WAT BUDDHA SAMAKHEE NELSON

วัดพุทธสามัคคี เมืองเนลสัน ประเทศนิวซีแลนด์

Background

Wat Buddha Samakhee Nelson, New Zealand is located at 377 Lower Queen Street, Richmond, Nelson City, South Island of New Zealand. The temple was established due to the demand of Buddhist devotees in Nelson who wanted to have a temple as a place to rejuvenate their minds. and the morale of Buddhists in abroad.

Wat Buddha Samakhee Nelson, New Zealand, was established after Wat Buddha Samakhee Christchurch was successfully built due to Thai people in Nelson. Furthermore, people passed away, got ill, and they wanted to go to the temple to make merit, practice meditation to have spiritual anchor, so they had to invite the monks to bring their morale back. However, there was a problem traveling between Nelson and Wat Buddha Samakhee, Christchurch, because both cities were 500 kilometers apart. Therefore, Buddhist devotees in Nelson have kindly asked most venerable Phra Kitti Sophonvides, Abbot of the Wat Buddha Samakhee Christchurch and President of the Union of Thai Sanghas in Oceania to build the Wat Buddha Samakhee in Nelson City to be the center of the mind, a place to make merit and practicing meditation for Thai people in Nelson. and Buddhists in Nelson, New Zealand.

Wat Buddha Samakhee Nelson started its construction in 2006 and in 2008 bought a house to build a temple with an area of 800 square meters, which was later renovated into a pavilion for practicing dhamma and an accomodation. The lodging places within the temple consists of

1) 1 Kuti (Sangha house): 3 bedrooms

2) 1 Dhamma hall: a living room and 3 bedrooms

3) 1 Abbot's Kuti

4) 1 Restroom: 3 rooms

At present, Phra Maha Somchai Tapasilo (Chan-aem) is the abbot. In which Wat Buddha Samakhee Nelson has continually organized activities to promote Buddhism in accordance with the policy of the Supreme Sangha Council of Thailand, such as performing chanting with Buddhists, listening to the Patimokkha on Buddhist holy days, Practicing Vipassana according to 4 Satipatthana (4 foundations of mindfulness), Teaching Thai language to Thai youths in abroad every sunday, providing scholarships and promoting Thai arts and culture to youth, organizing chanting ceremony and meditation retreat offering as royal merit making, and various traditions like Kathin ceremony, Mahachart dhamma preaching etc.