Buddhism in the time of COVID - Global Conference

:slight_smile: I hope it goes well. I’ll let my unRegistered friends know, some parts might be available at some later date.

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Buddhism in the Time of COVID - Opening Keynote by Bhante Gunaratana

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Livestreaming from 8am and 8pm Sydney time. Some technical hitches, but it’s great to be watching… :heart:

http://www.dhammanet.org/buddhism-in-the-time-of-covid/

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First session went well despite some teething troubles, see you in the evening.

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Is this thread suitable for discussion of the conference content, or will there be another thread?

It seems to going very well; seems there was much beautiful organizational work. It’s supposed to be impossible to organize this well this fast. :slight_smile:

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IKR! Having worked with deepika for many years, I have come to expect it. But that doesn’t make it any less amazing.

And yes, feel free to discuss the talks here.

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I’m enjoying watching the conference (as it gets posted) very much; which, considering the topic, might sound weird. But it’s just so good to hear intelligent, compasionate people discuss this covid Time so thoughtfully. To hear and share responses grounded in Dhamma.

If I had been in the B1 panel chat, I’d perhaps have asked if panelists had comments about the challenges facing “privileged Buddhism” (mentioned by Bhante Sujato), reexamination of our ease with our societies’ economic blueprints and definitions of success (as discussed by Bhante Dhammananda), “prosperity Buddhism”, and how we as Buddhists think and talk about material affluence and kamma.

(That’s just what I last watched; a bit of conference overload to process before (if) I comment on presentations or as yet unseen videos.)

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It’s been great. Some minor technical issues at the beginning of the first session, but it’s wonderful to see all these different ideas and viewpoints.

I guess those of us who are registered should make a note to ask about “privileged Buddhism” after Bhante @sujato’s next presentation… :sweat_smile:

There were a lot of questions coming in, and so I don’t think it was possible to present all of them. And, as Bhante seemed to pick up, Ayya Yeshe seemed to have some questions of her own in mind. Not that that is a bad thing - a chair should bring some focus to a discussion - but it there were quite a few unanswered questions, so it would have been helpful to just let it run for another half hour.

Please don’t feel obliged; only take it up if you want to!

Seeing the posted youtube version, those unvoiced questions are unseen. It’d be wonderful if the Venerables got to see them, though; who knows what talks or writings they might inspire?

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Zoom does record the chats, if you’re recording the video, so in principle they could be forwarded to the speakers. You’re right, that would be something I’d like if I was a presenter.

I might have mispoken, there’s some chat once I click to expand the banner below the video. I don’t know if that’s the Zoom chat tho.

I think that’s YouTube comments, added later.

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Our team is getting better at this, great work by @dhammanet tech guru the seamless launch of the AM session this morning, rich, soothing dhamma as always. Many merits to @Brahmali (Ajahn Brahmali Perth WA) @Tataloka (Ayya Tataloka California USA) @Premaratna(Bhante Permaratana, Pittusburg USA).

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Thanks to the team for the amazing work, Deepika! :heart:

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We write to you with heartfelt gratitude and pleasure to rejoice in the merits we generated together.

Sharing dhamma and connecting with our fellow beings without boundaries in this time of isolation was a priceless experience.

Needless to say, without your encouragement and support this conference could not have been such a successful gathering.

We had over 700 live participants in total and many more will continue to find value by accessing the conference via youtube in the future.

@Damith has kindly presented each discourse individually followed by the respective panel. for swift navigation please visit:

Please feel free to share this link as you see fit.

Please take time to give us your feedback so we can learn and evolve to suit the needs of the community.

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Congratulations for such a great event (series of events) :pray: :pray: :pray:

If, in the future you had a longer lead time to work with, it might be a nice idea to call for presentations that fit within different (pre-determined) themes, and then each session can be organised by a theme. This may enable some themes to be explored in more detail, and leave the overview to the keynote address. Eg Covid and; personal/lived experiences, sutta perspectives, practical suggestions for specific dhamma training opportunities, social implications, specific responses/changes required by Buddhist organisations/monastics, previous experiences, historic parallels etc

Thanks once more to you, all the people working behind the scenes, the moderators and the presenters - a great achievement

Sadhu Sadhu Sadhu

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It was a brilliant Dhamma Program, indeed!

Just seeing & listening to the Most Ven Bhante Henepola Gunaratana Maha Thero by itself was sufficient blessings!

All the sessions had their own unique brilliance! In short, it was a Gem! There may be some minor edges that may need to be cut & polished but, it is still a Gem that radiated its brilliance!

Much merit to Ven Bhante Sujato, Deepika, Damith & everyone else who have worked tirelessly to bring it to fruition!
Metta to All!
Upasako

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Thank you for those suggestions, we will definitely take into consideration and implement in the future.

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Has anyone, maybe @musiko :wink: made downloadable (small) audio of this event?
Our internet isn’t fast or reliable and I try to only get online once a week.

So wonderful to see Bhante G! Well done to everyone who put this event together.

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