Planting a Seed

How do you start a Buddhist movement? Charismatic teachers gather disciples by the thousand; Asian Buddhist organizations provide for the religious needs of immigrant communities; maverick monks trained in Asia set up temples of their own; eccentric Bohemians attract circles of devotees; academics 'go native' and preach what they teach. American Buddhism has become the most complex, some would say confused, form in the history of the religion. In 1980 three men from the UK went to the USA to establish a new Buddhist movement. They had neither charisma, the backing of a traditional order, financial support, or experience, but they did have enthusiasm, confidence and naivete. Planting a Seed traces the development of the Triratna Buddhist Community in the USA for the first 15 years but it is also a story of the sort of personal struggle that is involved in such a project. The book also offers a glimpse into the world of American Buddhism in the 1980s and 90s.