On Saturday 17th September 2022, I visited the Birmingham Buddhist Vihara in Osler Street, Ladywood, Birmingham as part of Birmingham Heritage Week. I never realised there was a Buddhist Temple in Birmingham so it was a pleasant surprise to find out there was and I am glad I went.
It is such a peaceful, tranquil, and friendly place to visit. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND you visit this Peace Pagoda.
The Birmingham Buddhist Vihara Photos
Click here to see photographic memories of my day out.
About The Birmingham Buddhist Vihara
In 1975 Dr. Rewata Dhamma, the Founder and Spiritual Director of Birmingham Buddhist Vihara and Dhammatalaka Peace Pagoda, was invited to England where he established a Buddhist monastery in Birmingham as his base.
Since his arrival in England in 1975, the majority of those who have called on Venerable Dr. Rewata Dhamma for teaching have been English. Impressed by this, and wishing well for the future of Buddhism in England, he realized that the teaching would only become truly established here once the British themselves took responsibility for its development. Buddhism is not a missionary religion in the sense that is usually understood. Religion cannot be imposed from outside; it must develop in line with the culture in which it finds itself and how best to do this can only be truly understood by people who are native to that culture. On the other hand, it is also necessary for these people to have some depth of understanding of Buddhism itself and so they must have training and information available to them which is suitable to their cultural background and age group.
Interest in Buddhism from schools, colleges and universities has steadily increased over the years and the Vihara has become one of the major centres in the West Midlands serving this need. As Buddhism becomes increasingly an accepted part of comparative religious studies so they welcome the many groups and individuals who need information and guidance from them. This encourages further development of Buddhism and practice for seekers of Buddhist knowledge.
In 1998 he accomplished the building of Dhamma Talaka Peace Pagoda, after years of planning, as a suitable resting place for the royal relics.
The Peace Pagoda is the only purpose-built Myanmar-style pagoda in the UK and can offer a unique educational and cultural experience to visiting students and groups of all ages. The pagoda is a miniature replica of Shwedagon pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, which is one of the most important pagodas in that country. Visitors to the pagoda may learn about Theravada Buddhist beliefs, practices and meditation methods; students can also be given the opportunity to try meditation for themselves.
You can read more information and see what they have to offer on their website here.
A Guide To The Dhammatalaka Peace Pagoda
Opening Times
Opening times vary depending on what is going on at the time.
To see what events are happening and when click here.
Address
29-31 Osler Sreet
Ladywood
Birmingham
B16 9EU.
Telephone
0121 454 6591.
General Enquiries
For general enquiries click here.
School Visit Enquiries
For school visit enquiries click here.
Open Day
Visit the Birmingham Heritage Week website (link above) to find out when the next open day will be.
Blog Posts
Notes And Links
The image shown at the top of this page is copyright of Frank Parker.
The videos shown above are via YouTube.
