That is still more or less what happens here. On most weeks the centre is quiet. On the days it is not, people arrive after work or on a Sunday morning, take off their shoes, and sit together. Children learn stories in one room while adults meditate in another. And there is food and tea, prepared by people glad to be able to give.

What Theravāda means here

Theravāda is the older of the surviving Buddhist traditions, preserved in the Pāli language across Sri Lanka and mainland Southeast Asia. In practice, for a lay centre like ours, that means an emphasis on the discourses as they were recorded, on sīla — ethical conduct, and on bhāvanā — meditation as something you actually do rather than read about.

We teach in English, which has shaped who finds us. Our congregation has always included people who grew up in Buddhist families and people who arrived with no background at all, and both are equally at home.

How the centre runs

Metta Lodge is a registered non-profit society run by a volunteer committee. Nobody here is paid to teach. Classes or workshops are led by senior lay practitioners and by visiting monks from Malaysia and abroad.

There is no requirement for fees, but you can choose to contribute by joining as a member. The centre is sustained entirely by dāna — voluntary giving, which is the traditional arrangement and one we have no plans to change.