Metta Convention: Many Rivers, One Ocean

Location: Western Sydney University, Bankstown 

• Parking available at the nearby Civic Centre or please allow for extra time for train-replacement buses

Cost: Free (donations welcome)

This year’s Metta Convention will host local and international speakers from various Buddhist traditions at the auditorium in Western Sydney University, Bankstown. Don’t miss out on meeting and learning from some of the most esteemed Buddhist teachers from around the world at this special event.

What to Bring:
Please bring your own packed lunch and water bottle.
A meditation cushion, if you prefer sitting on the floor
Program

Day 1: Saturday 8 November

9.00 Registration
9.30 – 10.00 Opening Ceremony from 3 traditions + Buddhist Chant by Davison & President’s Message
10.00 -10.15:  Opening Message by Ven. Ngawang Tenzin (Australia)
10.15 -11.00: Rev. Joan Halifax (online)  – Bodhisattvas Serving in the Charnel Grounds: 7 keys to meeting today’s world suffering (USA)
11.00 – 12.15 Lunch break 🍲
12.15 – 12.30: Ven. Myōgen – Movement Meditation  (Taiwan)
12.30 – 1.00: Ven. Phap Hai – Easing into Deep Calm: a body-based guided meditation (Australia)
1.00 – 1.30 Ven. Robina Courtin – Tough Love: working with compassion fatigue (USA)
1.30 – 2.00 Tea Break ☕️
2.00 – 2.30: Ven. Bhante Joe Atulo – For the Sake of the Goal: wilderness monks across traditions and their lessons for us (Sri Lanka)
2.30 – 3.00: Ven Bhante Sujato – What Stories will You Tell? (Australia)
3.00 – 4.30: Breakout Sessions (facilitated by various speakers)
4.30 – 5.30: Panel with Ven Sanathavihari, Rev. Ryōtoku, Nadine Levy – The Journey of Healing: understanding what it means to be humans (USA, UK, Australia)
5.30 – 5.45: Closing Message by Ven. Upekkha (Australia)

Day 2: Sunday 9 November 

9.30 – 10.00: Opening Ceremony from 3 traditions + Opening Message & Meditation by Ven. Thubten Chokyi & Ven. Ajahn Sādaro (Australia)
10.00 – 10.30 : Ven. Ngawang Tenzin – One Vehicle (Ekayana): celebrating complementarity across Buddhist traditions (Australia)
10.30 – 11.00: Ven. Bhante Suddhaso and Ven. Ayya Soma – Shattering the Mirage of Self: practical guide to embodying Anatta (Italy)
11.00 – 12.15 Lunch Break 🍲
12.15 – 12.30: Walking Meditation by Ven. Bom Hyon Sunim (Australia)
12.30 – 1.00: Ven. Matthieu Ricard (online) – Towards a More Altruistic World (France)
1.00 – 1.30: Ven Upekkha – Be Kind to Yourself: the world needs it (Australia)
1.30 – 2.00 Tea break ☕️
2.00 – 2.30: Rev. Ryōtoku – Seeking the Buddha within: evolution of Buddhist concepts from the Pali canon to Mahayana Sutras (UK)
2.30 – 3.00: Ven. Sanathavihari – Bypassing the Wound: How Spiritual Seeking Can Mask Unhealed Trauma (USA)
3.00 – 4.30: Breakout Session (facilitated by various speakers)
4.30 – 5.30: Panel with Ven. Myōgen, Ven. Pasanna, and Ven. Tashi Choedup – Trans*ending Suffering, Embracing Truth (Taiwan, Australia, India)
5.30 – 5.45: Closing Message by Ven. Bhante Sujato (Australia)

Register Now!