com

  © 2001 by Bhante Walpola Piyananda

  Cover design by Jim Zaccaria

  Cover art photostyling by Jim Zaccaria from a Don Farber photograph

  All rights reserved. No part of this bok may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Piyananda, Bhante Walpola.

  Saffron days in L.A.: tales of a Buddhist monk in America / Bhante Walpola Piyananda; foreword by the Dalai Lama.

  p. cm.

  Includes index.

  eISBN 978-0-8348-2881-0

  ISBN 1-57062-813-0 (pbk.)

  1. Religious life—Buddhism. 2. Buddhism—Doctrines.

  I. Title: Tales of a Buddhist monk in America. II. Title.

  BQ 4302 .P59 2001

  294.3'44—dc21

  00-067962

  I dedicate this book with reverence and gratitude to my parents and teachers who encouraged me to begin my spiritual journey.

  CONTENTS

  Foreword by the Dalai Lama

  Acknowledgments

  Introduction

  ONE

  The Robe

  TWO

  Phoenix Calamity

  THREE

  Religious Tolerance

  FOUR

  Boundless Compassion

  FIVE

  The Disciple Who Jumped over the Cliff

  SIX

  The Punks Meet the Monk

  SEVEN

  The Balancing Act

  EIGHT

  Karmic Ties

  NINE

  Detachment—A Way of Life

  TEN

  A Lady of the Night

  ELEVEN

  Fidelity and Faith

  TWELVE

  Buddhist Prosperity

  THIRTEEN

  Healing Powers of Chanting

  FOURTEEN

  The London Doctor

  FIFTEEN

  Children Change Us

  SIXTEEN

  The Alcoholic

  SEVENTEEN

  Painful Consequences

  EIGHTEEN

  The Sunbather

  NINETEEN

  Appearances Are Deceiving

  TWENTY

  The Seven Types of Wealth

  Glossary

  Notes

  About the Author

  E-mail Sign-Up

  FOREWORD

  Compassion is the key to Buddhism. If we can learn to act with compassion toward all living beings under all circumstances, then we will undoubtedly be happy ourselves. This book by Ven. Walpola Piyananda reveals such compassion directly, in stories that are based on his own experience.

  Ven. Piyananda is a senior monk from Sri Lanka who has lived in the United States for more than twenty-three years. Here he has written a book that embodies well the approach of Theravada Buddhism, with lessons that are applicable to all schools of Buddhism. He has managed to relate his own extensive experience of dealing with people living in the United States, whether they are Asian or American, Buddhist or non-Buddhist, and set it all in the context of the Lord Buddha’s teaching. In so doing, I believe he has created a book to which all readers can relate.

  These stories are about what happens to us in everyday life. They provide vivid examples of how we can react most compassionately to what happens to us. Ven. Piyananda is well read in the Buddhist scriptures and is regularly able to cite what the Buddha had to say about this or that situation. Each of the stories told here relates to an event and how Ven. Piyananda was involved in it.

  Ven. Piyananda possesses the admirable quality of never having compromised his identity as a traditionally trained Sri Lankan Theravadan Buddhist monk, and yet he always acts compassionately toward others, without wishing to impose his specific beliefs on the people with whom he comes in contact. Indeed, he makes the Buddha’s teachings available whenever and wherever he goes, but with the simple and compassionate goal of helping people face up to whatever situations present themselves.

  I believe that readers will find much to learn from in this book. But besides that, there are many incidents in it that are likely to raise a smile, which means that they will also enjoy it.

  —Tenzin Gyatso

  The Fourteenth Dalai Lama

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  I would like to thank all the people in this book who enriched my experiences. Many stories and anecdotes are included in these chapters. Situations and events are true but to protect the privacy and confidentiality of those I’ve written about, I have changed some names and anecdotal details to prevent identifying any particular individual or situation. My goal is to teach the message of the Buddha as it is applied to our daily living.

  First and foremost, I humbly thank all my teach
ers, especially Ven. Walpola Gnanaratana Maha Thera, who ordained me as a Buddhist monk.

  I am grateful to His Holiness the Dalai Lama who wrote the foreword to my book amidst his busy schedule.

  I thank Mr. Ron Bogan, who sponsored my coming to America, the late Ven. Neluwe Jinaratana Maha Nayaka Thera of India, Ven. Dr. K. Sri Dhammananda Maha Nayaka Thera of Malaysia, the late Ven. Dr. Walpola Rahula Maha Thera, Ven. Haupe Somananda Nayaka Maha Thera, and Dr. Ananda Guruge, who encouraged me to come to this great country.

  I am grateful to the late Ven Dr. Havanpola Ratanasara Nayaka Maha Thera; Gamini Jayasinghe, M.D.; S. K. P. Gunawardane, M.D.; and the other members of the Dharma Vijaya Buddhist Vihara who thought righteously and supported me during my difficult early days in this country, as well as through other challenges I had to face over the years.

  I would like to thank my colleague and dhamma brother Ven. Dr. Pannila Ananda Nayake Maha Thera, who has been beside me since childhood. I am also appreciative of the friendship and generosity of Ven. Madawala Seelawimala, my spiritual brother. My gratitude also to my teachers: the late Dr. Edmund Perry, Chairman, Department of Religion, Northwestern University; Dr. George Bond, formerly the Head of the Deparment of Religious Studies at Northwestern University; Dr. S. Scott Bartchy, Professor of Christian Origins and the History of Religion and Director of the Center for the Study of Religion at UCLA; and Dr. Chandra Wickramagamage, Senior Professor of Pali and Buddhist Studies at Jayawardhanapura University in Sri Lanka.

  My special thanks to Bodhicari Sama (Dede Whiteside), Bodhicari Sanghamitta (Ramya Gunasekera), and Dhammacari Dharmapala (Stephen Long). I appreciate their patient, cheerful, tireless efforts, their insight and devotion in editing this book.

  I thank Bodhicari Dharmajiva (Stan Levinson) for discussing some of the stories included in this book and for contributing to the copyediting.

  I am thankful to the Ven. Weihene Pannaloka Nayaka Maha Thera, Ven. Dr. Udagama Sumangala Maha Thera, Ven. Madawala Punnaji Maha Thera, Ven. Koppakande Sumanajothi Thera, Ven. Siyabalagoda Ananda Thera, Ven. Watogala Saranasiri Thera, Cynthia Shimazu, Dhammika Vidanapathirana, Loku Banda Tillakaratne, Ramani Priyanka, Vasana De Mel, Anura Jayatilake, Gananath Wijeratne, Tissa Karunasiri, Ana Scott Kadin, Bhadraji Jayatileka, Dr. Bandula Wijay, Shani Wijay, Duminda Gamage, Amali Jayasinghe, and Purnika Liyanage for their valuable assistance.

  Finally, I wish to thank Shambhala Publications for publishing this book.

  May they all enjoy the blessings of the Triple Gem. May they all be well and happy.

  W. P.

  INTRODUCTION

  It is almost twenty-five years since I came to this country, and I have encountered many experiences I never even imagined while growing up in Sri Lanka. I believe I have brought some unique experiences to those who have come in contact with me.

  After completing my postgraduate studies in India, I went back to my native Sri Lanka to give service as a monk, but I had a strong urge to go to America. My superiors and colleagues tried to dissuade me. They warned me, based on information they had mostly only heard. They believed America was a dangerous place for someone dressed as a Buddhist monk and that it was not ready for the teachings of the Buddha. Also, they said, the temptations were so great that I might wind up giving up my robes and living a secular, materialistic life.

  But I had great faith in the Buddha, in the Dhamma, and in the Sangha, and I was confident that my training would enable me to disseminate the Buddha’s teachings in America. I recalled the Punnovada Sutta. Punna was a monk who was determined to move to another country. The Buddha warned him, but his warning was a kind of test of Ven. Punna.

  “Punna, the people of Sunaparanta are fierce and rough. If they abuse and threaten you, what will you think then?”

  “Venerable Sir, I’ll think “These people of Sunaparanta are excellent, truly excellent, in that they did not give me a blow with the fist.”

  “And if they hit you?”

  “Then I’ll think that they did not give me a blow with a clod.”

  “And if they hit you with a clod?”

  “That they did not give me a blow with a stick.”

  “And if they hit you with a stick?”

  “That they did not stab me with a knife.”

  “And if they stab you with a knife?”

  “That they did not take my life with the knife.”

  “And if they take your life with the knife?”

  “There have been disciples of the Blessed One, who, being repelled, humiliated, and disgusted by the body and by life, have sought an assailant. But I have obtained an assailant without even a search.”

  The Buddha replied, “Good, good, Punna! Possessing such self-control and peacefulness, you will be able to dwell in the Sunaparanta country.”

  The story of Punna had left an indelible message in my mind. Therefore, I decided amidst all obstacles to pursue my desire to venture into the “New World.”

  No one has stabbed me, hit me with a stick, a clod, or a hand, or even tried to kill me, though I’ve had some pretty exciting adventures. In this book I try to show how in each experience, whether sad, happy, funny, serious, or even tragic, there is a lesson to be learned. It is because of the Buddha’s teachings that I have been able to handle and learn from these situations and, hopefully, help others.

  In fact, I am happy to mention that while being a traditional saffron-robed monk, I am able to live a fruitful life being of service to humanity in this great land of freedom, equality, and opportunity.

  I hope you will find the following stories entertaining and beneficial. May you be well and happy.

  ONE

  The Robe

  It had been two months since I ordained Sunanda. It is not an easy adjustment to become a Buddhist monk. It was especially difficult for Sunanda, who was not only a Westerner, but was born and raised in the Jewish faith in Beverly Hills. He had not been brought up around monks, or in a culture that knew about, incorporated, and honored the sangha as an essential part of society, as it is in most of Asia.

  Sunanda had been struggling quietly with a few issues, and he thought I had not noticed. I decided to wait for him to come forward to ask for help, knowing that he needed to choose his own time. As the waters of his frustration rose, the dam holding his silence eventually broke on a clear early sunrise in the spring.

  Sunanda usually came to my room in the morning to pay his respects to me as his teacher and abbot, a tradition he seemed to enjoy and appreciate. Even though he was always friendly, he was often quiet and usually spent only a few moments with me, eager to begin his daily work. On this particular spring day his face was full of concern and question, and he stayed with me longer than usual.

  He suddenly shouted out loud, “Bhante!” The force of his voice, coming from such a usually quiet monk, sent a shock wave through the room. I turned and looked at him with amazement.

  “Bhante!” he called out again. “I think I have to give up my robe. I have to leave the monastery!”

  Sunanda’s eyes were downcast, and I could tell that he was having a difficult time getting up the courage to face me. I knew that this was the time to talk at last. “Sunanda,” I calmly said, “please tell me what’s on your mind. You are obviously troubled. Perhaps I can be of assistance to you.”

  He looked at me with trepidation, like he wished he had not spoken out so abruptly. “It’s OK,” I said. “Please feel free to continue. That’s how we learn. There is nothing you could say to me that would shock me.”

  Sunanda looked at me again for reassurance, and I nodded. He took a deep breath and began.

  “Bhante, I am so embarrassed about what I am going to tell you. Since I was ordained a couple of months ago, I have been harassed endlessly. People yell out names, whisper as I pass, ask me if I forgot to change my Halloween costume! They say, ‘Hey, are you a pumpkin?’ They have kicked me on the bus. Sometimes I think I will be beaten up! I am afraid to go outside. How can I live this way,
Bhante? I don’t know what to do.”

  Sunanda was starting to sob, thinking about the abuse he had endured. I am sure he was also thinking about the possibility of giving up his vows. He was a devoted Buddhist monk, and I could well understand the pain he was feeling.

  “My dear Sunanda,” I said, in a reassuring manner. “You are not alone. I have suffered the same treatment on many occasions.”

  Sunanda looked up at me, absolutely startled. “You what?” he said with widening eyes. “How could anyone abuse someone like you?”

  “Well, I will tell you, Sunanda. I’ll share a few stories with you and then you’ll understand.”

  Sunanda nodded and then moved closer so he could hear me better. He obviously didn’t want to miss a word of what I was about to say.

  “Sunanda, a few months ago I was traveling with Bhante Sumedha and Nanda from Los Angeles to Berkeley. Do you remember that trip?”

  Sunanda nodded his head and I continued. “We stopped at a rest area to go to the bathroom. As I was going into the men’s room, a man stopped me and shouted, ‘Hey, this isn’t the women’s bathroom!’ I ignored him. Then again he called out, ‘Hey, lady! Don’t you understand English? This isn’t the women’s bathroom!’

  “I removed the knit cap on my head and turned to face the man. ‘Sir, I am a Buddhist monk. I am wearing a traditional monk’s robe.’

  “The man was completely taken aback and he replied, ‘Oh, I am sorry, sir. I thought you were wearing an Indian sari!’

  “When I walked back outside, the man was standing there waiting for me. He approached, and with excitement in his voice, he asked if he could speak with me. I quietly nodded my head in consent.”

  “Bhante, please continue,” Sunanda urged, filled with curiosity.

  I leaned forward and spoke with more vigor. “He wanted to know my name. I told him that I am called Bhante.

  “‘Bhante, my name is Bill,’ he replied. ‘I am so curious about your dress. Or rather your robe! Please tell me about its colors. Bright yellow. Hmm. What does that mean?’ Bill questioned.