are there any policies for bringing very young kids (14 month) to a temple/pagoda (stroller, clothes etc)? We

I am looking for the proper/correct spelling of the Buddhist Temple structure in Yangon, Myanmar. I have seen two names and I think they are both referencing the same place. The names are: Shwedagon Paya and Shwezigon Pagoda (I believe Paya and Pagoda can also be switched in the above two names) Are these name referring to the same Buddhist temple complex? I plan on visiting this site next year. Thank you. Namaste

So I've been a Buddhist since around 2007, but I've never been to a temple. I don't think I've ever actually met another Buddhist. I just go by what I read in Bodhi's translations and Thanissaro's lectures and practice on my own. A few months ago, I started working in Raleigh, NC, and my drive home now goes right by [this Dhammayut temple](http://www.buddharaleightemple.org) ([map](https://goo.gl/maps/UkvYp)) . It's only something like 8 minutes out of my way. I had called their number a few years ago and asked if--I forget what I said specifically--something like do you have any services? (I may have said "Sunday services." Ack.) The response was something like: > Aah.. uh, no... Sort of like a [Consuela "no.. no.."](http://youtu.be/FshkO8HqQ10) . It didn't seem that the person spoke English very well, although I think he understood my question. At the time I had figured that a Thai temple is probably just not very interested in westerners. (I've noticed typical western converts to Buddhism don't tend to wholeheartedly buy into one tradition or another, they might read books on Zen, listen to lectures by the Dalai Lama and also watch videos by Ajahn Brahm. They often totally disregard the idea of rebirth. I can see how some of this might be off-putting to conservative Theravadins.) So I figured their interest is just in attending to the Thai community there, and/or they may have few or no people that speak English well enough to teach in that language. Since then I've sort of alternated back and forth between this view and thinking maybe I ought to pursue it further. Now that I'm so close to the temple, I'm thinking more about trying to attend. **So my question is does anyone here have first-hand experience with Thai temples in the United States and how those tend to handle westerners wanting to attend?** I'm really only interested in practice. I'm only interested in devotion-based actions (e.g. veneration of Buddha statues, kathina ceremonies) insofar as they inspire practice, because I can imagine a scenario where the only thing being done is offering of incense, giving robes and alms to monks and maybe listening to Pali chanting, with little or no meditation or English-language talks. If that's the case, it might not be worth it. (Although this is a Dhammayut temple, so I would tend to think they would certainly be doing meditation there?) **I'm specifically interested in anyone who's Thai and attends Thai temples in the United States, especially a Dhammayut temple like this one, and could give me some insight as to how they operate, what practices they do and how useful it would be to someone who's interested primarily in practice, less in ritual..**

I attended a meditation event that included morning and evening chanting at a Theravada monastery/temple. It was a wonderful event but I couldn't follow the chanting book as it was written in Lao characters. I recognized some basics like taking refuge and eight precepts, but other than that I was lost. Does morning and evening chanting follow a set pattern or does each monastery just pick out what they like? If it is a set pattern, what might it include? I'd like to print out some in Pali/English if possible. Thanks for any help.

I had read occasionally on internet that [Tirupati Balaji](https://www.google.co.in/?gfe_rd=cr&ei=v9bsWODMNKfT8geD94_QAw&gws_rd=ssl#q=tirupati+balaji+) was a Buddhist Shrine. So Was Tirupati Balaji a Buddhist Shrine ?

I recently visited Nanzō-in Temple, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan, home of a very large bronze reclining Buddha. In front of the statue are many vertical metal cylinders. My initial thought was that they are prayer wheels - and you may tell me that this is the case - but I did not see any obvious means for them to rotate. What are these cylinders? (image from Wikimedia Commons, licensed CC BY-SA 2.0. Original at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanzoin_temple#/media/File:Reclining_Buddha_statues_of_Nanzoin.jpg)

Religious groups are typically comprised of communities of practitioners who visit the temple/church a couple of times a week and practice together. Is this true of secular Buddhism? If so, Where are the largest communities?

I am a student at Manhattan College. I am in a class on religious discrimination. For my class I must go to a religious service other than mine. I picked Buddhism. However I don't know what a service would be called, or what day of the weekend it would be. I am lucky I have a monastery around the corner from me; what am I looking for?

I am asking this behalf of my friend. He was gonna commit suicide. But I managed to calm him down by taking him to a Buddhist temple. He had a really fun life, movies, friends, night outs, girls, cars, everything. But suddenly he got to know that he has a skin condition called herpes. Something like a pimple. But it seems he regret a lot a lot as it has no cure. But it is a very common all over the world. He doesn't understand and tried to suicide. He has given up life. Luckily I brought him to this Buddhist temple and managed to save his life. Now he is very interest in becoming a Theravada monk and spend the life in a temple meditating, learning and practicing Buddhism. I decided to support him as he was a good person, help others, donate etc. I am wondering if his conditions and previous life style matters to become a monk. Thanks.

[Image courtesy of ThaiSmile.jp](http://www.thaismile.jp/FotoGallary/ThaiPics/e_ThaiPhoto_MaeHongSon_WatChongKamChongKlang.html) Visiting Buddhist temples, I often notice several statues of Lord Buddha. As far as I understand, they represent different Boddhisattvas. However, these statues are often attributed to different days of the week. I tried to ask Buddhist people why this is so, and they have answered me that this is because each Boddhisattva has had some important event in their life (and in Lord Buddha's life as well), and that event has occurred on a corresponding day of week. But I still can not figure out why these events have never clashed and occurred precisely on different days of week. How can it be? In other words, why have two or more events **not** happened on the same day of the week? Can it be that such attribution only has metaphoric sense?

Hope you all doing excellent! Would like to know if there's any monastery or Theravada temple in San Francisco, OC or LA? I know there's one in Redwood Valley, but it's a lil too far off. Pls share, if you happen to know any nearby. Thanks.

As there are sequence of events which happen in other religions, do such things happen in Buddhism also? **For example:** Consider Christianity, it starts with a worship, then a sermon follows, followed by offerings and then end with a blessing from the priest. Consider Hinduism, it starts with entering the temple, a silent prayer, followed by a blessing from the priest. So, is there a defined set of sequences when a Buddhist enters the (Buddhist) temple?

Sorry, as I don't know the right term for them. But, I have noticed these huge copper cylinders(when I went to visit a temple in Dharmashala), which are kept like 5-6 in a row. They have engravings (probably in some script) on them, and they are rotated by the people who are walking past them. So, what are they? And what are the engravings on them? And why people are rotating them?

Is there a reason why I get this overwhelmed feeling and want to cry when I visit the Temple?

I've noticed three different customs involving string at Theravada temple service. If by chance anyone is familiar with the significance of any of these; it would be nice to know. The service is not in my native language so I miss a lot of nuances and end up forgetting to ask when I have a chance. 1. The monks sit up on a raised area and occasionally seem to be winding string around various objects creating a web like display. What does this signify? 2. At times long pieces of string are sent through the group of lay followers and everyone tries to hold a piece of the string. What does this mean? 3. At the end of the service people sometimes line up to receive a small string bracelet and a blessing from a monk. Is this just a nice gesture or does it have a particular meaning? Does anyone know what the blessing is for? Thanks for any insights. :)

With the understanding that there are many different traditions and cultures within Buddhism, I wonder if it is possible to describe what a newcomer might encounter if they went to a temple service and also what might be some handy things to know about before going. For example, what is considered appropriate attire? Should one bring an offering and if so, what type? What occurs during the service? Chanting? Meditation? How long does a service usually last? Other than common courtesy, are there things that would be important to know to show proper respect? Thanks and also it would be helpful if tradition/country might be noted along with any descriptions.