Draft:The Buddho Foundation
| Stichting Buddho | |
| Formation | 13 June 2019 |
|---|---|
| Type | Non-profit foundation |
| Headquarters | Engweg 53, 3972 JD Driebergen (Netherlands) |
| Website | https://buddho.org/ |
The Buddho Foundation (Dutch: Stichting Buddho, operating online as Buddho.org Archived 2025-06-14 at the Wayback Machine) is a small Dutch non-profit foundation established in June 2019 to promote samatha (concentration) meditation — especially the buddhānussati/buddho recollection practice — and to support related retreats, study groups, and educational resources. The foundation describes its mission as enabling people to live moral, mindful and meaningful lives in the spirit of Theravāda Buddhism, and operates largely on volunteer labour and donations.[1]
History
[edit]The group behind the foundation formalised an existing meditation practice in the Netherlands by registering Stichting Buddho on 13 June 2019. The foundation’s policy plan (2019–2024) sets out its statutory aims and practical programme (monthly meetings, introductory courses, retreats, teacher support, and an information website), and records close links with a monastery in northern Thailand that provides the canonical lineage for the method used.[2]
Meditation method and lineage
[edit]The foundation teaches a samatha (concentration) method known as buddho or buddhānussati — a recollection/concentration practice in which the meditator mentally repeats buddho or recollects the Buddha’s qualities to steady attention. Its materials frame this practice within the Theravāda samatha tradition and highlight a living connection with a Thai monastery led by the abbot of their lineage. Scholarly literature affirms buddhānussati as a canonical recollection practice and analyzes its historical and textual basis; contemporary Thai forest masters (e.g., Ajahn Lee) have popularised samatha techniques featuring brief mantric recitations like buddho.[3][4][5]
Publications and online resources
[edit]The foundation's multilingual website (Dutch/English) features explanatory articles, guided instruction, audio content, blogs, and podcasts for novice to intermediate practitioners. The site also offers retreat logistics and encourages donations to support Dutch activities and a partner Thai monastery.[6]
Partnerships and outreach
[edit]Stichting Buddho partners with retreat centres and rental venues in the Netherlands and maintains an ongoing relationship with a monastery in northern Thailand that legitimizes their meditation lineage. The policy plan explicitly names this monastery and the abbot (referred to as “Ahba”) as the source of their meditation system.[7]
References
[edit]- ^ "About the Foundation". buddho.org. Stichting Buddho. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
- ^ "Beleidsplan Stichting Buddho 2019–2024" (PDF). buddho.org (in Dutch). Stichting Buddho. 2019. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
- ^ "Samatha Meditation on buddho". buddho.org. Stichting Buddho. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
- ^ Tan, Piya (2010). Buddhānussati. SD 15.7. The Minding Centre.
- ^ Giustarini, Giacomo (2024). "The sleep of the good: Meditation on buddho in the Sudatta Sutta and its aṭṭhakathā". Journal of Buddhist Studies. 20 (1): 45–68.
- ^ "buddho.org homepage and resources". buddho.org. Stichting Buddho. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
- ^ "Beleidsplan Stichting Buddho 2019–2024" (PDF). buddho.org (in Dutch). Stichting Buddho. 2019. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
External links
[edit]- Official website Archived 2025-06-14 at the Wayback Machine