| April 13, 2010 7:00 pm | to | April 18, 2010 4:00 pm |
New Years celebration begins on the eve, this year on April 13, with an evening ceremony to close the previous year, and ends on the 18th, with an noon ceremony to end the celebration. Click here for the 2010 program at Watt Dhammarangsi.
Google Map and address to the Wat:
19940 S.W. Stafford Road
West Linn, OR 97068
Phone: 503-638-3700
The Wat is a place that’s not just a our community center, but a monastery, where people have taken refuge. So please follow some basic decorum during your visit.
Dress: Please dress appropriately (conservatively). It is polite not to show your wealth or status, but dress simply, with little or no makeup, jewelry, etc.
Greetings: When you greet someone, it is polite to press your hands together, with fingers extended, raised about or above your chest area, and bow a little. This is called saluting, and is a sign of deep respect, to greet another human being as if you are greeting the Buddha, as he taught that we all have the potential to awaken (sambodhi) and unbind (nibbana). You can also try speaking “ja-roop-soo-ah” as you salute, which means hello. When you see the proper greeting, it is someone also smiling with heart and eyes!
Talking: You can talk regularly, but try not to raise your voice.
Entering a building: When entering the temple, it is polite to remove your shoes. Observe where others have left their shoes, and you will be fine. By the way, the custom of removing shoes when entering one’s home comes from treating one’s home like the temple.
Sitting: There is a certain style for sitting politely, and that is to point your sole (the bottom of your feet) away from the person to be respected. You can’t avoid pointing the sole of the feet at someone behind or to your side, but at least the person in front should be respected. So when sitting in front of the monastics, you’ll see people sitting with legs folded, extended back to either side, or sitting on both legs. But it’s not polite to extend the leg in front and point the sole towards someone.
Titles: Address a monk as “Preah-ong”, which is equivalent to venerable. Address an elder or dhamma teacher as “Lok”. Someone who could be your uncle as “Boo”, or aunt as “Ming”. For any gender: older as Bong, younger or children as Own.
There are more decorum, but that’s enough. Above all, observe what others do, and you’ll be fine.
