About the Nashville Buddhist Temple
The mission of The Buddhist Temple in Nashville, TN, is to provide a center for the practice of Buddhist meditation and Dhamma study in the United States, for both laypeople and monastics, and for both Westerners and ethnic Asians, in a traditional monastery/Buddhist center. A vihara is a monastery, which by definition is a residence for monks or nuns. The monks serve as teachers and exemplars of the Buddhadhamma, provide pastoral care and engage in public service. They are also engaged in many practical tasks like running this Web site. At the same time they live in a vulnerable position of dependence on the laity, not allowed a livelihood, nor to even cook for themselves, according to the Buddha's instructions. This entails a special kind of symbiotic relationship between monk and laity that colors the Buddhist community.
