Buddhist Center to Be Built in Christian Church in Edinburgh

December 28, 2005

Source: The Scotsman

http://news.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=2465692005

On December 28, 2005 The Scotsman reported, "A Tibetan Lama who wants to buy a disused church in Edinburgh has revealed plans to turn it into a meditation, interfaith and cultural centre that would bring new life to the Old Town. Lama Yeshe Losal, abbot of Samye Ling and director of the Holy Island project, said that, if successful, the Karma Kagyu Buddhist group would convert the former United Presbyterian Church on Blackfriars Street to a centre for use by many different groups as a meeting place and for hire by people teaching relaxation techniques such as yoga and tai chi. 'Tibetan Buddhism is very flexible, so we will have a very open door policy. There is enough space in the building to offer to share it with other groups and nobody will be excluded on the grounds of colour or belief. I also hope we can use it as a place to hold interfaith meetings and receptions.' In keeping with the planning permission already in place to convert the church into a cultural centre, the group plans to mount a permanent exhibition of items from an expedition to Tibet in 1911, many of which have been donated to Samye Ling."